https://www.scmp.com/rss/161549/feed Li & Fung is a Hong Kong-based global trading group, that supplies high-volume, time-sensitive consumer goods, and is a major customer of global retail giant, Wal-Mart. Garments make up around two-thirds of the Li & Fung business which also covers the sourcing of hard goods such as fashion accessories, furnishings, gifts, handicrafts, home products, promotional merchandise, toys, sporting goods and travel goods. Key officials are William Fung, executive chairman, and Bruce Rockowitz, president... en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Enoch Yiu Enoch Yiu Hong Kong’s capital market is living up to its role as a “superconnector” between global fund managers and mainland China’s financial markets, with Alibaba Group Holding’s upgraded listing status benefiting investors on both sides of the playing field. Since joining the Stock Connect scheme on September 10, onshore investors have collected 4 per cent of the public float in the nation’s biggest e-commerce platform operator, co-founder and chairman Joe Tsai said. They also contributed to 15 per... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3287253/alibabas-stock-connect-link-shows-hong-kongs-strength-conduit-mainland-markets?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3287253/alibabas-stock-connect-link-shows-hong-kongs-strength-conduit-mainland-markets?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 19 Nov 2024 10:32:10 +0000 Aileen Chuang,Enoch Yiu Aileen Chuang,Enoch Yiu Hong Kong’s de facto central bank plans to turn its annual bankers’ summit into an “anchor event” for the world’s financial industry in the second half of every year, as seats for the 2024 edition have been fully reserved a month ahead of its scheduled commencement. More than 100 chairpersons and CEOs of global banks have confirmed their attendance at the third edition of the Global Financial Leaders’ Investment Summit from November 18 to 20, according to the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA).... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3283166/ceos-citi-morgan-stanley-bnp-among-300-bankers-attend-hong-kongs-2024-summit?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/3283166/ceos-citi-morgan-stanley-bnp-among-300-bankers-attend-hong-kongs-2024-summit?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 21 Oct 2024 03:40:59 +0000 Martin Choi Martin Choi Hong Kong has the potential to become a sustainability education hub for apparel makers and firms in the fashion industry supply chain, according to tycoon Victor Fung Kwok-king. The city has the opportunity to create yet another industry, to train people on implementing sustainability and environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices, one that will put Hong Kong on the global map, Fung, the honorary chairman of supply chain management conglomerate Li & Fung, said in an interview. “We can... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3275021/hong-kong-has-potential-become-esg-education-hub-fashion-sector-tycoon-victor-fung?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3275021/hong-kong-has-potential-become-esg-education-hub-fashion-sector-tycoon-victor-fung?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 Aug 2024 00:30:14 +0000 Several of China’s wealthiest tycoons were spotted among the crowd attending the Communist Party’s centenary celebrations in the capital, providing a sigh of relief for traders who are betting on at least a couple of them. Hui Ka-yan, the 63-year-old chairman of China Evergrande – at one stage the world’s most indebted property developer, was seen in the crowd. Hui, also known as Xu Jiayin in China, is estimated to be worth US$17.3 billion, as the 17th wealthiest businessman in China.... https://www.scmp.com/business/markets/article/3139446/meituan-and-evergrande-founders-appearance-communist-partys?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/markets/article/3139446/meituan-and-evergrande-founders-appearance-communist-partys?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 01 Jul 2021 09:00:19 +0000 Move over, private equity: There are some new buyers in town, and they know their targets better than anyone. Billionaire owners from Japanese tycoon Masayoshi Son to French media magnate Patrick Drahi are looking at removing their crown jewels from the spotlight of public markets. The potential moves to take their firms private mean they won’t have to deal with volatile markets and increasingly vocal shareholders. Companies have already announced US$26 billion of transactions to be taken... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3101587/son-drahi-and-hong-kong-tycoons-line-take-unloved-companies?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3101587/son-drahi-and-hong-kong-tycoons-line-take-unloved-companies?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 15 Sep 2020 08:00:15 +0000 When Spencer Fung first unveiled his US$150 million, three-year plan in 2017 to remake the 111-year-old trading company founded by his great-grandfather into a trailblazer in the digital era of online shopping and smart retailing, he was in charge of a HK$30 billion (US$3.9 billion) giant that had made its fortune as the broker between the two largest economies on earth. Since then, a trade war has sullied ties between the United States and China, tearing asunder the intricate global network of... