His net worth has shrunk by 200 billion. How does "Mr. Twitter" Musk tell the Tesla story well?

Author | Wang Yajun  

Cover Source | Douban Entry  

On January 26th, Beijing time, Tesla released the latest financial report: in the fourth quarter of 2022 (hereinafter referred to as Q4), the revenue increased by 37% year-on-year to US$ 24.318 billion, and the net profit increased by 59% year-on-year to US$ 3.687 billion, both hitting record highs and exceeding market expectations.  

During the period, Tesla’s vehicle production and delivery both reached new highs: Q4 produced 439,701 vehicles and delivered 405,278 vehicles, up 44% and 31% respectively.  

On the first trading day after the financial report was released, Tesla closed up nearly 11% and its market value returned to 500 billion US dollars.  

DanielIves, a well-known Tesla bull and Wedbush analyst, believes that Q4 in 2022 will be "one of the most important financial reports in Tesla’s history" because its dominant position in the electric vehicle market is facing new resistance in the past few years.  

Before the financial report was released, Tesla took the lead in the unprecedented price reduction promotion in the domestic market on January 6, and then spread the price war to the United States, Europe and other places. Musk said in the earnings conference call that he saw the strongest order in Tesla’s history in January, and the current number of orders is almost twice the production capacity.  

In 2023, Tesla gave a delivery target of 1.8 million vehicles in the financial report, an increase of 37% compared with 2022, which was lower than the previously set long-term target (an annual increase of 50%). However, Musk is also optimistic that if there is no external interference, 2 million cars may be produced and sold in 2023.  

The price of cars has dropped, but the growth rate of delivery has slowed down.  

In Q4 of 2022, Tesla, the "price butcher", once again showed the cutting edge of price reduction.  

Since October, 2022, Tesla has successively reduced prices in China and North America. Musk’s goal is to sell all the cars produced in Q4 that year and usher in an "epic year-end".  

However, due to the small price reduction, the effect of exchanging price for quantity is not satisfactory. Tesla delivered a total of 405,300 vehicles in Q4, with a year-on-year growth rate slowing from 71% in the same period of last year to 31%, and a year-on-year revenue growth rate of 37%, a record low in the past two years. MarkDelaney, an analyst at Goldman Sachs, believes that Q4′ s delivery data is "an increasing negative factor".  

 In Q4 last year, Tesla’s output exceeded the delivery by 34,423 vehicles, and the annual difference was 55,769 vehicles. In 2022, Tesla delivered a total of 1,313,800 vehicles, which failed to reach the annual target (1,404,100 vehicles), and the throne of the annual new energy vehicle sales crown was also taken away by BYD.  

As the most profitable new energy vehicle company in the world, Tesla’s net profit growth rate slowed down obviously in Q4 last year, even less than Q2, which was affected by epidemic and supply chain.  

The price reduction promotion also lowered the gross profit margin. Tesla Q4′ s gross profit margin was 23.8%, down 3.6 percentage points from the same period of last year and 1.3 percentage points from the previous month, hitting a new low in nearly seven quarters.  

  In the face of the decline in profitability brought about by price cuts, Musk believes that Tesla can get compensation from autonomous driving.  

In a Twitter space discussion at the end of 2022, Musk said that the value of a car that can drive automatically is much higher than that of a non-self-driving car. Even if the profit margin is extremely low when selling a car, it can be upgraded to automatic driving. It can bring a lot of income. "Only Tesla can do this."  

FSD(FullSelf-Drive) brought Tesla $324 million in revenue in Q4. Tesla has released a beta version of FSD to almost all customers in North America, and the number is about 400,000.  

In addition to the slowdown in growth and the decline in gross profit margin, Musk, as the soul of Tesla, was also distracted by Twitter.  

Musk proposed to acquire Twitter in April 2022 and entered the company in October. After the acquisition, Musk reduced his holdings of Tesla shares worth nearly $23 billion. KoGuanLeo, the third largest individual shareholder of Tesla, said that Musk gave up Tesla and Tesla had no CEO.  

The cold winter of Q4, together with Twitter nightmare, has impacted Tesla’s market value and Musk’s net worth. As of the close of the last trading day in 2022, Tesla’s share price fell by more than 50% in the fourth quarter. Affected by this, Musk became the first rich man in history to lose $200 billion.  

  

Weakened first-Mover advantage  

Behind the slowdown in delivery, revenue and net profit growth is Tesla’s insufficient demand challenge in Q4. According to the financial report, Tesla Q4′ s global inventory supply days reached 13 days, up 225% year-on-year, the highest in the whole year.  

Bernstein, an American investment research institute, said that the price reduction of Tesla’s promotion in China and the United States in 2022 means that Tesla may have a demand problem.  

The long gap period of models is one of the important reasons for the decline in Tesla demand. In 2022, the combined delivery of Model3 and ModelY accounted for 94.92% of Tesla’s total annual delivery, but the release time of these two models should be traced back to 2016 and 2019 respectively.  

Merrill Lynch once predicted in a report that by 2025, Tesla’s American electric vehicle market share will drop from the current 70% to 11%, because Tesla did not expand its product portfolio quickly enough, while traditional car manufacturers and new forces making cars are improving their product lineup. Standard & Poor’s Global Mobile also believes that although Tesla is still the best-selling electric vehicle brand in the United States, its competitors are launching more and more affordable models, and Tesla’s dominant position in the electric vehicle market is being weakened.  

During the gap period of Tesla models, the pattern of new energy vehicle market in China has also changed greatly. According to the data of the Association, the market share of BYD’s new energy passenger cars increased from 19.5% in 2021 to 31.7% in 2022. In the same period, Tesla decreased from 10.7% to 7.8%. Wei Xiaoli also broke through the annual delivery of 100,000 vehicles in 2022, and plans to launch more models.  

 

At the same time, Tesla’s technological aura is gradually eclipsing.  

Tesla’s brand power is centered on the exploration and landing of new technologies, especially the combination with FSD. Musk also predicted that "autopilot software will become Tesla’s most important profit point", but FSD has never achieved true full autopilot. According to the calculation of CITIC Securities, from 2019 to 2021, the revenue of FSD accounted for 3.4%, 2.8% and 1.7% respectively.  

Will the price war last?  

At the beginning of 2023, Tesla cut prices sharply on a global scale.  

On January 6th, all the models on sale in Tesla China market were reduced in price, with a drop of 20,000 ~ 48,000 yuan, and the promotion was unprecedented. The following week, Tesla spread the bonfire of price war to Japan, South Korea, North America, Europe and other places.  

Price reduction is a double-edged sword. Daniel, the aforementioned Wade Bush analyst, believes that Tesla’s price reduction may increase the global delivery this year by 12% ~ 15%. Deutsche Bank predicts that Tesla’s gross profit margin will drop by 3 percentage points in 2023 compared with 2022.  

At the earnings conference call, Tesla did not release the expectation of continuing to exchange prices. Musk said that Tesla raised the price slightly because the demand after the price reduction far exceeded the output. On January 24, Tesla raised the price of the ModelY dual-motor all-wheel drive model sold in the United States by $500. Tesla CFOZachKirkhorn also said in the earnings conference call that the gross profit margin of automobiles will be higher than 20% this year.  

Tesla’s price reduction action is bound to cause a rebound of competitors. Haitong Securities believes that Tesla will increase market sales by reducing prices, announcing that the electric vehicle industry will officially enter fierce competition in 2023, and global car companies will face great pressure to compete head-on.  

On January 13, AITO asked the community to announce that the price of some of its models would be lowered by 28,800 ~ 30,000 yuan. On January 17th, Xpeng Motors, which is still at a loss, announced that it would adjust the price of its G3i/P5/P7 models, with an overall decrease of 20,000 ~ 36,000 yuan.  

The day after the official announcement of price reduction, He Xiaopeng, chairman of Xpeng Motors, said at the annual summary meeting, "Either you are brilliant enough with everyone, or you will die with a bang".  

BYD, which did not follow the price cut, launched a million-class luxury car the day before Tesla’s domestic price cut in an attempt to get more cakes in the high-end market.  

In the face of rivals who are chasing after each other step by step, Tesla urgently needs to find new sales growth points.  

FranzvonHolzhausen, chief designer of Tesla, said on January 16th that Cybertruck, a pure electric pickup truck, had finished the design and was ready to put into production. The market generally believes that if Cybertruck can be listed as scheduled, it will become a new growth point for Tesla in the North American market in 2023.  

Cybertruck; Source: Tesla official Weibo  

 Musk said in the earnings conference call that Cyberruck may start production in the summer of 2023, but the real mass production work will begin in 2024, and Cyberruck’s contribution to profits will not be great this year.  

