Whoah!!! Look what I stumbled across... This is how BIG the China Market is!




ANGRY Birds, one of the most popular games played by users of mobile devices, is flying into China with new games specially designed for the country and branded products that will include themed mooncakes.

Chinese fans will be able to buy various products in stores or online within "coming months," Rovio Entertainment, the game's developer, said during Chinajoy, the games expo which ended in Shanghai yesterday.

"Angry Birds will continue its magic in China. We recognize the uniqueness of China and our Chinese fans," Peter Vesterbacka, Rovio's chief marketing officer, said at a forum during the event.

Angry Birds downloads have reached more than 300 million globally and Finland-based Rovio expects 100 million downloads in China by the end of the year, Vesterbacka said.

Among its plans for China, Rovio is developing a new "Moon Festival" episode for Angry Birds Seasons to be available by the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival.

Rovio is also to partner with Shanghai-based firm Madhouse which will provide mobile advertising content.

Mobile games have become more and more popular with the increased use of smart phones and the 3G network, industry insiders said, and the Angry Birds series of games has been among the top 3 paid applications in Apple's App Store for several months.

Rovio is hoping to expand the Angry Birds brand beyond the games sector, especially in China. It plans to open 100 stores on the Chinese mainland to sell franchised products and a line of Angry Birds shoes is to be sold at Letao, an online shoe company.

Mooncakes with an Angry Birds theme will also be available in China, the company said.

In the digital entertainment sector, Angry Birds as a brand ranks No. 3 in China behind Disney and Hello Kitty, Vesterbacka said, and the company envisaged a Disney-like expansion with Angry Birds films and books.

Rovio has opened an office in Shanghai and it is "recruiting people all the time," the company said.

Source: http://www.shanghaidaily.com/nsp/National/2011/08/01/Birds%2Bto%2Bget%2Bangry%2Bin%2BChina/

CHINA, which powered strong growth of Ferrari SpA in the first half of this year, has become the second biggest market for the iconic sports car maker.

Ferrari boosted global sales by 11.8 percent year on year to a record 3,577 units between January and June, according to its statement released yesterday. Sales revenue jumped 19.6 percent to 1.08 billion euros (US$1.5 billion).

Deliveries to Chinese mainland, Taiwan and Hong Kong totaled 378 units in the first six months, a significant surge of 116 percent from the same period of last year, the statement added.

The rally enabled China to replace Germany as Ferrari's second biggest market, trailing only the United States, which moved 939 units.

Ferrari Chairman Luca di Montezemolo attributed the car maker's buoyant sales worldwide to expanded presence in new markets and inspiring new products.

He estimated the growth momentum would extend to the second half as the company recently began delivering its first 4-seat, 4-wheel-drive sports sedan Ferrari FF.

Ferrari is among the world's super luxury car brands that enjoyed hefty growth in China. Hurun Report Inc, which publishes the China Rich List, said in April that the mainland is now home to 960,000 people with personal wealth over 10 million yuan (US$1.5 million), up almost 10 percent from a year ago.

Edwin Fenech, president and chief executive officer of Ferrari China, said earlier that their sales in China won't be affected by the nation's slower economic growth or Beijing's new car restrictions.

"There is growing interest for our brand because all our effort to bring value and understanding of our brand is working," he said.

According to Fenech, Ferrari will participate in 25 motor shows in China this year, more than double from last year. The car maker also signed an agreement to set up a Ferrari Museum in the Italian Pavilion of Shanghai Expo -- the largest investment made by Ferrari outside Italy.

Source: http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/?id=478329&type=Business

Get rich quick scheme of the day: Travel back in time to 2005 with sacks full of Benjamins, exchange them for renminbi, and presto-money-changeo, you're rich! "The renminbi (RMB), China's official currency, set a new high for the second day to a ratio of 6.4536 yuan per US dollar on Thursday. It indicates a 22-percent increase after the country launched exchange reforms on July 21, 2005. The ratio was 8.11 yuan per US dollar when the reforms were launched six years ago. China abandoned a decade-old peg to the US dollar by allowing its currency to fluctuate against a basket of currencies on July 21, 2005. The reforms were suspended in a bid to fight the global downturn in 2008. The yuan exchange rate again was pegged to the dollar at a ratio around 6.83 from September 2008. The peg was lifted on June 19, 2010, when the central bank announced further yuan exchange rate formation mechanisms." [China Daily]

Source:http://shanghaiist.com/2011/07/25/yuan_rises_to_highest_ever_ratio_ag.php

Miniature City Shanghai - Tilt Shift Time Lapse from Joe Nafis on Vimeo.

