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Trade
Political and International News
National People's Congress
Economy
Healthcare
Foreign Investments
Energy & Environment
Insurance & Finance
Defense & Exports Control
General News / US Chamber China Trade & Investment News
September 19, 2008
Trade
September 19: Nissan Motor Company, Japan's third- biggest automaker, reiterated its 2008 China sales target, even as demand growth in the world's second-largest vehicle market slows. The company, 44 percent owned by Renault SA, plans to sell 500,000 vehicles in China in 2008, up from 457,000 of 2007. China's vehicle sales dropped for first time in three years in August 2008.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aDKYbtceZ0EI
http://online.wsj.com/search/aggregate.html#BT-CO-20080919-700100
September 19: Commerce finds dumping of PET film from four countries.
http://www.chinatradeextra.com/
September 19: The Yuan was little changed; snapping two days of gains, on speculation China is favoring slower currency appreciation to support economic growth amid turmoil in global financial markets. The currency traded at 6.8360 a dollar in Shanghai. The currency stalled in July 2008 as policy makers put extra emphasis on bolstering the world's fourth-largest economy after it grew in the second quarter at the slowest pace since 2005.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aYOHzQVLuV7A
September 18: More than half the EU’s member states voted to end emergency import duties against shoes from China and Vietnam, complicating a looming decision for Peter Mandelson, European trade commissioner. Fifteen countries voted against renewing the “anti-dumping” duties, imposed in 2006, with only 12 in favor. The vote is non-binding but suggests that opinion may have shifted against imposing duties on imports that make consumer goods more expensive, particularly at a time of high inflation.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/07717dce-8509-11dd-b148-0000779fd18c,dwp_uuid=9c33700c-4c86-11da-89df-0000779e2340.html
Political and International News
September 19: China and India held a fresh round of talks in Beijing as part of efforts to resolve their decades-old border dispute. State Counselor Dai Bingguo, special representative of the Chinese delegation, discussed the issue with India's national security advisor, MK Narayanan. The two special representatives touched on other issues of mutual interest during the meeting.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-09/19/content_7039718.htm
September 19: China filed a World Trade Organization complaint against the US over duties imposed on imports of Chinese steel pipe, some tires and laminated woven sacks, saying the levies violate global trade rules. The US decided on July 17 2008 to impose duties on $200 million of steel pipe imports from China, South Korea and Mexico after a ruling by the US International Trade Commission.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aoDZ41A1z7m4
September 19: China commission revises schedule for meetings to prepare annual report.
http://www.chinatradeextra.com/
National People's Congress
September 19: China's State Council, the country's Cabinet, issued an implementation regulation for Labor Contract Law in an effort to clarify confusion surrounding the law. The new law, which was put into effect on January 01 2008, was hailed as a landmark step in protecting employee's rights. But many complained the law increased a company's operational cost as it overemphasized protection of workers.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-09/18/content_10076098.htm
Economy
September 19: China posted a fiscal surplus of $193.84 billion for the first eight months of 2008, a gain that comes as the central government is expanding fiscal policy to bolster the slowing economy. China's fiscal revenue for the Jan-Aug 2008 period grew 28.4 percent from a year earlier to $654.38 billion, while fiscal spending rose 28.1 percent to $460.56 billion.
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20080919-700670-search.html?KEYWORDS=China&COLLECTION=autowire/6month
September 18: Chinese real GDP growth has been slowing for four consecutive quarters reaching 10.1 percent in Q2 year-on-year. China growth trajectory expected to keep slowing in 2008, with Q3 growth likely to slip below 10 percent and more in 2009. Sub 10 percent growth is now consensus, but it might fall to 8 percent or lower in 2009. Net exports are now detracting from growth.
http://www.rgemonitor.com/26/China
September 18: Mainland property developers have resorted to steep price discounting to lure buyers back to the market in September and October, the traditional peak home-buying season. Li Wenjie, the general manager of Centaline (China) in Beijing said "It is the first time we have seen a price war happening in all the major mainland cities. Almost all projects in Beijing have now cut their asking prices. However, the tactic has so far shown no sign of reversing the decline in property sales and analysts do not expect lower prices alone will be enough to restore buyer confidence.
