IN BRIEF (Page 7)

Bank of China to expand US business

Bank of China Ltd may further expand its business presence in the US market by hiring more people and setting up new subbranch. Xu Chen, US branch manager of Bank of China, said the bank will hire 100 new employees for its US businesses this year, who will mainly be in the West Coast. Also Bank of China may set up a new subbranch in Houston because many Chinese petroleum companies operate businesses there. Bank of China is reported to move its US headquarters to a 137-meter-high tower in Manhattan this autumn from a short brick building in East Side of New York.

PBOC drains 220b yuan from market