Bottom line: Xiaomi's stock is probably oversold at current levels due to selling at the end of a lockup period, but will remain an underpeformer for at least the next 1-2 years until it can prove its strategy of moving up-market has legs.

Bottom line: Huawei's new push into India looks like a smart and well-timed move to take advantage of the country's emerging middle class, and could help it take the global smartphone crown by the end of next year.

Bottom line: Huawei could challenge Samsung for the global smartphone crown in as little as a year, though a potential Achilles heel could be the "outing" of its surging Honor brand that most may not associate with the Chinese parent.

Bottom line:  Xiaomi appears to be gaining confidence of investors through moves like its entry into South Korea, but it will take at least another year to prove it really has the savvy to thrive over the longer term.

Bottom line: Live broadcasting specialists Inke and Huya should do well over the next year but could face difficulty after that as popularity of such services fades, while Xiaomi's stock gains over the last two days look like a dead-cat bounce.

Bottom line: Xiaomi's stock is likely to be volatile over the next year and could move broadly downward as investors wait to see if the company's comeback has legs and it can move into higher-end products.

Bottom line: New listing plans by used car platform operator Uxin, EV battery maker Amperex and medical device maker Mindray should all do well, driven by strong growth potential and their leading positions in China.

The latest IPO season for Chinese firms is kicking into high gear on both sides of the Pacific, with announcement of several hot new offerings that each has a slightly different story to tell. At the head of the class is a new listing for used car platform operator Uxin, which is...

Bottom line: Xiaomi is likely to quietly settle a copyright infringement lawsuit against it by Coolpad, which is opportunistically looking for some hush money before Xiaomi's IPO and can't afford a long drawn-out court battle.

Bottom line: Xiaomi is hoping to attract investors to its IPO through its recent strong revenue growth, but it could still be years before it becomes profitable due to heavy reliance on low-end, low-margin products.

Bottom line: Foxconn's taking of the smartphone manufacturing crown from Samsung reflects the resurgence of Apple and rises of Huawei and Xiaomi, and could ultimately force other brands to use such third-party producers.

Today we'll take a step back from the usual name-brand smartphone rankings to look at a new report that shows that Taiwan's Foxconn (HKEx: 2038) is emerging as one of those "industry leaders you never heard of", quietly supporting some of the fastest-growing names. That's the...

Bottom line: New listing plans by education firm Redlands and steel-trading platform Zhaogang point to lower-tech offshore IPOs taking center stage in the first half of the year until the situation for fintech candidates stabilizes.

With fintech offerings in a holding pattern, a stream of lower-tech IPOs are finding their way to market in the first few months of this year. The latest of those is education company Redlands, which has just filed to sell up to $300 million worth of stock in a Ne...

Bottom line: Xiaomi's taking of the India smartphone crown and attendance at a major trade show next week are aimed at boosting its profile in the run-up to its IPO. 

Bottom line: Xiaomi's growing comeback is giving it confidence to launch an IPO plan, as its loss of a trademark case in Europe highlights renewed obstacles it will face in its global expansion.

Xiaomi eyes Hong Kong IPO

Bottom line: Apple should be able to extend its return to growth in China into at least one more quarter, while Xiaomi should also be able to continue posting strong double-digit growth for the next year.

Apple returns to China growth

Bottom line: Whatsapp has likely been permanently blocked in China, while Satya Nadella's visit to Xiaomi underscores Microsoft's growing ties  with the company, and Google's China AI push is mostly PR.

Whatsapp booted from China?

A couple of the big high-tech multinationals are in the headlines as we head into the next-to-last month of the year, which seems like a good opportunity to review where these companies stand heading into the second term of President Xi Jinping...

Bottom line:  JD.com's Thai joint venture looks like a smart move into Southeast Asia, though it shouldn't move too aggressively abroad and instead focus on becoming profitable.

JD.com tests out Thailand

Bottom line: Smartisan's new funding and plans to produce 5-6 smartphones a year look like an anomaly in the highly competitive market, and it's unlikely to survive as a standalone entity over the next 5 years.

Smartisan gets new funding

I was a bit surprised to read that a clear second-tier smartphone player, the uppity Smartisan, has received 100 million yuan ($147 million) in new funding, as we begin the latest week of summer. I haven't seen this company's name or man...

Bottom line: Xiaomi's rising market share and securing of $1 billion in new financing underscore its nascent turnaround may have some legs, even as its position remains tenuous in the cutthroat market.

Xiaomi unveils latest phone

Bottom line: The resignation of Xunlei's founder as CEO, even as he retains his chairman's title, could indicate a sale is coming soon, with the most likely buyer as Xiaomi.

Big shifts happening in Xunlei boardroom

The incredible shriveling online video company Xunlei (Nasdaq: XNET) is making a tiny splash in the headlines as we head toward the weekend, with word that its founder is relinquishing his position as CEO. The move seems potentially significant, since one of t...

Bottom line: Xiaomi's adoption of Costco as its new role model and abandonment of Apple looks like a realistic move, and could better position the company to survive over the next 5 years amid a looming market shakeup.

Xiaomi eyes chic cheap image