Latest news with #NDRC
South China Morning Post
10 hours ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
China to amend key law as push to stamp out vicious price wars intensifies
China plans to amend a decades-old pricing law as part of an ongoing campaign to curb the vicious price wars plaguing several industries – a deep-rooted issue that threatens to wipe out corporate profits and fuel deflationary pressure. The amendment, which covers 10 clauses in the law, updates the definition of unfair pricing practices to include 'involution-style' competition, according to a draft released by China's National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the State Administration for Market Regulation on Thursday. The term 'involution' has become a buzzword in China that refers to the excessive, cutthroat style of competition that has emerged in several industries, as companies facing weak domestic demand and oversupply problems slash prices in a bid to attract customers. The trend has become a serious concern for Beijing in recent months, with Chinese officials repeatedly vowing to stamp out the price wars and criticising companies that engage in 'disorderly' styles of competition that risk undermining economic growth. As China's economic landscape had undergone profound changes, the pricing law that originally came into effect in 1998 needed to be updated, government agencies said in a statement. 'With new economic forms and business models continuing to emerge, some industries have seen prominent cases of disorderly low-price competition, creating new demand for price regulation and oversight,' the statement said. The amendment, which is open for public comment until August 23, adds a new clause stating that businesses shall not force other operators to dump products at below-cost prices. Previously, the law only banned firms from selling goods below cost to eliminate competitors or monopolise the market.
The Hill
a day ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Obama leading Democratic redistricting fundraiser in Martha's Vineyard
Former President Obama is set to appear at a Democratic redistricting group's fundraiser next month in Martha's Vineyard, as the party looks to go toe-to-toe with Republicans' redistricting push in Texas. Obama is named as a special guest on an invitation for an event hosted by former Attorney General Eric Holder, the chairman of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee (NDRC), and Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), according to an invitation obtained by The Hill and first reported by Politico. The invitation says the dinner and discussion will benefit the NDRC and affiliated groups on Aug. 19. Democrats are pushing for blue states to consider redrawing their House maps to offset similar efforts taking place in Texas, where President Trump has said he's looking to pick up five House seats. Ohio is also redrawing its maps, which is required this year because a previous plan didn't pass with bipartisan support in 2022. Republicans could make the maps more favorable to their party as they seek to win back seats held by Reps. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) and Emilia Sykes (D-Ohio). California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) is the only Democratic governor who so far has signaled he's open to redrawing his state's map to help his party. California uses an independent redistricting commission, however, and would have to overcome some hurdles in order for Democrats to do mid-cycle redistricting in the state. Other Democratic-led states such as New York or New Jersey that could see similar pushes, also have redistricting commissions and would likely need to have their state constitutions amended in order for Democrats to successfully redraw maps. The redistricting tit-for-tat could be previewing a tumultuous midterm cycle. Republicans are already bracing for an unfavorable political environment next year given the historic trends that run against the president's party in midterm cycles.
Forbes
a day ago
- Business
- Forbes
China Market Update: Law Draft Focuses On Overcapacity And Price Wars
CLN Asian equities were mixed overnight, as Japan and Mainland China outperformed. It was a relatively quiet night with Hong Kong and Mainland China semis higher on President Trump's AI Action Plan as Mainland China had a very broad rally led by Shenzhen growth stocks while mega cap banks, oil, and telecom lagged. Remember our thesis that foreign investors will always favor growth stocks when investing in China! Hong Kong and Mainland China were led by healthcare and materials. The biggest news item today was the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) announced a price law amendment draft that included 'criteria for identifying unfair price behavior' including 'identifying low-priced dumping', 'improve the identification standards of unfair price behaviors such as price collusion' and stated industry leaders 'shall not use their influence or dominant position in the industry to force or bundle sales of goods'. There will be a consequence for such behavior as 'improve the legal responsibility for price violations' such as 'punishment for unfair price behaviors' and for those 'who violate the clearly marked price'. This draft is extensive, though one line that jumps out is 'dumping at a price lower than the cost'. Reuters had a good article on rising commodity prices in China and the government's overcapacity crackdown (I'll put it on X/Twitter @ahern_brendan). Another thesis is that China's deflationary days are over, in addition to China exporting deflation. Hopefully, the restaurant delivery war between