Despite recently being deemed the most valuable brand on the planet, could Apple’s Chinese dream be souring? It’s doubtful, but having had to deal with the fallout from a bloody confrontation at a Beijing Apple store earlier this month, the last thing it needed was a rather more explosive PR problem. A blast at the Chengdu plant of its supplier Foxconn – already infamous for its factory in Shenzhen that made death seem more attractive than work – could cost them the production of 500,000 of the all-conquering iPads and no small measure of good will. One dubious supplier in the Apple barrel is, however, unlikely to significantly dull the brand’s sheen, despite a rare public rebuke from the government. Elsewhere, in an attempt to prevent cracks appearing between BRICS, China has handed Brazilian officials a shopping list of processed goods the middle kingdom needs, seeking to address complaints from the South American giant of unbalanced trade. And while we’re talking of balance, a dramatic shrinkage of its current account surplus has added to the growing pressure on China to accelerate the pace of renminbi appreciation, as fears of ‘hot money’ entering the economy stubbornly refuse to dissipate.
China Economic Review