SinoCast China Financial Watch articles from May 2006

SinoCast China Financial Watch archives from May 2006

HSBC Builds Up China Network.
May 31, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, June 01, SinoCast -- The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation yesterday opened its fifth outlet in Shanghai, as part of its plan to focus on both organic growth and acquisitions in the...

ICBC Eyes Reshuffle before Record Bank IPO.
May 31, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, June 01, SinoCast -- Industrial and Commercial Bank of China vows to reshuffle its head office from next month to make it more efficient, as part of preparation for what will be the biggest...

Foreign Banks Can Join QDII System.
May 31, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, June 01, SinoCast -- Certain foreign banks are able to file for the QDII (Qualified Domestic Institutional Investor) licenses, people close to the regulatory circle told in Hong Kong. On...

Datong Coal to Land Shanghai's 1st IPO.
May 31, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, June 01, SinoCast -- Datong Coal Mine Co., Ltd. will be the first company to launch an initial public offering on the Shanghai Stock Exchange in almost one year. It plans to offer...

Euronext Woos China Firms.
May 31, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, June 01, SinoCast -- Euronext, the leading cross- border exchange in Europe, is sending olive branches to ambitious companies in China, the world's fastest-growing economy. The stock exchange...

China's PICC to Cash in on $1bn Quota.
May 31, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, June 01, SinoCast -- PICC Property & Casualty (2328.HK) is approved to invest a total USD 1 billion of foreign exchange funds overseas, sources said. China's biggest nonlife insurer will...

Shanghai Pudong Bank to File for Fund JV.
May 30, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 31, SinoCast -- Moving to bulge its product line, Shanghai Pudong Development Bank, partly owned by Citigroup, said today that it will apply for setup of a fund management company....

Beijing Bank Breaks Talks with Foreigners.
May 30, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 31, SinoCast -- Wooing foreign investors has long been put on the agenda of China Minsheng Banking Corp, but it now comes to a halt as the bank faces a more urgent task - to elect a new...

China Fund Industry Regains Confidence.
May 30, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 31, SinoCast -- China's fund industry is regaining investors' confidence thanks to the rebounding market. Shanghai-based Xiangcai Securities early this year agreed to sell out the 67...

China Property Stocks Shrug off Macro Control.
May 30, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 31, SinoCast -- Real estate developers based on the Chinese mainland seem to be little affected by the government's latest macro control over the real estate sector, with their stocks...

Carrefour Adding China Holdings.
May 30, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 31, SinoCast -- Carrefour, French retailing giant, is adjusting its operation strategy globally as it seeks for a bigger slice at the fast-growing market in China. The group is to turn...

AEGON-CNOOC Life Running China Strategy.
May 30, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 31, SinoCast -- AEGON-CNOOC Life Insurance Co., Ltd. a 50/50 joint venture of AEGON N.V. and China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), is implementing its expansion strategy on...

China No.1 Pawnshop Has Its Growth Pain.
May 29, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 30, SinoCast -- Shanghai Oriental Pawn Co., China's biggest pawnshop, is in dire need of new funds to boost its expansion, told a senior executive. Oriental Pawn last year alone helped...

China to See Fourth Microcredit Firm.
May 29, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) GUIZHOU, May 30, SinoCast -- China's fourth rural microcredit company is expected to come out soon in the southwestern province of Guizhou amid the ongoing program to bolster the rural financing...

Bank of China May Get Dual Listing in June.
May 29, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 30, SinoCast -- China's third-biggest bank, whose shares will start trading in Hong Kong on June 1, plans to hold an initial public offering at the Shanghai Stock Exchange next month as...

ABN Futures Deal Fuels UBS Growth in China.
May 29, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 30, SinoCast -- Swiss banking leader UBS AG agrees to acquire the Global Futures business of Amsterdam-based ABN AMRO, in a deal that will boost UBS's market share for futures and...

