9:01 AM | Shanxi clarifies that those who give birth in line with the policy will be rewarded with a 60-day extension of maternity leave; The founder of the sanitary napkin brand ABC publicly apologized; An employee of Pangdonglai said that they have never sold Nongfu Spring green-bottled water.
TOP3 Big News
Shanxi Clarifies: 30-day Marriage Leave, 60-day Extended Maternity Leave for Policy-compliant Birth Rewards
Reported by Wei Bo, New Media Reporter of Shanxi Daily "In September 2021, Shanxi Province took the lead in completing the revision of the provincial population and family planning regulations. It clarifies that the marriage leave is 30 days, the maternity leave is extended by 60 days for policy-compliant birth rewards, the paternity leave for the husband is 15 days, the parenting leave for children under 3 years old is 15 days per year, and the units where the husband and wife are located can respectively issue no less than 200 yuan per month for infant and child care fees." On the morning of November 20, the Propaganda Department of the Shanxi Provincial Party Committee and the Information Office of the Shanxi Provincial People's Government organized and held the 19th press conference of the series of themes of "Promoting High-quality Development and Deepening All-round Transformation". Li Ruibing, Deputy Director and Spokesperson of the Shanxi Provincial Health Commission, introduced the work carried out in Shanxi Province in improving the fertility support policy system and incentive mechanism, and promoting the construction of a fertility-friendly society. (Shanxi Daily)
The founder of sanitary napkin brand ABC publicly apologizes
On November 22, Deng Jingheng, the founder of the high-end feminine care brand ABC, released an apology video through the company's official Weibo. In the video, Deng Jingheng promised that some products will achieve zero-negative deviation from the national standard in December this year, and all products will achieve zero-negative deviation from the national standard in March 2025. In this regard, the reporter from Dahe Finance Cube asked the customer service of the ABC flagship store, and the unified reply from the store's customer service was: ABC is implementing a series of rectification measures as of today (showing a unified explanation). Subsequently, the reporter called the brand's hotline several times, but none of the calls were connected. "For more than a week, my team and I have been meeting with the R & D department, supply chain, and factory every day to discuss. We are indeed racing against time to improve and iterate our products. We want to strive to become the first enterprise in the industry to achieve 'zero-negative deviation from the national standard'." Deng Jingheng said that calming down and making good products may be the best response to this matter. (Dahe Finance Cube)
Pangdonglai employees claim that they have never sold Nongfu Spring green-bottle water
According to the 21st Century Business Herald, Zhong Shanshan stated that Nongfu Spring pure water is only produced in one specification and one SKU, which is very restrained. It is fine to buy one or two bottles temporarily when thirsty, but it is not recommended for the entire family to drink it from morning to night for a long time, as there will definitely be problems if consumed for a long period. Zhong Shanshan also revealed that he has been controlling the price of the green-bottle water and not allowing it to be sold at a high price, in order to tell everyone that pure water is only worth that much.
Regarding the sales of Nongfu Spring mineral water with green packaging in Pangdonglai in Xuchang, the reporter visited several supermarkets such as Pangdonglai Angel City and Jinhui Store, and found that this product was not available in any of them. Pangdonglai employees said: "None of our stores have ever sold Nongfu Spring mineral water with green packaging." It is reported that on September 16, 2024, Pangdonglai announced that its self-operated natural drinking mineral water (DL mineral water) was officially put on the shelves for sale, with a single bottle priced at 1.2 yuan. Some netizens said that when the product was just put on the shelves, they went to Pangdonglai Yunding Store to buy DL mineral water in the afternoon, but found that the product had been sold out. On the online channels, this product has also been sought after by consumers. It was just launched at around 10 am, and it was sold out and taken off the shelves around 5 pm. (21st Century Business Herald)
Big Companies/Big Events
The Largest Distributed Photovoltaic Construction Project in Domestic Civil Airports Starts at Jiangbei International Airport
36Kr has learned that, according to the Chongqing Airport Group, on November 21, the photovoltaic construction project at Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport began construction. The planned installed capacity of this project reaches 30 megawatts, and it is currently the largest distributed photovoltaic power generation project in the construction scale of domestic civil airports. It is expected to be fully completed, put into production and operated in the first half of 2025. After the project is completed, the annual power generation is expected to reach 24 million kilowatt-hours, accounting for approximately 10% of the total annual electricity consumption of the entire airport.
