SinoCast China Financial Watch articles from January 2009

SinoCast China Financial Watch archives from January 2009

SDB 08 Net Profit Fall 77%.
January 19, 2009... SHENZHEN, January 20, SinoCast -- US private equity firm Newbridge Capital LLC is scheduled to quit Shenzhen Development Bank (SDB and SZSE: 000001) in 2010. SDB, a city-level commercial lender in China, set aside CNY 5.6 billion provision...

China 08 Non-performing Loans Fell CNY700bn.
January 19, 2009... BEIJING, January 20, SinoCast -- Chinese commercial lenders' non-performing loans totaled CNY 568.2 billion as at the end of 2008, down CNY 700.2 billion from the year start, with non-performing loan ratio sliding 3.71 percentage points to...

Foreign Investors Sold Chinese Lenders' Shares in Succession.
January 19, 2009... BEIJING, January 20, SinoCast -- As some Hong Kong-listed Chinese lenders saw their H-shares become tradable since the end of 2008, foreign shareholders of them successively sold out the Hong Kong-traded share of these Chinese banks. On...

BoCom Pushing Forward Joint Venture with HSBC.
January 19, 2009... SHENZHEN, January 20, SinoCast -- The Bank of Communications (BoCom) is pushing forward a credit card joint venture with HSBC as part of its broader development strategy, according to Zhu Kepeng, director at the office of the board of...

Closed-End Funds Soar.
January 19, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 20, SinoCast -- Closed-end funds soared last week on rising net asset value and falling discount rate. Morningstar China Closed-end Fund Index gained 6.18 percent last week. By contrast, the Shanghai Composite Index, which...

Property Developers Said to Continue Promoting Houses.
January 19, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 20, SinoCast -- Real estate developers in China shall take more efforts to sell properties in 2009 rather than expand land reserves, said a senior executive from UBS Asia. Nine Hong Kong-listed Chinese real estate developers...

Ping An to Open a PE Investment Arm.
January 19, 2009... BEIJING, January 20, SinoCast -- Chinese insurance giant Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China is to set up a subsidiary particularly for its private equity (PE) investment. Now the plan is still subject to the approval of the China...

Joint-stock Agriculture Bank of China Established.
January 16, 2009... BEIJING, January 19, SinoCast -- Agricultural Bank of China (ABC), the sole bank out of China's Big Four state-owned commercial lenders to retain unlisted, was formally established as a joint-stock company on January 15, 2009 with a...

Goldman Sachs Likely to Sell ICBC Shares.
January 16, 2009... BEIJING, January 19, SinoCast -- Goldman Sachs, the foreign strategic investor of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC, SHSE: 601398 and SEHK: 1398), is predicted to sell the shares it takes in the state-owned Chinese commercial...

Interbank Bond Interest Rates Rise on Sell-off.
January 16, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 19, SinoCast -- Medium- and long-term bond interest rates on the Chinese inter-bank bond market soared on Thursday following heavy sell-off among investors. The yield curve of inter-bank fixed-rate treasury bonds showed that...

Foreign Investors in Line for Status of QFII.
January 16, 2009... SHENZHEN, January 19, SinoCast -- Have foreign investors soared on Chinese stocks? Concerns have been growing among Chinese investors as a few heavyweights such as the Bank of America and Li Ka Shing Foundation have lately been unloading A...

Valuation Adjustment Mechanism Pressurizs Developers.
January 16, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 19, SinoCast -- More than 30 mainland real estate developers are very nervous now as they are to fulfill the valuation adjustment mechanism that they reached with private equity investors before planned initial public...

Banking Stocks Performance Remains a Puzzle.
January 16, 2009... SHENZHEN, January 19, SinoCast -- Four major factors lead to people's confusion when evaluating the banking stocks. The financial crisis resulting from the US subprime mortgage crisis has resulted in economic downturn around the globe....

4 Life Insurers Ordered to Lift Solvency.
January 16, 2009... BEIJING, January 19, SinoCast -- Four life insurers are required to lift their solvency ratio up to more than 100%, the minimum regulatory requirement. In detail, the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC), the nation's top insurance...