Cheap models are another sales growth point besides Cybertruck. Musk predicts that the cost of the next-generation car platform will be half that of the second-generation platforms (Model3 and ModelY), and its output may be higher than the sum of all the company’s current products.  

Tesla said in Q4 financial report that more details of the next-generation car platform will be released on March 1, 2023, Investor Day. Analysts of venture capital firm LoupVentures believe that Tesla’s affordable model Model2 will not be launched until 2024.  

In addition, Tesla has to consider the impact of the macro environment.  

In a Twitter discussion at the end of 2022, Musk believed that the severity of the economic recession in 2023 was equivalent to that in 2009, which would affect the demand for automobiles and lead to an increase in the consumption cost of automobiles. However, in the earnings conference call, Musk also said that the economic recession will reduce Tesla’s costs, which in turn will bring higher profit margins. However, he stressed that this was only his guess.  

Twitter is also a variable that Tesla will face this year. In December 2022, Musk launched a vote on whether he should step down as CEO of Twitter. 57.5% of users thought he should resign, but Musk still serves as CEO of Twitter.  

In the earnings conference call, Musk "showed off" his Twitter account with 127 million fans, and said that Twitter created demand for Tesla. At present, Musk has renamed his Twitter account "Mr. Twitter".  

Competition in the industry has intensified and the first-Mover advantage has diminished. In 2023, Tesla will still face severe challenges.

Harbin announced eight major counterfeiting cases in 2008: 47 people fled to 9 provinces to sell counterfeit drugs.

  In 2008, the Economic Investigation Detachment of Harbin Public Security Bureau cracked 15 criminal cases of making and selling fake goods, involving food, medicine, tobacco and alcohol, invoices and other fields, involving more than 40 million yuan, and arrested more than 40 suspects.


  On March 11th, the Economic Investigation Detachment of the Municipal Public Security Bureau announced eight typical cases of counterfeiting.


  Case 1: Producing counterfeit drugs and selling them everywhere.


  In 2008, a large team of Economic Investigation Detachment of Harbin Public Security Bureau found a criminal clue involving counterfeiting registered trademarks, producing and selling counterfeit drugs. After investigation, it found a large criminal gang consisting of 47 suspects involving 13 cities in 9 provinces across the country.


  In August 2006, the suspect Chen Yumin went to Anyang City, Henan Province to find Shen Haijun, a counterfeit drug dealer. The two sides agreed that Chen Yumin would provide raw materials and Shen would be responsible for finding someone to make counterfeit drugs. Shen found Huang to process 400 fake three-refined Sloping at the price of 500 yuan per piece (box). After receiving this batch of counterfeit drugs, Chen Yumin sold them to Shenzhen and Taihe County of Anhui Province successively through Wu Mou, Yunnan salesman of Sanjing Heihe Pharmaceutical Company.


  From June 2007 to January this year, Shen Haijun bought 42 pieces of amoxicillin capsules and 63 pieces of cefalexin from Wang, a native of Henan Province, and sold them to Wu Yulong at a higher price in 100 yuan. Wu Yulong sold them to Shao Huiling at a price of 1,500 yuan each, and Shao Huiling sold the fake amoxicillin to Xu Shoucai of Ankang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. in Heilongjiang Province. Xu Shoucai has been distributed to other pharmaceutical companies or retail pharmacies for 19 times.


  After investigation, Wu Yulong sold 105 boxes of cefalexin tablets and amoxicillin capsules from Harbin Pharmaceutical Group Pharmaceutical Factory to Heilongjiang Ankang Pharmaceutical Company in the name of Heilongjiang Wuxing Pharmaceutical Company. Ankang pharmaceutical company distributed 85.5 boxes to 19 pharmaceutical companies or pharmacies inside and outside the province in 30 times. At present, the stocks of counterfeit drugs in pharmaceutical companies and pharmacies all over the province have been basically recovered. On January 19th, 2008, the police will destroy 8 fake dens and seize 1.97 million counterfeit drugs (sticks and bottles) and more than 400,000 counterfeit trademarks.


  Case 2: counterfeit money is hidden in the tea parcel


  At 17: 00 on November 2, 2008, the investigators of the Second Brigade of the Municipal Economic Investigation Detachment got a clue: Wang Jiale, Yunfu City, Guangdong Province mailed a bag of three boxes of tea to Harbin, which contained forged RMB 5,000. The recipient was Yue from Wangshengbiao Store, Yongyuan Town, Daowai District, Harbin.


  On November 3, 2008, investigators arrested Zhou Xilong, a man who came to collect the parcel. He confessed the criminal fact of buying counterfeit money from Guangdong through SMS. After careful inspection by investigators, it was found that all the fake RMB hidden in the tea box was in 20 yuan face value, totaling 4,980 yuan. On November 3, 2008, the suspect Zhou Xilong was criminally detained on suspicion of buying counterfeit money. Now the case has been investigated and transferred for review and prosecution.


  Case 3: More than 10,000 counterfeit coins are hidden in cigarettes.


  At 16: 00 on October 13th, 2008, the investigators of the Second Brigade of the Municipal Economic Investigation Detachment received a report: a bag marked as two cigarettes was sent to Harbin by PG One in the Golden Wheel Parking Lot of Shatai Road, Guangzhou, containing forged more than 10,000 yuan. The investigator immediately rushed to the post office to find the email, and learned that the recipient was Huang, the Xinfa Telephone Branch of Netcom Company in Xinfa Town, Daoli District.


  On the morning of October 14th, the investigator took control of Huang, who had just received the email, and immediately reviewed it. Huang said: This email was received on behalf of his comrade Luo Xiyu. After careful examination of the mail, it was found that the fake RMB hidden in cigarettes totaled 12,000 yuan, including 200 in 50 yuan and 100 in 20 yuan.


  The investigators continued to fight and soon captured the suspect Luo Xiyu. Luo Xiyu confessed that 12,000 yuan of fake RMB was bought with 1,900 yuan. On October 14th, 2008, Luo Xiyu was criminally detained on suspicion of buying counterfeit money.


  Case 4: A "green arrow" was built in the rental house.


  On January 23, 2008, Wrigley Candy (China) Co., Ltd. entrusted Beijing Jiayifeng Business Consulting Co., Ltd. to report to Harbin Economic Investigation Detachment that Guo Lirong, a criminal suspect, organized personnel to produce and sell counterfeit company’s "Green Arrow" chewing gum at No.27, Da Crystal Street, Daowai District, Harbin, with a daily shipment of about 20 boxes, each worth RMB 1,260.


  On January 25, the police arrested eight suspects, including Guo Lirong. After investigation, Guo Lirong, a criminal suspect, purchased the outer packaging and anti-counterfeiting labels of Green Arrow chewing gum from Fujian and Shandong provinces from February 2007 to January 2008, and purchased sugar tablets from Yiwu City, Zhejiang Province, and organized personnel to produce and sell counterfeit "Green Arrow" chewing gum in the rented house at No.27, Da Crystal Street, Daowai District, with a total sales of more than 600,000 yuan.


  On July 24, 2008, the People’s Court of Daowai District of Harbin sentenced Guo Lirong to three years’ imprisonment and fined RMB 100,000.


  Case 5: A large number of fake cigarettes hide houses.


  At 15: 00 on January 25, 2008, the investigators of the Municipal Economic Investigation Detachment, with the cooperation of the staff of the Municipal Tobacco Inspection Bureau, just arrested the suspect suspected of selling fake cigarettes, and seized 268 counterfeit cigarettes on the spot, with a case value of 154,840 yuan. Later, 274 counterfeit cigarettes were seized in Room 601, Unit 6, Building 7, Orchard Community, Xiangfang District, where he lived, with a case value of 43,820 yuan.


  It turned out that on January 6, 2008, the Municipal Economic Investigation Detachment received a case handed over by the tobacco inspection department: at 11 o’clock on January 6, 2008, the staff of the Municipal Tobacco Inspection Bureau seized various brands of counterfeit cigarettes in a white Nissan car on Haping Road, with a case value of 113,000 yuan. After the owner Li Lianchun confessed, he found a large number of accounts of selling fake cigarettes from 2006 to now in his home. Under the identification of Li, the investigators seized two dens selling fake cigarettes, each with a value of 18,000 yuan and 15,000 yuan.


  Case 6: Soochow Company used fake invoices.


