Krypton Evening Post: The Netherlands discusses artificial intelligence facilities with NVIDIA and AMD; Sources say Apple's chief negotiator has left Indonesia.
Big Companies:
It is reported that in the next 10 days, 4 Zara stores will officially close. Among them, the Zara store in Vanke Plaza, Longgang, Shenzhen will close on January 16, and the Zara stores in Changsha IKEA Shopping Center, Joy City in Beichen Delta, and Guiyang InCity will all close on January 20. The staff of the above 4 Zara stores said that the stores are not undergoing renovation and upgrading, but are closing and will not reopen in the future. Regarding the upcoming closure of several stores, the Inditex Group, the parent company of Zara, said that there have always been some adjustments to brand stores. (Meijing.com)
Many automakers have announced their sales targets for 2025. Many new forces aim to double their annual sales. In contrast, traditional automakers, due to their large base, have set steady sales targets, with an increase generally ranging from 10% to 25%. NIO's sales target for 2025 is to double that of 2024, approximately 444,000 units. Xiaomi Auto's annual delivery target for 2025 is 300,000 units, expected to increase by 122% compared to 2024. In terms of growth rate, Changan's Avita and Dongfeng's Voyah have more aggressive sales targets. (The Paper)
Caissa Tourism and Adora Cruises Reach Strategic Cooperation
36Kr has learned that Caissa Tourism has announced a strategic cooperation with Adora Cruises, and its subsidiary Caissa Travel will carry out a charter cooperation with "Adora Magic City" under Adora Cruises. Based on the strategic cooperation, the two sides will deepen and expand their cooperation in cruise operations in Qingdao and nationwide, including cruise ticket sales, innovative route development, cruise theme promotion, cruise supply docking, and cruise + product development.
BASF Sells Styrodur® Business to BACHL Company
BASF announced on January 8 local time that it has signed an agreement with the German EPS insulation material manufacturer BACHL Company to sell the Styrodur® business, including the Styrodur® brand. Approximately 50 production, marketing, and sales personnel from BASF are involved in this business, and the affected employees will remain with BASF. The sale is expected to be completed by mid-2025. Both parties have agreed to keep the financial details of the transaction confidential. (Jiemian)
The core members of the Tesla director team, including Chairman Robyn Denholm and James Murdoch, received a legal ruling on Wednesday and officially reached a settlement agreement totaling up to $919 million. This agreement aims to resolve a lawsuit filed by the Detroit Police and Firefighters Retirement System in 2020, which accused Tesla directors of excessive compensation from 2017 to 2020. The amount involved in this plan ranks second in the history of the Delaware Chancery Court. (Cailian Press)
The Netherlands Is Discussing with NVIDIA and AMD on Artificial Intelligence Facilities
According to the Dutch government website, the Dutch government is in discussions with NVIDIA and AMD on supporting the construction of artificial intelligence facilities in the Netherlands. Dirk Belyarts, the Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs, held strategic discussions with American technology companies during his visit to Silicon Valley from January 8 to January 9, and had talks with NVIDIA and AMD to discuss providing hardware and knowledge support for the creation of the necessary infrastructure for artificial intelligence facilities in the Netherlands. (Jiemian)
Wuliangye's Core Product "The Eighth Generation Wuliangye" Has Suspended Supply
Learned from several channel sources, Wuliangye's core major product - The Eighth Generation Wuliangye has suspended supply. Analysts point out that this move signals Wuliangye's intention to stabilize prices. The Eighth Generation Wuliangye is Wuliangye's most core product, with an estimated sales scale of over 50 billion yuan, contributing more than 60% of the company's revenue. Affected by e-commerce promotions and other factors, the overall price of Wuliangye has been under pressure recently. (Cailian Press)
Tianlala: By the End of 2024, the Global Contracted Stores Exceed 8,000
36Kr has learned that on January 8, in an exciting and enthusiastic atmosphere and with eager anticipation, the franchisee conference of Tianlala's 10th-anniversary celebration was grandly held. At the conference, Tianlala stated that by the end of 2024, Tianlala has accumulated more than 8,000 contracted stores globally, covering 27 provinces and autonomous regions, 261 prefecture-level cities, 563 counties and county-level cities in China. Up to now, Tianlala has opened a total of nearly 100 stores in the overseas market, marking Tianlala's official move towards internationalization. In addition, Tianlala has currently provided stable employment positions for more than 30,000 young people.
Investment and Financing:
"Xunchi Xunjie New Energy" Receives Hundreds of Millions of Yuan in Series A Financing
36Kr has learned that recently, "Xunchi Xunjie New Energy" announced the completion of a 160 million yuan Series A financing. This round of financing is participated in by GF Securities and Tencent Investment, and the funds will be used to promote the R & D and industrialization of the sub-charging new energy vehicle charging pile technology under the company.
