Boeing teams up with AVIC for 737 Max

Boeing Co has signed a multi-year contract with Aviation Industry Corp of China, or AVIC, to produce inboard flaps for Boeing 737 Max aircraft through Xi'an Aircraft Industry Co Ltd, making it the first Chinese supplier for the new aircraft, Boeing said on Oct 28. The contract will take effect from mid-2015 and part of the production process will take place at the manufacturing innovation center in Beijing. Boeing 737 Max is a new-engine variant of the current Boeing 737 and the first delivery of the 737 Max is planned for 2017. AVIC Xi'an Aircraft has been a Boeing supplier for more than 20 years and has contracts to produce the 747/767 Boeing converted freighter floor beams, 747 inboard flaps, and 747 trailing edge ribs.

Finance

Modern Land shores up capital with bond issue

Hong Kong-listed property developer Modern Land China Co has launched a US dollar-denominated bond issue after investors withdrew a record amount from emerging-market corporate bond funds recently. The Beijing-based developer is offering five-year securities at a yield of about 14 percent, a person familiar with the matter said. Offerings in Asia outside Japan jumped by more than 14 times to about $5 billion last week compared with $350 million in the five business days prior, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Emerging-market bond fund redemptions surged to a seven-week high while corporate bond outflows set a new weekly record, according to an Oct 25 e-mail from EPFR Global Inc, which tracks money flows.

China Railway Corp to raise $3.3b

China Railway Corp plans to sell bonds worth 20 billion yuan ($3.3 billion) next week, two people familiar with the matter said on Oct 23. The state-owned company will sell 15 billion yuan of 10-year notes and 5 billion yuan of 20-year bonds on Oct 31, the people said, asking not to be identified because the details are not public yet. The company last issued 10-year securities at 5.32 percent, and it issued 20-year notes at 5.55 percent earlier this month. The planned sale will take issuances by China Railway Corp since the start of July to 120 billion yuan, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The company is seeking feedback from investors and will adjust its planned sale accordingly, the people said.

Auto

GM plans Chevy push, SUV offerings

General Motors Co said it plans to step up promotions of the Chevrolet brand in China and boost the offerings of GM's sport-utility vehicles to defend its lead in the world's largest auto market. "We still have a lot of brand-building to do for Chevrolet and we will resource that appropriately and get that job done," Tim Lee, chairman for China, who was appointed to the newly created role in August, said. "If there were one thing that I wish we had done different, I wish we had a better offer" of smaller SUV models, Lee said.

BAIC to establish new auto base in Dehong

Beijing Automotive Group signed a deal with local government authorities on Oct 26 for the creation of a new automobile industrial base in Dehong autonomous prefecture of Yunnan province. According to the agreement with Yunnan Jingcheng Group Co Ltd, the automaker will invest 3.6 billion yuan ($592 million) in the construction of the industrial base, which will take place in two phases. The first phase of the project will come into operation in 2015, and it will mainly produce commercial vehicles and sports utility vehicles. Once the second phase is completed, the facility will work at an optimal production capacity of 150,000 vehicles annually.

Internet

Special dividend payouts bleed Sohu

Sohu.com Inc - the owner of China's third-largest Web portal - posted a third-quarter loss because of a special dividend paid to certain shareholders of its search engine business. The loss was $65 million, the Beijing-based company said in a statement on Oct 28. Operating profit fell 18 percent to $52 million, compared with the average $56 million estimate of nine analysts compiled by Bloomberg. Sohu has invested in mobile apps and video content, buying programs including singing contest Voice of China, as more users surf the Web through smartphone and tablet devices. Tencent Holdings Ltd, Asia's largest Internet company, bought 36.5 percent of Sohu's Sogou search unit in September, an acquisition that also grants Sogou access to the larger company's mobile user base.

Platinum JV with Zimbabwe ready for start

Zimbabwe Mining Development Corp, a state-owned company, plans to start metal production with Eurasian Natural Resources Corp and a Chinese company on concessions taken from Anglo American Platinum Ltd and Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. A venture with ENRC, controlled by businessmen from Kazakhstan and that country's government, should begin producing platinum by the first quarter of next year. An exploration report from an alliance with the Chinese company, identified as Norinco International Cooperation Ltd, is due by year's end. "Everything is on course" for the venture to start production by April, Jerry Ndlovu, managing director of the state-owned Zimbabwean company said.

Banking

Yue Xiu nears deal to buy Chong Hing Bank in HK

Yue Xiu Group, a trading arm of the Guangzhou city government, is nearing an agreement to acquire Hong Kong lender Chong Hing Bank Ltd, said three people with knowledge of the matter. An announcement may come anytime soon, said the people, who asked to remain anonymous because the discussions are confidential. Chong Hing jumped 7 percent to a record close at the end of trading in Hong Kong on Oct 23, giving it a market value of HK$15.1 billion ($2.1 billion). The first acquisition of a Hong Kong lender since 2009 would give Yue Xiu a total of 53 branches, including one each in Macao and the Chinese mainland. Chong Hing, which last year named Lau Wai-man as its first chief executive officer from outside the founding Liu family, said in August it had been approached by prospective bidders.

Technology

Alibaba creates US team for tech investment

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, China's largest e-commerce company, has set up an investment team in the United States to work with entrepreneurs focused on Internet commerce and technology. Michael Zeisser, who oversaw Liberty Media Corp's e-commerce group, will head the team that will be based in San Francisco, the company said. Alibaba has expanded its US presence with investments in ShopRunner Inc, Quixey Inc and Fanatics Inc, as it seeks to move beyond its focus on China. The company, which has been valued by investment banks at as much as $190 billion, is considering a US initial public offering after talks with Hong Kong's exchange broke down.

Foxconn plans 4G-tech park in Guiyang

Foxconn Technology Group, one of the largest contract electronics manufacturers in the world, has set up a fourth-generation industrial park in Guizhou province. The company makes products for Apple, Sony and HP. Terry Gou, chairman of the group, said on Oct 21 after attending the launching ceremony of the park in Guiyang that locations such as Guizhou and the western provinces had enjoyed little industrial development opportunities in the past, especially in relation to transportation infrastructure. With the traffic "bottleneck" now broken, and with abundant human resources available, these areas will see an upsurge in development opportunities, he said.

China Daily Agencies