Central Bank Net Cash Circulation Hits New High.
January 16, 2009... BEIJING, January 19, SinoCast -- China's central bank People's Bank of China in the week ended January 16, 2009 has had CNY 160 billion net quantity of cash put into circulation, versus CNY 5 billion in the week ended January 9, 2009. The...

BEA Buys 10-Storey Shanghai Office Building.
January 15, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 16, SinoCast -- Bank of East Asia (BEA) will acquire a 10-storey A-class office building in Lujiazui, Shanghai, which is estimated at CNY 1 billion. The office building is part of Gaobao Financial Tower, which will be...

Banking Watchdog Points out Key Aspects for Credit Business.
January 15, 2009... BEIJING, January 16, SinoCast -- China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC), the supreme banking industry regulator in China, points out that lenders in the country shall strengthen credit for the mergers and acquisitions of large-scale...

China Foreign Exchange Reserve to Invest in China Banks.
January 15, 2009... BEIJING, January 16, SinoCast -- China's outstanding foreign exchange reserve had amounted to USD 1.95 trillion as of December 31, 2008, rising 27.34% year on year. The reserve increased USD 417.8 billion in 2008, USD 44.1 billion less than...

RBS Sold out BoC Shares.
January 15, 2009... HONG KONG, January 16, SinoCast -- Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) announced on January 14 afternoon that it had sold out 10.81 billion Hong Kong dollar-denominated shares of Bank of China (BoC, SEHK: 3988 and SHSE: 601988). The shares,...

Haitong Securities 08 Net Hit CNY3.3bn.
January 15, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 16, SinoCast -- Haitong Securities Co., Ltd. (SHSE: 600837) announced on January 15 that its net profit attributable to shareholders reached CNY 3.3 billion in 2008, down 40 percent from CNY 5.46 billion in 2007. Net assets...

Yields of Money Market Funds Likely to Fall in 09.
January 15, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 16, SinoCast -- Assumed yields of money market funds in China may drop largely in 2009 due to the falling returns on bond investment, according to the latest research report by Howbuy.com. Yields of money market funds soared...

Hot Money Fled out of China.
January 15, 2009... SHENZHEN, January 16, SinoCast -- As much as USD 120 billion to USD 140 billion hot money fled out of China in the fourth quarter of 2008 in response to the rapidly devastating global financial crisis and the sharp economic downturn. An...

Reinsurers Become More Demanding under Financial Crisis.
January 15, 2009... BEIJING, January 16, SinoCast -- As both international and domestic reinsurance firms are setting out stricter conditions for reinsurance business, Chinese property insurers are confronted with stiffer challenge in 2009. This is not only...

China Had CNY771.8bn Loans More in Dec 08.
January 14, 2009... BEIJING, January 15, SinoCast -- The nation's newly-added loans amounted to CNY 771.8 billion last December, the highest level since January 2008, the People's Bank of China announced on January 13, 2009. As of December 31, 2008, Chinese...

RBS Said to Sell BoC Shares.
January 14, 2009... HONG KONG, January 15, SinoCast -- Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is said to have began selling Hong Kong dollar-denominated shares it holds in leading Chinese commercial lender Bank of China (BoC, SEHK: 3988 and SHSE: 601988) since January 13,...

Goldman Sachs Guessed to Sell ICBC Shares.
January 14, 2009... BEIJING, January 15, SinoCast -- Goldman Sachs, the foreign strategic investor of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC, 601398.SH, 1398.HK), is guessed to sell the shares it currently takes in the Chinese state-owned commercial...

China's Forex Reserves Growth Slows down.
January 14, 2009... SHENZHEN, January 15, SinoCast -- Growth in China's foreign exchange reserves slowed down in December 2008 for the first time in the past years. As the biggest holder of forex reserves in the world, China recorded USD 1.95 trillion in forex...

