This blog has not minced words when it comes to describing the grim situation in Hong Kong, which, as one of my former colleagues at the State Department puts it, “will get worse before it doesn’t get better.” Signs of Hong Kong’s demise as an international business center are plentiful. The city is in recession.
Since October 6, 2018, one of our recurring themes has been that China has become far more difficult for foreign companies. It is what we have been calling the New Normal. This New Normal extends to all foreign companies that do business in or with China, but it has hit U.S. and Canadian companies particularly
“It’s not dark yet, but it’s getting there.” Bob Dylan, from Not Dark Yet In the 1990s, I represented a number of international fishing and timber and mining companies that did business with Russia. This was not so long after the fall of the Soviet Union and there were a bunch of large Russian companies
Three months ago, in Hong Kong for International Business, Stick a Fork in It, we predicted the slow demise of Hong Kong as an international business center. Many wrote us to say they agreed. Many wrote us to say they vehemently disagreed. Those who disagreed argued that we had underestimated the grit and the resilience
Contents of this Article: The Situation: Foreigners at Risk in China The Inconsistency of Chinese Law and Punishment Important Points of Chinese Criminal Law The Risks of Working and Living in China The Increasing Risk of Doing Business in China Stay Within Chinese Law How Can You Protect Yourself and Your Company A NOT New
Since the very beginning of US-China trade negotiations we have been unequivocally negative on the likelihood of a deal and we have just kept saying that foreign companies (especially those that sell their products to the United States) need to work on reducing their China footprint. Today’s micro-deal between the United States and China has
Should I stay in China or should I leave? Should I enter the China market or is it too risky? The answer to these questions is simple: it depends. The secret is understanding what those dependencies are and how your company strategically fits within them. What follows is an oversimplified view of the playing field
A couple months ago, in Five Ways to Accelerate Your China Market Entry, I wrote about how to facilitate a China market entry. I wrote that post because despite the US-China problems, there are still plenty of companies, both U.S. and otherwise, for whom entering into China still makes a lot of sense. But for
Looking to do business with a Chinese company? About to send a Chinese company some money? Want to know whether that Chinese company is worthy of your business and your trust? How do you do get information on a Chinese company when certain private investigatory work in China is illegal? Our clients often ask us to
The US-China Trade War Is and Will be the New Normal I hate to say we told you so, but for nearly a year, WE TOLD YOU SO. Since October, 2018 we have been all but screaming at anyone and everyone who has product made in China and sold into the United States to get
