A study by MasterCard found that Shanghai has leapt from 32nd position to 24th in the ranks of the world's leading centres of commerce, becoming one of eight Asian cities in the top 25. Other Asian cities in the top 25 were Tokyo (3rd globally), Singapore (4th), Hong Kong (6th), Seoul (9th), Sydney (12th), Osaka (19th), and Taipei (22nd). Also of interest:MasterCard said China "continues to cement its growing regional importance" with five cities in......

By Sue Anne Tay The death toll from Monday’s earthquake continues to climb but the Shanghai Composite Index fell only slightly on Tuesday, closing at 1.84% lower. Stocks traded normally after the first earthquake hit at 2:28pm on Monday, May 12. Travelling tremors that forced evacuations in several key buildings in Shanghai’s Lujiazui area were reported to have affected some fund managers and brokers. By the time the gory details of the earthquake and its......

By Sue Ann Tay The two-day Lujiazui Forum kicked off in Pudong this morning. This is Shanghai’s first high-level international finance forum that brings together influential government officials, financial leaders and scholars to discuss how to further the financial reform and market opening of China. The gathering of Chinese and international financial glitterati is indeed impressive. People’s Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan opens the forum, with the first panel discussion involving China’s insurance, banking......

From the BBC:Stephen Sackur talks to Liu Mingkang, Chairman, China Banking Regulatory Commission. Will China escape the downturn in the American economy? UPDATE: The embedded video no longer works. To view this video, please use this link.......

Recently, Tudou's Marc van der Chijs commented on how he knew the bubble in the Chinese stockmarket had to burst soon when he found out that his driver, too, had jumped headlong onto the stock bandwagon although he had zero understanding of how stockmarkets work. You will find an echo of that sentiment in Al-Jazeera's latest report on China's current stockmarket frenzy. Meanwhile, David Barboza of the New York Times says China wonders if its......

By JFK Miller You may have heard by now the news that the latest World Bank estimates have China's economy as being about 40 percent smaller than previous WB estimates, ie., a mere US$6 trillion rather than US$10 trillion. So why is this important? Well, it probably won't mean a great deal to the average Chinese, even the extra 200 million who, because of the new figures, are now technically living below the poverty line......

The man who posed as the farmer on some of the old renminbi notes is still alive... and he's in Shanghai!......

Air transport AFP: Air China, Shanghai Airlines join Star Alliance XFN: China Eastern says partnership with Singapore Airlines, Temasek 'only option' AFP: Singapore Airlines says won't raise China Eastern bid Finance Reuters: U.S. says China recognises need for stronger yuan NYT: Little Headway With China on Finance FT: Beijing lectures US on effect of weak dollar Drugs, drugs and drugs AP: China Shuts Down Leukemia Drug Maker Xinhua: China issues new drug recall method......

Business and Economy WSJ: China Takes Additional Step To Cool Economy AFP: Underground money traders flourish on Hong Kong border Religion Xinhua: China-based Christian group prints 50 mln Bibles Reuters: Dalai Lama says sorry he can't meet Pope SCMP: Student leader finds meaning in life with God's will on campus [Subscription] AP: Dallas evangelical Christian seminary offers online courses in Chinese Miscellaneous AP: China Detains 33 in Deadly Mine Blast CNSNews: For China, Even......

Will the Dalai Lama reincarnate before he dies? Calgary Herald: Two Dalai Lamas? Reuters: China condemns Dalai Lama for ideas on succession The Times: Dalai Lama offers his flock a vote on whether he should be reincarnated The Economist: Communists can live with reincarnation. A referendum is a different matter AP: China Reports Riot in Southwestern Tibet Sino-US relations NYT: China Explains Decision to Block U.S. Ships Bloomberg: China Denies Saying Incident Was `Misunderstanding'......