Hong Kong Airlines Announces Return to Long-Haul Route Market Early Next Year
On November 22, Hong Kong Airlines announced its return to the long-haul route market early next year. It is reported that the number of flights of Hong Kong Airlines this year has fully recovered to the pre-epidemic level, with an average seat occupancy rate of approximately 85%. It is expected that the annual passenger volume will meet expectations, exceeding 5 million passengers. To support business development, Hong Kong Airlines has significantly expanded its fleet this year, introducing several Airbus A330-300 wide-body aircraft to support medium and long-haul routes; and for the first time, it has introduced the A321neo aircraft with 220 all-economy class seats to increase passenger capacity and operational efficiency. It is expected that the fleet size will increase to approximately 30 passenger aircraft as planned by the end of this year. The company will also continue to expand the fleet size as needed to further enhance its transportation capacity. (Jiemian News)
There's a New Policy for Migrant Workers to Settle in Urban Areas: Further Relax Restrictions and Promote Participation in Social Insurance
Recently, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, the National Development and Reform Commission, and other departments jointly issued the "Opinions on Further Strengthening the Service and Guarantee Work for Migrant Workers" (hereinafter referred to as the "Opinions"), to further promote high-quality and full employment of migrant workers and promote the high-quality development of migrant workers' urbanization. The "Opinions" emphasize safeguarding the labor security rights and interests of migrant workers, urging enterprises to comply with relevant systems such as labor contracts, labor dispatch, and the protection of the rights and interests of workers in new employment forms, and standardizing the employment management of enterprises. Promote migrant workers to participate in social insurances such as endowment insurance, medical insurance, unemployment insurance, and work-related injury insurance, and safeguard their social insurance rights and interests. The "Opinions" propose to promote equal access to basic urban public services for migrant workers entering the city, further relax and widen the restrictions on urban settlement, promote the settlement of migrant workers who are willing to settle in the city, and safeguard the legitimate land rights and interests of migrant workers who have settled in the city. (CCTV News)
Ctrip: China Adds Unilateral Visa-Free Access to 9 More Countries, Visa-Free Countries Account for Over 30% of Inbound Tour Orders
36Kr has learned that in order to further facilitate the exchanges of personnel between China and other countries, China has decided to expand the scope of visa-free countries. Half an hour after the announcement, the search popularity of relevant destinations in China on Ctrip's overseas platforms in European and Japanese sites increased by 65% and 112% respectively on a month-on-month basis. Qin Jing, Vice President of Ctrip Group, said that from January to October this year, the inbound tour orders on the Ctrip platform increased by approximately twice year-on-year. With the addition of these 9 new countries, China has implemented a unilateral visa-free policy for nearly 40 countries. Up to now, the tourist orders from these countries have accounted for more than 30% of the overall inbound tour orders in China.
The Fifth China-Independently-Developed Xinzhou 60 Weather Modification Aircraft Conducts Its Maiden Flight in Hubei
36Kr has learned that, according to the China Meteorological Administration, on November 21, the fifth China-independently-developed Xinzhou 60 weather modification aircraft successfully completed its maiden flight at Ezhou Huahu International Airport in Hubei Province. It is understood that the Xinzhou 60 weather modification aircraft is equipped with subsystems such as atmospheric detection, catalytic operation, air-ground information, and task integration. It has the capabilities of large-scale joint operations, scientific exploration, and air-ground collaborative communication. The effective area of a single operation is up to 9,000 square kilometers, and the longest operation time is up to 6 hours. It will play an important role in agricultural drought resistance and ecological improvement in Hubei.
