The H-shares index, initiated in August 1994 and readjusted on Sept. 7, 2009, tracks the overall performance of 44 major Chinese mainland state-owned enterprises listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

The Hang Seng China H-Financials Index dropped 199.68 points, or 1.07 percent, to close at 18,510.51.

The H-Financials Index, initiated on Nov. 27, 2006, readjusted on Sept. 10, 2007, tracks the performance of nine major banks and insurers of the Chinese mainland.

The Hang Seng Mainland Composite Index went down 37.06 points, or 0.88 percent, to close at 4,159.36.

Introduced on Oct. 3, 2001 with the latest readjustment effective on March 9, 2009, the Hang Seng Mainland Composite Index gauges the performance of 132 Hong Kong-listed companies wi...]]> Finance Sat, 21 Nov 2009 02:13:15 +0800 /articles/09/1120/197911/MTk3OTExi4woRSGL.html

The State Administration of Taxation said Friday value added tax (VAT) paid by the transportation equipment manufacturing industry grew 28.8 percent to 88.6 billion yuan (13 billion U.S. dollars) during the period, and business income tax revenue was 30.7 billion yuan, up 29.6 percent.

Meanwhile, automobile acquisition tax revenue increased 6.3 percent to 91.2 billion yuan, although taxation on the purchase of vehicles with engine displacements below 1.6 liters was reduced by half.

The State Council, or the cabinet, decided on the cut at the beginning of this year to stimulate domestic consumption.

The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers estimated the tax cut had contributed at least a 10 percent growth for the auto market.

Auto production and sales broke the 10 million mark in the fi...]]> Finance Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:43:21 +0800 /articles/09/1120/197910/MTk3OTEw0pznV9er.html

The book-entry treasury bonds, which is the 24th batch of its kind in the year, has a term of 273 days, said the ministry in a statement on its website.

The T-bonds will be sold at an issue price of 98.979 yuan, with an annual interest rate of 1.39 percent.

According to the ministry, a three-day sales will begin on Nov.23. The interests of the bonds will be calculated on Nov. 23 and become tradable on Nov. 27.

The Shenzhen Component Index fell 0.03 percent, or 4.4 points, to close at 13,695.15.

Combined turnover jumped to 325.66 billion yuan (47.89 billion U.S. dollars) from 320.20 billion yuan on the previous trading day.

Nine out of the total 28 shares in the ChiNext market for start-up stocks were up. Special Report:  Global Financial Crisis

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index was up 0.53 percent, or 17.38 points, to close at 3,320.61. The Shenzhen Component Index increased 0.42 percent, or 57.20 points, to close at 13,699.55.

Combined turnover jumped to 320.20 billion yuan (47.09 billion U.S. dollars) from 233.04 billion yuan on the previous trading day.

All of the 28 shares in the ChiNext market for start-up stocks were up.

Four natural gas makes gained by their daily limits of 10 percent buoyed by expected price hike of natural gas.

Changchun Gas rose 10 percent to 9.63 yuan, and Shaanxi provincial natural gas co., Ltd ended at 24.02 yuan, up 9.98 percent.

Biopharmaceuticals companies advanced as the rising danger of flu pandemic was expected to raise vaccine demand. <...]]> Finance Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:20:40 +0800 /articles/09/1119/197788/MTk3Nzg4QnQq3bCl.html BEIJING, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- China's National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the country's top economic planning agency, announced Thursday to raise the price of electricity for non-residential use by 2.8 cents (0.4 U.S. cents) per kilowatt hour on average nationwide, as of Friday.

Residential electricity prices would not be raised this time. However, they would be charged on a progressive basis in the future, which means prices increase with consumption, according to the NDRC.

China's power consumption in October rose 15.87 percent year on year to 313.42 billion kilowatt-hours, up for the 5th consecutive month since June.

Special Report:  Global Financial Crisis

The figures showed that total receipts of the gaming sector amounted to 111.17 billion patacas (14.7 billion U.S. dollars), of which receipts from gaming and related services amounted to 111.01billion patacas (14.5 billion U.S. dollars). Interest receipts dropped by 31.3 percent to 162 million patacas (20.5 million U.S. dollars).

Meanwhile, total expenditure of the gaming sector reached 57.99billion patacas (734 million U.S. dollars), up notably by 29.9 percent, with purchase of goods and commission paid soaring by 37.7 percent from 2007 to 32.95 billion patacas (4.17 billion U.S. dollars).