Jiangsu Satellite tells us of the roller coaster ride a young stock investor had recently. One morning, Mr Peng, while checking his stocks online, found RMB900 million mysteriously credited to his account. Shocked (but pleasantly surprised), Peng didn't know what to think and went about his work. A few hours later, when he checked on his account again just to make sure he wasn't dreaming, all RMB900 million had disappeared, along with the over RMB4,000......

The Xinhua News Agency is reporting that China may allow foreign multinationals to list on the Shanghai Stock Exchange(SSE). SSE officials are conducting feasibility studies and companies names mentioned include HSBC Holdings Plc, Coca-Cola Co., and Siemens AG. China is under renewed international pressure to speed up its currency reform and open its financial market. Letting foreign firms trade on domestic bourses may just be the first of many steps toward integrating China into the......

Metro news from the local press: The case of the young man who was squeezed to death between the metro train and the glass security doors on the Shanghai Stadium Line 4 platform will begin pretrial procedures tomorrow. The People's Daily has published an overview of new developments in the Shanghai newspaper industry, including a paragraph highlighting the success of the free commuter paper I-Metro Express (I时代报), the only newspaper to be distributed for free......

Question: “Who are three people who’ve never been in my kitchen?” Or lately: "Name three people hating on the once mighty US dollar." On Tuesday, Cheng Siwei, the vice chairman of China’s National People’s Congress suggested that China’s foreign exchange regulators ought to consider shifting the country’s massive USD $1.4 trillion reserve into “stronger” currencies. The greenback has been on a downward spiral since 2003. Little did Cheng know that his remarks would trigger a......

And in a class all by itself, the US$1 trillion(1,000,000,000,000) club. On Monday, the 4 billion A-share offering, priced at 16.7 yuan per share, finished its first day of trading on the Shanghai Stock Exchange at 43.96 yuan, rising as high as 48 yuan intraday. At US$1.005 trillion, PetroChina’s market cap is more than twice that of its US peer, Exxon Mobil (USD $486 billion), even though Exxon Mobil generated four times as much revenue......

For the first time in 17 months, China will raise wholesale price cap of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, “to guarantee domestic supply of refined oil and promote energy conservation/为保证国内成品油供应，促进能源节约,” or so says the National Development and Reform Council. Per metric ton of all three refined products will go up 500 yuan, or roughly 10 percent, starting November 1. China has kept fuel price steady even as world oil market continues to set new highs,......

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China(ICBC), the world’s largest bank by market capitalization, is buying 20 percent of South Africa’s Standard Bank Group Ltd. Standard Bank is based in Johannesburg and has branches in 18 African nations. The USD $5.5 billion price tag marks the most expensive overseas investment by a Chinese firm to date. Earlier in the week, CITIC Securities, also a state owned company, swapped USD $1 billion worth of equities with Bear......

For those keeping scores at home, and we know you are, this is now the third installment on the on-again, off again love affair between Bear Stearns and the Chinese government sponsored investment firm, CITIC. At this point, we don't know what or whom to believe. Dow Jones Newswires broke the story last week after speaking to a senior Chinese official, who had confirmed that CITIC Bank and Bear Sternrs had been talking. A few......

Earlier this week, we told you that a Chinese state owned bank is in talks to buy a stake in US investment bank, Bear Stearns. Apparently, we got some bad info, well actually Dow Jones Newswires got some bad info. See what happens when Rupert Murdoch gets involved? Anyway, today, we learned from a much more reputable publication, Shanghai Daily, that the deal is off, or something like that, here is the quote The bank......

According to Bloomberg News, finance ministers of the G7 nations, currently meeting in Washington are once again expected to issue a strongly worded statement prodding China to do more with an undervalued yuan. The traditionally US championed trade tussle is getting some very vocal support from the Europeans and the Canadians this time around. Of course, Beijing will tell you that its ongoing currency reform is doing just great: the yuan gaining roughly 10 percent......

