https://www.scmp.com/rss/523021/feed Kun Tian is a senior lecturer in marketing and analytics at Kent Business School, UK, and a fellow at the Taihe Institute. His research focuses on consumer behaviour, digital innovation and sustainable consumption, with a particular emphasis on emerging markets in Asia and the intersection of technology, policy and public health. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Kun Tian Kun Tian When InvestHK’s director general Alpha Lau Hai-suen recently said that companies using Dubai as a hub had mostly shifted to Hong Kong after the outbreak of the Iran war, the instinct to leverage the city’s position as a safe haven for investment was understandable. Hong Kong should absolutely try to capture capital and talent unsettled by instability in the Gulf. However, it should resist the temptation to confuse a geopolitical opening with a strategic victory. Opportunity does not become a... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3347848/dubais-loss-could-be-hong-kongs-gain-only-if-city-ready?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3347848/dubais-loss-could-be-hong-kongs-gain-only-if-city-ready?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 Mar 2026 01:30:08 +0000 Kun Tian Kun Tian China’s annual parliamentary “two sessions” have been framed as a show of resilience in a turbulent world. That framing is not wrong but it is incomplete. Beijing’s deliberately lower 2026 economic growth target is less an admission of weakness than a signal that the growth playbook is being rewritten. For Hong Kong, this is not background noise. It is a test of whether policy alignment can be converted into institutional credibility. When Premier Li Qiang delivered the government work report... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3345773/why-chinas-economic-reset-credibility-test-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3345773/why-chinas-economic-reset-credibility-test-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 10 Mar 2026 01:30:07 +0000 Kun Tian Kun Tian China did not slip into outright deflation last year and that in itself matters. When weak global demand, geopolitical frictions and a prolonged property correction weighed heavily on sentiment, consumer prices stayed marginally positive. The latest data suggests an economy not in free fall but navigating a transition towards more balanced and sustainable growth, albeit at a subdued pace. December’s inflation figures underline this point. Consumer prices rose by 0.8 per cent year on year, the... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3341556/chinas-deflation-near-miss-isnt-economic-story-2025?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3341556/chinas-deflation-near-miss-isnt-economic-story-2025?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Feb 2026 08:30:08 +0000 Kun Tian Kun Tian Hong Kong has started 2026 with a wave of IPOs driven by artificial intelligence (AI), led by the recent listing of Chinese chipmaker Biren Technology. Beyond the revival of market activity, the surge points to a clearer strategic direction. China is increasingly using Hong Kong as an offshore capital platform for funding priority technologies – at a time when geopolitics is reshaping where innovation can be financed and how international capital can be accessed. This repositioning aligns... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3339039/how-hong-kongs-ai-ipo-surge-supports-chinas-economic-strategy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3339039/how-hong-kongs-ai-ipo-surge-supports-chinas-economic-strategy?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 11 Jan 2026 21:30:11 +0000 Kun Tian Kun Tian China’s latest credit figures have raised eyebrows, but they need not raise alarm. New bank lending, aggregate social financing and total credit growth all came in weaker than expected for October, marking their softest readings in more than a year. For markets conditioned to expect Beijing to counter every slowdown with a surge of liquidity, the numbers may suggest a worrying loss of momentum. But that reading misses the broader structural shift under way. The data reflects not a collapse, but... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3334138/chinas-shrinking-credit-reflects-financial-reset-not-collapse?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3334138/chinas-shrinking-credit-reflects-financial-reset-not-collapse?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 Dec 2025 08:30:09 +0000 Kun Tian Kun Tian China’s blueprint of its next five-year plan is quietly rewriting the country’s property playbook. The era of firefighting is giving way to a “build it better” mandate, even as policymakers continue to regard real estate as one of the top financial risks requiring orderly resolution. Beijing’s recommendations for the 15th five-year plan, which will be finalised in March next year, set the goal of “promoting high-quality development in the real estate sector”, in place of the familiar mantra that... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3331508/forget-property-boom-times-china-quietly-focusing-good-houses?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3331508/forget-property-boom-times-china-quietly-focusing-good-houses?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 05 Nov 2025 12:30:08 +0000 Kun Tian Kun Tian When HSBC announced its plan to privatise Hang Seng Bank for US$13.6 billion at a 30 per cent premium, the markets responded with enthusiasm. Many interpreted the move as a confident bet on Hong Kong’s future. But beneath the strategic packaging lies a deeper signal. This deal is not only about operational synergy. It is also a calculated response to mounting pressures in Hong Kong’s economy and property sector. The hope is that this bold step brings stability rather than reveals deeper... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3328662/hsbcs-move-privatise-hang-seng-vote-confidence-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3328662/hsbcs-move-privatise-hang-seng-vote-confidence-hong-kong?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 12 Oct 2025 08:30:08 +0000 Kun Tian Kun Tian Hong Kong’s markets hit their lowest point in more than a decade in 2022, squeezed by rising friction between Washington and Beijing. With the US Federal Reserve tightening monetary policy aggressively, Asian markets were starved of liquidity. Hong Kong’s benchmark fell below 16,000 points in 2022, one of the steepest drops among global indices. Three years later, the story has flipped. The Hang Seng Index has surged about 30 per cent so far in 2025, marking the stock market’s strongest... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3327193/why-hong-kong-financial-rebound-built-firmer-ground?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3327193/why-hong-kong-financial-rebound-built-firmer-ground?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Sep 2025 08:30:09 +0000 Kun Tian Kun Tian The way people eat, make nutritional decisions and monitor health is undergoing a quiet but profound transformation in Asia. Artificial intelligence (AI), wearables and online applications are reshaping the food landscape, embedding personalised nutrition services into daily life. From WeChat’s nutrition-tracking mini-programmes to Grab’s food delivery algorithms helping users discover healthier options, digital platforms are becoming sophisticated intelligent systems that help advance... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3325488/ai-enhanced-nutrition-must-enhance-our-agency-not-undermine-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3325488/ai-enhanced-nutrition-must-enhance-our-agency-not-undermine-it?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Sep 2025 08:30:08 +0000 Kun Tian Kun Tian Asia’s rising middle classes are not just fuelling economic growth – they’re reshaping consumption itself. Nowhere is this transformation more visible than in the region’s embrace of healthier eating. From Hong Kong to Jakarta, a new generation of consumers is driving a quiet revolution in food choices. But is this a more lasting realignment of preferences or merely a pandemic-fuelled detour? Market research suggests consumer attention on health will grow. China’s healthcare-related consumer... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3323376/how-asian-consumers-are-driving-revolution-healthier-food-choices?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3323376/how-asian-consumers-are-driving-revolution-healthier-food-choices?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 29 Aug 2025 22:30:07 +0000