  At the beginning of 2008, the Sixth Brigade of the Municipal Economic Investigation Detachment received an alarm from the masses that Harbin Dongwu Metal Materials Co., Ltd. used a large number of false invoices and was suspected of tax evasion. Investigators found out that Zhu Ge, the operator of the company, and Zhu Yifan, an employee of the company, took measures such as not recording the income and issuing a huge amount of fake invoices to evade taxes. At present, it has been verified that the amount involved is more than 23 million yuan, and it is suspected of stealing more than 3 million yuan.


  Case 7: Buy fake cigarettes and spray code for sale.


  On August 20, 2008, the First Inspection Branch of the Municipal Tobacco Monopoly Bureau and the Eighth Brigade of the Municipal Economic Investigation Detachment jointly investigated and dealt with a case of selling fake and inferior products, and seized 3,058 counterfeit cigarettes with a case value of more than 300,000 yuan. The suspects, Luo Haiyan and Wang Long, are both suburban farmers. Without a tobacco license, they were introduced by others to buy fake cigarettes from A Zheng in Yunxiao County, Fujian Province three times in June 2008. After being distributed to Harbin through logistics, the fake cigarettes are spray-coded and packaged and sold to Hegang and other places. The case has now entered the court hearing stage.


  Case 8: Continue to sell fakes during probation.


  On July 9, 2008, the Eighth Brigade of the Municipal Economic Investigation Detachment learned that someone illegally purchased a batch of cigarettes from the south and would unload them at a cargo terminal on Xianfeng Road. The police arrested three buyers, including Sun Binjiang, and seized 1,950 cigarettes purchased at the cargo terminal. In addition, more than 6,000 cigarettes of more than 20 kinds were seized in the warehouse rented by three people, with a value of RMB 1.01 million.


  After in-depth work, the police arrested Chen Yuebei, the suspect of Yunxiao County, Fujian Province. It was found out according to law that Sun Binjiang was sentenced to 3 years’ imprisonment and suspended for 3 years for illegal business operations in 2006. Sun Binjiang did not repent during the probation period and returned to his old job. In 2008, he colluded with Tan Liwei and Ni Junfeng to buy fake cigarettes from Chen Yuebei four times, and continued the illegal and criminal activities of selling fake and inferior products. At present, Sun Binjiang was sentenced to 4 years in prison and fined 208,000 yuan; The other three were sentenced to 2 years and 3 years in prison, suspended for 3 years and 5 years respectively, and fined 100,000 to 200,000 yuan. (Qin Lei Fu Li Qiong Cai Hang)

Editor: Yan Bin

Guangdong police destroyed a criminal gang that polluted the environment, involving more than 60 million yuan and illegally disposing of more than 30 thousand tons of dangerous waste engine oil.

Recently, under the command and coordination of the Provincial Public Security Department and with the support of the environmental protection department, Zhuhai police, in conjunction with police in many places, launched a simultaneous network-closing operation, which destroyed the "1.29" criminal gang led by Zhang Mokun in one fell swoop, arrested more than 120 criminal suspects, found 9 oil storage points, and seized 39 vehicles, 62 oil drums, more than 100 boxes of used engine oil and 61 tons of used engine oil substances used for illegal transportation, storage and disposal.

  At the beginning of this year, Zhuhai police found that a man surnamed Zhang organized illegal recycling and resale of waste engine oil in Zhuhai, Zhongshan, Jiangmen and Shenzhen. After investigation, since the end of 2015, Zhang Mokun organized relatives, fellow villagers and others to illegally purchase waste engine oil, and after centralized storage, sedimentation and filtration, they sold it again, illegally disposing of more than 30,000 tons of hazardous waste waste engine oil, involving more than 60 million yuan. There are strict laws and regulations on the recovery and disposal of waste engine oil, and only units with the qualification of hazardous waste management can recover and dispose of it. Zhang Mokun and others do not have the qualification conditions, and their behavior poses a great threat to the public safety and environmental safety of our province. On the 12th, Zhuhai, together with the police in Shenzhen, Shantou, Zhongshan, Jiangmen and other places, launched a simultaneous network-closing operation and successfully destroyed the criminal gang.

Georgia says it has opened fire on "Russian warplanes" that intruded into its airspace.

     

    [Content at a glance]A spokesman for the Georgian Ministry of the Interior said, "At 22: 24 on the 22nd, the Georgian military opened fire on the invading Russian warplanes over Abkhazia." The invasion was detected by Georgian military radar and civil aviation system, which was the ninth such incident in three months.






    On August 6, Georgia accused Russian warplanes of launching missiles into its territory. The picture shows Georgia detonating missiles.


    BEIJING, Aug. 25 (Xinhua)-According to a comprehensive report, an official of Georgia’s Ministry of the Interior said on the 24th that "when Russian fighters invaded Georgia’s airspace again a few days ago, the Georgian military finally chose to fire at Russian fighters to fight back". Local residents reported that they then heard a violent explosion and found the nearby forest on fire.


    "At 22: 24 the day before yesterday (22nd), the Georgian military opened fire on the invading Russian warplanes over Abkhazia," Sota-Utiavini, spokesman of the Georgian Ministry of Interior, said in an interview. Sota-Utiavini also said that shortly after the Georgian military opened fire, local residents reported that they heard a violent explosion and saw the forest burning. But as of now, Georgian officials are still not sure whether the fighter plane has crashed.


    Teglia, Deputy Minister of Defense of Georgia, also told reporters that it was probably a modified Soviet fighter that invaded Georgia’s airspace. Both the military radar and the civil aviation system monitored the invasion, and it was the ninth such incident in three months. "The Ministry of National Defense does not rule out that such frequent violations of Georgian airspace are related to Russian reconnaissance activities or represent a provocation." KuTeglia said that after the invasion, Georgian air defense system detected that a Russian plane violated its border twice and flew over Upper Abkhazia (Kodori Gorge), and the speed of the plane was 470-490 kilometers per hour. At present, Georgia has sent a note to the Russian Foreign Ministry, demanding that they must immediately give a clear explanation about the violation of the country’s airspace by a Russian plane. Russia immediately responded to Georgia’s allegations. Colonel Alexander Drobyshevski, spokesman of the Russian Air Force, said: "Russian Air Force aircraft did not fly along the Georgian border that day, and Russian aircraft did not violate Georgian airspace."


    Rubani Rasjain, an expert on Russian issues at George Washington University in the United States, believes that the Abkhazia region involved in the new round of war of words between Georgia and Russia is an old problem between the two countries. On the surface and legally, Abkhazia is a part of Georgia, but Georgia’s sovereignty does not actually extend to this area from the Psou River to the Inguri River. This autonomous Republic has not been recognized by the international community since it declared "independence" in 1992, but it is closely related to Russia. It was not until July 2006 that the Georgian central government took control of the Kodori Gorge near Abkhazia. South Ossetia is an autonomous prefecture of Georgia, bordering on North Ossetia, Russia. After the disintegration of the former Soviet Union, South Ossetia demanded to merge with North Ossetia in Russia and establish an independent republic. This led to a sharp deterioration of the contradiction between the Georgian central government and the local authorities in South Ossetia, and a large-scale armed conflict broke out. Due to the close relationship between South Ossetia authorities and Russia, Georgia often accuses Russia of secretly providing military and economic assistance to South Ossetia, which has also seriously affected the relations between the two countries.


    Georgian officials once again accused Russian fighter planes of throwing a missile near South Ossetia, which landed in front of a house in the village of Chedrubani, but did not explode. The Georgian side said that it found the unexploded missile in a vegetable field near the village of Tete rubani, 65km northwest of the Georgian capital Tbilisi. The missile incident has once again strained the relations between Georgia and Russia. The Russian authorities have denied that Russian planes have ever been active in that area. Russian experts sent to that area said that the photos of the missile wreckage provided by Georgia showed that the missile was neither Russian nor Soviet. Two independent international expert groups invited by Georgia approved Georgia’s statement. However, Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Churkin accused Georgia of forging a "missile legend", deliberately creating a "political tsunami" and provoking it. (Bi Yuan)


More international news:


  • ·Former French Prime Minister Barr died in Paris.

  • ·The situation in Iraq and Afghanistan is converging, and the United States is caught in the deepest quagmire after the Cold War.

  • ·Details of 3 deaths and 2 injuries of British soldiers stationed in Afghanistan accidentally bombed by US warplanes were disclosed.

  • ·The UN team will go to C? te d ‘Ivoire to investigate the attack on the Prime Minister of the Section. 

  • ·Two hundred al-Qaeda elements bloodbath Iraq and kill religious leaders.

  • ·South Korea regrets Abe’s denial of war responsibility.