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3087681/hong-kongs-tycoons-catch-privatisation-bug-they-pick-assets-rock?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3087681/hong-kongs-tycoons-catch-privatisation-bug-they-pick-assets-rock?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 05 Jun 2020 21:30:09 +0000 Hong Kong’s Fung family and Singapore’s GLP Group have made a HK$7.2 billion (US$928 million) offer to privatise 114-year-old global merchandise supply chain manager Li & Fung at a price premium of 150 per cent, as they seek to take advantage of the worst economic and stock market downturn in a decade caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Golden Lincoln, controlled by Victor Fung Kwok-king and William Fung Kwok-lun, has teamed up with GLP, a global operator and investor in logistics, real estate,... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3076174/hong-kongs-fung-family-offers-privatise-global-supply-chain-manager-li?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3076174/hong-kongs-fung-family-offers-privatise-global-supply-chain-manager-li?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Mar 2020 10:38:58 +0000 Global trade is likely to recover somewhat this year following a tumultuous 2019, which was marked by an escalating trade war between the United States and China, according to William Fung Kwok-lun, chairman of global supply chain manager Li & Fung. Speaking on a trade finance panel at the Asian Financial Forum on Monday, Fung said he was optimistic about this year because “we couldn’t have a more horrible year than last year” and there was increasing clarity about the relationship between the... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3045905/global-trade-likely-improve-2020-us-china-prepare-sign-phase-one?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3045905/global-trade-likely-improve-2020-us-china-prepare-sign-phase-one?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 13 Jan 2020 23:00:15 +0000 Victor Fung Kwok-king, the honorary chairman of global supply-chain manager Li & Fung, has stepped down from some of his official roles and plays less golf than he used to. But apart from that, there has been no let-up in his jet-setting lifestyle. Fung, 74, spoke at 31 seminars and conferences around the world in the past two years at the rate of more than one every month, 10 of which were on globalisation, a subject very close to his heart and the source of three generations of wealth for his... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3040763/globalisations-tireless-advocate-victor-fung-feted-lifetime?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3040763/globalisations-tireless-advocate-victor-fung-feted-lifetime?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Dec 2019 00:00:12 +0000 Li & Fung, the world’s biggest supplier of consumer products, said ongoing adjustments in global supply chains could be disrupted by new spats between the United States and its trading partners, further complicating the commercial relations that have taken decades to build. “While the US-China tension has taken centre stage now, uncertainties also loom between the US and multiple production countries, which may cause new disruptions in the future,” said the Hong Kong company’s chairman William... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3023954/li-fung-sees-more-disruptions-global-supply-chains-us-friction?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3023954/li-fung-sees-more-disruptions-global-supply-chains-us-friction?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 22 Aug 2019 10:43:02 +0000 Global supply chain giant Li & Fung is encouraging its American customers to shift production away from China as tariffs from an escalating trade war make Chinese-made goods more expensive for US companies. “What we think now is that no matter if there is a deal or not, people should diversify out of China ... you cannot put all your eggs in one basket. It is very dangerous,” said chief executive Spencer Fung at a press conference on Monday. The 113-year-old Hong Kong company supplies apparel,... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3014897/li-fung-urges-us-clients-shift-away-china-all-eggs-one-basket?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3014897/li-fung-urges-us-clients-shift-away-china-all-eggs-one-basket?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 17 Jun 2019 11:35:42 +0000 Global supply-chain giant Li & Fung will source less than half of its goods from China this year for the first time in 15 years as the company looks elsewhere amid rising manufacturing costs and the trade war. China accounted for 51 per cent of Li & Fung’s total sourcing business in 2018, down from 54 per cent in 2016, according to chief executive Spencer Fung. “It gives us an advantage and helps our customers to mitigate the risk of US tariffs on Chinese goods and increasing labour costs in... https://www.scmp.com/business/investor-relations/stock-quote-profile/article/3002719/li-fung-cuts-chinas-role-supply?