Class 5 Reflection

In today’s session, I presented on China Current Events. My part was specifically about the corporations we are visiting in China. Knowing that we will be visiting some of our corporate sponsors in China, it is also very important to know current news relating to each of the companies. In Abbott China, a new $30 billion Research and Development facility has been opened. In this facility, Abbott is researching to find a diagnosis or remedy for diseases specifically within Chinese people. BP just pulled out of China’s shale gas drilling because of how difficult exploration drilling had become. Overall, the gas consumption has constantly been growing and has increased by 15%. Boeing in China is proving to be a leader in the aerospace industry in safety after landing the first Boeing 737 Max safely by blocking the computer intervention and letting the pilot manually fly. Other sponsors such as Caterpillar and John Deere have been impacted negatively because of the slowing Chinese economy in relation to international trade wars. Caterpillar is mostly focused on construction around the surrounding countries for business, and John Deere is relying on the soybean productions sourced by Brazil rather than the US. DiDi, one of China’s most valuable startups, will be laying off 15% of their workforce due to increased spending in driver subsidies and to hire employees in safety and technology management. While these are just highlights about each of the companies, it is really important to know a little bit about the companies before you go and visit them because you want to ask thoughtful questions.