Two Shandong Papermakers Quicken Expansion.
May 29, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANDONG, May 30, SinoCast -- Two leading paper makers in the coastal Chinese province of Shandong start to beef up expansion on the fact that multinational rivals are building presence across the...

Shaanxi Oil Firm Weighs IPO Plan.
May 29, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHAANXI, May 30, SinoCast -- Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum Group, China's fourth largest oil producer by assets, plans to list its newly formed exploration unit on an overseas stock exchange to raise...

Chinese Banks Ride on IPO Bus.
May 26, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 29, SinoCast -- CITIC Bank, China's seventh- largest bank by assets, may raise USD 1 billion or so before Hong Kong listing within this year. Meanwhile, a smaller player, Industrial Bank...

China UnionPay to Be National Criterion.
May 26, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 29, SinoCast -- China UnionPay Co., the country's sole national bankcard association, is to become the business criterion and technical standard in the country's bankcard industry, told...

Banks Told to Calm as Homes Get Hot.
May 26, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 29, SinoCast -- Banks are asked to agree not to indulge in lending to one torrid industry, real estate, as Chinese regulators move to put a lid on the industry to achieve soft-landing in...

Publication House Acquires Supermarket.
May 26, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 29, SinoCast -- Shanghai Xinhua Distribution Group, a large publication company in China, plans to acquire a controlling stake in Hualian Supermarket Co. (600825. SH), the country's...

Nasdaq Courts China Listings.
May 26, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 29, SinoCast -- The Nasdaq Stock Market, the largest electronic stock market in the U.S., has signed memorandums of understanding with the financial authorities in China's Zhejiang and...

Jardine Lloyd Thompson OK'd for China Venture.
May 26, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) GUANGZHOU, May 29, SinoCast -- Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group plc receives approval of China Insurance Regulatory Commission to set up a joint venture insurance broker to tap into a potentially big...

BOC Creates China IPO Record.
May 25, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 26, SinoCast -- Bank of China (3988.HK), the nation's second-biggest bank, prices its initial public offerings in Hong Kong at HKD 2.95 a share, expecting to raise up to USD 9.72...

Merchants Bank May File for HK IPO This Week.
May 25, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) HONG KONG, May 26, SinoCast -- China Merchants Bank will submit an application for Hong Kong listing this week, sources said, hoping to raise almost HKD 20 billion to fund its fast expansion. Its...

China Postal Bank Eyes Fund Unit.
May 25, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 26, SinoCast -- China's forthcoming postal savings bank is likely to control a fund management company next year, reports said. Its parent State Post Bureau, also known as China Post, on...

Sinopec Sweetened by China Oil Tinkering.
May 25, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 26, SinoCast -- Sinopec Corp, Asia's top refiner, will be the biggest beneficiary from a price hike of refined oil products Beijing made yesterday. It is no good news to local carriers...

Buyout Fund Takes Aim at Chenming Paper.
May 25, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHAGNDONG, May 26, SinoCast -- China's papermaking giant Shandong Chenming Paper Holdings (000488.SZ) plans to raise about CNY 5 billion from a nonpublic offering. It, with shares floating at the...

China Life Said in Talks on Bank Bid.
May 25, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) GUANGDONG, May 26, SinoCast -- Citigroup is talking with China Life Insurance and some other Chinese companies about joint bidding for a majority stake in Guangdong Development Bank, reports said...

China Exim Bank in Line for Bailout.
May 24, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 25, SinoCast -- Export-Import Bank of China is to win a state bailout, mirroring Beijing's efforts to reform the three policy banks, told the bank's president Li Ruogu yesterday. As the...

BoCom Q1 Net Gains 42.7 Pct.
May 24, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 25, SinoCast -- Bank of Communications (3328.HK), the fifth-largest bank in China, reported net profit in the first three months gained 42.7 percent year on year on strong growth in...

No.1 China Bank Ties Knots with Top Mill.
May 24, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 25, SinoCast -- Industrial and Commercial Bank of China signs agreements for close tie-up with Shanghai-based Baosteel Group, as they move to defend leadership position in their...

