Students sit in a model of the Shenzhou spacecraft at Xi'an Skycity in Shaanxi province. The site is host to a center for space exploration. Xi'an is one of China's most popular tourist cities. Shao Rui / Xinhua

Investors get help with Airport City

Chinese companies are receiving extra assistance with investing in Manchester Airport City, with UK Trade & Investment supporting the launch a new website designed to simplify access to opportunities. The website, airportcity.co.uk, is designed to make it easier to invest in the business hub, which will be home to the 130 million pound ($187.5 million; 167 million euro) China Cluster specifically designed to attract Chinese investment into the UK.

Regulator inspects investment risks

China's insurance regulator has launched an inspection of the sector's risk controls over stock, private equity and real estate investments, Shanghai Securities News reported on June 1. The move comes as the country's insurers have reported strong profits, despite the wider economic stutters. Analysts have warned of a possible pivot by companies to riskier investments. The inspection will cover both onshore and offshore investments.

Zoomlion ends pursuit of crane maker Terex

Chinese construction equipment maker Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science & Technology Co Ltd has terminated talks on a deal to acquire US crane maker Terex Corp, after failing to agree on a price. Its vice-chairman, Sun Changjun, said foreign companies might attribute the failure to nonmarket factors such as government controls, which he denied. Zoomlion proposed acquiring Terex at $31 per share in March, and then after Terex agreed to sell its material handling and port services business to Finland's Konecranes, it revised the bid.

Softbank to sell stake in Alibaba

Japan's SoftBank Group Corp has announced a plan to sell $7.9 billion worth of its stake in Alibaba Group Holding Ltd in an aim to generate proceeds to cut debt. SoftBank, Alibaba's largest shareholder, has established a new trust with the intention to sell $5 billion in Alibaba's American depositary receipts to qualified institutional buyers, it said. SoftBank will also sell $2 billion in shares back to Alibaba. SoftBank will see its stake in Alibaba drop from 32.2 percent to 28 percent, but will remain Alibaba's largest shareholder.

CMG plans network of ports, terminals

China Merchants Group said it plans to construct key infrastructure projects such as specialized marine terminals in countries along the Belt and Road Initiative during the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20) period. The Chinese conglomerate's chairman, Li Jianhong, said on June 1 that the company will build a livestock wharf and liquefied natural gas terminal at the Port of Djibouti and warehouses in Sri Lanka's Port of Colombo, and invest $152 million to build the first phase of a trade and logistics park in Belarus this year.

Shanghai Media invests in VR company

Shanghai Media Group, one of China's largest media groups has, announced a strategic investment in Silicon Valley-based virtual-reality company Jaunt Inc. SMG and its subsidiary, Shanghai Oriental Pearl Media Co Ltd, will be investors in Jaunt, and SMG, Jaunt and China Media Capital's technology arm, Whaley Technology Co Ltd, will establish a joint venture, Jaunt China. Some 200 million yuan ($30.4 million; 27 million euros) from the SMG Cultural Innovation and Entrepreneurship Fund will be used to develop 500 VR productions in two years, covering TV programs, entertainment shows, games and music.

HNA buying stake in Virgin Australia

HNA Group, China's largest private airline operator, is buying a 13 percent stake in Virgin Australia Holdings Ltd for A$159 million ($115 million; 103 million euros), the latest in a series of overseas acquisitions by the company. The purchase is costing A$0.30 per share. Virgin Australia said HNA has the intention of raising that stake to 20 percent over time. Air New Zealand Ltd, Virgin Australia's biggest individual shareholder, has said it may sell its 26 percent stake in the carrier.

Carrefour launches distribution center

French retailer Carrefour SA launched a distribution center in Dongguan, Guangdong province, on May 31 to facilitate its business expansion in southern China. The Dongguan facility became Carrefour China's fifth distribution center. The sixth will open in mid-June, according to Garnier.

Chrysler to recall 13,700 Cherokee SUVs

Chrysler will recall 13,676 imported vehicles on the Chinese mainland due to defective windshield wipers, the country's quality watchdog said on May 31. The recall, set to begin on June 10, affects imported Jeep Cherokee SUVs manufactured between Jan 4, 2013, and July 11, 2014, according to a notice from the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine. Chrysler said the affected vehicles' windshield wipers may fail to work, posing safety risks.

Standard width railway to Mongolia on track

Construction on China's first unified standard railway to Mongolia has begun, port authorities said on May 30. The rail line will pass through Ceke, the second-largest port of entry between China and Mongolia. It will be 1.43 meters in width, the standard gauge in China. The Mongolian standard gauge is 1.52 meters in width, which causes extra costs for cargo trains traveling between the two countries. The rail line is expected to help Ceke port become the biggest port of entry between China and Mongolia, with annual cargo throughput of more than 30 million metric tons.

Cargo trains connect China, Germany

A cargo train linking Germany and Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region has begun operations, local authorities said. It takes 10 days for the train to reach Germany's industrial city of Duisburg from Urumqi over a distance of 8,000 kilometers, passing through Kazakhstan, Russia and Poland, said Xu Yongxin, general manager of the company that undertook the project. It is the cargo train route with the shortest distance between China and Europe, at least 2,000 km shorter than other China-Europe routes, saving two to three days travel.

( China Daily European Weekly 06/03/2016 page26)