In May 2024, US President Joe Biden’s administration introduced tariffs on electric vehicles (EVs) imported from China to the United States. The policy was a response to the growing threat of low-cost Chinese EVs flooding the US market, which, while having the potential to drive EV prices down, was also seen as a threat to the competitiveness of American auto manufacturers. The EV tariffs represented a significant turning point in international trade .....more

In July 2025, Faro Hsia, managing director of overseas markets at Hangzhou Jiandan Youwei Co. Ltd. (UWANT), confronted weak US traction for a Chinese digital-native cleaning-appliance brand based in Suzhou, China, that thrived in China via livestreaming and e-commerce. Amazon Inc. (Amazon) launches and ByteDance Ltd. (TikTok) campaigns lifted early sales of its vacuum cleaners but failed to build awareness or trust, while rivals such as Dyson Holdings .....more

This technical note addresses the challenges that arise when operational databases evolve without disciplined structural oversight. As data volumes grow and requirements change, what were initially simple table designs can accumulate redundancy and inconsistencies that undermine data integrity, maintainability, and performance. The note situates database normalization as a response to these conditions, highlighting common anomalies that emerge in .....more

In 2017, Domino’s Pizza Inc. overtook Pizza Hut LLC (Pizza Hut) as the industry leader in the pizza category. In response, Pizza Hut launched a strategy that centred on transitioning the pizza chain in the US away from dine-in and towards takeout and delivery and incorporating nostalgia in its US operations through Pizza Hut Classic restaurants. Should Pizza Hut chief executive officer Aaron Powell incorporate a stronger element of nostalgia in the .....more

Pop Mart International Group Limited was a Chinese toy company that specialized in selling character-based and designer toys, often sold as blind-box collectibles. Founded in 2010 by Wang Ning, the company grew both at home in Beijing and abroad. By 2025, Pop Mart had grown to nearly 500 physical stores and more than 2,000 Roboshop vending machines, covering more than 40 countries or regions including its home base of Mainland China. With a solid .....more

In January 2021, the Japanese fashion company Uniqlo was accused of using forced labour in its supply chains. Various news reports had been claiming that Uyghur Muslims were being detained and forced to work on cotton farms, production factories, and processing facilities in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. The United States Customs and Border Protection claimed that Uniqlo was not able to fully demonstrate that its products and inputs were .....more

US-based Chinese Children Adoption International (CCAI), founded in 1992, was the world's largest agency dedicated to providing adoption services to abandoned children living in Chinese social welfare institutions. By 2017, CCAI had found permanent homes in the United States for more than 12,000 orphaned children and children with disabilities. However, the economic, social, legal, and political environments in China were changing. The number .....more

The Scotts Miracle-Gro company is the world's largest marketer of branded consumer lawn and garden products, with a full range of products for professional horticulture as well. Headquartered in Marysville, Ohio, the company is a market leader in a number of consumer lawn and garden and professional horticultural products. The case describes a series of decisions regarding the ownership and organization of the assets used to manufacture fertilizer .....more