BEIJING, March 30 (Xinhua) -- Aluminum Corporation of China Ltd. (Chalco), reported a 99.9 percent plunge in full-year net profit to 9.2 million yuan (1.35 million U.S. dollars) in 2008, due to product price fluctuations on the international market, the company's annual report revealed Monday. "The company suffered major losses from the snowstorm at the beginning of last year, and the earthquake disaster," said the statement. The shock from the financial crisis, rises in raw material prices and consecutive plunges of finished product prices had posted "unprecedented difficulties and challenges" for the company, said the statement. Chalco's business turnover reached 76.73 billion yuan, down 9.94 percent from last year, largely because of a decline in product prices, said a statement submitted to the Shanghai Stock Exchange. The price of alumina, a major type of aluminum product, which at one point reached 4,500 yuan per tonne in the domestic market in 2008, dropped to 1,900 yuan per tonne as demand shrank drastically because of the financial crisis, said the statement. Board chairman Luo Jianchuan said the company should actively cope with the problem, which would persist in 2009. Measures should be taken to cut cost, control investment, and maintain stable production. Though estimated to suffer losses in the first quarter this year, Chalco was confident it would "get over the difficulties and have a bright prospect," said Luo. Share prices of Chalco on Shanghai Stock Exchange plunged more than 4 percent to 10.46 yuan Monday morning. Aluminum Corporation of China (Chinalco), Chalco's parent company, had obtained support from four Chinese banks, including the Bank of China (BOC), to finance its bid for the world's third largest miner Rio Tinto. They have signed agreements to provide 21 billion U.S. dollars worth of syndicated loans to support the bid.
PATTAYA, Thailand, April 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, in an interview with Hong Kong and Macao reporters here Saturday, said that the Chinese economy showed signs of better than expected positive changes in the first quarter as a result of the economic stimulus package adopted by China. Firstly, the domestic demand rose on a sustainable basis. Meanwhile, investment in fixed assets increased rapidly and consumer demand grew steadily and relatively rapidly. Although lower from the same period of last year, imports and exports grew on a month-on-month basis in the three-month period, Wen said. This indicates that some sectors and enterprises in China are in a process of gradual recovery. Secondly, industries above the designated size registered month-on-month growth, with a year-on-year increase of 3.8 percent in both January and February, and a year-on-year increase of 8.3 percent in March. Thirdly, the purchase management index and the entrepreneur confidence index of the manufacturing industry both rose, indicating that the Chinese economy has begun to stabilize and recover in some fields, according to Wen. And fourthly, the market confidence went up and the economy became more active over the first three months, with increases in both the stock market and housing market transaction volumes. The positive performances in economic fields suggest that the policies adopted by the central government of China have been timely and correct, and have led to successes, the premier noted. The premier was here to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) related summits. The Chinese premier went back home late Saturday ahead of schedule, after the Thai government postponed the summits because of domestic political unrest. The premier said we should see that China's economy is still facing very serious hardships, which can be attributed to the shrink of external demand and a relatively sharp fall in exports. This has negatively impacted export enterprises, export-oriented industries and export-oriented zones, and has resulted in decreases in business profit making, declines in financial revenues and heavier pressure on employment, he said. As the international financial crisis is deepening and spreading, we should never lose vigilance, Wen warned. As the crisis has not touched its bottom, we can hardly say that the Chinese economy alone has got out of the crisis. China cannot save the world, nor can it survive without the world, Wen said. What we should do is to exert our utmost efforts to minimize the effect of the crisis, he said. When answering questions whether China will introduce additional economic stimulus plans, Wen said the government should now step up efforts to carry out the policies and measures of the existing stimulus package. The earlier they are put into effect, the more beneficial and active they will be, he said. Firstly, it is imperative to release the additional investment for stimulating the economy that has been included into the budget. Secondly, specific rules for reforming and reviving a total of ten key industries should be formulated as early as possible. And thirdly, efforts should be made to speed up the development of the social security system, Wen said, adding that the national medical and health-care system reform launched in recent days, which has drawn international attention, should be implemented as early as possible. At the same time, it is essential to closely follow up the changing economic situation at home and abroad, and hammer out new response plans whenever necessary, said Wen. Priority should be given to strengthening social security, improving the people's livelihood and strengthening protection of the ecological environment, he said. In response to questions about the trial of cross-border trade deals in the Chinese yuan, Wen said the central government has decided to test the program in the city of Shanghai, as well as four cities in south China's Guangdong province -- Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Dongguan and Zhuhai. Hong Kong and Macao will be included in the pilot program, and ASEAN members will become the first group of foreign countries to benefit from the scheme, Wen said, adding the regulatory documents governing the pilot program will be issued in a short time, Wen said. The program