Follow the Debate - China Economic News December 2010
Economic China
'The expansion of these gigantic cities has been fast, disruptive and unprecedented in world history. It has also been accompanied by rapid price increases. But they have occurred primarily in the first-tier cities. Markets cannot easily price what they have never witnessed before.'
One message is clear: The Chinese government wants to foster a national transformation from "world's factory" to "world's market."
China has been reforming itself, a process known as "crossing the river by feeling the stones." The unprecedented experience, plus the country's scale, leaves the outside world uncertain of its future.
Graeme has been using ChinesePod since 2007
"I highly recommend ChinesePod, I haven't found any Online teaching programmes that come close."
The Wall Street Journal 29/12/2010
Brazil, Russia, India, China + South Africa = BRICSA
It’s official. China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Tuesday that Brazil, Russia, India and China have agreed to invite South Africa to join their grouping of emerging economies, referred to as BRIC.
Kaixin OpEd – Do we detect a patronising tone in the article. Perhaps Kaixin is getting too sensitive …
Kaixin suggests that this is a highly significant move.
Africa has huge untapped reserves of natural and human resources. To date the ‘west’ has ignored Africa. China has always held out an open hand. A point derided by the 'west' as self-serving.
Probably.
Still, a helping hand never-the-less.
And Africa remembers …
Did someone mention colonialism??
China Daily 29/12/2010
Top 10 farm produce with soaring prices
A number of commodities saw price hikes in 2010. Among these, soaring prices of agricultural commodities pushed the consumer price index (CPI), the major gauge of inflation, to a record high of 5.1 percent. While some prices have moderated due to government regulatory measures, others are expected to remain high for a longer period.
China's crude oil self-sufficiency 45% in 2010
BEIJING -- China's self-sufficiency in crude oil is expected to be 45 percent in 2010, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the nation's top economic planner, said Tuesday.
China likely to set up rare earth trade body
BEIJING - China is considering establishing an industry association and a government unit for the rare earths industry to gain more control over the precious metals, senior officials said Tuesday.
The rare earths industry association is likely to be launched in May and will assist companies in exports and international cooperation, Wang Caifeng, a former official of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), who is setting up the group, said at a forum.
"We will be on the frontlines leading price talks with foreign buyers. Our role will be similar to that of the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA)," she said.
Chinese industry associations have served as agents through which companies negotiate with foreign suppliers and buyers, such as CISA representing Chinese steelmakers in talks with global miners on iron ore prices.
China Daily 28/12/2010
Stabilizing prices to be put in prominent position
BEIJING -- The People's Bank of China (PBOC), the country's central bank, reaffirmed Monday that it would give more prominence to stabilizing prices, and implementing a prudent monetary policy during the next year.
Further, China will make its monetary policies more targeted, flexible, and effective, employing multiple monetary tools to control liquidity and guide the credit growth back to a normal level, said an online statement summarizing a meeting of the PBOC's monetary policy committee.The statement came one day after the 25-basis-point interest rate hikes went into effect on Sunday.
More credit should be channeled into the real economy, especially into programs concerning agriculture, the countryside, farmers, and medium-sized and small enterprises, to help promote the strategic and economic restructuring, the statement said.
Those attending the meeting also agreed to further improve the yuan exchange rate formative mechanism, and to keep the yuan exchange rate "basically stable at a reasonable level."
An upward momentum in China's economy has been further consolidated, but the country also faces tough tasks in controlling credit and liquidity growth as well as warding off financial risks.
More people covered by social security network
BEIJING - More people enduring poor living conditions have been covered by China's social security system, according to the country's Ministry of Civil Affairs.
Various figures disclosed during a national working conference held Monday by the Ministry in Beijing showed that as of November, about 75 million people had been provided with minimum living allowances, an increase of 5.4 percent from the same period of last year.
In terms of medical services, 8.58 billion yuan ($1.3 billion) were spent in to aid nearly 60 million people in need in the first nine months of the year, up 28 percent than the same period last year.
Kaixin OpEd – This was Deng Xiaoping’s vision.
To use capitalism to generate wealth for China, then use that wealth for socialist ends – a fair society, all sharing in the wealth of China.
Deng Xiaoping was not into labels. He didn’t care if you called him a capitalist, a communist or a camel’s backside. His prime interest was in what worked for China, what benefited the Chinese people.
So far, so good ….
See Kaixin’s - ''Poverty is not socialism. To be rich is glorious.'', Deng Xiaoping 邓小平
The Age 28/12/2010
The US coughs and the global economy presses on
Paul Krugman
Commodity price rises are not the result of US monetary policy, writes Paul Krugman.
Today, as in 2007-08, the primary driving force behind rising commodity prices isn't demand from the US. It's demand from China and other emerging economies.Right now, rising commodity prices are basically the result of global recovery. They have no bearing, one way or another, on US monetary policy. For this is a global story; at a fundamental level, it's not about us.
China sews up 49% profit growth
CHINESE industrial companies' profits rose 49.4 per cent in the 11 months to November 30, compared with the corresponding period last year, putting pressure on the central bank to raise interest rates.
Caixin Online 28/12/2010
Regulator Liu Mingkang on No-Worry Bank Risk
In an interview, top bank regulator Liu Mingkang tells how strong supervision will counteract 2011 credit risk
(Beijing) – Despite differences of opinion over China's broad economic outlook for 2011, the market has reached consensus on one key fact about the coming year: Risks loom for the nation's banks.
Hainan Offers Foreign Tourists Tax-Free Shopping
A tax refund policy may boost the tourism industry in China's southernmost province
(Beijing) -- China's southernmost province will offer rebates to foreign tourists for their purchases when they depart the Hainan island starting January 1, according to provincial authorities.
The New York Times 28/12/2010
Wal-Mart Moves to Invest in China Online Retailer
SHANGHAI — Wal-Mart and five other companies have agreed to invest $500 million in 360buy.com, one of the fastest-growing online retailers in China, according to the Internet company.
A big investment in online retailing would not be unusual. Many global retailers, including Gap, are expanding aggressively in China and beginning to sell online in the country. Wal-Mart operates more than 200 stores in China.
China Raises Interest Rates Again to Cool Inflation
The move by China’s central bank appears to be part of a long-term campaign to suppress inflation, as ordinary Chinese express discontent with rising prices.
Plan to Ease Beijing Traffic Hits a Bump
A record splurge on new-car purchases by Beijingers, who apparently anticipated that the city was about to tackle its traffic jams by limiting registrations of new vehicles.
The Wall Street Journal 28/12/2010
China Raises Rates Amid Inflation Fight
BEIJING—China raised interest rates for the second time in slightly over two months, signaling the authorities' resolve to combat rising inflation.
Beijing's latest move also suggests the world's second-largest economy may be entering a relatively formal monetary tightening cycle and that policy-makers may have been convinced that the weapons used so far, such as credit rationing and artificial price controls, have failed to cool politically sensitive consumer price pressures.
Economists React: Christmas Rate Hike
The People’s Bank of China on Saturday announced an increase of 0.25 percentage point to interest rates on benchmark one-year loans and deposits, the second hike since late October. Economists weigh in:
Huawei, Tencent to Offer HiQQ Phones
China’s biggest telecom equipment maker, Huawei Technologies, and one of its biggest Internet companies, Tencent, are teaming up to offer smartphones based on Google’s Android software preloaded with Tencent applications.
China Daily 27/12/2010
Wen: We are beating inflation
BEIJING - The government will be able to keep inflation in check, Premier Wen Jiabao said on Sunday, after the central bank raised interest rates for a second time in just over two months.
Premier Wen Jiabao answers questions during a live broadcast by China National Radio on Sunday. During the program, Wen discussed issues which people are most concerned about, including reconstruction in earthquake-hit areas and property prices.
The Age 27/12/2010
Price rises highlight China food changes
Recent food price surges in China have underscored the supply challenges the country faces, as decreasing arable land is making it harder to maintain farm output, a UN envoy said on Thursday.
China the focus of our fortunes
Problems abound but the outlook for Australia is good, writes Maris Beck.
IN HIS classic Australian history, The Tyranny of Distance, Geoffrey Blainey wrote: ''So far as we know, Australia had only one commodity which was valued beyond its shores towards the end of the eighteenth century - the trepang or sea slug …''
A few centuries later the country is in the throes of a commodities boom - and sea slugs have sunk from export prominence.
As investors position themselves for the year ahead, the mining sector and Australia's largest trading partner, China, are central to their considerations.
Caixin Online 27/12/2010
Suddenly, Wind Energy IPOs Drifts in Doldrums
Weak investor support for Chinese wind power companies is deflating stock exchange hopefuls
Datang Renewable Power Co., the wind power unit of China Datang Corp., raised a blustery HK$ 4.8 billion on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in an initial public offering December 17.
On Tiptoes, Lawmakers Try Settling PE Debate
Sensitive and divisive questions about private equity soon may be answered after years of regulatory void
Dust has been brushed off an old question that's long divided financial regulators in Beijing: Which government agency should supervise and regulate private equity funds, including those with foreign and local-government backing, and whose influence has grown dramatically in recent years?
Over the years, agencies from the defunct State Planning Commission to the Ministry of Science and Technology have contributed to the discussion.
Outward Trappings, Inward Decay
Predictable yet ineffective policy moves by the Federal Reserve have sprung a zero interest rate trap
Truth is one of the first casualties of a financial crisis. During times of stress, central bankers embrace a time-honored tradition: They issue anodyne statements that are, as the saying goes, economical with the truth. Central bankers are also prone to seize upon standard "solutions" congealed into a crust of dogma by endless repetition and obeisance.
Kaixin OpEd – As readers of Kaixin would know, Kaixin has very little respect for economists or central w ….. bankers.
Economists are very good at measuring things. Their mathematical brains can see formula and equations in everything. They measure and measure and then put the numbers in a mathematical straightjacket.
Then they predict the future with these ‘magical’ equations. These equations that solve all the economic issues of the time and then some.
They are truly the gods of this new secular age!
They all line up for a Nobel Prize for Economics having solved, once and for all, the question of “What is ..”
The Nobel Committee, displaying its usual ignorance and trendy credentials, award the prize on the basis they simply don’t understand the economics and all those equations must mean something very very important …….. and, pass the chardonnay.
Of course the economic world is full of black swans that like to crap on these economists. The same economists who want to work out how to run the rattly old rust bucket they created without anyone ever having to work.
Kaixin is watching China with interest.
The senior economists in Beijing were probably all trained in America or at Oxford/Cambridge. They have the same academic background, but seem to be thinking outside the square.
Kaixin notes a sense of “Oh, so that’s what they are doing …” creeping into the western press when commenting on the issue of the internationalisation of the Yuan.
Kaixin suspects China will handle the next economic phase of its growth with a new form of economics, economics with Chinese characteristics.
The western economists will all shout in horror, or point to, with a patronising smile, what they call Economics 101. Iron laws.
The Chinese economists will smile politely and suggest that iron can be heated and shaped.
We shall see ….
In the mean time, the west will be flooded with money from helicopters and the rust bucket will chug along belching smoke and tears.
Andy Xie
One could describe the global economy as a race between the U.S. and China, to see who goes down first
The global economy may be coming up for a breach of fresh air in 2011. Fiscal and monetary policies around the world have been highly stimulated for three years. The additional monetary and fiscal stimulus measures by the U.S. could generate an upside surprise to its 2011 growth rate. Most emerging economies continue to grow rapidly. By the middle of 2011, most analysts may declare that the world has finally put the financial crisis behind.
The reality is quite different.
The New York Times 27/12/2010
China Raises Interest Rates Again to Cool Inflation
The move by China’s central bank appears to be part of a long-term campaign to suppress inflation, as ordinary Chinese express discontent with rising prices.
China Daily 24/12/2010
China boosts land supply in 2010
China increased land supply this year and stepped up the scrutiny of real estate investments by foreign companies as it rolls out more measures to contain 18 months of gains in property prices, Bloomberg News reported Thursday.
China's land supply rose 48 percent to 128,200 hectares in the first 11 months, while sites for residential developments surged 51 percent, the Land and Resources Ministry said in a statement.
The Commerce Ministry ordered local authorities to halt the approval of some foreign property investments to curb speculative buying, it said in a Nov 22 statement.
Home prices in 70 Chinese cities climbed 7.7 percent in November from a year earlier, even after the government raised borrowing costs for the first time in three years, suspended mortgages for third-home purchases and pledged to introduce a property tax, the report said, adding that sales volume also jumped 15 percent. "The pace for land acquisitions in the private sector will slow next year," the report cited Johnson Hu, a Shanghai-based property analyst at UOB Kay Hian Investment Co. "The government is tightening lending on one hand, but on the other, it's launching new land supplies," Hu said.
Real estate should not be pillar industry
Real estate should be a fundamental, but not a pillar, industry in China, the Shanghai Securities News reported Wednesday, citing Yun Xiaosu, vice minister of the Ministry of Land and Resources.
Chinese government has rolled out a series of measures to curb skyrocketing housing prices since April. China’s real estate prices in 70 major cities rose at a slower pace since April. However, 70 percent of Chinese residents believe home prices are too high, according to a report released by the People’s Bank of China.
South Africa joins BRIC as full member
BEIJING - Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi Thursday said BRIC has accepted South Africa as a full member of the group, which currently includes Brazil, Russia, India and China.
Yang, during a phone conversation with his South African counterpart Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, said Chinese President Hu Jintao would issue an invitation letter to South African President Jacob Zuma, inviting him to attend the third BRIC leaders' meeting to be held in Beijing next year.
China tougher on foreign property investment
BEIJING - China is tightening regulation on foreign investment in the real estate sector to crack down on speculation, according to a statement from the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) on Thursday.
The ministry urges local authorities to increase checks and supervision on property investment that involved foreign investors and strengthen risk controls on the sector, said the statement posted on the MOC website.According to the statement, foreign-funded developers are not allowed to make profits through buying and reselling real estate projects, which will be strictly monitored by the MOC along with the Ministry of Land and Resources and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange.
The ministry also required local authorities to tighten scrutiny over foreign-funded investment companies and not to allow those companies to enter the real estate businesses, while closely examining the exact amount of foreign funds used in new real estate projects.
White paper with Africa on economic co-op unveiled
BEIJING -- The Chinese government Thursday released a white paper on China-Africa economic and trade cooperation, highlighting achievements and a bright future for China and African countries to boost their growth.
It was China's first-ever white paper on its economic and trade cooperation with Africa.
"Practice proves that China-Africa economic and trade cooperation serves the common interests of the two sides, helps Africa to reach the UN Millennium Development Goals, and boosts common prosperity and progress for China and Africa," said the white paper.
The 29-page white paper, released by the State Council Information Office, introduced facts of trade development, investment expansion, infrastructure construction collaboration and other fields of cooperation between China and Africa.
China-Africa economic and trade cooperation plays a significant role in promoting the establishment of a fair and rational new international political and economic order, according to the white paper.
China's top banker sees rate rises: Xinhua
SHANGHAI/BEIJING- China Construction Bank Corp (CCB) Chairman Guo Shuqing said he expects the government to raise interest rates and lift bank required reserve ratios (RRR) further next year.
Obama to host Hu in state visit on Jan 19
WASHINGTON - The White House has finalized Jan 19 as the date for Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to the United States.
"President Hu's visit will highlight the importance of expanding cooperation between the United States and China on bilateral, regional and global issues, as well as the friendship between the peoples of our two countries," the White House said in a statement issued Wednesday.
Hu's visit with US President Barack Obama will include a state dinner in the evening.
The New York Times 24/12/2010
Multinationals Sit Out China Trade Battles
HONG KONG — Western companies, eager for access to China, are loath to cry foul even amid evidence that Beijing may be flouting international trade laws.
U.S. Says China Fund Breaks Rules
Washington asked for World Trade Organization talks after accusing Beijing of granting illegal subsidies.
The Age 24/12/2010
Price rises highlight China food changes
Recent food price surges in China have underscored the supply challenges the country faces, as decreasing arable land is making it harder to maintain farm output, a UN envoy said on Thursday.
Caixin Online 24/12/2010
Good Tidings in 2011
Andy Xie
One could describe the global economy as a race between the U.S. and China, to see who goes down first
The global economy may be coming up for a breach of fresh air in 2011. Fiscal and monetary policies around the world have been highly stimulated for three years. The additional monetary and fiscal stimulus measures by the U.S. could generate an upside surprise to its 2011 growth rate. Most emerging economies continue to grow rapidly. By the middle of 2011, most analysts may declare that the world has finally put the financial crisis behind.
The reality is quite different.
The Wall Street Journal 24/12/2010
Old Problems Resurface With China’s Rising Food Prices
The British writer Bruce Chatwin, in his 1989 book “What Am I Doing Here,” ascribed the power of Chinese emperors to nothing more than the authority over agriculture.
“Imperial decrees,” Chatwin wrote, “used to begin ‘The World is based on Agriculture.’”