According to the figures, gaming sector's gross value added that measures the sectoral contribution to the economy also went up by 31...]]> Finance Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:20:27 +0800 /articles/09/1117/197540/MTk3NTQwDoLE8ta5.html Finance Tue, 17 Nov 2009 14:26:41 +0800 /articles/09/1117/197417/MTk3NDE3xBKnTLBR.html INDIVIDUAL expression is not an American ideal but a universal right that should be available to all, US president Barack Obama said today as he began a visit to China.

In his first presidential trip to Asia, Mr Obama lauded cooperative relations with China but sought to send a clear message to his tightly-controlled host country. Just as he said few problems can be solved unless the US and China work together, he prodded China to accept what he called "universal rights". "We do not seek to impose any system of government on any other nation," Mr Obama told students at a meeting in Shanghai, believed to be the first such forum held by a US president on Chinese soil. "But we also don't believe that the principles that we stand for are unique to our nation." He added: "These freedoms of expression, and worship, of access to information and political participation - we believe they are universal rights. They should be available to all people, including ethnic and religiou...]]> Finance Mon, 16 Nov 2009 18:05:28 +0800 /articles/09/1116/197405/MTk3NDA1kEtDKK5g.html Finance Mon, 16 Nov 2009 13:41:27 +0800 /articles/09/1116/197400/MTk3NDAwrPKn1qTc.html BEIJING, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) -- The ChiNext Index, China's start-up board for small and medium-sized enterprises to raise capital, closed flat on Monday as 14 out of 28 stocks were up and 14 were down.

The board, based in Shenzhen and started trading on Oct. 30, 2009, is tailored to the needs of enterprises engaged in independent innovation and other enterprises with great growth potential.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which covers both A and B shares, climbed 2.74 percent to 3,275.05 points. The Shenzhen Component Index added 3.28 percent to 13,699.68 points.

The amount of foreign direct investment China received climbed for the third consecutive month in October, up 5.7 percent year on year to 7.1 billion U.S. dollars, the Ministry of Commerce said here Monday.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which covers both A and B shares, climbed 2.22 percent to 3,258.43 points. The Shenzhen Component Index added 2.94 percent to 13,654.98 points.

U.S. dollar-denominated B shares at Shanghai Stock Exchange continued the bullish trend to rise 5.39 percent in the morning session, to close at 264.73 points.

The amount of foreign direct investment China received rose for the third consecutive month in October, up 5.7 percent year on year to 7.1 billion U.S. dollars, said Yao Jian, spokesman of the Ministry of Commerce here on Monday.

Protiviti, a U.S.-based business consulting and internal audit firm, is working with a number of companies that are preparing themselves to become public companies in helping them institute good risk management and corporate governance, and establish an internal audit function, according to Joseph Tarantino, CEO of Protiviti.

China reopened its IPO market in June after a 10-month halt due to the widespread global credit crunch. Although the market declined last year with the plunging stock markets, the country led the world in IPOs with 127 deals raising 17.9 billion U.S. dollars, according to the U.S. accounting firm Ernst & Young.

China has become the larges...]]> Finance Mon, 16 Nov 2009 07:20:54 +0800 /articles/09/1114/197157/MTk3MTU37Z0vLY2V.html Unusually early snow storms in north-central China have claimed 40 lives, caused thousands of buildings to collapse and destroyed almost 500,000 acres (200,000 hectares) of winter crops, the Civil Affairs Ministry said Friday.

Nineteen of the deaths resulted from traffic accidents related to the storms that began Nov. 9, the ministry said in a statement on its Web site.

The snowfall is the heaviest in the northern and central provinces of Hebei, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Shandong and Henan since record keeping began after the establishment of the Communist state in 1949, the ministry said without giving detailed figures. It estimated economic losses from the storm at 4.5 billion yuan (US$659 million).

Chinese state media say some of the snow was induced through cloud seeding, although the precise amount of snowfall in all areas was not reported and it wasn't clear what the previous records were.

Hebei's provincial capital, Shijiazhuang, rec...]]> Finance Fri, 13 Nov 2009 17:23:51 +0800 /articles/09/1113/197150/MTk3MTUwSDVbYUY1.html BEIJING, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese equities rise slightly on Friday with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index up 14.7 points, or 0.46 percent, to close at 3,187.65.

The Shenzhen Component Index rose 84.12 points, or 0.64 percent, to close at 13,264.4.

Combined turnover climbed to 274.8 (40.23 billion U.S. dollars) from 252.85 billion yuan on the previous trading day.