Beijing May Ask Exotic Banks to Insure.
May 24, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 25, SinoCast -- China is trying to include in its proposed deposit insurance system foreign banks running operations here, as part of its bigger aim of building a sound financial safety...

Tyco Taps Chinese Demand for Fire & Security.
May 24, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 25, SinoCast -- Tyco Fire & Security, which provides electronic security and fire protection solutions, is to set up a joint venture in China to snatch a bigger slice at the fast-growing...

Allianz China Bulged for Better Expansion.
May 24, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 25, SinoCast -- Allianz China Life Insurance Co., Ltd., a joint venture of the European insurer Allianz AG, has raised its capital base again since this year to fund its expansion in a...

China Exim Bank 05 Profit Soars 79%.
May 23, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 24, SinoCast -- Export-Import Bank of China in 2005 made great efforts to generate revenues, aimed at becoming the first policy bank in China to win a state bailout, reports said. Exim...

Agricultural Bank Places Card Bet.
May 23, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 24, SinoCast -- Agricultural Bank of China, the second-biggest bank by assets, is betting its future on the credit card both in business sense and for survival. ABC plans to relocate its...

Jianye Housing Group Plans HK IPO.
May 23, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 24, SinoCast -- Jianye Housing Group (China), a Henan-based real estate developer, plans to launch an initial public offering in Hong Kong as soon as next year amid investors' strong...

China Set to Take Stern Line on Buyouts.
May 23, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 24, SinoCast -- China is drafting strict rules to supervise foreigners' acquisitions of domestic equipment manufacturers, said Sui Yongbin, a principal at China Machinery Industry...

Int'l Reserve Center to Debut in Shanghai.
May 23, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 24, SinoCast -- China is scheduled to open its international reserve center in July, a move analysts say is aimed at diversifying the country's foreign exchange hoard as US dollar...

China Fund Picking Overseas Investment Managers.
May 23, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 24, SinoCast -- China's strategic pension fund, the National Social Security Fund has attracted over 50 overseas asset management firms to compete for arranging its overseas investments....

BoCom Cheers, HSBC Worries.
May 22, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 23, SinoCast -- HSBC (0005.HK) is tested on a plan of raising its stake to a controlling one in Shanghai-based Bank of Communications (3328.HK), as its Chinese partner has been added to...

China May Cut No.2 Bank to Pieces.
May 22, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 23, SinoCast -- Although in front of red-hot foreign competition, China is likely to split its second-largest bank off to 30 or so entities, local media reported, to free the cabinet from...

China to Change Tax Rule for Rural Financing.
May 22, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 23, SinoCast -- A taxation rule to be released by China's Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation may slow down the ongoing reform in the rural financial system...

China Fund Industry to Face 3rd-Round Reshuffle.
May 22, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 23, SinoCast -- China's fund industry is to face a reshuffle, the third one since 2001. Some fund management companies are becoming more and more powerful and even will surpass the...

Carrefour to Employ More in China.
May 22, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 23, SinoCast -- French retailing giant Carrefour is to recruit more staff in China, aiming to gain a bigger slice at the fast-growing market. It plans to recruit 3,000 senior managers...

AIG to Up Ante in China.
May 22, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 23, SinoCast -- American International Group, a global leader in insurance and financial services, is resuming expansion of its life and non-life insurance networks in mainland China...

For Beijing Bank, Bigger Not Means Better.
May 19, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 22, SinoCast -- For another year, the title of "the most troubled of the Big Four" goes to Agricultural Bank of China, and this trend can hardly stop for the foreseeable future as...

CITIC Vows to Fight Foreign Rivals.
May 19, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHENZHEN, May 22, SinoCast -- CITIC Securities (600030.SH), the biggest publicly traded brokerage firm in China, is confident to compete against foreign peers as the market opens wider. The...

Yili Launches Big Expansion Plan.
May 19, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) INNER MONGOLIA, May 22, SinoCast -- China's dairy giant Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group Co. (600887.SH) announced it is to launch a nearly CNY 600 million plan to tap into the country's...

