介绍:
Einar Tangen on China&`&s GDP Growth in Q1
Anchor:
As mentioned earlier in our program, China&`&s first quarter GDP growth rate of 7 percent was expected as downward pressure on the economy persists.
So how do foreign analysts view the economic growth data?
CRI&`&s Zhao Yang earlier spoke with Einar Tangen, Former Chairman of the State of Wisconsin&`&s International Trade Council.
…
Back anchor:
That was Einar Tangen, Former Chairman of the State of Wisconsin&`&s International Trade Council, speaking with CRI&`&s Zhao Yang.
Qatar Launches First Chinese yuan Clearing Hub in Middle East
Qatar has opened the Middle East&`&s first center for clearing transactions in the Chinese yuan.
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China&`&s (ICBC) Doha branch has been appointed as the clearing bank for the center.
Qatar&`&s central bank governor Sheikh Abdullah bin Saud al-Thani says the center will help boost trade and investment between China and Gulf Arab economies.
"The launch of the region&`&s first renminbi clearing center in Doha will facilitate greater cross-border renminbi investment and financing business, create more jobs and promote greater trade and economic links between China and the Middle East."
The amount of business which Qatar&`&s clearing centre will eventually conduct is still not clear at the moment.
Last November, the Chinese and Qatari central banks signed a 35 billion yuan, or 5.6 billion U.S. dollar, currency swap deal.
The deal is equal in size to a three-year currency swap agreement inked between China and the UAE in 2012.
It allows the central banks to swap currencies if needed to ease trade and investment, and could eventually be used to diversify the Gulf central banks&`& foreign reserves.
Yuan-rand exchange mechanisms at advanced stage
South Africa&`&s Foreign Minister says preparations for the direct exchange of the Chinese yuan and the South African rand are at an advanced stage.
She also said that they agreed on the establishment of a clearing centre for the yuan.
Currently, China is South Africa&`&s biggest single trading partner.
Trade between the two countries last year totalled nearly $22 billion last year.
In the past few months, China has designated banks in a number of countries to clear transactions in yuan, as it seeks to make it possible for companies and financial institutions abroad to use its currency in cross-border transactions.
China has also moved gradually to liberalise the yuan&`&s market movement and allow a more market-oriented exchange rate.
Alibaba injects pharmacy business into HK-listed affiliate in $2.5 bln deal
Chinese e-commerce firm Alibaba is injecting its online pharmacy operations into a Hong Kong-listed affiliate, Alibaba Health Information Technology Limited, in a 2.5 billion US dollars deal to consolidate its healthcare enterprise.
Shares in the affiliate nearly doubled early today after the announcement.
Under the deal, Alibaba Health will buy 100 percent of the online pharmacy operations from a wholly owned subsidiary of Alibaba Group and another investor for 2.5 billion dollars.
And in turn, Alibaba Group will buy issued shares and bonds from Alibaba Health.
Online pharmacies are currently limited to selling over-the-counter medicines and healthcare products such as cough remedies and vitamin tablets.
However, China is now gearing up to open the over 161 billion US dollars prescription drug market to online pharmacy operators like Alibaba Health, JD.com and Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
China&`&s classified advertisers 58.com and Ganji in merger talks: report
It&`&s being reported that Chinese classified advertising website 58.com and its competitor Ganji.com are in talks about a possible merger.
The two companies reportedly signed a memorandum of understanding on Tuesday in Beijing.
The possible merger is said to be a sign of further consolidation in the mainland&`&s hot technology sector.
If the merger goes through, the combined group could be valued at as much as 10 billion U.S. dollars.
However, both sides have not yet made any official announcements about the merger.
Shares of the New York-listed 58.com rose almost 34 percent on Tuesday following the report.
Tencent to work with authorities to improve facial recognition for banking use
Chinese internet giant Tencent has reported progress garnering government support for facial recognition technology to be used for banking services.
Tenpay, a payments subsidiary, has announced a cooperative partnership with the National Citizen Identity Information Center under China&`&s Ministry of Public Security.
The arrangement will allow Tencent to work with police to improve the accuracy of facial recognition technology so customers won&`&t need to visit a bank for verification purposes.
At the CeBIT technology fair held last month in Hanover, Germany, the founder of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, Jack Ma, also offered a glimpse into how facial recognition could be used to make payments on smartphones.
But analysts say the technology still has hurdles to overcome before it can be commercially viable.
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