On the morning of September 30, Beijing's press corps gathered at the headquarters of Lenovo, China's largest personal computer company. As flashbulbs popped and television cameras whirred, Yang Yuanqing, chairman, announced a management restructuring that gave half the company's top jobs to executives of American, Australian and Indian origin.

Mr Yang had signalled his international intent in December 2004 by announcing the $1.75bn acquisition of the PC division of IBM. At a stroke, the deal transformed Lenovo from a company selling exclusively in China to an international group with 60 per cent of its sales in other countries.