China keeps hold on commodities reins

(MarketWatch) -- Oil and metals mining shares traded on a mixed note in the Asian markets Thursday, as analysts stressed that China remained a key force that will ultimately decide the fate of demand for most major global commodities.
And while economic growth in China appears to be improving, the outlook remains uncertain.

On Thursday, government data showed that the nation's economy grew a slightly better-than-expected 6.1% in the first quarter from a year earlier, after expanding 6.8% in the fourth quarter.

Overall, "China continues to walk a very thin tightrope" and growth remains "below the optimal level to avoid major civil unrest," said Kevin Kerr, editor of Global Commodities Alert.
But that also means that "demand for key commodities such as energy and agriculture, industrial metals and soft commodities will continue to be brisk in China as they try to stave off a major collapse by continuing to use every means possible to stimulate the economy and create infrastructure projects," he said.
"China will clearly be the driving force in commodities during this cycle and perhaps for decades to come," he said.

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Copper sinks to five-week low on US growth fears

(Reuters) - Fresh signs of economic trouble in the United States beat copper down to five-week lows on Monday, but analysts expect strong demand from China to buoy the metal used widely in the construction and power industries.

London-listed miners were down on the back of broader market weakness. Britain's was down 0.2 percent while BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Xstrata were down between half a percent and 2.3 percent.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Paulson Calls Legislation Aimed at Boosting the Yuan the `Wrong Approach'

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson
said legislation to force China to raise the value of its
currency is the ``wrong approach'' and risks provoking a
protectionist reaction from other countries.

Paulson and other administration officials said measures
proposed by the Senate Finance and Banking Committees could
jeopardize U.S. exports by starting a trade war, won't help
persuade China to open its economy and risk undermining ``market
confidence'' in the U.S.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

EU will not cover Chinese loans to Africa

(Reuters) - The European Union warned China on Monday of the dangers of lending money to Africa and said it was not willing to write off any unrepaid debt to Beijing from Europe's former colonial backyard.

Europe remains by far Africa's bigger trading partner and aid donor, but recent years have seen a surge in soft loans from energy-hungry China to finance projects in Africa ranging from roads to telecoms networks.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Yuan Set for Monthly Gain as Paulson Says Exchange-Rate is Issue for China

(Bloomberg) -- The yuan was poised for a winning
month as Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson told state-owned
Xinhua News Agency that the exchange-rate issue is China's
decision.

Easing pressure on China to accelerate the yuan's
appreciation may give the Asian nation room to allow it to
strengthen without appearing to bow to global demands. The U.S.
Senate Finance Committee on July 26 approved legislation that
would slap higher duties on Chinese imports to compensate for
what lawmakers say is an undervalued currency.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

China Yangtze Power Profit Jumps 72 Percent on Output, Sale of Bank Stake

(Bloomberg) -- China Yangtze Power Co., operator of
the world's biggest hydropower project, said first-half profit
jumped 72 percent after the company sold shares in a bank and as
electricity output rose.

Net income surged to 2.25 billion yuan ($298 million), or
0.268 yuan a share, from 1.31 billion yuan, or 0.16 yuan, a year
earlier, Yangtze Power said in a statement to Shanghai's stock
exchange today. Sales rose 12 percent to 3.4 billion yuan.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Shanghai Auto tie-up may create Chinese car champion

(Reuters) - Shanghai Automotive Co. said on Friday that parent groups of the two companies had signed a letter of intent to discuss ways of achieving a "complete union" between the firms through business cooperation and restructuring.




China's central government and local authorities are pushing the tie-up as a way to build Shanghai Auto into a comprehensive auto maker that can compete with European, Japanese and U.S. giants at home and eventually overseas, industry sources and analysts said.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

UPDATE 1-Cuba reports big jump in foreign debt

(Reuters) - HAVANA, July 27 - Cuba's actively serviced foreign
debt jumped nearly $2 billion in 2006 to $7.794 billion as
foreign suppliers more than doubled their credits to the
country, according to figures posted on the Web site of the
National Statistics Office on Friday.




Most of Cuba's new debt was believed by local analysts to be
due to fresh credits from China and Venezuela.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Richemont Lures Investors With China Demand for Piaget Polo Luxury Watches

(Bloomberg) -- Xinhai Liao wants to splurge on a
status symbol: a new watch. Rather than buy an imitation out of a
suitcase on a Hong Kong street corner, the Chinese financial
adviser went two blocks away to check out genuine Piaget Polo
watches.

