Internet population rises to 457 million
CHINA S population of Internet users a group more than 50 percent larger than the whole U.S. population grew 19 percent in 2010 over the previous year, said the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), China Daily said yesterday.
The number of people surfing the Web by mobile phone jumped 29.6 percent over 2009 to 303 million, the center said. The number of people using online commerce and Internet entertainment services also grew rapidly in 2010, the CNNIC said. It said the number of e-commerce customers rose 48.6 percent over 2009.
E-commerce turnover up 22% in 2010
E-commerce turnover in China jumped 22 percent in 2010 from a year earlier to 4.5 trillion yuan (US$681.82 billion), an industry report said Tuesday.
Online retail sales almost doubled to 513.1 billion yuan, according to the report released by the China e-commerce research center. The report estimated that online retail sales would double to 1 trillion yuan in the next two years, taking up more than 5 percent of the nation s total retail sales.
VW in talks with partners on local brand
VOLKSWAGEN AG, Europe s biggest carmaker, is in talks with Chinese partners about developing a local brand as rivals prepare to begin sales of new nameplates specially created for the world s largest auto market.
Volkswagen may follow competitors General Motors Co., Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. in introducing a new, cheaper marque in China as they seek to win market share from Chinese rivals. China is promoting local nameplates and all foreign carmakers joint ventures in China have been asked to develop local brands.