Of the ChiNext market for start-up stocks, 27 out of the total 28 went up.

No blood or bullet penetration was found on Chen, then an incumbent, after he was thought to be shot and slightly injured during a campaign rally in south Taiwan, Taiwan's Control Yuan said in a report. Running mate Annette Lu was also shot.

Today's ruling Nationalist Party (KMT), which lost the 2004 election, asked for a new probe earlier this year.

"There were no bullet holes in the underclothes or pants that ex-president Chen Shui-bian wore at the time of the incident, nor were there any traces of blood," the Control Yuan, a government agency charged with investigating ...]]> Finance Thu, 12 Nov 2009 09:38:07 +0800 /articles/09/1112/197017/MTk3MDE3coZyLYGp.html Finance Thu, 12 Nov 2009 09:31:20 +0800 /articles/09/1111/196882/MTk2ODgy4t2lGud4.html BEIJING, Nov. 11 (Xinhua) -- China would lead the recovery of the global initial public offering (IPO) market, China Daily reported Wednesday citing consultancy firm Ernst & Young (E&Y).

Based on its latest survey of institutional investors, E&Y said China was the first IPO market to recover from the global recession. Over 75 percent of the respondents said they expected the market to recover in the third and fourth quarters this year.

China-based IPOs accounted for 65 percent of the funds raised globally during the third quarter this year. The trend was expected to be strong in China next year also, the survey said.

"The potential for continuing growth and higher safety in the market are the reasons for the funds flowing into the Chinese IPO market," the newspaper cited Ringo Choi, regional managing partner, China South at Ernst & Young, as saying.

BEIJING, Nov. 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese shares opened slightly lower Wednesday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index down 0.07 percent to open at 3,176.31 points.

The Shenzhen Component Index dropped 0.1 percent to open at 13,138.89 points. Special Report:  Global Financial Crisis

Yang Yi, spokesman with the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office,did not give the exact time and place for the signing of MOU.

Yang said in a press conference that "as for the location, time and form of signing, the Chinese mainland would have no problem," but he did not elaborate on the exact meaning of his words.

The signing of a cross-Strait MOU was a prerequisite for both sides to establish financial branches and buy shares in financial institutions, said Yang.

Wu Nengyuan, a scholar on Taiwan issues, said in March that details on financial cooperation could not be discussed until an MOU on establishing the cross-Strait financial supervisory mechanism was signed.

He believed the signing would "remove obstacles and lay a foundation for the signin...]]> Finance Wed, 11 Nov 2009 07:23:29 +0800 /articles/09/1111/196863/MTk2ODYzcuFzjTcc.html

The growth rate was 5.9 percentage points higher than that in the same period of last year, but 0.2 percentage points lower than that in the first nine months, NBS spokesman Sheng Laiyun said at a press conference.

The NBS had no figure for the month of October.

The rise was 5.8 percentage points lower than that a year earlier, but 0.7 percentage points higher than that in September, NBS spokesman Sheng Laiyun said at a press conference.

The first 10 months saw a 15.3-percent growth of retail sales to 10.14 trillion yuan year on year. The rate was 6.7 percentage points down from the same period last year, and 0.2 percentage points up from the first nine months this year, Sheng said.  

Shen Hao, secretary of the Communist Party of Xiaogang Village in eastern Anhui province, was found dead in bed last week after binge drinking while entertaining business associates during an official banquet, the China Daily newspaper reported.

It was the third reported case this year of a government official's death linked to alcohol poisoning, the newspaper said.

Two government officials in southern China died in separate cases earlier this year after they fell into comas following official banquets that involved excessive drinking.

The cases highlight the heavy ritualized role drinking plays in business and government circles in China. Bai jiu, the potent rice liquor, is a permanent presen...]]> Finance Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:24:44 +0800 /articles/09/1106/196422/MTk2NDIyQ5Hku9MU.html BEIJING, Nov. 6 (Xinhua) -- Chinese shares opened higher Friday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index up 0.67 percent to open at 3,176.14 points.

The Shenzhen Component Index added 0.72 percent to open at 12,994.51 points.

China would continue to adhere to the moderately easy monetary policy and endeavor to promote the stable development of the financial system, Guo Qingping, assistant governor of the People's Bank of China, the central Bank, said Thursday.

Liu Nenghua, vice chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, said Thursday that the country would step up supervision efforts on the ChiNext exchange, a start-up board for small and medium-sized enterprises to go public.