InterContinental Ups Ante in China.
May 19, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 22, SinoCast -- InterContinental Hotels Group PLC, the global largest hotel company by number of rooms, will speed up investment in China amid a local booming tourism market....

MIC Ok'd to Open Shanghai Office.
May 19, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 22, SinoCast -- Motors Insurance Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of GMAC Insurance Holdings, received approval to open a representative office in Shanghai, as a prelude to tap into...

Shanghai City Bank Awash in Profit.
May 19, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 22, SinoCast -- Bank of Shanghai, a city lender, posts a higher net profit than Agricultural Bank of China, a national lender, according to their 2005 annual reports issued recently. The...

China Minsheng Foreign Sale at Stake.
May 18, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 19, SinoCast -- A sale of shares to foreign firms by China Minsheng Banking Corp (600016.SH) has been suspended, latest news said, as some existing stakeholders pour cold water to the...

Bank of China in IPO Relay.
May 18, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 19, SinoCast -- Given a smooth initial public offering in Hong Kong, Bank of China can raise equity of as much as USD 9.8 billion, beating the IPO record just made last year by another...

Big Bank Launchs HK IPO.
May 18, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 19, SinoCast -- Bank of China (3988.HK), the nation's second-biggest bank, launched an initial public offering in Hong Kong today to pursue the global largest-size fundraising in over...

GF Securities Opts for IPO.
May 18, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) GUANGDONG, May 19, SinoCast -- China's GF Securities plans to sell the first-time shares directly, instead of buying a listed shell company, a people close to the broker said. Shenzhen Jifu Venture...

Inco Taps China Nickel Needs.
May 18, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANXI, May 19, SinoCast -- Toronto-based Inco is to build new nickel plants in China aimed at supplying the product to stainless steel makers in the fast-growing market. It on May 4 signed a letter...

Zurich Financial Ok'd to Open Beijing Branch.
May 18, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 19, SinoCast -- Zurich Financial Services, an insurance-based financial services provider, is granted a license to open its Beijing branch to tap into a booming insurance market. The...

Chinese Save Less in April.
May 17, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 18, SinoCast -- The new savings deposits only amounted to CNY 18 billion in April, a record low for more than two years in China, as not few citizens are believed to bet more funds on the...

Ningbo City Bank Mulls IPO.
May 17, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 18, SinoCast -- China's city commercial banks are busy in preparations for selling first-time shares to fund network expansion. Ningbo City Commercial Bank, based in the eastern province...

China Tightens Check on State Banks.
May 17, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 18, SinoCast -- The state-owned commercial banks in China should keep their nonperforming loan ratio less than 5% persistently as long as they finish financial restructurings, regulators...

China VC Investment Hot in Q1.
May 17, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 18, SinoCast -- China's venture capital investment soared 124 percent year on year in the first quarter, mirroring investors' optimism of the country's economic growth. About USD 330...

China Dairy Makers Boost Marketing.
May 17, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 18, SinoCast -- China's top three dairy makers are putting forward sharp-cut marketing strategies to compete for a bigger share of the domestic market. Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial...

Great Eastern Life Ok'd to Open China JV.
May 17, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) CHONGQING, May 18, SinoCast -- Great Eastern Life Assurance Co., Ltd., the largest life insurer in the combined Singapore- Malaysia market, obtains Chinese regulatory permission to open its life...

ICBC Likely to Sell New Shares in IPO.
May 16, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 17, SinoCast -- The largest Chinese bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, will likely to opt to sell new shares within this year amid its initial public offering, sources said,...

Ping An Insurance in Shenzhen Bank Bid.
May 16, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHENZHEN, May 17, SinoCast -- Ping An Insurance, China's second-biggest insurance group, plans to acquire Shenzhen Commercial Bank in an effort to boost its banking assets when growing into a...