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/investor-relations/stock-quote-profile/article/3002719/li-fung-cuts-chinas-role-supply?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Mar 2019 11:55:42 +0000 Toys ‘R’ Us Asia, backed by Hong Kong tycoon Victor Fung Kwok-king’s Fung Retailing Group, aims to open up to three stores in Hong Kong and dozens more in mainland China, bucking an economic downturn blamed largely on the US-China trade war. The recession-proof nature of the demand for toys, the right store locations and a fresh offering of not only toys but fun and educational experiences for the whole family are key to the success of the Asia business, Jo Hall, Toys ‘R’ Us Asia’s chief... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2180577/stark-contrast-former-us-parent-toys-r-us-asia-open-60-new-stores-2019-seek?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2180577/stark-contrast-former-us-parent-toys-r-us-asia-open-60-new-stores-2019-seek?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 03 Jan 2019 11:00:15 +0000 Hong Kong fashion company Global Brands Group will further reduce the amount of goods its sources from China after moving some of the production to other countries in the region to get around US tariffs slapped on Chinese apparel exports, officials said on Wednesday. The licensee of brands such as Juicy Couture and Calvin Klein has cut its overall production in China from 60 per cent to 39 per cent, and aims to reduce it to below 30 per cent, according to chief executive Rick Darling. Global... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2175475/calvin-klein-licensee-joins-growing-horde-companies-moving?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2175475/calvin-klein-licensee-joins-growing-horde-companies-moving?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 Nov 2018 13:52:47 +0000 Global Brands Group (GBG), the fashion firm spun off from supply chain giant Li & Fung, will sell a significant part of its North American licensing business to Nasdaq-listed Differential Brands Group for US$1.38 billion to cut debt. Chief executive Bruce Rockowitz said the asset disposal was aimed at reducing debt and lowering working capital. The company had a net debt of US$1.1 billion and gearing ratio of 40.6 per cent as of March 2018, much of it left behind from its 2014 spin-off. “The... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2152771/li-fung-fashion-unit-sells-north-american-business-us14b-cut-debt?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2152771/li-fung-fashion-unit-sells-north-american-business-us14b-cut-debt?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 Jun 2018 10:44:12 +0000 Li & Fung, one of the worlds biggest merchandise sourcing agents, said its strong global presence will enable it to absorb any shock from possible international trade conflicts. The supply-chain giant generates about two thirds of its revenue from the US and is among firms expected to be most at risk from a potential China-US trade war. “We have a global network of 15,000 suppliers in over 40 markets,” said Spencer Fung, the company’s chief executive officer, at a press conference announcing... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2138476/li-fung-will-weather-storm-china-us-trade-wars-says-ceo?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2138476/li-fung-will-weather-storm-china-us-trade-wars-says-ceo?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 22 Mar 2018 11:17:17 +0000 JD.com, one of China’s major online retailers, said on Friday that it has signed an agreement with Hong Kong’s Fung Retailing, which oversees over 3,000 stores in both Hong Kong and overseas, to develop artificial intelligence-driven retail solutions and build an AI retail centre. The centre will oversee and manage cooperative research and development projects between the two companies, as well as facilitate the sharing of information and expertise related to AI between them, the company said in... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/2131800/chinese-e-commerce-giant-jdcom-elevates-art-retailing-ai?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/2131800/chinese-e-commerce-giant-jdcom-elevates-art-retailing-ai?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Feb 2018 12:58:02 +0000 Shareholders in the venerable Li & Fung Limited – the multi-faceted Hong Kong trading conglomerate started in 1906 – are set for bumper payouts after the firm announced it is selling its furniture, jumpers and beauty businesses to a consortium for US$1.1 billion, nearly half of which will be paid out as a special dividend to stockholders. Li & Fung has been supplying high-volume, time-sensitive consumer goods for years from Hong Kong, acting as a global middleman for manufacturers, including... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2124380/dividend-bonanza-li-fung-sells-three-businesses-us11b?