8:01 AM | 70% of people don't need to pay individual income tax in 2023; Four pharmacies forged tens of thousands of prescriptions with an amount of over 100 million yuan; Apple's new patent develops a new four-foldable phone.
TOP3 Big News
More than 70% of People Do Not Need to Pay Personal Income Tax in 2023
On October 15, the China News Service reported that the data of the 2023 annual personal income tax final settlement and payment released by the State Taxation Administration on October 15 shows that among the people who have obtained comprehensive income in China, the proportion of people who do not need to pay personal income tax exceeds 70%, and the personal income tax has effectively played the role of adjusting high and benefiting low. Tax data from the State Taxation Administration shows that currently, among the people who have obtained comprehensive income in China, the proportion of people who do not need to pay personal income tax exceeds 70%. Among the less than 30% of the actual taxpayers remaining, more than 60% only apply the lowest tax rate of 3%, and the tax payment amount is relatively small. It is reported that at present, China has formed a relatively complete pre-tax deduction system for personal income tax. For example, the basic deduction standard for personal income tax has been raised from 3,500 yuan per person per month to 5,000 yuan. In addition, seven special additional deductions such as children's education, support for the elderly, and housing loan interest have been established. (China News Service)
Four Pharmacies Falsified Tens of Thousands of Prescriptions with an Amount Exceeding 100 Million Yuan
Recently, when the Big Data Center of the National Healthcare Security Administration was screening data, it was found that in a pharmacy in Harbin, Heilongjiang, 96 insured individuals had an extremely large amount of drug purchases. Among them, one insured individual purchased about 160 boxes of prescription drugs for treating a specific disease in two years, with an amount exceeding one million yuan. However, the purchaser claimed that the pharmacy never requested to provide a prescription. The flight inspection team launched an investigation into four pharmacies in Harbin and found that almost all the prescriptions presented by the pharmacies were handwritten. The drugs prescribed on a single prescription cost at least nearly one thousand yuan and as much as ten to twenty thousand yuan. However, the hospitals indicated on the prescriptions stated that they had already cancelled handwritten prescriptions. The inspection team also discovered tens of thousands of handwritten prescriptions prepared by the pharmacies, all of which were forged, with a total amount exceeding 100 million yuan! Currently, the National Healthcare Security Administration has transferred this matter to the local public security. Two of the four pharmacies involved have been closed. (CCTV News)
苹果开发四重可折叠新手机的新专利
据《融资中国》报道，10 月 14 日，有消息称，在苹果积极开发其首款可折叠 iPhone 的同时，苹果在美国新曝光的专利申请表明，其有意在未来投资研发三重甚至四重可折叠新手机。
根据苹果发布的最新信息，IQ 已在美国申请了一项名为“具有显示和触摸传感器结构的电子设备”的专利，专利代码为“US20240310942 A1”。苹果在该专利文件中还表明，该技术可应用于三重甚至四重可折叠手机的图片。根据专利内容，苹果正在解决多折叠手机可能遇到的显示和触摸问题。通过这项新专利，可以有效解决多铰链手机的各种技术挑战。业内人士指出，尽管苹果的上述专利仍处于理论范畴，但从苹果早期的专利卡位来看，多折叠屏幕 iPhone 可能是苹果接下来积极布局的领域。国内企业也在四重可折叠手机领域进行探索和尝试。据《中国商报》报道，记者从专利数据搜索平台了解到，在苹果公布包括四重可折叠手机技术在内的新专利之前，一些中国企业已经为四重可折叠手机布局了专利，但他们的专利目前处于未缴纳年费的状态。（《融资中国》）
大公司/大事件
Wang Puzhong from Meituan: Lightning Warehouse Represents the Evolution Trend of Instant Retail Supply, and the Number Will Exceed 100,000 by 2027
36Kr learned that Meituan Flash Sale held the "2024 Meituan Instant Retail Industry Conference" in Beijing. Wang Puzhong, CEO of Meituan's Core Local Commerce, said that since 2024, the instant retail industry has maintained resilient growth, and the Lightning Warehouse business format has become one of the core driving forces for the industry's development and evolution. Currently, the number of Meituan Lightning Warehouses has exceeded 30,000, and it is expected that by 2027, the number of Meituan Lightning Warehouses will exceed 100,000, and the market size will reach 200 billion yuan. Xiao Kun, Vice President of Meituan and Head of the Flash Sale Business Department, said that driven by business formats such as Lightning Warehouse, Meituan Flash Sale continues to grow at a high speed. On the Qixi Festival in 2024, the peak order volume exceeded 16 million orders.