It’s been more than 20 years since Chatwin wrote and a millennium since the era he evoked.But in China, even the most massive changes in income levels can’t mask the same fault lines that pervade the task of governing this old, big country.
China Daily 23/12/2010
China expects exports to slow in 2011
BEIJING - China's foreign trade is expected to slow down in 2011 to a growth rate of about 10 percent, compared with this year's 30 percent, sources with the Ministry of Commerce said.
Huo Jianguo, director of the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation with the ministry, made the prediction on the sidelines of the annual commerce conference in Beijing on Wednesday.
Kaixin OpEd - Don't forget to keep your eye on China's domestic consumption.
Higher pensions, student stipends
BEIJING - China introduced a set of measures on Wednesday to raise pensions for those retired from enterprises and increase subsidies for poor students.
The basic pension for enterprise retirees will rise by 140 yuan ($21) a month starting Jan 1, up 10 percent from this year, the State Council announced on Wednesday.
Kaixin OpEd - Which will just about all go into domestic consumption.
Investment targets grain production
BEIJING - China has pledged to intensify its construction of rural infrastructure to boost the country's grain production, which is threatened by natural disasters and shrinking arable land.
More investment will be made in the construction of water conservation and other facilities in rural areas, according to a statement released after the two-day annual central rural work conference concluded on Wednesday.
The conference mapped out policies for next year's development of agriculture and rural regions.
Kaixin OpEd – Apart from the obvious food security implications, see our OpEd below on China’s rural focus, WSJ.
Reserve ratio may rise to record high
SHANGHAI - The central government could raise the ratio of reserves it requires banks to hold against their loans to 23 percent in 2011, as it continues to try to curb inflationary credit growth in the financial system, Lu Zhengwei, chief economist at Industrial Bank, said on Tuesday.
The figure would be the highest reserve requirement ratio ever set by a central bank, Lu said.
Zhang Xiaohui, head of Monetary Department of the People's Bank of China, the country's central bank, said in an article earlier this year that the ceiling for a central bank's reserve requirement ratio is 23.5 percent.
"The loose monetary policy in the United States, over-liquidity in the domestic market and rising wages present an unprecedented task for China to manage its excessive liquidity and inflation next year," Lu said in a speech at the Second China Fortune and Assets Management Forum on Tuesday.
He said he expects the central bank to raise the reserve requirement ratio once a month in the first quarter of 2011.
Chinese head to US for Christmas
BEIJING/New York - Thousands of Chinese tourists will spend the Christmas holiday period in the United States this year.
New York City, California, and Hawaii are among the more popular destinations as organizations such as United Airlines, Disneyland Park in California, the California Travel and Tourism Commission and the Hawaii Tourism Authority have been begun promoting luxury tours.
See Kaixin's - INSIGHTS INTO CHINA'S SOCIETY & CULTURE
The New York Times 23/12/2010
U.S. Challenges China’s Wind Power Equipment Aid
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration accused China on Wednesday of illegally subsidizing the production of wind power equipment and called for discussions at the World Trade Organization, the first step in a trade case sought by American steelworkers.
Kaixin OpEd – Perhaps is America focused on supporting its Green Industry and spending its counterfeit dollars there instead of propping up failed companies, then America would be leading the world in the Green Revolution, rather than whinging about China.
Kaixin can't help but see America as a teenager ... bully boy one minute, all smiles the next, well meaning and clumsy at times, petulant at others, impatient with a world that refuses to agree with its newfound wisdom, so, so sure it is right in all matters.
China as an old man sitting quiety on a park bench watching the impatient teenage at play. That impatient teenager, of course, thinking "... what would that old fart know?"
Caixin Online 23/12/2010
China Raises Fuel Prices Amid Inflation Concerns
China's central economic planning agency said that the price hike is also aimed at controlling the rapid growth of crude oil consumption
(Beijing) – China decided to increase the price of gasoline by 310 yuan per ton and diesel by 300 yuan per ton beginning December 22, despite increasing public concerns on inflation.
Have prices in China catapulted past prices abroad? Two people take a trip to the supermarket in search of an answer
Much has been said recently over whether life in China is more expensive than in the U.S. In order to settle this issue, my good friend Nana, in the U.S., and I have jointly carried out a field survey in both countries.
We chose to compare the cities of Hangzhou and Boston.
The Wall Street Journal 23/12/2010
Farm Wages Trip Up China's Inflation Fight 
BEIJING—To combat a surge in food prices that is worrying consumers and economists, China's government is reining in bank lending and selling down reserves of grain. But there is one driver of higher food prices that will be harder to get under control: the steady rise in the wages paid to workers on and off the farm.
Kaixin OpEd – There is a massive shift going on in China at the moment.
The first 30 years of China’s economic transformation was driven from the cities, in particular the cities on the coast: Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.
The rural population provided the labour for this phase at a price that allowed China to build its export economy.
This model could not go on forever.
Beijing knew this and the last five years has seen a steady shift in focus from a reliance on low priced exports to America to, among other initiatives, using the wealth that provided to focus on rural China.
Rural China is a vast untapped economic reserve for China.
It will drive growth, through domestic consumption and entrepreneurship for the next fifty years in China, at least.
Deng Xiaoping’s vision, Kaixin believes, was to use capitalism to build wealth for China, then use that wealth for socialist goals – social equality and security.
Along the way there will of course by problems, income disparity is one.
At first the rural population were content to provide their labour for a very low cost. It was still a big improvement on what they had before, particularly through the grey period of Mao’s miss-management of the economy.
It was a vast, almost unimaginable, improvement on what they had endured before Mao.
The first phase of the economic transformation has been achieved. China now has a secure wealth base.
The rural population are better informed and becoming better educated. They want a greater share of the wealth that China is generating.
This will cause problems and required adjustments.
These adjustments be achieved with a different agenda and focus to the ‘western’ models. The ‘west’ likes to think in terms of free enterprise and the devil take the hindmost.
China, Kaixin believes, will focus on the social agenda and try to find a balance.
This will not be achieved overnight. It will take time and there will be mistakes.
However as long as it is the focus, the Chinese people will benefit over time.
Western economists and commentators do not seem to be able to get their collective heads around the notion that China is indeed creating a new economic model. Kaixin wonders, just quietly, whether when or if this is fully achieved China will be awarded the Nobel Prize for Economics. After all, the creators of all the failed models in the west were.
U.S. Seeks WTO Probe on China Wind Power Funding
WASHINGTON--The U.S. said Wednesday it is requesting consultations with China at the World Trade Organization to end hundreds of millions of dollars worth of subsidies to boost wind power production.
China Daily 22/12/2010
EU vows review of high-tech ban
BEIJING - The European Union (EU) agreed on Tuesday to set up a working panel to examine boosting high-tech sales to China, while also seeking help from Beijing on combating the spreading sovereign-debt crisis.
Fuel hikes reflect market
BEIJING - Gasoline and diesel retail prices will rise by around 4 percent on Wednesday, reflecting global market fluctuations, but officials and researchers said the increases will have only a limited effect on inflation.
Cross-Straits get healthy agreement
TAIPEI - Top envoys from the mainland and Taiwan signed a deal on medical cooperation and discussed investment protection during talks on Tuesday in Taipei, capping a year of unprecedented progress in bilateral ties.
Asia Times Online 22/12/2010
Chinese go 'real' with savings
By Olivia Chung
Chinese citizens, confronted with low interest rates at banks, are increasingly investing elsewhere for better returns, and with the stock market performing poorly, real estate is the most popular choice. That is raising concern that a lot of folk are going to get hurt when the market changes.
Caixin Online 22/12/2010
China-Russia Oil Pipeline Begins Operation
The operation of the pipeline is expected to raise the volume of China's oil imports from Russia, and drive adjustments in the Chinese oil pricing system
(Beijing) – A flow of crude oil from Skovorodino in Russia arrived at Daqing terminal in Northeast China on December 19, in preparation for full operation of the China-Russia oil pipeline expected to start in weeks.
The New York Times 22/12/2010
A Major Challenge: Getting Money Into China
A foreign company cannot convert a single dollar into renminbi — whether to open a bank account, hire an employee or lease an office — without getting investment approval from the Ministry of Commerce.
East Meets West, but It Takes Some Practice
Human resource companies specialize in training people at Western firms in China to respect each other's needs and differences.
Bakeries Claim a Growing Niche in China
The rising demand, mainly in China's major cities, has offered great business opportunities for foreign bakery chains, many of which have quickly expanded.
Book Publishers Scramble for Chinese Readers
With censorship easing and tastes growing more sophisticated, foreign book publishers have seized on an opportunity for readers in China’s middle class.
The Wall Street Journal 22/12/2010
China Backs EU Bailout Measures
BEIJING—Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan said Tuesday that China supports the measures taken by the European Union and International Monetary Fund to bail out certain European countries and stabilize the financial markets.
China's State Grid to Buy Brazilian Power Firms
China's giant utility State Grid Corp. has agreed to a deal worth nearly $1 billion to buy seven Brazilian power transmission companies, the latest in a series of big bets by Chinese corporations in Latin America.
The Wall Street Journal 21/12/2010
Congress and SEC Hit Stocks Made in China
One of China's least-noticed exports to the U.S. has been hundreds of Chinese companies that slipped onto U.S. stock exchanges through back-door mergers with dormant shell companies.
Many of these small, high-growth, companies, including industrial companies RINO International Corp. and China Energy Savings Technology Inc., have minimal revenues, questionable accounting and inscrutable corporate governance.
Now, that back door may be starting to close. The Securities and Exchange Commission has begun a crackdown on the practices of the "reverse takeover" market for Chinese listings, according to people with knowledge of the probe. Specifically, the SEC's enforcement and corporation-finance divisions have begun ...
China More Expensive Than the U.S.?
Rising consumer prices in China have caused some big brawls of late: between students and catering companies, between the government and newspapers and now between Hangzhou and Boston.
In China, Making Cars on a Budget
Foreign Auto Companies Use Old Designs to Build Low-Cost Vehicles for Emerging Middle Class
GUANGZHOU, China—Foreign auto makers in China are dusting off older designs as they scramble to come up with China-only brands of low-cost cars in response to a surge in demand for affordable vehicles from new middle-class buyers.
Peugeot Expects Higher Sales in China
GUANGZHOU, China—French auto maker Peugeot is likely to sell more cars in China's booming market than in its home market by around 2015, said Timothy Zimmerman, a China-based Peugeot executive.
China Daily 21/12/2010
Govt to outline 2011 fiscal deficit target
900 billion yuan could be possible if crisis-hit global economies stabilize
BEIJING - China is planning to outline a fiscal deficit of 900 billion yuan ($135 billion) for next year, 150 billion yuan less than this year's target, according to a report in the Beijing-based Century Weekly Magazine on Monday.
New round of drug price cuts expected
SHANGHAI - Kangmei Pharmaceutical Co paced declines by Chinese drugmakers after the Economic Observer reported the government may cut medicine prices by 40 percent.
A gauge of healthcare stocks fell 3 percent on Monday, the most among the 10 industry groups of the CSI 300 Index.
Kaixin OpEd - If you cut medical costs, you free up savings and boost domestic consumption.
Urbanization presents huge challenge for policymakers
BEIJING - China's urbanization rate, showing the number of people leaving the countryside to live in cities and towns, stood at 33.28 percent in 2008, an increase of 0.35 percentage points from 2007.
That's according to the latest findings of the China International Urbanization Development Strategy Research Committee (CIUDSRC).
See Kaixin's - CHINA REAL ESTATE
Designer labels bank on China
A study from American consultancy Bain & Co suggested that the recovery of the luxury market was now in full swing with hugely improving sales of high-end goods such as designer handbags and watches.
China remains the fastest-growing luxury goods market in the world, with a sales volume of 68.4 billion yuan ($10.27 billion) and an expected increase of 30 percent this year over last year's takings.
"We aim to let Chinese customers become more familiar with the connotation and history of our brand through this activity, which brings Tiffany's closer to its Chinese buyers," Michael J. Kowalski, chairman of Tiffany & Co, told China Daily.
China, EU hold dialogue on economy, trade in Beijing
BEIJING - China and the European Union (EU) kicked off their third High-Level Economic and Trade Dialogue (HED) in Beijing Tuesday.
The dialogue is co-chaired by Chinese Vice-Premier Wang Qishan and European Commission Vice-President in charge of competition policy Joaquin Almunia, Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht as well as Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs Olli Rehn.
It is the first such meeting since the Lisbon Treaty was enforced and will cover macro-economic challenges facing the international economy, competition questions as well as trade, investment, innovation, and customs cooperation. Officials from China's Ministry of Commerce, National Development and Reform Commission as well as Ministry of Industry and Information Technology will participate in the dialogue.
China urges EU to lift bans on hi-tech goods exports
BEIJING - China expects the European Union (EU) to make "substantive" progress in a wide range of concerning issues including loosening restrictions on hi-tech goods exports, said Chinese Vice-Premier Wang Qishan.
"China is taking a proactive fiscal policy and stable currency policy, while the EU is actively taking measures to combat the debt crisis. China and the EU should strengthen cooperation to promote strong, sustainable and all-around growth for the economies of China and EU and even the global economy," said Wang.
Wang made the remarks during the opening ceremony of the Third China-EU High-level Economic and Trade Dialogue held in Beijing.
China to speed up tax reform
China may cut duties for low- to middle-income groups from 2011
BEIJING - China's tax reforms could soon gather speed, as officials and experts vowed to accelerate "structural" tax reductions to ensure a fairer system during the coming five years.
The government is expected to cut individual income tax for low- to middle-income groups, in addition expanding the range of value-added taxes and decreasing sales duties in the service sector.
Meanwhile, policymakers may increase pilot programs for resource taxes and launch property taxes in selected cities soon, analysts said.
"To reform individual income tax will be difficult, but the government should propose suitable amendments in the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015)," Jia Kang, director of the Institute of Fiscal Science Research under the Ministry of Finance, said at a forum over the weekend.
The purpose of individual income tax reform should be to ease the financial pressure on low- to middle-income groups, and to increase the rate for those on higher incomes, Jia said.
Caixin Online 21/12/2010
New Lending Ceiling Set at 7.5 Tln Yuan for 2011
Analysts say total new lending for this year will be around 8 trillion yuan
(Beijing) – The growth in China's broadest measure of money supply,M2, was set at 16 percent in 2011 during the recently-concluded Central Economic Work Conference, according to an informed source.
Rural Incomes Grow Faster than Urban Incomes
Despite the higher growth rate, incomes in rural areas remain far behind those in urban areas
(Beijing) – Rural incomes grew faster than incomes in urban areas in 2010, according to a report released by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
Kaixin OpEd - It is this income growth and the general economic growth in rural China that will drive China's switch from reliance on exports to internal cosumption.
Sinopec Oil Pipeline Capacity Reaches 150 Mln Tons
China's second largest producer of crude oil and natural gas said that three-quarters of its processed crude oil can be transported through pipelines
(Beijing) -- Chinese oil major China Petrochemical Corp. (Sinopec) announced on December 19 that its oil pipeline capacity has reached 150 million tons. Sinopec can process over 208 million tons of crude oil, with 95 percent of its oil refinery capacity connected to long distance transportation pipelines.
Euro Pengyou: The Right Role for China
Sovereign debt turmoil and threats to the euro zone are giving China new reasons to support the European currency
China is not immune to the euro zone's ongoing upheaval, so Beijing must be ready to act to defend the nation's economy. Supporting the euro should be part of its strategy.
(Peng you = Friend, pronounced 'pung yo')
Asia Times Online 21/12/2010
Pakistan signs up for China's cash
By Syed Fazl-e-Haider
Government and private-sector agreements, worth about US$35 billion, signed during a three-day visit to Pakistan by Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, strengthen the economic relationship between the two countries. But despite sympathetic noises from the Chinese, the trade balance remains firmly in Beijing's favor.
China Daily 20/12/2010
China to invest 100b yuan for food security
BEIJING - The Chinese government plans to invest more than 100 billion yuan ($15 billion) over the next five years to improve farmland for the nation's food security, according to the Ministry of Land and Resources (MOLAR) on Friday.
The investment aims to improve about 4 million hectares of land and replenish an additional 670,000 hectares of arable land in its major grain producers - Hebei, Jilin, Heilongjiang, Jiangsu, Anhui, Jiangxi, Shandong, Hubei provinces and Inner Mongolia and Guangxi autonomous regions.
An extra grain production capacity of 10 million tones will be added to China's agriculture industry every year if the plan goes smoothly, according to MOLAR, which supervises land use in China.
"On one hand, we need to protect the arable land base for grain security; on the other hand, we need to satisfy land use for economic development," Xu Shaoshi, Minister of Land and Resources, told Xinhua.
"It is a dilemma," he noted.
"To solve the problem, we need to use land more economically, reduce farmland seizures for industrial and residential use, while trying all means to increase our country's arable land area," Xu said.
Deciding China's next 10 years - VIDEO
Inflation, unaffordable housing, and rising prices – what will decide China's next 10 years? That's what a dozen top Chinese business leaders discussed on Dec 15 in Beijing.
