American beverage and snacks producer PepsiCo has agreed to buy a 25.8% stake in Natural Food International, China’s second-largest health food producer, for HKD1.02 billion, becoming the company’s second-largest shareholder. Natural Food said it was PepsiCo’s “first strategic investment in China”. Gui Changqing, Chairman of Natural Food, said in a statement that the tie-up with PepsiCo would help the company to grow its consumer base.

“I believe the tie-up will lead to a multidimensional partnership between Natural Food and PepsiCo that will encompass brand building, product development, distribution and sales,” said Gui. “The partnership will eventually increase our company’s market share and promote our brand awareness.” Shares of Natural Food surged as much as 35% before ending up 14% after the news became public. Ram Krishnan, Chief Executive of PepsiCo’s Greater China region, pledged to work with Natural Food to create “added value” in the areas of production, logistics and distribution, according to a statement from Natural Food. The company is China’s second-largest healthy food processor in terms of sales, trailing Nanfang Black Sesame, according to research firm Frost & Sullivan.

Founded in 2006, Shenzhen-based Natural Food, through its subsidiaries, processes and distributes natural food products made of grains, beans, nuts and dried fruits. Last year the company recorded sales of CNY1.82 billion, up 15.4% from 2017. Net profit for the year rose 13% to CNY213 million. China’s health food industry was estimated to grow 13% to CNY116.5 billion in 2018, according to business advisory firm ASKCI Consulting. American investors channelled USD1.63 billion into Chinese companies in the first six months of this year, a drop of 16.4% from a year ago, according to China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

The second China International Import Expo (CIIE), to be held at the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai from November 5 to 10, will have more participants and an expanded exhibition area at 300,000 square meters, 30,000 sq m larger than last year’s event. So far, 61 countries have confirmed their participation in a 30,000 sq m national pavilions area, including 15 honorary guest countries that include France and Italy, Vice Minister of Commerce Wang Bingnan said at a press conference to mark the start of the 100-day countdown. More than 3,000 enterprises from over 150 countries and regions have confirmed they will take part.

More than 250 of them are Global Fortune 500 companies and leaders in various industries. There will be seven exhibition areas focusing on five major fields — equipment, everyday items, food, health care and services. The seven sections will be sci-tech life, automobiles, equipment, medical equipment and health care products, quality of life, trade in services, and food and agricultural products. First-time exhibitors will include GlaxoSmithKline and Siemens, showing their latest products for the Chinese market.

Last year, more than 170 American companies took up more than 36,000 sq m of exhibition space, according to Ren Hongbin, Assistant Minister of Commerce and Deputy Director of the CIIE’s organizing Committee. This year there will be even more U.S. companies and a 35% increase in their exhibition space, as reported by the Shanghai Daily.

“The purpose of holding the CIIE is not simply to increase imports, but to focus more on optimizing the import structure and giving companies access to more advanced technologies and ideas, while maintaining stable growth in exports,” said Vice Minister of Commerce Wang Bingnan.

China is at the forefront of the financial technology or fintech industry, and offers great opportunities for fintech talents, driven by the rising demand for experienced financial services and technology professionals, industry experts said. Fintech professionals who possess both technical expertise as well as an understanding of finance will be highly sought after, according to Hays, a global professional recruiting group. “In China there are opportunities for skilled candidates across a wide range of fintech businesses, including banking, insurance, wealth management and payment services,” said Simon Lance, Managing Director of Hays China, adding the industry risks losing valuable momentum given the shortage of skills and the overwhelming demand for experienced professionals.

According to Hays, large-scale commercial banks are accelerating the establishment of fintech subsidiaries across the country. It said the roles in demand in the banking sector include data security, data scientists, user experience and user interface engineers, and full stack developers for mobile and web applications. Global fintech funding rose to USD111.8 billion in 2018, up 120% from USD50.8 billion in 2017, fueled by mega mergers and acquisitions and buyout deals, according to KPMG. “China is at the cutting edge of the fintech industry and will provide a robust and exciting career for many years to come,” Lance said.

