An article in the publication 'Markets Heard on the Street' (August 28) said that on August 24
internet commerce firm Pinduoduo reported its first quarterly profit since listing in 2018. It also
said it would donate it all—$374 million—to support agriculture and rural areas, and would do the
same with any future profit up to a total of 10 billion yuan. Its shares rose 22% that day. On Aug.
18, Tencent pledged to contribute 50 billion yuan, the equivalent of $7.73 billion, to low-income
groups, basic healthcare, and education—on top of a separate 50 billion yuan charitable pledge in
April. Meituan founder Wang Xing donated 10% of his stake in the food-delivery company to his
philanthropic foundation in June. The publication added that the weak recovery in services—where
most college students head after graduation—has also further exacerbated already high youth
joblessness: Surveyed unemployment among the 16 to 24 set, which averaged 11% in 2018 and
2019, has since then averaged 14%.
(Comment: In a speech on August 17 aimed at China's big business, Chinese President Xi Jinping
spoke on “common prosperity” and called for rationally “adjusting” excessive incomes and for
high-income individuals and companies to contribute more to society. He also called for more
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aggressive measures to expand the middle class and the social safety net, including health and
elderly care.)
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