China Daily reporter Feng Xin takes you to find out what some of the most powerful Chinese bussiness men would say.
The Age 20/12/2010
Slowdown in China 'biggest risk factor'
FUND managers rate a potential slowdown in the Chinese economy in the coming year as a greater concern than the recovery in the US and Europe's sovereign debt woes, underlining Australia's increasing dependence on the economic health of Asia.
A survey of the country's top superannuation and investment fund managers by the Financial Services Council showed chief investment officers were viewing next year with increased optimism when compared with the previous quarter.
The Wall Street Journal 20/12/2010
Germany’s BASF: China Critic, Investor
Executives of the German chemical giant BASF AG have been some of the more outspoken corporate critics of Chinese industrial policy – and among the nation’s largest foreign investors.
BASF offered a reminder Friday how it’s possible to be both.
China Daily 19/12/2010
Trade volume surges despite protectionism
China is urged to act against unfair trade practices of foreign importers
BEIJING - China's foreign trade volume this year is expected to hit a historic high by exceeding $2.9 trillion, but growing trade protectionism targeting China will continue to pose serious challenges next year, said the Ministry of Commerce.
Zhong Shan, vice-minister of commerce, also strongly suggested that China more actively conduct trade-remedy cases against some imports in a reasonable way to help the domestic industries fend off fiercer competition at home and abroad and to guarantee local industrial safety under accepted principles of the World Trade Organization.
"China's foreign trade has been in fairly good recovery, and the whole-year trade volume is set to break $2.9 trillion," Zhong said during a trade-remedy forum on Friday.
Profits of China's SOEs up 43% in Jan-Nov
BEIJING - Profits of China's State-owned enterprises (SOEs) in the first 11 months hit 1.81 trillion yuan ($271.92 billion), up 43.1 percent year-on-year, figures released Friday by the Ministry of Finance (MOF) show.
Inflation concerns to drive further growth in gold purchases in 2011
BEIJING - China's investment-driven consumption of gold will almost double this year to 45 billion yuan ($6.7 billion), due to growing concern over inflation and restrictions on property investment, the World Gold Council (WGC) said on Thursday.
"We expect investment-oriented consumption of gold could reach 150 tons in China this year, up from 80.5 tons during the same period last year," Albert Cheng, managing director of WGC (Far East), told China Daily.
"Double-digit growth could still be achieved next year, due to people's expectations of rising inflation and a weakening dollar. Meanwhile, the central bank is also expected to increase its holdings of gold to diversify its asset portfolio," Cheng added.
China's consumer price index, the major gauge of inflation, jumped to a 28-month high of 5.1 percent in November, prompting the country's leaders to say that fighting inflation is now a top priority for the government.
Meanwhile, due to the government's rigorous real estate policies and the flat performance of China's capital market, a growing number of people see gold as a hedge against inflation.
Morgan Stanley said in a recent report that the average gold price will stand at $1,315 per ounce in 2011, up from $1,203 per ounce this year.
The New York Times 18/12/2010
Chinese Premier Visits Pakistan to Reinforce Ties
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao arrived in Islamabad on Friday for a three-day visit that Pakistani officials said was aimed at strengthening the strategic partnership and economic cooperation between the two neighboring countries.
China Leader Says Anti-Inflation Measures Needed
BEIJING — One of China’s top leaders said at a government meeting that measures needed to be taken to tamp down inflation in the coming year, according to a report on Friday by Xinhua, the state news agency. The comments were one of the clearest signs yet that Chinese leaders are increasingly concerned about popular resentment arising as a result of soaring living costs.
Kaixin OpEd – Kaixin speaks to many people in China regularly, including family and friends. They are all what you would deem ‘ middle class’.
They say that prices are certainly rising, particularly food, but the government now has control of that. They are all relaxed and not at all concerned.
Caixin Online 18/12/2010
Out of Africa, Successful Bet for Sinosteel
Sinosteel helped build a China business beachhead in Africa by waiting on diplomats and accepting risks at a South African mine
(Johannesburg) – The glitter of mineral-rich South Africa caught the eye of corporate Japan during a hunt for overseas investment opportunities in the mid-1990s. But a closer look at the investment landscape revealed political risks, and the Japanese pulled out.
China's largest metals trader, Sinosteel Group, saw something more – and bet on South Africa for the long haul.
The Wall Street Journal 18/12/2010
Wen Arrives in Pakistan for Three-Day Visit
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan—Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao arrived in Pakistan Friday for a three-day visit aimed at expanding economic and defense ties, while at the same time assuaging concerns over Beijing's recent friendliness with India.
PBOC Governor: Interest Rates to Gradually Liberalize
BEIJING—People's Bank of China Gov. Zhou Xiaochuan said Friday that China will gradually make interest rates more market-determined and that interest rate liberalization can improve the allocation of resources, adding to calls from officials for a shake-up of China's rigid interest rate regime.
Interest rates should reflect the needs of macroeconomic control and China should create conditions for market reforms of interest rates, which will make monetary policy more effective, Zhou said at a financial forum. He also said he hopes companies that meet certain standards can receive more interest-rate pricing power earlier than ...
China Daily 18/12/2010
China, Pakistan PMs hold talks to cement ties
ISLAMABAD - Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani held talks Friday to deepen their countries' bilateral strategic cooperative partnership and cooperation in various fields.
At the beginning of their talks, Wen extended appreciation for the hospitality of the Pakistani people for his visit. He said the two nations enjoy a profound friendship that has laid a solid foundation for bilateral relations.
"I hope to tell the world through my visit that China and Pakistan have been good friends, and we will continue to do so in the future," Wen said.
China uses pork reserves to rein in price
BEIJING -- China has put on the market state pork reserves to stabilize prices and ensure adequate supplies during the upcoming New Year Festival, an unnamed official with the Ministry of Commerce said Friday.
China to boost interest-rate liberalization
BEIJING - China's central bank governor, Zhou Xiaochuan, said Friday that the country would promote liberalization of interest rates during the next five years.
China will make "obvious progress" in interest-rate liberalization during the 12th Five-Year Plan period, which runs from 2011 to 2015, said Zhou, head of the People's Bank of China (PBOC), at a financial forum in Beijing.
Pricing was a key part in the liberalization of interest rates, Zhou said.
Lenders with the best ability to monitor risks should be given more freedom to set rates according to market conditions, ahead of those without sufficient ability to monitor risks, Zhou said.
PBOC vows interest rate prudency
Central bank chief highlights measures to 'slow down the mulitplication of money'
BEIJING - People's Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan said that the nation needs to take more measures to solve its problem of liquidity-driven inflation but warned that the bank should be cautious in hiking interest rates.
"Apart from soaking up excessive liquidity (through raising reserve requirement), we can also take measures to slow down the multiplication of money," he said, without elaborating on specific methods.
Zhou added that the government is taking a very prudent approach toward raising interest rates given the unstable and rapidly changing global economic situation.
The Wall Street Journal 17/12/2010
Report: China May Be Shifting on Land Use
From redistribution to radical collectivization and back again, massive changes in land use policy have been part and parcel of Chinese politics for the better part of a century. In recent decades, however, the government has been remarkably consistent, holding tight to a land-use policy built around the goal of agricultural self-sufficiency and mandating that any arable land given over to the country’s growing cities be replaced with reclaimed farmland elsewhere.
Rapidly expanding mega-cities like Chongqing have been challenging the central government’s efforts to balance urbanization with agricultural self-sufficiency.
S&P Upgrades China's Credit Rating
BEIJING—Standard & Poor's Ratings Services upgraded China's sovereign-debt rating, citing its large foreign reserves, strong fiscal position and positive growth outlook.
S&P raised its rating on China's sovereign debt to double-A-minus from A-plus, ...
The New York Times 17/12/2010
In India, Chinese Leader Pushes Trade
NEW DELHI — China and India set ambitious new economic targets on Thursday by pledging to nearly double their trade in the next five years to $100 billion annually. But the two Asian giants appeared to make little progress on tough geopolitical differences over Pakistan, terrorism and their disputed border.
Caixin Online 17/12/2010
U.S.-China Meeting Ends with Progress on Beef Imports
The bilateral trade talks did not cover China's exchange rate policy
(Washington) -- China has agreed to gradually lift the ban on U.S. beef imports and increase the purchase of U.S.-made software in the recently concluded U.S.-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade.
China's Vice Premier Wang Qishan, who led the Chinese delegation, said in Washington that the two sides will carry out an array of cooperation in agriculture, energy, environmental protection and intellectual property rights.
The Age 17/12/2010
China gets debt rating upgrade on growth prospects
Standard & Poor’s on Thursday raised China’s long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings to ‘‘AA-’’ from ‘‘A+’’ based on a strong balance sheet and ‘‘exceptional growth prospects’’.
The international debt ratings agency said China’s long-term ratings were stable.
Asia Times Online 16/12/2010
China bid wins BP's Pakistan assets
By Syed Fazl-e-Haider
China-based United Energy Group has trumped bids by Pakistan's leading oil companies with a winning US$775 million offer to secure energy assets in the country from BP, which is raising cash to pay for the disastrous Gulf of Mexico oil spill earlier this year.
Taipei flops in trade-pact race
By Jens Kastner
The long-awaited free-trade pact between Washington and Seoul will give South Korean businesses a sharp edge over their Taiwanese counterparts, outgunning the economic pact Taiwan and China reached months earlier. Yet Taipei looks reluctant to deal with the problems it now faces.
Pipeline project a new Silk Road
By M K Bhadrakumar
Despite what leaked American cables said, Turkmen President Gurbanguli Berdymukhamedov is nobody's fool. He was the key figure behind the signing on Saturday of an agreement on a new pipeline project. The deal is a coup for Turkmenistan, and has important benefits for Pakistan, India and the United States - and Afghanistan.
Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar was a career diplomat in the Indian Foreign Service. His assignments included the Soviet Union, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Germany, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Kuwait and Turkey.
Kaixin Oped – Oil Pipelines as the New Silk Road. That is a very good analogy.
In ancient times China reached out to Europe through the Silk Roads. In the 21st Century China will reach out to Middle Europe through the New Silk roads.
Along the Pipelines will spread investment and immigration.
Pipelines also take away the strategic problems of shipping oil. Though, of course, they bring their own strategic problems.
Tango time for the dragon and elephant
By Indrajit Basu
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's trip to India is taking on greater geopolitical significance as the world focuses on Beijing's relations with other Asian nations. While the economic potential of improved political ties between the world's two rising stars is vast, this will require an easing of their increasingly fraught rivalry over resources and borders.
Caixin Online 16/12/2010
Experts Say Hot Money Should not Deter Interest Rate Hike
Market analysts say that the People's Bank of China has fewer options to tackle inflation after the reserve requirement ratio has already been raised to 18.5 percent
(Beijing) - China's central bank has raised the reserve requirement ratio six times this year but fallen short of raising interest rates for fear of "hot money" inflows and a slowdown in exports.
The Wall Street Journal 16/12/2010
China's Wen Pushes India Trade
NEW DELHI—Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, on his first trip here in five years, sought Wednesday to turn attention away from his country's fractious ties with India toward a more positive development: The burgeoning trade relationship between the two fast-growing Asian economies.
Kaixin OpEd – India & China; Russia & China – the world is becoming an interesting place.
Who would live in interesting times?
McDonald's Plans Major Expansion in China
BEIJING—McDonald's Corp. is planning its biggest expansion in China as the chain faces mounting challenges from competitors and higher food costs.
Kaixin OpEd - What does that say about discretionary spending in China?
Vietnam Battles Dark Side of Boom
HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam—At a time when many emerging markets are trying to stem a destabilizing rise in their local currencies against the dollar, up-and-coming Vietnam is grappling with a rather different problem: Residents can't get enough of the U.S. greenback, as their own currency, the dong, threatens to spiral lower.
Moody's Investors Service signaled the extent of the problems Wednesday, downgrading its rating on Vietnamese government debt to B1 from Ba3 in part because of the downward pressure on Vietnam's currency and worsening inflation. It also maintained a negative outlook on the country's ratings, citing the mounting debt ...
Kaixin Oped – Vietnam can listen to a lecture by Uncle Sam about its problems and how it should let the free market work its magic and how it needs the $US to do business with the world.
OR
It can form a strong relationship with China and try a new approach to economic management and trade using Yuan.
Good Old Uncle Sam of the 20th Century with his GFC v China of the 21st Century and stellar growth.
China Again Big Buyer of Treasurys
WASHINGTON—China boosted its holdings of U.S. Treasurys to its largest position in nearly a year during October as it remained the largest foreign holder of U.S. government debt, the Treasury Department said.
Kaixin Oped – Kicking your bank manager in the googlees is not conducive to a healthy and continuing relationship.
Perhaps this is very astute of China.
The more treasuries China holds the more those treasuries resemble Uncle Sam’s googlees.
China Concedes Reality, Raises Inflation Target
BEIJING—China's government said it will raise its inflation target for 2011 to 4% from this year's 3%, acknowledging the upward momentum of consumer prices despite a series of recent tightening measures.
The New York Times 16/12/2010
U.S. Called Vulnerable to Rare Earth Shortages
HONG KONG — The United States is too reliant on China for minerals crucial to new clean energy technologies, making the American economy vulnerable to shortages of materials needed for a range of green products — from compact fluorescent light bulbs to electric cars to giant wind turbines.
A Chinese Automaker Secures a Foothold in Europe
BAHOVITSA, BULGARIA — Sometime next summer, a brand-new assembly plant here should begin turning out the first Chinese-branded cars in the European Union.
China Daily 16/12/2010
US high-tech export curbs 'cause of deficit'
BEIJING - Restrictions on high-tech exports to China, rather than the Chinese currency, are the "major source" of the US trade deficit with China, the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said on Wednesday.
The ministry said that China will bring the issue to the negotiating table during the two-day China-US Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade to be held in Washington.
The ministry also said it would give a commitment to boost imports to help balance trade next year.
Earlier this week, two US senators said they are seeking legislation to place high duties on Chinese exporters in response to what they call China's "undervalued currency".
The US also said it will raise the currency issue during the China-US meeting on Wednesday.
"The US politicians' frequent arguments of proposing legislation is based on inaccurate analysis and non-objective evaluation," said ministry spokesman Yao Jian.
The major reason behind the trade imbalance is "US export control", Yao said.
It is estimated that only 7 percent of China's high-tech imports, in terms of value, are from the US.
Many economists also echoed the ministry's view.
Kaixin OpEd - This is a key issue in the Yuan Debate.
See Kaixin's - YUAN REVALUATION & INTERNATIONALISATION
VIDEO - Interview with US think tank
The United States and China are at a point to establish a new collaborative relationship to deal with the possible conflicts emerging between the two big economies which happen to be two big militaries in the world, said US think tank analysts during interview by China Daily.
China GDP to hit 37t yuan mark in 2010
BEIJING - A leading Chinese government think tank in a research report issued Wednesday predicted that China's economy in 2010 would grow 10 percent year-on-year with gross domestic product (GDP) reaching 37 trillion yuan ($5.56 trillion).
In its annual Blue Book of China's Society, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) noted that in 2010 China had made great efforts to keep its macro economic policy consistent and its economy had begun to recover.
China's GDP stood at over 34 trillion yuan with an economic growth of 9.1 percent in 2009.
Income levels continued to rise steadily among both urban and rural residents in 2010, while the income growth rate of rural residents was forecast at over 8 percent, outpacing the rate of their urban counterparts, the blue book said.
On life quality of Chinese residents, the book said overall life satisfaction of urban and rural residents was declining and people were less satisfied with their economic status, occupation and social security.
Further, migrant workers who belong to the "80s Generation" were found to work longer but earned less than those migrant workers born before the 1980s.
Migrant workers who were born in the 1980s accounted for 45.6 percent of the Chinese migrant worker population, according to the book.
China continues its subsidies for rural home appliance buyers
BEIJING - The Chinese government signed contracts with bid-winning home appliance manufacturing enterprises Wednesday, paving the way for offering subsidies to rural home appliance buyers next year.
According to the contracts, 15,290 models of televisions, refrigerators, washing machines, mobile phones, electromagnetic cookers, microwave ovens, air conditioners, computers and water heaters can enjoy government subsidies for their sales in the countryside.
Kaixin OpEd - A practical measure to boost domestic consumption and open new markets for Chinese manufacturers.
World is big enough for China and India to grow
NEW DELHI / BEIJING - China and India's future prosperity lies in partnership not rivalry, Premier Wen Jiabao said on Wednesday, promising to redress a yawning trade imbalance between the rapidly growing Asian giants.
Wen, making his first visit to India in five years, came as the head of a 400-strong delegation of Chinese business leaders seeking to boost trade ties and ease tensions in a relationship long marked by mutual suspicion.
"China and India are partners in cooperation, not rivals in competition," Wen told a business forum at the start of his three-day visit, during which the two countries hope to sign trade agreements worth close to $16 billion.