There is high demand from fintech startups for high-caliber talents with expertise in digital payment systems, digital asset management, blockchain and cryptocurrency, said the 2019 Hays Asia Salary Guide. Hays expected qualified fintech candidates to command higher salaries in 2019. Yang Rong, Banking Analyst with China Securities, said that domestic internet fintech enterprises are riding a boom, due to their huge number of active users and advantages in rich application scenarios, the China Daily reports.

Meanwhile, the first accelerator for corporate property technology, or proptech, was launched in China to provide market players with innovative solutions so that property firms can leverage new technologies to expand their business. The accelerator program, known as UrbanLab, was launched by JLL, Swire Properties and Ping An Urban Tech. UrbanLab is the first corporate accelerator program in China that focuses on property technology. Proptech refers to a wide spectrum of digital and technological trends in the real estate industry such as innovative products, digital business models, smart buildings, and smart cities.

The latest Fortune Global 500 list not only shows that Chinese firms outnumber counterparts from the United States on the list, but also demonstrates how China’s private sector is reshaping the global business landscape. Chinese companies accounted for 129 of the world’s 500 largest corporations by revenue, exceeding the U.S. at 121, for the first time since the rankings began in 1990. Among the Top 10 newcomers on the Fortune Global 500 are the China Development Bank (67); CRRC Group (359); Tsingshan Holding Group (361); Jinchuan Group (369); Gree Electric Appliances (414), Anhui Conch Group (441); and Huaxia Life Insurance (442).

China was also the top performer in terms of newcomers and companies with the largest leaps in rankings. Most Chinese enterprises on last year’s list had higher rankings this year. “China’s performance indicates that the torrents of merger and acquisition activities aiming to forge globally influential conglomerates are starting to pay off,” said Jiang Qingyun, Business Professor at Fudan University’s School of Management. China led in the number of metal, construction, automotive and real estate companies. However, healthcare and medical companies in the U.S. outnumbered Chinese counterparts on the list.

Chinese technology companies are making strides. Among the 10 companies registering the biggest jumps, six came from China, including Alibaba Group which was up 118 spots to 182, Tencent, which moved up 94 places to 237, and Huawei, up to 61 from 72 last year. The combined revenue of Chinese companies accounted for 25.6% of the Fortune Global 500 list’s total, behind the U.S. at 28.8%. The average profit of the 119 Chinese companies on this year’s list stood at USD3.5 billion, lower than the list’s average of USD4.3 billion. But it also improved from USD3.1 billion for the 111 Chinese companies on last year’s list. Chinese companies are relatively smaller in profitability but they are growing at a much faster pace, the China Daily reports.

China climbed from the 17th to 14th position in the world for economic innovation in a new list of 129 nations. The Global Innovation Index 2019 released by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), one of its co-sponsors, says “innovation is blossoming around the world” despite an economic slowdown and high economic uncertainty. According to the report, China’s continuing rise firmly establishes the country “in the group of leading innovative nations.” “China’s innovation strengths become evident in numerous areas: it maintains top ranks in patents by origin, industrial designs, and trademarks by origin as well as high-tech net exports and creative goods exports,” the report said.

Switzerland remains No 1 – a position it has held since 2011 – followed by Sweden, the United States, the Netherlands and Britain. The United States fell from fourth place in the 2017 rankings to sixth in 2018. South Korea edged closer to the top 10 at No 11, up from No 12. Now in its 12th edition, the index ranks 129 economies based on 80 indicators, from traditional measurements like research and development (R&D) investments and international patent and trademark applications, to newer indicators including mobile phone app creation and high-tech exports. When comparing levels of innovation to economic development, the report said India, Vietnam, Kenya and Moldova “stand out for outperforming on innovation relative to GDP for the ninth consecutive year – a record.”

The index is sponsored by the WIPO, Cornell University’s SC Johnson College of Business and the business school INSEAD.