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☆ Hybrid vehicle sales surge in China, posing fresh threat to foreign automakers
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

A Li L7 electric SUV by Li Auto is displayed at the Auto Shanghai show, in Shanghai, China April 18, 2023. One-third of total vehicle sales by Toyota, the world's top-selling automaker, are already hybrids and the company reported a 34% surge in hybrid sales in the six months to end-September, outpacing 9% growth in overall revenue. Sales of HEVs in China, which Toyota still dominates with four top-selling models, tumbled 15%, while gasoline car sales dropped 11%, underscoring potential challenges facing foreign automakers. But it was a failed trial, with sales of just over 4,000 units, and GM in 2020 halted sales. BYD is expanding PHEV sales overseas, offering Han, Qin and Song lineups in Latin America, which has less charging infrastructure.

Persons: Li Auto, Aly, Xu Min, Yale Zhang, BYD, Li, Han, Qin, Stellantis, Leapmotor, Xu, Bill Russo, Zhang Yan, Brenda Goh, Miyoung Kim, Gerry Doyle Organizations: Li, Auto, REUTERS, Rights, Toyota, Honda, Shanghai Jiao Tong University's Institute, Intelligent, Reuters, China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, HK, Automotive Foresight, Reuters Graphics, Prius, General Motors, Buick, GM, Li Auto, Jiao Tong University, HEVs, Thomson Locations: Auto Shanghai, Shanghai, China, Europe, U.S, outpacing, United States, Shanghai Jiao, Reuters Graphics CHINA, America, Leapmotor, North America

☆ Shanghai Industrial Investment: Another executive in China being investigated by corruption watchdog
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Michelle Toh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Hong Kong CNN —Another business leader in China is being probed by the country’s anti-graft watchdog, in a sign of an ongoing crackdown in the world’s second largest economy. Zhou Jun, president of state-owned Shanghai Industrial Investment, is under investigation by the Shanghai Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection, a branch of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), according to a CCDI statement Monday. Shanghai Industrial Investment’s business spans infrastructure, property and pharmaceuticals. Just this month, the CCDI said it was investigating Zhang Hongli, a former senior executive vice president at the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China. That was followed by a report by Chinese state-owned media outlet Cover News that tech entrepreneur Chen Shaojie had become unreachable, citing unconfirmed reports that he was being investigated.

Persons: Zhou Jun, CCDI, Zhou, ”, Zhang Hongli, Chen Shaojie, Chen, Tencent, Fred Hu Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Shanghai Industrial Investment, Shanghai Municipal Commission, Central Commission, Shanghai Industrial, Industrial, Commercial Bank of China, CNN, International, Bloomberg, Primavera Capital Locations: China, Hong Kong, Shanghai

Zhao Changpeng, founder and chief executive officer of Binance greets the audience during an event in Athens, Greece, November 25, 2022. "Today, I stepped down as CEO of Binance," Zhao tweeted. Binance became the world's biggest crypto exchange within six months. As Binance hired more widely from traditional financial and regulatory worlds, Zhao's tight control over his company was undiminished. Richard Teng, a senior Binance executive who joined in 2021, is the new CEO, Zhao posted on social media on Tuesday.

Persons: Zhao Changpeng, Binance, Costas Baltas, Changpeng Zhao, Zhao, Prosecutors, Tuesday's, General Merrick Garland, Yi, Richard Teng, Teng, Tom Wilson, Lisa Shumaker, Bill Berkrot Organizations: REUTERS, Justice Department, Binance, New York Times, U.S, Reuters, Futures Trading Commission, Thomson Locations: Athens, Greece, Binance, Binance ., Shanghai, China, Canada, Tokyo, New York, London

At least Zeekr benefits from having a powerful parent, Geely Automobile, which is part of China’s largest privately owned auto group Zhejiang Geely. But Geely Automobile, which will maintain control of the business after the IPO, has a market capitalisation of only $12.3 billion. The company, owned by Chinese automaker Geely Automobile, hopes to use funds raised to expand its product line. The company reported a net loss of 3.9 billion yuan ($534 million) for the six months to the end of June 2023, compared with a 3.1 billion yuan loss a year earlier. Revenue grew by 136% to 21 billion yuan, with 13.2 billion yuan of that total coming from vehicle sales.