Unlike the package US President Barack Obama and French President Nicolas Sarkozy signed during their visits to India earlier this year, which both exceeded $10 billion, the agreements with China will leave most of the money in India, instead of asking New Delhi to buy foreign goods, a source at the Foreign Ministry told China Daily.
The source, who declined to be named, said the deals will largely focus on investment, the construction of infrastructure and the purchase of Indian products.
China is India's largest trading partner. The value of bilateral trade is expected to reach $60 billion this year, a 30-fold increase since 2000.
Yet Wen said this is insufficient, adding that he and his Indian counterpart, Manmohan Singh, will discuss substantially increasing bilateral trade during his visit.
He called on New Delhi to discuss expanding cooperation in the areas of tourism, energy and green technology.
Premier Wen Jiabao talks with teachers and students at the Tagore International School in New Delhi on Wednesday during his three-day visit to India.
China vows to be responsible in rare earth co-op
BEIJING -- A senior Chinese official said Wednesday that the country would act responsibly in international cooperation in rare earth exploration and ensuring the basic demands for the minerals are met.
Inflation, prices top list of public concerns
BEIJING - High inflation and soaring housing prices have contributed to growing public dissatisfaction with their quality of life, the country's top think tank said on Wednesday.
Job satisfaction for urban residents, and confidence in social welfare programs, dipped to their lowest levels since 2006, according to the 2011 Blue Book of China's Society released by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS).
The findings for urban residents were mirrored in their rural counterparts, with job satisfaction, concerns over the economy and social welfare at their worst in four years, according to the survey.
People's satisfaction with prices hits 11-year low
BEIJING - The proportion of Chinese citizens satisfied with price levels has sunk to an 11-year low despite government efforts to rein in prices, the People's Bank of China, China's central bank, said Wednesday.
The central bank conducted the 20,000-respondent survey during the fourth quarter in 50 cities across China.
China's wage growth overestimated: Experts
BEIJING - The country's 2008 and 2009 wage growth may have been overestimated, a senior economist with the International Labor Office (ILO) said on Wednesday.
China has surpassed many countries in wage increases since the financial crisis caused some countries to experience negative growth, a new ILO wage report said.
Land battles most dire rural issue: Report
BEIJING - Land disputes have emerged as rural China's most volatile social problem, as forced acquisitions have been generating growing social unrest, China's top think tank said in its annual report on Wednesday.
The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) said in its 2011 Blue Book of China's Society that 73 percent of the petitions and complaints farmers filed are related to land.
BEIJING - Land disputes have emerged as rural China's most volatile social problem, as forced acquisitions have been generating growing social unrest, China's top think tank said in its annual report on Wednesday.
The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) said in its 2011 Blue Book of China's Society that 73 percent of the petitions and complaints farmers filed are related to land.
Foreign investment in China up 38% in Nov
SHANGHAI - Foreign direct investment in China jumped more than 38 percent from a year earlier in November as businesses sought to tap into the country's fast growth.
Ikea to double stores in China
Construction commences on Swedish retail giant's second Beijing location
BEIJING - Swedish home-furnishing giant Ikea Group is on track to expand and upgrade its business across China, with plans to more than double its store numbers on the mainland by 2015.
"We are aiming to have 16 to 18 stores on the Chinese mainland by 2015 in a combination of first-tier and second-tier cities," said Gillian Drakeford, Ikea China's retail president.
After entering China in 1998, Ikea now has eight stores in eight cities across the country.
Liquor prices soar on high year-end demand
SHANGHAI/BEIJING - As the Chinese New Year draws near, the demand for high-end Chinese liquor is soaring.
Well-known brands, including Kweichow Moutai and Wuliangye, have started raising liquor prices, but analysts said frequent surges will fuel market speculation.
According to Yao the reason that the current retail price of a standard bottle of Moutai has exceeded more than 800 yuan - the maximum price Kweichou Moutai allows its retailers to charge - is a reflection of the laws of supply and demand.
Yao said the current price rise is no different from previous years, "the pre-New Year period is usually a peak season for liquor sales", he explained. Wuliangye Group Co Ltd also denied similar reports.
China Daily 15/12/2010
Export tax to be raised on rare earth
Move aims to protect environment, resources and regulate industry
BEIJING - Taxes will be increased on rare earth exports starting next year, the Ministry of Finance said on Tuesday, as China, the largest producer of the precious minerals, moves to protect the environment and its resources as well as regulate exports.
China has about 30 percent of global rare earth reserves, but produces 97 percent of the world's total. It reduced export quotas for 2010 to 60 percent of 2009 levels, causing alarm among importing countries, such as Japan, about supplies.
The market has yet to feel the impact of the announced tax adjustment.
Economic ties top agenda of Wen's visit to INDIA: ambassador
BEIJING - Premier Wen Jiabao's visit to India will give a vision for the future development of bilateral relations with economic cooperation the top focus for next year, said Indian Ambassador to China S. Jaishankar.
"I am confident that we will see a very productive visit," he told China Daily in a recent exclusive interview ahead of Wen's three-day visit to India from Dec 15 to 17.
"The premier's visit provides an opportunity to assess the progress in the India-China relationship and to give a vision for its future growth," he said.
The ambassador said there has been much ground for satisfaction considering the dramatic changes in bilateral ties since Wen's last visit in 2005.
"We are engaging each other more broadly and positively than ever before. The economic relationship in particular is booming," he said.
"As rising powers, it is also important that we coordinate closely on global issues," he added.
About 400 Chinese business leaders will accompany Wen to India, and deals worth some $20 billion in finance, infrastructure, energy, telecommunication and pharmaceuticals are likely to be finalized, Indian newspaper Daily News and Analysis reported.
China, US start trade talks in Washington
WASHINGTON - China and the United States on Tuesday kicked off their annual trade talks in Washington DC.
Visiting Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan co-chaired the 21st Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade (JCCT) meeting with US Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and Trade Representative Ron Kirk.
High-ranking officials of both countries started their talks in small groups on Tuesday afternoon.
The plenary session of the 21st JCCT meeting will be held on Wednesday. In addition to talks on investment, trade, intellectual property right and other issues, it is expected that the two sides will sign a number of bilateral agreements on governmental cooperation at the talks later that day.
The JCCT began in 1983 as a platform for both countries to promote trade and address issues of mutual concern.
The 20th JCCT was held in east China's Hangzhou City on October 28-29, 2009.
About China-US Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade
The China-US Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade (JCCT) was established in 1983 as a government-to-government consultative mechanism for resolving trade concerns and pursuing bilateral commercial opportunities.
China central bank highlights stable prices
BEIJING -- The People's Bank of China, or the central bank, will make further efforts to maintain prices stable after China's inflation rate hit a 28-month high, according to reports on Monday.
The central bank will analyze global economic developments and balance the relations between stable and relatively fast economic development, economic restructuring and managing the expected inflation, according to a discussion held during the central bank's meeting.
Why made-in-China goods cost more
Theoretically speaking, products made on the mainland should cost less in the domestic market. So, why do they cost more?
China to keep new loan target unchanged
China will probably target about 7.5 trillion yuan ($1.1 trillion) in new loans next year, level with its 2010 target, Reuters reported Tuesday, citing China Securities Journal, an indication that policy could be slightly looser than expected.
"The Chinese economy is very big now and a target of 7.5 trillion yuan in new loans will not trigger all-round inflation," the newspaper quoted sources as saying.
The New York Times 15/12/2010
To Conquer Wind Power, China Writes the Rules
TIANJIN, China — Competing for China’s lucrative business means playing by house rules that are often stacked in Beijing’s favor.
Kaixin OpEd – And America’s rules are open, fair, transparent and utterly, utterly un-biased.
Well ….. America thinks so.
Russian Exchange to Swap Rubles and Renminbi
MOSCOW — Russia and China are poised to take a small but symbolic step in their expanding economic relationship, a move that in the long term could make the dollar less relevant to business between the two nations.
On Wednesday, a Moscow securities exchange is scheduled to open direct trading between the Chinese currency, the renminbi, and the Russian ruble.
Kaixin OpEd – It’s interesting that Russia and China are back together again.
In Kaixin’s opinion, the reason America established relations with China in the 1970’s was to stop the USSR and Communist China forming an alliance.
China has used access to America’s markets to build it wealth base.
America defeated the USSR – the reasons are various.
Russia embraced capitalism, but has found it not quite what anyone expected.
Russia and China are natural allies.
A touch ironic, really, isn’t it ….
See Kaixin's - YUAN REVALUATION & INTERNATIONALISATION
Caixin Online
Bank of China Raises 100 Bln Yuan in 2010
Four large banks are set to finish their refinancing plans to boost their capital base
(Beijing) - Hong Kong and Shanghai-listed Bank of China has met its 2010 refinancing target plan following the issuance of 40 billion yuan of convertible bonds and 60 billion yuan of A-shares and H-shares.
The Wall Street Journal 15/12/2010
China Raises Inflation Target
BEIJING—China's government said it will raise its inflation target for 2011 to 4% from this year's 3%, acknowledging the upward momentum of consumer prices despite a series of recent tightening measures.
Caixin Online 14/12/2010
China Prioritizes Anti-Inflation in 2011
November's record-high consumer prices indicated the urgency to fight inflation
(Beijing) - Reining in soaring prices has become the No. 1 priority of the Chinese government for 2011 as inflation continues to erode the savings of low-income families and inflate asset bubbles.
Sinopec Buys Oil, Gas Assets in Argentina
Sinopec has announced that its subsidiary signed a US$ 2.45 billion agreement with Occidental Petroleum for its Argentinean assets
(Beijing) - Chinese oil major China Petrochemical Corp. (Sinopec) said it has agreed to take over the Argentinean subsidiary of U.S. oil company Occidental Petroleum Corp. (OXY), marking Sinopec's first entrance to the oil and gas market in the South American country.
The Wall Street Journal 14/12/2010
Chinese Accountants: No Cause for Panic?
The news that Hong Kong’s stock exchange will start allowing locally listed Chinese companies to start using Chinese accounting standards and mainland auditors might raise a few eyebrows.
China’s Consumers: One Click Away?
It’s time for retailers in Asia to go online, according to a study released Monday by PwC.
China, Norway Strike Oil Deal Despite Tensions
BEIJING—China Oilfield Services Ltd, a unit of one of China's largest oil companies, has signed a long-term oil drilling contract with Norway's Statoil ASA, demonstrating that Beijing's fury over the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to jailed dissident Liu Xiaobo may not stop major commercial deals.
Details of the contract were posted on the COSL website on Dec. 10, the same day the Nobel prize was awarded. Statoil also announced the award, in a little-noticed release on its website, the day before the Oslo ceremony. ...
Kaixin OpEd – Perhaps it says more about Norway. It was Norway who turned the Nobel Prize into a stand on what Norway regarded as an important principle.
It was an intensely political and aggressive act. China had no choice but to respond and voice its anger at such a political move.
The oil negotiations would have been in play long before the Nobel Committee bleeding hearts club announced its move.
Norway’s strong principled stand caved in to economic expediency in remarkably quick time.
It is best to remember, it was Norway that took the stand in the first place, not China.
China Moves to Shore Up Ties With India
China's premier is making his first visit to India in five years, trying to stabilize a crucial relationship as New Delhi forges closer defense and commercial ties with the U.S. and several Asian countries, who in turn are anxious to contain Beijing's growing clout across the Asia-Pacific region.
Cambodian PM to Sign 15 Deals During China Visit
BEIJING—Cambodia's prime minister kicked off a visit to China on Monday, where he was expected to sign more than a dozen agreements in areas such as energy and infrastructure, emphasizing China's growing presence in the region's less-developed countries.
WTO Backs U.S. in Tire Dispute With China
WASHINGTON—The World Trade Organization Monday sided with the U.S. over tariffs the Obama administration imposed last year on Chinese tires, in a high-profile case likely to stoke tensions in coming U.S.-China trade talks.
China Pledges to Do More to Fight Inflation
Statement Feeds Wide Expectations for Higher Rates and Tighter Credit
BEIJING—China's top leadership pledged to do more to combat inflation, as new figures showed consumer prices rising at the fastest rate in more than two years.
China Daily 14/12/2010
Merging cultures and companies
The challenges faced when businesses go international
BEIJING - If you google Sinopec, the name of China's largest oil product producer, most of the results would be related to stories of its take-over moves abroad, as Asian oil companies accelerate their push into other continents.
While beating international big names and securing one international contract after another, however, Sinopec has had to cope with many challenges that those who only eye its glowing acquisition and merger records would have ignored.
The latest oil contract that hit the headlines, reported on Friday by the Wall Street Journal, involved two blocks in Venezuela, together with local national oil producer Petroleos de Venezuela SA. The Sinopec Group did not confirm the report.
"Sinopec's overseas expansion started five or six years ago and it has accelerated," said Zhang Zhiguo, deputy director of the group's general administrative office. "But we are in dire need of qualified professionals as expansion continues."
Adi Karev, Deloitte's global leader for oil and gas, agreed. "Africa, South America and Canada are good places for the Chinese companies to go and invest, but there is already a shortage of talent in the industry. Engineers, scientists, analysts and technicians are in demand, which is also the problem the Chinese oil and gas companies need to solve," he said.
Chinese managers must learn to adapt to the typical Western style of management. "Being a top manager dealing with European colleagues, I must be truly open in discussing questions with them," Zhang of Addax said, using English. "And I show to them I care for them and care for the growth of the company."
Foreign banks boost expansion in China in post-crisis era
BEIJING - Foreign banks have strengthened their expansion efforts in China, which remains one of the fastest growing economies in the world, as the global economic meltdown is ebbing.
Foreign banks began a new round of expansion in China this year, two years after the outbreak of the global financial crisis triggered by the sub-prime crisis in the United States.
More policies to curb inflation
'Stable, relatively fast growth' will be maintained
BEIJING - China vowed on Sunday to increase efforts to combat inflation while maintaining "stable and relatively fast" economic growth, as consumer inflation hit a 28-month high of 5.1 percent in November.
"The priority is to actively and properly handle the relations between maintaining steady and relatively fast economic growth, economic restructuring and managing inflation expectations," according to a statement released after the high-profile Central Economic Work Conference.
China, India to sign trade deals amid Wen's visit
BEIJING - China and India are expected to sign a series of economic and trade agreements during Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's visit to India, a Chinese trade official confirmed at a press briefing Monday.
Liang Wenzhao, deputy director of the Department of Asian Affairs of China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), said the bilateral cooperation agreements would cover trade, renewable energy, infrastructure and finance.
China, Cambodia ink deals during PM's official visit
BEIJING - Beijing and Phnom Penh on Monday inked more than a dozen deals in areas such as infrastructure and finance, celebrating the establishment of their comprehensive, strategic and cooperative partnership.
China vows to enhance bilateral ties with Israel
BEIJING - China and Israel should boost their bilateral relationship, as well as inter-military links, said Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie here Monday.
While talking with Israeli Navy Commander Admiral Eliezer Marom, Liang said Sino-Israeli ties had developed smoothly since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1992.
"As the two countries' political mutual trust deepens, bilateral trade links also increase," he said.
Liang said China appreciated Israel's long-term and firm adherence to the one-China policy and attached great importance to developing friendly relations with the country.
Marom said Israel and China share the same views and values on many issues. Israel would like to work with China to enhance cooperation between the two nations and the two armed forces, he added.
Kaixin OpEd – Now that’s what Kaixin calls a strategic geo-political move!
China aids Pakistan post-disaster reconstruction
BEIJING - China will continue to support Pakistan's post-disaster reconstruction, especially in agriculture and transport infrastructure, officials in Beijing said Monday.
"Pakistan suffered devastating floods this year. The Chinese people sympathized with the Pakistani people and provided substantial aid as soon as it could to help in disaster relief efforts and reconstruction," Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Hu Zhengyue said during a press briefing ahead of Premier Wen Jiabao's official visit to Pakistan.
Public hospital reform meets difficulties
BEIJING - As an integral part of China's ongoing health care reform, the country has assigned 47 cities so far to spearhead the reform of government-run hospitals to offer more equitable and efficient medical services.
Deputy health minister Ma Xiaowei said 16 of the cities - including six in central China, six in the east China and four in west China - were selected by the central government in February this year.
Kaixin OpEd – Putting money aside to pay for health costs, particularly in old age is a major issue in China.
Make health more affordable and you free up savings to be injected into the domestic economy.
Shanxi gears up economic transformation
BEIJING - China's top economic planning body said Monday it has approved the establishment of a "pilot economic transformation zone" in North China's coal-rich Shanxi province to diversify the region's resource-based economy.
The goal of the zone was to transform the conventional industries and strike a balance among the agricultural, industrial and tertiary sectors in Shanxi, said Peng Sen, Vice Minister of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) at a press conference.
The zone was also designed to help Shanxi achieve green and sustainable development, bring about equal public services for rural and urban people, and set an example for other central and western regions, he said.
"Shanxi has powered the economic development of other regions, but with heavy economic, social and environmental consequences," said Niu Renliang, Vice Governor of Shanxi.
