China to Ease Gold Imports; HK Stocks Rally

Chandrasekhar Atreya
29 Sep, 2010
New York City

Stocks in Shanghai traded marginally lower and in Hong Kong gained more than 1%. ADB reaffirmed that Chinese economy will expand 9.6% in the current fiscal year. World

[R]5:00 PM Hong Kong, China – Stocks in Shanghai traded marginally lower and in Hong Kong gained more than 1%. ADB reaffirmed that Chinese economy will expand 9.6% in the current fiscal year. World’s fastest train starts trial run between Shanghai and Hangzhou.[/R]

Mainland China stocks dropped led by developers overshadowing gains from energy producers on easing concern over power consumption targets. However, stocks in Hong Kong rallied more than 1%.

The CSI 300 Index in China dropped 0.21% or 6.09 to close at 2,874.81. The Hang Seng Index in Hong however gained 1.22% or 268.72 to close at 22,378.67.

A purchasing managers’ index released today by HSBC Holdings and Markit Economics rose to 52.9 in September from 51.9 in August, to its highest level in five months.

The easing of restrictions on China’s gold imports should boost its influence on global bullion trade as Chinese investors turn to the open market to satisfy their hunger for the metal.

China sold rare earths to a Japanese company through Malaysia, raising hope that exports might resume as Japan considers alternatives.

Chinese customs authorities notified Japanese businesses late Tuesday that they will start accepting applications to export rare earth metals to Japan the following day, sources at a local office of a Japanese trading firm said today.

Xinxing Pipes Group said Wednesday it plans to invest up to $1 billion in a Canadian iron ore project.

China Eastern Airlines and Shanghai Airport Authority on Tuesday agreed to cooperate to lift investment in operations and boost the number of flights at Pudong International Airport.

China Eastern will raise capacity, launch more international routes and add flight frequencies to domestic cities to improve Pudong’s connectivity, under a strategic deal the two partners signed Tuesday.

The U.S. Commerce Department announced Monday that it had made final determination to slap anti-dumping duties on imported seamless refined copper pipe and tube from China and Mexico.

Exporters from China and Mexico will face 11.25% to 60.85% and 24.89% to 31.43% duties respectively.

The Asian Development Bank maintained its forecast for China’s economy to grow at 9.6% this year despite some signs of moderation recently. In its outlook for 2010 released on Tuesday, the Manila-based bank said China’s pace of growth may soften to 9.1% next year, taking into account the phasing out of the stimulus policies.

China’s first public tender for offshore farms, which ended earlier in September, is showing a price war developing among project developers eager to tap the market.

The tender started in May, consists of four projects off the coast of east Jiangsu Province, with a combined capacity of 1 gigawatt. The tender drew 70 bids from local companies and consortiums, some of which offered to deliver power at tariffs as low as 0.61 yuan per kilowatt, a rate far below market expectations and a rate at which the projects may not be viable.

General Electric Co and China’s Harbin Power Equipment Co formed a joint venture to make near shore and offshore wind turbines in Jiangsu Province. Harbin will own 51% of the venture valued at 186 million yuan and GE will own 49% valued at 179 million yuan.

GE estimates that Chinese wind market is worth about $13 billion and is expected to grow six fold to 150 gigawatts by 2020. In particular, the offshore sector is set to boom in the coming two to three years, GE said Tuesday.

Shanghai exported its first home made metro train to Iran on Tuesday. The train built by Shanghai Metro Transport Equipment Co, is part of 98 trains that Iran has ordered.

The builder has received orders to build more than 600 trains globally.

A new high-speed train from Shanghai to Hangzhou started trial run on Tuesday, setting a world record speed of 416.6 kilometers per hour. The latest addition to the nation’s rapidly expanding rail infrastructure, the China made CRH380A will cut the travel time to Hangzhou from 78 minutes to 38 minutes.

Trinidad and Tobago, one of the world’s largest exporters of asphalt and liquefied natural gas, sought investment from Chinese firms as trade between the two nations rises.

Minister for Trade and Industry Stephen Cadiz, who was in Shanghai to have talks with Chinese businessmen, said Monday that the Caribbean nation is able to offer the lowest energy costs in the region and welcomes foreign investment in telecommunications, manufacturing, downstream energy, financial services and tourism.

Ningbo Port Co, operator of the world’s second-busiest harbor by total throughput, fell below its offer price on its Shanghai debut on Tuesday due to lukewarm investor sentiment.

Ningbo Port fell 3.5% to close at 3.57 yuan, versus a 0.63% dip in the Shanghai Composite Index.

China is expected to increase its influence and become one of the top three powerful members under plans being discussed to give emerging nations greater influence. The plans under discussion by member countries of IMF would give many large emerging economies including India, Brazil, Russia, Turkey and South Korea more voting power, according to an IMF document obtained by Reuters.