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2124380/dividend-bonanza-li-fung-sells-three-businesses-us11b?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Dec 2017 13:37:02 +0000 Shares of Hong Kong tycoon Victor Fung Kwok-king ’s menswear retail unit Trinity surged as much as 32 per cent after Shandong Ruyi Group, one of China’s largest textile firms, agreed to take control of the firm struggling to cope with fast shifting consumer behaviour. Shandong Ruyi, 51 per cent owned by chairman Qiu Yafu, has agreed to buy 1.85 billion new Trinity shares at HK$1.2 each, totalling HK$2.22 billion. The deal, when completed, will give Shandong Ruyi 51 per cent control over Trinity,... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2119295/chinese-textile-major-shandong-ruyi-take-control-victor-fungs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2119295/chinese-textile-major-shandong-ruyi-take-control-victor-fungs?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Nov 2017 05:41:34 +0000 Off the main road about half an hour’s drive from Shanghai’s Hongqiao airport, Hong Kong trading, supply chain management and retailing major Fung Group conducts experiments on new retail business ideas and technology. Aptly named Explorium and billed as “the world’s first retail business model testing platform”, the complex – located in its mainland Chinese headquarters – looks like a members only shopping club. In operation for two years, some 2,000 visitors a week browse through its dozens of... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2114241/retail-experiments-start-incubation-how-victor-fungs-explorium?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2114241/retail-experiments-start-incubation-how-victor-fungs-explorium?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 07 Oct 2017 04:00:15 +0000 Li & Fung, one of the world’s biggest merchandise sourcing agents and supply chain managers, surged by the most in three years after reporting a stronger-than-expected interim profit although market players were wary of further sharp upside gains in the stock price. After the markets close on Wednesday, Spencer Fung, group chief executive and a great grandson of the company’s founder, said the company’s net profit rose 39.6 per cent to US$101 million in the first six months of the year, beating... https://www.scmp.com/business/investor-relations/stock-quote-profile/article/2108238/li-fung-surges-20pc-after-reporting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/investor-relations/stock-quote-profile/article/2108238/li-fung-surges-20pc-after-reporting?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 25 Aug 2017 03:36:18 +0000 Li & Fung, one of the world’s biggest merchandise sourcing agents and supply chain managers, announced an interim profit that beat an analyst’s estimate, delivering an auspicious start to its three-year transformation plan to recast its business to meet the challenges of e-commerce. Net profit rose 39.6 per cent to US$101 million in the first six months, beating a US$60 million estimate expected in a Bloomberg survey. Core operating profit, which excludes interest expense, non-operating and... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2108159/li-fungs-interim-profit-beats-estimate-delivering-sterling-start?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/2108159/li-fungs-interim-profit-beats-estimate-delivering-sterling-start?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 24 Aug 2017 11:29:07 +0000 Li & Fung will forever be known as the company that refused to invest in Alibaba - three times, actually. For a company that, for over a century, was a dominant trade middleman for sourcing, its business model has not just been overtaken, as much as subverted and made irrelevant by Alibaba. Many analysts regard it as a company with a dead business model. Despite being international thought leaders, MIT and Harvard Business School graduates, the brothers Victor and William Fung were happy with... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2085456/can-li-fung-recast-itself-catch-internet-age?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2085456/can-li-fung-recast-itself-catch-internet-age?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 07 Apr 2017 00:03:23 +0000 Li & Fung was founded in 1906 in Guangzhou by entrepreneurs Li To-ming and Fung Pak-liu, the great-grandfather of the current chief executive Spencer Fung, as one of the first solely Chinese-funded companies to engage in direct exports from China. From a startup focusing on exporting Chinese porcelain, silk, rattan ware, handicrafts and fireworks to the West, the company has morphed into a multinational with 22,000 employees in over 250 offices and distribution centres in more than 40 markets in... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2083904/how-four-generations-left-their-mark-li-fung?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2083904/how-four-generations-left-their-mark-li-fung?