China Loan Growth Hits 55-Month High in Dec 08.
January 14, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 15, SinoCast -- China's loan growth reached a 55-month high in December 2008, according to the latest financial statistics by the People's Bank of China. As at December 31, 2008, China's renminbi loans outstanding were CNY...

Nine Cities Need 9 Months to Clear up Stockpile Houses.
January 14, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 15, SinoCast -- There are about 38- million-square-meter stockpile commodity houses that were developed between 2006 and 2008 in nine Chinese cities, which are estimated to take at least nine months to be cleared up,...

Guizhou Power Grid Gets Compensated for Loss in Storm.
January 14, 2009... GUIZHOU, January 15, SinoCast -- Guizhou Power Grid has gotten compensated for the losses in the snow storm disaster at the beginning of 2008. PICC Property and Casualty Company Limited (PICC P&C), Ping An Property and Casualty Insurance...

PICC Health Punished for Bancassurance.
January 14, 2009... BEIJING, January 15, SinoCast -- PICC Health Insurance Co., Ltd. is said to be asked by the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC), the top Chinese insurance regulator, to suspend universal life insurance business in Beijing, Shanghai,...

Shanghai Banking Deposits Rose 17.4% in 08.
January 13, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 14, SinoCast -- The deposits outstanding at foreign and Chinese financial institutions in Shanghai stood at CNY 3.56 trillion as at December 30, 2008, representing a year-over-year rise of 17.4%, up 2.8 percentage points...

Shenzhen Development Bank 08 Profit May Dive 77%.
January 13, 2009... SHENZHEN, January 14, SinoCast -- Chinese city-level commercial lender Shenzhen Development Bank Co., Ltd. (SZSE: 000001) said in its 2008 financial forecast on January 12 that its net profit for the fiscal year 2008 was expected to hit CNY...

Jiuding Capital Bets on Agricultural Industry.
January 13, 2009... SHENZHEN, January 14, SinoCast -- As venture capital firms and private equity funds are fleeing to safety amid the worsening global financial crisis and a sharp economic downturn, agriculture has been put under the limelight. With more major...

Equity Market Turnover in Shanghai Hits CNY107bn in 08.
January 13, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 14, SinoCast -- Turnover in Shanghai's equity market hit CNY 107 billion in 2008, a growth of 12% year over year, according to Shanghai United Assets and Equity Exchange (SUAEE). As the financial capital of China's Mainland,...

Shanxi Securities, Deutsche Bank to Set Up JV.
January 13, 2009... BEIJING, January 14, SinoCast -- Shanxi Securities Co., Ltd. recently gained approval from the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), the top Chinese securities regulator, to set up a securities joint venture with Deutsche Bank AG (NYSE:...

A-Share Market Expected to Gain on Looser Liquidity.
January 13, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 14, SinoCast -- Liquidity in China's open market is becoming dramatically loose in the first quarter of 2009, which will support a gain of A-share stock market soon, said analysts. January will witness circa CNY 575 billion...

Skyfame Realty Asked to Repay Loan as Scheduled.
January 13, 2009... GUANGZHOU, January 14, SinoCast -- Guangzhou-based Skyfame Realty (Holdings) Limited (SEHK: 0059) announced that the provisional liquidator of Lehman Brothers rejected its proposal for delaying the repayment of HKD 220 million loans due to...

CIRC Punishes 3 Insurers.
January 13, 2009... BEIJING, January 14, SinoCast -- China's top insurance regulator China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC) on January 12 circulated notices of criticism to three insurers for their violations of CIRC's rules. The insurers are PICC Health...

Restructured ABC to Established on Jan 16.
January 12, 2009... BEIJING, January 13, SinoCast -- Agricultural Bank of China (ABC), the sole bank out of China's Big Four state-owned commercial lenders to retain unlisted, is set to be established as a joint-stock company on January 16, 2009 with a...

Funds Sell Off Constituents of CSI300 Index in Q4.
January 12, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 13, SinoCast -- Funds may sell off shares of some constituent stocks of the CSI 300 Index in the fourth quarter of 2008 and then seek investment opportunities in 2009, said analysts. The CSI 300 Index, which tracks the daily...