  • ·The United States warns Venezuela’s neighbors: beware of Chavez’s military buildup

  • ·Iran flogs men who violate moral laws in downtown areas (photo)

  • ·Australia gives prisoners a holiday and vacates their cells to hold APEC protesters.
  • Editor: Zhao Xuanxuan

    From now on, a number of enterprises will pay the transfer fee, and the monthly income of the courier brother may increase by at least seven or eight hundred yuan.

      A few days ago, Zhongtong, Yuantong, Shentong, Yunda and many other express delivery companies have issued the Notice on the Adjustment of the Distribution Fees of the Whole Network, announcing that the distribution fees of the whole network will be raised from today (September 1) to subsidize the income of couriers. The "delivery fee" means the "delivery fee", which is the income obtained by the courier to deliver the express from the outlet to the consumer. At present, what is the income of the courier brother? Look at the report that the reporter sent back from Guangzhou yesterday.

      On August 31, the reporter visited a number of courier companies in Guangzhou and found that the courier brother began to meet the busiest season of the year. Zheng Wanqiang, who is engaged in express delivery in a Guangzhou express delivery company, told reporters that starting from September 1st, the company will increase the delivery fee of 0.1 yuan for each ticket, and 200~300 pieces can be delivered every day, and each ticket will increase the 0.1 yuan, which will make him a good income every month. Zheng Wanqiang, a courier of a courier company in Guangzhou, said that the rent was just (replenished) after making up seven or eight hundred yuan.

      Not only Zheng Wanqiang, but also more courier brothers can enjoy the increase in income brought about by this round of fee increase. The reporter learned that the express delivery companies, such as Zhongtong, Yuantong, Shentong and Yunda, announced that they would increase the distribution fee of 0.1 yuan from September 1st. Just in July this year, seven central ministries and commissions jointly issued the "Working Opinions on Doing a Good Job in Protecting the Legal Rights and Interests of Courier Groups", pointing out that it is necessary to further implement the specific arrangements of the State Post Bureau on doing a good job in protecting the rights and interests of couriers and effectively enhance the legitimate rights and interests of couriers. For the delivery of some large-scale express delivery, the express delivery company has also made different adjustments. Tian Shanshan, manager of the personnel department of a courier company in Guangzhou, said that there are some areas with relatively high difficulty coefficient for the delivery of some large-sized couriers. For such couriers, we have also set up subsidies for special areas. On average, each courier can probably be promoted to a salary change of 1,000 to 1,500 yuan. Liang Wenhui, the general public affairs assistant of a courier company in Guangzhou, said that they will have a special fund of more than 200 million yuan, which will be mainly subsidized to our frontline courier brother. This special fund is basically aimed at the current income of courier brother, and some subsidies will be made to increase income.

      The reporter learned that the courier brother group has strong work intensity and difficult working conditions. The increase in the courier fee will help to strengthen the confidence of the courier brother. Mr. Lai, a courier of a courier company in Guangzhou, said that the mentality of wanting to leave the company has dropped, and at least 1000 yuan has given them more rewards.

    Flash share price breaks: the valuation has shrunk dramatically, and the customer unit price has been declining. How can the Red Sea competition break through?

      Shi Zifu, Harbor Business Watch

      In the sub-field of matching in the same city, flash delivery is usually regarded as a leading participant in the industry. However, this market is highly competitive, and only the well-known SF City, JD.COM Hours and Dada Seconds are not small rivals.

      On October 4th, Flash (FLX.US) was successfully listed on NASDAQ, with an issue price of US$ 16.5 /ADS and a total fundraising of US$ 66 million. As of 9: 38 EDT on October 8th, the stock price of Flash dropped to about US$ 15. According to Tianyancha, the domestic operation entity of Flash is Beijing Tongcheng Bing Technology Co., Ltd..

      01

      Achieve profitability in 2023.

      Official website introduced that Flash Delivery is a one-to-one express delivery platform in the same city’s instant delivery industry, providing personal and corporate customers with special express delivery services on demand. The brand of Flash Delivery is FlashEx or Flash Delivery, which means instant delivery.

      According to the data of iResearch, in terms of revenue in 2023, Flash is the largest independent on-demand express service provider in China. In 2023, the market share of Flash in China’s independent on-demand express service is about 33.9%.

      Different from the delivery service provider that adopts the order consolidation mode, Flash initiated and always focused on the special delivery mode of on-demand delivery. For each order, Flash will assign a special Flash-Rider to pick up the order and deliver it to the recipient without merging multiple orders or changing hands on the route.

      As of June 30, 2024, Flash has about 2.7 million registered riders, and its service coverage has been extended to 295 cities in China.

      From 2021-2023 and January-June 2024 (hereinafter referred to as the reporting period), Flash Delivery fulfilled 158.6 million, 213.4 million, 270.7 million and 138.1 million orders respectively; In the current period, the company realized revenue of RMB 3,039.8 million, RMB 4,002.7 million, RMB 4,528.8 million and RMB 2,284.5 million respectively, and realized gross profit of RMB 189 million, RMB 259 million, RMB 395 million and RMB 257 million respectively, with gross profit margins of 6.2%, RMB 6.5%, RMB 8.7% and RMB 11.3 respectively.

      It is not difficult to understand the reason for the increase in revenue, which is related to the increase in the company’s orders in the current period. In terms of net profit, flash delivery generated a net loss of 291 million yuan and 180.4 million yuan in 2021 and 2022 respectively, and realized a net profit of 110 million yuan (US$ 15.205 million) and 124 million yuan (1702.0) in 2023 and January-June 2024 respectively.

      For the realization of profit in 2023, the flash payment is attributed to the increase of other income caused by the increase of government subsidies. In 2023, other income from flash delivery was 74.3 million yuan (US$ 10.2 million), compared with 9.2 million yuan in the same period in 2022.

      In the revenue composition of Flash-Riders, the salary and incentive paid to Flash-Riders are the biggest components of the company’s revenue cost. During the reporting period, it was 2.751 billion yuan, 3.614 billion yuan, 3.975 billion yuan and 1.951 billion yuan respectively, accounting for 90.5%, 90.3%, 87.8% and 85.4% of the total income of the current period respectively.

      In addition, the attention of the outside world is high. During the reporting period, the average income of a single order delivered by flash was 19.2 yuan, 18.8 yuan, 16.7 yuan and 16.5 yuan respectively, showing an obvious downward trend. Although the order volume is rising, the continuous decline of single income is still likely to affect the overall operating performance of the company.

      02

      Downgrading various fees, more than 8,000 complaints.

      The operating expenses of flash delivery include sales and marketing expenses, general and management expenses and research and development expenses. In the total cost, sales and marketing expenses account for the vast majority.

      According to the prospectus, the sales and marketing expenses of flash delivery mainly include: advertising and marketing expenses, staff costs related to sales and marketing functions, rent and depreciation, and advertising expenses mainly include endorsement fees and advertising fees. During the reporting period, the sales and marketing expenses of flash delivery were 272 million yuan, 240 million yuan, 188 million yuan and 89.738 million yuan respectively, accounting for 8.9%, 6.0%, 4.2% and 3.9% of the corresponding income respectively.

      General and administrative expenses of flash delivery mainly include: salaries and related costs of employees engaged in general company functions, professional fees and other general company expenses, as well as expenses related to the use of facilities and equipment. During the reporting period, the company’s general and administrative expenses were 113 million yuan, 103 million yuan, 105 million yuan and 45.505 million yuan respectively, accounting for 3.7%, 2.6%, 2.3% and 2.0% of the corresponding income respectively.

      In addition, R&D expenses mainly include: staff costs, rent and depreciation related to R&D functions, and other expenses related to R&D functions. During the reporting period, the R&D expenses of Flash were 105 million yuan, 119 million yuan, 90.847 million yuan and 41.306 million yuan, respectively, accounting for 3.4%, 3.0%, 2.0% and 1.8% of the revenue in the corresponding period.

      In the first half of 2024, Flash reduced the sales and marketing expenses, general and administrative expenses, and research and development expenses, by 8.56%, 13.17% and 18.6% respectively compared with the previous year. Some market participants told Harbor Business Watch that it is not ruled out that this year is facing fierce market competition and the consumption environment is weak. In order to improve profitability and IPO, Flash delivery has carried out all-round cost control.

      Flash accounts payable mainly refer to the remuneration payable to Flash-Riders. By the end of 2022, 2023 and the end of the first half of 2024, the accounts payable for flash were 356.1 million yuan, 339.8 million yuan and 314.6 million yuan respectively. In the same period, the company’s cash and cash equivalents were 622 million yuan, 699 million yuan and 712 million yuan respectively.