Persons: Zeekr, Xi Jinping, Joe Biden, Antony Currie, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, U.S, Geely Automobile, HK, Graphics, European Union, Zhejiang, Investors, Revenue, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, New York, Beijing, Washington, Brussels, China, U.S, Europe, China’s, Hong Kong

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares traded mixed Tuesday after a rally on Wall Street that was led by gains in Microsoft following its announcement that it was hiring Sam Altman, former CEO of OpenAI, the ChatGPT maker. On Wall Street, the S&P 500 gained 0.7% to 4,547.38, coming off its third straight winning week. Microsoft said it will also continue its partnership with OpenAI, as fervor around artificial-intelligence technology and the huge profits it’s expected to create wow Wall Street. This week is relatively light on reports that could sway the hopes on Wall Street that have underpinned that drop in Treasury yields. In energy trading, benchmark U.S. crude fell 61 cents to $77.22 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Persons: Sam Altman, Seng, ” Tan Boon Heng, Australia's, Kospi, Lowe’s, Brent, Stan Choe Organizations: TOKYO, Microsoft, OpenAI, Mizuho Bank, Dow Jones, Nasdaq, Federal Reserve, Traders, Nvidia, Deere, HP, Treasury, New York Mercantile Exchange, U.S ., AP Locations: Shanghai, Beijing, U.S

☆ Exclusive: China's state banks seen swapping and selling dollars for yuan
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Chinese Yuan and U.S. dollar banknotes are seen in this illustration taken March 10, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSHANGHAI, Nov 21 (Reuters) - China's major state-owned banks were seen exchanging yuan for U.S. dollars in the onshore swap market and selling those dollars in spot currency markets this week, two sources told Reuters on Tuesday. Some market participants said state banks might be trying to speed the yuan's gains and spur exporters to convert more of their FX receipts into yuan. The selling of dollars by state banks caused the onshore spot yuan to briefly touch 7.1296 per dollar, firmer than its daily official guidance for the first time in four months. To me, it looks like they are doing preparatory work ahead of a policy rate cut," said Kiyong Seong, lead Asia macro strategist at Societe Generale.

Persons: Yuan, Dado Ruvic, Kiyong Seong, Zhi Xiaojia, Zhi, Simon Cameron, Moore, Clarence Fernandez Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Federal, People's Bank of China, Societe Generale, Credit Agricole, Shanghai, Thomson Locations: Asia, China, United States

☆ Morning Bid: Nvidia takes the stage as equity rally pauses
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Lewis Krauskopf | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The logo of NVIDIA as seen at its corporate headquarters in Santa Clara, California, in May of 2022. Courtesy NVIDIA/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 22 (Reuters) - A look at the day ahead in Asian markets from Lewis Krauskopf, markets correspondent. A rally in stocks took a breather ahead of Wednesday's session in Asia as U.S. investors mostly shrugged off minutes from the Federal Reserve's latest meeting. Still, major U.S. equity indexes ended lower on the day. Its shares have been one of the Magnificent Seven megacap stocks whose massive gains have propelled equity indexes higher this year, with Nvidia hitting a record high this week ahead of its results.

