Investment

COFCO eyes deals for sugar, wine overseas

China National Cereals, Oils and Foodstuffs Corp, known as COFCO, will focus its overseas acquisition drive in the wine and sugar sectors to meet growing demand at home, a senior company official has said.

Wan Zaotian, vice-president of the state-owned food-processing giant, said on Thursday that the company will continue to expand through sugar and wine-related overseas mergers and acquisitions.

"These two areas are easier for acquisitions compared with grain-related mergers," he said.

Regarding grain M&A deals, he cited the example of land purchases in countries such as Brazil, which have ownership restrictions for foreign companies.

KKR acquires 10% stake in Qingdao Haier

Global-leading home appliance manufacturer Qingdao Haier Co Ltd and private equity firm KKR announced the signing of a definitive agreement under which KKR will acquire a 10 percent stake in Qingdao Haier, establishing a long-term strategic partnership.

"By the end of 2012, we entered the crucial 'online' strategic phase of its long-term growth plan," Qingdao Haier chairman Liang Haishan said.

"We welcome the world-class investment firm KKR to become our long-term strategic partner which will help us effectively execute our growth strategies."

David Liu, a partner of KKR and CEO of KKR Greater China, said: "We are delighted to have the opportunity to partner with such an excellent company."

Technology

Huawei launches first Mideast logistics hub

China's information and communications technology solutions provider Huawei has launched its first Middle East logistics hub in Dubai's free port zone, Jebel Ali, which will serve project deliveries across the region.

Peng Xiongji, Huawei's general manager for the United Arab Emirates, said at the launch that the center would initially focus on customers in the telecommunications sector.

Peng said that the facility would shorten deliveries by about 30 days for ocean shipments and meet urgent delivery requests from regional customers.

China cracks down on illegal news apps

China's State Internet Information Office (SIIO) has punished several mobile news applications that lack qualifications as news services and ordered them to correct their behavior within a time limit.

According to a statement issued by the SIIO, mobile news apps such as Zaker, mobee, chouti, my1510 and others provide mobile news services without qualifications issued by Internet regulators and even publish false information.

Some mobile news apps bragged that they carry news deemed inappropriate and columns "not suitable for public places". Others publish pornography and obscene information, harming the physical and psychological health of youngsters, the statement said.

Finance

China approves egg futures trading

The China Securities Regulatory Commission, the country's top securities regulator, announced that it has endorsed the Dalian Commodity Exchange to carry out egg futures trading.

Futures trading will help stabilize egg prices by increasing liquidity in the market, and could act as an efficient commodity hedge in the long run to promote stable development of the egg industry, said the CSRC.

The DCE has so far completed contract design and draft rules with a strict mechanism on transactions and settlements, and risk control measures on cash deposits, price fluctuation caps and position limits have also been thoroughly researched, according to the CSRC.

The official listing date for the futures contracts will be decided based on preparation work by the DCE as well as market conditions, said the CSRC.

Policies to boost FTZ capital market

The China Securities Regulatory Commission has issued a package of policies to support the capital market in the Shanghai pilot free trade zone, officials said.

Qualified individuals and units, including financial institutes and companies, in the FTZ will be allowed to invest in both domestic and foreign fund markets, said Dai Haibo, deputy director of the zone's administrative committee, citing a CSRC statement.

The CSRC has also approved a plan to build an international crude oil futures trading platform, while foreign companies in the zone will be allowed to issue renminbi bonds.

Other measures include allowing securities and futures companies in the zone to set up subsidiaries and do over-the-counter trading in staple commodities and financial derivatives for domestic customers, Dai said.

Foreign financial assets hit $1.7 trillion

China's net foreign financial assets had reached $1.7453 trillion by the end of June, data from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange showed on Sept 27.

The nation's total foreign financial assets came in at $5.43 trillion by the end of June, while its total foreign financial liabilities reached $3.69 trillion, according to a statement posted on the SAFE's website.

Foreign reserve assets stood at $3.56 trillion at the end of June, accounting for 66 percent of China's external financial assets, slightly up from the 65.5 percent recorded at the end of March.

Auto

China to recall over 180,000 defective cars

China's quality watchdog has announced the recall of 181,492 defective cars produced by BMW, Hyundai Motor Group and Dongfeng Yueda Kia.

BMW-Brilliance Automotive Ltd, a joint venture between Brilliance China Automotive and German luxury carmaker BMW, is to recall 75,832 BMW 5 series cars due to problematic socket adapters in their taillights, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine said in a statement.

The recall involves 75,744 vehicles produced by BMW-Brilliance between Feb 7, 2007 and Sept 24, 2010, and 88 imported cars made between February 22, 2007 and Oct 30, 2009.

Energy

Tax breaks for solar power companies

China's Ministry of Finance announced that it will offer tax breaks to manufacturers of solar power products, in the country's latest effort to encourage the use of green energy.

From Oct 1, 2013 to Dec 31, 2015, vendors of self-produced power products using solar energy will receive immediate refunds of 50 percent of value-added taxes, the ministry said in a brief statement.

The move came as China tries to absorb the over-supply of photovoltaic products in the domestic market after demand from major export destinations - the European Union and the United States - faltered due to trade rows.

Economy

Manufacturing PMI hit 17-month high in Sept

China's factory activity set a 17-month record in September, indicating a stable economic rebound.

China's purchasing managers' index (PMI) for the manufacturing sector rose to 51.1 percent in September from 51 percent in August, the National Bureau of Statistics and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing said.

It was the third consecutive month that the index had risen month-on-month and the figure was the highest since May 2012.

China Daily Agencies

China National Cereals, Oils and Foodstuffs Corp will focus its overseas acquisition drive in the wine and sugar sectors to meet growing demand at home. Provided to China Daily

( China Daily European Weekly 10/04/2013 page18)