Xingyu Auto Cuts 107 Graduates, Annual Report Age Error Draws Scrutiny
Xingyu Auto, a Chinese auto-lighting maker, faced public scrutiny after rescinding offers to 107 fresh graduates and disclosing an age discrepancy in its annual report. The company's dismissed HR director, Yu Zhiming, was found to be a retired rehire, exempt from disclosure. The 2025 annual report listed Vice Chairman Zhou Yuheng as 58, contradicting earlier filings that implied he was 40.
Xingyu Auto has drawn attention for rescinding job offers to 107 fresh graduates. On September 8, the company's dismissed human resources director, Yu Zhiming, again became a focus of public discussion, following earlier questions about his role.
Staff at the Human Resources and Social Security Bureau of Changzhou National High-Tech District (Xinbei District) said an investigation confirmed that Xingyu Auto has a human resources director position, and that Yu Zhiming serves as both party secretary and human resources director. The position is not subject to public disclosure, so it was not announced. Yu Zhiming is a retired rehire, which explains why he remains employed at age 61.
Xingyu Auto published its 2025 annual report on March 20, 2026. In the table titled "Changes in Shareholdings and Compensation of Current and Resigned Directors and Senior Management During the Reporting Period," Chairman and General Manager Zhou Xiaoping is listed as 65 years old, while Vice Chairman and Deputy General Manager Zhou Yuheng is listed as 58, a seven-year difference. The age listed for Zhou Yuheng in this annual report is inconsistent with previously disclosed information.
On March 20, 2025, in an announcement related to board re-election, Xingyu Auto disclosed that Zhou Xiaoping was born in March 1961 and Zhou Yuheng in December 1985, a gap of about 24 years and 9 months. In 2019, when Zhou Yuheng was appointed deputy general manager, the company disclosed that Zhou Xiaoping and Zhou Yuheng are mother and son, and Zhou Xiaoping abstained from the relevant vote. In the 2024 annual report, Zhou Yuheng's age was listed as 40, but in the 2025 annual report it was changed to 58.
Public records show that Zhou Xiaoping graduated from Norman Bethune University of Medical Sciences (merged into Jilin University in 2000) and worked as a teacher at a health school after graduation. In 1993, she became the factory director of Wujin County Xingyu Auto Lamp Factory; in August 1994, the factory was renamed Changzhou Xingyu Auto Lamp Factory. In May 2000, Changzhou Xingyu Auto Lamp Co. , Ltd. was registered, and in 2007 it was restructured into a joint-stock company. It was listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange in February 2011.
According to Xingyu Auto's prospectus, Zhou Xiaoping directly holds 42.00% of the company's equity and indirectly holds 6.19% through a company. Together with her mother Sun Exiao's holdings, the controlling shareholders collectively control 54.30% of the voting rights in Xingyu Auto. In 2021, Zhou Xiaoping was named "Changzhou's richest woman" with a personal fortune of RMB 30.5 billion. The Hurun Women Entrepreneurs List, released on October 30, 2025, showed her personal wealth had fallen to RMB 20 billion.