Persons: Lewis Krauskopf Organizations: NVIDIA, Handout, REUTERS, Federal, U.S, Fed, Nasdaq, Nvidia, Japan's Nikkei, greenback, Thomson, Reuters Locations: Santa Clara , California, Lewis, Asia, U.S, Shanghai, Singapore, Taiwan

☆ China's Nio, Changan Auto to jointly develop battery-swapping EVs
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] The logo of NIO seen on an EL6 car model is pictured at the NIO House, the showroom of the Chinese premium smart electric vehicle manufacture NIO Inc. in Berlin, Germany August 17, 2023. REUTERS/Annegret Hilse/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSHANGHAI, Nov 21 (Reuters) - Nio (9866.HK) said on Tuesday it would partner with Changan Automobile (000625.SZ) to develop battery-swapping electric vehicles, in an attempt by the loss-making Chinese EV maker to ease costs. The partnership will also see Nio and state-owned Changan on building and sharing battery-swapping stations and standardising batteries, Nio said in a statement to Reuters. Battery swapping allows drivers to replace depleted packs quickly with fully charged packs, rather than plugging the vehicle into a charging point. By Nov. 21, Nio had 2,113 battery swapping stations in China and nearly 1 million charging poles.

Persons: Annegret, Nio, Tesla, Zhang Yan, Brenda Goh, Christopher Cushing, Miral Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, HK, Changan Automobile, Reuters, China Passenger Car Association, Thomson Locations: Berlin, Germany, China, Beijing

☆ Stock Market Today: All Eyes on Nvidia's Coming Results
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Earnings are due later from Nvidia, the chip maker that is riding the AI wave . Meanwhile investors are watching the drama unfolding at OpenAI , where hundreds of staff are threatening to quit—and contemplating the implications for Microsoft and others. “AI exuberance has been a dominant theme this year,” said Laura Cooper, a macro strategist at BlackRock. Some of this enthusiasm waned as borrowing costs surged earlier in the fall, she said. International benchmarks were subdued, with indexes in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Tokyo closing flat to slightly lower.

Persons: —, ”, Laura Cooper, Dow industrials, BlackRock’s Cooper, Brent Organizations: Nvidia, Microsoft, BlackRock, ”, Nasdaq, Dow Locations: OpenAI, Treasurys, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Tokyo

☆ Shanghai's Jewish refugee history takes centre stage in new oratorio
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Casey Hall | Thomson Reuters | Casey Has Reported On China'S Consumer Culture Her Base In Shanghai For More Than A Decade | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/5] Musicians perform onstage at the debut performance of Emigre at the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra Hall in Shanghai, China November 17, 2023. A collaboration between the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic as well as choirs from the U.S. and China, the work premiered on Nov. 17. Composer Aaron Zigman, known best for his movie scores, said he was approached by Shanghai Symphony Orchestra's maestro Long Yu in 2019 with the idea for a piece telling the story of Shanghai's Jewish refugee history. In the late 1930s, as World War Two was about to break out, Shanghai was one of the few places in the world open to Jewish refugees, as many countries restricted visa access. Chen Jian, curator of the Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum, was in the audience for Emigre's global premiere at the Jaguar Shanghai Symphony Orchestra Hall in downtown Shanghai.

Persons: Nicoco Chan, Aaron Zigman, Long Yu, Zigman, Mark Campbell, Chen Jian, Casey Hall, Sonali Paul Organizations: Shanghai Symphony Orchestra Hall, REUTERS, Rights, Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Shanghai, Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum, Jaguar Shanghai, Orchestra Hall, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, U.S, Nazi Germany, Europe, Japan, Israel, Gaza, Ukraine, New York

☆ Xiaomi Q3 net income jumps on cost savings, revenue rises
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

People check new products of Xiaomi ahead of the 2023 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain February 26, 2023. The company's sales for the period totalled 70.9 billion yuan ($9.83 billion), beating an average estimate of 70.2 billion yuan from 13 analysts polled by LSEG. Net income jumped by 183% from a year earlier to 6 billion yuan thanks to lower component costs and efficiencies across the business, compared to a consensus estimate of 4.6 billion yuan. Xiaomi, China's fifth-largest smartphone brand, shipped 9.1 million devices in China during the latest quarter, according to industry research firm Canalys. Though that was little changed from a year earlier, Xiaomi outperformed peers, with overall industry sales dropping 5% year on year, according to Canalys.