      In 2021 and 2022, the net cash used in flash business activities was 194.9 million yuan and 86.8 million yuan respectively, and in 2023, the net cash provided by flash business activities was 45.7 million yuan.

      In the first half of 2024, the net cash provided by Flash business activities was 20.7 million yuan (US$ 2.8 million). Flash mentioned that the company’s main source of liquidity was equity financing income. In March, April and May, 2021, the company obtained 747.8 million RMB from D2 financing. As of June 30, 2024, Flash had cash and cash equivalents of 711.7 million yuan (US$ 97.9 million).

      Flash delivery mentioned in the prospectus that the company does not employ any lightning riders, and provides special express service for individual and corporate customers by relying on Flash-Riders. The company usually regards such lightning riders as independent contractors.

      In this context, there are also many consumer complaints about flash delivery. As of October 8, the keyword "flash delivery" was searched on the black cat complaint platform, with a total of 8,128 complaints, and 5,744 complaints have been completed. In the last 30 days, there were 213 complaints, with an average of 7.1 complaints per day. Consumer complaints focus on time delay, overlord clauses, arbitrary deduction of service fees, unreasonable punishment of riders, and unauthorized cancellation of orders.

      03

      Valuation has shrunk dramatically, how to break through the competition in the Red Sea?

      Tianyancha shows that at the beginning of its establishment in March 2014, Flash received millions of RMB angel round financing from Jingwei Venture Capital; In June of the same year, the company also received millions of dollars in Series A financing from Jingwei Venture Capital and CDH Investment. In July and August, 2015, Flash completed $50 million in Series B financing and Series B+ financing respectively, with investors including Jiuding Investment, Light Source Growth Fund and Tiantu Investment.

      In February and June of 2017, Flash completed the C and C+ rounds of financing respectively, and the transaction amount of both rounds was USD 50 million. In August, 2017, August, 2018 and March, 2021, Flash completed the D, D+ and D++ rounds of financing respectively, among which the investors in the D+ round of financing included Haisong Capital, Wuyue Capital, Yuanxing Capital, Haina Asia Venture Capital, Shunwei Capital, Changbai Xing Capital, Shunliang Investment, Hearst Capital and Light Source Venture Capital, with a transaction amount of 60 million.

      The investors in the flash D++ financing include Shunzhi Capital, Wuyue Capital, Haina Asia Venture Capital Fund, Tiantu Investment, Haisong Capital, AlphaSquare Group, Qiyuan Investment Axiom Asia Private Capital, Qian Shan Capital and Zhongcai Capital, and the transaction amount reached 125 million US dollars.

      However, in the instant delivery market, flash delivery faces a lot of market competition.

      In the field of traditional logistics and distribution, SF Express’s SF Express delivery, running errands, and helping to buy services, with an average of one hour in the whole city; JD.COM’s instant retail business is aimed at consumers’ JD.COM Hours, and in May 2024, JD.COM Hours and other brands were upgraded to "JD.COM Seconds Delivery"; Dada Group’s Dada seconds to send help, help to send, run errands, 1 hour; Hungry? Hummingbird, its real-time logistics platform, also provides consumers with comprehensive life services such as home catering service, supermarket service, help buy and help deliver.

      In addition, after the completion of the D++ round of financing in March 2021, the valuation of flash delivery reached 2 billion US dollars (equivalent to about 14 billion yuan). According to the Hurun Global Unicorn List in 2024, the flash valuation is about 7 billion yuan, down about 40% from 2021. Up to now, the flash market value is about $1.078 billion.

      According to the Research Report on Instant Distribution Industry in China released by iResearch, the scale of the instant distribution industry will be about 341 billion yuan in 2023, and it is estimated that the scale of the industry will exceed 810 billion yuan in 2028.

      Mo Daiqing, director and senior analyst of the online retail department of the E-commerce Research Center of NetEconomy & Society, pointed out that the competition in the instant delivery market is becoming more and more fierce. For example, Dada Group and SF Express have been successfully listed in the same city, and the rookie also announced to upgrade its express delivery service in the same city and launched the "half-day service". Backed by giants such as JD.COM, SF Express and Ali, they have strong financial support and business resources. In addition, there are some new "showstopper". For example, last year, the cargo Lala announced the online errands business; Didi also launched Didi errands service; Gaode Map announced that it has cooperated with a number of instant delivery companies to provide errands through its platform; Tik Tok, Aauto Quicker, Oriental Selection, etc. are also accelerating the trial of instant retail.

      Although it has been successfully listed, on the one hand, its profitability is under great pressure, and on the other hand, how to successfully break through in the Red Sea industry has also been tested.

    Extreme Yue Automobile’s brand-new medium and large pure electric car 07 interior official map exposure

    On August 10th, Jiyue Automobile officially announced the official interior map of the brand’s brand-new medium and large pure electric car. It is reported that this car adopts the design concept of "AI Aesthetics", showing the charm of pure China original design.

    In the interior, Extreme Yue 07 continues the design of family style, with minimalism as the leading factor. Among them, the design of the half-width steering wheel is eye-catching, and its development cost is as high as 20 million yuan. Officials said that this design not only provides a good grip, but also ensures that it does not block the driver’s line of sight. In addition, the button design in the car is also extremely simple.

    The interior adopts embracing design, and the center console is equipped with a whole penetrating suspension screen with a size of 35.6 inches and a resolution of 6K, and colorful atmosphere lights are incorporated to create a sense of technology and advanced. There is also a wireless charging panel at the lower part of the center console to provide convenience for passengers. The new car also features an integrated seat design and a small screen in the center of the rear row.

    In appearance, the car body size of Extreme Yue 07 is 4953mm long, 1989mm wide and 1475mm high, with a wheelbase of 3013mm, and it is positioned in medium and large cars. Its short front and rear suspension and long wheelbase design make the body look full and dynamic. There is also an electric spoiler at the tail, which automatically rises when the speed exceeds 95km/h, further enhancing the value of the whole vehicle.

    According to the declaration information, the Extreme Yue 07 dual-motor version can output a maximum power of 400 kW, and is equipped with a maximum speed of 200 km/h.. It is expected that the new car will be listed this year, and the price is expected to be in the range of 200,000-300,000 yuan. It is worth mentioning that Extreme Yue 07 will also adopt pure visual high-order intelligent driving technology, which is provided by Baidu.

    Exclusive Record: Ambassador AARON Li introduced the details of his visit to Ukraine, Russia and other five countries.

      AARON Li, Special Representative of China Government for Eurasian Affairs, introduced the visit.

      Good afternoon, media friends! From May 15 to 28, I visited Ukraine, Poland, France, Germany, the European Union headquarters and Russia as the special representative of the China government for Eurasian affairs, and had in-depth communication with all parties on the political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis. I’d like to introduce the relevant situation of this visit first, and then answer your questions.

      Ukraine is the first stop of my visit. During my visit to Ukraine, I called on President Zelensky, held talks with Ermak, Director of the Ukrainian President’s Office, and Kuleba, Foreign Minister, respectively, and listened to the briefings by the heads of the Ukrainian Ministry of Infrastructure, the Ministry of Energy and the Ministry of National Defense. During my visit to Poland, France, Germany and EU headquarters, I held talks with Polish Deputy Secretary of State Gerville, French Foreign Ministry Director-General for Political and Security Affairs Mondoloni, German Foreign Ministry Secretary Michaelis, European Council President Michel’s Office Director Bernard and EU External Action Agency Deputy Secretary-General Mora. Russia is the last stop. During my visit to Russia, I held separate meetings with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov, Deputy Foreign Ministers Rudenco and Luzin. In the communication with all parties, I elaborated on China’s position and proposition in detail, listened carefully to the opinions of all parties, and had in-depth and frank exchanges with all parties. The visit achieved the expected purpose. The Chinese delegation received a warm and friendly reception at every stop, and I once again thank the parties concerned.

      This is the first time that China has specially sent a delegation to relevant countries to carry out diplomatic work on the political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis. During this visit, through in-depth communication with all parties, I have the following outstanding feelings.

