China Raises Reserve Ratio for Ninth Time
China's central bank has raised the reserve ratio for commercial banks for the ninth time in 2007. This represents the central bank’s latest measure to try and curb speculative investment in an economy that continues to suffer from rising inflation. The reserve ratio, the amount of money a bank must deposit with the People’s Bank of China, will increase by 0.5 percentage points to 13.5 per cent on all yuan deposits from November 26.
CMB Heads to NYC
The US Federal Reserve has approved China Merchants Bank's application
to open a branch in New York. The Shenzhen-based bank, China’s
sixth-largest-lender, will become the first Chinese lender to open a
branch in the United States since the country enacted the Foreign Bank
Supervision Enhancement Act in 1991. CMB, with assets valued around
USD145.6 bn, engages primarily in corporate and retail banking and
treasury operations throughout China and operates a branch and an
investment adviser subsidiary in Hong Kong.
CTS Purchases Mainland Hotels
China Travel Service has purchased a hotel business from its parent
company China Travel Service Group for HKD1.107 bn. CTS will be
responsible for the management of 23 hotels and will own 60 per cent of
three hotels in Beijing, Shanghai and Yangzhou. China Travel Service
Group says it will guarantee those three hotels – the Grand Metropark
Beijing, Metropark Service Apartment Shanghai and Metropark Yangzhou –
make at least HKD46m in total profit by the end of 2007.
Air China Launches Beijing-Sydney Flight
Air China has launched a new non-stop service between Beijing and Sydney. Operating three times per week, the service uses Air China's newly
delivered Airbus A330 wide-body aircraft. Air China is also increasing
the frequency of its existing services to Melbourne, and will now
operate ten round-trips per week between China and Australia. The increase in service to the Australian market, using brand-new
aircraft, is a further show of Air China's growth and strength as the
carrier expands to meet China's international travel needs and prepares
for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. "We are excited to offer our customers this excellent new option for
travel between China and Sydney," said Lan Zhang, Vice President of Air
China. "As China's premier flag carrier, we are committed to the
service and network that China and the global travel market expect of
us. We are pleased to offer this additional non-stop with our new A330s
and show customers that we are working and growing to meet their needs."
News & Interviews 
(0 vote)