Persons: Nacho, Lu Weibing, Xiaomi, Xiaomi's Lu, Yelin, Brenda Goh, Jacqueline Wong, David Goodman, Jan Harvey Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Xiaomi Corp, HK, LSEG, BAIC, Thomson Locations: Barcelona, Spain, Rights BEIJING, China, Beijing, Yelin Mo, Shanghai

☆ China keeps lending benchmark rates unchanged, as expected
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Paramilitary police officers stand guard in front of the headquarters of the People's Bank of China, the central bank (PBOC), in Beijing, China September 30, 2022. The one-year loan prime rate (LPR) was kept at 3.45% and the five-year LPR was unchanged at 4.20%. Most new and outstanding loans in China are based on the one-year LPR, while the five-year rate influences the pricing of mortgages. The steady fixings came after the central bank kept its medium-term interbank liquidity rate unchanged last week. The LPR, which banks normally charge their best clients, is set by 18 designated commercial banks who submit proposed rates to the central bank every month.

Persons: Tingshu Wang, Julian Evans, Pritchard, Winni Zhou, Tom Westbrook, Sam Holmes Organizations: People's Bank of China, REUTERS, Rights, Capital Economics, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, Rights SHANGHAI, SINGAPORE, United States, outflows

☆ BHP train drivers to start 'restrained' industrial action on Friday
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BHP's iron ore operations include four processing hubs and five mines that are linked by more than 1,000 km (621 miles) of rail and port facilities. BHP said that the proposed action would present logistical challenges but that it had put in place arrangements to mitigate the impact. Worries about a strike had lent support to iron ore prices, which are trading at the highest levels since February. "Concerns over disruptions on the supply side due to the looming strike at BHP in Australia contributed to higher iron ore prices today," said Pei Hao, a Shanghai-based analyst at international brokerage FIS. Drivers received an offer from BHP last Wednesday that did not meet their expectations around rostering, arbitration and camp standards, Busson added.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Greg Busson, Busson, Pei Hao, BHP, Melanie Burton, Amy Lv, Gerry Doyle Organizations: BHP, REUTERS, Rights MELBOURNE, Reuters, Monday, Mining, Energy Union WA, Drivers, Thomson Locations: WA, Australia, Shanghai, rostering, Rio Tinto's, Beijing

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong Disneyland opened its first Frozen-themed attraction on Monday, with thousands of eager visitors turning up to experience the new rides, some lining up for hours to get an early start. Now that Chinese tourists are venturing abroad again after the pandemic, the pandemic, the new attraction is meant to be a game changer for a theme park that has run losses for years. Some of the hundreds of Disney fans who lined up hours ahead of time were dressed like characters from Frozen. “The World of Frozen is really well-designed and beautiful,” said Darmanic, whose family was making its first visit to the Hong Kong theme park. Hong Kong has been beefing up the park to try and draw more visitors.

Persons: ”, Josh D’Amaro, Bryan Darmanic, Darmanic, Winnie Ip, ” Ip Organizations: Hong Kong Disneyland, Disney, Tokyo DisneySea, Paris Locations: HONG KONG, Hong Kong, California, Macao, Shanghai, Tokyo, Arendelle

HONG KONG (AP) — Asian shares were higher Monday after Wall Street closed its third straight winning week with a tiny gain. U.S. futures were lower while oil prices gained as investors looking ahead to OPEC plus meetings. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged 0.1% higher to 7,058.40. The Dow Jones Industrial Average inched up less than 0.1% to 34,947.28 and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.1% to 14,125.48. It had been trading near 152 yen to the dollar last week, but analysts said expectations for lower U.S. interest rates are driving sales of dollars, pushing the yen higher.