      First, all parties have made positive comments on China’s efforts and all hope to resolve the crisis peacefully.Regardless of Ukraine, Russia, European countries and the European Union, all parties recognize China’s efforts to promote peace and support a political solution to the Ukrainian crisis. They all hope that China will play an active role and are willing to communicate with China in depth. Uzbekistan thanks China for playing an active role in promoting peace and talks, appreciates China’s adherence to respecting sovereign territorial integrity and abiding by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and emphasizes that many contents in China’s position paper on political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis are in line with President Ze Lenski’s 10-point peace plan, expecting China to continue to exert constructive influence. The Russian side appreciates China’s sincere desire and practical efforts to promote a peaceful settlement of the Ukrainian crisis and expresses that it will continue to adhere to the direction of political settlement. Poland, France, Germany and the European Union all expect China to continue to exert positive influence on the Ukrainian issue, promote the peaceful settlement of the crisis, resolve differences through dialogue and achieve lasting and just peace in Europe. These statements once again show that China’s position on the Ukrainian crisis is objective, fair and impartial, and has also been highly praised by the international community.

      Second, the risk of war escalation remains high.At present, the war is still escalating. During my three days in Ukraine, Kiev sounded the air defense alarm every day, and there were two large-scale air strikes. The battlefield is very deadlocked and full of uncertainty, and the situation is worrying. Historically, wars and conflicts ended in peace. But the spread of war will only bring more disasters and suffering. As long as there is a glimmer of hope for peace, we should make active efforts instead of letting the development of conflicts drag on, let alone adding fuel to the fire, which will lead to local conflicts turning into large-scale wars. At present, the parties may still face many difficulties when they sit down to negotiate and negotiate results, but it is important that someone come forward to promote the consensus of all parties, form the greatest common denominator, and gradually accumulate and create conditions for the final settlement of the crisis. As long as it is conducive to easing the situation and promoting negotiations, China is willing to do it.

      Third, all parties are highly concerned about the risk of crisis spillover, especially nuclear safety, humanitarian issues, food security and other issues.

      All parties are highly concerned about the safety of nuclear facilities in Uzbekistan. Ukrainian officials have repeatedly expressed to me their concerns about the safety of the Zaporoge nuclear power plant, and Polish officials are also worried about this. Once a nuclear disaster occurs, no one can be immune to it. All parties should take responsibility for ensuring the safety of nuclear facilities and take practical actions to ensure that the situation cools down and eases. This is the fundamental way to solve the nuclear safety problem.

      Many countries are concerned about the humanitarian problems caused by the crisis. China attaches great importance to this, and has always played a constructive role in easing the humanitarian situation in Ukraine in its own way, supporting all initiatives and measures that are conducive to alleviating the humanitarian crisis. We put forward China’s six-point proposal on the humanitarian situation in Uzbekistan, and provided many batches of humanitarian aid to Uzbekistan. At the same time, we believe that it is the greatest humanitarianism to stop pouring oil on the fire and promote the situation to cool down as soon as possible and reduce casualties.

      During the visit, all parties also expressed concern about the impact of the Ukrainian crisis on the world grain market, which is related to the survival and well-being of people all over the world. Russia and Ukraine are both important grain producers in the world, and the implementation of the Black Sea grain transportation agreement is of great significance to ensuring global food security. China maintains that the agreement should continue to be implemented in a balanced, comprehensive and effective manner. China has put forward an international food security cooperation initiative, and is willing to strengthen communication and cooperation with all parties in this regard, promote the formation of more international consensus, and make positive contributions to ensuring world food security.

      The Ukrainian crisis has complicated historical latitude and longitude and realistic reasons, and its essence is the explosion of contradictions in European security governance. China is neither a crisis maker nor a participant in the conflict, but an advocate of peace and a promoter of peace talks. China has always held an objective and fair position on the Ukrainian issue and has never stopped its efforts to persuade peace and promote talks. Chairman of the Supreme Leader clearly put forward the "Four Should’s" proposition, which is China’s fundamental follow-up on the political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis. On February 24th this year, on the occasion of the first anniversary of the outbreak of the conflict, China issued the document "China’s Position on the Political Settlement of the Ukrainian Crisis", hoping to strengthen dialogue and exchanges with all parties on the basis of this document and continue to expand the common denominator of the political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis.

      China has always played a constructive role in the peaceful resolution of the crisis based on the above principles and called for a ceasefire. Since the outbreak of the war, the Chairman of the Supreme Leader has held meetings or phone calls with leaders of various countries, including Russia and Ukraine, and has done extensive work in all aspects. Since the beginning of this year, the Chairman of the Supreme Leader has visited Russia, received French President Macron and Brazilian President Lula in China, and telephoned President Zelensky. Political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis is one of the important contents. China has also provided Ukraine with a large amount of humanitarian assistance such as food and medicine. China’s efforts are obvious to all.

      China’s position on promoting peace and talks and easing the situation is consistent. We will continue to implement the positions and propositions of the Supreme Leader’s Chairman, such as "Four Answers", "Four Commonness" and "Three Thoughts", strengthen dialogue and exchanges with all parties, constantly build consensus and accumulate mutual trust, promote the formation of a greater common denominator, and make China contributions to the political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis.

      Q: During your visit, The Wall Street Journal reported that, according to informed western officials, China proposed an agreement that would allow Russia to own parts of Ukraine. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Kuleba later said that according to his contacts with all parties, no country has expressed the position mentioned in your above report. How do you comment on this?

      AARON Li: A spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China has clarified the report. I don’t know who the so-called "informed western officials" in The Wall Street Journal refer to, but the relevant reports are totally untrue. China adheres to an objective and fair position, actively persuades peace and promotes talks, and always stands on the side of peace, dialogue and justice. We are doing the right thing and doing it to the end. Whether in the process of communication with Uzbekistan, Russia or Europe, our position is consistent and clear. We also released the news in time. China’s position has been widely understood and supported by the international community including Russia and Ukraine.

      During my visit to Ukraine, I had a friendly and frank communication with Foreign Minister Kuleba himself. Uzbekistan thanked China for playing an active role in persuading and stopping the war, and appreciated China’s call for respect for sovereign territorial integrity and compliance with the purposes and principles of the UN Charter. Foreign Minister Culeba made a personal clarification, which shows that the false report in The Wall Street Journal is not only completely untrue, but also unpopular, and it is obviously provoking Sino-Ukrainian relations.

      I want to emphasize that China is not a party to the Ukrainian issue and will not do anything to add fuel to the fire. The Ukrainian issue is not a problem between China, Ukraine, China, Russia or China and Europe. China is willing to continue to strengthen communication and dialogue with all parties and play a constructive role in persuading and promoting talks.

      Q: After this visit, what is your judgment on the prospect of a political solution to the Ukrainian crisis?

      AARON Li: The Ukrainian crisis can only be resolved through dialogue and negotiation. During this visit, I feel that all parties support a political solution to the Ukrainian crisis. There may still be many difficulties for the parties to sit down and negotiate, but the parties are not completely without consensus. The Russian side said that it never opposes peace talks and has always supported solving problems through political channels; Uzbekistan also expressed its cherish and longing for peace, and the two sides have no door to peace talks.

      If we really want to stop the war, save lives and achieve peace, we should stop sending weapons to the battlefield, otherwise it will only push up the risk of escalating tensions. China has always believed that no matter how great the difficulties and differences are, we should stick to the general direction of peace talks until a ceasefire and peace are reached.

      I have noticed that South Africa and other African countries, Brazil and other parties have put forward initiatives to peacefully resolve the Ukrainian crisis, and China welcomes these initiatives. At present, it is important to gather the consensus of all parties, promote the formation of the greatest common denominator, and gradually accumulate and create conditions for the final settlement of the crisis. As long as it is conducive to easing the situation and promoting negotiations, China is willing to continue to do so.

      Q: As a senior diplomat, you have visited Europe and Eurasia many times. Your visit bears a great mission. As far as personal feelings are concerned, what is the difference compared with previous visits?

      AARON Li: I have worked in Russia for many years, and I have visited Ukraine and many European countries many times. This visit is regarded as revisiting my old place for me. But compared with the past, this visit is really different. The most intuitive feeling is the inconvenient transportation. As there is no flight to Ukraine, the first stop of our trip is to Kiev via Poland, and the train journey from Kiev to Warsaw is as long as 18 hours. Due to the suspension of flights between Europe and Russia, the direct flight from Brussels to Moscow originally took only three hours, but now it takes a whole night to get there by bypassing Istanbul. I think this is the most intuitive embodiment of the impact of the Ukrainian crisis on the economic and social life of all countries.

      This is only one aspect of transportation. Ukraine, Russia and European countries used to have very close economic, cultural and social exchanges, but now many of them have been artificially cut off. It is not other countries on the other side of the ocean that have suffered the most, but Ukraine, Russia and European countries. The longer the crisis drags on, Ukraine, Russia and Europe will bear greater sacrifices and pay greater prices. Getting out of the crisis as soon as possible is beneficial to all parties, which is also the starting point for us to persuade and promote talks.

