17th CIFIT to stress outbound investment

The 17th China International Fair for Investment and Trade will focus more on China's outbound investments, according to Fang Wei, the deputy head of the Department of Outward Investment and Economic Cooperation at the Ministry of Commerce. Speaking during the event's Beijing promotional symposium on Wednesday, Fang said the fair - to be held in Xiamen, Fujian province, from Sept 8 to 11 - has become a bridge for Chinese enterprises to tap global markets, and active Chinese outbound investment is an important boost to the sluggish world economy.

Funds for canceled IPOs 'hard to cash out'

Venture capital and private equity funds totaling 3 billion yuan ($485.6 million) will be difficult to cash out, with 88 Chinese firms supported by VC and PE companies canceling their IPO applications, ChinaVenture Group said on Wednesday. The 88 companies, out of 166 Chinese firms that have stopped their IPO examination and approval processes, are backed by companies such as Fortune Venture Capital, CSM Group, Jiuding Capital and Shenzhen Capital Group. Another 714 companies are awaiting examination and approval by the China Securities Regulatory Commission, with about 300 involved with VC and PE funds.

Land parcels set for auction in Shanghai

Seven parcels of land in Shanghai with a combined starting price of 5 billion yuan ($809 million) will be put up for auction by the end of April, according to data from Soufun.com, an information portal for the realty market. A piece of land in the city's Qingpu district has proved the most popular with 33 qualified potential bidders, of which four have applied to enter the auction. Analysts said larger developers are more willing to buy land. Developers still have concerns over future policies that may further tighten controls over the realty market, which may have an impact on bidding interest in the parcels.

Sales of financial products in banks to be monitored

Shanghai Office of the China Banking Regulatory Commission said on Tuesday it is to monitor the selling of financial products from other agents in commercial banks. A synchronized audio and video monitoring system will be set up at all counters involving sales of products by agents in banks before 2014. "The responsibility of the seller and the risk awareness of the investor should be both enhanced," said an official from the commission.

NetEase launches music service on mobile devices

NetEase Inc, a major Web portal operator in China, has entered the digital music market by releasing a service that enables users to listen to and share music on mobile devices. This is the company's latest effort to expand its presence in the mobile sector as an increasing number of people access the Internet through mobile devices. William Ding, NetEase's chief executive officer and director, said earlier that a full portfolio of the company's services mobile Internet will be released in the first half of 2013.

Chinese airlines report profits in March

Airline companies in China reported more than 500 million yuan ($80.93 million) in net profits in March, up from a net loss of 130 million yuan in the same period last year. However, most profits were due to investment and exchange gains, according to China Business News. Airline carriers recorded more than 400 million yuan in exchange gains and more than 1 billion yuan in investment gains in March. Figures from the Civil Aviation Administration of China show flight passengers in China increased 15 percent year-on-year to 28.78 million in March. Air cargo and mail carried increased 4 percent to 490,000 tons in March.

China Daily-Agencies

(China Daily 04/25/2013 page14)