Soho underlying profit rises

Soho China Ltd, the biggest developer in Beijing's central business district, said the 2012 underlying profit rose 1.4 times as more properties were delivered during the year. Profit, excluding revaluations, rose to 3.34 billion yuan ($537 million), from 1.42 billion yuan a year earlier, according to a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange. That compares with the 3.64 billion yuan median estimate of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News. Revenue rose 1.7 times to 15.3 billion yuan.

Sohu denies talks on privatization

Sohu.com Inc, operator of one of the biggest Web portals in China, denied a report that said it is talking to investment banks and private equity funds to go private. Sohu said in an e-mail statement that "it is not talking to investment banks and private-equity funds about a possible plan to take the company private and/or delist its common stock from the Nasdaq Global Select Market." The South China Morning Post said the company had talked to several banks, including Credit Suisse Group AG, on a possible plan for privatization.

China tightens overseas scrutiny

China National Gold Group Corp, the nation's biggest producer of the precious metal, said the government has tightened scrutiny of overseas deals. The government is asking for risk-assessment reports for overseas projects, company President Sun Zhaoxue said on Wednesday in an interview during the National People's Congress session in Beijing.

JPMorgan bullish about profits

JPMorgan Chase & Co's Chinese investment banking unit chief said its profit outlook for this year is "much better" as global investors' sentiment toward companies based in the country improves. A relaxation in the rules on Chinese companies seeking to raise capital overseas is "a good thing for banks like JPMorgan," Fang Fang told journalists in Beijing.

Stocks get lift from Wall Street

The Chinese mainland shares ended up 0.90 percent on Wednesday, taking a strong cue from Wall Street, where the Dow closed at a record high. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index jumped 20.87 points to 2,347.18 on turnover of 125.4 billion yuan ($20.2 billion). "The Dow Jones Industrial Average hit a record high yesterday and this may have lifted sentiment in the domestic stock market. Banking stocks also performed well," Haitong Securities analyst Zhang Qi said.

Unilever to sell water purifiers

Unilever, the global consumer goods giant, is to start selling water purifiers in China, the National Business Daily quoted a senior executive at the company as saying on Wednesday. Zeng Xiwen, vice-president of Unilever Greater China, said the company will begin trial sales of water purifiers in Nanjing this month. It will then expand sales channels by placing the products in large home-appliance malls, supermarkets and stores, the paper said.

Foxconn in joint venture with LeTV

Foxconn Technology Group, the electronics manufacturing giant, said on Tuesday it will set up a joint venture with LeTV.com, a Chinese online video portal, China Business News reported. The joint venture will focus on promoting Chinese film and TV culture overseas, the announcement said. "There are about 70 million Chinese living overseas, and they are interested in Chinese history and films."

China Daily - Agencies

(China Daily 03/07/2013 page14)