What's news

Sinopec to spend $3b on refining complex

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp, or Sinopec, will spend 19.3 billion yuan ($3 billion) to build a refining and petrochemical complex in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, China Petrochemical Corp, the parent company, said in its online newsletter. Construction of the project will start by 2015, the report said.

Luxury spending slowdown drags on Hong Kong

The mainland's slowdown dragged Hong Kong's retail sales growth to the weakest pace since 2009 as shoppers visiting from the mainland cut back on purchases of luxury goods such as jewelry and watches.

Sales increased 8.8 percent in May from a year earlier to HK$36 billion ($4.6 billion), the government said on Tuesday. That was the smallest gain since September 2009, excluding seasonal distortions each January and February.

The deceleration of Asia's biggest economy is rippling through Hong Kong, which had record retail sales gains as recently as last year.

Ministry of Railways sells 10-year bonds

The Ministry of Railways sold 10-year bonds priced to yield 4.45 percent, it said in a statement on the website of Chinabond, the nation's bond clearinghouse.

The coupon compares with 4.3 percent it paid to sell securities of that tenor in June, and with 4.99 percent in an offering in November, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The ministry will use the funds for 33 railway projects, it said in its prospectus.

China's railway spending may exceed a planned 516 billion yuan ($81 billion) this year, China Securities Journal reported earlier this year, without citing anyone.

Everbright 'lining up investors' for share sale

China Everbright Bank Co, which scrapped a Hong Kong stock offering last year, is lining up investors to buy as much as half of a $1.8 billion share sale that may take place as soon as this month, two people with knowledge of the matter said.

The so-called cornerstone investors may buy about $900 million of the shares sold in Hong Kong, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. Not all of the investors have signed binding agreements yet, according to another person with knowledge of the offering.

Everbright, which is already traded in Shanghai, plans to sell about 4 billion new shares, the people said.

Services expand at slowest pace since August

China's services industries expanded in June at the slowest pace in 10 months as growth in new business weakened, a private survey showed.

The purchasing managers' index released on Wednesday by HSBC Holdings Plc and Markit Economics fell to 52.3 in June from a 19-month high of 54.7 in May, the companies said on Wednesday. That's the largest decline since August.

Lafite slide crimps wine sales by 25%

Wine sales at the world's five biggest auction houses fell by a quarter to about $160 million in the first six months of this year as lower prices for top growers combined with investor caution sparked by the economic slump.

A decline in prices for top vintages of Chateau Lafite- Rothschild since the start of this year contributed to the drop as demand from Chinese investors focused more on Burgundy.

Lafite extended a slide which started in mid-2011, taking prices for top vintages such as 2000 and 2005 down more than 25 percent from their peak.

Goldwind connects to Australian grid

Goldwind Science and Technology Co Ltd, China's largest wind turbine maker, said it has received approval to connect turbines in the Gullen Range project to the Australia grid, according to a company statement.

Gullen Range, with 182 megawatts of capacity, is Goldwind's largest overseas project.

Central Huijin buys more banks' shares in Q2

Central Huijin Investment Ltd, an arm of the sovereign wealth fund China Investment Corp, continued its purchases of large banks' shares in the second quarter of the year, according to a statement released on Tuesday.

The large shareholder in China's major State-owned banks bought 7 million shares in Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd and 762,600 shares of Bank of China Ltd.

The purchase was the smallest seen since the fourth quarter of last year, when it announced a new round of banking stock purchases.

In the first three months of 2012, Central Huijin bought more than 50 million shares in ICBC, nearly 84 million shares in BOC, 23 million shares in China Construction Bank Corp and 29 million shares in Agricultural Bank of China Ltd, according to data collected by the National Business Daily.

Wuhan steel mill denies withdrawal from Brazil

Wuhan Iron and Steel Corp said it continues to conduct a feasibility study on a proposal to build a plant in Brazil despite obstacles to the project.

That statement came in response to a previous report saying China's third-largest steel maker had dropped its plans for Brazil over issues concerning shipping and coking coal.

The plant was scheduled to start operation this year.

Restaurant raises $64.49m in HK initial public offering

Xiao Nan Guo Restaurant Holdings Ltd raised HK$500 million ($64.49 million) in a Hong Kong public offering on Wednesday as part of a new round of public listings by the Chinese restaurant industry.

The Shanghai restaurant chain's IPO was oversubscribed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

Xiao Nan Guo, which planned to get listed late last year, saw its previous offering shelved as a result of a sluggish stock market. The company decided to postpone its listing after consulting sponsors in the sale.

Another Chinese restaurant, South Beauty, is also reported to be seeking an IPO on the Hong Kong stock market this month. The company has been seeking the opportunity to list to expand its business at home and abroad in recent years.

Pacific Securities plans to set up joint venture in Laos

Pacific Securities Co Ltd said on Wednesday that its board of directors has agreed to set up a joint-venture securities company in Laos.

Pacific Securities said it will cooperate with local financial institutions to invest up to 35 million yuan ($5.51 million) in the joint venture using newly created organizations and direct equity participation.

The new company will be registered in the capital city of Laos, Vientiane, and have a scope of business that includes securities transactions allowed by local laws.

The draft plan still needs to be approved by Chinese regulators.

Chinalco extends bid for Mongolian coal miner

Aluminum Corporation of China, known as Chinalco, extended its bid for the Mongolia-based coal producer South Gobi Resources Co amid uncertainty over local policies, Chinalco said in a statement on Wednesday.

Chinalco, the country's largest alumina producer, is offering to pay C$8.48 ($8.35) a share for South Gobi Resources and agreed to extend that bid for 30 days, according to the statement.

Chinalco signed an agreement with the Canadian international mining company Ivanhoe Mines Ltd, the largest shareholder in the Mongolian coal producer, which has the capacity to produce 4.57 million metric tons of raw coal a year.

According to the agreement, Chinalco will buy the entire shareholding of Ivanhoe Mines for about $1 billion to acquire a majority stake in South Gobi Resources.

Agencies - China Daily

(China Daily 07/05/2012 page14)