Category Archives: Business

business news from China, Sweden and the world.

Business, China, Energy, Green-tech, News, World News

China makes breakthroughs in fourth-generation nuclear technology

Leave a comment

China makes breakthroughs in fourth-generation nuclear technology

 

Stockholm, June 4 (Greenpost) — China has made breakthroughs in the fourth-generation advanced nuclear technology featuring secure high temperature reactors.

The preliminary feasibility study report of the 600,000 KW high temperature reactor of the Jiangxi Ruijin nuclear project for commercial use was approved by the authorities, marking a big step forward for China’s first high temperature reactor power station for commercial use, according to the China Nuclear Engineering Group Co., on Wednesday.

Construction is expected to start on the first phase of the Jiangxi Ruijin project’s two units in 2017.

Nowadays, China has already mastered all technologies of high temperature reactors with proprietary intellectual property rights.

The high temperature reactors are suitable for construction in load-center areas and countries or regions with small- and medium-sized power grids, said analysts.

On China’s A-share market, investors can focus on companies as Sichuan Danfu Compressor (002366.SZ), SUFA Technology Industry (000777.SZ) and Jiangsu Shentong Valve (002438.SZ). Enditem

 

Business, China, Indepth, News, World News

China to formulate 5-year development plan for software, big data industry

Leave a comment

 

   China to formulate 5-year development plan for software, big data industry

 

Stockholm, June 3 (Greenpost) — China will map out and carry out a 5-year development plan (2016-2020) for software and big data industry to incubate a group of highly competitive businesses, reported the Xinhua-run cnstock.com.cn Wednesday.

As the report told, the remarks were made by Miao Wei, minister of China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) on the Int’l Soft China 2015 open in Wednesday.

Besides, Miao said China would take measures to speed development of software industry, which is at the core of ICT, short for information, communication and technology, according to www.Chinanews.com.

As Miao spoke, the measures include those to encourage integration of software firms and industrial companies, quicken construction of safe and reliable information systems as well as R&D and industrialization of key technologies including industrial software, industrial operating systems, industrial Internet, intelligent autos, and industrial robotics, build industrial cloud platforms and big data centers, accelerate data share standards and establish a batch of crowd-creating space to activate innovation of small businesses. Enditem

Source Xinhua

Editor   Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Business, China, News

China become world’s biggest industrial robot mkt for two consecutive years by 2014

Leave a comment

China become world’s biggest industrial robot mkt for two consecutive years by 2014

Stockholm, May 22 (Greenpost) — About 57,000 industrial robots were sold in China in 2014, up 55 percent year on year, and accounted for a quarter of world’s total robot sales, making China world’s biggest industrial robot market for two years running, according to statistics released by China Robot Industry Association (CRIA) on Thursday.

Specifically, domestic enterprises sold 16,945 industrial robots in 2014, up 76.6 percent year on year; and foreign enterprises sold about 40,000 industrial robots, up 47 percent year on year.

By varieties, multi-joint robots took up the dominant role in China, with total sales of 36,000 units in 2014, up 42 percent year on year. Foreign brands held the lions’ share, while sales of home-made multi-joint robots witnessed a rapid growth of 68 percent year on year.

Domestic industrial robot producers showed advantages in coordinate robots, accounting for over 50 percent of their sales last year.

Experts from the CRIA said domestic enterprises should accelerate in upgrading themselves to medium- and high-level to produce more multi-joint robots, and should fully tap segmented markets. (Edited by Hou Yujie, houyj@xinhua.org)