Tencent Sells Over $400 Million Worth of Reddit Stocks
The share price of social media company Reddit dropped by 7.29% after the market closed on November 21. Previously, Tencent disclosed that the company had sold a significant stake in Reddit. According to the documents submitted to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Tencent sold 655,000 shares of Reddit at an average price of $133.76 per share on November 19, sold 882,600 shares at an average price of approximately $129.38 per share from November 14 to November 18, and sold nearly 1.5 million shares at an average price of $132.19 per share from November 11 to 13. After the total sale worth over $400 million, Tencent's stake in Reddit decreased to 7.75 million shares. (Jiemian News)
Xiaomi's Second Vehicle May Be Launched in the First Quarter of Next Year
According to an insider of Xiaomi Auto: "Xiaomi's second vehicle model is planned to be launched in February or March next year." This coincides with the information previously disclosed by Lei Jun, the founder and chairman of Xiaomi Group, that "The mass production version of Xiaomi SU7 Ultra will be officially released in March 2025." Another source close to Xiaomi Auto also stated that the launch arrangement of Xiaomi's second new vehicle will be consistent with the previous launch rhythm of SU7. And the launch time of SU7 is precisely March 28, 2024. However, the relevant person in charge of Xiaomi Group only said that "the relevant issues are beyond the scope," and he cannot make more responses. (Financial News)
The mergers and acquisitions in the biopharmaceutical industry are frequent, and the fields of innovative drugs and medical devices are expected to become hotspots
Recently, the mergers and acquisitions in the biopharmaceutical industry have been active. Since October, many listed companies in the biopharmaceutical field, such as Kangyuan Pharmaceutical, Qianhong Bio-pharmacy, and Sinoway, have disclosed matters related to mergers and acquisitions and reorganizations. Industry insiders said that the current policy support for asset reorganization is continuously strengthening, and the domestic biopharmaceutical industry is expected to set off a wave of mergers and acquisitions and reorganizations. Mergers and acquisitions-driven growth will become one of the important mainlines in the future. With the continuous attention of the policy to the mergers and acquisitions of companies in the "Two Innovations" sector, it is expected that mergers and acquisitions in the innovative drugs and medical devices industry will be more frequent. (China Securities Journal)
Nearly 1,300 games have been approved within this year, and the number exceeds that of last year
On the evening of November 20, the National Press and Publication Administration announced the approval information of domestic online games in November 2024. A total of 112 new games were approved. From the perspective of the declared categories, the approved games are mainly mobile games, with as many as 104 (including 46 casual puzzle games), another 7 mobile and client games, and 1 mobile and web game. Many new games under several listed companies are on the list. Data shows that from January to November 2024, 1,281 new games have obtained version numbers, and the total number has exceeded 1,075 of the whole last year, of which 1,184 are domestic games and 97 are imported games. (Securities Times)
It is reported that OpenAI is considering developing a browser to compete with Google
It is reported that OpenAI has recently considered developing a web browser integrated with its chatbot and has discussed or reached deals with some companies to enhance the search function. The report, citing people who have seen the product prototype or design, claims that OpenAI has discussed this search product with website and app developers such as Conde Nast, Redfin, Eventbrite, and Priceline. (Sina Finance)
Nissan says about 1,000 US employees accept early retirement plan
A spokesperson for Nissan Motor Co. said on November 21 that about 6% of the company's US employees have accepted the early retirement plan, which is part of Nissan's global plan to lay off 9,000 people. According to a document, as of March, Nissan had about 17,000 employees in the US. Due to early retirement, about 1,000 US employees will leave Nissan before the end of this year. (Jiemian News)
Ministry of Foreign Affairs: The visa processing fee is temporarily reduced by 25% according to the current standard, further reducing the cost for foreigners to come to China
