Will consumers pay more because of double tariffs from China due to the trade war? Prof. Heiwai Tang, Associate Dean of HKU Business School and Director of the Asia Global Institute, offered his perspective on how the trade war has placed foreign companies in China at the centre of a double-tariff squeeze. He was included in a Financial Times article on the broader implications for businesses and economies worldwide.

After seven years of negotiations, the world’s largest free trade agreement—the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)—officially took effect on January 1, 2022. Member countries account for nearly 30% of the world’s population and over one-third of global GDP. Amid the ongoing fragmentation of the global economy, RCEP is viewed with high expectations. This agreement brings together diverse countries in the Asia-Pacific region with varying scales and systems, showcasing the potential and resilience of regional inclusive cooperation. Three years into its implementation, what impact has RCEP had on the trade landscape of the Asia-Pacific region? How will it reshape the trading

In April 2025, global financial markets experienced an unprecedented credit crisis, with the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury skyrocketing to 4.5%, marking the largest weekly increase since 2001. What are the reasons behind this crisis? Is the tariff policy of the Trump administration a catalyst for market turmoil? Will the U.S. Treasury market successfully navigate through this crisis?

With the rapid development of artificial intelligence technology, some borrowers may use it to enhance their credit data in order to obtain loan approvals. Instead of approving borrowers through extensive data collection from multiple sources, lenders might consider self-imposing limits to focus on improving the quality of the data collected while also increasing loan profits.

When it comes to the trendiest collectible today, it’s not Chanel or Taylor Swift — it’s Labubu, the sharp-eared, wide-eyed character with its signature nine fangs! According to Dr. Tingting Fan, Principal Lecturer in Marketing at HKU Business School, the rise of Labubu under Pop Mart was no coincidence. It was driven by the brand’s unique IP strategy — collaborating with designers worldwide to create diverse character series, supported by an integrated business model covering design, production, and marketing, all tailored to young consumers’ tastes. “Pop Mart has excelled in using data analytics to understand the preferences and trends of

On “Liberation Day”, US President Donald Trump announced a sweeping plan to impose reciprocal tariffs—taxes that exceeded market expectations and triggered immediate shocks across financial markets. According to Yale’s Budget Lab, these tariffs could raise short-term inflation in the US by 2.3%, reduce household spending by an average of US$3,800, and lower the country’s 2025 GDP growth rate by 0.9%. Dr Y.F. Luk, Honorary Associate Professor at HKU Business School, noted that for the Trump administration, tariffs served both as a policy tool and a political signal. While they could generate government revenue, they were unlikely to replace major taxes.

As millions worldwide are addicted to video games, governments and organizations are actively taking measures to curb this trend. Our research suggests that dynamic pricing can help solve the problem of gaming addiction.

After President Donald Trump began his second term, he swiftly escalated the trade war by imposing a 25% import tariff on steel and aluminium products, along with ‘reciprocal tariffs.’ Dr. Jing Li, Deputy Program Director of International Business and Global Management at HKU Business School, said although Trump aimed to attract manufacturing back to the United States, history—such as the 1930 Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act—showed excessive protectionism often backfired, raising import prices, straining supply chains, and increasing uncertainty for businesses and consumers.