Morgan Stanley Divests Assets as Mainland Property Growth Rises 16%

Mar. 9 – Morgan Stanley is divesting its mainland China property assets and has sold off US$700 million worth of assets in the past year, the latest being its 50 percent holding in a Foshan residential project, which it has sold back to the developer for US$25million.

Other sales that have taken or are taking place include Infinity Plaza, the Xujiahui Shama serviced apartment block, and Nanjing Road’s Exchange mall, all in Shanghai. This comes as mainland property growth rose 16.1 percent, with sales increasing 42.1 percent year on year. Over 930 million square meters of property were sold last year. Read the rest of this entry »

Daimler and BYD Sign MOU for China Electric Cars

Mar. 3 – Daimler of Germany and BYD, the Shenzhen-based, Hong Kong-listed small auto manufacturer, have signed an agreement to develop and sell electric cars on the Chinese mainland.

The deal could be worth up to US$150 million in a joint venture to develop fully electric vehicles.

“This is cooperation between the most senior car maker and the youngest, between the country with the best car industry and the country with the biggest car market,” BYD’s General Manager Henri Li stated at a press conference. Read the rest of this entry »

China Manufacturing Output Decreases

Mar. 2 – China’s manufacturing output decreased in February, with the benchmark Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) slipping for the first time in more than four years, to 52 from 55.5 the previous month.

The PMI is compiled by China’s National Bureau of Statistics with numbers above 50 indicating growth and figures below 50 suggesting contraction. Read the rest of this entry »

China Briefing Partners with China Daily and IBISWorld to Provide China Industry Reports

Mar. 2 – China Briefing has partnered with China Daily and the market research firms All China Marketing Research and IBISWorld to provide a series of industry reports covering a number of sectors

Written by dedicated researchers from China Daily and ACMR-IBISWorld, these reports are listed on the Asia Briefing Bookstore and include the following titles:

China Daily
AutoChina
China Banking
China Energy Read the rest of this entry »

Beijing City Releases New Real Estate Policies

BEIJING, Feb. 25 – New real estate policies released yesterday attempts to rein in ballooning housing prices and property speculation in China’s capital city.

The Implementing Opinions for Promoting the Steady and Healthy Development of the Real Estate Market in Beijing (Implementing Opinions), asserts adherence to a 40 percent initial housing loan payment for second properties and single land leases of commercial housing should not exceed 20 hectares. Read the rest of this entry »

Paying Tax by Installment in Hong Kong

HONG KONG, Feb. 24 – As the region slowly recovers from the effects of the financial crisis, some business may still be struggling to manage their cash flow.

Hong Kong’s Inland Revenue Department allows payment of taxes by installment for taxpayers having financial difficulties. Taxpayers will need to submit an installment application to the agency and if approved a surcharge not exceeding 5 percent of the outstanding amount will be imposed. Read the rest of this entry »

Lithium the Next Big Thing for China Investments

Feb 24 – China’s long had a relationship with Latin America, and with the South American continent holding 75 percent of the global lithium reserves, global players are piling in to negotiate supplies of the metal.

With China positioned as the global manufacturing hub for computers, and starting to pull away in the technology race to find viable light weight batteries, lithium – used in batteries and in hybrid vehicles – is poised to become the next oil as a commodity. Usage is expected to double by 2020. Read the rest of this entry »

New Regulations for Online Stores to be Released in March

BEIJING, Feb. 23 – The State Administration for Industry and Commerce is expected to release new regulations for major online stores next month that will require them to apply for a business license and pay taxes.

Small online sellers, which comprise of majority of all internet sellers, will not be required to subscribe to the same rules. The agency has been working on a draft of the rules since July last year. Read the rest of this entry »

China’s High-Speed Rail Reaches 3,000 Km

Feb. 18 – China’s operational high-speed railways have exceeded 3,300 kilometers, the Ministry of Railways said on its website Thursday.

China finished two high-speed railways in 2009, one running between Wuhan-Guangzhou and the other between Zhengzhou-Xi’an. Both lines have an operating speed of 350 kph. China also has high-speed railways linking Beijing with Tianjin, Shijiazhuang with Taiyuan, Qingdao with Jinan, and Hefei with Wuhan and Nanjing. Read the rest of this entry »

New Circular Clarifies Tax Treatments for Technology Related Services

Feb. 12 – The State Administration of Taxation has issued a circular clarifying issues raised by local tax bureaus for transitional tax treatments for technology-transfer-related services.

Circular Guoshuihan [2010] No. 46 is meant as a supplement to the implementation of an earlier Circular 507 issued in September 2009. The implementation of Circular 507 led to disputes between foreign technology-providers and local tax authorities in Southern China in terms of applicable tax treatments for technology-transfer-related services and associated individual income tax issues. Read the rest of this entry »

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