The person in charge of the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tong Xuejun, stated at the press conference that we have launched a new version of the Chinese visa application form, with the number of items optimized and simplified reaching 34%, and the filling time has been significantly shortened. Chinese embassies and consulates abroad have completely canceled the visa appointment system, further expanded the scope of fingerprint exemption, and exempted all applicants for short-term visas with one or two entries and a stay of within 180 days from fingerprint collection. After the exemption of appointment and fingerprint collection, the visa procedures for foreigners to come to China have become more convenient. In addition, we temporarily reduce the visa processing fee by 25% according to the current standard, further reducing the cost for foreigners to come to China. (China.org.cn)
Vietnamese EV manufacturer VinFast's parent company establishes VinRobotics for robot R&D and application
On November 20 local time, VinGroup, the parent company of Vietnamese EV manufacturer VinFast, announced the establishment of "VinRobotics - Robot Research, Development and Application Joint Stock Company" with a legal capital of 10 trillion Vietnamese dong (approximately $40 million). VinGroup holds 51% of the shares in the new company, and Pham Nhat Vuong, the founder of VinGroup, holds 39% of the shares. (Jiemian News)
Hedge Fund Giant Griffin Is Open to Transferring a Minority Stake in Citadel Investment
It is reported that Ken Griffin said that he could consider selling a small portion of the equity in Citadel Investment. "We would be open to the possibility of selling a minority stake in Citadel at some point in the future," he said in an interview on November 21. Griffin also revealed that Citadel Securities had just received a proposal from a private equity firm to invest $5 billion "just a few days ago". (Jiemian News)
Rice Prices in Japan Reach Record High in October
On November 22, the Japanese Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications announced the country's national consumer price index for October. It showed that the price of rice increased by 58.9% year-on-year, setting the largest increase since comparable data began in 1971. It is understood that this is mainly affected by the reduction in the circulation of rice produced in 2023 and the increase in the production cost and transportation cost of the new rice in 2024. (CCTV News)
Adani Group in India Accused of Fraud and Bribery by the US DOJ and SEC
On November 21, Adani Group in India denied the bribery and fraud allegations raised by the US Department of Justice and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against the group's chairman, Gautam Adani, stating that all these claims are "unfounded". After he was indicted by the New York Federal Court on suspicion of a bribery and fraud scheme, the share price of Adani Group plummeted. The share price of Adani Green Energy, which is at the center of the allegations, plunged by 17.9%. (Sina Finance)
The co-founder and CEO of European battery manufacturer Northvolt resigns after the company files for bankruptcy reorganization
According to a statement on November 22, Peter Carlsson, the co-founder and CEO of European battery manufacturer Northvolt, has resigned and will continue to serve as a member of the company's board of directors and a senior advisor. On the 21st local time, Northvolt filed for bankruptcy protection in the United States and will seek reorganization under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code. The company stated in the documents that it has approximately $30 million in available cash and owes $5.84 billion in debt. (Jiemian News)
Apple plans to launch a new version of Siri with stronger conversation capabilities in 2026
It is reported that informed sources have revealed that Apple is developing a Siri digital assistant with stronger conversation capabilities, aiming to catch up with OpenAI's ChatGPT and other voice services. This new version of Siri, whose details have not yet been publicly disclosed, uses a more advanced Large Language Model (LLM) to achieve two-way conversations. They said that the system can also handle more complex requests more quickly. This new voice assistant will eventually be added to Apple Intelligence, and the developers call it "LLM Siri". Apple currently plans to release the new version of Siri to consumers as early as the spring of 2026. (Jiemian News)
The Forefront of AI
The First AI ETF for ChiNext Board in the Entire Market Gets Approved
It is learned that the Huabao ChiNext Board AI ETF, the first ETF product in the entire market to track the "ChiNext Board Artificial Intelligence Index", has been officially approved. Industry insiders said that against the backdrop of the great development of the artificial intelligence industry, the approval of the Huabao ChiNext Board AI ETF is expected to ignite a new investment era in this golden track of artificial intelligence and become a popular AI-themed investment variety. (China Securities Journal)