36Kr has learned that Cinda Real Estate announced that the company, together with China Cinda and Xinsheng Libao, jointly initiates the establishment of a real estate industry stock asset relief and activation fund. The total subscription scale of the mother fund is 20.01 billion yuan, of which the company subscribes 10 billion yuan as a junior limited partner. It mainly invests in the relief of troubled enterprises and the activation of troubled projects in the real estate industry, participates in special opportunity investments such as bankruptcy reorganization and judicial auctions, and supports project delivery guarantees and the construction of three major projects.
New Products:
Alibaba Cloud Tongyi Wanxiang Updates, Launches Wanxiang 2.1 Video Generation Model
36Kr has learned that on January 9, Alibaba Cloud Tongyi Wanxiang undergoes an upgrade and launches the Wanxiang 2.1 video generation model. It is understood that it has comprehensively improved in aspects such as large-scale complex motion, physical law compliance, and artistic expression, and has topped the authoritative evaluation list VBench.
L'Oréal Group Releases L’Oréal Cell BioPrint at CES® 2025
36Kr has learned that on January 6, the L'Oréal Group officially released L’Oréal Cell BioPrint at the 2025 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES). It is understood that this beauty tech device uses advanced proteomics technology - that is, studying the impact of the composition of human proteins on skin aging - and can provide personalized skin analysis within five minutes.
Today's Views:
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun presided over the regular press conference held today. Guo Jiakun said that in the first 11 months of 2024, more than 50,000 new foreign-invested enterprises were established in China, an increase of 8.9% year-on-year. In the past five years, the direct investment yield of foreign investors in China is about 9%, ranking among the top in the world. China's steady economic growth and continuous expansion of high-level opening up are the greatest confidence for foreign capital to increase investment in China. Since 2024, we have reduced the number of restrictive measures in the national negative list for foreign investment access to 29, with the restrictions on foreign investment access in the manufacturing industry being lifted. We have fully implemented the national treatment for foreign enterprises and continuously optimized the business environment. Investing in China is investing in the future. We welcome all countries to seize the opportunities in China, share the benefits of China, and achieve mutual benefit and win-win results. (CCTV News)
It Is Reported That Apple's Chief Negotiator Has Left Indonesia
According to informed sources, the Apple executive responsible for negotiating with the Indonesian government to lift the sales ban on the iPhone 16 left Indonesia on Wednesday after an Indonesian minister suddenly changed his attitude at the last minute, leading to the breakdown of the negotiations. (Sina Finance)
US Port Workers and Employers Reach a Preliminary Agreement on a New Contract
On January 8 local time, the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA), which represents the interests of port workers on the US East Coast and the Gulf Coast, and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX), which represents the employers, reached a preliminary agreement on all terms of the new six-year master contract. In a joint statement, the two sides said that the agreement protects existing jobs and establishes a framework for the implementation of new technologies, which will bring more jobs and promote the modernization of ports. This progress will avoid a new strike on the 15th. The statement did not disclose more details of the agreement. (Xinhua News Agency)
Other News Worth Noting:
36Kr has learned that in order to improve the utilization efficiency of central treasury cash and strengthen the coordination of fiscal and monetary policies, the Ministry of Finance and the People's Bank of China are scheduled to conduct the bidding for the 2025 Central Treasury Cash Management Commercial Bank Time Deposits (Phase I) through the People's Bank of China Central Treasury Cash Management Commercial Bank Time Deposits Business System from 9:00 to 9:30 am on January 14, 2025. The operation volume of this period is 120 billion yuan, with a term of 2 months (63 days). The interest commencement date is January 14, 2025, and the maturity date is March 18, 2025 (postponed in case of holidays). The interest rate bidding is conducted for the participating banks of the Central Treasury Cash Management Commercial Bank Time Deposits Business.
Shanghai: Moderately Advance the Layout of Hydrogen-Based Energy
36Kr has learned that the General Office of the Shanghai Municipal People's Government has issued the "Shanghai New Energy Storage Demonstration Leading and Innovative Development Work Plan (2025 - 2030)", focusing on green alcohol and green ammonia, and in the long term, forming four hydrogen-based energy bases in Lingang New Area, Jiading District, Chemical Industry Zone, and Waigaoqiao Area. Green alcohol continuously improves the filling capacity for shipping, while moderately advancing the layout of production capacity outside the city, it also gives full play to the role of local resources as a "ballast stone". Green ammonia focuses on coal-fired power blending. A green ammonia demonstration plant will be set up in the Chemical Industry Zone to promote a decrease in production costs. In combination with the construction and upgrading of thermal power projects, a green ammonia blending demonstration will be carried out to gradually increase the blending ratio, opening up a new way for the large-scale consumption of renewable energy.