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A businessman from Pakistan introduces products to visitors during the 2018 China International Winter Trade Fair for Tropical Agricultural Products in Haikou, Hainan province, on Dec 16. Yang Guanyu / Xinhua |
European Commission OKs insurance deal
Chinese reinsurer China Re won approval from the European Commission on Dec 18 for its $865 million (759 million euros; ￡684 million) acquisition of global insurance group Chaucer. London-based Chaucer is active globally in the provision of reinsurance, general insurance and specialty insurance, while China Re is active globally in property and casualty reinsurance and insurance, life and health reinsurance and asset management.
Rail freight volume increases in November
Railway freight volume, an indicator of broad economic activity, expanded at a faster pace in November, official data released on Dec 18 showed. China’s railways carried a total of 350 million metric tons of freight in November, up 14 percent from a year earlier, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. The growth accelerated further from the 10.1 percent rise in October. In the first 11 months, railway freight totaled 3.68 billion tons, up 8.7 percent year-on-year. The data, added to a series of other indicators, show resilience in the economy. The economy recorded strong growth of 6.7 percent in the first three quarters, on track to achieve the government’s target of around 6.5 percent for 2018.
Nation top buyer of US debt in October
China’s holdings of US Treasury bonds in October were the lowest in a year, but the country remained the largest foreign buyer of US government debt, according to figures released by the US Treasury Department on Dec 17. China’s holdings of US Treasuries totaled $1.14 trillion in October, down by $12.5 billion from the previous month.
Grain saw bumper harvest in 2018
China recorded another bumper harvest in 2018, with grain output remaining at a high level, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Dec 15. Total grain output for the period stood at 657.89 million metric tons, down by 3.71 million tons or 0.6 percent from last year, the NBS said in a statement on its website. NBS statistician Hou Rui attributed the decline to changes in the crop structure and a decrease in planting area, which shrank by 952,000 hectares from the previous year. China’s grain output remained strong despite the decline. Per-unit yields improved, thanks to favorable weather conditions, Hou said.
Boeing Zhoushan delivers first aircraft
The Boeing Zhoushan 737 Completion and Delivery Center, a joint venture between US aerospace giant Boeing and its Chinese partner, Commercial Aircraft Corp of China, delivered its first 737 aircraft to Air China on Dec 15. The Zhoushan unit, the first such Boeing facility outside the United States, completed the finish work on a 737 MAX 8 airplane whose primary assembly was completed in the United States at the Boeing plant in Renton, Washington.
Geely escapes fines in Daimler deal
German market regulator BaFin has ended its investigation into the purchase of a large stake of automaker Daimler by Chinese automaker Geely and decided not to impose fines against Geely over disclosure practices, the Chinese company said. Citing the results of the investigation, Geely said it strictly followed German law and regulations in its acquisition of a 9.7 percent stake in Daimler AG for $9.2 billion and disclosed information accurately and in a timely manner. The Chinese automaker added that it has been cooperating with BaFin in the investigation.
UBS predicts equity surge in next 6 months
Global equity markets are more likely to advance than fall in the next six months, with a low risk of recession and attractive valuations, UBS Global Wealth Management reported. “Following the economic data rather than the news headlines has proved a good strategy for navigating the market over the medium term,” Mark Haefele, chief investment officer with UBS Global Wealth Management, said in a research note. Global equities currently trade at 15.5 times the price-to-earnings ratio, compared with a long-term PE ratio of 18.3 times.
Internet firms promise social responsibility
Thirty-six Chinese internet businesses including Alibaba, Tencent and Baidu joined an initiative on Dec 19 to fulfill their corporate social responsibility. The initiative was launched at a forum hosted by the Internet Society of China on the corporate responsibilities of Chinese internet businesses. The companies are expected to make contributions to poverty alleviation, set up an information disclosure mechanism, actively accept supervision from the public and take on other responsibilities, under the initiative.
Finnish timber coming to inland China market
A train packed with 41 containers of sawn timber left Kouvola in eastern Finland, on Dec 18 and is headed to Xi’an, Shaanxi province, in northwestern China. It will take two weeks for the 1,800 cubic meters of timber to get to Xi’an, a bridgehead to west-central China, said Tommi Saarnisto, product manager of Metsa Fibre, a large timber company in Finland. The train will pass through Russia and Central Asia before entering China from Kazakhstan via Alataw Pass. Metsa Fibre is among the larger companies to embrace railway logistics for exports to China, said Anu Kujansuu, marketing director for Kouvola Cargo Handling.
Baidu, US firm team up on self-driving cars
US video game-maker Unity Technologies said on Dec 18 that it is partnering with China’s leading internet giant, Baidu, to develop a virtual reality system that will help Baidu test its self-driving vehicles in a simulated real-time environment. San Francisco-based Unity said it is working on a real-time simulation product that creates virtual environments where developers of Baidu’s ambitious Apollo autonomous vehicle program will be able to devise, build and test self-driving systems with level 3, 4 and 5 autonomy. Unity’s real-time 3D platform allows manufacturers of selfdriving vehicles to reduce errors and risks while increasing efficiency and speed of testing. It offers simulations that replicate real-world scenarios, Unity said.
UK leads in offshore yuan forex transactions
Britain continued to be the top destination for offshore renminbi foreign exchange transactions this year, a report from London RMB Business Quarterly said on Dec 18. The London RMB Business Quarterly report was jointly compiled by the City of London and the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) Representative Office For Europe. Britain accounted for the largest share of yuan payments outside of Hong Kong and retained its first place in terms of offshore yuan forex transactions, accounting for 38.64 percent of global trading volume, the report said.
Raw coal output growth stays stable at 4.5%
Raw coal output growth remained stable in November, up 4.5 percent year-on-year to 320 million metric tons, official data showed. The growth narrowed from the 8-percent gain year-on-year in October, while the daily average output reached 10.51 million tons, the highest level since December 2015, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. During the first 11 months, China’s coal output climbed 5.4 percent year-on-year to 3.21 billion tons.
(China Daily European Weekly 12/21/2018 page24)