IN BRIEF (Page 24)

Apple to open research center in Shenzhen

Apple Inc will set up its second China research and development center in Shenzhen next year. The plan came shortly after it established an R&D center in Beijing, highlighting the importance of the China market, the world's largest smartphone arena where Apple is losing ground to local brands such as Huawei and Oppo. Apple CEO Tim Cook unveiled the plan on Oct 11 during his visit to Shenzhen, the southern Chinese manufacturing powerhouse and innovation hub. The Shenzhen center will help "our engineering team work even more closely and collaboratively with our manufacturing partner," the company says.

ABB to support industrial upgrading

ABB Group, the Swiss power and automation company, will optimize its resources to support China's industrial upgrading and take new opportunities from the digital sector in the long term, says Ulrich Spiesshofer, its top executive. ABB announced earlier this month that it will shape the company's divisions into four units - electrification products, robotics and motion, industrial automation and power grids - to enhance its earning ability, as well as realizing its full potential in digital technologies. These divisions will start operating on Jan 1.

China Fortune to help build new city in Egypt

China Fortune Land Development Co Ltd, an industrial zone developer and operator, has secured its first project in Africa - to build a new city in Egypt. Under the government plan, the country's new administrative capital will be located between Cairo and Suez, a city along the Suez Canal. Once completed, the city will serve as the country's political and financial center and will effectively drive the development of the Suez Canal Economic Belt and the Red Sea Economic Belt. CFLD released a statement on Oct 10 saying it had signed an MOU with the Egyptian government.

Sanan in talks with Osram on potential deal

Chinese lighting maker Sanan Optoelectronics Co Ltd has announced it has had talks with Germany's Osram Licht AG about a potential acquisition, although discussions are at a very early stage and no details have been finalized. Sanan says it has had an "initial communication" with Osram on a potential acquisition or, according to a statement released to the Shanghai Stock Exchange on Oct 10. The company has not had any negotiations regarding the transaction details, including the price, and no binding documents have been signed. There are "significant uncertainties" on whether a deal will take place, the statement says.

More Aussie companies using renminbi

Almost one fifth of Australian companies are using renminbi to do business with China, a new poll has found. The poll, commissioned by the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Ltd, was released on Oct 11. It surveyed 1,600 decision-makers from 14 countries, showing an increase of 18 percent of Australian respondents as saying their firms were using China's RMB as opposed to 13 percent a year ago.

(China Daily European Weekly 10/14/2016 page24)