Zhimeitong | International Highlights

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[Overtaking Amazon, Chinese cross-border e-commerce giant SHEIN hit a record high in U.S. downloads in the second quarter] In the second quarter of 2022, the online shopping platform Shein surpassed Amazon in U.S. mobile installs. Shein's downloads were about 6.8 million, up 13% month-on-month; Amazon's downloads were 6.3 million, down 7%. While Amazon's App adoption in the U.S. may have slowed, its average monthly active user (MAU) in the second quarter of 2022 was three times that of Shein's, the report noted.

[Amazon will acquire iRobot, a consumer robotics company, for about $1.7 billion to accelerate the growth of the smart home business] Amazon announced on August 5 that it has agreed to acquire iRobot, a consumer robotics company, for $61 per share and a total price of about $1.7 billion. iRobot is best known for its Roomba vacuum cleaner, which will join Amazon's list of smart home features along with voice assistant Alexa, the Astro robot, and more. The managing director of GlobalData Retail said the move is part of Amazon's efforts to own some of the home space through the service and accelerate its growth outside of retail. Amazon hasn't had much success with home robots, but the acquisition of iRobot and the company's strong market reputation provides a "huge foothold in the consumer robotics market" that could help Amazon replicate its Echo line of smarts, ABI Research analysts say Speaker success.

01. North America

[FedEx and Berkshire Gray Deepen Partnership on Robotic Automation Solutions] Berkshire Gray, a leader in AI robotics solutions, and FedEx announced an expanded strategic partnership. The two parties have collaborated on an agreement for a new development activity that will provide broader AI robotic automation capabilities to help improve the safety and efficiency of FedEx 's global package processing operations. In addition, the parties expect to execute a master system purchase agreement in 2022, which will simplify and expedite the procurement process for Berkshire Grey solutions for all FedEx operating companies worldwide.

[Maersk acquires Danish project logistics company Martin Bencher for US$61 million] On August 5, Maersk has reached an agreement to acquire Martin Bencher Group, a Danish-based project logistics company with an enterprise value of US$16 million, which is engaged in non-container projects. There are advantages in logistics. Maersk and Martin Bencher Group remain two separate companies until all necessary regulatory approvals are obtained and the transaction completes and will therefore operate independently as usual.

Founded in 1997, Martin Bencher is an asset-light logistics provider focusing on project logistics. The company's core capability is to provide end-to-end project logistics solutions for global customers. The company has deep industry expertise, stable customers relationship and professional technical team.

[Meta (Facebook parent company) agrees to delay acquisition of VR company Within Unlimited] Facebook parent company Meta Platforms has agreed to delay the completion of the acquisition of VR company Within Unlimited. The latter's products include fitness app Supernatural. In July, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed a lawsuit seeking to block the deal and asked a judge in federal court in San Francisco to issue a temporary restraining order blocking the acquisition. In joint court filings dated Aug. 4, Meta agreed not to close the deal until the end of 2022, or the first business day after a judge decides whether the case can go ahead.

Canada unexpectedly lost 30,600 jobs in July as public sector activity contracted, while the unemployment rate remained at a historic 4.9%, Statistics Canada data showed minimum level. July marked the second straight month of declines in Canadian employment, adding a cumulative 1.06 million jobs from May 2021 to May 2022 as the economy recovered. Average hourly earnings, closely watched by the Bank of Canada, rose 5.4% from July 2021, down from 5.6% in June but sharply up from 2.4% at the start of the year.

02. EU region

[EU countries will be forced to compete with Asia for Russian LNG] Europe may have to compete with Asia for Russian LNG in the coming months due to economic recovery and the arrival of severe winter. The situation in EU countries will worsen as winter approaches. The worsening living standards of Europeans could affect their support for Ukraine, while EU governments could come to power to break the Western alliance. Europe faced a gas market collapse last year due to limited supplies from key suppliers, low levels of occupancy in natural gas underground storage and high demand for LNG in Asia.

[ECB injects billions of dollars into weaker euro zone debt market] The European Central Bank injected 17 billion euros ($17.3 billion) into Italian, Spanish and Greek bond markets between June and July, according to ECB data ), while reducing its holdings of German, Dutch and French bonds slightly. The ECB ended its pandemic-era bond-buying program in March and is now focusing on reinvesting maturing bonds from weaker euro zone members. The move underscores that the European Central Bank is seeking to limit borrowing costs in countries like Italy and prevent yields from surging as it exits years of easing. Weeks after the European Central Bank raised interest rates for the first time in more than a decade, policymakers worry that tightening monetary policy will widen the gap between the region's strongest and weakest economies.