The price can rise and fall. The inter-provincial electricity spot market officially operates from October 15.
It is learned from the State Grid that on October 15, the inter-provincial electricity spot market has been officially put into operation, further expanding the scope of China's electricity market-oriented transactions. The inter-provincial electricity spot market is the inter-provincial day-ahead and intra-day electricity trading based on the medium and long-term electricity market transactions between provinces, and it is an important part of the national unified electricity market. Since the trial operation started in January 2022, after 31 consecutive months of trial operation, the mechanism has been stable and orderly, and it has been officially put into operation on October 15. Up to now, the trading scope has covered the entire operating area of the State Grid and the Mengxi region. There are more than 6,000 trading entities, covering multiple types of power generation entities. The cumulative trading volume of electricity exceeds 88 billion kWh, of which the proportion of clean energy electricity exceeds 44%. (CCTV News)
Meituan is internally testing "Xiaohongshu for Takeout" and launching the "Eating Locally" service
Meituan is testing a new service called "Eating Locally", which is embedded in the takeout service. It is similar to a takeout version of Xiaohongshu, allowing users and KOLs to share the highly-rated takeout orders they have purchased, lowering the creation threshold and adding an AI-assisted writing function. It is understood that Meituan E-commerce has previously launched a grass-planting feature called "Zhenxiang". (Tech Planet)
Fushun Special Steel Becomes the Exclusive Domestic Supplier of 300M Steel for Safran in China
36Kr learned that according to the news on Fushun Special Steel's official WeChat account on October 15, after multiple links including communication, certification, auditing, and verification, Fushun Special Steel has become the exclusive domestic supplier of 300M steel for Safran in China, and the 300M steel has been supplied in batches.
JD Logistics: Plans to Achieve Over 100% Growth in Global Overseas Warehouse Area by the End of 2025
36Kr learned that JD Logistics announced that it plans to achieve over 100% growth in the global overseas warehouse area by the end of 2025. At the same time, it will further layout and construct bonded warehouses and direct-mail warehouses.
Kanglong Huacheng: Concerted Actor of Shareholder Holding More Than 5% Intends to Reduce Shareholding by No More Than 0.90%
36Kr has learned that Kanglong Huacheng announced that the concerted actor of Shenzhen Xinzhong Kangcheng Investment Partnership (Limited Partnership), a shareholder of the company holding more than 5% of the shares, Shenzhen Xinzhong Longcheng Investment Partnership (Limited Partnership), plans to reduce the company's shares by no more than 16,000,074 shares within 3 months after 15 trading days from the date of the disclosure of this announcement through centralized bidding trading or block trading, accounting for 0.90% of the company's total share capital after deducting the shares in the repurchase special account. The reason for the reduction is its own capital demand.
Three Departments: Full Implementation of the Pilot Program of Transforming Water Resources Fees into Taxes from December 1
36Kr has learned that the Ministry of Finance, the State Taxation Administration, and the Ministry of Water Resources have jointly issued the "Implementation Measures for the Pilot Reform of Water Resources Tax", and the pilot program of transforming water resources fees into taxes will be fully implemented from December 1, 2024. The water resources tax is calculated based on the quantity. The tax amount for extracting groundwater is determined to be higher. For the same type of water extraction and use, the tax amount for groundwater should be higher than that for surface water. For water extraction and use in areas with severe water shortages and overloading, the tax amount is determined to be higher. For unauthorized water extraction, water extraction that exceeds the permitted amount or the water intake plan, the tax amount should be appropriately increased in light of the actual situation. After the full implementation of the pilot program of transforming water resources fees into taxes, all the income from the water resources tax belongs to the local governments (the original income from water resources fees was divided between the central and local governments at a ratio of 1:9), appropriately increasing the local governments' independent financial capacity.
TPG and Blackstone Group are reportedly joining forces to bid for eye care company Bausch + Lomb
According to the news on October 14, informed sources disclosed that private equity groups TPG and Blackstone Group have joined hands to strive for the bid for the eye care company Bausch + Lomb. If successful, this transaction may become one of the largest private equity acquisitions in 2024. It is reported that several other private equity funds that were evaluating and bidding have withdrawn. (Jiemian News)
L'Occitane Completes Mandatory Acquisition and Will Be Delisted from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange Tomorrow, Ending Its 14-Year Listing Status in Hong Kong
36Kr has learned that L'Occitane has announced in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange that the mandatory acquisition has been completed, and all remaining shares have been transferred to the offeror. Therefore, the company has become a wholly-owned subsidiary of the offeror. The company will withdraw its listing status on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong from 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday (October 16). This means that L'Occitane ends its 14-year listing status in Hong Kong.
