Companies And Markets

State-owned firms' Jan-April profits surge

Profits at China's State-owned firms rose 24.8 percent in the first four months of 2017 from the same period a year earlier, the Ministry of Finance said on Wednesday. Total profits stood at 824.75 billion yuan ($119.69 billion) in January-April, while revenue rose 17.5 percent to 15.58 trillion yuan, the ministry said. State firms' total liabilities rose 11 percent year-on-year to 90.37 trillion yuan at the end of April, it said.

LeEco cutting 70% of staff in the US

TV and smartphone group LeEco said it would cut over 300 jobs at its US business, amounting to almost three-quarters of its local workforce, as the cash-strapped conglomerate streamlines global operations in response to a shortage of cash. The cuts are aimed at increasing its focus on LeEco's domestic market and core TV sets and online content business. That was after founder Jia Yueting said last year expansion had been too quick and costly. LeEco stretched its business from video streaming to TV sets, smartphones, sports and even electric vehicles in a little over a decade, employing 14,000 people globally as of late last year. "The breadth of our business model is capital intensive," LeEco said in a statement. It said that made it difficult in the past few months to support all its businesses. "As a result, the capital we do have will have to be highly focused, resulting in a significant restructuring and streamlining of our business, operations and workforce," the group added.

JD plans massive logistics hub in Xi'an

Online retailer JD.com Inc said it plans to invest 20.5 billion yuan ($3 billion) in the next five years to build a logistics hub in the northwestern city of Xi'an. JD signed a deal on Monday with the Xi'an National Civil Aerospace Industrial Base. It is part of JD's strategic partnership deal with the provincial government of Shaanxi, of which Xi'an is the capital. JD said the hub would comprise a global logistics headquarters, an automation industrial center and an operational center, featuring big data, cloud computing and automation technologies. The company said the hub will be the biggest of its kind in China. JD said it aims to develop an entire storage and delivery chain run by machines, featuring drones, self-driving cars and robot-run warehouses. The research team that will develop the unmanned system will be chosen by the end of 2017. A drone assembly line is also planned.

Baidu to supply partners with AI

Baidu Inc announced it would provide its partners with artificial intelligence resources and technology, to build a smarter and stronger alliance for shared growth. The group said it would share its media resources, online data accumulation and analytical technology, advanced marketing techniques and large pool of advertisers with its partners. The shared resources would include online portals, smartphone makers and app developers, Senior Vice-President Xiang Hailong told the annual summit of the Baidu Union, an alliance framework of Baidu and its partners. CEO and Chairman Robin Li said the internet was just a "starter" while AI would be the "main course". Li added that the era of enhanced communications between people and things had arrived, citing examples of voice-controlled smart home appliances and autonomous driving vehicles. Li said that it was time to shift from "thinking mobile" to "thinking AI", with more focus on technology and user experience.

Amazon in talks with Australia Post

Australia Post said it was in "advanced talks" to secure a huge and lucrative contract from US online retail giant Amazon.com Inc to deliver goods to millions of Australian consumers. Earlier this month, Amazon confirmed that it was actively searching for land on which to house a goods storage and distribution center. But on Wednesday, Australia's government-owned postal service confirmed it was in advanced talks with the retail chain about securing a deal by July. Australia Post Chief Operating Officer Bob Black told News Corp his company, and its express delivery subsidiary StarTrack, had an 82 percent share of the local goods delivery market, and said Amazon was close to signing a deal which would open the door to a revolution in online shopping for Australian consumers. "We are talking to them now; we will continue to talk to them," Black said.