IN BRIEF (Page 18)

Coffee trading center to give China global reach

The newly opened Coffee Exchange (Center) at the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone is expected to boost coffee consumption in the predominantly tea-drinking nation and give China a better say in the pricing of the world's second most commonly traded commodity, after crude oil.

The center, which opened its doors on July 6, is expected to conduct transactions worth 84 billion yuan ($13.5 billion) by the end of 2017, and about 120 billion yuan in 2018.

If the goal is reached, the center will overtake Singapore as Asia's largest commodity exchange that trades coffee futures, and will be among the top-three coffee futures bourses in the world. The top two coffee trading bourses in the world are the Intercontinental Exchange in New York and the Euronext LIFFE in London.

BOC Dubai bonds for Belt and Road

The Bank of China's Abu Dhabi branch has listed its 2 billion yuan ($322 million) bonds on the Nasdaq Dubai, the Middle East's only international exchange, the proceeds of which will go toward the Belt and Road Initiative. The issuance was part of a bond package raised by the BOC last month.

Yuan clearing deal inked with South Africa

The People's Bank of China, the central bank, has signed an agreement with the South African central bank to clear yuan transactions in the country, the People's Bank of China said in a statement on July 7. The agreement with the South African Reserve Bank will support bilateral trade and investment between the two countries, the PBOC said.

Copyright society says film, TV theft frequent

Plagiarism, unauthorized broadcasting and other copyright thefts are frequent in China's film and TV industry, the Copyright Society of China said on July 5, citing a recent seminar.

Weak copyright protection has resulted in little incentive for screenwriters, shoddy quality of films and TV, and copycat products, the society said. This has stalled development of China's film and TV industry, as the country is now the world's largest TV series producer and consumer, as well as the third-largest film producer and second-largest consumer. Legal experts blamed insufficient legislation.

Ping An to provide funding to Didi Kuaidi

Didi Kuaidi, the Chinese car-booking business, has attracted funding from Ping An Insurance (Group) Co and Capital International Private Equity Funds, according to people familiar with the matter. Hillhouse Capital Management and Coatue Management are also investing, the people said, asking not to be identified as the matter is private. In total, nearly $2 billion was raised in the latest round, valuing the company at about $15 billion, the people said.

Ceiling for municipal bond sales to be hiked

The prospect of China raising the ceiling for municipal bond sales is prompting speculation that the central bank will start buying the notes to hold down borrowing costs. The Ministry of Finance is likely to add another 1 trillion yuan ($161 billion) quota for local government debt swaps, taking the total to 3 trillion yuan, said Yang Feng, a fixed-income analyst at CITIC Securities Co in Beijing.

Faster Internet service to boost innovation

A faster, cheaper Internet service will fuel grassroots innovation and the growth of startups, Zhang Feng, spokesman for the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, said on July 6. China is spending 435 billion yuan ($70 billion) to beef up its Internet infrastructure, an increase of 10 percent year-on-year, Zhang said.

Zhejiang company eyes growth in transactions

Hangzhou-based e-commerce firm, Zhejiang Jumore E-commerce Co Ltd said on July 8 that it expects online transactions on its platform to exceed $100 billion by 2016. The company, which has over 25 years of experience in dealing with bulk commodities, has also established partnership with several financing institutions from home and abroad.

China, OECD agree to strengthen relations

China has agreed to strengthen its two-decade-old cooperation partnership with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on areas ranging from macroeconomic management to green energy. The world's second-largest economy and the Paris-based organization reached the consensus during Premier Li Keqiang's visit to the OECD headquarters, where they signed a shared vision statement and a 2015-16 joint work program.

Honda recalls SUVs due to air-con fault

Japanese automaker Honda has announced a recall of 2,422 Acura-brand SUVs in China because of a fault that could see a section of the vehicles' air conditioner detach and fall off the underside.

The affected vehicles are imported Acura MDX SUVs manufactured between March 2013 and October 2014, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine said on July 6. The company's China branch will replace the faulty parts free of charge from July 25.

Goldwind seeks Aussie solar, wind farms

Xinjiang Goldwind Science and Technology Co, China's largest wind-turbine maker, is looking at expanding into another renewable energy source in Australia - solar. Executives are studying a solar project as the company evaluates more wind farms, said John Titchen, the local unit's managing director. "There's potential for co-location of solar and wind farms and sharing infrastructure," he said.

Surprise checks planned on pharmaceutical firms

Pharmaceutical and medical device firms in China will be subject to regular and surprise inspections from Sept 1 onwards, the China Food and Drug Administration said on July 8. The surprise checks will be initiated without prior notice to companies and law enforcement officials will disclose no information about the process and problems spotted during the inspection, according to the CFDA.

Seattle commercial realty attracts Alibaba

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd is in talks to rent more office space in the Seattle area, the United States, which is where founder Jack Ma first encountered the Internet during a visit to the city two decades ago. The company is considering subleasing almost 1,860 square meters in City Center Bellevue, a 27-story office tower east of the city, according to sources.

Iron ore stockpiles increase at major ports

Iron ore stockpiles at Chinese ports are starting to recover as production increases, probably meaning lower prices, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. The holdings rose 2.8 percent last week to 81.55 million metric tons, rebounding from the lowest since 2013.

( China Daily Africa Weekly 07/10/2015 page18)