Chinese Airlines Hobble, Real Estate Hot in Q1.
May 16, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 17, SinoCast -- Air carriers, including China Eastern Airlines (600115.SH) and China Southern Airlines (600029.SH), suffered huge losses in the first quarter on the flying fuel costs....

Bayer HealthCare Nears China OTC Deal.
May 16, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 17, SinoCast -- Bayer HealthCare, one of the world??s largest suppliers of medicines, diagnosis equipment and other medical products, plans to acquire a majority stake in Qidong...

Ailing Liquor Firm in Stake Sale.
May 16, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) HUNAN, May 17, SinoCast -- Hunan JiuGuiJiu Co. (000799.SZ), a troubled distillate spirits maker in China, confirmed in an announcement that it is in talks with several buyers. Based in the central...

SABIC Eyes Ethylene Project in China.
May 16, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 17, SinoCast -- Saudi Basic Industries Corporation, the largest petrochemicals producer in the Middle East, is turning sight to the ethylene market in China, Asia??s largest energy...

IFC, Rabobank to Seal China Deal.
May 15, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) HANGZHOU, May 16, SinoCast -- Rabobank and the International Finance Corporation are in the final stage of buying a combined 14.9 percent stake in Hangzhou United Rural Cooperative Bank, less than the...

Temasek to Invest USD10mn in Jianglong Textile.
May 15, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 16, SinoCast -- Temasek Holdings Pte, Singapore's state-owned investment company, plans to pour up to USD 10 million in Zhejiang Jianglong Textile Printing & Dyeing Co., Ltd. to tap...

China Delays New Futures Bourse.
May 15, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 16, SinoCast -- China has given up a plan of forming its fourth futures exchange in July and a delay of up to two months is likely, latest news said, on some pending issues like member...

Changjiang Securities Seeks Backdoor Listing.
May 15, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 16, SinoCast -- China's well-managed Changjiang Securities is looking for a shell company to get listed at the domestic stock market, people close to the move said. Changjiang, based in...

Sinopec Fuels China Rally.
May 15, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 16, SinoCast -- Sinopec Corp (600028.SH), Asia's largest oil refiner, last week helped China's stock benchmark index record a single-week biggest rise for almost a decade on buyers'...

Anheuser-Busch Resumes Talks with China Brewery.
May 15, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) HENAN, May 16, SinoCast -- US-based beer giant Anheuser- Busch has begun talks with Henan Jinxing Beer Group Corporation, a leading brewery in China, to establish an alliance, local media reported....

Beijing Find Fault with E&Y NPL Report.
May 12, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) BEIJING, May 15, SinoCast -- China's central bank criticizes a research report that the size of nonperforming loans has reached a stunning USD 900 billion in the country, and stresses that local banks...

China Listed Banks Keep Two-Digit Growth.
May 12, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 15, SinoCast -- The five banks listed on the stock market of Chinese mainland continue to post a double-digit growth in net profit in the first quarter, buoyed by a booming economy and...

Carlyle Group Funds Shanghai Flooring Maker.
May 12, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 15, SinoCast -- Shanghai Anxin Flooring Co., Ltd., the nation's biggest manufacturer of solid wood flooring, plans to acquire local rivals on the back of equity investment from the...

TEREX Ups Ante in China.
May 12, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) INNER MONGOLIA, May 15, SinoCast -- TEREX Corporation (NYSE: TEX), a global leading construction equipment manufacturer, vows to provide more supports to its Chinese joint venture in Inner Mongolia to...

Germany's ENKA Woos China Fiber Firm.
May 12, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) GUANGDONG, May 15, SinoCast -- Several foreign firms, including German-based ENKA GmbH & Co. KG, are in talks to acquire Guangdong Kaiping Chunhui Co. (000976.SZ), a manufacturer of chemical fibers...

MetLife OK'd to Rename Shanghai Venture.
May 12, 2006... (From SinoCast China Financial Watch) SHANGHAI, May 15, SinoCast -- Metropolitan Life Insurance Company of the U.S. receives approval to rename its second life insurance joint venture in China, which was once named after Citigroup. The...