Xinhua

Business, China, Green-tech, Indepth, News, World News

China Focus: Belt and Road initiatives to spur infrastructure investment

Leave a comment

China Focus: Belt and Road initiatives to spur infrastructure investment

Stockholm, May 8 (Greenpost) — The “One Belt and One Road” initiatives, also known as the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road initiatives, are very likely to boost physical infrastructure investment and facilitate the growth in the construction sector in China, according to market observers.
The Belt and Road initiatives are a Chinese framework for connecting economies in Asia Pacific and Europe.
Qiu Bo, an analyst at Guosen Securities Co., Ltd., said 2015 will be a year of infrastructure as Chinese government is now actively pushing ahead with its Belt and Road initiatives. The analyst added that the investment in infrastructure has become an important driving force behind domestic economic growth amid the domestic downturn.
According to market analysts, China’s infrastructure projects mainly include housing renovation projects in shanty towns, urban underground pipeline network construction, railways and roads construction in central and western regions, waterway projects in the inland areas, oil-and-gas pipelines construction, electric power equipment, and environmental protection projects.
China Galaxy Securities’ researcher Bao Furong said there is a great opportunity for infrastructure-related companies to grow in the year. He also believed the central bank’s latest interest rate cuts could help reduce financing costs for construction enterprises as they are highly indebted at the moment, adding that steel-and-rail-related companies listed in China will benefit most from the lower rates.
The People’s Bank of China, the central bank, has cut the benchmark interest rates twice since November 2014, and lowered the reserve requirement ratio twice in less than three months since the start of this year.
According to calculations by Shenwan Hongyuan Securities Co., Ltd., construction companies listed on the Shanghai and Shenzhen bourses reported an 11.3 percent growth in net profits in the first quarter of the year, quicker than a 1.4 percent growth pace for the fourth quarter of 2014.
As it appears from publicly disclosed financial reports, construction sector is rebounding from recession. Sun Peng, a researcher at Sinolink Securities Co., Ltd, predicted construction companies will see a further pickup in the year with massive new orders flooding into them.
Under such circumstances, market observers also said that belt and road initiatives may bring big profit opportunity for private investors who participate in the public-private partnership (PPP), a new model of developing public service projects that is funded and operated through cooperation between government and private sector companies. Enditem

Source Xinhua

Editor Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Business, China
Leave a comment
China to build video surveillance network by 2020

Stockholm, June 3(Greenpost) – China would build a nationwide video surveillance network by 2020 to cover key public areas, industries and sectors, according to a policy document released by the National Development and Reform Commission on Wednesday.
The document also warns of repeated investment in this regard and stressed integration of various video resources.
The government would issue administrative rules of security technologies on building, linkage and utilization of the video surveillance network.
Domestic equipment and solution suppliers in this regard are expected to see business opportunities on localization drive, according to a research note by China Galaxy Securities. Enditem

Source Xinhua

Editor  Xuefei Chen Axelsson
Business, China, News, World News

China prompts int’l energy cooperation eyeing Belt and Road initiatives

Leave a comment

China prompts int’l energy cooperation eyeing Belt and Road initiatives

BEIJING, May 14 (Xinhua) – China’s National Energy Administration (NEA) recently held a meeting to implement the Belt and Road initiatives and advance international energy cooperation, said a release by the NEA on Thursday.
The energy sector would focus on international cooperation to link up energy infrastructure, safeguarding safety of oil and gas pipelines, prompting building of transnational power transmission corridors and upgrading of regional power grids, said Nur Bekri, director of the NEA and deputy director of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).
The implementation of the Belt and Road initiatives has far-reaching implications on advancing international energy cooperation between China and relevant countries, Bekri said.
He suggested continuous guidance from relevant departments and greater financial and insurance support to energy cooperation from relevant institutions.
The main role of enterprises would be reinforced and the strength of different areas would be tapped, according to the release.
The meeting had participants from the NDRC, the NEA, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Commerce, local governments, relevant enterprises, industry associations and research institutions. Enditem

Source Xinhua

Editor  Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Business, China, News

China to develop ocean economy

Leave a comment

BEIJING, May 14 (Xinhua) — China’s State Oceanic Administration on Thursday released a document about key points for the country’s oceanic economy work this year, putting forwards that China will roll out first nationwide oceanic work survey to strengthen macro guidance and control over oceanic economy.
Main contents of the oceanic work include assessing the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015) and compiling of the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-2020), promoting healthy development of the oceanic economy, guiding financial capital to support development of oceanic economy, pressing ahead piloting work for the oceanic economy, and fully tapping oceanic economy’s role in the construction of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road.
Besides establishing a basic oceanic economy information platform, China also aims to improve the supervision and assessment on oceanic economy.
Focusing on sea water desalinization and marine biological medicine, the document also requires setting up a batch of oceanic economy demonstrative regions, building cooperative platforms for enterprise investment, and guiding the going-out of enterprises engaging in oceanic businesses. Enditem

Source Xinhua

Editor  Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Business, China, News, World News

China to unveil top-level design on rural land, property mortgage loans

Leave a comment
China to unveil top-level design on rural land, property mortgage loans

