Why are Pinduoduo and Alibaba selling fruits?

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Harry Styles’ Watermelon Sugar means nothing in China because in the middle kingdom, they’re high on cherries instead. In fact, the country imported US$1.4 billion worth of cherries last year. For context, this amount is bigger than Indonesia’s fruit imports across all categories in 2019, which totaled up to US$1.24 billion.

This cherry frenzy in China reflects a trend: Chinese consumers value imported produce and they are down to pay for it. Chinese tech giants have noticed this and are now banking on it.

Today we look at:

• How fresh produce has become the new ecommerce battleground in China
• Vietnamese podcast startup Waves ceasing operations
• Other newsy highlights, such as the world’s largest Asia-focused fund and Bukalapak’s new fintech service

Ecommerce and fresh fruits make a great pear?

More than 23% – that’s how much China’s fruit imports grew in 2019. The rising middle class in the country is one factor for this, as consumers now have more money to spend. But the expansion of fresh produce ecommerce is also another reason.

• The king of fresh produce: Pinduoduo sells a ton of agricultural products. In 2019, the company made around US$20 billion in produce sales alone. It has also been encouraging overseas produce growers to set up microshops on its platform.
• Jumping on the bandwagon: Other Chinese ecommerce players like JD.com and Alibaba have also stepped up their game, with the former announcing plans to invest about US$966 million in Thailand to boost its fresh produce revenue.
• The cream of the crop: Selling fresh produce online has become a lot more economical. The farm-to-consumer model, which Pinduoduo popularized in China, cuts out intermediaries and connects growers directly with consumers, reducing the time and cost of transporting fresh produce across the country.

Read more: Chinese tech giants are hungry for Southeast Asia’s fruits

Podcast startup presses stop

It’s the end of the road for Waves, a Vietnamese audio and podcast startup: Co-founder Kevin Gao has confirmed that the company has ceased operations and returned money to investors.

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