AI "Testing Various Herbs", Accelerating the Intelligent Manufacturing of Biomedicine
Recently, Insilico Medicine (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. announced the positive topline data of the innovative candidate drug ISM001 - 055 in the Phase 2a clinical trial. The experimental results show that it has a positive effect on the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, becoming the world's first AI drug concept verification case. Up to now, there are more than 30 AI drug R & D pipelines in the clinical stage, and 23 national-level intelligent manufacturing demonstration factories in the pharmaceutical field have been built. In the opinion of industry insiders, after experiencing algorithm iterations, computing power enhancements, and the accumulation of massive experimental data, with the emergence of innovative products such as AlphaFold2 and ChatGPT, AI technology is becoming one of the key driving forces promoting the development of the biomedical industry. (Shanghai Securities News)
Investment and Financing
"Aotron Photonics" Secures Hundreds of Millions of Yuan in Series C Financing
36Kr has learned that "Aotron Photonics" has recently completed several hundred million yuan in Series C financing. This round of financing is jointly invested by investment institutions such as Sunny Optical Technology (Group) Co., Ltd. Industrial Fund, CDH Hundredfox, Huaxia Hengtian, and Junquanxin. This Series C financing is the second round of financing completed by "Aotron Photonics" since 2024.
"Yao Lu Chuan Technology" Secures Over 100 Million Yuan in Series A Financing
36Kr has learned that recently, the artificial intelligence enterprise "Yao Lu Chuan Technology" has obtained over 100 million yuan in Series A financing. This round of financing is led by Donghai Investment, with multiple investment institutions such as Huanghai Jin Kong and Yueda Capital participating as co-investors. At the same time, Zhongcai Rongshang and Neijiang, Sichuan also participated in the investment. Currently, the delivery work is proceeding in an orderly manner. Yao Lu Chuan Technology was established in December 2020, mainly providing machine vision devices, intelligent sensing hardware, intelligent industrial robots, AI intelligent platforms, and intelligent digital factory system solutions for the manufacturing industry.
"Jinliu Construction" Secures 8 Million Yuan Angel Round Financing
36Kr has learned that recently, "Jinliu Construction" announced the successful completion of an 8 million yuan angel round of financing. The investor is Shenzhen Shenglian Investment Holding Co., Ltd. According to the official introduction, this round of financing will help Jinliu Construction further expand its business scope nationwide and promote the investment and construction of green buildings and sustainable development projects.
"Enkase Therapeutics" Completes Multi-Million Yuan Series A++ Financing
36Kr learned that "Enkase Therapeutics" announced the completion of multi-million yuan Series A++ financing. This round of financing is led by 3SBio, with Zhangke Herun, Yijin Capital, and others participating. The funds raised in this round will be used to accelerate the research and development and clinical trial process of Enkase Therapeutics' pipeline products.
Cool Products
Huawei Will Launch Native Hongmeng Earphones
36Kr has learned that, according to Huawei Terminal, Huawei will officially launch the native Hongmeng earphones - Huawei FreeBuds Pro 4 on November 26. It is Huawei's first TWS earphone equipped with HarmonyOS NEXT, which will support the StarFlash connection with technical upgrades and be integrated into Xiaoyi Intelligent Entity.
The IDEA Team Releases the DINO-X Universal Vision Large Model
36Kr learned that at the IDEA Conference in 2024, the IDEA team released the latest DINO-X universal vision large model of the DINO series, which has a true object-level understanding ability and realizes open-world object detection. At the same time, the IDEA team also launched an industry platform architecture. Through a large model base, combined with general recognition technology, the model can learn while using without the need for retraining, supporting a variety of B-end application needs.
Big Events in the Business World
The "Big Events in the Business World" short-video column vividly interprets major events in the business world. Does the Snow King sell spicy strips, and Chayan sells breadcrumbs? Are milk tea shops starting to sell snacks to save themselves?
Organized by | Chengjiahui