Indian President Pratibha Patil soothed trade disputes and recent border tensions in meetings with Chinese leaders in Beijing. She is the first Indian Head of State in a decade to visit China during a six-day visit which also took her to Shanghai and Luoyang. Bilateral trade rose by about 33% in 2008 to nearly USD52 billion, but declined by as much as USD10 billion last year amid disputes and the global economic slowdown. The visit took place to mark the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. Patil holds a mainly ceremonial position, and Chinese experts said her six-day visit served more to underscore the two countries’ common interests as emerging powers than to settle thorny issues. The common goal of seeking a greater voice on international issues – from climate change to financial reforms – allowed the neighbors to cooperate well internationally despite a traditional lack of mutual trust.

• The Chinese government and academics have started planning the country’s first draft immigration law to better manage the increasing number of foreigners, who for the first time will be included in the national census due to begin on November 1.
• Ernst & Young’s Global Fraud Survey, which includes responses from 50 Chinese executives, found that 12% of the Chinese respondents had experienced fraud, such as corruption and bribery, in the past two years, against a global average of 16%. The 12% was down sharply from 81% in the previous survey conducted in 2008, although there was no explanation for the steep decline.
• Dynasty Fine Wines Group, part-owned by Remy Cointreau, may buy vineyards in Australia, New Zealand, Chile or France and has almost USD150 million to spend boosting capacity to meet demand in China. Dynasty wants to raise production to 100,000 tons annually within three years, from the current 70,000 tons. China is on track to become the world’s seventh-largest wine market by 2013.

On June 1, 2010 the European Union and its Delegation in China will celebrate the start of the Second Intake of the Science and Technology Fellowship Programme China (STF China). 29 outstanding young researchers from 9 different European Member States will start a 2-year fellowship programme in China financed by the European Union. The Fellows will take part in six months Chinese language and research culture training at Beijing Foreign Studies University, followed by 18 months of practical research in top-class Chinese academic and scientific establishments including Tsinghua University, the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Peking University and Shanghai Fudan University. On June 1 the Fellows will be welcomed by Ambassador Serge Abou of the EU Delegation, as well as representatives of the EU Delegation and Embassies of the EU Member States. For more information, please contact Mr Clemens Smolders +86-10-84475946 clemens.smolders@euchinastf.eu or Ms Serena Han han.bing@euchinastf.eu .

Bank of China (BOC) will pay CNY7.5 billion for a 14.5% stake in a company that will operate the Shanxi-Shandong coal railway, a move analysts say could lead to the railway’s listing. The dedicated coal rail line will need a total investment of CNY99.8 billion. The firm that will build and operate the railway has a registered capital of CNY51.9 billion. The 1,260-kilometer railway to transport coal from Shanxi province in the west through Henan to Shandong province in the east is scheduled to be completed in 4-1/2 years. BOC’s investment will be made through its Hong Kong-based subsidiary, Bank of China Group Investment, and is meant to be long term. Local state-run railway firms in the three provinces that the rail link will pass through own 83.5% of the firm. The remaining 2% is held by two Chinese coal companies. “An IPO is possible, as BOC would want to get a return on investment,” CIMB-GK Analyst Rebecca Tang said. “It would take many years for BOC to recover its investment if it relied on the railway’s operating profits alone, so an IPO would be a good idea,” she added.

China Merchants Holdings (International) expects container volumes this year to exceed the record levels of 2008, saying the recovery in terminal throughput was on track in the first four months. The total container throughput for ports in Tianjin, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Hong Kong, where China Merchants has investments, rose 22% year on year in the first four months, on par with the average for major ports nationwide, said Hu Jianhua, Managing Director of the company. West Shenzhen port’s throughput rose 30% from a year earlier. Throughput growth in the ports where the company has investments may exceed the record 55 million (TEU) set in 2008, if container volume grows 15% this year. The port operator said it was confident throughput growth could reach between 10% and 15% this year, despite a 14% decline in the euro against yuan. The Vietnam container port project, in which China Merchants owns a 49% stake, would have its first two berths ready to operate in 2013. China Merchants is still talking to the Sri Lankan government about a port project there. A joint venture will be set up with three shareholders – China Merchants, the port authority in Sri Lanka and a local partner. Four berths will be built, with an estimated investment of USD500 million to USD600 million, the South China Morning Post reports.

• New Century Shipbuilding withdrew its USD560 million Singapore initial public offering (IPO) after a complaint the company had left critical information out of its prospectus. The IPO would have been Singapore’s biggest so far this year. The company had failed to disclose an ongoing legal dispute with a customer that had canceled an order for two bulk carriers.
• China’s Cuntan Port in Chongqing will cooperate with Winnipeg’s CenterPort in Canada to tap increasing trade and investment between the two countries. The two inland ports signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) in Shanghai to cooperate in information exchange, technology sharing and to promote trade between the two nations.
• Chinese coking coal logistics company Winsway, partly owned by Hopu Investments, has appointed two banks – Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank – for its up to USD800 million initial public offering (IPO) in Hong Kong in the fourth quarter. Hopu, an influential China fund founded by dealmaker Fang Fenglei, who helped Goldman set up its China investment banking joint venture, had bought a USD110 million stake in Winsway.