will promote Hong Kong's trade development, and will help its enterprises, including those in the Pearl River Delta region and other areas in the Chinese mainland, to stave off the risks from exchange rate fluctuations, he said. This will invigorate Hong Kong's financial industry and underpin its position as an international financial hub, he added. Wen said that compared with developed countries, China, as a developing country, has undergone only a short period of time in its financial reform and development, lacking both experience and talented people, and there is also room for improvement in its financial system. At present, China allows the yuan to become convertible under the current account and it will take a long time to realize full capital account convertibility for the Chinese yuan, he said. Answering a reporter's question on whether building Shanghai into an international financial hub will rival Hong Kong's financial status, Wen said the Chinese central government has always paid close attention to the development of Hong Kong's financial sector. "I noticed that most of the media in Hong Kong showed support for the decision to build Shanghai into an international financial center, but lingering worries still remain," he said. Actually, the status of an international financial center is established not by a government decision but through market competition, he said. "I have said years ago that Hong Kong's status as an international financial center is irreplaceable due to its unique geographical advantage, a long history of financial management, extensive channels of financial operation, a full-fledged legal system and a rich pool of financial expertise," Wen said. However, Hong Kong's status as an international financial hub also meets challenges, he said. He added that what is imperative for the time being is to enhance regulation, maintain the stable, healthy and sustainable development of its financial sector, and to make due support for its economy. While developing the financial sector, Hong Kong should also spare no effort to tap the potential of its economic growth such as logistics, tourism, the health sector, science and technology, education, and high-tech industries, so as to lay a foundation forthe sustained economic development, he said. Responding to a question about the recent police investigation into Hong Kong-listed conglomerate CITIC Pacific, Wen said the issue should be addressed in accordance with the laws and financial supervision regulations of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, and no interference from the mainland or other parties will be allowed. Earlier this month, Hong Kong police searched the headquarters of the company, which reported huge losses from unauthorized hedging against changes in the exchange rates of Australian dollar last year. After all the facts are clarified, serious lessons should be drawn from this incident, including the company's management and its supervision, Wen said. On Macao's economic growth, Premier Wen said it has a unique economy powered mainly by its gambling industry. As the region continues to develop its gambling industry, efforts should be made to promote the region's economic diversity based on its own reality, he said. Macao's development is somewhat restrained due to its tiny area, but the central government is currently working on a long-term development plan of the Pearl River Delta to strengthen economic ties between Guangdong Province and Macao in an effort to promote Macao's development, said the premier. Because of Thailand's domestic situation, the Thai government on Saturday postponed the ASEAN related summits scheduled for April 11 and April 12. Wen said his visit to Thailand was designed to enhance the friendly cooperative relations between China and ASEAN and to make joint efforts with its members to tackle the global financial crisis. The Chinese premier said he had been aware of the situation in Thailand before his departure for the country, and his insistence on attending the summits indicated China's sincerity in this matter.
BERLIN, Feb. 25 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese business delegation, led by Commerce Minister Chen Deming, signed here on Wednesday a total of 37 procurement deals worth around 11 billion euros (14 billion U.S. dollars) with German companies. According to Chen, the 37 deals are composed of two parts -- purchasing contracts, and cooperation agreements which need further negotiations. The deals focus on engineering equipment, electronics and auto vehicles like Mercedes and BMW, Chen told a press conference. A draft deal obtained by Xinhua showed that the Chinese side agreed to buy around 37,000 BMW cars and Mini worth 2.2 billion U.S. dollars, as well as 27,000 units of Mercedes cars. Chen revealed that apart from the current 200-member delegation, China would send more entrepreneurs to Germany to discuss further investment in both countries. Germany is one of China's important trading partners within the European Union (EU). In 2008, the Sino-German trade hit 115 billion U.S. dollars. Despite the world economic crisis, China and Germany have vowed to maintain the trade volume unchanged this year. Prior to the deal-signing ceremony, more than 450 Chinese and German business representatives attended a forum on exploring cooperation opportunities. Chen and German Economic Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg condemned trade protectionism that has cropped out amid the global economic crisis. Chen said the procurement deals reflect China's sincere objection to trade protectionism, adding that opening the market is the proper approach to address the global economic recession. Guttenberg lauded China's procurement, and joined Chen to slap trade protectionism. The 37-year-old minister said Germany and China are top two exporters in the world, noting that trade protectionism is a "wrong answer" to the current global financial crisis. Germany and China should join hands to facilitate the Doha round talks, he added. Later on Wednesday, the Chinese delegation, composed of over 200 business representatives, flew to Zurich of Switzerland to continue their procurement tour.