    Edible oil market: soybean oil is dominant, and consumption is gradually upgrading.

    CITICS

    Edible oil can be divided into vegetable oil and animal oil according to the category. Edible vegetable oil is the main domestic consumption, and the consumption of animal oil is decreasing year by year. According to the statistics of the National Bureau of Statistics, the proportion of edible vegetable oil in the per capita edible oil consumption of rural households in China has increased from 56% in 1980 to 90% in 2018. Edible vegetable oil is mainly produced from upstream soybeans, rapeseed,

    Planting oil seeds such as peanuts and sunflower seeds, squeezing, refining and packaging to obtain packaged edible oil products; In addition, the by-product oil meal can be used as an important feed raw material, while the primary processed products such as crude oil can be used to manufacture daily chemical products, high-quality basic chemicals, nutritional products, etc., which are widely used in food, chemical industry, medicine and other industries.

    20201003/6e9c33baf01d5b6399b69a8e64f8482c.png

    In recent years, the consumption of edible vegetable oil has increased steadily.

    With the increase of per capita edible oil consumption and the substitution of edible vegetable oil for edible animal oil, the consumption of edible vegetable oil in China has continued to increase, and the growth rate of industry consumption has gradually slowed down after 2005, stabilizing at single-digit growth.

    According to the statistics of National Cereals and Oils Information Center, in 2017/18 (from October 2017 to September 2018, the same below), the consumption of edible vegetable oil in China reached 34.4 million tons, and the CAGR reached 4.5% in the past five years. Among them, the production of edible vegetable oil reached 29.63 million tons, and the CAGR reached 4.5% in the past five years. Some edible vegetable oils were supplemented by imports.

    20201003/8328ed70cf2810d453d8ee0835dcc0d7.png20201003/67b5c77fa04857843a8dc39ca3523bd9.png

    Soybean oil-rapeseed oil is dominant, and oilseed soybeans are mainly imported.

    In terms of scaleAccording to USDA data, the consumption of soybean oil and rapeseed oil in China in 2018/19 reached 15.89 million tons and 8.39 million tons respectively. The consumption of peanut oil, sunflower oil and corn oil ranks second. According to USDA data, the consumption of peanut oil and sunflower oil in China in 2018/19 was 3.09 million tons and 1.5 million tons respectively.

    From the perspective of growth rateIn recent years, sunflower oil and olive oil have increased rapidly, with CAGR reaching 10.1% and 6.7% respectively in the past five years.

    From the perspective of supplySoybean oil, rapeseed oil and peanut oil are mainly made in China, while sunflower oil and olive oil are mainly imported, accounting for 69% and 93% of consumption; From the perspective of oil materials (raw materials for oil extraction), soybeans are mainly imported, and imports in 2018/19 accounted for 97% of the crush.

    20201003/91c9686e27fd92454c25588abc15d33e.png

    Packaging edible oil: soybean oil dominates the market, and consumption is gradually escalating.

    According to the packaging methods, edible vegetable oil can be divided into bulk oil, medium packaging edible oil and small packaging edible oil.

    In recent years, with the continuous promulgation of national laws and regulations on restricting the sale of bulk oil, the improvement of residents’ living standards and consumers’ increasing awareness of food safety, the consumption of bulk oil has gradually decreased, and the consumption of small and medium-sized packaged edible oil has gradually increased, occupying the main position in the edible oil market.

    According to Euromonitor statistics, the consumption of packaged edible oil in China reached 14.67 million tons in 2019 (excluding industry), and the CAGR was 4.8% in 2014-2019. It is expected that the industry will continue to grow steadily in the future, and the expected sales volume CAGR in 2019-2024 is 3.7%.

    Looking at retail channels alone, the sales volume, sales volume and retail price of packaged edible oil in 2019 were 103.1 billion yuan, 8.39 million tons and 12,292 yuan/ton respectively, corresponding to CAGR of 2.2%, 3.8% and -1.5% in 2014-2019 respectively.

    20201003/f2bfb5aa735c7f389eff5209234a2e72.png

    20201003/4579623eb1ac1f3fd4991161e342fc01.png

    Soybean oil dominated, and the proportion of high-priced edible oil increased.

    In terms of categories, soybean oil is still dominant in packaged edible oil.

    According to Euromonitor statistics, in 2019, China’s soybean oil sales accounted for 44%, and rapeseed oil, peanut oil and sunflower oil accounted for 10%, 9% and 7% respectively.

    From the retail price, olive oil is much higher than other categories, reaching 97,000 yuan/ton in 2019; Peanut oil and sunflower oil are relatively higher than the average level, with 14,300 yuan and 13,600 yuan/ton respectively in 2019; Soybean oil and rapeseed oil are the most common edible oils, and the price per ton is relatively low. In 2019, they were 11,200 yuan and 10,100 yuan/ton respectively.

    With the improvement of people’s consumption level, the sales growth rate of relatively high-priced edible oil is ahead. From 2014 to 2019, the sales of olive oil, peanut oil and sunflower oil reached 9.9%, 5.9% and 8.3% respectively, which was higher than the industry average.

    20201003/ab01fb4bd06337d3f8ec817d6d9cd32b.png

    20201003/5b983031c2f469d0d64b25998b3b6f97.png

    Modern channels are dominant, especially high-priced oil.

    Small-package edible vegetable oil has both the attributes of hoarding goods and giving gifts, so modern channels such as supermarkets and supermarkets are the main sales channels.

    According to Nielsen statistics (quoted from the company’s prospectus), in 2019, the sales volume of small package edible vegetable oil in supermarkets and supermarkets accounted for 32.4% and 30.9% respectively.

    Especially for sunflower seed oil, rice oil, peanut oil, olive oil, etc., the total proportion of hypermarkets and supermarkets is over 70%.

    Judging from the trend in the past three years, the proportion of overall hypermarkets has declined, the proportion of supermarkets has increased, and other channels have changed relatively little.

    20201003/5f50b5b48ccad325f6c128276fb34e99.png

    20201003/760a2f170ca8f0b56ca0430121bc51bd.png

    In the future, the industry will grow steadily and the upgrading trend will continue.

    In the future, the domestic packaged edible oil industry is expected to maintain a steady growth trend. According to Euromonitor’s forecast, the domestic packaged edible oil sales CAGR will reach 3.7% from 2019 to 2024.

    With the increase of people’s income level and the demand for health and quality, the demand for high-end edible oils (such as sunflower oil and olive oil) with more balanced and rich nutrients will continue to increase in the future.

    According to Euromonitor’s forecast, from 2019 to 2024, the traditional sales of soybean oil and rapeseed oil will be only 1.5% and 2.7%, while the consumption of sunflower oil and olive oil will reach 4.1% and 5.4% respectively, and the proportion of high-end edible oil sales is expected to continue to increase.

    20201003/b61b72e2f0c37f416b758113e7571e8a.png

    Source: CITIC Securities, "The leading grain and oil company is Hengqiang, and its listing efforts have reached a new high"

    Don’t brag, Esther Yu is not "stupid and sweet" at all.

    This summer, costume dramas are broadcast together.

    "Splendid Stars" and "Aquilaria Resinatum as Chips" often occupy a half-screen hot search, which can be called a fairy fight.

    However, the sudden popularity of "Freesia" has caused a lot of heat.

    Dylan, the "Oriental Blue Sky", is gaining millions of people a day, and the studio is recruiting people from morning till night.

    Now I am at the airport, surrounded by people, and the treatment is comparable to the top flow.

    As the number one female, Esther Yu also won a lot.

    The little orchid she plays is a warm and virtuous goddess.

    After the role became popular, Esther Yu’s popularity on the road increased.

    There are more and more comments on her "simplicity" and "stupidity".

    However, Esther Yu, who wears several hats, can rise against the current situation that the film and television winter and The9 concert have been postponed again and again, and ascend to the throne of the heroine of the explosive drama.

    It’s not just about"silly white sweet"So simple.

    Esther Yu’s controversy has never stopped.

    The two labels that have been stuck on her for the longest time and the most firmly are "a rich girl" and "a refined woman".

    She didn’t shy away from being a rich girl.

    When she first debuted, she made a high-profile big-name bag full of beds, and together she could buy a suite.

    Before taking part in "Young You 2", she had a group of "Hepburn Wind" blockbusters.

    In my hand, it is a crystal chain bag of Chanel collector series.

    The value of this bag220 thousandAnd it is a global limited edition, and you can’t buy it if you have money.

    Carrying it on your back is about the same as putting it"I have money and strength."Write it on your face

    At the same time, big-name items often appear in Esther Yu’s photos.

