China share of US imports drops to 7.1%...Great Wall AMC wipes out billions in losses, consolidates...Chinese firms in Vietnam upbeat over 20% US tariff
China share of US imports drops to 7.1%
China’s share of US imports fell to 7.1% in May, the lowest since 2001, according to trade data published on Thursday by the US Census Bureau, reports Bloomberg. That’s a 4.3 percentage point lower than the same period last year and part of a longer-term decline that began during President Donald Trump’s first term in office. China’s share of imports was recently as high as 14.8% in September 2024, prior to Trump returning to office and implementing steep new tariffs on imports from the country.
Among the biggest beneficiaries of the realignment have been China’s neighbors in Asia. Both Taiwan and Vietnam each accounted for nearly 6% of US goods imports in May, up from roughly 3% in 2023.
Taiwan is now 1.2 percentage points shy of China’s share of US imports, driven in part by soaring AI demand for semiconductors, an industry it dominates.
Great Wall AMC wipes out billions in losses, consolidates
Four months after the Ministry of Finance handed over its controlling stake in China Great Wall Asset Management Co. Ltd. to Central Huijin Investment Ltd., the bad-debt manager has launched a sweeping capital and ownership restructuring to shore up its battered balance sheet, reports Caixin. China’s top financial regulator approved a two-step maneuver. Great Wall’s shareholders first reduced registered capital from RMB 51.2 billion ($7.14 billion) to RMB 10 billion, proportionally absorbing past losses. Central Huijin then injected RMB 36.8 billion, lifting registered capital to RMB 46.8 billion—a fresh start for a company long plagued by mounting nonperforming assets.
Following these transactions, Great Wall’s ownership structure shifted dramatically. Central Huijin now controls 94.34% of shares, up from 73.53%, while the National Council for Social Security Fund holds 4.05%. Small stakes are divided among China Property & Casualty Reinsurance Co. Ltd., China Continent Property & Casualty Insurance Co. Ltd. and China Life Co. Ltd.
Great Wall confirmed it has completed updates to its shareholder register and business license, with the revised capital fully paid in—signaling the finalization of its restructuring.
Chinese firms in Vietnam upbeat over 20% US tariff
Chinese manufacturers in Vietnam breathed a sigh of relief on Wednesday, after Washington and Hanoi agreed a “better than expected” trade deal that will reduce US tariffs to 20% and bring an end to three months of uncertainty, reports the South China Morning Post. Most Chinese exporters are likely to continue operating in the Southeast Asian nation in the wake of the agreement, with firms viewing the final tariff rate as manageable, analysts and businesspeople in the country told the Post.
US President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday via a social post that the United States would impose a 20% tariff on imports from Vietnam—plus a 40% duty on goods deemed to be transshipped—under a new trade agreement, calling it “a great deal of cooperation between our two countries”.
The new rate is significantly lower than the 46% so-called “reciprocal” tariff on Vietnamese goods that Trump announced in early April, before subsequently pausing for 90 days.
Alibaba seeks $1.5bn from exchangeable bonds
Alibaba Group Holding plans to raise HK$12 billion ($1.5 billion) via exchangeable bonds to fund its cloud business and international e-commerce operations, the company said on Thursday, reports the South China Morning Post. The bonds will not pay interest but will allow bondholders to exchange them for shares of its subsidiary, Alibaba Health Information Technology.
“Alibaba Group intends to use the net proceeds from the bond offering for general corporate purposes, including investments to support the development of our cloud infrastructure and international commerce businesses,” Alibaba, which also owns the Post, said in a filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange.
The zero-coupon exchangeable bonds maturing on July 9, 2032, would be sold via a private offering to non-US persons, the filing said, adding that the timing of the offering would depend on market conditions.
Shein hit with €40mn fine in France
Fast-fashion retailer Shein has been fined €40 million ($47.09 million) by French regulators, a record penalty, for misleading consumers on price reductions and environmental commitments, reports the Financial Times. An 11-month investigation found that Shein had engaged in “misleading commercial practices towards consumers on the reality of the price reductions granted and on the scope of the commitments concerning environmental claims.” Shein has accepted the fine.
The China-founded retailer has grown rapidly over the past five years to become a major force in fashion retailing across the western world.
The company, which routinely bombards customers with discount offers, made $1 billion net profit on revenues of $38 billion in 2024, the Financial Times previously reported.