In the past 60 years, Shanxi had produced 12 billion tons of coal, of which 75 percent had been transported to other regions, said Niu.
The coal-based economy had not brought prosperity to the people of Shanxi, where the urban per capita disposable income and rural net income ranked lower than 20th among China's 31 provincial-level areas, Niu said.
This had also resulted in Shanxi's over-dependence on external demand. "During the Asian financial crisis, Shanxi's economy faced great difficulties. In the international financial crisis in 2009, Shanxi was the slowest growing regional economy in China."
Shanxi also suffered from an unsustainable industrial structure. "The sectors of coal and coke manufacturing, power generation and metallurgy accounted for more than 85 percent of its total economy," said Niu.
Other targets for the zone included eliminating outdated production capacity, repairing environmental damage, and improving work safety, said Niu.
Energy consumption per 10,000 yuan ($1,502) of gross domestic product (GDP) in Shanxi and its sulfur dioxide emissions were both more than double the national levels, Niu said.
For every ton of coal extracted in the province, 2.48 tons of water was polluted, and coal mining had resulted in 20,000 square kilometers of land at risk of subsidence, one eighth of the province's total area, he said.
With an annual coal production of 600 million to 700 million tons, Shanxi also reported frequent mine accidents, said Peng, the NDRC Vice Minister.
"Due to years of effort, the work safety situation in Shanxi has drastically improved," said Niu.
Last year, the number of deaths from work accidents was 1,018 fewer than 2008, and the deaths from coal mine accidents were 457 fewer in the first 11 months this year from the same period of 2008, Niu said.
In the province, the number of deaths from producing every million tons of coal fell to 0.19 for the 11 months this year, from 0.9 for the whole of 2005, he said.
In transforming its economy, Shanxi would also work to develop strategic emerging industries, upgrade conventional industries, and raise the efficiency of the exploration and utilization of the conventional energy, said Peng, adding the process would be challenging.
Kaixin OpEd - A nip there, a tuck here and pretty soon you have the world's leading economy.
China Daily 13/12/2010
More policies to curb inflation
'Stable, relatively fast growth' will be maintained
BEIJING - China vowed on Sunday to increase efforts to combat inflation while maintaining "stable and relatively fast" economic growth, as consumer inflation hit a 28-month high of 5.1 percent in November.
"The priority is to actively and properly handle the relations between maintaining steady and relatively fast economic growth, economic restructuring and managing inflation expectations," according to a statement released after the high-profile Central Economic Work Conference.
China vows to ensure stable economic growth
BEIJING - China pledged Sunday to enhance and improve macro-economic regulation to ensure stable and healthy economic development next year, a statement released after the annual Central Economic Work Conference said.
Next year's macro-regulation should basically be proactive, stable, prudent and flexible, the statement said.
The focus will be better handling the relationship between stable and relatively fast economic development, economic restructuring and inflation expectations in an active and stable way, it said.
China's inflation highest in over two years
BEIJING - China's consumer price index of November rose by 5.1 percent year on year, the fastest clip in 28 months, giving rise to greater concern over tightening measures from both consumers and analysts.
Tightening policy to be outlined in conference
Analysts predict interest rate, and reserve ratio hikes in pipeline
BEIJING - With the three-day Central Economic Work Conference that kicked off on Dec 10 setting the tone for economic policymaking in 2011, the nation is preparing to tighten its monetary policy next year with more interest rate hikes to battle rising inflation, analysts said.
China's foreign trade to top $4t in 2015
BEIJING - China's foreign trade is expected to grow to $4 trillion in 2015, from $2.21 trillion in 2009, says the head of the China Chamber of International Commerce (CCOIC).
"However, the large trade volume doesn't mean its quality is high. China must accelerate the pace of transforming itself from a big manufacturer to a strong one," said Wan Jifei, president of the CCOIC.
Chinese brands accounted for only about 20 percent of the country's total export volume, and the unreasonable industrial structure was putting heavy burden on the environment, said Wan.
"During the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015) period, China should work to reduce exports of low value-added goods and improve the structure of imports," he said at the annual CCOIC conference in Beijing on Dec 10.
Wan urged Chinese exporters to develop "green trade" and pay more attention to the effect of the emerging carbon tariffs which might become a new trade barrier in the next five years.
EU experts: China needs adaptability
BRUSSELS / LONDON - Beijing is being urged to be mindful of the volatility of US dollars, the European debt crisis, mounting trade protectionism and even growing tensions in East Asia when ironing out next year's economic development agenda.
While continuously expecting China's steady economic expansion to be a locomotive for the European economy, European experts suggested that China's decision makers should consider "room for maneuvers" in advance, and well accommodate these "external variables" while putting domestic inflation control as top priority.
"Apart from trade protectionism and currency wars, I am quite concerned about the tensions in East Asia," Giles Merritt, secretary general of Brussels-based think tank Friends of Europe told China Daily while Beijing held its annual three-day, closed-door Central Economic Work Conference, which ended on Sunday.
Sino-US ties not a 'zero-sum' game
BEIJING - Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi has urged some United States politicians to rule out the mindset of viewing ties between China and the United States as "a zero-sum game", saying it is "an outdated stereotyped notion".
In an interview on Friday with several major Chinese media including the People's Daily and China Daily, Yang urged the US to respect - and not try to change - the development road taken by the Chinese, and refrain from imposing its will on China.
Yang said Sino-US ties should be cooperative and win-win, instead of a zerosum game.
Price fixers face harsher penalties
BEIJING - Chinese vendors who collude to fix prices will face fines of up to 5 million yuan ($751,880) under new penalties to control prices.
The new penalties, released by China's State Council, or the Cabinet, on Dec 10 overturn the previous 1-million-yuan maximum fine for collusion to manipulate prices.
The Wall Street Journal 13/12/2010
Beijing Again Tries to Cool Economy as Exports Rise
BEIJING—China raised banks' reserve requirements for the third time in a month Friday, acting to cool its economy as inflation topped 5%, exports gained sharply and the real-estate market continued to pick up.
The New York Times
China’s Inflation Hit a 28-Month High in November
By DAVID BARBOZA
SHANGHAI — The booming Chinese economy is showing signs of overheating, according to a raft of new data, and that could spell trouble for this nation’s growth early next year.
China’s Army of Graduates Struggles for Jobs
Villagers who will work in China’s factories are in demand, but many college graduates seeking professional jobs find their value plunging.
A neighborhood in Beijing where cheap rents have attracted hundreds of young college graduates from all over China.
The Australian 13/12/2010
China won't 'blindly' pursue growth
BEIJING says the nation must not "blindly" pursue a high growth rate, but rather should prioritise tasks such as stabilising prices.
China should "pay more attention to the quality and results of growth, pay more attention to stimulating employment and improving people's lives," the government said in a statement issued through the official Xinhua News Agency.
The Age 13/12/2010
China's inflation gamble
China’s avoidance of a follow-up to its October interest-rate increase even as inflation accelerates risks a more abrupt response next year that restrains the fastest-growing major economy.
China Daily 11/12/2010
Rise in imports helps shrink trade surplus
BEIJING - China's trade surplus in November shrank compared to the previous month but was still around $23 billion, with imports and exports both hitting record highs.
Economists said the nation's surplus is likely to go on shrinking in the long term, even though it may remain above $20 billion for a while, suggesting China should resist pressure from some countries to allow its currency to rise sharply.
The latest figures were in line with policymakers' efforts to ensure the country's economic growth is balanced and were released as the three-day Central Economic Work Conference kicked off on Friday. The session will set the tone for next year's economic policymaking.
The nation has decided to make its foreign trade more balanced with more measures taken to increase imports. Top commerce officials expect the trade surplus to fall next year, which analysts said will help alleviate outside pressure for yuan appreciation.
China to raise bank reserve requirement ratio
BEIJING - China's central bank said Friday that it would increase the bank reserve requirement ratio by 50 basis points from Dec 20.
It was the sixth such move this year to combat accelerating inflation, as China's consumer price index (CPI), a main gauge of inflation, hit 4.4 percent in October, the highest in 25 months.
Sinopec to buy plant in Argentina for $2.45b
BEIJING - China Petrochemical Group (Sinopec), China's largest oil refiner, said Friday it has agreed to purchase US Occidental Petroleum Corp's Argentinean subsidiary for $2.45 billion.
Sinopec said in a statement Friday the acquisition includes all assets of Occidental Argentina.
Occidental Argentina has gross proven and probable reserves of 393 million barrels of oil equivalent and an interest in 23 production and exploration concessions in Argentina, 19 of which the company operates, said the statement.
Occidental Argentina's production from 22 producing concessions totaled more than 51,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day last year.
The purchase is Sinopec's first investment in the Argentina's oil and gas sector. The move, another step in Sinopec's internationalization, aims to secure Chinese oil supplies, according to the statement.
China's GDP tops Japan in Q3
China's economy again beat Japan's in the third quarter of this year, AFP reported on Dec 9.
China's nominal GDP amounted to $1.42 trillion during July to September, compared with Japan's $1.37 trillion, the report said, citing Japan's cabinet office in Tokyo.
China had already eclipsed Japan in the second quarter, as the latter was hit by cooling exports and flat domestic consumption in April-June, the report said.
However, Japan's nominal GDP for January-September was $3.96 trillion, while China's was $3.95 trillion, according to the report.
Japan remains more than 10 times richer than China in terms of per-capita GDP, the report said, citing the International Monetary Fund.
Prescription for cheaper medicine
BEIJING - The Chinese government on Thursday announced it will standardize the purchase of essential drugs at government-funded grassroots medical institutions to reduce people's financial burdens.
A statement on the central government website said new measures will ensure a transparent purchasing system of essential drugs, including the establishment of a nationwide market, price control of drugs under government supervision and restrictions on pharmaceutical firms.
"The 15 measurements aim to ensure high quality, reasonable prices and timely supply of drugs, and let people enjoy the benefits of the medical reform," said an unnamed leading official from the Medical Reform Office of the State Council.
Caixin Online 11/12/2010
China Raises Deposit Reserve Ratio
The People's Bank of China announced the sixth reserve requirement ratio this year.
(Beijing) –The People's Bank of China, the country's central bank, announced late December 10 on its website to raise deposit reserve ratio for financial institutions by 0.5 percentage point, as its latest effort to tighten liquidity and curb inflation.
The rise, which will take effect on December 20, is the sixth such kind of the year as concerns on inflation is growing in the country, following a November 19 central bank announcement to raise the ratio by 0.5 percentage points.
Two Trillion Yuan Bonanza for Local Platforms
Local government financing platforms will be eligible for a hefty percentage of next year's bank loans in China
A State Council circular six months ago urged government agencies nationwide to pay off debt, clean up local government financing platforms (LGFPs) and freeze city investment bond projects.
The directive followed an April decision by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) that closed the door to new applications for city investment bonds.
Beijing's directives, however, neither relieved local governments of their financial responsibilities, nor their need for cash.
Assertive Shougang Rings Alarm Bells in Perth
A board takeover by Chinese investors rocked Australia's fourth-largest iron miner, Mount Gibson, and all Perth
Mining interests in the Australian city of Perth are stewing over a major board shakeup at a local iron ore company that's tipped the scales in favor of a foreign investor who also happens to be one of China's largest steelmakers, Shougang.
As the dust settled, Shougang held full control of the board. Four of the remaining seven directors now represent the Chinese company.
Hydropower Slowly Rows Upstream in China
Despite advantages over other renewable sources, hydroelectric power development is slowing down
(Beijing) -- Hydropower projects shelved in response to environmental concerns and community relocation issues last year have resumed in recent months in western China.
But the bulk of the nation's planned hydroelectric dam projects are still on hold due to nagging cost gaps between hydro and traditional thermal power plants. Hydroelectric dams are expensive to build, and the industry says hydropower tariffs are too low.
The Age 11/12/2010
China's 'biggest bubble' to be pricked by trade spat: economist
China’s economy is history’s biggest bubble and may be headed for collapse, according to Richard Duncan, chief economist at Blackhorse Asset Management Pte. who predicted a credit boom would trigger a global recession.
“China has the greatest economic bubble in history,” said Duncan, author of “The Dollar Crisis” first published in 2003. “There’s a real risk it’s going to collapse in a Great Depression-style scenario.”
The New York Times 11/12/2010
China Raises Bank Reserve Limits Again
BEIJING (Reuters) — For the third time in about a month, China has ordered its banks to increase their reserves, another attempt to cool inflation and curb an increase in lending.
The Wall Street Journal 11/12/2010
A 546-Million-Ton Elephant in China’s Grain Silo
Jaw-dropping as this new record is, however, it also invites a fair bit of chin scratching.
The sustainability, or not, of China’s grain output matters because a shift in just a few percentage points in the country’s grain demand or output means millions of tons of shipments diverted from other parts of the world.
Kaixin OpEd - An important 'canary in the cage' article.
China Raises Reserve Requirements in Latest Cooling Effort
BEIJING—China raised banks' reserve requirements for the third time in a month Friday, taking another step to the cool its economy after new data showed a sharp increase in exports and a continued pickup in the property market.
Economists React: China Ups Reserve Requirement
China’s central bank announced Friday it was raising the required reserve ratio by 0.5 percentage point effective December 20—the third such hike in a month. Economists weigh in on the move:
Auto Sales Surge in China
BEIJING—China's automobile sales rose 26.9% in November from a year earlier, a Chinese industry group said, but growth is expected to slow sharply next year as the government phases out some incentives and considers measures to curb worsening traffic congestion.
China Daily 10/12/2010
Nov consumer confidence rebounds as govt fights inflation
BEIJING - The consumer confidence of Chinese bankcard holders rebounded slightly in November after the government introduced a range of steps to keep prices in check, according to an index released Thursday.
The Bankcard Consumer Confidence Index (BCCI), compiled by Xinhua News Agency and China UnionPay, a Chinese banking card industry association, stood at 85.86 in November, up 0.17 points from October.
China calls for 2011 end to Doha talks
Stalled WTO negotiations should reach conclusion by late next year
BEIJING - Despite global pessimism about the stagnation of the Doha Round of talks of the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Chinese Ministry of Commerce has appealed for their conclusion in 2011.
The ministry has also called for global politicians to show stronger political willpower to promote progress in the talks, which have been ongoing for nine years.
Exhibitors promote their products at the seventh China-ASEAN Expo in Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, in October. Trade between China and ASEAN surged after a free-trade agreement took effect on Jan 1.
Chinese tech companies soar in US debut
The shares of two companies considered to be China's YouTube and Amazon.com soared in their US debuts on Dec 8, as investors bet they could become dominant in a still-nascent market, Reuters reported.
Online video company Youku.com Inc's stock rose to $33.44, or 161 percent, above its IPO price in its first day of trading. The shares of online retailer E-Commerce China Dangdang Inc rose to $29.91, or 87 percent, above their IPO price -- the latest sign that investors are hungry for growth and eager to gain a foothold in China.
Chinese brands to receive protection
Enforcement powers needed as trademarks become global
BEIJING - China will redouble efforts to protect its trademarks overseas, as the world's largest manufacturer increasingly places its own branded products on the global market, the country's top industry and commerce administrator said on Thursday.
Chinese enterprises registered 11,000 trademarks overseas through the Madrid System for the International Registration of Marks - the primary system for registering trademarks in multiple jurisdictions throughout the world - from 1996 to the end of November.
The Wall Street Journal 10/12/2010
Bright Lights, Big Cities: A China GDP Alternative?
Even some top Chinese officials don’t seem to trust the economic figures published by local authorities. But what are the alternatives?
Disdaining GDP, many China economy-watchers prefer so-called physical indicators: simple measures like the amount of freight hauled over railroad tracks or how much electricity was sent down power lines. These things should roughly track the overall amount of activity in the economy, the thinking goes.
The New York Times 10/12/2010
Letter From China
Cost of Living Increasingly a Struggle for China's Poor
BEIJING — China’s poor are being hit hard as the cost of putting dinner on the table soars, sharpening resentment and highlighting a fast-growing gap between rich and poor.
China Daily 9/12/2010
Think tank offers plan for US-China relations
BEIJING - The United States and China are at a point to establish a new collaborative relationship to deal with the possible conflicts emerging between the two big economies, which happen to be the world’s two big militaries, said analysts from a US think tank.
"The basic idea is that we need to clear out some of the strategic mistrust …that has at its roots an imbalanced economic relationship that we seek to radically rebalance in a direct way by encouraging investment from China directly into the US economy," Thomas P.M. Barnett said on Monday in an exclusive interview with China Daily.
Barnett, chief analyst at US think tank Wikistrat, is in Beijing to promote the “Whyte-Barnett Solution,” a new China-US grand strategy proposal he proposed together with his partner, John Milligan-Whyte and Dai Min, heads of the Center for America-China Partnership, one of the first think tanks to combine US and Chinese perspectives.
Watch the VideoThink tank offers plan for US-China relations
The four-page proposal suggests specifically on the investment floor to encourage large Chinese direct investment into the US market.
