Chinese CEOs are less confident about the revenue outlook over the next 12 months as tough market competition, speed of technology changes and shifts in consumer behaviors pose challenges to corporate earnings, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) said. The China report of PwC’s Global CEO survey found 25% of the 145 respondents expressed confidence in their company’s revenue growth over the next 12 months – 11 percentage points lower than last year. 90% said new entrants to the market, especially from the internet sectors, posed a challenge that could affect their organizations’ growth prospects. Fast changes in technology and consumer behavior were the other two big challenges. The China survey result was slightly lower than the global survey that found 27% of the 1,400 CEOs expressed confidence over earnings. Over a longer term, 34% of Chinese business leaders said they were confident about the growth prospects over the next three years, believing that the major economic transformation China was undergoing would bring sustainable growth. The drop in confidence of chief executives is the latest sign that Chinese businesses are preparing for a tough time this year. Fears are growing about more job cuts and bankruptcies as companies fall victim to a sluggish global market and a lackluster domestic economy.

Chinese clothing maker Dalian Dayang Trands Co has agreed to buy Alibaba-backed courier company YTO Express for CNY17.5 billion through an asset swap and share issue, resulting in a backdoor listing on the Shanghai bourse for the courier company. The asset swap will involve Dayang Trands transferring its assets to YTO Express’ shareholders. As a result of the transaction, the shareholders will ultimately own Dayang Trands. China’s mostly privately held express delivery firms are eying mergers and listings to help cope with cut-throat competition and growing investment demands amid the country’s e-commerce boom, led by Alibaba Group. The express delivery sector grew around 50% each year between 2010 and 2014, and handled 14 billion parcels last year, data from the State Post Bureau showed. In May last year, Alibaba Group and Yunfeng Capital, a fund backed by Alibaba’s Founder Jack Ma, announced a strategic investment in YTO Express. In December, Chinese delivery firm Shentong (STO) Express closed a CNY16.9 billion reverse takeover deal with a Shenzhen-traded valve maker, a fast track way of becoming the first major express parcel service to be publicly listed, the Shanghai Daily reports.

According to new rules, Shanghai families with one property will have to pay a minimum 50% down payment for a second home, with the down payment raised to 70% if the house is either above 140 square meters or priced above CNY4.5 million located within the inner ring. The home-buying barrier is even higher for families with no permanent residency, because they are required to pay tax for at least five years in a row before buying a property in the city. The new policy won’t impact first-home buyers and long-time non-local residents.

Chinese brands, especially those from the technology sector, continue to earn an increasing proportion of their revenue from overseas, according to the newly released 2016 BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Chinese Brands list. The top three brands with the greatest proportion of revenue from overseas business include Lenovo Group, with 68% of its revenue from international business, followed by Huawei Technologies, a newcomer to the ranking with 62%, and ZTE Corp with half of its revenue from business overseas. The expansion of international business is especially important as the growth of the domestic economy slows and Chinese companies attempt to raise awareness of Chinese brands. They are increasingly gaining more revenue and market share not only in emerging markets but also from developed markets. According to the survey, 15 of the top 20 Chinese brands in terms of overseas revenue come mainly from three categories, including six from home appliances, five from airlines and four from technology. Half of the top 20 brands are market-driven and half are state-owned enterprises (SOEs), mostly in the oil, gas and banking sectors, the China Daily reports.

From mobile app controlled washing machines, to refrigerators with touch screens and household robots, China’s smart home appliances will see steady growth, analysts say. Growth opportunities in the industry will be driven by demand from tech-savvy Chinese consumers who embrace smart home technology to a greater extent than their global counterparts, according to Germany-based market researcher GfK. In its survey, more than 75% of people interviewed in China said that smart home technology will impact their lives in the next few years, compared to the global average of just over 50%. “This makes China one of the best informed markets on smart home technology, giving retailers and suppliers a strong start,” said GfK in a report based on data and interviews from 1,000 respondents in seven countries. The survey results put smart home technology on par with mobile payments and wearable tech as trends that have played a key role in pushing forward innovative technology in China. China’s home appliance sales grew 2% to CNY1.4 billion in 2015. GfK analysts predict that the growth rate will double to 4% this year as Chinese consumers become more receptive to innovative technology.