    Many stars dare not wear a high-definition princess dress on the red carpet. She dances in it.

    Other stars bring their own makeup artists when filming, and she brings her own.109 sets of private servers.

    I also matched it myself and made a set of pictures.

    It saved a lot of money for the crew and was evaluated as "bringing money into the group" in disguise.

    Matching the "rich girl" is Esther Yu’s."Zuo".

    In "Grade One", she worried about Chen Jianbin and Loura.

    Sometimes pretending to be sick.

    Sometimes be childish.

    Sometimes you disobey the rules.

    At that time, Esther Yu’s performance made many people shout "I can’t stand it".

    The same is true of "Youth 2".

    In the first program, Esther Yu made his appearance into a play.

    Others come in honestly and sit down.

    She leaned out a head at the door and showed a surprised expression.

    Then slowly close the door, walk out with small steps, and say "very nervous" in a voice.

    The tutor present was shocked to be speechless, and KUN directly asked her:

    Did you act in a sitcom?

    In "Young You 2", Esther Yu’s "Wow" famous scene is out of the circle.

    Let her be selected by the traffic and become the fastest "Green You 2" player on the hot search.

    The rich girl and the expert "person" are just seemingly "fit together" in Esther Yu.

    In many people’s presupposition, Esther Yu is a rich second generation princess.

    She brings her own resources and is not bullied.

    As long as you sell cute and coquetry, you can get opportunities that others can’t dream of.

    But the fact is that Esther Yu is an "atypical rich girl" who can only have a princess’s life, but not a princess’s disease.

    Parents are very strict with Esther Yu.

    When studying in Singapore, other students rented the most ordinary house for 5,000 yuan, while Esther Yu was only allowed to live in a dormitory for 2,000 yuan.

    Roommates come from different countries and have completely different living habits.

    She is in the dormitory, picking up her hair and cleaning the toilet. No one treats her like a little princess.

    After returning to China, Esther Yu wanted to enter the entertainment industry and asked her parents for help, but they refused to give her any help.

    Even the free tickets for "Youth 2" were given to Qinyuan Fei by Esther Yu’s mother.

    Esther Yu can only proudly say: I am short of my mother’s two votes?

    Parents’ education helped Esther Yu develop a hard-working and tenacious character.

    According to the words of Loura:Esther Yu is the kind of person who looks like he doesn’t work hard and laughs, but he has already prepared himself carefully.

    She is very serious.

    Because she felt that the price difference between holidays and peacetime in the hotel was unreasonable, she insisted on asking the hotel for 9000 yuan back.

    There was no hot water for bathing in Mesu Island, and there was no chicken in the chicken fried noodles. She wrote a 1000-word complaint email, and as a result, she was exempted from the room charge.

    She is also optimistic.

    When she first started filming, Esther Yu thought she could play the No.2 girl, but she only got the role of No.18 maid.

    But she was so happy that she thought it was a good opportunity and carefully prepared for a long time.

    Later, Esther Yu also continued to play some "no such person" background board roles.

    But she always hinted to herself in front of the camera that "I am the number one woman."

    In the stage play Legend of the Sword and the Chivalrous Man, Esther Yu plays the servant girl Yinhua, who is too small to see her face on the poster.

    But she didn’t slack off at all, even if the spotlight shone on others, she tried her best to play her role.

    Later, more than one audience who saw the play said:Yinhua is the most brilliant role in this stage play.

    Esther Yu before so understand their "work":

    As for me, I am myself, capable of ups and downs and happy. We hit a wall here, so let’s show it somewhere else.

    Since she was a "social cow", she has mixed the entertainment circle into "Du Lala’s promotion".

    When there was no filming, Esther Yu searched for information everywhere, and added the director’s WeChat to introduce himself.

    She seized every opportunity to promote herself, and if the audition failed, she would continue to pull the director to watch her own xiaokaxiu.

    I will also write an 8000-word biography for a character who doesn’t have many shots, begging the director to read it.

    She knew in her heart that the director would only feel that there was something wrong with such a "spell" little actor.

    But she is confident and full of expectations for every opportunity, big and small.

    I told my parents countless times that I was going to be angry, and I was disappointed countless times.

    Fortunately, her heart is stronger.

    She said: I seem to be a person with a poor memory. I will soon forget the past and fall into a new round of expectations.

    Brainwash yourself every day, Esther Yu. You must be able to stand the wait and get through the time.

    After becoming popular, Esther Yu still "publicizes himself with his life".

    Journalists who interviewed Esther Yu rated her as "automatic interview".

    Before the reporter asked questions, she began to ask herself and answer questions, and talked about her feelings endlessly.

    Take pictures on the red carpet, and then the other female stars will leave.

    Esther Yu had to beg reporters to "take a good shot" before taking pictures.

    She said: "Today is the first time I have worn clothes that show off my arms this year. Dear journalists, if you have any breasts, please help me fix them."

    This time, Esther Yu filmed "Freesia Tactics", which was also the opportunity for her to play the original sound.

    At first, the crew was dissatisfied with Esther Yu’s voice and disagreed with her using the original sound.

    Esther Yu wanted to fight for another hand, stopped working for a month and a half, and found a teacher to learn dubbing.

    During this period, other actors joined the group to film in succession, and only Esther Yu was never heard from, and was called "not enterprising".

    It was not until the new play was broadcast that everyone knew the real situation.

    Esther Yu’s personality is indeed similar to that of the little orchid in Freesia.

    First, she is smart, thoughtful and bold.

    If you want to act, you have to overcome difficulties and act.

    If you want to join the women’s group, you will learn to dance in the crew overnight, regardless of opposition to be a player in "Youth 2".

    She can make these decisions not only because she is confident enough, but also because she is smart enough.

    She knows what she is suitable for and when to make a decisive attack and change the track.

    Therefore, she can always take the right step at the right time.

    Second, she has a strong heart and dares to fight and rush.

    Although Esther Yu is a rich second generation and a little princess, she is not melodramatic.

    There’s no chance to shoot, so you can have the cheek and lower your posture to fight for opportunities.

    At the critical moment, I can always bite my teeth and force myself.

    Therefore, she has developed a character of "confident but not conceited, brave and not reckless".

    This kind of personality, in any field, even if it is not good, it will not be too bad.

    Third, she cherishes feathers.

    After becoming famous from "Young You 2", Esther Yu has more resources.

    But instead of being led by the traffic, she took pictures carefully and slowly.

    The support of the work is the biggest reason for her to keep the flow.

    From Variations on Moonlight to Freesia, Esther Yu has been quietly absorbing nutrients behind his works.

    No matter how "innocent and lovely" Esther Yu’s personality is, we have to admit that she is not really "silly and sweet".

    In other words, people who can reach this position in the entertainment circle will not be "stupid and sweet".

    Because it is luck to be selected by the flow, but it is ability to stay in the flow pool without being screened out.

    The possibility of Esther Yu being "screened out" is getting smaller and smaller.

    She is irreplaceable to a certain extent.

    People magazine commented on Esther Yu before, saying that she is like aFresh, newborn and naked little monsters have plunged into the pool of entertainment circles.

    She is a very special existence.

    There are many princesses in the entertainment circle. When they suffer, they will cry and make people love.

    There are also many "vicious people" in the entertainment circle, and their personalities are straightforward, and their speeches are surprising.

    But Esther Yu is different.

    Esther Yu is a princess, yes, but she doesn’t live in a fairy tale.

    She is more like a princess who can defeat her stepmother, avoid giants and subdue little monsters by herself.

    You don’t need a prince to save you, and a small universe will naturally break out at the critical moment.

    Her body not only retains the undisguised, open and generous femininity, but also is "malicious" and smart enough, and she is not afraid of hitting the wall again and again.

    I saw a screenshot of the comment area on Weibo, which made me feel "this is Esther Yu".

    It was in 2016, and she just debuted, because her performance in "Grade One" was criticized by the whole network.

    But she just found a positive comment from a lot of comments that scolded her, and then said:Thank you.

    Since Esther Yu’s debut, the controversy that has stayed on her is nothing more than "whether she is lovable" and "whether her personality is true".

    But maybe, Esther Yu didn’t pay much attention to these comments.

    She doesn’t want to deliberately "please" others.

    Usually, she will stand up and express herself freely and tell everyone."Look, how good I am.".

    But behind this expression, there is another meaning:

    You think I’m bad, but it doesn’t matter.

    As long as I feel good, that’s enough.

    Thank you for reading it. Let’s light it up. Forward > and < Like > I wish we can all enjoy ourselves without deliberately pleasing others.

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