"I think the key thing is… to suggest to the American public the win-win opportunity here that … Chinese companies going global doesn’t result in a zero-sum outcome for the West," Barnett explained, adding that “it represents a very positive and potentially a very tremendous large-scale infusion of capital into distressed companies in the US and elsewhere.”
He said that he believed China will be interested in that kind of rebalance, getting the “less useful path” of discussion on the value of RMB off the table.
VIDEO - Interview with US think tank
The United States and China are at a point to establish a new collaborative relationship to deal with the possible conflicts emerging between the two big economies which happen to be two big militaries in the world, said US think tank analysts during interview by China Daily.
Kaixin OpEd - Well worth seeing
Economy to expand by 10% in 2011
CASS predicts double-digit increase, and a 'moderate' inflation rate
BEIJING - China's economy will expand by 10 percent in 2011, and inflation will remain moderate with the consumer price index (CPI) rising 3.3 percent, a top think tank predicted on Tuesday.
The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) said in its annual Blue Book of China's Economy report that the economy will grow by 9.9 percent in 2010 and will retain relatively rapid growth, with the GDP growth rate reaching 10 percent in 2011.
The think tank also said that the intensity of the government's macroeconomic policies will remain stable, while the country's fixed-asset investment growth is likely to slow to 20 percent in 2011 from an estimated 23.5 percent pace this year.
However, some economists disputed the conclusions of the CASS report, predicting that the national economy may face a modest deceleration next year while inflation is likely to rise faster than expected.
Citigroup plans major expansion in China
hird-largest US bank to have 100 mainland outlets in 3 years
HONG KONG - Citigroup Inc aims to triple the size of its branch network on the Chinese mainland to about 100 outlets within three years as the US bank vies with HSBC Holdings Plc for a bigger slice of the mainland's banking market.
"We are very excited about China," said Stephen Bird, Citigroup's co-chief executive officer for the Asia-Pacific region.
"For us, this is still the beginning of the China story."
China is 'doing right thing' to curb inflation: Jim Rogers
NEW YORK - Financial expert Jim Rogers said on Tuesday that China's central bank was doing the right thing by raising interest rate to curb inflation in China right now.
"As we may all know that China is facing serious inflation problems. However, the central bank of China is doing the right thing to curb the inflation by raising interest rate and commercial banks' required reserve ratio," Jim, chairman of Rogers Holdings, told Xinhua News Agency at a news conference held by Thomson Reuters.
Regarding the cause of inflation in China, Jim said he did not know much detail about it but believed it had something to do with the excessive liquidity in the market.
"The massive money coming both domestically and abroad caused the excessive liquidity in the market and pushed up prices," he said.
He also criticized the new round of US quantitative easing policy, saying it was "totally wrong" that the Federal Reserve tried to stimulate the US economy by pumping a large amount of money into the market.
"Printing money only makes things worse, not better," he said.
He also held that the Fed's quantitative easing policy aggravated the inflation problem in China.
China's vehicle tax bill draft receives comments from public
BEIJING - China's top legislature has received over 97,000 comments from the public on the draft law on vehicle and vessel taxation, one month after it released the full draft and invited opinions.
China key industries to grow 24% in 2011-15
China's strategic industries will grow at an average rate of 24.1 percent in the years between 2011 and 2015 and growth will slow to 21.3 percent in the next five years, Reuters reported on Dec 8,citing the China Securities Journal.
The Wall Street Journal 9/12/2010
China Calendar Shift Raises Eyebrows
If China hoped to quell rumors of an incipient interest-rate increase or other tightening moves, its recent shift in the data calendar didn’t help.
See Kaixin's - INSIGHTS INTO CHINA
China, Laos Plan to Start Key Rail Link
BEIJING—China and Laos will begin construction early next year of the first high-speed rail line between the two countries, a top Laotian official said, indicating progress in a project that symbolizes the growing economic ties between China and Southeast Asia.
Also Tuesday, a top Chinese official said China was ready to export and share its train technology, though he didn't offer details. The comments follow concern by train makers in other countries that Chinese companies are using tweaked or "re-engineered" Western technology to bid on contracts—an accusation Chinese officials deny. Foreign train producers maintain that selling such technology outside China ...
Caixin Online 9/12/2010
CNOOC Casts Wide Net in South America
A source from CNOOC's management team told Caixin that the purchase of Pan American Energy will extend the company's exploration capacity for another nine years
(Beijing) – The recent US$ 7.06 billion Argentinean oil deal spearheaded by China's offshore oil producer CNOOC Ltd. from British oil giant BP Plc has been seen as a major step for the Chinese company's expansion in the South American market. The deal gives CNOOC access to 50 percent of Pan American Energy's oil and gas assets in Argentina.
China Daily 8/12/2010
China's CPI expected to hit 3.2 pct in 2010
BEIJING - China's consumer price index (CPI), a major gauge of inflation, is expected to rise 3.2 pct in 2010, a leading government think tank reported on Tuesday.
China may raise interest rates this weekend
China's central bank may raise interest rates this weekend to enshrine its shift to a "prudent" monetary policy in the face of rising inflation, Reuters reported on Dec 7, citing the China Securities Journal.
The paper said that this weekend offered a "sensitive window" for a rate rise, which would be the country's second in its current tightening cycle.
The newspaper said the timing was right for such a move with official monthly economic indicators, notably the consumer price index (CPI), likely to show an increase in inflationary pressure when released on Monday, Dec 13.
"With reference to the central bank's record of raising interest rates just ahead of the release of CPI, this weekend will provide a window for a possible policy change," the newspaper said, without citing any source.
The New York Times 8/12/2010
Business Etiquette for Hong Kong and the Mainland
The key to doing business in China is "guanxi," or relationships. But there is no simple definition of the word or even agreement on whether it is becoming less important as China modernizes.
See Kaixin's:
Corruption v 'li shang wang lai' 礼尚往来
Five things that decide your life: Birth, Luck, Feng Shui, Merit, Study
Caixin Online 8/12/2010
Bottoms Up for China's Lafite Wine Bubble
Andy Xie
Speculators are pumping a wild price bubble for a fine wine whose market ride says a lot about macroeconomic trends
During the dotcom bubble, a lot of worthless companies with market capitalizations in the billions of dollars were trading on the NASDAQ exchange. Meanwhile, some really good companies were priced several times higher than their intrinsic worth. Selling these stocks before the bubble collapsed was the right thing to do.
What's bubbling in China today?
Asia Times Online 8/12/2010
Mongolia keeps rail link short
By Munkh-Ochir Dorjjugder
Mongolia is to build a 1,100 kilometer railroad linking two areas with vast natural resources. China, with its huge demand for such commodities, lies only a short distance away - yet will be deliberately unconnected.
Southern Mongolia is home to massive deposits of copper, gold and coking coal, conveniently located only 80 kilometers from its border with China, which is the largest consumer of these commodities.
New Lending for 2011 Reportedly Set at 7 Tln Yuan
The higher-than-expected lending ceiling would make leeway for local government financing platforms to borrow from the government
(Beijing) -- The ceiling for new bank loans in 2011 has been set at around 7 trillion yuan, according to sources close the central bank.
Caixin Online 7/12/2010
Of Two Evils, Choose the Lesser
Decision-makers must think twice before deciding to replace inflation with appreciating yuan or vice versa
Barrons, a Caixin blogger, always speaks with numbers. In the first of two recent entries, he wrote thatM1,M2 and oil prices affected 55 percent of consumer price index changes over the past decade. He went on to say in a second post that the rise of China's foreign exchange reserves over the past decade can justify 98 percent of M2 changes, while a U.S. dollar exchange shift can rationalize 78 percent of oil price fluctuations.
The Wall Street Journal 7/12/2010
Bernanke: China “Risking Inflation” With Currency Policy
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said China is “risking inflation” in its own economy, while threatening other nations, by not allowing its currency to appreciate.
China Daily 7/12/2010
Economic restructuring, a bigger challenge than inflation
BEIJING - A well-known economist said Monday that the biggest problem in China is not inflation, but shifting its economic structure to maintain sustainable growth.
"The biggest challenge faced by China is economic restructuring in order to shift the economy to a more balanced way that will provide sustainable economic growth," Stephen Roach, former chairman of Morgan Stanley Asia, told Xinhua News Agency.
"In the post-crisis environment, the shift means to build a consumer-led economy, and that is the overriding challenge in China," said Roach, who currently serves as non-executive chairman of Morgan Stanley Asia.BEIJING - A well-known economist said Monday that the biggest problem in China is not inflation, but shifting its economic structure to maintain sustainable growth.
"The biggest challenge faced by China is economic restructuring in order to shift the economy to a more balanced way that will provide sustainable economic growth," Stephen Roach, former chairman of Morgan Stanley Asia, told Xinhua News Agency.
"In the post-crisis environment, the shift means to build a consumer-led economy, and that is the overriding challenge in China," said Roach, who currently serves as non-executive chairman of Morgan Stanley Asia.
Prudent policy should have 'teeth'Morgan Stanley Asia chief: China's inflation cycle at a 'critical point'
BEIJING - China needs to convince the market that its shift to a prudent monetary policy stance has "teeth" by adopting tougher measures to combat accelerating inflation, Morgan Stanley Asia Chairman Stephen Roach said on Monday in Beijing.
"The inflation cycle in China right now is at a critical point," Roach said. "It is critical that the Chinese government delivers disciplined and comprehensive policies to address the problem."
"They've taken steps in that direction. But you need more than words to deal with the problem," he said.
China officially shifted its monetary policy stance from a moderately loose one to a prudent one on Friday as policymakers in Beijing stepped up efforts to tame rising inflation and head off asset bubbles.
Roach noted that Chinese policymakers need to adopt further tougher measures that are backed by disciplined action on three fronts: interest rates, bank reserve requirements and administrative measures.
He expected more interest rate hikes to be.
Policies lure talents from abroad
Yancheng, Jiangsu - Cai Haijun said he was happy to leave his villa and his job as a research manager in Canada for an apartment and a chance to start his own companies in Yancheng, a second-tier city in East China's Jiangsu province.
The 46-year-old is among a growing number of Chinese with overseas experience and foreigners who are seeking opportunities in smaller Chinese cities. Not only are second-tier cities' costs of living far lower than those of megalopolises, such as Beijing and Shanghai, but also, governments are offering preferential policies to lure talented Chinese with overseas experience and foreign experts.
"It is an amazing market," Cai said.
"I have better career opportunities, and I have persuaded my wife in Canada to return to China soon. And going from working as a researcher to being the boss offers a great sense of accomplishment."
Cai earned his PhD in polymer chemistry from Laval University in 2002 and worked for three Canada-based companies as a researcher or technology manager.
In July of 2009, he moved to Yancheng to start his own business. He now owns two companies in Jiangsu.
"The government offered me a very attractive package, including free accommodation, startup funds, human resource support and other assistance," Cai said.
"My current income here can sustain the standard of living I enjoyed in Canada," Cai explained.
The government has provided him with a 60-square-meter apartment, and next year his family can move into a more spacious "talent apartment" provided by the city government. Housing is on average about five to six times cheaper in Yancheng than in Beijing or Shanghai, while the cost of living is lower and the traffic is better, too.
The central government seeks to increase the country's talent pool from 114 million to 180 million highly skilled workers by 2020. It will spend 15 percent of its GDP on human resources during the period. The pledge was included in the National Outline for Medium- and Long-Term Talent Development (2010-2020) released in June this year.
More than 800 overseas Chinese and foreign academics who have working experience at globally leading institutions or enterprises have signed up with the national Thousand Talents Program.
The program, launched earlier last year, is an ambitious plan to recruit 2,000 talented professionals worldwide in five to 10 years to help the country achieve its goal of becoming an innovation-oriented nation.
Local governments are also starting programs to lure overseas expertise.
Citigroup to triple China outlets
Citigroup Inc plans to expand its China branch network to about 100 outlets in two to three years, Bloomberg reported on Dec 7, citing Stephen Bird, the bank's co-chief executive officer for the Asia-Pacific region.
The New York-based Citigroup currently has 31 outlets in China, according to Bloomberg.
All-electric bus may help BYD drive into US
SHENZHEN - BYD Company Limited's first vehicle to hit the US road might be an all-electric bus and the US market is set to be the company's largest overseas market.
BYD, partly owned by billionaire Warren Buffett, is currently building its US headquarters in downtown Los Angeles. It will open late this year or early 2011.
Los Angeles First Deputy Mayor Austin Beutner told China Daily his city will add electric buses to the metropolitan fleet as part of the city's efforts to cut greenhouse emissions, and BYD's electric bus is being tested.
BYD is famous for its e6 electric car model, and its F3 economic sedan, the best-selling gasoline car in China in 2009. The company unveiled its first all-electric bus, the K9, in late September.
China Daily 6/12/2010
Experts call for higher wages
HAIKOU - Senior researchers have proposed measures for income distribution reform in China's 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015) to increase residents' income and narrow the nation's widening wealth gap.
Su Hainan, an expert from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, said the amount of residents' income in the GDP should increase by 4 to 5 percentage points in the next five years.
While China's GDP growth skyrocketed at double digits over the past two decades, the amount of residents' income in the national GDP has been falling.
Residents' income accounted for 53.4 percent of GDP in 1990, while the figure fell to 39.7 percent in 2007, according to data from China Society of Economic Reform.
China must first raise residents' income, instead of expanding the size of the economy, to keep the world's second-largest economy from faltering, said Chi Fulin, director of the China Institute for Reform and Development based in Haikou, capital of Hainan province.
"The annual growth rate of residents' income should not be lower than 8 percent in the next five years, so as to be in step with the GDP growth rate." he said.
These experts participated in a discussion of income distribution organized by the National Development and Reform Commission and have already submitted proposals to the leadership for review.
China to lead world in innovation by 2020: survey
LONDON - China is set to become the world's most important centre for innovation by 2020, overtaking both the United States and Japan, according to a public opinion survey to be published on Monday.
China is already the world's second-largest economy, after establishing itself as the global workshop for manufacturing. Now it wants to move up the value chain by leading in invention as well.
Today, the United States ranks as the world's most innovative country, with 30 percent of people surveyed taking that view, followed by Japan on 25 percent and China on 14 percent.
Fast-forward 10 years, however, and 27 percent of people think China will be top dog, followed by India with 17 percent, the United States 14 percent and Japan 12 percent, according to the survey of 6,000 people in six countries done by drugmaker AstraZeneca.
The shift is not because the United States is doing less science and technology, but because countries like China and India are doing more - a fact reflected in a spike-up in successful Asian research efforts in recent years.
A study last month from Thomson Reuters showed China was now the second-largest producer of scientific papers, after the United States, and research and development (R&D) spending by Asian nations as a group in 2008 was $387 billion, compared with $384 billion in the United States and $280 billion in Europe.
China's burgeoning rental car market
HANGZHOU -- As foreign investment floods into China's burgeoning car rental market, the sector is facing a possible reshuffle due to increased competition.
Foreign firms get slice of China medical market
BEIJING - Foreign businesses will get the chance to break into the Chinese medical market in a big way, thanks to the latest series of measures aimed at encouraging the development of private hospitals.
The changes that allow fully foreign-owned hospitals to be established on the mainland are among initiatives forwarded by the State Council, China's Cabinet, on Friday in a document about encouraging the development of private medical institutions.
China to step up supervision of futures market
SHENZHEN -- China will intensify its supervision and regulation of the futures market, and severely crack down on insider trading and market manipulation, according to the country's securities regulator.
China to narrow east-west gap with more expertise
URUMQI - On frosty Sunday morning, Wang Jinjian joined residents of Huocheng County in far west China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region to clear streets blanketed by heavy snow.
Wang, who just arrived in Huocheng two weeks ago after being appointed the head of the county committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), wanted to get acquainted with local people as soon as possible.
"I will work here in the next five years," said Wang, who came from Jiangyin City of economically-developed Jiangsu Province in the east. "I wish my hometown's experiences in socioeconomic development could help boost the development of Huocheng."
Wang is among thousands of cadres and experts who were being dispatched by the central government to Xinjiang to assist local development by using their expertise and successful experience in the east.
This marked a new round of China's efforts to narrow the development gap between the west and the east.
Kaixin Oped - This is in line with Beijing's focus on spreading economic throughout China. It will drive domestic growth for at least the first half of the 21st century.
The Wall Street Journal 6/12/2010
Beijing Acts to Combat Inflation
As China Shifts Policy, Brazil Also Aims to Curb Prices
BEIJING—China will shift to a "prudent" monetary policy next year, the ruling Communist Party decided on Friday, a move that formalizes the government's change in priorities away from driving all-out economic growth toward combating inflation.
China Daily 4/12/2010
China to shift to prudent monetary policy next year
BEIJING - China will shift its monetary policy stance from relatively loose to prudent next year, the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee decided Friday.To accelerate the transformation of the economic development pattern should be the main focus of next year's work, and macro-regulation should be "more targeted, flexible and effective," according to a communique issued by the committee.
