Biz Scene: Market

Tax break for bank

Huaxia Bank Co, partly owned by Deutsche Bank AG, said it will receive a tax break for last year equal to more than a fifth of profits as China helps its banks restructure and hold share sales.

The government allowed Huaxia to take 971 million yuan of pre-tax deductions for staff costs, or 320 million yuan of savings, the bank said in a statement yesterday. It will receive a similar exemption this year, the Beijing-based company said.

Zhongfu purchase

China's Zhongfu Industrial Co Ltd, a mid-sized aluminum smelter controlled by Dutch-based Vimetco, plans to acquire Linfeng Aluminium Co, boosting its production capacity by 36 percent.

Zhongfu Industrial, based in Central China's Henan Province, said yesterday it would pay 26 million yuan in cash for Linfeng Aluminium, which has 110,000 tons of annual production capacity for primary aluminum.

Zhongfu Industrial's current annual capacity is 308,000 tons.

(China Daily 11/07/2007 page15)