New Anti-counterfeit Coordination Group
The State Council has decided to establish a nation-wide "Anti-counterfeit Coordination Group" with Vice Premier Wu Bangguo acting as group leader and representatives from all relevant State agencies. The objective of this newly formed powerful group will be to crack down on counterfeit production through coordinated nation-wide action. The counterfeit problem is now so rampant that virtually everything from CDs to marriage certificates is being faked in mass volume. (China Watcher, 30 October)

RMB 32.6 billion for Western development
The State will invest RMB 32.6 billion into infrastructure construction in the country's western areas by the end of this year, according to a senior official of the State Development Planning Commission. (China Daily, 30 October)

Mainland takes lead in exports
The mainland is set to overtake Taiwan in computer hardware exports for the first time, thanks to the migration of Taiwanese manufacturers to the mainland. China's hardware exports this year will rise 30% from the USD 18.45 billion of 1999. This will make China the world's third-biggest hardware exporter, up from fifth last year. Such progress is largely due to Taiwan information technology firms shifting their production to the mainland. (South China Morning Post, 30 October)

CIRC approves fourth life insurance company
The China Insurance Regulatory Commission recently approved the establishment of Minsheng Life Insurance Shareholding Co. It is the fourth life insurance company to win CIRC approval. Dongfang Life, Shengming Life and Heng'an Life are the other three companies that were recently approved. (ChinaOnline, 31 October)

138 Chinese companies listed overseas
A total of 138 mainland Chinese firms have obtained overseas stock listing until now. 117 of these companies are listed in Hong Kong, 21 in the United States, 7 in Singapore, 5 in the United Kingdom and 5 in Australia. Companies can be listed in more than one country. PetroChina Co., which is not included on this list, has successfully obtained listings in Hong Kong, London and New York. (ChinaOnline, 31 October)

China massively cuts restrictions on foreign investors
The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress passed draft amendments to the Law on Foreign-Capital Enterprises and the Law on Chinese-Foreign Contractual Joint Ventures in a move to make the country's laws consistent with principles of the market economy, rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO), and the commitments China has made during its negotiation for WTO membership. According to the amendments, articles requiring foreign-funded enterprises to keep balance of their foreign exchanges on their own will be deleted. Also abolished are stipulations requiring foreign-funded enterprises to give priority to Chinese-made raw materials for their production, and report their production plans to government departments concerned. The amendments will be submitted to next year's Fourth Plenary Session of the Ninth NPC for approval. (Xinhua, 31 October)

New round on China's WTO entry in Geneva on 6 November
The last round of multilateral talks had made scant progress, prompting US Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky and EU Trade Commissioner Pascal Lamy to visit China to get negotiations back on track. The visits resolved most bilateral snags but much work remaines at the multilateral level, which could push China's entry beyond the end of this year. (Reuters Geneva, 1 November)

China puts brakes on transfer of state assets in power sector
The central government has enacted tough controls to put a halt to the mismanagement of assets in the power sector. State-owned power companies were ordered to stop any form of state assets transfer, except assets restructuring and sales of power stations approved by the central government. The move is aimed at ensuring the safety and integrity of state assets, as well as strengthening the supervision of state assets management, the story said. (Zhongguo Zhengquan Bao China Securities, 1 November)

RMB convertible within 15 years
The yuan could be fully convertible by 2015, according to a senior central bank official. This is the first time a tentative timetable has been given on the RMB's full convertibility. The RMB is now convertible only on the current account, which consists mainly of trade flows, and not the broader capital account. Analysts said the forecast, though not official, was reasonable, as China's shaky banking sector needed time to get ready for free capital flows. (SCMP, 1 November)

Television industry loses RMB 14.7 billion through price wars
The mainland TV industry has suffered heavy losses of RMB 14.7 billion during a four-year-long price war, according to the Ministry of Information Industry. About 90 domestic TV producers have a combined production capacity of 50 million sets, the industry will turn out nearly 40 million sets this year, but the domestic market can only absorb around 20 million sets each year. Although the mainland still managed to export more than 6 million sets amid rising anti-dumping claims on the international market, the mainland TV makers will still build heavy stockpiles. (SCMP, 1 November)

Government official tops favorite-profession list
A national survey conducted by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences found that government official is the most popular choice as a favorite career in China, but younger people ranked jobs requiring technological skills higher. (ChinaOnline, 1 November)