[German media: Fuel prices and record inflation may lead to protests] Record inflation and rising fuel prices may lead to protests in Germany this autumn and winter. The report reviewed previous rallies in Germany against coronavirus-related restrictions. The report pointed out that this situation may be repeated because the patience of the Germans is not unlimited. Protests have already occurred in Berlin, Byrne and Saxony. Meanwhile, the interior minister of Saxony stressed that preparations are being made for various scenarios. In addition, he called on the authorities to set up a crisis team to reduce the impact of rising energy prices.

03. Other regions

[Analysts expect Argentina’s inflation rate to reach 90.2% this year] A report released on August 5 showed that economic analysts consulted by Argentina’s central bank predicted that Argentina’s inflation rate will reach 90.2% in 2022. The forecast is a 16.2 percentage point improvement from last month's forecast. Argentina has long suffered from high inflation. The Russian-Ukrainian conflict has exacerbated the problem.

[Argentina launches anti-dumping sunset review investigation on high-speed hacksaw blades for hand saws in China] On August 4, 2022, the Ministry of Production and Development of Argentina issued Announcement No. 661, in response to the application of the Argentine company SIN PAR SA, for hand saws originating in China. High-speed hacksaw blades launched the second anti-dumping sunset review investigation. During the investigation of the case, the current anti-dumping duties continued to be effective, and the customs codes of the products involved were 8202.91.00 and 8202.99.00. The announcement takes effect from the date of publication.

On March 9, 2010, the former Secretariat of Industry, Commerce and Small and Medium Enterprises of Argentina issued Announcement No. 36 made on March 2, 2010 to initiate an anti-dumping investigation on high-speed hacksaw blades for hand saws originating in China. Effective the next day. On November 24, 2011, the former Ministry of Industry of Argentina issued Announcement No. 377 on September 8, 2011, making an affirmative final ruling on the case, and began to levy an anti-dumping duty of USD 0.46 per item on the products involved. The measures have been implemented since September 2011. Effective on the 8th and valid for 5 years. On September 7, 2016, in response to the application of the Argentine company SIN PAR SA, the former Argentine Ministry of Production issued Announcement No. 429 to initiate the first sunset review investigation of the case. On September 6, 2017, the former Ministry of Production of Argentina issued Announcement No. 398, making the first affirmative final ruling on sunset review of the case, maintaining the anti-dumping duty of USD 0.46 per piece, and the measures will take effect from the date of announcement. Valid for 5 years.

[India continues to levy anti-dumping duties on China-related heat-resistant glass appliances] On August 3, 2022, the Revenue Department of the Ministry of Finance of India issued a circular No. 24/2022-Customs (ADD), which was accepted by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry of India on May 6, 2022. Made the second anti-dumping sunset review affirmative final recommendation for Opal Glassware originating in or imported from China and the United Arab Emirates, and decided to continue the CIF method for the products involved in China and the United Arab Emirates. Anti-dumping duties of 30.64% and 4.38% are levied, valid for 5 years. This measure will take effect from the date of publication of this notification in the Official Gazette. This case involves products under Indian customs code 7013.

On August 26, 2010, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry of India launched an anti-dumping investigation on heat-resistant glass appliances originating in or imported from China and the United Arab Emirates. On November 23, 2011, the Ministry of Finance of India issued Circular No./2011-Customs, deciding to impose anti-dumping duties of 41.61%-110.17% and 36.73% on the products involved in China and the United Arab Emirates, respectively. On July 8, 2016, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry of India launched the first anti-dumping sunset review investigation on heat-resistant glass appliances originating in or imported from China and the United Arab Emirates. On August 9, 2017, the Ministry of Finance of India issued Circular No. 37/2017-Customs (ADD), deciding to continue to implement anti-dumping measures against the products involved in China and the United Arab Emirates, and levy 30.64% and 4.38% respectively on the basis of landed price (CIF). % anti-dumping duties, valid until August 8, 2022. On September 9, 2021, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry of India launched the second anti-dumping sunset review investigation on heat-resistant glass appliances originating in or imported from China and the United Arab Emirates. On May 6, 2022, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry of India made an affirmative final ruling on the case.

[India's "Alipay" Paytm's revenue in the first fiscal quarter was 16.8 billion Indian rupees, an increase of 89% year-on-year] The Indian version of "Alipay" Paytm's first fiscal quarter net loss was 6.44 billion Indian rupees, an increase of 69% year-on-year. Revenue in the first quarter was 16.8 billion Indian rupees, an increase of 89% year-on-year. The total cost in the first quarter was 24.2 billion Indian rupees, an increase of 85% year-on-year.

Zhimeitong | Logistics Highlights

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[The number of China-Europe trains reached a record high in July] From January to July this year, China-Europe trains have operated 8,990 trains and sent 869,000 TEUs of goods, an increase of 3% and 4% respectively year-on-year. Among them, 1,517 trains were opened and 149,000 TEUs of goods were dispatched in July, an increase of 11% and 12% year-on-year respectively, both hitting record highs.

