Oh, the irony. On Tuesday, the chairman of Gome, China’s former top electronics retailer, told a thinly attended shareholder meeting that the imminent sentencing of his predecessor, facing insider trading and bribery charges, would have “no effect on the company’s operations and management style”. That was true until the votes were tallied after the AGM, when it became apparent that the jailbird, Huang Guangyu, had used his 34 per cent holding to oust three directors nominated for re-election by Bain Capital, the company’s saviour last year.

Mr Huang’s representatives may have been counting on a higher turnout to achieve a significant protest vote, rather than an outright block; were the Bain trio to be removed, it would have triggered an immediate penalty of $352m. Gome’s board, for its part, has simply reinstated the directors, as is its right. But the move is vexatious all the same. It suggests that, even if condemned to a lengthy spell in prison, Mr Huang will not go quietly.

That is a pity because a turnround is under way. Gome has been left in the dust by its nemesis, Suning, now a clear number one by sales, with operating margins twice Gome’s. But its strategy of closing less profitable outlets to focus on greater sales density is beginning to take shape: sales per square metre picked up steadily last year.