Disneyland Park to Land in Shanghai.
January 12, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 13, SinoCast -- The Walt Disney Company has entered into a framework agreement with Shanghai municipal government on the establishment of a Disneyland Park in Shanghai. People familiar with the project said that Shanghai is...

Shenzhen Growth Enterprises Market Expected to Debut in 09.
January 12, 2009... SHENZHEN, January 13, SinoCast -- China is trying to stably start the Shenzhen growth enterprises market (GEM) in 2009, stated Chen Dongzheng, chairman of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange. The chairman also pointed out that the Shenzhen Stock...

Vanke Forecasts China House Prices Will Bottom Out in 2012.
January 12, 2009... SHENZHEN, January 13, SinoCast -- China Vanke Co., Ltd. (SZSE: 000002), the country's biggest real estate developer, forecasted that the domestic housing prices would probably bottom out in 2012. The Shenzhen-based real estate developer on...

Ping An: John Pearce Resigned.
January 12, 2009... BEIJING, January 13, SinoCast -- John Pearce, the chief investment officer of Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. (SHSE: 601318 and SEHK: 2318), resigned at the end of 2008, a spokesman with the dual-listed Chinese insurer said...

Central & West China to Pilot Houses for Low-Income Earners.
January 12, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 13, SinoCast -- China's Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development has decided to let the central and western regions support the construction of policy- related houses for low and medium-income households with idle...

ICBC Tapping PEs.
January 9, 2009... SHENZHEN, January 12, SinoCast -- Playing a role of consultant to private equity funds, this year the investment bank department of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) will try to chart a new path to sales. ICBC is among the...

RBS Makes no Decision on Selling Bank of China Shares.
January 9, 2009... BEIJING, January 12, SinoCast -- Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), a foreign strategic investor of Bank of China, has not made a final decision whether to sell the Hong Kong dollar- denominated shares of the Chinese lender. As the second biggest...

Top 5 Brokers List Comes out.
January 9, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 12, SinoCast -- CITIC Securities, China International Capital Corporation (CICC), China Galaxy Securities, Essence Securities, and BOC International accounted for 70% underwriting amount of 2008's initial public offerings. A...

GSR Ventures Closed a USD380bn Fundraising.
January 9, 2009... BEIJING, January 12, SinoCast -- China-focused venture capital fund GSR Ventures lately announced the closing of a USD 380 million new fund, which is to go into technology companies with operations in China. The first investment target of the...

China Completes Frame of REITs.
January 9, 2009... TIANJIN, January 12, SinoCast -- China has set up a preliminary frame of real estate investment trust, which is expected to be launched this year on a trial basis. Huo Yingli, a senior official with the People's Bank of China, the central...

Chinese Furniture Maker to Buy US Peer.
January 9, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 12, SinoCast -- Chinese furniture producer Markor International Furniture Co., Ltd. (SHSE: 600337) announced on January 8 that it would buy the net operating assets and liabilities of US-based Schnadig Corp. for about USD...

Local Governments Buy Commodity Houses for Welfare Use.
January 9, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 12, SinoCast -- Local governments in Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu, Chongqing, Jiangsu Province and Henan Province are going to buy commodity houses as low-rent houses, affordable houses for medium-income earners and houses for...

China Life 08 Premium Revenue Hit CNY295.6bn.
January 9, 2009... BEIJING, January 12, SinoCast -- The premium revenue China Life Insurance (Group) Co. gained in the Chinese market in 2008 reached CNY 321.8 billion, soaring 46 percent year on year and accounting for 32.9 percent of the total insurers...

Smaller Commercial Banks Expand Futures Business.
January 8, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 09, SinoCast -- Some small and medium- scale commercial banks in China are competing with the country's larger lenders in futures business. The toughest problem for those smaller players is that they are not qualified to...

