Retail

  Bloomberg Amazon.com Inc brushed off media speculation that it was suspending sales of its Kindle e-reader in China, after some of its signature product’s models went out of stock on Chinese platforms. “We remain committed to our customers in China,” a company spokesperson said in a statement. “Customers can continue to purchase Kindle e-readers from offline and third-party online …

  Bloomberg Future Retail Ltd. has sought to halt and terminate Amazon.com Inc.’s case at a Singapore arbitration tribunal, a move that could allow the cash-strapped Indian retailer to sell some of its assets to Reliance Industries Ltd.. Armed with a December antitrust ruling against Amazon, Future Retail has petitioned the Delhi High Court and the arbitration tribunal in Singapore …

  Bloomberg For a sense of how far cultivated meat is from reaching supermarket shelves and dinner tables, just take a look at the cost. Singapore-based Shiok Meats Pte plans to launch its flagship cell-based shrimp in 18 months at about S$50 ($37) a kilogram, Chief Executive Officer Sandhya Sriram said in an interview. That’s roughly double the price of …

  Bloomberg Asia and European factory activity continued its expansion in December, lifted by resilient demand and easing supply-chain bottlenecks as the Omicron strain begins to spread in the region. North Asia’s export hubs led the recovery as they enjoyed better-than-expected industrial production and robust demand for their tech products. The IHS Markit manufacturing purchasing managers’ index for Taiwan rose …

  Bloomberg China issued a stern warning to Walmart Inc. following allegations that the company’s warehouse stores in the country stopped selling items from Xinjiang, ramping up pressure on the retail giant amid rising tensions with the US over the western province. The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the Chinese Communist Party’s anti-graft watchdog, rejected suggestions that inventory management was …

    Bloomberg Americans flocked to off-price retailers during the holiday period, with visits rising above pre-pandemic levels, according to new data. Foot traffic at T.J. Maxx and Marshalls, both owned by TJX Cos., rose 14.7% and 16.2%, respectively, from December 1 to Christmas Day compared with a year earlier, data from analytics firm Placer.ai show. Burlington Stores Inc.’s foot …

  Bloomberg Apple Inc put Foxconn Technology Group’s factory in southern India on probation following worker protests and an investigation that revealed substandard living conditions. Foxconn, which uses the facility to assemble iPhones among other gadgets, apologized for the lapses in health standards and pledged to revamp its management and operations in the country. The factory, located in Sriperumbudur on …

  Bloomberg US freight forwarder Flexport Inc will help fly three planes loaded with potatoes to Japan, where a shortage of spuds has caused McDonald’s in the country to ration french fries. “Flexport just contracted to fly three 747 loads of potatoes to Japan to help with the French fry shortage,” Chief Executive Officer Ryan Petersen said in a tweet, …

  Bloomberg The US merchandise-trade deficit widened to a record in November as imports surged to an all-time high. The gap increased to $97.8 billion last month from a revised $83.2 billion in October, according to Commerce Department data released on Wednesday. The figure exceeded all estimates in a Bloomberg survey of economists. The data aren’t adjusted for inflation. The …

  Bloomberg Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is in talks with a state-owned conglomerate about a potential deal involving its stake in Weibo Corp, as Beijing moves to curb the influence of China’s tech giants in the sensitive media sphere. China’s e-commerce leader is exploring options for its roughly 30% slice of the Twitter-like social media service, according to people familiar …