China Successfully Launches Qianfan Polar Orbit Satellite Group 02
At 19:06 on October 15, 2024 Beijing Time, China used the Long March 6A carrier rocket at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center to successfully launch the Qianfan Polar Orbit Satellite Group 02. The satellites smoothly entered the predetermined orbit, and the launch mission was a complete success. This is the second batch of networking satellites for China's low-orbit Internet "Qianfan Constellation". (Xinhua News Agency)
The three major U.S. stock indexes closed lower collectively, with JD.com dropping by more than 9%
36Kr learned that the three major U.S. stock indexes closed lower collectively. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped by 0.75%, the Nasdaq Composite Index dropped by 1.01%, and the S&P 500 Index dropped by 0.76%. Large technology stocks had mixed performances. Apple rose by more than 1%, while Tesla, Google, and Amazon rose slightly; Arm dropped by more than 6%, Nvidia dropped by more than 4%, and Netflix, Meta, and Microsoft dropped slightly. Popular Chinese concept stocks generally declined. JD.com dropped by more than 9%, Bilibili dropped by more than 6%, Li Auto, iQIYI, Pinduoduo, Baidu, and Alibaba dropped by more than 5%, XPeng Motors dropped by more than 4%, and NetEase and Weibo dropped by more than 3%.
SERES: As of October 15, the company's key team has collectively increased its holdings by 1.6615 million shares
36Kr learned that SERES announced that as of October 15, 2024, the company's key team has increased its holdings of the company's shares by a total of 1.6615 million shares through centralized competitive trading, accounting for 0.11% of the company's total share capital, with a total increase in holdings of 153 million yuan. This increase in holdings plan is within 6 months from August 29, 2024, with a cumulative increase in holdings of not less than 100 million yuan and not more than 200 million yuan. The key team promises not to reduce its holdings of the company's shares increased this time during the implementation of the increase in holdings plan and within 6 months after the completion of the increase in holdings.
IDC: iPhone shipments increased by 3.5% year-on-year in the third quarter
Preliminary data released by research firm IDC on Monday shows that Apple's smartphone shipments rose in the third quarter, thanks to strong demand for its flagship devices and the AI-enabled iPhone 16 series launched in September. The data shows that Apple's iPhone shipments in the third quarter increased by 3.5% compared to the same period last year, to 56 million units, and its market share remained relatively stable at 17.7%. (Sina Finance)
The central parity rate of the Chinese yuan against the US dollar is lowered by 107 points
36Kr learned that the central parity rate of the Chinese yuan against the US dollar is 7.0830, lowered by 107 points; the previous trading day's central parity rate was 7.0723, the official closing price of the previous trading day was 7.0795, and the overnight trading session closed at 7.0900.
Wang Jianlin Sells Off His Stake in Legendary Entertainment in the US. He Became the Controlling Shareholder with a $3.5 Billion Investment 8 Years Ago
Legendary Entertainment announced that it has completed the buyback of the remaining stake in the film company held by Dalian Wanda Group and will be wholly owned by Apollo Global Management. However, Legendary Entertainment did not disclose the financial details of this transaction. (Cailian Press)
BMW CEO Says EU's Ban on Fossil Fuel Vehicles "No Longer Realistic" and May Lead to a "Significant Shrinkage" in the Automotive Industry
Oliver Zipse, the CEO of BMW Group, stated that the plan to effectively ban the sale of fossil fuel vehicles in Europe from 2035 would lead to a "significant shrinkage" in its automotive industry. Zipse issued a warning in his prepared remarks for the Paris Auto Summit, saying that the European continent is not ready to give up gasoline and diesel engines, and the EU's plan is "no longer realistic", and the subsidies for electric vehicles are "unsustainable". (Sina Finance)
Microsoft will stop supporting Win10 after one year
It is reported that Microsoft will officially end support for Windows 10 on October 15 next year. At that time, this operating system will come to an end, meaning that Microsoft will no longer provide security updates, technical support, and bug fixes for it. (Sina Technology)
Elon Musk Says Developing Mars Requires Improving Rocket Technology by 1,000 Times
The CEO of SpaceX, Elon Musk, posted on the X platform, outlining his vision of making life multi-planetary, emphasizing the need for a significant leap in rocket technology to reduce costs. Musk said in response to netizens that building a self-sustaining city on Mars might require at least one million tons of equipment, which would cost 1,000 trillion US dollars with the existing technology, which is obviously impossible. However, if the rocket technology is improved by 1,000 times, the cost of becoming a sustainable multi-planetary life will drop to around 1 trillion US dollars. (Sina Finance)
TikTok's revenue in the European region was $4.6 billion last year, and it has set aside $1 billion to deal with potential fines.
