TAIPEI, Taiwan - Industry leaders dare to speak out on future developments more openly now the main hurdle of the inventory crisis has been overcome. Giant Group Chairman Young Liu spoke directly to Bike Europe about his plans for production in Europe and his focal points for his first year in this position.

TAIPEI, Taiwan - For the second year in a row the Bicycling Alliance for Sustainability (BAS) held a forum during the Taipei Cycle show to update the industry on the progress of the initiatives of its members. This year a focal point was the introduction of human rights code of conduct signed by all 82 members of the BAS to protect workers rights within the bicycle industry in Taiwan. The occasion was somewhat marred later in the day when a protest contradicted the progress being made.

TAICHUNG, Taiwan - The excess inventory of Giant Group's own brands in Europe and the US in particular, continued to impact the financial performance of the company. The board of directors reported a 7.4% decline in consolidated sales to NT$71.28 bn (€1.98 bn) in 2024. While all financial indicators were negative for 2024, Giant Group remains positive for 2025.

ERKRATH, Germany - A long time coming, but Giant Deutschland GmbH has officially confirmed the appointment of a new managing mirector. As early as December 1, Alexander Gebert was appointed as the successor to Oliver Hensche, who will be available to the Giant Group in an advisory capacity until further notice. He had managed the company for 15 years.

TAICHUNG, Taiwan - Any frequent visitor of bicycle industry factories in Taiwan, has seen that a lot of the workers come from countries like Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand or Indonesia. Often the signing in the factories is multi-lingual to facilitate the foreign workers. In a recent publication, LeMonde Diplomatique reports that they have found indicators of forced labour according to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), particularly in the Taiwan bicycle industry.

TAICHUNG, Taiwan - In an attempt to improve the financial situation, bicycle manufacturers massively tried to lower their inventory levels even when it came with huge discounting. Giant Group managed to mitigate its decline in turnover to 7.4% as the company's 2024 monthly revenue report shows. This is compared with a decrease of 16.4% in 2023.