BEIJING, May 14 (Xinhua) — China is likely to unveil a scheme for the trial program of mortgaging rural contracted land use right and rural house property right for loans, the Economic Information Daily reported on Thursday.
The drafting of the scheme, led by the central bank of China, has been handed to the State Council for approval, the Economic Information Daily quoted insider as saying.
The scheme does not limit numbers of trial counties and encourages grain-growing counties to apply first.
Some existing laws concerning the mortgage of rural contracted land use right can be put aside in those counties undertaking the trial program. The trial program will provide significant grounds for amending laws in the future, experts say. Enditem

 

Source Xinhua

Editor  Xuefei chen Axelsson
China to conduct 1st nationwide ocean economy survey this year
Business, China, Indepth, News

China to promote ppp mode in transportation, environment, medicare and old-age sectors

Leave a comment
CHN to promote PPP mode in transportation, envir’l protection, medicare, old-age sectors

Stockholm, June 3 (Greenpost) — The State Council, China’s cabinet, pledged to expand the public-private-partnership (PPP) mode to transportation, environmental protection, medical care and old-age sectors on Wednesday.
China will promote the cooperation between governments and social funds to increase the supply of public products and service, which is a key measure to transform government functions, unleash market vitality and foster new growth impetus, according to a statement released after a State Council executive meeting presided over by Premier Li Keqiang.
According to the meeting, China will try to streamline administrative review procedures and attract social funds to participate in the investment and management of public projects.
Meanwhile, the subjects in charge of project operation are encouraged to finance directly through the capital market.
A dynamic adjustment mechanism for public service prices should be established to ensure mutual benefit of both the public and social funds. Enditem

 

Source  Xinhua

Editor  Xuefei Chen Axelsson
 
Business, China, Indepth, News, World News

Developed countries dominate in 2015 Human Capital Index, China ranks 64th: WEF

Leave a comment

Developed countries dominate in 2015 Human Capital Index, China ranks 64th: WEF
Stockholm, June 3(Greenpost) — Developed countries have dominated the rankings of the Human Capital Index in 2015, with China ranked 64th out of 124 economies, according to the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Human Capital Report released Wednesday.
The index aims at assessing the outcome of past and present investments in human capital and offering insights into what a country’s talent base will look like in the future.
It evaluated the levels of education, skills and employment available to people in five distinct age groups, starting from under 15 years to over 65 years.
Globally, Finland topped the rankings of the Human Capital Index in 2015, scoring 86 percent of its human capital, followed by Norway, Switzerland, Canada and Japan.
Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Belgium also seized the places in the top 10 list.
Among other large advanced economies, France is in 14th position, while the United States is in 17th position, scoring just under 80. Britain holds the 19th spot and Germany 22nd.
China ranked 64th out of a total of 124 economies, optimizing 67 percent of its human capital.
According to the index, China’s under-15 group and 15-24 group maintained their competitiveness over the human capital, ranked 55th and 58th respectively. However, China’s 25-54 group and 55-64 group are in 61th and 83th position.
Among other BRICS nations, Russia ranked 26th and Brazil is in 78th place, followed by South Africa (92) and India (100).
“Talent, not capital, will be the key factor linking innovation, competitiveness and growth in the 21st century. To make any of the changes necessary to unlock the world’s latent talent we must look beyond campaign cycles and quarterly reports,” said Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of the WEF. Enditem

source Xinhua

Editor  Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Business, China, News

SW China city to build second airport

Leave a comment

SW China city to build second airport
STOCKHOLM, June 3 (Greenpost) — The southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu is to build a second airport to meet the growing air travel demand.

   Construction is likely to start by the end of this year, said Zhou Laizhen, deputy director of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), on Thursday.
Chengdu will be the third Chinese city, after Beijing and Shanghai, with two airports.
Pan Gangjun, president of Sichuan Airport Group, said passenger throughput in Chengdu will reach 62 million in 2020, in excess of 50 million capacity of the current airport.
The new airport will be located in Jianyang, 50 km southeast of downtown Chengdu. The cost is estimated at 69.2 billion yuan (11.2 billion U.S. dollars).
The new airport will have three runways, a 600,000 square meter terminal and 157 aircraft stands. It is expected to handle up to 40 million passengers and 700,000 tonnes of cargo per year in 2025.
Chengdu has routes to 189 cities, including 70 overseas. On May 2, Chengdu opened a route to Moscow, its fourth direct service to Europe.   Enditem

Source Xinhua

Editor   Xuefei Chen Axelsson
Business, China, Indepth, News

Interview: Lombardy region president pushes for more Chinese investors

1 Comment

Interview: Lombardy region president pushes for more Chinese investors

 

by Grandesso Federico and Yan Lei

Milan, Italy, April 29 (Greenpost) — “More Chinese investors should come to Lombardy, they are welcome, there are many opportunities in the region and we are going to show them during the Expo,” Roberto Maroni, president of Lombardy Region said.