[China-Europe Railway Express Xinxiang-Vietnam Hanoi Line Opens] China-Europe Railway Express (Zhongyu) "Xinxiang-Vietnam Hanoi" line is the first ASEAN international train to operate in Xinxiang City. The opening of the new line follows the "Xinxiang-Western Europe" line. Another new channel opened. Statistics show that from January to July this year, a total of 964 trains of China-Europe trains (Zhongyu number) in Henan Province were opened, a year-on-year increase of 13.5%. The relevant person in charge of Henan Zhongyu International Port Group said that the opening of the "Xinxiang-Hanoi, Vietnam" line of the China-Europe freight train (Zhongyu) is the first attempt of a new logistics channel in northern Henan to go to ASEAN, which will help speed up the construction of Xinxiang and surrounding areas. . Xinxiang Economic and Technological Development Zone is a national-level foreign trade (textile) transformation and upgrading base and a demonstration area for Henan's opening to the outside world. The opening of the "Xinxiang-Hanoi, Vietnam" line of the China Railway Express (Zhongyu) provides a convenient trade channel for enterprises in Xinxiang and even northern Henan to enter the Southeast Asian market.

Zhimeitong | Domestic Highlights

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[The General Administration of Customs announces the value of China's foreign trade import and export] The General Administration of Customs announced that in the first seven months of this year, the total value of China's foreign trade import and export was 23.6 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 10.4%. Among them, exports were 13.37 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 14.7%; imports were 10.23 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.3%.

[Shaanxi Province's cross-border e-commerce transaction volume in the first half of 2022 reached 6.568 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 55%] The Shaanxi Provincial Government Information Office held a press conference to introduce the province's business operations in the first half of the year. Data show that in the first half of 2022, the cross-border e-commerce transaction volume in Shaanxi Province reached 6.568 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 55%.

In addition, the import and export of Shaanxi Province reached 236.226 billion yuan in the first half of the year, a year-on-year increase of 6%, of which exports increased by 28.7% year-on-year, ranking 11th in the country in terms of growth rate, 15.5 percentage points higher than the national level.

It is reported that in the past six months, Shaanxi Province has consolidated foreign trade support measures, issued a series of policies to stabilize foreign trade, such as supporting the construction of overseas warehouses, cultivating new forms of foreign trade, expanding trade financing, strengthening export credit guarantees, and making good use of the new RCEP rules. Overseas warehouse and the third batch of foreign trade comprehensive service enterprises.

Zhimeitong | E-commerce highlights

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[Amazon India will host Great Freedom Sale from August 6-10] Amazon will launch Great Freedom Sale ahead of India's 75th Independence Day, which will start from August 2022 Starts at 12:00am on the 6th and runs until 11:59pm on August 10th, 2022.

Amazon Prime members will also enjoy 24-hour early access during the sale, with exclusive Prime deals starting at 12:00AM on August 5, 2022. Users can see big discounts and other deals, with expected deals in categories including smartphones, electronics, fashion and beauty, home and kitchen, groceries and appliances.

[Amazon opens first large-scale Irish sorting center in Dublin, UK] Amazon announced the opening of its first large-scale Irish sorting center in Dublin, UK, which officially opened this week. The center was originally scheduled to open this spring, but Amazon delayed the opening for various reasons. The 630,000-square-foot center will house millions of items that will be picked, packed and shipped to customers in Ireland and Europe.

[eBay announces the launch of an auto parts export program in Brazil] August 5, following Mexico, eBay recently launched an auto parts export program in Brazil to help local sellers promote their products and increase sales. The program is the first of its kind that eBay has launched for a specific industry in Brazil. The eBay platform plans to sell to 142 million buyers in 190 countries, through which Brazilian sellers will have the opportunity to sell their products to the world.

It is understood that the auto parts and accessories category is one of eBay's important revenue sources, and in 2021, eBay's sales in emerging market regions, including Brazil, have increased by nearly 30%.

【Shopee Updates Buyer Data Protection Policy】 Shopee has made an important update to the Data Protection Policy (DPP). Users can find detailed information on these additional measures in Sections 10.6 – 10.7 of the Storage, Handling and Disposal Section of the DPP.

First, all data must be stored for no more than 90 days. Seller shall not retain or store any Personal Data and Restricted Data subject to this DPP (including, but not limited to, customer names, phone numbers, email addresses and addresses) for any longer than is necessary for the purposes of this Agreement (i.e., in any event, must not exceed ninety (90) days). Thereafter, all data must be processed in accordance with Article 10.7 of the DPP.