Brokerage profits drop 30 percent in February

The monthly net profit of 19 securities brokerages listed in Shanghai and Shenzhen in February totaled 1.84 billion yuan ($296 million), a 30 percent decrease from January, according to reports from the companies. Total revenues of the 19 companies in February was 4.9 billion yuan, down 25 percent from January. Only two of the 19 companies saw profit growth in February, while 15 brokerages reported positive profit gain in January. The number of trading days decreased by about 25 percent due to holidays in February.

Aluminum output record in Jan on capacity additions

Aluminum production in China, the biggest producer and user, climbed to a record in January on capacity additions, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Tuesday. Production was 1.78 million metric tons in January, according to Bloomberg calculations based on the data. The figure exceeded the previous record of 1.75 million tons in August, said Zhang Chenguang, an analyst at SMM Information & Technology Co. The bureau doesn't release January output data alone and may revise previous data without disclosure. Rising output will probably weigh on prices and force higher-cost smelters to cut output, affecting their earnings.

Rubber drops most in a week as stockpiles climb

Rubber tumbled the most in more than a week on concern that rising inventories in China and Japan may curb demand. The contract for delivery in August fell 2.9 percent to close at 292.5 yen a kg ($3.03) a metric ton) on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange, the biggest decline since March 1. Stockpiles held at Japanese warehouses rose 3.8 percent to 11,363 tons on Feb 28, the Rubber Trade Association of Japan said on Monday. Inventories in China, the largest user, jumped to 107,481 tons, the highest level in three years.

Subsidies for solar power plants lower than expected

China's top economic planner has issued a draft regulation showing lower-than-expected subsidies for distributed solar power projects, industry insiders said. Distributed solar farms will received subsidies of 0.35 yuan (5 US cents) per kWh, the draft issued by the National Development and Reform Commission, PV-Tech reported on Sunday. Meanwhile, the country has set four rates from 0.75 yuan to 1 yuan per kWh for solar-power plants in different regions to sell electricity to grid operators, according to the draft.

Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan to help with firm's IPO

China Galaxy Securities Co, a brokerage backed by China's sovereign wealth fund, picked Goldman Sachs Group Inc and JPMorgan Chase & Co to help manage its initial public offering in Hong Kong, two people with knowledge of the matter said. The Beijing-based firm may raise as much as $1.5 billion in the second quarter, said the people, asking not to be identified because the information is private. The two New York-based banks, along with Galaxy Securities' Hong Kong unit, will act as sponsors and global coordinators for the offering, they said.

Pharmaceutical company to broaden offerings

International pharmaceutical company Catalent Pharma Solutions announced the establishment of two joint ventures in China on Monday, which are engaged in soft gel technology and clinical supply solution businesses. The US-based company said it intends to make additional investments in these two facilities over the next several years to broaden its offerings in the Chinese market.

Yum Brands rebounds from chicken antibiotic scare

Yum Brands Inc, owner of the KFC restaurant chain, said first-quarter same-store sales fell 20 percent in China, less than analysts estimated, as its reputation rebounded from a probe into a former chicken supplier. Analysts projected a drop of 25 percent, the average of 20 estimates compiled by Consensus Metrix. In February, same-store sales were unchanged at KFC and rose 13 percent at Pizza Hut, compared with January declines of 41 percent and 15 percent, the Louisville, Kentucky-based company said on Monday.

Wenzhou railway project attracts investors

The State-owned railway infrastructure project in Wenzhou, Zhejiang province, has attracted numerous private investors, and the fundraising process for the first phase has been completed two months ahead of schedule. The first installment of 1.5 billion yuan ($241 million) worth of S1 line shares was made available for investors through April, but it was sold out in late February. The formal sale of 50 percent of the shares in the S1 railway line - a planned 52.22-km route - was launched in December 2012 with a starting price of 10,000 yuan.

DHgate website sees rise in use of mobile devices

DHgate.com, a website enabling Chinese suppliers to trade with foreign buyers, said mobile traffic accounted for 26 percent of its total traffic, while transactions from mobile devices took up 17 percent of its total last year. The increasing use of mobile devices in the e-commerce sector comes as more people are accessing the Internet via such devices. The website is the fifth-largest in the Chinese business-to-business market, with a 2 percent share, according to Analysys International.

China Daily - Agencies

(China Daily 03/13/2013 page14)