http://piaohaoreport.sampasite.com/china-financial-markets/blog/Is-China-safe.htm
Healthcare
September 19: China’s adulterated-milk scandal continued to widen, as the authorities arrested a dozen people, fired a senior government official and acknowledged that a wider range of milk products showed traces of a chemical used to disguise its poor quality. Officials said a fourth infant had died from tainted baby formula, while health regulators in Hong Kong announced a broader recall of mainland Chinese-made milk, yogurt and ice cream contaminated with the chemical melamine.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/19/world/asia/19milk.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aaFyL9C2G2SU
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20080919-700234-search.html?KEYWORDS=China&COLLECTION=autowire/6month
September 19: The EU wants an explanation about a widening Chinese dairy scandal that has made thousands of infants’ ill, as global cafe giant Starbucks pulled some milk from its Chinese stores. Fears that the scandal was much bigger than first thought appeared to be well-founded when a government quality watchdog said nearly 10 percent of milk samples from three major dairies were found to be contaminated with potentially deadly melamine.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/19/AR2008091900203.html
September 19: Two Chinese regulators said they are stepping up their oversight of baby formula and dairy products to prevent supply shortages and price spikes amid the country's toxic milk scandal. The National Development and Reform Commission sanctioned the use of price caps for provincial authorities to prevent "unreasonable" rises in baby milk powder prices. The Ministry of Commerce has ordered daily reports from its local offices detailing pricing, production, stocks and sales of infant and adult milk powder, liquid milk and other dairy products.
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20080919-701661-search.html?KEYWORDS=China&COLLECTION=autowire/6month
Foreign Investments
September 19: US regulatory rules would make it difficult for China Investment Corporation to take a stake in any ailing US firms. An official from China's sovereign wealth fund said even if the CIC intended to buy a stake, it could be very hard now as the purchase of a stake, even one smaller than 10 percent, could be subject to the US government foreign investment review.
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20080918-720659-search.html?KEYWORDS=China&COLLECTION=autowire/6month
September 19: China Oilfield Services Limited announced its offering to buy Norway's Awilco Offshore ASA for $2.49 billion had been approved by Chinese securities regulators and the deal's settlement would take place in near future. So far, COSL has received all approvals required from relevant Chinese authorities and has met all required conditions for completion of the offer.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-09/19/content_10077287.htm
September 19: United Company Rusal, the world's largest aluminum and alumina producer, will invest up to $3 billion in China within seven years, considering the increasing demands from China's mass construction projects. UC RUSAL plans to establish up to four factories in China first and is selecting the sites for the plants in northern China.
http://www.chinaknowledge.com/News/news-detail.aspx?type=1&id=17626
September 19: China held $518.7 billion worth of US treasury bonds in July 2008, $14.9 billion more than in June 2008. The growth in US bonds held by China was the second peak since this January, with China placed as the second largest holder of US treasuries. The US sub prime mortgage crisis has made dollar-denominated investment products less attractive to foreign investors.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchina/2008-09/19/content_7042045.htm
September 19: Chinese mutual fund company Guotai Asset Management Company plans to launch its first overseas fund under China's Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor program as soon as November. The fund aims to raise around $146.3 million, and it will use the MSCI global emerging market index as a benchmark.
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20080919-701644-search.html?KEYWORDS=China&COLLECTION=autowire/6month
September 18: Morgan Stanley is in talks to sell a stake of up to 49 percent to China Investment Corporation, the state investment fund, as part of the Wall Street firm’s efforts to ensure its survival and reverse a slump in investor confidence. The investment bank’s top management preferred a stake sale to CIC to a merger with Wachovia, the troubled US lender that approached Morgan Stanley.
http://www.ft.com/
http://www.rgemonitor.com/26/China
September 18: Bank of China Limited and La Compagnie Financiere Edmond de Rothschild, an independent French bank, will unveil a partnership. Under the partnership, Bank of China is expected to take stake in the French bank. Compagnie Financiere Edmond de Rothschild, the French arm of the LCF Rothschild Group headed by Baron Benjamin de Rothschild, is active in asset management and corporate advisory services.
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20080918-705326-search.html?KEYWORDS=China&COLLECTION=autowire/6month
Energy & Environment
September 19: China's coal-to-liquid (CTL) frenzy has cooled after it exposed the country's many coal-rich provinces to huge investment risk. As a result, the government has called off several controversial projects. Zhou Dadi, the former director of the Energy Research Institute under the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said "Although CTL was widely considered as a good way to expand the coal industry chain, it was still uncertain that the massive investment would be worthwhile in commercial operation."
http://www.individual.com/story.php?story=88766524
September 19: China National Offshore Oil Corporation, the nation's biggest offshore oil producer, plans to spend $1 billion over the next three years to more than double the capacity of a refinery purchased in September. The Beijing-based company will expand the refinery in the eastern part of China to 160,000 barrels a day from 60,000 barrels a day. China National Offshore, the parent of Hong Kong-listed Cnooc Limited, is building refineries and expanding small plants to diversify from oil production into processing.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aPH5WxxDf36Y
Insurance & Finance
September 19: China has invested $269 billion in property development during the Jan-Aug 2008 period, increasing 29.1 percent year on year. Investment in residential buildings amounted to $196.07 billion, up 31.7 percent, of which $8 billion were invested in affordable housing development, up 21.7 percent over the corresponding period of 2007.