Foreign Shareholders Cash in Shares of Chinese Banks.
January 8, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 09, SinoCast -- A few foreign strategic investors are in a rush to sell shares they take in Chinese banking partners. Bank of America on January 7 sold 5.6 billion Hong Kong dollar-denominated shares of China Construction...

Morgan Stanley Sells Properties in Shanghai.
January 8, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 09, SinoCast -- Morgan Stanley is selling a package of properties in Shanghai, which comprise office buildings, commercial plaza and residential houses. The vendor has contacted several foreign-invested funds, but it has yet...

Li Ka-shing Sells Commercial Property in Shanghai.
January 8, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 09, SinoCast -- Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing is strategically selling commercial property in Shanghai, of which a large portion are taken over by Wenzhou investors. The property comprising 40 shops with gross floor...

88 Listed Firms Forecasted Over 50% Profit Growth for 08.
January 8, 2009... BEIJING, January 09, SinoCast -- A total of 566 Mainland China-listed companies had unveiled their 2008 financial forecasts by January 7, 2009. Among the total, 221 ones forecasted that their financial results for the fiscal year 2008 would...

AIU Insurance to Offer Acquisition Insurance in China.
January 8, 2009... BEIJING, January 09, SinoCast -- The US non-life insurer AIU Insurance Company plans to launch three financial insurance products for its Chinese customers to control risks from the global financial crisis. One of them is a guarantee for the...

CDB Expects to Buy into Guotai Junan.
January 8, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 09, SinoCast -- The lock-up period of a 21.28 percent stake China SAFE Investment Ltd. takes in Guotai Junan Securities Co., Ltd. is due to expire on January 9, 2009. China Development Bank Corp. (CDB), a newly-established...

Banks Starts Nibbling at Bonds.
January 8, 2009... SHENZHEN, January 09, SinoCast -- Banks started to nibbling at bonds during the past four months after the bond market searching for the bottom in the first eight months of 2008. Though banks are increasing their positions, their dominance...

Dongxing Securities to Buy Pengda Futures.
January 7, 2009... BEIJING, January 08, SinoCast -- Beijing-based securities firm Dongxing Securities Co., Ltd. is said to have inked a contract to acquire the 100 percent stake in Shandong Pengda Futures Brokerage Co., Ltd. A top executive with the...

ICBC Launches 1st M&A Loan.
January 7, 2009... BEIJING, January 08, SinoCast -- Chinese commercial lender Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC, SHSE: 601398, and SEHK: 1398) inked a merger & acquisition (M&A) contract with Beijing Capital Co., Ltd. (SHSE: 600008) and the China...

China Foreign Exchange Reserves Falls.
January 7, 2009... BEIJING, January 08, SinoCast -- Fan Gang, a commissioner at People's Bank of China, explains that the fluctuation of China's foreign exchange reserves relates much to the book value of the assets held by the foreign exchange reserves,...

China Commodity Futures Soar.
January 7, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 08, SinoCast -- China's commodity futures continue to soar, led by industrial products. After opening higher in the morning, Shanghai Futures Exchange's dominant copper CU0903 contract closed at CNY 26240 per ton, an...

Shanghai Boosts Public Housing Provident Fund.
January 7, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 08, SinoCast -- Shanghai Housing Provident Fund Management Center raises quota of public housing provident fund loans to CNY 800,000 for second ordinary house, given a house buyer has paid back such loans for the first house...

China 09 to Adjust Accounting Standards.
January 7, 2009... BEIJING, January 08, SinoCast -- China in 2009 is to adopt international accounting standards for those insurers which are listed both at home and abroad, said Wu Dingfu, chairman of the China Insurance Regulatory Commission, the nation's top...

Coca-Cola, Huiyuan Juice Deal Pending Approval.
January 7, 2009... BEIJING, January 08, SinoCast -- The Coca-Cola Company's acquisition of China Huiyuan Juice Group Ltd. has proceeded to the regulatory review and approval procedures. China's Ministry of Commerce recently held a hearing meeting on the deal....

