IN BRIEF (Page 24)

Regulator probes deeper into Microsoft

The State Administration for Industry and Commerce, which enforces China's Anti-Monopoly Law, has asked Microsoft to clarify "major issues" about electronic data that resulted from a monopoly investigation. Since mid-2014, Microsoft has been suspected of not fully disclosing information on its Windows operating system and Microsoft Office application. The US tech company has said it will cooperate fully with the investigation.

Airlines cut ties with Qunar travel agency

Several airlines have severed ties with Qunar Cayman Islands Ltd, a large online travel agency, after complaints from customers over extras charges, and refund and ticketing issues. Air China Ltd, China Southern Airlines, Hainan Airlines and Capital Airlines, the Beijing-based subsidiary of HNA Group, have all ended their relationships with the Web-based company.

Wanda invests $2.3b in British-run hospitals

Dalian Wanda Group Co has invested 15 billion yuan ($2.3 billion; 2.1 billion euros) to build three new Chinese hospitals in Shanghai; Chengdu in Sichuan province; and Qingdao in Shandong province. International Hospitals Group, a British company, will manage the facilities, the first of which is expected to open in Qingdao in 2018.

Apple to reduce iPhone output as sales slump

Apple Inc is to cut production of its iPhone 6S and 6S Plus by 30 percent in the first quarter due to sales being weaker than expected, according to reports. Analysts say iPhone shipments in China, Apple's biggest market, are set to see a "significant slump" in the first quarter compared with a year ago. Apple has not commented.

Govt mulls letting car dealers mix brands

China could be about to relax restrictions on car dealers, allowing them to sell vehicles from multiple automakers and sell excess stock to each other. Draft guidelines published by the Ministry of Commerce to solicit public feedback say automakers would be barred from imposing unilateral sales quotas on dealers, or forcing them to take on unpopular models and inventory. The move could be a boon for dealers, giving them greater flexibility in choosing the cars they sell.

Copper stockpiler seeks local supplies

The State Reserve Bureau is seeking as much as 150,000 metric tons of domestically produced refined copper for its stockpiles amid a collapse in prices to six-year lows, sources say. The bureau issued the tender to multiple sellers including smelters at a meeting in Beijing on Jan 5, according to a source who asked not to be identified. Smelters in China, the world's largest producer and consumer of metals, are contending with a collapse in prices as the nation's growth slows.

NDRC gives green light to new rail projects

China's economic regulator, the National Development and Reform Commission, has approved two high-speed railway projects worth a combined 34.6 billion yuan on Jan 6, part of efforts to hasten infrastructure projects to boost economic growth. One project is a 197-kilometer link between Liaoning province in the northeast and the northern Inner Mongolia autonomous region, while the other is a separate link between different cities in the two regions, the commission said.

Efforts may buoy China-Russia trade

The decline in trade volume between China and Russia might be reversed in 2016, Shen Danyang, a spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce, said on Jan 6. "The foundation of China-Russia economic and trade cooperation is solid. The two countries will make efforts to buoy declining bilateral trade," he said. Trade volume fell 29.3 percent year-on-year in the first 11 months of 2015 to $61.3 billion.

Sinopec strikes oil, gas in offshore test well

Sinopec Corp said it has struck high-yielding oil and gas in a test well offshore Beibu Bay, near China's southwestern coast, marking a rare offshore find by the state-owned company, which is largely focused onshore. The Wei-4 well, some 110 kilometers southwest of the coastal city of Beihai, tested a daily output of 1,264 metric tons of crude oil and 71,800 cubic meters of natural gas at a first layer, after identifying oil-bearing layers nearly 100 meters thick. On the second layer, Sinopec struck 1,184 tons of daily oil flow and 76,000 cubic meters of natural gas, the company said on Jan 6.

Renminbi declines to a five-year low

The yuan has sank to a five-year low after China's central bank set the currency's reference rate at an unexpectedly weak level. The People's Bank of China has cut its daily fixing to the lowest level since April 2011, weaker than the yuan's last onshore closing level. The currency fell 0.6 percent in Hong Kong's freely traded market as well as in Shanghai, with both exchange rates dropping to their weakest levels since at least March 2011.

Officials vow to boost rural industries

China will speed up integrative development of primary, secondary and tertiary industries in rural regions to increase farmer income and modernize agriculture, according to a central government guideline. The country will accelerate agricultural restructuring, extend rural industrial chains, encourage cooperatives and family farms, bring in private capital, innovate financial services and improve infrastructure, it says.

Hyundai sales fall on the mainland

Hyundai Motor Co has posted its first annual sales drop in China since 2007, as a slowing economy and shift in consumer preferences to cheap SUVs has hurt demand for its sedan-heavy lineup. Deliveries fell 5.1 percent to 1.06 million vehicles in 2015, the company said. Toyota Motor Corp has surpassed its South Korean rival in China after boosting sales by 8.7 percent to 1.12 million units. Hyundai Chairman Chung Mong-koo said he expects demand in China to remain weak in 2016.

Phone maker Meizu to cut payroll by 5%

Meizu Technology Corp, the Chinese smartphone maker backed by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, is planning to cut up to 5 percent of its roughly 4,000 staff to strengthen its performance as industry growth cools. The company plans to trim as many as 200 people from its workforce by mid-February and will cap headcount growth at under 10 percent in 2016, a spokesman said on Jan 6.

Trading halted after shares fall 7%

Chinese equities dived on the morning of Jan 7, triggering the 7 percent circuit breaker, which halted trading of equities, index futures and options for the remainder of the day. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index dived by 7.32 percent, heading toward an early closure at 3,115.89 points. The smaller Shenzhen Component Index tumbled by 8.35 percent while ChiNext, the startup board, retreated by 8.66 percent. The China Securities Regulatory Commission has said it will improve the circuit breaker system based on real market operation.

(China Daily Africa Weekly 01/08/2016 page24)