China will continue its proactive fiscal policy, it said.China has faced complicated social and economic conditions since early this year. Thanks to the stimulus package and efforts to speed up economic restructuring, China has maintained relatively fast economic growth, it said."The momentum of economic and social development has been consolidated," it said."The conditions in China provide a sound base for stable and fast growth next year, but the country will face many difficulties and challenges," it noted.
The meeting called for heightened awareness of risks, as well as more efforts to consolidate success in the fight against the financial crisis, keep steady and relatively fast economic growth and promote social harmony and stability.
China mulls $1.5t boost for strategic industries
BEIJING - China is considering investments of up to $1.5 trillion over five years in seven strategic industries, sources said, a plan aimed at accelerating the country's transition from the world's supplier of cheap goods to a leading purveyor of high-value technologies.
Analysts expressed scepticism at the sheer amount of money - it equates to about 5 percent of China's gross domestic product on an annual basis - but said that the eye-popping headline figure was an indication of the government's determination to catalyse a structural shift in the economy.
The targeted sectors include alternative energy, biotechnology, new-generation information technology, high-end equipment manufacturing, advanced materials, alternative-fuel cars and energy-saving and environmentally friendly technologies.
The central government itself would most likely not deliver the bulk of the money, but would seek to spur spending by corporations, investment by local governments and lending by banks.
Top 10 high-level reshuffles
Editor’s note:
People say running an organization is equivalent to conducting a symphony orchestra. No doubt good leadership is one of the key factors in the success of a company, giant corporations in particular. But what if the big boss departs? Will the company lose its mojo and fail? Not if the new leader fills his/her predecessor's shoes.
In the past 12 months, veterans have made their last shows as chief executives. Meanwhile, new faces were seen making their debut as top leaders. The conductor changes, but the symphony goes on as scheduled. That's part of the reason the world is eager to see the crescendo of China's economy.
The Wall Street Journal 4/12/2010
U.S., Korea Agree on Free-Trade Pact
WASHINGTON—The U.S. and South Korea struck a deal to revive a broad pact that could drop barriers on a wide array of goods and services, setting the stage for what would be the biggest nation-to-nation trade deal since the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement.
Kaixin OpEd – A coincidence?
China Makes Monetary-Policy Shift Official
BEIJING—China will shift to a "prudent" monetary policy next year, the ruling Communist Party decided on Friday, a move that formalizes the government's change in priorities away from driving all-out economic growth toward combating inflation.
Brazil Joins China in Push to Cool Overheating Economy
BRASÍLIA—Brazil's central bank rolled out a series of measures to tame rapid credit growth and prevent inflation pressures, joining other large expanding economies such as China that are trying to curb rising prices and fast moving capital inflows.
WTO Blocks EU Tariffs on Chinese Screws
BRUSSELS—The World Trade Organization Friday condemned European Union antidumping tariffs on imports of Chinese screws, handing Beijing its biggest legal victory yet at the Geneva-based body. EU officials described the decision as a significant setback.
China Harvests Record Grain Crop
BEIJING—China's total grain harvest in 2010 reached 546.41 million metric tons, the seventh consecutive annual record and an increase of 2.9% from last year's crop, the National Bureau of Statistics said Friday. Last year's grain harvest was up 0.4% from 2008.
Shadow Lending Hampers Beijing
BEIJING—Lending by lightly regulated financial companies outside China's formal banking system has ballooned this year, causing increasing headaches for the government in its efforts to manage the economy and control inflation, observers say.
Caixin Online 4/12/2010
China's Buzzword for 2011 Monetary Policy: Prudent
The central bank reportedly set new lending target for 2011 at 7 trillion yuan in a meeting held in late November, higher than most economists expected.
How far does a middle class man's salary go in China today?
Recently, I met a project manager at a foreign company in Beijing. He is 35, a graduate from one of China's most prestigious universities and possesses nearly a decade of work experience in foreign enterprises.
But he looks a little glum these days. Why? Because he says the recent price increases are affecting his nerves. Frankly, I was confused by this. The company he works for isn't small, and he has a senior position in the company with a decent salary. But if prices these days are inducing worry in him, what about the rest of us?
Prized Theory that's Right for China's Reform
'Holistic reform theory' offers valid arguments for expanding the economic reform process to the political arena
Among the China's prizes for academic leaders in the field of economics, the China Economic Theory Innovation Award is unique because scholars pick the annual winners.
This year, the award process itself was unique for focusing on theories with a bearing on China's economic reform at a crossroads today, a time marked by rising expectations and even anxiety among the public.
Holistic reform theory argues that China should rid itself of the moribund planned economy and ambitiously pursue building a market economy.
Caixin Online 3/12/2010
New Day for Shanxi's Black Gold Investment
Mine consolidation and the lure of coal-bed methane are helping draw a new wave of investors to Shanxi Province
(Taiyuan) – The auto company Chery is investing, as is computer maker Lenovo's partner Legend Investments, the state-run energy giant PetroChina, and private equity funds backed by insurance and securities firms.
Hot Money Blamed for Surging Yuan Settlements
Currency speculators apparently hijacked a pilot program in Hong Kong designed to promote yuan-based trade settlements
Central bank officials were surprised to hear October 27 that the yuan trade settlement quota for the entire year had already been reached.
Caixin Online
New Day for Shanxi's Black Gold Investment
Mine consolidation and the lure of coal-bed methane are helping draw a new wave of investors to Shanxi Province
(Taiyuan) – The auto company Chery is investing, as is computer maker Lenovo's partner Legend Investments, the state-run energy giant PetroChina, and private equity funds backed by insurance and securities firms.
Hot Money Blamed for Surging Yuan Settlements
Currency speculators apparently hijacked a pilot program in Hong Kong designed to promote yuan-based trade settlements
Central bank officials were surprised to hear October 27 that the yuan trade settlement quota for the entire year had already been reached.
The Wall Street Journal 3/12/2010
As Food Prices Soar, A Crucial Test For Beijing
Price ceilings haven’t officially arrived in China yet. Or have they?
Government-imposed pricing is the nuclear option of counter-inflation measures. Despite China’s previous experience with a planned economy, the country’s leaders have been hesitant to use price ceilings because of the potential to misdiagnose price levels and thereby degrading the quality of the market—or even causing goods to disappear from shelves. Besides which, controlling prices doesn’t necessarily address underlying demand even as it crimps the incentive to supply.
Top China Economist Says Sell Lafite. Now.
Andy Xie has some advice to fine-wine collectors: Sell your Lafite now.
The famously blunt economist — he left Morgan Stanley after writing an email that described Singapore as a money-laundering hub, and has called the current Chinese asset market a “giant Ponzi scheme” — wrote on his blog that there is a bubble for Lafite, the Bordeaux of choice for China’s nouveau riche.
China's Lending Spills Over Limits
BEIJING—Lending by lightly regulated financial companies outside China's formal banking system has ballooned this year, causing increasing headaches for the government in its efforts to manage the economy and control inflation, observers say.
China's government has traditionally used its control of the largely state-owned banking sector to regulate the country's pace of economic growth, directing it to pump out cheap credit in good times and restricting the volume of new loans to prevent overheating. But controlling credit has become more difficult as the financial system gets more sophisticated, analysts say, complicating Beijing's efforts to bring the economy in for a ...
China's Web Gets the Luxury Look
BEIJING—Searching for wealthy customers beyond China's urban areas, luxury-goods makers are opening shop in a new location: the Chinese Internet.
Emporio Armani led the way, opening online sales last week through its own website in one of world's fastest growing markets for luxury brands.
"This is a strategic move that will open up luxury to the entire nation," said Federico Marchetti, founder and chief executive of Milan-based YOOX SpA, which created the site for the Giorgio Armani SpA label. Mr. Marchetti said at a news conference that YOOX plans in the next year to open Chinese sites for three or ...
Sinopec to Join Chevron Gas Project
China Petrochemical Corp. has struck a deal with Chevron Corp. to join a $6 billion-plus deepwater natural gas project off Indonesia, a person familiar with the matter said Thursday, in the latest push by Chinese companies to secure overseas energy assets.
China's Credit Raters Aim to Better Their Image
BEIJING—Chinese ratings provider Dagong Credit Rating Co. gained global attention with its bearish views on the U.S. government's creditworthiness. Back home, the government is looking to change the way Dagong and its fellow Chinese raters do business.
The changes, one step in the country's efforts to build a more efficient financial system, could help credit raters shed their poor image.
One reason the industry has struggled to gain influence, say industry professionals, is that domestic raters are seen as plagued by conflicts of interest and unwilling to give poor ratings. To address the problem, China's central bank in September launched ...
China's Credit Raters Aim to Better Their Image
BEIJING—Chinese ratings provider Dagong Credit Rating Co. gained global attention with its bearish views on the U.S. government's creditworthiness. Back home, the government is looking to change the way Dagong and its fellow Chinese raters do business.
The changes, one step in the country's efforts to build a more efficient financial system, could help credit raters shed their poor image.
One reason the industry has struggled to gain influence, say industry professionals, is that domestic raters are seen as plagued by conflicts of interest and unwilling to give poor ratings. To address the problem, China's central bank in September launched ...
China Daily 3/12/2010
Measures 'ease food price surge'
But analysts say rate hike needed to tackle inflation
BEIJING - The trend of surging food prices, which account for more than one third of the consumer inflation basket, softened in late November after authorities took measures to curb inflation.
But some analysts warned that the respite is only temporary and high inflation will remain if the government relies on just administrative measures and does not significantly raise interest rates.
The government introduced a series of measures, including subsidies, ensuring supplies and punishing hoarders, to control rising prices in November.
In Beijing, vegetable prices decreased 19 percent month-on-month by the end of November, Liu Tong, head of statistics at Xinfadi market, the largest agricultural commodities wholesale market in the city, told China Daily.
"Growing supply is gradually sending prices back to last year's levels," he said.
"The figures showed that measures taken by the government to broaden the vegetable supply and crack down on hoarding and other illegal speculative activities have worked," said Hu Shaowei, economist with the State Information Center.
Kaixin OpEd - This will be an interesting test of Free Market Principles v A Planned Economy. In a Free Market the hoarders would be rewarded with higher profits, in the true spirit of capitalism. However, the average person would lose out. The Planned Economy approach seems to be working through the age old supply/demand equation.
Time will tell, if the Planned Economy approach causes distortions in the economy with un-intended and/or un-expected consequences.
However, if hoarding must also send out false signals to the market.
More high earners as wealth gap stretches wider
BEIJING - Five percent of China's total population now have annual incomes of at least 300,000 yuan ($45,000) after tax, according to new research.
Results of a study carried out in more than 10 major cities show roughly 50 million Chinese have passed the 300,000-yuan mark, while 5 million more are taking home in excess of 1 million yuan a year after tax.
The primary field of investment for those in the "million club" - most of whom are aged 25 to 50 - is real estate investment, said Lu Xiao, assistant professor at Fudan University's school of management, who led the research.
Op-Ed Contributors
Central bank's current challenges
Monetary base is smaller than it appears but sterilization may need to continue to control inflation and asset prices
Not long after the United States Federal Reserve Board announced its second round of quantitative easing (known as QE2), the People's Bank of China, China's central bank, announced two increases of 0.5 percentage points in the required reserve ratio (RRR) of bank deposits. The RRR now stands at 18.5 percent, a historic high, even in global terms.
While the Fed is planning to pump more money into the US economy, the People's Bank of China is trying to reduce the amount of money in circulation. Money used by commercial banks to satisfy the RRR, which is held in accounts at the central bank, can no longer be extended as loans. As a result, more money than ever is now frozen or inactive in China.
Bodyguards in line of hire for more people
Increasing security concerns mean brisk business for related services. Cao Li in Beijing reports.
Zhang Li turned around and looked at the two muscular men hiding in the shadows, trying to act as inconspicuous as possible. Although they pretended to be reading newspapers, she knew they were watching her every move.
"I call them shushu, my uncles," said the 7-year-old. Her mother calls them her bodyguards.
With her rosy cheeks, pigtails and bright pink rucksack, Zhang looks like every other first-grader as she skips through the gates of her primary school in downtown Shanghai. What sets her apart is her entourage.
"We're her secret escorts," said Zhou Jie from CCG Security, the company hired to protect the girl from her divorced father.
In the last two years, the 26-year-old martial arts expert has guarded visiting royals from the Middle East, celebrities and company CEOs. "But it is the first time I've protected an ordinary family," he said.
Once the preserve of the rich and famous, a shift in China's traditional customer base has led to a boom in demand for bodyguards. As the nation's wealth has grown, Chinese security firms say they are witnessing a surge in middle-class families using their services.
Kaixin OpEd - The downside of all this wealth creation. Xiaosui can remember a time when this was not an issue, when you did not have to lock your doors, when you did not need high security fences around your residential compound.
Asia Times Online 2/12/2010
8 Billion Yuan Bond to Be Issued in Hong Kong
The finance ministry will issue another batch of yuan-denominated bonds
(Beijing) - China's Ministry of Finance will issue 8 billion yuan of yuan-denominated bond in Hong Kong, the second yuan bond issuance outside of the mainland by the ministry.
Caixin Online 2/12/2010
People's Daily Says Investment Bank Responsible for Plunge
In an apparent effort to influence the stock market, the People's Daily opposed big fluctuations in stock markets
(Beijing) - China's official mouthpiece, the People's Daily, said December 1 that an international investment bank manipulated stock markets for its own gain and a group email that it sent to investors triggered off a plunge in share prices on November 12.
Countries can't be expected to abide by bad rules – why the entire global monetary game needs to be rewritten
If Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, had himself written the prologue to his G20 presidency, he could not have done better. The run-up to the G20 Seoul summit in November was marred with a series of currency controversies which brought international monetary reform to the fore. French intentions to reform the international monetary system (IMS) had initially been received skeptically. Suddenly it now seems to be the right priority at the right time.
The task, however, is anything but simple. The subject is abstruse. No one outside academia has taken any interest in it for the last twenty years.
8 Billion Yuan Bond to Be Issued in Hong Kong
The finance ministry will issue another batch of yuan-denominated bonds
(Beijing) - China's Ministry of Finance will issue 8 billion yuan of yuan-denominated bond in Hong Kong, the second yuan bond issuance outside of the mainland by the ministry.
The Wall Street Journal 2/12/2010
China Leads Asia Manufacturing Rebound
SINGAPORE—Manufacturing in Asia gathered steam in November, led by a strong acceleration in China, an encouraging sign for a global economy rattled by Europe's debt crisis and sluggish growth in the U.S.
China's Credit Raters Struggle to Make an Impact
BEIJING—Chinese ratings company Dagong Credit Rating Co. has gained global attention with its bearish views on the U.S. government's creditworthiness. Back home, the government is looking to change the way Dagong and its fellow Chinese raters do business.
The changes, one step in the country's efforts to build a more efficient financial system, could help ratings firms shed their poor image.
One reason the industry has struggled to gain influence, say industry professionals, is that domestic raters are seen as plagued by conflicts of interest and unwilling to give poor ratings. To address the problem, China's central bank in September ...
Glaxo Nears Deal to Buy Chinese Drug Firm
GlaxoSmithKline PLC is nearing a deal to buy Nanjing MeiRui Pharma Co., a Chinese drug company that would boost its exposure to the fast-growing market, according to people familiar with the matter.
Exact terms of the potential deal couldn't be learned, but it is likely valued in the low hundreds of millions of dollars. An agreement could be announced this month, one of the people said.
Although small, the deal highlights a large imperative for Glaxo and the other big, ...
China Daily 2/12/2010
China-Japan-ROK free trade talks 'set for 2012'
WEIHAI, Shandong - Free trade agreement (FTA) talks among China, Japan and the Republic of Korea (ROK) could start in 2012 as the countries try to reduce reliance on the United States and the European Union, Yi Xiaozhun, vice-minister of commerce, told China Daily.
US economic woes and the European debt crisis are boosting integration efforts and adding momentum to negotiations for an FTA among the three countries.
"I expect the negotiations to start in 2012, when a joint study by the three nations will be concluded," Yi said on the sidelines of a meeting of the FTA Joint Study Committee in Weihai, a coastal city in Shandong province.
China and the ROK are expected to start FTA talks next year, according to earlier media reports.
"The FTAs ... among the three nations will contribute to the integration of East Asian economies," Yi said.
The three countries make up about 22 percent of the global population, and their combined economies account for 19 percent of the world total and their foreign reserves 47 percent.
"The FTA will be the third largest after the European Union and the North American Free Trade Agreement," said Zhang Xiaoji, a senior researcher with the State Council's Development Research Center and a member of the Joint Study Committee.
China has so far signed eight FTAs and is in discussions on five more, according to the Ministry of Commerce.
Rural poor to get $52m subsidies to offset rising prices
BEIJING -- China will give 350 million yuan (US$52.4 million) in subsidies to poor people in central and western China affected by rising prices, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) said Wednesday.