US fast food giant McDonald's raised prices of certain products in China from July 13, the Beijing Times reported Monday.

The price hike is the fourth since July 2010, the paper said.

McDonald's told the paper that the price hike was a "structural adjustment", in line with the company's overall strategy.

The price of Chicken McNuggets (5 pieces) was raised to 8 yuan ($1.19) from the previous 6 yuan, spicy McWings was raised to 9 yuan from 7 yuan, and a milkshake now costs 12 yuan instead of 9.5 yuan.

It also raised the price of hamburgers, french fries, chicken wings, and most combos, excluding Chicken McNugget combos. The price hikes were between 0.5 yuan to 2 yuan, the paper said.

KFC, another US fast food provider, said it currently has no plan to adjust product prices, according to the paper.

Source: China Daily http://usa.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2011-07/18/content_12927068.htm

Shanghai now more expensive than New York

Tokyo is still the world’s most expensive city to live in and Oslo and Osaka still make the top five, but the Worldwide Cost of Living 2011 survey just released from the Economist Intelligence Unit also revealed some dramatic changes in the last year.

Australia has become one of the biggest risers, with the strong Aussie dollar lifting costs in Sydney (6th most expensive city), Melbourne (7^th), Perth (13^th) and Brisbane (14^th) to their highest levels.

Europe accounts for half the top 50 most expensive cities, with Paris in fourth spot, Zurich in fifth and Frankfurt and Geneva in eighth and ninth.

More than US$7 for bread in Moscow, less than US$3 in London.

The survey shows how economies have shifted over the past 10 years, with especially Asian cities becoming cheaper. Hong Kong, from third place 10 years ago is now 22^nd, Shanghai falls from 16^th to 48^th and Beijing falls from 11^th to 64^th.

Some Asian countries whose economies have shifted up the gears have bucked this trend however. Bangkok, the 108^th most expensive city in 2001 is now the 66^th. Jakarta moves up 35 spots from 2001 to 77^th.

American cities have also generally moved down the rankings, with New York only just squeaking into the top 50, in 49th spot. New York is now cheaper than Chicago and Los Angeles while Atlanta, the United States' cheapest city, is on a par with Kiev in Ukraine.

“Although inflation in Japan has been stagnant for a long time, the rapid strengthening of the Yen in recent years has fuelled the relative cost of living in Japanese cities," says Jon Copestake, editor of the Worldwide Cost of Living survey. "This trend is also evidenced by the contrary movement of other Asian cities. Hong Kong and China, which peg their currencies to the US dollar, have seen the relative cost of living fall as the US dollar has declined from highs of 2001.

“That said, many of these cities have seen local inflation rising and it is interesting to note that Shanghai has now become a more expensive location than New York and Washington DC in the United States."

Top 10 cities in Worldwide Cost of Living Index

1. Tokyo
2. Oslo
3. Osaka
4. Paris
5. Zurich
6. Sydney
7. Melbourne
8. Frankfurt
9. Geneva
10. Singapore

Bottom 5 cities

129. New Delhi
130. Tehran
131. Mumbai
132. Tunis
133. Karachi

Some interesting comparisons:

A loaf of bread costs:

US$7.61 in Moscow
US$7.42 in Tokyo
US$6.06 in New York
US$3.35 in Berlin
US$2.36 in London

A pack of cigarettes costs:

US$15.11 in Oslo
US$10.79 in London
US$8.99 in New York
US$5.99 in Madrid
US$1.85 in Moscow

A daily business trip costs:
(Where daily business trip comprises one night's accommodation in a hotel, one two-course meal, one simple meal, two five-kilometer journeys by taxi, one drink in the hotel bar and one international foreign daily newspaper)

US$746.21 in New York
US$626.87 in Sydney
US$610 in Paris
US$554.87 in Hong Kong
US$518.20 in London
US$452.28 in Singapore
US$375.46 in Tokyo
US$315.62 in Mexico City

Notable points in the 2011 survey:

• The biggest rise in the past twelve months is Budapest, Hungary, up 17 places to 76
• The sharpest drop is Istanbul, Turkey, down 24 places to 52
• American cities generally drop down the rankings -- New York is now the 49^th most costly world city
• Australia’s five main cities all rise, with four now in the top 15
• Half of the top 50 most expensive cities in the world are in Europe

Read more: Shanghai now more expensive than New York | CNNGo.com http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/life/shanghai-now-more-expensive-new-york-307238#ixzz1SU8l7zoh

Read more: Shanghai now more expensive than New York | CNNGo.com http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/life/shanghai-now-more-expensive-new-york-307238#ixzz1SU8fKynq