Highlights from the prints, issue no. 349, Jan 7, 2008. Links to original Chinese articles will be up shortly.
Dilemma over Rising Oil Prices
Editorial
The global crude oil price hit the 100 dollar mark briefly last week. China is now faced with the dilemma of whether to let market forces rule or apply price-fixing mechanisms on domestic processed oil products. Our editorial suggests that the dilemma will not be resolved until the issue of monopolies in the domestic oil supply chain is addressed first.
Original article: [Chinese]
A Year of Uncertainty for A Shares
Cover Story
Investors and market watchers are expecting higher risks and a slower growth in the A-share market of the Shanghai Stock Exchange this year. Besides the usual concerns over excess liquidity, an over-heating economy and soaring property prices, market experts also predict that the elections in Taiwan this March will have an impact on mainland stocks.
Original article: [Chinese]
Ensuring Food Security
Cover
The Chinese government has imposed stricter export regulations on several foodstuffs to ensure domestic supply and stabilize prices. Wheat, corn and rice flour have been listed as items with a restricted quota for export under the latest ruling. This is in addition to abolishing export tax rebates for 84 types of foodstuff and imposing other duties announced earlier.
Original article: [Chinese]
New Deputy Chiefs for Central Bank of China
News, page 3
The Central Bank of China has appointed Ma Delun and Yi Gang as its new deputy chiefs. The decision is termed as a blend between east-meet-west by industry watchers. Ma is an experienced and pragmatic banker who rose up the ranks from the grassroots while Yi is often seen as an academic figure with a western education.
Original article: [Chinese]
The State-Owned Assets Law
News, page 4
The first draft of the proposed State-Owned Assets Law made public recently has yet to answer some fundamental questions such as its definition and its scope of coverage, according to one drafter Li Shuguang, from the University of Politics and Laws of China.
Original article: [Chinese]
Chinese Laws Contradicting International Standard of GPA
News, page 5
The exclusion of state-owned enterprises' (SOE) projects in China's recently submitted application for joining the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA) of the WTO has sparked controversy. The European Union and the United States are pressing China to open up SOE contracts for international competitions as the enterprises are considered part of government institutions. Meanwhile, China maintains that local law grants SOE's certain autonomy in carrying out operations such as awarding contracts, and thus cannot be classified under public procurement.
Original article: [Chinese]
Housing Barriers for Outsiders in Shanghai
Nation, page 10
The Shanghai local government has denied that it imposed discriminative housing ruling against non-locals, but real estate industry players are saying otherwise. The latter argue that an official document stating "the core of house purchase policy is to be based on residential permits" has clearly indicated control over outsider investment in Shanghai properties. The measure is believed to be aimed at curbing market speculation.
Original article: [Chinese]
Dongguan Seeking Rejuvenation
Nation, page 11
As OEM companies are pulling out of Dongguan en-mass, the once prosperous manufacturing base in southern China is experiencing declining economic growth. Dongguan is now at a crossroads of economic transformation, yet the officials are undecided which direction to turn and torn between producing high-end goods or financial services.
Original article: [Chinese]