ByteDance's TikTok is facing increasingly intensified regulatory challenges. The latest company documents show that it has set aside $1 billion to deal with potential fines from future European privacy regulators. In September last year, TikTok was fined a record $370 million by the Irish regulator for data privacy issues. However, with the continuous changes in the interpretation of the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), TikTok believes that it may still face a higher risk of fines in the future. (IT Home)
JP Morgan Stanley: Raises Pop Mart's Target Price to HK$69, Anticipating Strong Third-Quarter Sales and Continued Growth in Overseas Markets
36Kr has learned that Morgan Stanley released a report, expecting strong sales in the third quarter for Pop Mart and continued growth in overseas markets. As a result, it has raised its forecast and target price for the fifth time in 2024, increasing the company's target price from HK$55 to HK$69, with an "overweight" rating. JP Morgan Stanley anticipates that Pop Mart's revenue will grow by 70% to 75% in the third quarter, with its revenue in the Chinese business increasing by 30% to 40%, while its overseas business revenue will grow by more than 200%, mainly driven by store openings, the popularity of IP in the market, and the launch of new products. Regarding the fourth quarter, it is expected that sales will increase by between 55% and 60%. If the LABUBU craze continues, the sales growth in the fourth quarter may reach approximately 70%, bringing an additional 2 to 3% upside to the full-year revenue forecast.
Apple Releases iOS/iPadOS 18.1 Developer Preview Beta 7: Adds Translucent Clock Widget
Apple has pushed the iOS/iPadOS 18.1 Developer Preview Beta 7 update to iPhone and iPad users, with the internal build number 22B5075a. This update is the latest version after 7 days since the last Beta/RC release. According to Apple's official update log, media reports, and user feedback, the main highlight of iOS 18.1 Beta 7 is the improvement of the Tinted mode. Tinted mode is a new feature in iOS 18 that allows users to adjust the appearance color of app icons and widgets on the home screen. In the latest Beta 7 update, Apple has introduced a translucent clock widget, further enhancing the aesthetics of the user interface. (Global Network)
361 Degrees: Ferheen Mahomed Appointed as the Company's Independent Director, with an Annual Salary of HK$500,000
36Kr has learned that 361 Degrees announced that Ferheen Mahomed has been appointed as an independent non-executive director and a member of the Nomination Committee of the company, effective from October 15, 2024. According to the announcement's resume, Ms. Ferheen Mahomed, 59 years old, founded C&TM Limited (a company mainly providing consulting services) in December 2020 and has been serving as the company's chief executive officer since then. Mahomed has entered into a service contract with the company for a period of three years starting from October 15, 2024. According to the service contract, Mahomed is entitled to an annual remuneration of HK$500,000 (before tax).
Financial Reports of Large Companies
PICC: Net Profit in the First Three Quarters Expected to Increase by 65% to 85% Year-on-Year
36Kr has learned that PICC announced that the company's net profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company in the first three quarters of 2024 is expected to be 33.830 billion to 37.931 billion yuan, an increase of 13.327 billion to 17.428 billion yuan compared with the same period of the previous year, with a year-on-year growth of 65% to 85%. After deducting non-recurring profits and losses, the net profit is expected to be 33.579 billion to 37.649 billion yuan, with a year-on-year growth of 65% to 85%. The main reasons for the expected increase in performance are the continuous optimization of the business structure, the effective and powerful risk prevention and control, the significant results of cost reduction and efficiency increase, and the recovery of the capital market, which has led to a significant year-on-year increase in the total investment income.
Goldman Sachs: Net revenue of $12.70 billion in the third quarter
Goldman Sachs released its third-quarter financial report. The report shows that the net revenue in the third quarter is $12.70 billion, and the net profit is $2.99 billion; the earnings per share is $8.40, compared with $5.47 in the same period last year. (Yicai)
China Tourism Group Duty Free Corporation Limited's Earnings Flash: In the first three quarters, the company achieved an operating income of 43.021 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 15.38%.