BEIJING, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang Thursday urged the country's labor department to find employment for people this year. China is facing a daunting task to secure jobs for its workforce after more than 20 million migrant workers lost their jobs in the global financial crisis. To compound the problem, more than seven million college graduates will be looking for jobs this year. "We must ensure a stable employment situation this year, as employment is related to people's livelihood and the harmony and stability of the society," Zhang said at a working conference of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security. The country's urban unemployment rate increase 0.2 percentage points to 4.2 percent at the end of 2008, even though migrant workers are not included in that number. Zhang asked the ministry to adopt more active policies to find employment for people. Tax burdens of firms could be reduced, and preferential policies for social security coverage could be employed to help firms survive the crisis and keep jobs, Zhang said. More subsidies should be offered to organize vocational training in order to get people reemployed, and training should be made more relevant to different jobs, he added. The Vice Premier also said the government should step up building a social insurance system that covers both urban and rural residents, and continue to raise pensions for retired workers. China created new jobs for 11.13 million people last year, 11 percent more than the target of 10 million. The country also found jobs for five million laid-off workers and for 1.43 million who had difficulty in finding a job. The combined 6.43 million was again higher than the original target of five million.
BEIJING, March 25 (Xinhua) -- China's top discipline supervision official urged state-owned financial institutions to step up anti-graft efforts while actively advancing financial reforms to contribute to the tackling of international financial crisis. He Guoqiang, secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, made the remarks during his three-day inspection tour, from Monday to Wednesday, to state-owned banks and government financial regulatory bodies. He Guoqiang (1st L), member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, shakes hands with a woman during his inspection of China Anti-Money Laundering Monitoring and Analysis Center in Beijing, capital of China, March 23, 2009. He Guoqiang inspected banks and financial institutions on March 23-25He, also a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau, inspected China Investment Corporation, China Development Bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China, Bank of China, China Construction Bank and the China Anti-Money Laundering Monitoring and Analysis Center. He also listened to work reports from the People's Bank of China as well as banking, securities and insurance regulatory commissions.
BEIJING, Feb. 27 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Hu Jintao has urged all officials receiving public grievances to learn from the hard working style of the late Pan Zuoliang (1965-2008). Pan had worked as director of the Letters and Calls Bureau of Liaozhong County, Liaoning Province, northeast China, until May 9,2008, when he died of a sudden cerebral hemorrhage on duty. Pan Zuoliang (1965-2008) had worked as director of the Letters and Calls Bureau of Liaozhong County, Liaoning Province, northeast China, until May 9,2008, when he died of a sudden cerebral hemorrhage on duty."Build the letters and calls departments into a sector that is first-class regarding their work and satisfactory to the people," said Hu, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, in an instruction to a meeting of officials at the Great Hall of the People, in central Beijing, Friday. Prior to the gathering, Zhou Yongkang, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau, called Pan a model for grassroots Party members and officials. "Pan had always lived among the people and helped the Party and the people to get over difficulties," he said. People send Pan's coffin off spontaneously. Pan Zuoliang (1965-2008) had worked as director of the Letters and Calls Bureau of Liaozhong County, Liaoning Province, northeast China, until May 9,2008, when he died of a sudden cerebral hemorrhage on duty.Zhou urged all officials to "prevent and resolve inharmonious, unstable factors" in the country. After his death, Pan was made an "Excellent Letters and Calls Official Who Help the Party and the People Resolve Difficulties" and a "National-level Excellent Letters and Calls Official" by the Liaoning Provincial Communist Party Committee and the State Bureau for Letters and Calls.
华容子宫腺肌症必须切除吗
BEIJING, April 15 (Xinhua) -- Foreign direct investment (FDI) in China posted a 20.6 percent year-on-year decline in the first quarter to 21.78 billion U.S. dollars, the Ministry of Commerce announced Wednesday. In March, FDI was 8.4 billion U.S. dollars, the biggest amount since October 2008 which was 8.35 billion U.S. dollars. However, the March figure was down 9.5 percent from a year earlier, ministry spokesman Yao Jian said at a news conference. March was the sixth consecutive month that FDI fell. The good news is that the decline eased from the 15.81 percent drop in February and a 32.67 percent drop in January. Zhang Hanya, an economist with the National Development and Reform Commission said a reduced decline indicated overseas investors growing confidence in the country's economic recovery. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said Saturday that the Chinese economy showed signs of positive improvement in the first quarter as a result of the economic stimulus package adopted by China. Yao added stable investment inflows were important for the country to stabilize exports, enhance employment and boost consumption as the government tries to make China more attractive to investors. The ministry said in March it was shifting authority for approving certain foreign investments to provincial governments.
