Guangdong Gov’t Accelerates Financial High-tech Service Industry

Aug. 26 – The Guangdong provincial government approved a plan to create a new financial services investment park last week aimed at accelerating the financial high-tech service industry in the province.

According to the plan issued on August 17, the government will build a financial services industrial park that will feature R&D centers, data processing centers, call centers, disaster recovery centers, training centers, and insurance asset management centers to support the business. Read the rest of this entry »

Tibet to Launch Own Airline

Aug. 26 – Tibet is following other provinces in China and is to have its own airline, with operations set to start from August next year.

The company, which has just recently been granted state-level approval, has been formed and is a joint venture between the Tibet Autonomous Region Investment Co. holding the majority stake of 51 percent and Tibet Sanli Investment and Tibet Ruiyi Investment holding 39 percent and 10 percent shares, respectively.

Tibet Airlines has already purchased three Airbus A319s, and hopes to introduce services from August 2011. Tibet is currently served by six airlines operating 16 routes, including Air China and Sichuan Airlines who make up the bulk of the traffic and scheduled weekly flights also being made by China Southern, China Eastern, Shenzhen Airlines and Hainan Air. Read the rest of this entry »

China Industry: Aug. 13

Aug. 13 – This is a regular series of relevant industry news from around China.

Air transport
Cathay Pacific Airways intends to start flying more often between Hong Kong and Australia, New Zealand, Canada, France and Japan from November. The company also intends to operate 11 flights a week to Paris by December. Tony Tyler, chief executive of the company, said that the carrier wants to boost its passenger capacity by approximately 4 percent.

China West Air has received its first Airbus A319 airplane, Datamonitor reported. The airline intends to use the aircraft on domestic services between Chongqing and Wenzhou and between Shijiazhuang and Yantai. Read the rest of this entry »

TOM Group–China Post JV Announced

HONG KONG, Aug. 4 – TOM Group, Hong Kong’s media and communications giant, announced plans for the formation of a massive joint venture with China’s postal service to create the mainland’s largest e-commerce services provider.

The JV, to be named Beijing Ule E-Commerce, will be 51 percent owned by China Post. TOM Group is investing through their Shenzhen-based NewECLink subsidiary and will be the exclusive IT systems provider for the business, providing an additional US$30 million to market the new platform. Read the rest of this entry »

In China, White Goods Become Red

Op/Ed Commentary: Chris Devonshire-Ellis

Jul. 30 – As the central government encourages a re-balancing of the economy towards more domestic consumption, companies are finding subtleties of selling in China that will shape the way forward for foreign manufacturers doing business here. Gone are the days when a manufacturer would only sell within a region, now the focus is on getting goods to China’s massive rural population; some 900 million people, or three fourths of the total consumer market.

This means that long held wisdom in international and even China sales is being remodeled and, in some situations, rethought. Take Haier for example. Long China’s largest manufacturer of white goods – everything from washing machines to air conditioners to freezers and television sets – they are the archetypal white goods manufacturer. In a delicious twist of irony, they are finding that rural Chinese consumers prefer their products in a more auspicious shade of red. White is a color associated with death and funerals in Chinese culture. Superstitions die hard in the countryside, and red is considered a lucky color linked to fortune and wealth. Read the rest of this entry »

China Studies Proposal to Tax Real Estate Based on Market Value

Jul. 27 – China is weighing a proposal that would tax commercial property based on its market value in an effort to reform its tax system and discourage speculative buying.

Commercial property tax is currently based on the original purchase price. Taxpayers who use commercial property for their own use are charged a 1.2 percent tax annually. Read the rest of this entry »

Beijing Municipal Gov’t Clarifies Housing Loan Procedures

Jul. 20 – Beijing municipal government recently clarified the standard procedures in commercial loans to individual house buyers looking for a second house.

Jingjianfa [2010] No. 406, issued on July 15, stipulates that borrowers apply for housing loans should fill out the “family has separated flat declaratory form” to declare their housing situation. The commercial lender should then interview the buyer(home visits when necessary), check the housing transactions or use other means to determine the implementing standard of the differential housing credit policy. Read the rest of this entry »

New Shanghai-Nanjing High Speed Railway Cuts Travel Time

By Joyce Roque

Jul. 5 – The new high speed train from Shanghai to Nanjing, which began operations on Jul. 1, has cut travel time between cities from at least three hours to about one hour and 40 minutes with prices 56 percent higher than regular trains.

Ticket prices begin at RMB146 for a one way second-class seat and RMB233 for a one way first-class seat. The difference in comfort between the two is not huge. The second-class seats have five people per row or 100 people per carriage as opposed to first class with only 80 people per carriage.

The second-class seat is comfortable enough for a nap with ample leg space and reclining seats for even the tall expatriate. There is a retractable desk behind every seat that is the right size for reading or writing in addition to a spacious overhead storage shelf. Read the rest of this entry »

Beijing Plans New International Airport

BEIJING, Jun. 22 – The Beijing municipal government has been assessing the district of Daxing to the south of the city as a potential location for a new international airport, municipal city planners have stated.

Recognizing a capacity shortage in cargo and passenger facilities provided by Beijing Capital Airport in the next 10 years, the municipal government plans to convert the suburban Daxing District into a logistics hub for Beijing and nearby Hebei Province. The plans will need state-level approval. Read the rest of this entry »

Notice on Importing Automotive Vehicles by Permanent Institutions

Jun. 21 – The General Administration of Customs recently issued a notice regarding automotive vehicle imports made by permanent institutions and permanent personnel, with the aim to safeguard the local automobile market.

Customs Collection [2010] No. 32, issued May 25, stipulates that from Jul. 1, 2010 onwards, Customs will not process applications for importing used automotive vehicles by permanent institutions or permanent personnel, unless otherwise provided with the Intergovernmental Agreement on the duty-free entry of automobiles, or high-level talents and experts invited by the government. Applications sent to Customs before Jul. 1st, 2010 are not restricted by the new notice. Read the rest of this entry »

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