今日听力丨拼多多：中国电商“第三极”

第十一轮中美经贸高级别磋商当地时间5月10日在华盛顿落幕。中共中央政治局委员、国务院副总理、中美全面经济对话中方牵头人刘鹤在磋商后接受媒体采访时表示，在这一轮谈判中，双方进行了坦诚、建设性的交流，大家一致认为“双方须保持这种继续磋商的良好势头”；尽管目前存在一些阻力和困扰，但双方也同意未来在北京再见面，“继续推动我们的磋商”。“所以我认为，对目前的结果，我们是满意的”。“当然了，我们也有很多有一些不一样的地方”。

Beijing’s top trade negotiator said trade talks with Washington did not “break down,” even though negotiators could not reach a deal to prevent the U.S. from raising tariffs on Chinese imports.

The message was relayed by Chinese Vice Premier Liu He on Friday after the latest round of high-level bilateral talks concluded in Washington.

Fears of a failed deal mounted after the U.S. went ahead and increased the tariff rate on 200 billion dollars worth of Chinese products from 10 percent to 25 percent on Friday.

But Liu told reporters after the meetings, quote, “The negotiations didn’t break down. Both parties clarified our stances over a series of issues and we discussed the next steps to take.”

His remarks were echoed by Washington.

U.S. President Donald Trump wrote on Twitter Friday afternoon that the U.S. and China held “candid and constructive conversations on the status of the trade relationship between both countries. The relationship between President Xi and myself remains a very strong one.”

Officials from both sides have agreed to kick off another round of talks in Beijing soon, Liu said without elaborating.

电商巨头阿里巴巴集团要定点阻击崛起中的中国电商“第三极”拼多多。4月25日，拼多多“80后”创始人黄峥以上市后第一封致股东信的方式，踢爆了这场正在升级的暗战。黄峥在信中称，“其他平台”在品牌和物流两个电商重点业务上进行着“夸张”的二选一竞争。众所周知，他所说的“其他平台”就是阿里巴巴。

This time last year, few would have predicted that e-commerce upstart Pinduoduo would become a force serious enough to warrant Alibaba’s attention.

But the Shanghai-based newcomer felt Alibaba was getting too big for its boots and was applying too stringent rules on merchants, forcing them to choose a single platform for selling or promoting their goods.

Pinduoduo's founder and CEO said last month, quote, “Attempts to establish or prolong any monopolistic control are both wasteful and destructive.”

Clashes between Alibaba and Pinduoduo came into focus in early April when a renowned online clothing brand publicly criticized Pinduoduo for selling counterfeit products.

Pinduoduo responded by saying that the brand made the accusation under pressure from Alibaba, which it said forces merchants to take sides.

While Alibaba began watching Pinduoduo closely back in 2016, a person close to Alibaba said, Alibaba’s management thought the Chinese online retail space was going through changes that offered more opportunities for higher-end retailers like Alibaba’s Hema supermarket, rather than for discounters like Pinduoduo.

The person said, “But now Pinduoduo has grown to a size similar with Taobao, hile Hema opens only 50 stores each year.”

While Alibaba and JD.com over the years have shifted focus to higher-end products and consumers, Pinduoduo powered its rise by selling low-cost products to budget shoppers, specially rural consumers who have long been overlooked by mainstream platforms.

中国汽车市场遭遇“倒春寒”，5月10日，全国乘用车信息联席会发布数据，4月，中国乘用车销量同比下跌16.6%，相比前三个月，降幅进一步扩大。主要汽车企业公布的销量数据均报下跌。上汽集团4月销量同比下滑16.8%，吉利汽车同期销量下跌19%。

China’s auto sector extended last year’s declines in the first four months this year, continuing to pour cold water on expectations for the industry.

From January to April, total sales of passenger vehicles fell nearly 12 percent to 6.6 million units.

April saw a particularly pronounced drop of 17 percent year-on-year, with a paltry 1.5 million units sold.

The overall market slump is being felt all the way up.

Sales for Chongqing Changan Automobile — one of China’s “Big Four” carmakers —fell 35 percent in the same period.

Last year was a watershed moment for China’s auto market, when it posted its first annual decline in 28 years.

中央第三生态环境保护督察组于5月10日向山东省委、省政府进行“回头看”督察意见反馈。督察组指出，山东一些地方和部门没有把生态环境保护工作作为一项重要的政治任务来抓，没有把中央环境保护督察整改的责任抓在手上、扛在肩上，站位不高、整改不实。省发改委只摊派任务、汇总数据，对地市减煤措施监督检查不力，工作流于形式。烟台、潍坊等地市没有落实督察整改要求，继续在海域范围内违法违规办理用地手续。

Environmental officials are returning to problematic areas to check if violations have been “rectified,” and the results for Shandong province, at least, are not good.

In 2017, in a first round of inspections, a number of chemical engineering projects in Shandong were found to be in violation of regulations and were required to immediately suspend production.

So-called “look back” inspections took place last November, and the results have just been released.

Many of the projects that were initially found to be in violation had indeed been punished, but the issues were not resolved, or once the rectification processes began, they swerved off course or became less effective.

公安部原党委委员、副部长，中国海警局原局长孟宏伟涉嫌受贿一案，由国家监察委员会调查终结，经最高人民检察院指定，由天津市人民检察院第一分院审查起诉。近日，天津市人民检察院第一分院已向天津市第一中级人民法院提起公诉。

Prosecutors have formally filed charges against former Interpol president Meng Hongwei at a Tianjin court for allegedly taking advantage of his official positions to acquire a “huge amount” of bribes.

The prosecutors said they have informed Meng about his rights, as well as listened to Meng and his lawyer’s opinions.

In April, the top prosecutor called for Meng’s arrest on suspicion of bribery.

市场监管总局5月10日就“西安奔驰漏油事件”约谈奔驰并提出具体整改要求。市场监管总局官网发布上述信息。该局称，将会同相关部门对汽车销售行业开展专项整治。

China’s market regulator has ordered Mercedes-Benz to fix flaws in its service.

The German luxury carmaker came under the spotlight after a customer in the western Chinese city of Xi’an complained in a viral video last month that a dealership charged her a surprise “financial service fee” of 15-thousand yuan, equivalent to more than 2,200 dollars.

The State Administration for Market Regulation said in a statement on Friday, charging a customer an extra financial service fee violates the law, and auto companies should provide proper after-sales service, including exchange and refund.