Meituan, Alibaba, and will also end. Meituan +0.9% seems to see the writing on the wall as the company held a symposium in Shanghai with participants in its ecosystem, which included restaurant owners voicing concern that the current delivery price war is weighing on restaurant dining. Remember, we had Shanghai's local SAMR meet with Meituan, and Alibaba yesterday. Hong Kong growth stocks were mixed, with Tencent +0.91%, while NetEase -3.25%, CATL -1.24%, and Alibaba -0.5%. Biotech was led higher by WuxiBiologics +3.83% which announced that the 1st half of 2025 revenue will increase ~16% YoY and net income ~56% YoY. Mainland Chinese investors bought $473mm of Hong Kong stocks via Southbound Stock Connect. The State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) met with local SOEs in Beijing to discuss implementing reforms and becoming more efficient. President Xi met with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa on EU-China relations. Premier Li met with EU Commission Chairman von der Leyen on trade. He will also give a speech at the opening of the 2025 World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai on July 26th. The China equity rally is a sleeper of a trade (not just YTD but since January 2024), though the renminbi's rally versus the US dollar is even more so. On April 9th, USD/CNY hit 7.34 versus today's close of 7.15. Yes, the US dollar index is off nearly twice as much in percentage terms versus CNY's gains. Maybe countries should accuse the US of being a currency manipulator! Just kidding! New Content Read our latest article: KraneShares KOID ETF: Humanoid Robot Rings Nasdaq Opening Bell Please click here to read Chart1 Chart2 Chart3 Chart4 Chart5 Chart6
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
China releases draft law amendment to help curb price wars
BEIJING (Reuters) -China released a draft amendment to its pricing law on Thursday as part of efforts to curb excessive competition and price wars among firms, amid persistent deflationary pressures. Chinese leaders have signaled they will rein in price wars among producers as expectations grow for a new round of factory capacity cuts in a long-awaited but challenging campaign against deflation - a move that could pose risks to economic growth. Under the proposed revisions, apart from lawful discounts on seasonal or overstocked goods, or other legitimate reasons for price cuts, firms will be prohibited from selling below cost to drive out competitors or monopolise the market, and from forcing others to adopt similar pricing practices. The draft law, published on the website of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) - the state planner, also stipulates that firms cannot use data, algorithms, or technology to engage in improper pricing behaviors. The NDRC and the State Administration for Market Regulation said in a statement that China's economic landscape has changed significantly since the current pricing law was adopted in 1998. "The vast majority of goods and services prices are now formed by the market, new economic forms and business models are constantly emerging, and issues such as disorderly low-price competition in some industries have become prominent," they said. China will refine standards for identifying price collusion, price gouging, price discrimination and other unfair pricing practices, and take steps to address "involution-style" competition, the state agencies said. The draft amendment, which is open for public comment until August 23, also proposes tougher penalties for unfair pricing practices, including higher fines for violations of clear price marking requirements. China's producer prices dropped for the 33rd month in June. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
China releases draft law amendment to help curb price wars
BEIJING (Reuters) -China released a draft amendment to its pricing law on Thursday as part of efforts to curb excessive competition and price wars among firms, amid persistent deflationary pressures. Chinese leaders have signaled they will rein in price wars among producers as expectations grow for a new round of factory capacity cuts in a long-awaited but challenging campaign against deflation - a move that could pose risks to economic growth. Under the proposed revisions, apart from lawful discounts on seasonal or overstocked goods, or other legitimate reasons for price cuts, firms will be prohibited from selling below cost to drive out competitors or monopolise the market, and from forcing others to adopt similar pricing practices. The draft law, published on the website of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) - the state planner, also stipulates that firms cannot use data, algorithms, or technology to engage in improper pricing behaviors. The NDRC and the State Administration for Market Regulation said in a statement that China's economic landscape has changed significantly since the current pricing law was adopted in 1998. "The vast majority of goods and services prices are now formed by the market, new economic forms and business models are constantly emerging, and issues such as disorderly low-price competition in some industries have become prominent," they said. China will refine standards for identifying price collusion, price gouging, price discrimination and other unfair pricing practices, and take steps to address "involution-style" competition, the state agencies said. The draft amendment, which is open for public comment until August 23, also proposes tougher penalties for unfair pricing practices, including higher fines for violations of clear price marking requirements. China's producer prices dropped for the 33rd month in June.
