Renault Re-enters China Bus Market
France's automaker Renault will invest RMB1.5 bn in a minibus project
in Hubei province. It is the second time that the company has attempted
to enter the Chinese automobile market after it cancelled an agreement
with Dongfeng Motors in 2004 to build 300,000 cars on a yearly basis.
The new project will have an annual capacity of 40,000 vehicles and is
slated to begin in 2010. The minibuses will be sold in China and
exported to Brazil, India and Russia.
HSBC Buys 73 Per Cent of India's IL&FS
Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) has bought a 73.21 per
cent stake in retail broker IL&FS Investsmart for USD261m. The bank
has acquired the stake from E*Trade Mauritius (43.85 per cent) and an
additional 29.36 per cent from IL&FS, the Business Standard
reports. In addition, HSBC has paid a non-compete fee of USD19.4m for a
three-year period to IL&FS. HSBC may delist the Indian company as
it tries to acquire the remaining shares. IL&FS currently has a
market capitalisation of USD300m.
Bosch Builds New R&D Centre
Germany's Bosch Group said it has started construction of a new R&D
headquarters in Shanghai's Hongqiao Linkong Economic Park. The RMB1,3bn
centre will be completed in 2010. Covering 80,000 sq m, the facility
will be used for research, development, training and offices. In April, Bosch said it will double its investment in China to RMB8.5 bn by 2010.
UPS Moves Asia Hub to Shenzhen
UPS has said it will relocate its intra-Asia air hub from the
Philippines to Shenzhen, to "improve customer service and increase
efficiency." When opened in 2010, the USD180m Shenzhen site will be
capable of processing up to 18,000 parcels per hour - more than twice as
many as currently in the Philippines.
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