Commercial Banks Facing Housing Mortgage Pressure.
January 6, 2009... BEIJING, January 07, SinoCast -- Chinese commercial banks now are facing much pressure as they start adjusting the housing mortgage interest rate at the beginning of 2009. Not only the big four state-owned commercial banks, but also other...

Shanghai Oks Registration of Foreign Product.
January 6, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 07, SinoCast -- Shanghai Futures Exchange announced on January 5 that it had approved the registration of copper cathode produced by the refinery unit of Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc for overseas delivery. It is the...

Securities Firms May Eye IPOs in 09.
January 6, 2009... BEIJING, January 07, SinoCast -- Securities firms in China that planned to be listed in 2008 may conduct their listings in 2009. Hurt by recession in the domestic stock market, securities firms in the country postponed their listing plans in...

PE Investment Down 42%.
January 6, 2009... SHENZHEN, January 07, SinoCast -- The amount invested by venture capital firms and private equity funds has been on the decline as they are getting more wary of investing amid the worsening global economic downturn. Another major factor...

Chinese More Willing to Buy Houses.
January 6, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 07, SinoCast -- Chinese consumers express greater willingness to buy houses following the nation's new real estate policies. More people in major cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Hangzhou visited buildings or consulted with...

CIRC Strengthens Supervision on Insurers' Solvency.
January 6, 2009... BEIJING, January 07, SinoCast -- Several insurers in China are said to have been required by the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC), the top Chinese insurance regulator, to suspend part of their businesses due to low solvency. Among...

Chinese Government Mulling Oil Stabilization Fund.
January 6, 2009... CHENGDU, January 07, SinoCast -- Chinese Government reportedly is mulling an oil stabilization fund, which is expected to make its debut within 2009, in an effort to stabilize oil supply and demand. The upcoming fund is expected to play a...

Foreign Oil Giants Surging into China Oil Industry.
January 5, 2009... RIZHAO, January 07, SinoCast -- Foreign oil giants are surging into the Chinese oil industry, spurring stiffer competition in the domestic market. Previously, Malaysia's Sime Darby, the world's largest listed palm oil planter, is allowed to...

Hua Xia Bank Chairman Changed.
January 5, 2009... BEIJING, January 06, SinoCast -- Zhai Hongxiang, the former chairman of Hua Xia Bank (SHSE: 600015), a nationwide player in China, has been replaced by Wu Jian, the existing president of the bank, according to the bank's announcement. Zhai...

State Banks to Grant Preferential Housing Mortgage Rate.
January 5, 2009... BEIJING, January 06, SinoCast -- China's big four state commercial banks are expected to grant preferential housing mortgage interest rate at a maximum discount of 30%. China Construction Bank, the biggest property lender in the country,...

China Boosts Agricultural Loans.
January 5, 2009... BEIJING, January 06, SinoCast -- China, a large agricultural country, is making efforts to establish a sound rural financial system. As a major part of the nation's agriculture reform, the rural financial system draws rising attention of...

Fund Firms' Assets Shrank in 08.
January 5, 2009... BEIJING, January 06, SinoCast -- The assets managed by fund firms in China shrank to different extent in 2008 due to recession in the domestic stock market. The number of fund firms with assets under management exceeding CNY 100 billion stood...

China Tightens Restrictions on Foreign Property Investment.
January 5, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 06, SinoCast -- China eliminated interim regulations on urban housing and land tax on December 31, 2008 and allowed foreign-invested companies, foreign corporations and organizations and foreigners to pay real estate tax...

Market Value in Shanghai, Shenzhen Shrinks CNY20trn.
January 5, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 06, SinoCast -- The market capitalization in both the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock markets shrank CNY 20.58 trillion in 2008 from 2007 amid a market slump. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which tracks yuan-...

Shanghai Raises Housing Accumulation Fund Loan Standard.
January 5, 2009... SHANGHAI, January 06, SinoCast -- Shanghai, the financial center of China's Mainland, regulates that local residents who have paid off the mortgage loan for the first house could enjoy as much as CNY 800,000 housing accumulation fund loan for...