This morning was a pretty big disappointment when I opened my curtains to reveal one of the worst days for pollution since I arrived in Beijing. I made the decision to hold off on the Forbidden City for one more day and make the journey to the Silk Market, a place described to me as a hub for the weird, …

Today was Friday in Beijing, the final day of the working week and the last full-day of our work program until we reach Shanghai on Monday. First up was a meeting with Nicola Morris, General Manager of Fonterra’s farm operations here in China. She walked us through exactly how New Zealand’s largest company was getting on over in China. The …

Early start today with breakfast at 6:15am, something I’m going to have to get used to! Today is the Economist’s China Summit for 2013. Taking place for the third time in as many years, the conference this year is themed around the recent leadership change that took place in China and the greater implications it could have both domestically and internationally. Boasting …

The departing boss of Coca-Cola in New Zealand is leaving disappointed that companies are not appreciated for making money but says the country has been a great place to do business and live in. George Adams is moving back to Europe after serving nine years as managing director of Coca-Cola Amatil NZ and Fiji. Irishman Barry O’Connell, who is currently …

Fran and I have just returned from an amazing day with some of the leading figures in developing Beijing-Hollywood. I’ll keep my remarks brief as  I wouldn’t want to spoil the video that will go up on the site in the coming days. We began the day at the magnificent Star Lake Resort – a newly built, luxury facility that will host …

The New Zealand dollar was under pressure in early trading after being sold-off overnight in London. The kiwi was at 83.93 US cents at 8am, little changed from 83.94 cents at 5.25pm on Tuesday. But it slumped from 84.19 cents to about 83.75 cents before recovering in overnight trading. There appeared to have been a large kiwi-euro flow in London …

Today was an early start! Our driver arranged to collect Fran and I from the hotel at 7:30am to begin our program. symptoms of diabetes First up on the agenda was a meeting with Derek Low, head of Beca’s operations in China. Beca, a New Zealand engineering firm, operates a number of offices throughout Asia. Derek spoke to us predominantly about Beca’s …

A lack of wind is being blamed for the acrid grey smog currently blanketing Beijing with the city enduring some of the worst pollution on record. Official readings taken over the weekend showed PM2.5 readings in Beijing of 886 micrograms per cubic metre. To give that some perspective – 25 micrograms is the WHO’s cut-off level for safe emissions. The …

Wall Street fell amid concern that stock market darling Apple is facing headwinds, fanning concern that other companies might struggle with demand for their products and services too. Shares of Apple sank on reports that it’s slowing down production of its iPhone 5, increasing worries the appeal of some of its products is waning. The stock was last down 3.3 …

“You have to remember, Beijing has the population of Australia crammed into a space the size of Sydney.” Monday morning in Beijing today brought with it the beginning of the business program here in China. First stop for the day: Mahon Investments to visit David Mahon and Charlie Gao for a briefing. Both have vast experience with China and offered …