Why old Chinese tea leaves can be worth more than wine or whisky

Rare Chinese teas can fetch five-figure sums, and counting. Photo: Handout

Following the success of Sotheby’s Hong Kong’s sale of an antique 1950 Blue Label tea cake for US$71,600, experts are tipping Chinese black tea as a smart investment
Deteriorating growing environments, market speculation and a rekindled love for traditional tea in China is fuelling a Puer craze that rivals the traditional vintage wine market

13 May 2022 - 4:00PM

Who was 19th-century merchant Howqua, the ‘Chinese Bill Gates of his day’?

Howqua (or Houqua) was a wealthy Chinese merchant and is believed to be the richest man on Earth during his lifetime. Photo: Benjamin Wight

The late tycoon once dominated China’s trade market as the richest man on Earth, with a net worth that would be the equivalent of several billion US dollars today

29 Apr 2022 - 12:00PM