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 01 Apr 2017 00:15:30 +0000 Li & Fung is trying to reinvent itself for the eighth time in 24 years. The company, the world’s largest sourcing agent for customers including Wal-Mart Stores, will fully embrace information technology, which has already upended its century-old role as the quintessential middle person between producers and consumers, and is investing heavily to transform its business. The transformation was given extra urgency this week, when chief executive officer Spencer Fung delivered Li & Fung’s third... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2083861/li-fungs-latest-attempt-reinvention-latches-technology?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/2083861/li-fungs-latest-attempt-reinvention-latches-technology?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 01 Apr 2017 00:00:47 +0000 Investors should be sceptical of any company that heavily depends on a strategy driven by acquisitions and restructuring, but Li & Fung's appetite for deal-making, which chief executive Bruce Rockowitz claims offers "huge synergies", is looking less credible by the year. While outsourcing and trade generate revenues, Li & Fung's own business model may be dying, and the Fung brothers and Rockowitz may be incapable of transforming it because they are stuck in their old habits. Today, the company's... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1463666/li-fung-needs-focus-its-core-businesses-and-get-rid-rest?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1463666/li-fung-needs-focus-its-core-businesses-and-get-rid-rest?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 03 Apr 2014 03:15:15 +0000 Options traders are turning bullish on Li & Fung, a supplier to Wal-Mart Stores, betting on a revival of its American operations after the stock lost 61 per cent of its value. Calls with an exercise price 10 per cent above Li & Fung shares cost two points more than puts, according to three-month options data. The gap, which widens as demand from bulls increases, jumped to 3.18 points on February 21, the most since April 2011. Li & Fung's profit will climb 21 per cent this year, analysts... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1438776/investors-turn-bullish-li-fung-after-makeover?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1438776/investors-turn-bullish-li-fung-after-makeover?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 02 Mar 2014 18:59:26 +0000 A fire yesterday destroyed a Bangladesh garment factory supplying Hong Kong-based Li and Fung and some big Western brands. The blaze was started by workers angered by rumours police had shot dead a colleague. There were no initial reports of casualties from the fire that gutted a 10-storey building in Gazipur, 40 kilometres from the capital, Dhaka. Firefighters battled to put out the fire, which spread to four adjacent buildings. "We are still struggling to control the flames," said fire... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/1369159/fire-destroys-bangladesh-clothes-factory-supplying-li-and-fung?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/1369159/fire-destroys-bangladesh-clothes-factory-supplying-li-and-fung?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 29 Nov 2013 14:30:00 +0000 Global exporter Li & Fung said business with its major customer Wal-Mart Stores is normal, but its shares still slid as much as 4.9 per cent on a report that the US retailer is cutting orders to suppliers. “There has been no cancellation of orders from Wal-Mart, and we continue to do business with them as usual. Also, Wal-Mart is continuing to place orders for next year as normal,” a spokeswoman from Hong Kong-based Li & Fung said in an e-mail reply to Reuters. Wal-Mart’s shares fell 1.5 per... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1318075/li-fung-shares-drop-nearly-5-cent-report-about-wal-mart-cutting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1318075/li-fung-shares-drop-nearly-5-cent-report-about-wal-mart-cutting?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Sep 2013 01:44:33 +0000 Some of the top investment bankers in Hong Kong have chosen to leave a high-flying career in the financial industry and return to more traditional businesses, such as real estate and trade, fuelling doubts about the attractiveness of investment banking jobs in the future. Most major international banks have embarked on internal restructuring - in some cases just to survive amid fierce competition - since the 2008 global financial crisis, which changed the landscape of the industry. Human... https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/1299337/finding-new-ways-stay-afloat?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/banking-finance/article/1299337/finding-new-ways-stay-afloat?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Aug 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Global trader Li & Fung has yet to deliver the strong turnaround that its management pledged this year, but the group's senior executives said core profit in the second half could jump as much as three times that of the first half. The company's underlying profit remained flat at US$223 million in the first six months of this year and made up less than a quarter of its target of US$882 million for the whole year. But group chairman William Fung Kwok-lun said the company's core earnings will be... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1296539/li-fung-has-work-do-convince-sceptics?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1296539/li-fung-has-work-do-convince-sceptics?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 13 Aug 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Li & Fung, the world's largest supplier of goods to global retailers including Wal-Mart and Target, insisted the worst was behind it as it posted a 69 per cent drop in first-half net profit and said it remained hopeful of a recovery in its core US business by the end of this year. Net profit of US$96 million for the six months to June 30 was well below market consensus forecasts of US$106.3 million, but the firm pointed to a 1 per cent rise in interim core operating profit to US$223 million as a... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1296305/li-fung-profit-down-69pc-slow-us-recovery?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1296305/li-fung-profit-down-69pc-slow-us-recovery?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 13 Aug 2013 02:14:28 +0000 Global sourcing company Li & Fung is helping the Bangladeshi government enhance the safety of factories which manufacture products for multinationals, but it was up to the authorities to enforce the laws on safety standards, group chairman William Fung Kwok-lun said. Speaking in New York on Monday, Fung said that non-governmental organisations (NGOs) should commend those factories in Bangladesh that had improved safety standard, rather than just calling for a blacklisting of those factories with... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1259428/li-fung-doing-its-best-factory-safety?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1259428/li-fung-doing-its-best-factory-safety?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 12 Jun 2013 16:00:00 +0000 The blaze last year that killed more than a hundred factory workers in Bangladesh has prompted Li & Fung to spend US$10 million upgrade the firefighting equipment in the Bangladeshi factories that make clothing for the firm. As well as upgrading firefighting gear, it also spent money on measures to minimise fire hazards in factories that have contracts with Li & Fung, the company's chief executive, Bruce Rockowitz, said after the annual shareholders' meeting in Hong Kong yesterday. A fire that... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1237915/li-fung-lays-out-us10m-fire-safeguards?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1237915/li-fung-lays-out-us10m-fire-safeguards?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 May 2013 16:00:00 +0000 An appreciation of heritage, an eye for a bargain, or perhaps a bit of both - whatever the mix of factors, Asian investors have been acquiring prestigious, if sluggish, European brands for more than a decade, often bringing fresh verve to the businesses. A case in point is Taiwanese entrepreneur Wang Shaw-lan, who installed Alber Elbaz at Lanvin after she bought the French fashion house in 2001, setting it on the path back to profitability. Similarly, South Korean businesswoman Kim Sung-joo... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/fashion-watches/article/1236918/asia-invests-european-fashion-brands?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/fashion-watches/article/1236918/asia-invests-european-fashion-brands?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 13 May 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Clothing and toy supplier Li & Fung said it would miss targets under its three-year plan after reporting a profit drop for the first time in four years due to sluggish major markets and the surging cost of a restructuring scheme. It posted a worse-than-expected net profit of US$617 million for the year to December, down 9 per cent year on year. Turnover grew 1 per cent to US$20.2 billion, also lower than market estimates. Chief executive Bruce Rockowitz said yesterday that Li & Fung would not... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1196720/li-fung-target-markets-take-profit-toll?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1196720/li-fung-target-markets-take-profit-toll?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Mar 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Shares in Li & Fung plunged to a new low of HK$9.93 yesterday after the company lost another contract from a US client, renewing fears that the biggest distribution and trading company in Hong Kong is losing its middleman role in global trade. But the stock later rebounded to close 1.38 per cent higher at HK$10.26 after the firm said Fifth & Pacific did not renew the contract because of domestic warehousing and the financial implications would be small. A spokeswoman stressed that its sourcing... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1146391/doubts-rise-over-li-fung-future?