Special Report:  Global Financial Crisis

Qingdao Port invested 200 million yuan (about 29.4 million U.S. dollars) and China Marine Bunker (PetroChina) Co. Ltd., China's largest marine fuel provider, 170 million yuan in the project, the newspaper said.

The first-stage of the project includes construction of four 50,000 cubic meter bonded fuel oil tanks and other supporting transportation facilities, according to the newspaper. 

Wang leapt 23 places to top the Forbes China Rich List after his fortune increased to 39.6 billion yuan (5.8 billion U.S. dollars). BYD, or Build Your Dream, soared after a unit of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway agreed to buy a 10-percent stake last year.

Liu Yongxing, president of the East Hope Group who topped the list last year, came in second with a fortune of 37.55 billion yuan. President of Zhejiang Wahaha Group Zong Qinghou came in third.

The total assets of China's 40 richest people doubled from 52 billion U.S. dollars to a record 106 billion U.S. dollars over the past year, Forbes said.

All the top 40 are billionaires, compared with just 24 billionaires last year.

The asset surge of China's super-rich was a sharp contr...]]> Finance Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:21:56 +0800 /articles/09/1105/196334/MTk2MzM0CrWqWmRA.html BEIJING, Nov. 5 (Xinhua) -- Chinese equities closed mixed on Thursday.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 26.52 points, or 0.85 percent, to close at 3,155.05.

The Shenzhen Component Index dipped 29.51 points, or 0.23 percent, to close at 12,901.70.

Combined turnover shrank slightly to 253.96 billion yuan (37.18 billion U.S. dollars) from 280.7 billion yuan on the previous trading day.

The ChiNext market for start-up stocks, which began trading on Oct. 30, rebounded with 26 stocks out of total 28 up following yesterday's rebounding. The board witnessed sharp losses on Tuesday and Monday.

The market also weighed reports that the Institute for Supply Management's October nonmanufacturing index fell to 50.6 from 50.9 in September; and that ADP's report on private employment showed payrolls falling 203,000 in October, a bit more than the 196,000 expected. To some, data elevated the downside risk for Friday's U.S. employment report for October.

On Wednesday at 12:21 p.m. ET, the 30-stock Dow Jones industrial average was higher by 105.88 points, or 1.08%, at 9,877.79. The broad Standard & Poor's 500-stock index was up 9.49 points, or 0.91%, at 1,054.90. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index gained 12.55 points, or 0.61%, to 2,069.87.

On the New York Stock Exchange, 21 stocks were higher in price for every seven tha...]]> Finance Wed, 04 Nov 2009 18:50:27 +0800 /articles/09/1104/196167/MTk2MTY3DxdMb1Eu.html

The growth rate for the first three quarters was 23.9 percentage points lower from a year earlier. However, the rate was 8.2 percentage points higher than that of the first half of this year, the ministry said in a statement on its official website.

The monthly growth rate posted a fourth straight rise of 30.1 percent in September from 12.2 percent in June, due to the economic recovery and stimulus measures adopted by the government, said the ministry.

During the first nine months, China's consumption taxes rose 79.1 percent year on year, business revenue up 13.1 percent, and individual income taxes up 4.1 percent.

However, the tariff fell 0.4 percent and 26.7 percent to 106.09billion yuan, brought down by import and export slump caused by the financial crisis.  

The trial of Xie Caiping is part of a months-long crackdown in the city that has exposed widespread government and police involvement in providing cover to numerous local gangs, or "black societies." It has also riveted China's state-controlled media with tales of a violent underworld.

Twenty-one others were sentenced to between one and 13 years in prison, according to a notice on the Chongqing court Web site.

The crackdown in Chongqing has been extensive, netting more than 1,544 suspects - gangsters, prominent businessmen and 14 high-ranking officials. Six gang members in the city have already been sentenced to death for crimes including murder and blackmail, the first among hundreds expected to go on trial.

Xie, 46, is the sister-in...]]> Finance Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:25:22 +0800 /articles/09/1103/196055/MTk2MDU1LRAJTcHu.html BEIJING, Nov. 3 (Xinhua) -- Chinese shares opened slightly higher on Tuesday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index up 0.30 percent to open at 3,085.74.

The Shenzhen Component Index added 0.31 percent to open at 12,754.70.

The ChiNext exchange, the country's start-up board for small and medium-sized companies, continued to plunge at the opening with most stocks falling, after 20 of its 28 stocks down 10 percent, the daily limit, on Monday.

