Print

Mail

wiki links

World Business Quick Take

■ Cosmetics
China becomes No. 8
China has become the world's eighth-largest and Asia's second-biggest cosmetics market as disposable incomes jump in an increasingly wealthy society, state press reported yesterday. Beauty products worth about 46 billion yuan (US$5.5 billion) were sold in the world's most populous country last year, the Shanghai Daily reported, citing figures from the China Association of Fragrance, Flavor and Cosmetics Industry. "However, considering China's huge population, the market is far less tapped compared with Japan and other European countries," said association chairman Zhang Dianyi. "The China market has been growing by about 25 percent every year over the past 10 years and the trend is going to continue." More than 3,000 companies currently sell a massive range of cosmetics in China, he added. The US is the world's biggest beauty market, followed by Japan.

■ Antitrust
Microsoft to pay millions
Microsoft Corp will provide vouchers of up to US$89 million for North Carolina consumers to settle that state's class-action antitrust lawsuit against the software company. Microsoft announced the settlement last month, but had not disclosed its details until Thursday. North Carolina's class-action lawsuit, and others filed by additional states on behalf of consumers, alleged that Microsoft violated the states' antitrust and unfair competition laws. The settlement, approved last week by the North Carolina Business Court, covers North Carolina residents who bought Microsoft's Windows operating system, Office business software or its spreadsheet or word processing software from Dec. 9, 1995, to Dec. 31 last year.

This story has been viewed 1469 times.