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Coming up on today’s program

Toy maker Pop Mart posts over 360% rise in profit in H1 as Guochao trend accelerates global expansion;

Xiaomi reports 75% leap in Q2 profit as EV business gains momentum.

Here’s what you need to know about China in the past 24 hours

Shares in Chinese toymaker Pop Mart reversed course to rise Wednesday, a day after the company posted a near-400% surge in net profit, driven by booming global demand for its LABUBU dolls.

Pop Mart jumped 12.5 percent today in Hong Kong to close at HKD316, with a market cap surpassing HKD400 billion, both setting new highs. Shares in Pop Mart have risen more than 200 percent in the last year, resulting in a market valuation of HKD424.4 and making the company worth more than Barbie-maker Mattel, Nerf-seller Hasbro, and Hello Kitty-owner Sanrio combined.

The LABUBU-maker on Monday released its financial results for the first half of 2025, reporting a 362.8 percent jump in net profit, reflecting the rise of China's Guochao trend and its intellectual property incubation capacity.

Adjusted net profit reached CNY4.71 billion, while revenue stood at CNY13.88 billion, up 204.4 percent year-on-year, extending the strong momentum from the previous two quarters.

Revenue from China stood at CNY8.28 billion, up 135.2 percent; Asia-Pacific (excluding China) revenue was CNY2.85 billion, rising 257.8 percent; revenue from the Americas surged to CNY2.26 billion, up 1,142.3 percent; and revenue from Europe and other regions rose 729.2 percent to CNY480 million.

The company, best known for creating the global sensation LABUBU, has also seen explosive sales growth across other in-house products with intellectual property rights. In the first half of 2025, 13 artist IPs each generated more than 100 million yuan in revenue.

Thanks to its distinctive appeal and unique style, LABUBU, a member of The Monsters family, with a revenue topping CNY4.8 billion, was one of the world's most popular IPs in the first half of 2025.

Pop Mart founder and CEO Wang Ning said Wednesday that the firm was well-positioned to hit its 2025 revenue target of CNY20 billion, adding that reaching CNY30 billion this year “should also be quite easy.” Pop Mart also said it will roll out a miniature LABUBU this week that can be clipped onto phones.

As one of the leading representatives of China's rising pop toy industry, Pop Mart established four regional headquarters in April for the first time, underscoring its deepening globalization strategy. The company attributed its growing market presence to continuous improvements in operational effectiveness and business efficiency in China.

In the first half of 2025, Pop Mart opened its first stores in landmark locations such as Cambridge in the UK and Bali in Indonesia, continuing its push into iconic global destinations.

Pop Mart will expand into markets including the Middle East, South Asia, Central and South America, and Russia, Co-Chief Operating Officer Justin Moon said on today’s earnings conference call.

As of June 30, the company was operating 571 stores across 18 countries, including 40 new physical outlets and 105 new Robo Shops, according the company.

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