Persons: Australia’s, Taiex, what’s, Jerome Powell, it’s, Brent Organizations: Nikkei, China, Dow Jones, Nasdaq, Wall, Ross, BJ’s Wholesale, Companies, Federal Reserve, Fed, U.S Locations: HONG KONG, Hong Kong, Shanghai, South Korea, Bangkok

☆ Huawei is giving Apple stiff competition in China. Suppliers to watch
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-19 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Chinese smartphone companies like Huawei are rebounding in their home market, giving a boost to domestic suppliers — and increasing the pressure on Apple . Huawei smartphone sales surged by 83% in October from a year ago, Counterpoint Research said in a note Tuesday. Honor, a Huawei spin-off, saw sales climb by 10%, while Xiaomi smartphone sales rose by 33%, the report said. The report did not break out Apple sales, only saying a broad category of "others" saw October smartphone sales drop by 12% from a year ago. For context, Shanghai-based CINNO Research expects a 2% decline in Apple iPhone sales in China this year to 45.5 million units.

Persons: Morgan Stanley, Xi Jinping, Joe Biden, Raymond James, Biden, Nomura, Lihexing, CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Huawei, Apple, D.C, Telecommunications, 5G, Research, Guangdong Topstar Technology, Xiaomi, Industrial Locations: China, Washington, U.S, Shenzhen, EVs, Shanghai, Guangdong, Topstar

☆ Chinese electric car maker BYD is about to steal Tesla's crown. Here's why it's winning the race.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-18 | by ( Nathan Rennolds | George Glover | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

China is the world's electric vehicle leader, with 64% of total production and 59% of global EV sales in 2022, according to the World Economic Forum. One of its biggest EV producers, BYD , looks set to topple Tesla's position as the world's top seller of electric cars. AdvertisementCheaper EVsTesla sells just four cars – the Model S and Model 3 sedans, and the Model X and Model Y SUVs. Advertisement"2023 is set to be another banner year for China in terms of EV sales," the data company said. Seeing BYD overtake Tesla in the EV race may not bring any festive cheer for Elon Musk this holiday season.

Persons: Tesla, —, Tesla's, BYD, Elon, John Keeble, Seth Goldstein, that's, Goldstein, Teslas, Musk, Morgan Stanley, Lin Shanchuan, China's, Mazzocco, Morningstar's Goldstein, Stella Li Organizations: Service, Economic, EV, Elon Musk's, Yuan, Battery, Center for Strategic, International Studies, Getty, Tesla Beijing, Rho, Reuters, Bloomberg Locations: China, Shanghai, Washington ,, Fujian, Xinhua, Norway, America

"Investors had hoped to receive separate shares of the cloud business in hopes the segment could achieve a higher multiple in the public markets due to its growth potential." The company then appointed Eddie Wu, one of Alibaba Group's co-founders and long-time lieutenant of former chief Jack Ma, as both CEO of Alibaba and the cloud business. Instead the group would focus on growing the cloud business and providing investment for its AI drivers, he said. [1/2]3D printed clouds and figurines are seen in front of the Alibaba Cloud service logo in this illustration taken February 8, 2022. Alibaba International Digital Commerce, a business that includes platforms such as Lazada and AliExpress, however reported a 53% rise in revenues, with retail revenue up 73% year-on-year.

Persons: Cainiao, Thomas Hayes, Alibaba's, Daniel Zhang, Eddie Wu, Alibaba Group's, Jack Ma, Zhang, Joseph Tsai, Tsai, Wu, Dado Ruvic, Alibaba, Akash Sriram, Brenda Goh, Sam Holmes, Arun Koyyur, Jane Merriman Organizations: Alibaba, HK, Tencent Holdings, Alibaba's, Investors, Analysts, Cloud Intelligence Group, REUTERS, Alibaba Group Holdings, PDD Holdings, Digital Commerce, Casey Hall, Thomson Locations: U.S, China, Hong Kong, Alibaba's U.S, Bengaluru, Shanghai

The German auto giant isn't alone in its struggles, according to CNBC's analysis of 10 global car brands. While Volkswagen remains by far a giant in China's car market with around 3 million vehicles sold a year, the German brand hasn't gained much traction in the electric car space. In July, the company opted to invest about $700 million into Chinese electric car start-up Xpeng to jointly develop two cars for China. Toyota , which has struggled in the market transition to electric cars, is set for its worst year of overall China sales since 2020 with about 1.8 million vehicle sales, CNBC found. Tough competitionAlthough China's new energy market is growing quickly, competition is fierce, even for domestic brands.