36Kr has learned that China Tourism Group Duty Free Corporation Limited disclosed its earnings flash. In the first three quarters of 2024, the company achieved an operating income of 43.021 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 15.38%; the net profit was 3.92 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 24.70%. In the first three quarters of 2024, the company's main business gross margin was 32.57%, an increase of 1.09 percentage points year-on-year.
The Forefront of AI
The US Considers Restricting NVIDIA and AMD from Selling AI Chips to Some Countries
It is reported that informed sources said that officials of the Biden administration have discussed restricting the sales of advanced AI chips by NVIDIA and other US companies. This move will limit the AI capabilities of some countries. Informed sources said that for national security interests, the new regulations will set an upper limit on export licenses to certain countries. Informed sources said that officials will focus on the Persian Gulf countries, where the demand for AI data centers is increasing and there is sufficient financial strength to provide funds. The evaluation work is still in the initial stage and there may still be variables. (Caixin)
Investment and Financing
"BosonQ" Completes Hundreds of Millions of Yuan in Series A Financing
36Kr has learned that "BosonQ" has completed hundreds of millions of yuan in Series A financing. This is the fifth round of financing that BosonQ has completed in more than three years since its establishment. This round of financing is led by the well-known VC QF Capital, with Ameba Capital, Yuanhe Capital, and InvenTech, etc. as co-investors. This financing will be mainly used in the following three aspects: First, the continuous research and development of coherent optical quantum computers and the formation of a small batch production capacity; second, the ecological construction of "Quantum Computing +" and the practical application in various industries; third, the continuous investment in the research and development and layout of general optical quantum computer technology.
Cool Products
Sony Interactive Entertainment: Pre-orders for the 30th Anniversary Limited Edition PS5 will start on October 17
Sony Interactive Entertainment announced that some products of the PlayStation 30th Anniversary Collector's Series will be globally launched simultaneously in mainland China on November 21, 2024, including the 30th Anniversary Limited Edition PlayStation 5 Digital Edition console (CFI-2000 model group - Slim version), priced at 3,399 yuan; the 30th Anniversary Limited Edition DualSense Wireless Controller, priced at 599 yuan; and the 30th Anniversary Limited Edition DualSense Edge Wireless Controller, priced at 1,749 yuan. (Jiemian News)
Apple Releases New iPad mini with Starting Price of $499
On October 15, Apple launched the new iPad mini, which is equipped with an A17 Pro chip, supports Apple Intelligence, and is equipped with an 8.3-inch Liquid Retina display that supports the Apple Pencil Pro. The starting price of the new iPad mini is $499, and the storage space has been expanded to start at 128GB. (Jiemian News)
Hongmeng Zhixing Zhijie R7 Initiates Nationwide Delivery
On October 15, Hongmeng Zhixing announced that the Zhijie R7 has now initiated nationwide delivery. It is understood that the Zhijie R7 has launched the Pro, Max, and Ultra versions, with a price range from 259,800 yuan to 339,800 yuan. (Jiemian News)
The first printed OLED product of TCL CSOT is in trial production and is expected to be officially mass-produced before the end of the year.
The head of the Printed OLED Center of TCL CSOT, a subsidiary of TCL Technology, Cao Weiran, said that the company is currently preparing for the mass production of printed OLEDs. The first product, a display screen for medical equipment, has been in trial production in the production line and is expected to be officially mass-produced before the end of 2024. (Cailian Press)
AI Goes to Space for the First Time: Does the Satellite Now Have a "Brain"?
In September this year, the world's first AI satellite was launched, successfully bringing the most powerful brain into space. What is the use of AI operating in space? Will it really make the satellite become smarter? How can it help us better understand and monitor the Earth? Is the science fiction movie coming into reality? What conveniences might we individual consumers enjoy in the future with the AI satellite technology?
At 19:00 on October 16 (this Wednesday), the 36Kr Live Hard Tech Session invites Tian Feng, the founding dean of the SenseTime Intelligent Industry Research Institute, Wei Wenyi, the CEO of Silk Road Skylab Satellite Technology Co., Ltd., and Niu Min, the founder and CEO of Future Aerospace, to join us to discuss what kind of spark will be generated when the satellite meets AI. Make an advance reservation and lock in👇
Organized by | Cheng Jiahui