“There are many success stories, all investors are welcome, now we promote an initiative called ‘invest in Lombardy’ because we value your business,” the president said in an exclusive interview with Xinhua two days before the opening of Expo Milano.

” We have a vocation to innovation and research, we have 13 universities, 500 research centers both private and public, all the most important ICT companies are based in Milan and Lombardy,” he added.

Lombardy enjoys an exceptional climate for entrepreneurs and the president explains that there are one million companies out of ten million inhabitants, these companies are mainly SMEs and called “family companies ” which need help to be competitive in the world so investments from outside are welcome. Lombardy hosts 18,000 foreign companies.

He said: “For us, to attract investments means not only to come here with a new company and do what you normally do in China but we want to magnetize investment funds to help our companies to become part of our economic system.”

He said: “Investors have many choices; our ICT companies are excellent, some of them are even collaborating with NASA; then we are considered a number one manufacturing region,” he continued.

“Lombardy is agriculture and food production region in Italy, for example, a company near Brescia produces 24 tons of caviar per year exporting it even to Russia,” he said.

According to Maroni new investors can help the brand of “Made in Italy”. He explained that the Italian style and the Made in Italy is something unique and the problem is that most of the more successful Italian products are not produced in Italy.

“As food is concerned the total Italian export per year is 30 billion euros while the so called ‘Italian sounding’ or fake Italian is 60 billion euros,” he added.

“For this reason we welcome investment in the Made in Italy because this reinforces our possibility to increase the volumes of export,” the president explained.

Maroni said: “In 2013 Lombardy exported to China products for more than 3 billion euros while we imported products of 9 billion euros and our exports to China have increased 6 percent from 2012. Then over 100 Lombardy companies are involved with China with a total amount turnover of over 4 billion euros and more than 6000 employees.”

Maroni said he wants to visit China. “Till now I didn’t manage it but I want to go, I know the country and its evolution. I’m very impressed with the Chinese evolution from many points of view starting from the economy, the new landscapes in many towns and the rate of speed they have in every fields,” he said.

“China is more and more appreciated by the Italians and we want to support this evolution thanks to good relations between Lombardy, Italy and China,” he explained.

The president concluded his interview with a message: “Come to visit the Expo, Milan and Lombardy. Lombardy is a world heritage site, we have ten UNESCO sites. You have to visit our beauties and meet with our culture and food.” Enditem

Source Xinhua

Editor Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Business, China, Indepth, News

China Focus: China issues guideline for eco-friendly developmen

Leave a comment

China Focus: China issues guideline for eco-friendly development

 

BEIJING, May 5 (Xinhua) — China’s cabinet on Tuesday published a guideline on improving the country’s environment, vowing to achieve “major progress” in the area by 2020.

In the 35-clause guideline, the State Council stressed the need to consider environmental protection when planning economic and social development, and to raise public awareness about the environment.

China’s safeguarding of the environment still lags behind its economic status, with prominent problems such as limited resources and severe pollution becoming major bottlenecks for sustainable growth, the guideline noted.

It called for more economical and efficient use of resources. By 2020, China aims to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 40 to 45 percent from the 2005 level, and increase the share of non-fossil fuels in primary energy consumption to around 15 percent, according to the guideline.

Other targets include a steady improvement in water and soil quality, forestry and wetland coverage.

The guideline also stressed efforts to promote green urbanization and strengthen protection of ocean resources.

Decades of breakneck growth in China have dried up resources and left the country saddled with problems including smog and contaminated waterways.

In 2014, only eight of 74 major Chinese cities subject to PM 2.5 air quality monitoring met the national standard for clear air, according to data released by the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP).