http://www.chinaknowledge.com/News/news-detail.aspx?type=1&id=17618
September 19: Shanghai Wanye Enterprises Company Limited, a China-based company engaged in property development and operation, will spend $32.91 million to raise its stake in Inner Mongolia-based Etuokeqi Haoyuan Coal Charring Company Limited to 45 percent.
http://www.chinaknowledge.com/News/news-detail.aspx?type=1&id=17619
September 19: Tengda Construction Group Company Limited, a China-based operator of various municipal engineering and road projects, announced that it has won the bid for a construction project in Hangzhou worth $12.46 million.
http://www.chinaknowledge.com/News/news-detail.aspx?type=1&id=17624
September 19: Financial regulators have asked China's financial institutions to submit detailed records of their investments in the US and European financial assets to ascertain the full extent of their exposure to the US financial crisis. The China Banking Regulatory Commission, China Insurance Regulatory Commission and the China Securities Regulatory Commission reportedly made the request to financial institutions under their supervision.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-09/19/content_10077575.htm
September 18: China's government plans to buy shares and take other measures to support the nation's plummeting stock market, a program that analysts said will surely boost investor sentiment -- but could add to longer-term risks. As the world's major central banks banded together to fight a meltdown in global financial markets, Beijing said an arm of China's $200 billion sovereign-wealth fund will increase its shareholding in the nation's three largest banks with direct purchases on the market, while other government entities will be encouraged to load up on stock in listed companies that they control.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122173807023152051-search.html?KEYWORDS=China&COLLECTION=wsjie/6month
September 18: China cut the one-year lending interest rate to 7.20 percent from 7.47 percent; the first cut since 2002 to "solve the outstanding problems in the economy and maintain growth" These cuts come after recent data showed deceleration in price and money supply growth. It maintained the lending rate on deposits at 4.14 percent.
http://www.rgemonitor.com/26/China
September 18: In a move to boost sagging domestic stock markets, China will reduce the taxes investors pay on stock trades by eliminating the tax on purchases. Effective from September 19 2008, investors will pay the so-called stamp duty only when they sell stocks. The measure was approved by China's Cabinet, the State Council, as well as the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation. The move comes as Chinese stocks have fallen sharply amid a global financial crisis.
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20080918-705797-search.html?KEYWORDS=China&COLLECTION=autowire/6month
http://www.china-briefing.com/news/2008/09/19/china-cancels-stamp-duty-on-stock-purchases.html
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/53003f2e-859e-11dd-a1ac-0000779fd18c,dwp_uuid=9c33700c-4c86-11da-89df-0000779e2340.html?nclick_check=1
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=azK0n73WyuOc
Defense & Exports Control
September 19: China's top military officer Guo Boxiong called for more efforts to enhance the country's military capacity to cope with security threats. Priority should be given to upgrade the military capacity to fight an information-based, high-tech regional war and efforts should be made to enable troops to tackle various security threats.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-09/19/content_10076572.htm
General News
September 19: Microsoft has selected Shenzhen-based Comtech Communication Technology Company as an authorized distributor partner in China to extend the availability of its Windows Embedded family of products.
http://www.chinatechnews.com/2008/09/19/7572-microsoft-expands-windows-embedded-distribution-channel-in-china/
September 19: Air China, the country's second largest carrier by fleet size, has postponed its plan to purchase China Eastern Airlines Corporation as the airline industry might take as long as two years to recover from the financial turmoil in the United States.
http://www.chinaknowledge.com/News/news-detail.aspx?type=1&id=17628
September 19: The Chinese-European Arbitration Center (CEAC), the first international arbitration center designed to resolve China-Europe trade disputes, was inaugurated in this northwestern German city. The CEAC was initiated by Eckart Broedermann, chairperson of the China-Europe Legal Association, a non-profit organization that owns the CEAC and ensures its neutrality.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-09/19/content_7042287.htm
September 19: China Chamber of Commerce for Imports and Exports of Light Industrial Products and Arts-Crafts (CCCLA) signed a cooperation memo with eastern Pinghu city to set up a suitcase and bag manufacturing base. Wang Zhongqi, vice president of the chamber that this would foster more export famous brands and lay a sound foundation for the long-run industry development, as well as help promote regional industrial upgrading.