Special Report:  Global Financial Crisis

The benchmark Hang Seng Index opened down 2.57 percent at the day's low of 21,194.12, tracking losses on the Wall Street as investors worried about the hovering uncertainties over the economic recovery amid negative consumption news.

The blue chip index narrowed its losses to 1.72 percent by lunch break, and edged up further in the afternoon, partly helped by the strength of the Chinese mainland market. Turnover totaled 65.12 billion HK dollars (8.35 billion U.S. dollars), compared with last Friday's 76.35 billion HK dollars (7.79 billion U.S. dollars).

Analysts said they saw support for the Hang Seng Index at 21,000 and resistance at 22,000 or slightly lower positions, adding that the downside risks might be increasing.

Only six of the 42 blue chip stocks turned out gainer...]]> Finance Tue, 03 Nov 2009 02:22:42 +0800 /articles/09/1102/195965/MTk1OTY1fouStU92.html U.S. stock index futures were higher in premarket trading Monday, signaling a higher open for Wall Street after a sell-off in the previous session.

Trading activity may be marked by portfolio positioning for November and the end of the year, says S&P MarketScope.

A surprise profit from Ford Motor Co. (F) helped support the early gains in futures. Ford said deep cost cuts and the government's Cash for Clunkers rebates helped it earn nearly $1 billion in the third quarter. Shares rose nearly 6% in premarket trading.

Investors were awaiting reports on the Institute for Supply Management's October manufacturing index, which was expected by economists to rise to 54.5 from 52.6 in September; pending home sales for September, which are expected to rise 0.4% after surging 6.4% in August; Sept. and construction spending for September, which is seen falling 0.2% after rising 0.8% in August.

Treasuries were lower Monday morning amid fears the Federal Reser...]]> Finance Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:37:48 +0800 BEIJING, Nov. 2 (Xinhua) -- Chinese equities closed higher on Monday, helped by the pharmaceutical sectors boosted by the flu epidemic, and Shanghai's ambitious plan for a Walt Disney park yet to be announced.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index gained 80.80 points, or 2.70 percent, to end at 3076.65. The Shenzhen Component Index added 418.49 points, or 3.40 percent, to close at 12715.65.

Combined turnover expanded to 254.17 billion yuan (37.22 billion U.S. dollars), from 217.03 billion yuan (31.78 billion U.S. dollars) on Friday. Special Report:  Global Financial Crisis

Local benchmark index once moved up 668.70 points, or 3.14 percent, challenging 22,000 points during the morning session.

Property shares became strong with Henderson Land and SHK Properties surging over 4 percent.

    As of the end of September, banks' average liquidity ratio, or cash held by these banks as a proportion of deposits, was 41.7 percent, well above the industry requirement of 25 percent, the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) stated on its website.

    But the statement underlined the necessity of enhancing liquidity risk management against the backdrop of the global financial crisis.

    In response to the nation's call to prop up the slowing economy amid the global financial crisis, Chinese banks advanced 8.67 trillion yuan (about 1.24 trillion U.S. dollars) in fresh loans in the first nine months of the year, more than doubling the amo...]]> Finance Fri, 30 Oct 2009 02:09:30 +0800 /articles/09/1029/195605/MTk1NjA1mjvFmt3g.html

The NPL ratio fell by 0.76 percentage points, compared with data reported at the beginning of 2009, to 1.66 percent.

Bill Gross, PIMCO

Asset appreciation in U.S. and other G-7 economies has been artificially elevated for years. In order to prevent prices sinking even lower than recent downtrends averaging 30% for stocks, homes, commercial real estate, and certain high-yield bonds, central banks must keep policy rates historically low for an extended period of time. If policy rates are artificially low, then bond investors should recognize that artificial buyers of notes and bonds (quantitative easing programs and Chinese currency fixing) have compressed almost all interest rates. But while this may support asset prices—including Treasury paper across the front end and belly of the curve—at the same time it provides little reward in terms of future income. Investors, of course, notice this inevitable conclusion by referencing Treasury bills ...]]> Finance Tue, 27 Oct 2009 23:09:20 +0800 /articles/09/1027/195361/MTk1MzYx8AeK8x1o.html China will give swine flu vaccinations to thousands of Muslims about to make the annual pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia, state media said, as authorities reported the mainland's third death from the illness.

Concerns over the hajj, which attracts about 3 million Muslims every year to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina, have led several countries to impose travel bans over fears the mass gathering could speed the spread of swine flu. Arab health ministers in July banned children, the elderly and those with chronic illnesses from attending this year.

