BEIJING—The number of industrial robots in use in China will more than double over the next two years—from 182,000 today to 428,000 by 2017—thus overtaking the robot populations of either North America or the EU’s five largest economies.
BEIJING—China is planning to invest $16 billion to build more charging facilities for electric vehicles. The country is trying to stem air pollution by boosting the use of electric vehicles.
BEIJING—China has imposed fine of $202 million on 12 Japanese car parts makers for allegedly price-fixing. The ruling came after Chinese regulators raided several foreign companies, including Mitsubishi Electric, Sumitomo Electric, Audi, BMW, Daimler and General Motors.
BEIJING—Apple Inc. supplier Pegatron Corp. began using facial recognition technology to screen applicants for its iPhone assembly plant, illustrating how some companies are guarding against the growing problem of underage workers making their way into factories in China.
STOCKHOLM—Volvo Cars is best known in the United States for safe cars built in Sweden. But CEO Hakan Samuelsson says he is looking at the pros and cons of bolstering the company’s U.S. product lineup with smaller vehicles made in China.
BEIJING—Electronics manufacturer Foxconn has admitted that student interns worked overtime and night shifts at a factory in northeast China in violation of company policy.
WASHINGTON—In another sign that America is becoming more competitive in manufacturing, the United States is now equal to Mexico in “attractiveness” as a source for manufacturing operations and is on track to achieve cost parity with manufactured imports from China by 2015. That’s according to new research released by AlixPartners.