The People's Square station signage will soon get a makeover to get up-to-date with Line 8's signs. The new Line 8 platform will open by year's end. Metro Line 13, which has 4 planned stops servicing the future World Expo site, will be branded as a World Expo line. This is part of a move to add culture to the Shanghai subway system. The mother of the young man who was trapped and killed......

Bear Stearns, the troubled US investment bank may soon find the People’s Republic of China among its key shareholders. According to Dow Jones Newswires, Jiang Dingzhi, vice chairman China Banking Regulatory Commission confirmed reports of China Citic Bank holding preliminary discussion with Bear Stearns for a stake in the Wall Street firm. China Citic Bank is a division of China Citic Group, an investment arm of the Chinese government. Bear Stearns’s Tokyo spokesperson refused to......

Alibaba.com, China’s largest B2B commerce site is going public in Hong Kong in a few weeks. With the current frenzied market back drop, and Alibaba’s tremendous earning power (Goldman Sachs’ analyst pegs the site will earn a net profit of USD $83.8 million this year, up 186 percent from last year), the IPO will no doubt be a roaring success. Sounds great, so where can we get some allocation? Well, that’s the thing, there will......

Newsday.com brings our attention to Ellie Su, a 27 year old finance official from Dongguan who found a US$282.6 million error in the 2008 budget of the Nassau County Legislature barely 2 weeks into her internship there. On the page for debt service, it is reported, Su noticed one item that read $31.4 million instead of $314 million. And what does Su's boss think of her?Su would be a bargain even if she were on......

Chinese investors came off of the October golden week in a buying mood. The A share market gapped higher and never looked back. At mid day break, the Shanghai Composite Index is up 3 percent, or 166 points at 5718, yet another record high. Speaking of buying, over the weekend, China Minsheng Bank agreed to acquire a 10 percent stake of San Francisco based United Commercial Bank. The term only calls for a slight premium,......

Yup, that’s the guy, the face representing millions of Chinese retail investors chasing a red hot market. Every time, there is a foreign piece on China’s stock market or about rabid Chinese speculators, you can bet that this mug shot is prominently displayed atop the article, thanks to Reuters, apparently. Shanghaiist is wondering if the man is aware of his cult celebrity status. Along similar lines: How well has he done in the market? What......

On Friday, the People’s Bank of China raised mortgage interest rate and hiked minimum down payment needed for purchasing investment and commercial properties. In a joint announcement with China Banking Regulatory Commission, the PBoC said It is clear that the rapid rise in real estate prices is due to irrational factors and the market risks for commercial lenders are increasing. Just two weeks earlier, Wu Xiaoling, the vice governor of the PBoC was quoted by......

China Construction Bank’s A share began trading yesterday. The ￥6.45 IPO closed at ￥8.53 , a whopping 32 percent gain, eye popping in any Western markets, but here in China, a big yawn. Two other smaller companies went public on the same day, both advanced 200 percent plus, cha-ching! CCB was the largest China IPO to date(￥58 billion), but that title will soon belong to Shenhua Energy, the nation’s largest coal miner. The offering attracted......

Tonight 8pm NEXTSTEP @ Vintage Living 3F, 2068 Nanjing Xilu, by Yongyuan Lu, T: 6249-0469 Calling all Shanghai entrepreneurs! Come meet new faces and get to know other like-minded individuals at this week's NextStep event which features Tony Mustafa of Essential Finance. All are welcome, no membership required, and no cover charge. Wednesday 8pm Shanghai Skate Nights @ Shanghai Concert Hall 523 Yan'an Dong Lu (near Xizang Lu) The bi-weekly Shanghai SkateNights continues to gather......

How should a government combat runaway inflation? Most sensible economists would suggest a series of tightening monetary and fiscal policies to realign the aggregate supply demand picture. Well, China has raised interest rate four times this year, twice last month, to no avail. Prices, at both the producer and retail levels continue to bubble up, as do asset prices, such as the real estate and the equity market. So we get this, from AP’s news......