IN BRIEF (Page 24)

New vehicle emissions norms start in April

An upgrade in vehicle emission standards will take effect on April 1 in 11 areas in eastern China, according to a joint announcement on Jan 11 by Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Ministry of Environmental Protection. The move is in line with the country's campaign to combat vehicle pollution. As of April 1, all vehicles including light-duty cars, light-duty diesel vehicles and heavy-duty diesel vehicles in the 11 provincial-level regions, including Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian and Hainan, have to upgrade the gasoline to the standard known as China 5. The policy will further expand nationwide on Jan 1, 2017.

Taxes cut further to boost innovation

China cut more than 300 billion yuan ($45.6 billion; 41.9 billion euros) of taxes in 2015 to boost entrepreneurship and innovation, according to official data. Among this, tax exemptions and breaks for small enterprises reached 100 billion yuan, and tax cuts designed to encourage high technology development totaled 140 billion yuan, according to the State Administration of Taxation. The government is counting on entrepreneurship and innovation to generate new jobs and improve the skill set of its citizens, and warm up the slowing economy.

Lufax raises $1.2b ahead of dual listing

Online lending platform Lufax, backed by Ping An Insurance Group Co of China Ltd, has raised $1.2 billion from a group of investors ahead of a planned dual listing in the second half of the year. The capital raising values Shanghai Lujiazui International Financial Asset Exchange Co, as the company is formally called, at $18.5 billion, it said in a statement. Lufax raised $924 million from new investors in a so-called B round of financing, as well as an additional $292 million from investors who had bought stakes in the company in an initial funding round. The B round of financing was several times oversubscribed.

Yantian bonded zone unveils more incentives

The Yantian Comprehensive Bonded Zone in Yantian Port, located to the east of Shenzhen in Guangdong province, has been rated as one of the special customs control zones with the highest level of openness and the most preferential policies. Export taxes for domestically produced goods can be refunded once they are transported into the zone, and production transactions within the area are exempt of value-added tax and consumption tax. Spread over an area of 2.17 square kilometers, the zone is expected to be a match with the China (Guangdong) Pilot Free Trade Zone. Companies in the zone can also carry out cross-border e-commerce, exhibition and trading of bonded products, and other emerging businesses.

Hongqiao shares fall after profit warning

Shares in China Hongqiao Group, the world's biggest aluminum producer, fell the most since September after a warning that its 2015 consolidated profit may drop more than a third, as metals prices slumped and a weaker yuan made dollar debt more expensive. The Shandong-based company fell as much as 2.49 percent to HK$3.91 ($0.50; 0.46 euros) a share at the close on Jan 18. Consolidated profit attributable to shareholders will fall between 25 percent and 35 percent in 2015, the company said in a statement after close of trading on Jan 15. This was a result of foreign-exchange losses on dollar-denominated debt amid the yuan's devaluation, and a significant decline in aluminum prices in the fourth quarter, it said.

Manchester United TV channel on air

Manchester United's television channel, MUTV, will be beamed 24 hours a day by Internet company Sina for free. The soccer team's most recent matches, as well as U-21 and U-18 matches, highlights, the manager's weekly news conferences, and exclusive interviews will also be aired for Chinese fans. Wei Jianglei, Sina's senior vice-president, said they expect to provide over 100 million Chinese of the English club more diversified and in-depth sporting services.

Vanke seeks extension of trading suspension

Property giant China Vanke Co said it is currently applying for an extension of suspension in trading of the company's A shares. The company originally expected to disclose its restructuring plan within a period of no more than 30 days, but now it expects the material asset restructuring to involve the acquisition of a number of domestic and overseas assets. Vanke said there are material uncertainties in the transaction's details and outcome, and it expects to disclose a proposal for the material asset restructuring before March 18.

Water conservation to get top billing

The government will promote more water conservation projects in the next five years as part of its efforts to boost investment and stabilize growth. Twenty major water projects are scheduled to start in 2016, and about 172 key water projects will be pushed forward in five years, according Chen Lei, the minister of water resources. In addition to saving water, these projects will boost employment, improve rural incomes, support local industry and stabilize economic growth. The minister said that the new projects should welcome private investment and that water must be made more affordable to farmers.

Lending boost to Belt, Road nations

China's Export-Import Bank said it had more than 520 billion yuan ($79 billion; 73 billion euros) in outstanding loans to countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative at the end of 2015. The loans cover more than 1,000 projects in 49 countries, the bank said. The government's initiative seeks to create a modern Silk Road to boost trade by connecting countries on three continents from China to Europe.

SAFE not limiting individuals' forex buys

The State Administration of Foreign Exchange has said it was not imposing any limits on foreign currency sales to individuals beyond the usual annual cap of $50,000, Xinhua News Agency reported, in the government's latest response to concerns about capital outflows. The regulator denied reports that Chinese banks had placed restrictions on foreign currency sales due to a surge in the number of people buying the US dollar, which has appreciated against the yuan. China's foreign exchange reserves posted their biggest annual drop on record in 2015, shedding $512.66 billion to $3.33 trillion, the central bank said.

(China Daily Africa Weekly 01/22/2016 page24)