China Digital Digest Weekly: Exploring the Chinese Digital Landscape

Hi folks, we are back with our weekly edition of China’s Digital Digest, wherein we bring you weekly updates on China’s digital space. The report takes a quick glance at China’s complex and rapidly evolving social media landscape by providing updates on the latest happenings across the social media industry. Here are the major highlights of the report.

1. 80% of Mainland Chinese Shoppers Bought Hong Kong Products Online: Poll

https://www.marketing-interactive.com/survey-nearly-80-of-mainlanders-purchase-hk-products-online

Nearly 80 percent of mainland Chinese consumers polled have said they shopped online for Hong Kong products, according to findings by the statutory trade body, which called for the city’s retailers to step up live streaming and influencer marketing.

The Hong Kong Trade Development Council said that its findings were based on a survey of 2,200 middle-to-high-income consumers from various mainland cities during the second and third quarters of 2024. The poll showed that 78 percent of consumers across the border bought products from the city online in the past year, and that they were frequent shoppers, averaging 9.4 purchases per month, particularly those in tier one and the nine mainland cities in the Greater Bay Area.

2. Chinese Milk Brand Yue Fresh Names Jay Chou as Ambassador

https://daoinsights.com/news/chinese-milk-brand-yue-fresh-names-jay-chou-as-ambassador/

High-end milk brand Yue Fresh (悦鲜活, also known as Freshjoy) has named Jay Chou as its latest brand ambassador, unveiling a special commercial to celebrate the collaboration.

In the ad, the singer-songwriter performs an arrangement of his 2003 classic “Sunny Day” (晴天) on a grand piano, weaving in a narration about the importance of freshness—both in life and in music. For the collaboration, the dairy brand launched a collection of merchandise on 8 August, including stickers, collectable cards and a tote bag.

3. Free Drinks Fuel Delivery Wars Between Alibaba and Meituan

https://www.malaymail.com/news/money/2025/08/09/sip-happens-chinas-delivery-giants-stir-up-a-free-drinks-frenzy-in-no-holds-barred-price-war/187020

China’s food delivery market is heating up as Alibaba and Meituan go head-to-head with competing free drink promotions to lure customers. The rivalry has triggered a spike in orders, impacting delivery workers and merchants nationwide.

Alibaba kicked off the campaign with daily vouchers worth 18.80 yuan (around RM11) before ramping it up to one million free milk teas per day. Meituan quickly countered with its own giveaway—one million free cups of milk tea spread over a week. Both framed their offers around “the first cup of milk tea in autumn,” a viral seasonal meme in China marking the start of autumn.

4. JD.Com Quarterly Sales Beat Expectations But Food Delivery Foray Slices Profit

https://www.morningstar.com/news/dow-jones/202508144048/jdcoms-profit-halves-amid-food-delivery-war

JD.com’s revenue grew a faster-than-anticipated 22 percent in the June quarter, benefiting from government-directed consumer subsidies as well as an aggressive drive into new arenas such as food delivery.

The Beijing-based company reported sales of 356.7 billion yuan (US$49.7 billion) for the quarter ended June 30, about 6 percent above projections. Net income halved to 6.2 billion yuan, though that fall was better than feared. Margins dwindled to 1.7 percent, reflecting the cost of that push into China’s food delivery market.

Wrapping Up

The vast and diverse nature of the Chinese Social Media space makes it incredibly challenging to keep a tab on the rapid developments taking place. However, China’s Digital Digest brings you all the latest updates from there to keep you abreast of all the evolving trends.

To delve deeper into the findings of our latest report, click here.