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I’ve stumbled across plenty of Instagram reels in the last few weeks where Trump voters are asked to explain exactly what trade tariffs are.
While content exposing these folks’ knowledge gaps is getting pretty old by now, they are still illuminating quick watches. It seems apparent that the US President’s favorite topic these days is badly understood by his voter base – and the consequences of what he’s doing even less so.
Folks in the ecommerce industry can ill afford to be uninformed about the tariffs that Trump loves to slap on goods, as they’re causing huge amounts of change across the sector. Case in point: Una Brands.
The Singapore-based ecommerce roll-up firm’s 2023 financials reveal a solid year in a tough sector, but the impact of tariffs could make for a tougher 2025 and beyond.
Today we look at:
- Una Brands tackling slowing growth, tariffs
- Indian cloud storage firm Lucidity raising US$21 million
- Other newsy highlights such as OpenAI planning to roll out its next generative AI model and battery firm CATL expanding into robotics.
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Roll up, roll up for Una Brands’ financials
Image credit: Timmy Loen
The ecommerce aggregator industry has struggled in recent years, but Una Brands is bucking the trend – at least partly.
The Singapore-based firm enjoyed a solid 2023, but choppier waters may be ahead.
- On the up: Una Brands recorded year-on-year revenue growth of 4.8% in 2023, though losses before taxes rose just slightly less. The company also says that it has achieved EBITDA profitability in the fourth quarter of 2023.
- Changing gears: While Una Brands did grow its revenue from 2022 to 2023, it was a distinct slowdown from the 9x increase between 2021 and 2022. The firm tells Tech in Asia that this was due a shift in focus toward profitability and sustainable growth.
- Trump looms: The wider ecommerce sector faces an unpredictable 2025, with tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump on imports of items from China and elsewhere a big concern. Una Brands believes that its “strong local China team” gives it a competitive edge in this context, as does its expertise in managing supply chains.
Read more: Una Brands confronts slowing growth in 2023 as tariff clouds loom
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