BEIJING, April 15 (Xinhua) -- Foreign direct investment (FDI) in China posted a 20.6 percent year-on-year decline in the first quarter to 21.78 billion U.S. dollars, the Ministry of Commerce announced Wednesday. In March, FDI was 8.4 billion U.S. dollars, the biggest amount since October 2008 which was 8.35 billion U.S. dollars. However, the March figure was down 9.5 percent from a year earlier, ministry spokesman Yao Jian said at a news conference. March was the sixth consecutive month that FDI fell. The good news is that the decline eased from the 15.81 percent drop in February and a 32.67 percent drop in January. Zhang Hanya, an economist with the National Development and Reform Commission said a reduced decline indicated overseas investors growing confidence in the country's economic recovery. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said Saturday that the Chinese economy showed signs of positive improvement in the first quarter as a result of the economic stimulus package adopted by China. Yao added stable investment inflows were important for the country to stabilize exports, enhance employment and boost consumption as the government tries to make China more attractive to investors. The ministry said in March it was shifting authority for approving certain foreign investments to provincial governments.
BEIJING, Feb. 26 (Xinhua) -- Chinese share prices registered a dramatic 3.87 percent drop Thursday as investor confidence collapsed ahead of the wary market performance and caused panic selling, analysts said. The decline on overseas markets also had a negative effect. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index, which covers both A and B shares, opened higher after the government announced stimulus plans, but dipped 85.05 points, or 3.87 percent, to 2,121.52 points in the afternoon session. The Shenzhen Component Index on the smaller Shenzhen bourse dropped to 7,777.90 points, down 463.76 points, or 5.63 percent. Total turnover was 198.52 billion yuan (29.07 billion U.S. dollars), down from 209.05 billion yuan on Wednesday. Losers led gainers by 841 to 34 in Shanghai and 719 to 36 in Shenzhen. The weak performance of both the Wall Street and Hong Kong shares had cast a shadow over the mainland market, said analysts. The financial sector, which led a market rebound Wednesday, failed to support the market in afternoon trading as it dipped 4.76 percent. Shenzhen Development Bank, which almost fell by the 10-percent daily limit, ended up with an 8.91 percent drop to 13.8 yuan. China Merchants Bank, which rose by 9.57 percent Wednesday, slipped4.36 percent to 14.27 yuan. Machinery, automobiles, media and semiconductor sectors led the retreat, dropping 7.88 percent, 7.54 percent, 7.68 percent and 7.79 percent, respectively. Non-ferrous metals also fell by 7.54 percent though the government announced a stimulus package for the industry Wednesday. Chenzhou Mining, Corun New Energy, Tibet Mining, Advanced Technology and Materials, Western Metal Material, Sichuan Hongda and Xiamen Tungsten fell by the 10-percent daily limit. Yongan Forestry bucked the trend, rising by the 10-percent daily limit. The forestry sector managed to close at no more than a 2 percent decline, as domestic media reported a government stimulus plan for forestry was under discussion. China Eastern Airlines, one of the country's top three airlines, announced Thursday that its shareholders had passed a share placement plan which intended to raise 7 billion yuan from its parent company, China Eastern Group. The company will issue 1.44 billion Shanghai-listed A shares at a price of 3.87 yuan per share, as well as 1.44 billion Hong Kong-listed H shares at 1.00 yuan each, according to the announcement. The fund would reduce the company's asset liability ratio and improve its financial situation, said the company. China Eastern Airlines shares were suspended Thursday. Hong Kong shares dipped 0.85 percent to 12,894.94 points Thursday, while U.S. stocks fell Wednesday. The Dow Jones industrial average was down 80.05 points, or 1.09 percent, at 7,270.89. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index dropped 8.24 points, or 1.07 percent, to 764.90. The Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 16.40 points, or 1.14 percent, to 1,425.43.
BEIJING, April 6 (Xinhua) -- China would manage to make breakthrough in yuan-based cross-border payment system in 2009, People's Bank of China, or the central bank, said in an on-line report. According to the report reviewing the country's payment system in 2008, China would further develop regional and international cooperation in payments, and improve the yuan-based cross-border trade settlements this year. The report also pointed out that China's payment system had remained safe, stable and efficient last year despite severe natural disasters and global financial downturn, as a total of 1,131 trillion yuan (about 166 trillion U.S. dollars) had been spent through the payment system, 37.62 times of the GDP last year. The central bank's high-value payment system (HVPS), core infrastructure of the country's payment system, had conducted 214 million payments worth 64 trillion yuan last year, up 24.42. China's securities settlement system had remained steady and provided strong support to the securities business, said the report. Trading volume in China's interbank bond market reached 10.46 billion yuan, up 66.03 percent from that of 2007, it said. According to the report, non-cash payment products, such as bank cards and bill payment, had become more popular among Chinese citizens. Chinese people had conducted 13.8 payments through non-cash products per capita last year, up 18.1 percent from that of 2007. Up to 24.2 percent of China's retail sales last year had been spent through the bank card system, 2.3 percentage points higher than the 2007 level, it said.