Each of over 4.6 million childless and infirm rural seniors guaranteed food, clothing, housing, medical care and burial expenses will receive a monthly subsidy of no less than 20 yuan, the MOF said in a circular on its website.
The move aims to reduce economic pressures on needy people.
The subsidy will last until March 2011.
The government has adopted various measures since mid-November to boost agricultural production to combat the effects of inflation.
China's consumer price index (CPI) rose 4.4 percent in the 12 months through October, a 25-month high.
Kaixin OpEd - Which will just about all flow back into the domestic economy.
Foreign firms' path to the A-share market eased
BEIJING - Chinese authorities are accelerating the process to allow overseas companies to float shares in the domestic A-share market as a way to ease the country's mounting pressure of "hot money" inflows.
"The international board will be launched some time next year, hopefully," Fang Haixing, director general of Shanghai's financial services office, said on Wednesday at a financial forum in Shanghai.
Fang said that the approval procedures for overseas companies seeking listing on the board will be made simpler and faster than for domestic companies.
"We will not let companies feel that they have to endure unacceptable procedures," he said.
Fang's comments come after the central bank in Beijing called for a speedier launch of the international board, which could be used as a pool for hot-money hedging.
Manufacturing sector growth puts spring in investors' step
SHANGHAI - Mainland stocks rose for the first time in four days as faster-than-estimated manufacturing growth signaled tightening policies haven't curbed economic growth.
"The manufacturing number shows the economy is still healthy," said Deng Changrong, a strategist at Huaxi Securities Co in Shenzhen.
Monetary measures pay off
SHANGHAI - China's monetary policy measures have showed effective results so far, Du Jinfu, deputy governor of the People's Bank of China (PBOC), the central bank, said on Wednesday.
But he also stressed the need to develop mechanisms for counter-cyclical control of credit to avoid systematic risks.
"CPI is likely to peak soon, which dampens the need for drastic monetary policy action," said C.H. Kwan, a senior fellow at Nomura Institute of Capital Markets Research.
China ranks 4th in scientific R&D spending
NBSBEIJING- China's scientific research and development (R&D) spending was 580.21 billion yuan (87.25 billion US dollars) in 2009, fourth in the world after the United States, Japan and Germany, officials at the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) of China told Xinhua.
The statistics came from the latest national R&D resources survey, the second ever conducted in the country.
About 3.18 million people were involved in China's R&D activities in 2009, the largest number in the world, said Cha Zhimin, deputy-director of the society and science department under the NBS.
Of the total spending, the government invested 135.83 billion yuan on R&D in 2009, about 4.5 times that in 2000 or an annual increase of 18.3 percent, indicating the government was more willing to boost innovation, Cha said.
However, the ratio of R&D investment against GDP stood at 1.7 percent in China, far behind 3 percent in leading countries across the world, Cha said, adding that China still remained far below many developed countries in original innovations.
Kaixin Oped - So China has the capacity to increase spending on R&D by around 50%+. That has enormous potential for China's economic growth over the 21st century.
China's development blueprint a chance for world:FM
BEIJING - Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said Wednesday China's economic and social development blueprint for the next five years will bring opportunities for the world.
"The 12th five-year program, which lasts from 2011 to 2015, will not only be an opportunity for China, but also bring opportunities for the Asia-Pacific region and the world at large," Yang said at an international forum on the Asia-Pacific and China's policy.
Yang said the opportunities include market growth and two-way investment.
"China will import more commodities over the coming five years and foreign countries will enjoy increased business opportunities from that," Yang said at the Lanting Forum in Beijing, which was hosted by the China Institute of International Studies.
He pledged the Chinese government will create a fair environment for competition between Chinese and foreign companies while encouraging Chinese enterprises to invest abroad to boost employment for local communities.
"We hope to contribute to multilateral connections in Asia, Africa and other parts of the world," Yang said, referring to the regional transportation networks of road, rail and ports.
He said Asia's overall economic strength has grown remarkably, with some economic organizations predicting that it may account for 50 percent of the world economy by 2050.
Asia's soft power such as human resources, culture, science and technology will also support the continent's sustainable development, he said.
In the new energy sector, Yang said China will cooperate with all countries to bolster recycling and the green economy.
The Communist Party of China Central Committee in October outlined China's national development plan for the next five years. It is expected to be adopted by the National People's Congress, the nation's legislative body, in March next year.
Its key objectives are restructuring the economy and improving people's living standards across the nation.
Soy oil imports reinstated
Talks with Argentinian officials broke the agricultural deadlock
BEIJING - China has reopened its $2-billion market to Argentinian soy oil, after the world's second-largest economy resumed imports from the South American country in October, Julian Dominguez, Argentina's minister of agriculture, livestock and fisheries, said on Wednesday.
"Shipments of soy oil are expected to arrive in China in December and January, and exports are expected to bounce back to the pre-suspension level," Dominguez said.
Cesar Mayoral, the Argentinian Ambassador to China, said the problems (concerning soy oil exports to China) have been resolved through talks between the two countries.
"There have been anti-dumping investigations against China to protect local industries and products in Argentina, and China's actions in resuming imports have spelled out its goodwill in improving the bilateral trade relationship," he said.
Fertilizer export levy imposed
BEIJING - China, which started a 110 percent tariff on some fertilizer exports on Wednesday, will extend the high-season portion of its export duties next year to control food prices and secure domestic fertilizer supplies, said an official from the China Chemical Mining Association (CCMA).
The tariff hike aims to curb fertilizer exports, ensure domestic fertilizer supplies for the coming spring, and combat rising food prices, said the financial ministry.
China's farm produce prices fall week-on-week
BEIJING - China's prices for farm produce and producer goods fell week-on-week, the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said Wednesday.
China Daily 1/12/2010
Credit supply may top govt targets
otal credit in 2010 seen higher than market expectations
BEIJING - China's new loans in November may top 500 billion yuan ($75 billion), sparking speculation among analysts that the whole-year credit supply may exceed the central government's target of 7.5 trillion yuan.
"The total credit supply for 2010 is likely to reach 8 trillion, exceeding the government target by 6.7 percent, said Liu Yuanchun, deputy director of Renmin University's School of Economics.
China, India conclude border talks to boost ties
BEIJING - China and India Tuesday concluded their 14th round of border talks with a joint call to "seek a fair and reasonable solution acceptable to both sides," according to a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement Tuesday.
Sinopec sees higher domestic oil demand
Consumption to increase by up to 6% by 2015 on economic growth
BEIJING - China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (Sinopec), the nation's largest oil refiner, has forecast increasing domestic demand for oil.
"China's oil products market will grow at a rate of 5 to 6 percent over the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015), fueled by the economy's strong momentum which is likely to grow by 10 percent annually," said Cai Xiyou, vice-president of Sinopec.
The nation's reliance on imported oil is around 50 percent at present, according to an earlier estimate by Zhang Fuqin, deputy chief engineer with the China Petroleum Planning and Engineering Institute.
China revises penalties for price violations
BEIJING - The State Council, China's Cabinet, said Monday it will revise penalties to further crack down on price violations in order to tackle inflation.
The revised code will mainly target price manipulation, collusion, malicious hoarding and the spreading of false information, a statement issued after a State Council executive meeting presided over by Premier Wen Jiabao said.
Investors see gold as inflation hedge
SHANGHAI - Investors are flocking to banks and famous gold stores in the city to snap up the yellow metal as a hedge against inflation.
"Gold investment is regarded as a safe haven by wealthy investors when uncertainties exist in the domestic stock and property markets," Wang said.
The Wall Street Journal 1/12/2010
Potent Implications of a Mundane Tax Statement
A seemingly inconspicuous statement from China’s Ministry of Finance on the details of an 11-month-old capital gains tax on profits from transfers or sales of fomerly nontradable shares was widely cited as one of the reasons behind a heavy sell-off in the Chinese stock market today.
China Cracks Down on Property-Rights Abuses
BEIJING—Chinese officials announced details of a crackdown on intellectual-property abuses that some lawyers and executives say is perhaps China's most intensive effort against piracy to date.
The campaign, which began in October and is set to last six-months, includes several measures aimed at addressing a piracy problem that has been the subject of complaints from U.S., European and other foreign companies.
It also is seen as a move by Beijing to promote innovation by Chinese companies by ensuring their protection.
Hedge Funds Flock Back to Asia
HONG KONG—Global hedge fund managers are beefing up their presence in Asia, particularly Hong Kong, in the hope of raising more capital amid a swell of investor interest in the region.
Among the big names hanging out their shingles in Asia are Soros Fund Management LLC, Viking Global Investors and GLG Partners LP. D.E. Shaw recently said a member of its six-person executive committee is moving to Hong Kong and Maverick Capital, Ltd. raised the number of analysts in its Hong Kong office to four in August.
David Gray, head of prime services for UBS AG in the Asia-Pacific region, ...
Morgan Stanley Moves Step Closer to New China Venture
SHANGHAI—China's securities regulator approved China International Capital Corp.'s plan to change its shareholding structure, bringing Morgan Stanley a big step closer to finally selling its 34.3% stake in the Chinese brokerage.
Morgan Stanley plans to sell the stake for about $1 billion to a group of investors including Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and TPG Capital, which have agreed to take about 11% each, said a person familiar with the situation. The Wall Street Journal reported in February that a deal was likely between Morgan Stanley and the two private-equity firms.
The sale still requires further approvals from the Chinese ...
The New York Times 1/12/2010
Chinese Export Regions Face Labor Shortages
Two main manufacturing areas have an acute shortage of migrant workers, giving laborers leverage.
G.M. Sells Parts Maker to a Chinese Company
The sale of Nexteer Automotive to Pacific Century Motors will make the Chinese company the largest private employer in Saginaw, Mich.
Caixin Online
Industrial Bank Economist Says Interest Rate Hike Ahead
Analysts expect another interest rate hike as inflation may continue to go up
(Beijing) -- The central bank may raise interest rates for the second time this year given massive new credit figures and the possible highest-ever consumer inflation in November, said an Industrial Bank economist.
China Themes
Yuan Revaluation & Internationalisation
Graeme has been using ChinesePod since 2007
"I highly recommend ChinesePod, I haven't found any Online teaching programmes that come close."
Set in Zanzibar in 1910, it is the story of two people from different worlds falling in love. Susan immerses herself in Zanzibar. Asim falls in love with this woman from the nation that killed his wife. Susan is a spy. Asim is the chief advisor to the Sultan of Zanzibar. Germany and France are holding secret negotiations to form a Pan European alliance, which would isolate Britain and destroy her power. Susan and Asim are caught up in all this and their love is finally dashed on the cold, hard reality of international high politics.
Available on Amazon's Kindle $4.99 - Over 400 Pages
Chapter One
Zanzibar
'A maharaja’s ruby cast on a Persian carpet by the blackest of hands'
Their souls danced, honouring his promise.
The ancient dhow stirred in the soft morning breeze. Like a sleepy lion, it began to move through the water, snuffling about the other boats on the harbour; some scurrying, some at anchor, some darting before a brief gust of wind. The lateen sails a bustling panorama of blood-red and sun-bleached white.
Aft, the woman's eyes searched the skyline, drinking in the architecture of Stone Town, the heart of Zanzibar; its jagged, cluttered silhouette so familiar, so much a part of her soul.
Abruptly, her eyes ceased their restless searching, jagged by an invisible hook, transfixed by the grand buildings on the northern shore, Beit-al-Ajaib, the House of Wonders, Palace to the great Sultan of Zanzibar. The distinctive architecture captured in the tropical light: coconut white outlined by contrasting shadow plays of pepper black.
A smile, ever so slight, started to play on the edge of her mouth then disappeared. A memory that should have been fond instantly turned to sharp unbearable pain. Her eyes hardened and moved on.
Without warning the captain threw the rudder over. Stumbling, the woman barked her shin on a wooden box, a rough-hewn coffin. She recoiled, knocking over an untidy stack of cane baskets. Imprisoned in the baskets, rusty cockerels, their scruffy heads straining through the latticework, snapped at her, cried out to her; their raucous din overwhelming her, drowning her.
Dimly, through the fog of noise, the strident swearing of the sailors in Kiswahili seeped into her conscious. Understanding, she smiled mirthlessly.
The coffin had been carelessly stowed, a chore, rather than a labour of respect or love.
London 1910
“Hello, who are you? I am Oliver, is Edward at home?”
The words were spoken by a tall, impeccably dressed young man as he rushed into Edward’s flat shaking off surplus water and calling for whisky while shoving his umbrella into a stand. It was a blustery, grey, bitterly cold February afternoon in the heart of London. He brushed a curl of soft auburn hair from his forehead and smiled charmingly.
Susan laughed, her hazel eyes dancing with the exhilaration of the new. “Yes, he is having a bath. I think he is trying to get warm. I’m Susan, Susan Carey, his sister.”
“Ahhh yes, from Australia. How do you do?” said Sir Oliver, smiling broadly and offering his hand. He noticed the laughter in her eyes, and the depth, particularly the depth, intensified by jade flecks that made them striking and alluring. “So, you have arrived, good trip I trust.”
“I am very well thank you, and yes, it was a good trip,” replied Susan.
He laughed and glanced at the sitting room, “whisky?”
“Oh, I’m sorry, please come in…….. that was silly of me, after all, it is your flat.”
Oliver smiled and gestured for Susan to lead the way. He followed her into the room, and after helping himself to a generous portion of whisky, walked over to the fire.
Shortly after, Edward, wrapped in a huge ruby-coloured dressing gown and wiping soap from his ear strode into the room. He was of similar age to Oliver, late twenties, well built, if slightly podgy, with dark auburn hair and a full moustache. Susan looked up and smiled to herself, she could see now where he had picked up some of his new mannerisms.
“Thought I could hear voices. I see you two have met, no need for introductions then.”
As he was speaking, Edward walked to the side table and grabbed a whisky decanter by the neck. He glanced at Oliver who nodded. A long finger snaked into one of the tumblers followed by the distinctive clink of crystal. He swept the decanter off the table and carried it to where Oliver was sitting. After pouring the whisky, he sank into a lounge chair and sipped from his glass, enjoying the warm glow as it spread through his body.
Suddenly he sat up exclaiming, “Sorry sis, would you like something to drink?”
“Kind of you to remember, but no thank you, and yes, Oliver has already inquired.”
Edward nodded and sank back into his lounge chair.
They chatted, tentatively at first, getting to know one another. Edward had not seen Susan for two years and was unsure how his sister would take his new relationship. Oliver was intrigued by Susan. An attractive, self-assured young lady of high intelligence with a degree was a rare find. And, as fate would have it, she was also a trained and experienced teacher. He suggested a picnic at Oxford, which was met with ready acquiescence. Arrangements were made for the following Sunday.
“I’ll see if the Rolls is available,” mused Oliver. “Must ring father, haven’t spoken to him in ages.”
Oliver, Sir Oliver Marchmaine, was an unaffected young man of intense intelligence who saw life as a great adventure to be lived to the full. He was also unyieldingly loyal to his country, England, which is why he had joined Military Intelligence on leaving Oxford.
It was 1910 and Europe was stirring. It was a time full of interest, intrigue and danger. The European chessboard was becoming increasingly complex, the moves more subtle. A time when an unexpected move or feint could have profound consequences.
Regaining her balance, the woman’s eyes were drawn, hesitantly at first, resisting back to Beit-al-Ajaib. She wondered if it was still the same. Still the same centre of power and intrigue that had been so much a part of her life all those years before; that had defined her life.
She remembered those first few moments, remembered standing in the foyer of the palace, .………… remembered the breathtakingly beautiful Persian tapestry ........
The sea breeze stirred her clothes. She smiled a little sadly, and in her mind the tapestry gently swayed. Two small apparitions ran giggling up the stairs: two small exquisitely rich burkas disappearing along the first floor landing. Childish squeals of mischief and joy left in the air.......
“Move to seaward, you accused of Allah! Move!”
Her thoughts were clawed back to the dhow, the captain crashing the tiller over to avoid another boat on the crowded harbour. The woman instinctively ducked her head to avoid the heavy boom as it swung over her, the rusty cockerels squawked their raucous indignation, their heads straining through the latticework, relentless.
The collision avoided, the dhow continued on its way. The cacophony dying down to the occasional command by the captain or the cry of a seagull.
The woman's thoughts returned to Beit-al-Ajaib
…………. laughing and giggling, girls of seven or eight. A door on the first floor slammed and all sounds of them disappeared. Silence. The woman smiled. She could see herself, a young woman, dressed plainly, unselfconsciously, her sexuality tantalisingly just out of reach, hidden beneath the thin veil of her clothing. She remembered standing alone in the foyer, looking around, perplexed. Asim came through a door to the left of the tapestry.
“Salaam.”
The woman started and looked around. Then, realising, was cold again. Alone again. Alone, rocking to and fro to the rythm of the sea. Alone, beside a rough-hewn coffin.
Now Available on Amazon's Kindle $4.99 - Over 400 Pages
Graeme has been using ChinesePod since 2007
"I highly recommend ChinesePod, I haven't found any Online teaching programmes that come close."