Persons: Evelyn Cheng, Alvin Liu, Liu, Bernstein, BYD, Tesla, Nio Organizations: CNBC, Volkswagen, Nissan, Hyundai, China Passenger Car Association, Toyota, Canalys, Honda, BYD, Tesla's, Plaid — Locations: Europe, China, North America, Evelyn Cheng BEIJING, Shenzhen, Shanghai, Beijing, German

☆ China expected to keep key lending rates unchanged next week
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A man wearing a mask walks past the headquarters of the People's Bank of China, the central bank, in Beijing, China, February 3, 2020. In a poll of 26 market watchers, all participants predicted both the one-year LPR and the five-year tenor would stay unchanged. "The changes in LPR are more affected by the MLF rate," Zhou said, expecting the LPR to stay unchanged this month. The PBOC on Wednesday injected 1.45 trillion yuan ($200.12 billion) worth of one-year MLF loans into the banking system but kept the rates on those loans unchanged. Expectations of steady LPR fixings also come as new bank lending in China fell less than expected in October from the previous month.

Persons: Jason Lee, Zhou Maohua, Zhou, Winni Zhou, Wu Fang, Tom Westbrook, Sam Holmes Organizations: People's Bank of China, REUTERS, Rights, China Everbright Bank, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, Rights SHANGHAI, SINGAPORE, United States, outflows, Shanghai, Singapore

☆ Reaction to Alibaba's scrapping of cloud unit spin-off
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

3D printed clouds and figurines are seen in front of the Alibaba Cloud service logo in this illustration taken February 8, 2022. Alibaba said its decision to shelve the spin-off was due to uncertainties fuelled by U.S. curbs on exports to China of chips used in artificial intelligence applications. Following are what people are saying about the decision:LI CHENGDONG, BEIJING-BASED TECH AND E-COMMERCE ANALYST:"I believe scrapping the cloud unit's IPO reflects a new development strategy implemented by the new leadership. In short, I think prior decisions to restructure and IPO certain business units will have to be reassessed based on prevailing market conditions. The international business is one of the few Alibaba units that’s growing fast, which puts it in a better position to explore external funding."

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Alibaba, LI, Daniel Zhang, Zhang, BRIAN WONG, CHARLIE CHAI, Eddie Wu, SERN LING, Casey, Josh Ye, Yelin, Anne Marie Roantree, Muralikumar Anantharaman Organizations: REUTERS, China's, HK, Cloud Intelligence, Casey Hall, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, Hong Kong, China, BEIJING, AliCloud, Alibaba, Shanghai, Yelin Mo, Beijing

☆ China's Li Auto says to start mass production of its first EV in Feb
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Staff members stand at the booth of Chinese electric vehicle (EV) maker Li Auto, at a shopping mall in Beijing, China November 3, 2023. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsCompanies Li Auto Inc FollowSHANGHAI, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Li Auto (2015.HK) said on Friday it will start mass production and delivery of its first pure electric car in February, as the up and coming Chinese automaker bets on fast charging technologies to solve range anxiety for EV users. The MEGA MPV will also be the first model to be produced at Li Auto's Beijing plant with a designed capacity of 100,000 units annually. Founded in 2015, Li Auto has been offering four extended range hybrid SUVs targeting family users. ($1 = 7.2441 Chinese yuan renminbi)Reporting by Zhang Yan, Brenda Goh; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Raju GopalakrishnanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Li Auto, Tingshu Wang, Li, Zhang Yan, Brenda Goh, Muralikumar Anantharaman, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: REUTERS, HK, Li Auto, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China