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1146391/doubts-rise-over-li-fung-future?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 Feb 2013 16:00:00 +0000 The force is weak in them. Even the combined powers of Yoda's light-sabre lip balm, Bob the Builder t-shirts and Jennifer Lopez bras haven't been enough to lift Li & Fung's sagging earnings. The world's biggest supplier of toys and apparel to companies such as Wal-Mart Stores and Kohl's warned investors two years ago that the age of cheap manufacturing in China was over. Li & Fung set a target of US$1.5 billion in operating profit by this year, with almost half coming from acquiring, licensing... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1143373/fraying-seams?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1143373/fraying-seams?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 Feb 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Wal-Mart Stores will buy an additional US$50 billion in US-made products over the next decade in what it called a bid to help boost the US economy, although the announcement is unlikely to appease critics who say the world's largest retailer imports too much from low-wage suppliers in countries like China. Wal-Mart, the largest private employer in the United States, also said on Tuesday it plans to hire 100,000 newly discharged veterans over the next five years, at a time when the US... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1129344/wal-mart-plans-us50-billion-buy-american-push?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1129344/wal-mart-plans-us50-billion-buy-american-push?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 16 Jan 2013 04:48:21 +0000 Morgan Stanley job cuts in Asia to hit 15pc Morgan Stanley plans to trim about 15 per cent of its investment banking positions in Asia, higher than the global average of 6 per cent, as it starts a round of job cuts this week, two people with knowledge of the matter sais. They said Asian managing directors Saul Raccah and Leon Guo were among those who would leave. Bloomberg   CIC may pare holdings of US treasury bonds China Investment Corp, the country's sovereign wealth fund, could cut its... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/1129020/business-digest-january-16-2013?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/1129020/business-digest-january-16-2013?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 15 Jan 2013 16:00:00 +0000 Analysts cut their targets for Li & Fung's share price after the company surprised them with a profit warning. Hong Kong's biggest distribution and trading company was the biggest loser on the stock exchange yesterday. Its share price dropped 15.4 per cent to HK$11.74, having fallen 16.1 per cent intraday in the heaviest trading in months. Yesterday's decline was the biggest since August 10 last year. On Friday, Li & Fung warned that core operating profit for last year would plummet 40 per cent... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1127756/outlook-dims-li-fung-shares?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1127756/outlook-dims-li-fung-shares?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 14 Jan 2013 03:58:19 +0000 Li & Fung says net profit for last year will not exceed that of the previous year and core operating profit will in fact drop 40 per cent, worse than analysts' estimates. "This is worse than I expected. Obviously it's a negative for the company," said Nomura analyst Tanuj Shori. Although the net profit of Hong Kong's largest supply chain firm grew 33 per cent in the first half of last year, it would not increase for the whole year, the company said yesterday. "The company's efforts to improve... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1125890/li-fung-expects-2012-core-operating-profit-drop-40pc?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1125890/li-fung-expects-2012-core-operating-profit-drop-40pc?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 11 Jan 2013 16:00:00 +0000 We have alluded in recent days to poor forecasting of financial indices and stocks by the broking industry. That has prompted the arrival of a couple of reports showing rather good forecasting prowess. The CLSA Global Consumer sector report starts off modestly with: "We had a lucky year with 2012. Our two top picks in Global Consumer (out of a total of 210 stocks) were Prada (up+110%) and Sands China (up+55%). It transpires that the team has been "lucky" for the past four years in identifying... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/1125907/clsa-pays-respect-financial-markets-karma?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/1125907/clsa-pays-respect-financial-markets-karma?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 11 Jan 2013 16:00:00 +0000 The first woman to break through to become president of the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants says women are poised to play an increasingly important leadership role in the accounting industry. "In recent years women have come to account for about 65 per cent of all new members joining the industry," Susanna Chiu said after she was elected to the top post on Friday night. Chiu, a director of Li & Fung Development (China), has volunteered on various committees at the institute... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1106955/women-play-bigger-role-accounting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1106955/women-play-bigger-role-accounting?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 16 Dec 2012 16:00:00 +0000 Li & Fung has pledged more than HK$9,000 to each family of the victims of a fire at a Bangladeshi garment factory that killed at least 124 people. The blaze is the latest industrial accident to raise concerns about the safety of workers who make clothing for companies such as Li & Fung, the world’s largest supplier of clothes and toys to retailers. Li & Fung, whose clients include Wal-Mart Stores and Target, said the factory has made apparel for the company and is in contact with its owner. The... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1091124/li-fung-pledges-pay-outs-victims-bangladesh-fire?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1091124/li-fung-pledges-pay-outs-victims-bangladesh-fire?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 26 Nov 2012 06:35:17 +0000 At least 112 people were killed yesterday when a fire tore through a Bangladesh garment factory that made clothes for a Hong Kong firm, forcing workers to jump from high windows to escape smoke and flames. Firefighters battled for several hours to control the blaze, which broke out on the ground floor of the nine-storey Tazreen Fashion plant, on the edge of the capital, Dhaka, on Saturday night. Survivors told how panicked staff, mostly women, desperately tried to escape the factory, which the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/1090830/scores-die-bangladesh-garment-factory-fire?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/1090830/scores-die-bangladesh-garment-factory-fire?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Nov 2012 16:00:00 +0000 Rescue workers in Bangladesh recovered 109 bodies on Sunday after a fire tore through a garment factory, forcing many workers to jump from high windows to escape the smoke and flames. Firefighters battled for several hours to control the blaze, which broke out on the ground floor of the nine-storey Tazreen Fashion plant, 30 kilometres north of the capital Dhaka on Saturday evening. Survivors told how panicked staff, mostly women, desperately tried to escape the factory, which the owner said made... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/1090516/bangladesh-factory-fire-death-toll-soars-104?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/article/1090516/bangladesh-factory-fire-death-toll-soars-104?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Nov 2012 05:02:19 +0000 Despite trading amid a global slowdown, Li & Fung expects profits and revenue to improve next year. Chief executive officer Bruce Rockowitz said the company's revenue from distribution should rise from US$6 billion this year to US$8 billion or US$9 billion next year. The distribution business offers the highest profit margin among the company's three businesses, followed by logistics and sourcing, he said. "Our margins have gone up every year because of the mix," he said. Prior to 2004, all of... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1083453/li-fung-still-bullish-bearish-world?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1083453/li-fung-still-bullish-bearish-world?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 Nov 2012 16:00:00 +0000 Li & Fung, the world's biggest supplier of clothes and toys to retailers, saw its credit rating outlook downgraded after announcing plans to offer US dollar-denominated perpetual bonds to fund overseas acquisitions. Despite the plans to take on more debt, the stock rose nearly 1 per cent yesterday as investors bet the supplier would be able to use the acquisitions to boost its declining core earnings. Li & Fung said in a filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange yesterday that it intended to issue... https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1074474/li-fung-issue-bonds-fund-offshore-acquisitions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/1074474/li-fung-issue-bonds-fund-offshore-acquisitions?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 01 Nov 2012 16:00:00 +0000 Suntech to cut solar panel production costs Jiangsu-based Suntech Power, the world's largest maker of solar panels, yesterday said it aimed to reduce the non-silicon production costs of its panel by 30 per cent to 55 US cents per watt by the end of the year from last year. Last month, the debt-ridden company said it was temporarily shutting down a quarter of its annual production capacity of a solar panel part called solar cell to 1.8 gigawatts. It also set at the time a target to slash annual... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/1057367/briefs-october-10-2012?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/1057367/briefs-october-10-2012?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 09 Oct 2012 16:00:00 +0000