IN BRIEF (Page 14)

Coffee trading center to give China global reach

The newly opened Coffee Exchange (Center) at the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone is expected to boost coffee consumption in the predominantly tea-drinking nation and give China a better say in the pricing of the world's second most commonly traded commodity, after crude oil.

The new center, which opened its doors on July 6, is expected to conduct transactions worth 84 billion yuan ($13.5 billion) by the end of 2017, and about 120 billion yuan in 2018.

If the goal is reached, the center will overtake Singapore as Asia's largest commodity exchange that trades coffee futures, and will be among the top-three coffee futures bourses in the world. The top two coffee trading bourses in the world are the Intercontinental Exchange in New York and the Euronext LIFFE in London.

Faster Internet service to boost innovation

A faster, cheaper Internet service will fuel grassroots innovation and the growth of startups, Zhang Feng, spokesman for the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, said on July 6. China is spending 435 billion yuan ($70 billion; 63.5 billion euros) to beef up its Internet infrastructure, an increase of 10 percent year-on-year, Zhang said.

Ceiling for municipal bond sales to be hiked

The prospect of China raising the ceiling for municipal bond sales is prompting speculation that the central bank will start buying the notes to hold down borrowing costs. The Ministry of Finance is likely to add another 1 trillion yuan ($161 billion) quota for local government debt swaps, taking the total to 3 trillion yuan, said Yang Feng, a fixed-income analyst at CITIC Securities Co in Beijing.

Seattle commercial realty attracts Alibaba

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd is in talks to rent more office space in the Seattle area, the United States, which is where founder Jack Ma first encountered the Internet during a visit to the city two decades ago. The company is considering subleasing almost 1,860 square meters in City Center Bellevue, a 27-story office tower east of the city, according to sources.

Country Garden to sell unit to shore up funds

Country Garden Holdings Co, controlled by China's second-richest woman Yang Huiyan, is considering spinning off its property-management business, joining other Chinese developers exploring ways to raise cash. The company, based in Foshan in southern China, also plans to sell 6 billion yuan ($966 million) of onshore three-year bonds and is on track to spin off its hotel assets.

Shaangu Power buys stake in Czech firm

Xi'an Shaangu Power, a Chinese engineering company in northwestern Shaanxi province, has paid 318 million yuan ($51 million) for a 75-percent stake of Brno Ekol, a leading turbine manufacturer in the Czech Republic. It is the biggest investment by China into Czech's manufacturing industry in recent years, accounting for about 17 percent of China's total investment into the country.

China, OECD agree to strengthen relations

China has agreed to strengthen its two-decade-old cooperation partnership with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on areas ranging from macroeconomic management to green energy. The world's second-largest economy and the Paris-based organization reached the consensus during Premier Li Keqiang's visit to the OECD headquarters, where they signed a shared vision statement and a 2015-16 joint work program.

Concrete progress on Sino-Thai rail project

China and Thailand have made firm progress in their talks on the construction of a Thai railway, chief negotiator Wang Xiaotao said on July 1. After the fifth meeting of the Joint Committee on Railway Cooperation between Thailand and China, Wang said the two sides had reached a wide range of consensus and achievements on a feasibility study, investment framework and training. China is conducting a feasibility study and has completed the route design.

Safe smart-grid system to be ready by 2020

The nation plans to build a safe and environmentally friendly smart-grid system by 2020 as it promotes the spread of clean energy. China will build long-distance transmission networks and active power distribution networks to fully use hydro power, wind and solar, according to a statement from the National Development and Reform Commission. The NDRC said the objective would be to have a smart grid network that is safe, open, compatible, interactive, highly-efficient and clean, and enough to meet the nation's power supply and user demands.

Fosun Group forms 10th overseas property JV

Fosun Group has formed a new joint venture with the United Kingdom's Resolution Property - its tenth overseas real estate investment in less than two years as it accelerates a push into Europe. Resolution will help it make real estate investments in 14 European countries, but no financial terms were revealed.

Fosun Property will hold a majority stake and use it to start funds targeting "large assets and portfolios", with the first one to be offered this year.

Sinopec, CNOOC to take Petrobras stakes

Two Chinese companies that invested in Brazil's deep-water oilfields two years ago are looking to increase their presence as state-run Petrobras sells assets to pay down debt, according to industry sources.

China Petroleum and Chemical Corp, or Sinopec, and China National Offshore Oil Corp, are among the companies interested in buying stakes in so-called pre-salt offshore exploration blocks, the sources said.

Chinese visitors to Australia set to hit 1m

The number of Chinese visitors to Australia rose to 901,400 over the past year and is set to hit a million by the end of this year. Just five years ago, the figure was 479,600.

In April alone, 610,300 overseas visitors arrived in Australia. In the same month, 776,500 Australian residents packed their bags and headed abroad for holidays or short-term business trips, official figures show.

Honda recalls SUVs due to air-con fault

Japanese automaker Honda has announced a recall of 2,422 Acura-brand SUVs in China because of a fault that could see a section of the vehicles' air conditioner detach and fall off the underside.

The affected vehicles are imported Acura MDX SUVs manufactured between March 2013 and October 2014, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine said on July 6. The company's China branch will replace the faulty parts free of charge from July 25.

Chery Auto to make more vehicles in Brazil

Chinese automaker Chery Automobile Co plans to produce 10,000 vehicles at its Brazilian factory this year and further expand its production and presence in the South American country, Peng Jian, the company's head of operations in Brazil, said. He added that Chery is working hard to offer new options for Brazilian consumers.

(China Daily European Weekly 07/10/2015 page14)