Fixed-asset investments from January to September up 12.9%
China's fixed-asset investments rose 12.9% over last year to a total of RMB 1.3 trillion. In September alone, investments rose 13.8% over the same time last year. Increase of investment was particularly strong in the service industries (up 14.4% to RMB 860.6 billion), meanwhile manufacturing industries' investments increase (up 9.8% to RMB 437.2 billion) was 1.6% lower than the first half of the year. There is still a clear preference of investors for the Eastern (RMB 791.4 billion) as compared to the Western (RMB 215.8 billion) region. (ChinaOnline, 2 November)

Buoyant outlook on GDP growth
China's State Information Centre, a semi-official think-tank, has forecast gross domestic product growth of 8.3% this year and 8.5% in 2001. The optimistic outlook is backed by a number of factors, such as solid new orders for domestic manufacturers, a rise in construction contracts and continued strength in exports. (Reuters, 2 November)

Retail giants increase presence in China
US based Wal-mart, the world's No.1 retailer, announced in Shanghai recently that it will open eight more chain stores in China next year. Carrefour, a well-known French retailer now operating 26 stores in 14 Chinese cities, is considering opening 10 more in Shanghai. German Metro, a transnational chain-store dealer with eight shops in such Chinese cities as Shanghai, Qingdao and Fuzhou, has also pledged to expand its Chinese market by opening 10 new shops a year in the future. According to official figures, overseas investment still only accounts for 2.5 percent of all retail sales in China. (Xinhua, 2 November)

World Bank predicts 7% growth for China's economy in the next two decades
The country director of the World Bank's China Program said that China will keep an upbeat growth momentum for 20 years, and its GDP is expected to rank second in the world by 2020, just behind the United States. The people's living standard will be similar to the level of Portugal if China continues its present growth rate, he said. (Xinhua, 2 November)

Beijing makes law for its high-tech development zone
The Beijing municipal legislation body is developing a law for its Zhongguancun High-tech Development Zone to regulate and promote the booming high-tech industry. This is the first time in China for a legislation body to set a law governing a high-tech development zone. Founded in 1988, Zhongguancun High-tech Development Zone plays a major role in the development of high-tech industries. (Xinhua, 2 November)

Fast(er) money: PBOC gives Taiwan banks special treatment for mainland branches
The People's Bank of China recently announced that the government will give preferential treatment to Taiwan-based financial institutions that open representative offices on the mainland. The move would give that industry a healthy lead over foreign banks, which will start their race only after China enters the World Trade Organization. (ChinaOnline, 3 November) 

China Construction Bank expands overseas business
China Construction Bank (CCB) opened a branch in Johannesburg, South Africa bringing the number of its overseas branches to four. CCB's three other overseas branches are located in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Frankfurt. CCB also has four representative offices abroad that do not conduct business operations. (ChinaOnline, 3 November)

Bank of China to cooperate with American International Group
The Bank of China has signed a cooperative agreement with American International Group. Under the agreement, the Bank of China will cooperate with AIG's two representatives in China, American International Assurance Co. and American International Underwriters Insurance Co., which have branches in Shanghai Guangzhou Shenzhen and Foshan. The agreement is designed to allow the Bank of China and AIG to share resources with the goal of providing a wide range of financial services to their customers. The two parties will link their Web sites and issue joint business cards. (ChinaOnline, 3 November)

Gzitic creditors offered deal on USD 1 billion debt
The debt-ravaged fund-raising arm of the Guangzhou municipal government, Guangzhou International Trust and Investment Corp (Gzitic), has finalised a restructuring proposal with its foreign creditor steering committee that could pave the way to settling an estimated USD 1 billion debt. The agreement, which still must be approved by the company's more than 160 foreign creditors, provides creditors with two repayment options: an immediate one-time cash handout covering 50% of outstanding principal, or a 100% settlement that could extend 10 years or beyond. (SCMP, 4 November)

Shanghai Stock Exchange unveils corporate guidelines
Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) has released its first comprehensive guide to corporate governance in a move to boost management transparency in mainland listed companies. The guidelines are expected to improve management structures within the 1,000 state-owned listed companies on the mainland stock market, the paper said. (SCMP, 4 November)

Imported alcoholic drinks losing market share
The market for foreign liquor and wine took off in the mid-1980s, as newly-rich Chinese consumers considered the high-priced imported alcoholic drinks a symbol of high social status. However, the momentum began to fade in recent years as people found the quality and taste of imports were not superior to the domestic brands. News from France in 1999 of wine connected to mad cow disease also battered the sales of foreign alcoholic drinks in China. (Business Weekly, 5 November)