The drop, potentially its biggest one-day fall in more than a year, wiped about $20 billion off the Chinese tech giant's market value. It was the first market reaction in Asia since the stunning strategy reversal was announced late on Thursday. "The cancellation of a full spin-off of AliCloud is a negative surprise," said Nomura analyst Shi Jialong in a note. The company said it will press ahead with a listing of Alibaba's logistics arm, Cainiao, which applied for a Hong Kong initial public offering in September. Reporting By Donny Kwok and Josh Ye in Hong Kong, Casey Hall and Gu Li in Shanghai; Writing by Anne Marie Roantree and Brenda Goh; Editing by Muralikumar AnantharamanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Aly, Group's, Nomura, Shi Jialong, Alibaba, Jack Ma, Kenneth Fong, Joseph Tsai, Bo Pei, Eddie Wu, Donny Kwok, Josh Ye, Casey Hall, Gu Li, Anne Marie Roantree, Brenda Goh, Muralikumar Organizations: Artificial Intelligence, REUTERS, Hong, Tencent Holdings, HK, UBS, Tiger Research, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, HONG KONG, SHANGHAI, HK, Hong Kong, Asia, AliCloud, Washington, U.S, Hangzhou, Alibaba

Alibaba Group's Hong Kong shares closed down 10%, their biggest single-day drop in more than a year. Some analysts said keeping the cloud unit could assist Alibaba's AI push. But (it) also points to the increasing importance of retaining the cloud unit given the surging demand for AI computing in China," said US Tiger Research analyst Bo Pei. Alibaba reported second-quarter revenue of 224.79 billion yuan ($31.01 billion), in line with the 224.32 billion expected by analysts, LSEG data showed. The company also said it will press ahead with a listing of Alibaba's logistics arm, Cainiao, which applied for a Hong Kong initial public offering in September.

Persons: Group's, Jon Withaar, Alibaba, Joseph Tsai, Aly, Jack Ma, Kenneth Fong, Bo Pei, Eddie Wu, Daniel Zhang, Vey, Sern Ling, Donny Kwok, Josh Ye, Casey Hall, Gu Li, Yelin, Ankur Banerjee, Anne Marie Roantree, Brenda Goh, Muralikumar Anantharaman Organizations: HK, Pictet Asset Management, Tencent Holdings, Artificial Intelligence, REUTERS, UBS, Tiger Research, Union Bancaire, Hong, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, China, Hong Kong, Asia, U.S, Singapore, Washington, Hangzhou, Shanghai, Alibaba, Union, Yelin Mo, Beijing

REUTERS/Thomas Peter/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSHANGHAI/PARIS, Nov 17 (Reuters) - The world's biggest luxury brands seeking growth in their second-largest market China are all courting the likes of wealthy entrepreneur Diana Wang. "Luxury brands offer you this event experience, this personal experience and it makes you feel privileged," Wang told Reuters. This week, Burberry (BRBY.L) also flagged low double-digit growth due to a slowdown in luxury spending globally, and in China. FEEDING THE LUXURY HABITEven as they narrow their focus, luxury brands remain optimistic about the potential in China, which is forecast to account for almost 40% of global luxury sales by 2030, according to consultants Bain. Luxury consultant Mario Ortelli said several luxury firms are hedging their bets on China by also expanding their global footprint.

Persons: Thomas Peter, Diana Wang, Wang, Tiffany, Chopard, Jacques Roizen, Cartier, Richemont, It's, Jean, Marc Duplaix, Versace, Donatella Versace, Gucci, Chanel, Dior, Cyrille Vigneron, LVMH, Louis Vuitton, Bain, Eric du Halgouet, Birkin, Mario Ortelli, Ortelli, it's, Mimosa Spencer, Casey Hall, Miral Organizations: Tiffany, REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Burberry, HSBC, Digital Luxury, Chanel, Shanghai, Capri Holdings, Tapestry, Bund, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, PARIS, Shanghai, Cartier, Shenzhen, South Korea, Japan, Thailand

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