Beijing's decision to block Coca-Cola's proposed $2.4bn takeover of China's leading juice maker has generated a groundswell of domestic support.
In a poll by a leading website, more than 80 per cent of 120,000 respondents strongly agreed with the rejection. More than two-thirds said foreign investments in Chinese companies were bad and had a negative effect on national brands.
Hong Kong–listed Huiyuan Juice has a 42 per cent share of the domestic market in pure fruit juices and is a nationally recognised brand. Coke has long sold its carbonated drinks in China but lacked a presence in the pure juice segment. It would have been the largest foreign takeover of a domestic company.