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Top News

Tight fit
"Too expensive," a buyer from the US at a trade show in Guangzhou says shaking his head in disapproval when told 100 zippers would cost him $2.1. Watching the buyer walk away, Ye Yiren, a sales manager of the zipper company, sighs: "I have already offered him the lowest price possible."

Achin' to make bacon

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Memory Lane

Capital growth
On April 2, 2007, the first four overseas banks - HSBC, Citi, Standard Chartered Bank and Bank of East Asia - launched their locally incorporated entities in Shanghai.

Business diary

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Cover

Rethinking the future
Chinese textile exporters used to be busy collecting orders for the whole year during the spring.

Hit the door

Ray of hope

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Energy/Environment

Brown gold
Brown coal, a low grade of coal, has been ignored in China because it's not easily exploited.

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Energy/Environment

French connection
Noel Girard still remembers the global oil crisis in 1973 that also swept France, a country which imports virtually all of its oil.

Sowing the seeds

Good day sunshine

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Companies/Industry

Breaking ground
On February 21, 1972, when Richard Nixon stepped out of Air Force One to shake hands with Chinese premier Zhou Enlai, the historical moment was witnessed by millions in the United States thanks to the live TV broadcasting.

Leap of faith

Banking on the future

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Charity China

Reaching for the stars
Linking posh German autos with aspiring Chinese tennis players too young to drive may sound strange but the result is the Mercedes-Benz Swing for the Stars Junior Development Program.

Future pros

Paralympic pride

China Mobile arms mainland torch relay with telecom van

IN BRIEF (Page 8)

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IPR Special

Inventive Guangdong
GUANGZHOU: The Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) protection force in South China's Guangdong province led the nation last year in patent applications and grants for the 13th year in a row, the provincial IPR office says.

Just rewards

IN BRIEF (Page 9)

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Local

Catching up
Cranes and forklifts are in high-speed operation at Lianyungang port. Bulldozers and pile drivers are pushing and pounding at the construction sites of the economic development zone while government officials and their staff work weekends in offices.

Giving back

Hungry for more

IN BRIEF (Page 10)

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World News

Sizzling euro
The euro zone economy is starting to feel the heat from nine months of a US-rooted global credit crunch and a soaring euro will crimp exports, but policymakers and business leaders may thank their stars for monetary union.

Wilting sales

Market jitters

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Up Close

Small is beautiful
Dressed in a green Max Mara jacket, Tu Hongyan did not start the conversation until she put a striped brown silk scarf around her shoulder.

Worming up