IN BRIEF (Page 14)

Technology

Chastened Apple faces closer scrutiny

China's commerce market watchdogs have called for tightened supervision of Apple Inc's disputed warranty policy in response to customer complaints it has adopted different policies for repair and return services in China. The State Administration for Industry and Commerce said it has issued a notice asking local industry and commerce authorities to increase supervision of Apple's warranty policies.

Tim Cook, Apple's chief executive officer, in a statement on the company's Chinese website on April 1, vowed to revamp its repair and warranty terms and apologized for any misunderstandings stemming from poor communication with customers.

Aviation

Boeing delivers 1,000th aircraft to China

Boeing has delivered its 1,000th aircraft to China, making the country its first market outside the US to pass that threshold.

The aircraft, a Next-Generation 737-800 with the Boeing Sky Interior painted in special peacock livery, will join China Eastern Yunnan Airlines.

China has become one of the most dynamic markets for commercial aircraft. Boeing forecasts the country will need 5,260 new aircraft, valued at about $670 billion, over the next 20 years.

Investment

Nestle's fresh investment as world savors Pu'er coffee

Nestle SA, the world's largest food company by revenue, says it plans to increase its investment in Pu'er, Yunnan province, in an effort to increase its cultivation of oriental coffee.

A memorandum of understanding signed by Nestle and the Pu'er government, which includes building a Nestle Coffee Farming Institute, a warehousing and testing laboratory and a Nescafe Consumer Experience Center, aims to provide training and infrastructure for local farmers and promote the region's coffee production.

Lu Han, director of the Pu'er Coffee Industry Federation, says the agreement is an important step toward boosting Nestle's global sourcing because of the high quality and quantity of Pu'er coffee beans.

China Foods to buy wineries in Australia and US

China Foods Ltd, the Hong Kong-listed consumer food arm of Cofco, the country's largest state-owned food conglomerate, says it will buy two or three wineries in the US and Australia, in an effort to expand its wine sales while fending off competition from surging wine imports.

The acquisitions, aimed at well known local brands, will be worth at least $20 million and are expected to be completed within the next two years, Luan Xiuju, the managing director of China Foods, said in Beijing.

Luan also said the company is in talks with two global leading wine dealers to become their exclusive brand representative and distributor in China.

Infant formula maker given NZ go-ahead

The infant formula giant Yashili International Holdings says it has received approval to become the latest Chinese player to invest in the New Zealand dairy industry. Zhang Lidian, the company chairman, said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock market that New Zealand's Overseas Investment Office has given consent to Yashili's plans to build a milk processing plant. The company reportedly plans to spend NZ$230 million ($194 million; 151 million euros) to build the plant south of Auckland.

Heilongjiang plans heavy investment in Russia

Northeast China's Heilongjiang province plans to increase investment in Russia by $1 billion by 2015, and $2 billion by 2020, local authorities said on March 31. The province that borders Russia will also beef up its trade with the country, vowing to increase the volume to $26 billion by 2015, and $52 billion by 2020, sources with the provincial commercial department said.

Heilongjiang accounts for about a quarter of China's trade with Russia. Trade between the province and Russia was worth $21.3 billion last year, 12.2 percent higher than in the previous year.

Glencore extends Xstrata deadline amid China talks

Glencore International PLC, the largest publicly traded commodities supplier, pushed back the deadline to complete its $32 billion takeover of Xstrata Plc for a fifth time because it has yet to secure approval from China. Talks with the country's regulator have been “constructive” and are in their final stages, Glencore said on April 2.

A decision is not expected before an April 16 deadline so the companies have agreed to extend the so-called long stop date for the acquisition to May 2.

Finance

Beijing affiliate has papers regulator seeks, auditor says

Ernst & Young Hong Kong, which resigned as the auditor in 2010 for a Chinese water treatment company planning an initial public offering, does not hold the audit papers the city's regulator wants, a court was told. “The performance of the engagement was carried out by Hua Ming and all the working papers were created by staff of Hua Ming,” the audit firm's lawyer, Benjamin Yu, said on March 27, referring to its Beijing-based affiliate Ernst & Young Hua Ming.

Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission believes Ernst & Young Hong Kong either possesses or has access to the documents, its lawyer, Jat Sew Tong, told the city's Court of First Instance on March 27.

Diamond joint venture poised to go public

Anhui Foreign Economic Construction Group of China and the Democratic Republic of Congo have created a joint venture to mine diamonds in Eastern Kasai province and plan to take the company public. The 50-50 venture between Anhui and the DRC may produce 6 million carats a year by 2016, documents published on the DRC Mines Ministry's website said. Anhui, based in Hefei, will pay $4.2 million for its half, plus a signing bonus of as much as $61 million, and invest an estimated $100 million in infrastructure, the documents show.

Auto

SAIC profit misses estimates, GM growth stalls

SAIC Motor Corp, China's largest automaker, reported full-year profit that missed analysts' estimates after earnings growth stalled at its venture with General Motors Co. Net income rose 2.6 percent to 20.8 billion yuan ($3.3 billion) last year, SAIC, which has joint ventures with GM and Volkswagen AG, said on March 29. That missed the 22 billion yuan average of nine analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Sales rose 10 percent to 478.4 billion yuan, also missing estimates. Profit for GM in China, where it is the biggest foreign automaker, fell 0.2 percent last year, after rising 14 percent the previous year.

Geely cars start selling in Belarus

The Chinese car maker Geely has started selling its Belarus-assembled cars in Minsk.

The first batch of Belarusian-Chinese cars made by the company BelGee in Borisov is already available in dealers' stores in Minsk.

Set up in 2011, the Belarusian-Chinese joint venture BelDzhi first launched the Geely SC7, a sedan that costs about $13,000.

BelGee eventually plans to market the Belarusian-Chinese cars in Kazakhstan and the European Union.

Retail

Wal-Mart to open 30 new stores in China

The world's largest retailer by sales will open 30 new stores in China and spend nearly 500 million yuan ($80.1 million; 62.6 million euros) on remodeling existing ones in the country.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc told China Daily on April 1 that it will remodel 50 stores this year, following completion of remodeling at 31 stores last year.

The new openings in China this year are part of a plan announced in October for the company to have more than 100 new stores in the next three years.

China Daily-Agencies

(China Daily 04/05/2013 page14)