All of China's 12,700 Muslims making the pilgrimage this year will be inoculated against swine flu, the official Xinhua News Agency said, citing an earlier announcement by the China Islamic Association.

China has acted aggressively to detect and contain swine flu cases after being accused of failing to move quickly enough to stop the 2003 outbreak of SARS. Despite earlier measures such as strict qu...]]> Finance Tue, 27 Oct 2009 08:51:54 +0800 /articles/09/1027/195332/MTk1MzMyPOFbpwLn.html Finance Tue, 27 Oct 2009 04:26:06 +0800 /articles/09/1025/195171/MTk1MTcxGNp1Sjza.html

About 97.9 percent of all the 2,598 involved coal mines have signed merging deals and the issuance of new business licenses are in full swing, the provincial administration of land and resources and coal industry told Xinhua on Sunday.

Shanxi, China's leading coal production base that has suffered frequent fatal mining accidents, is expected to see the eradication of all small mines with an annual production capacity of below 300,000 tonnes by the end of the year -- the scheduled deadline.

By cutting off about 60 percent of its existing coal mines, the province will finally have 1,053 collieries, 20 percent are state-owned firms, 30 percent are privately-run companies and 50 percent with mixe...]]> Finance Sun, 25 Oct 2009 14:40:34 +0800 /articles/09/1024/195073/MTk1MDcztXQzyOWr.html

The profits totaled 551.96 billion yuan (81.17 billion U.S. dollars) between Jan-Sept. The decline rate was 2.7 percentage points lower than that for the first eight months.

Their business revenue was 8.67 trillion yuan, down 2.9 percent year on year, 1.7 percentage points lower than that for the first eight months.

The enterprises paid taxes of 804.65 billion yuan, up 5.3 percent year on year.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index increased 56.44 points, or 1.85 percent, to end at 3,107.85.

The Shenzhen Component Index rose 218.53 points, or 1.73 percent, to close at 12,843.21.

Combined turnover surged to 254.60 billion yuan (37.44 billion U.S. dollars) from 199.22 billion yuan on the previous trading day.Special Report:  Global Financial Crisis

The benchmark Hang Seng Index opened 0.36 percent lower at 22,237.37. It moved between 22,266.74 and 22,002.79 during the day's session and finished down 107.59 points at 22,210.52.

Analysts said they expect the benchmark index to consolidate near current levels and trade between 21,300 and 22,500 in the near term, after it hit a fresh 14-month high on Tuesday.

Turnover went up to 69.95 billion HK dollars (about 9.04 billion U.S. dollars) from Wednesday's 67.71 billion HK dollars (about 8.75 billion U.S. dollars).

China Enterprises Index went down 41.66 points, or 0.32 percent, to close at 12,959.93 points.

All four major stock categories lost. The properties sub-index became the biggest loser and dropped 1.61 percent. The utilities f...]]> Finance Fri, 23 Oct 2009 14:25:31 +0800 /articles/09/1022/194893/MTk0ODkzNlUUnDwu.html

The volume of retail sales topped 6.10 billion yuan in urban areas, up 14.8 percent year on year, and 2.87 trillion yuan in rural areas, up 16.0 percent.

In terms of sectors, sales in wholesale and retail rose 15 percent in the first three quarters, and expanded 17.4 percent in accommodation and catering.

Among consumer goods, furniture sales rose 32.3 percent and automobile sales climbed 24.5 percent in the first three quarters from the same period last year.

The Shenzhen Component Index dropped 0.17 percent to open at 12,670.97.

The National Bureau of Statistics is set to announce some economic data for the third quarter on Thursday morning.Special Report:  Global Financial Crisis

BEIJING, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese exporters should brace themselves for a steady rise in the value of the yuan while the steep hiking of asset prices looks set to continue, say analysts studying the movements of "hot money."

Although the value of the yuan, China's currency, has hovered at around 6.83 to the U.S. dollar for the past several months, analysts say the rush of international short-term speculative funds has already begun with China's economy showing signs of improvement.

The country saw a massive exodus of hot money because of the global financial crisis in the fourth quarter of last year and the first quarter of this year, said Zhang Ming, an economist with the Institute of World Economics and Politics under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

From the second quarter, the situation reversed with an influx of hot money, he said.

No official figures conc...]]> Finance Wed, 21 Oct 2009 07:19:52 +0800