Another MEP report released in June 2014 revealed that some 60 percent of ground water checked by 4,778 monitoring stations was rated as “bad” or “very bad”.

To strike a balance between growth and environment, China declared a “war against pollution” last year, calling for tougher regulations over polluting industries.

In his annual government report in March, Premier Li Keqiang pledged to take “a firm and unrelenting approach to ensure blue skies, clear waters, and sustainable development”.

Steady progress is being made. A new environmental law launched in January has toughened penalties for pollution and made clear that public-interest groups have the right to sue liable parties.

Earlier this month, the State Council unveiled a detailed action plan to fight water pollution. It said more than 70 percent of the water in the seven major river valleys, including the Yangtze and Yellow rivers, should be in good condition by 2020. The same target is set for offshore areas. Small factories in sectors including paper, insecticides and tanning will be shut down by the end of 2016.

And with Tuesday’s announcement of the overall roadmap, analysts expect more detailed regulations to follow.

“The key for the next step is whether we can seriously implement the guideline,” noted Wang Yi, head of the Institute of Policy and Management under the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Enditem

 

Source Xinhua

Editor  Xuefei Chen Axlesson

 

Business, China, Indepth, World News

China Focus: Online money market funds lose luster

Leave a comment

China Focus: Online money market funds lose luster

 

Stockholm, June2 (Greenpost) — Online money market funds (MMFs) are losing their appeal to Chinese investors who crave higher yields in the stock market.

Combined assets of online MMFs totaled 1.36 trillion yuan (222 billion U.S. dollars) at the end of the first quarter, down 9.8 percent from the previous quarter, according to data from Beijing-based lending information provider Rong360.com.

The figure was a sizable reduction compared to a peak of 1.56 trillion yuan at the end of September 2014.

Analysts said a bullish stock market has drawn money away from online MMFs.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index has gained more than 30 percent since the start of this year, accompanied by a frenzy of new accounts and record turnover.

Rong360.com analyst Xu Jin said that a huge amount of capital has flowed out of bank deposits and online MMFs into the stock market, feeding the market’s steady climb.

Online MMFs offered annualized interest rates of nearly 7 percent when they first became popular in 2013, but the current rate has fallen to around 4 percent, another reason they have lost their allure, according to Xu.

The falling yields accompanied two interest rate cuts and two drops in banks’ reserve requirement ratio by the central bank since November of last year.

Despite the general decline, Alibaba’s Yu’e Bao, the most popular and largest online MMF, was an exception. Its first quarter report showed assets had reached 712 billion yuan as of the end of March, up 23 percent from three months ago.

Alastair Sewell, Senior Director of Fund & Asset Manager Ratings at Fitch Ratings, said the relative ease and convenience of online MMFs have made them wildly popular and a key wealth management tool for average investors.

Yu’e Bao can be used for online purchases, taxis, credit card payments, mortgage payments, and even utilities such as water and electricity. It also offers instant redemption and no-fee money transfers between bank accounts.

However, Sewell warned that online MMFs have a less stable investor base with yield-hungry retail investors susceptible to herd behavior, which could result in a mass outflow of funds. Enditem

Source  Xinhua

Editor Xuefei Chen Axelsson

Business, China, News

Austrian companies aiming to strengthen business with China: economic chambers

Leave a comment

Austrian companies aiming to strengthen business with China: economic chambers

Stockholm, June 2(Greenpost) — Despite a recent slowing of economic growth in China, Austrian companies intend to both develop and expand their presence there, Martin Glatz from the Austrian Economic Chambers (WKO) said at a press conference Wednesday.

He said both China’s internationalization and urbanization are attractive for Austrian companies.

Its “New Silk Road” project, that involves investment in trade routes, can provide infrastructure that can also be useful for Austrian companies in approaching other markets, such as economic interests in Central and Eastern Europe, Glatz said.

The progressive urbanization of China brings with it a rapidly increasing demand for consumer and lifestyle goods, he said, with wage increases and more time available for the middle class to pursue leisure activities.

The urbanization trend also provides potential opportunities in infrastructure and urban development, particularly in creating a higher quality of life in urban areas with a focus on sustainable concepts and the establishment of “smart cities.”

Demographic changes such as an aging population mean demand for pharmaceuticals and medical technology will increase, Glatz said. Enditem

Source  Xinhua

Editor   Xuefei Chen Axelsson