``It has to be perfect,'' Liao said. Piaget maker Cie.
Financiere Richemont SA's sales of luxury watches are surging in
China as consumers snub domestic timepieces to show they can
afford the real thing. Piaget Polo gold watches have a
recommended retail price of more than 15,000 euros ($20,000),
according to The Watch Quote's Web site.


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

Shanghai Copper Prices Decline as Advance to 10-Week High Seen Overdone

(Bloomberg) -- Copper prices in Shanghai fell for
the first day in five amid concern that gains in the past week
may be overdone and deter further buying during the traditionally
slow summer demand period.

Copper, used in wires and pipes, had risen 9 percent in the
four days before today, taking the most-active Shanghai futures
contract to the highest in 10 weeks amid speculation that supply
may lag behind demand driven by China's economic growth.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Baoshan, Angang Shares Surge After Brokerages Raise Steel-Price Forecasts

(Bloomberg) -- Chinese steel shares, including
Baoshan Iron & Steel Co. and Angang Steel Co., rose for a third
day after brokerages including JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised
forecasts for steel prices.

Shares of Baoshan Iron & Steel, China's largest steelmaker,
rose as much as 5.2 percent to 12.70 yuan, the highest since May
29, and traded at 12.61 at 10:38 a.m. in Shanghai. Angang Steel
surged as much as 19 percent to HK$21.70 in Hong Kong. Its yuan-
denominated shares rose as much as 9.4 percent to 21.38 yuan in
Shenzhen.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

China Aviation Oil's Shares Increase by 10 Percent to Record in Singapore

(Bloomberg) -- Shares of China Aviation Oil
(Singapore) Corp. rose to a record in Singapore.

The jet-fuel trader's shares jumped as much as 29 cents, or
10 percent, to S$3.12 ($2.07) apiece on the Singapore exchange.
That was the biggest one-day increase since July 9. The stock
traded at S$3.06 at 10:02 a.m. local time.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Barclays gets nod to buy stake in China trust firm

(Reuters) - London-based Barclays Bank Plc will be allowed to buy a nearly 20 percent stake in New China Trust & Investment Co., one of the country's oldest trust firms, after negotiations for more than one year between the two companies, the sources said.




The purchase will make Barclays the first foreign bank with a stake in a Chinese trust firm, while others, including Morgan Stanley and UBS , are still in talks with potential Chinese partners.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Dollar hits low, stocks retreat on subprime fears

(Reuters) - The weaker dollar hit Asian exporters such as Canon Inc., with overall market sentiment also soured by losses on Wall Street and caution after China raised interest rates on Friday in another attempt to prevent the buoyant economy from overheating.




Oil prices fell from near-record highs after oil producer group OPEC expressed concern about the impact of high oil prices on the global economy, which traders saw as a sign it might decide to pump more oil. Gold held on to Friday's gains, benefiting from the weak dollar and heightened market uncertainty.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

JPMorgan says wins approval to incorporate in China

(Reuters) - More than a dozen foreign banks are queuing to incorporate
their operations in China, whose banking market was fully opened
to overseas lenders late last year as part of Beijing's
commitment to the World Trade Organisation, which it joined in
2001.




Locally incorporated foreign banks are allowed to offer
full-fledged banking services, including credit card issuance and
local currency-denominated wealth management services, to Chinese
customers.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

India Needs `Tight' Monetary Policy to Curb Price Rises, Chidambaram Says

(Bloomberg) -- India will maintain a ``fairly
tight'' monetary policy to curb inflation that may be stoked by
rising crude oil prices and consumer demand, Finance Minister
Palaniappan Chidambaram said.

``We have to do our best to keep inflation down in a world
where fuel prices are flaring up, commodity prices are
increasing and demand remains high in China and India,''
Chidambaram, 61, said in an interview yesterday in New Delhi.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

S.Africa bourse slips on global economy, rates woes

(Reuters) - Mining groups Anglo American and BHP Billiton led South African shares lower on Wednesday over jitters of economic slowdown in the U.S. and China, but gold shares soared on the metal's price.

Traders said the bourse was spooked into profit taking as U.S. stocks fell after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the Fed expects the U.S. economy to expand one-quarter percentage point below its estimate six months ago.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Shanghai copper higher, demand worries cap gains

(Reuters) - Shanghai copper nudged 0.5 percent higher on Wednesday due to a slight pick-up in the spot market, although concerns about continued oversupply in China were seen capping gains.

The most active Shanghai September copper futures contract rose 310 yuan to 64,470 yuan a tonne by the close.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Hog Futures Rally Most in 8 Months on Export Prospects; Cattle Prices Gain

(Bloomberg) -- Hog futures in Chicago rallied the
most in eight months on speculation that Mexico and Russia may
buy U.S. pork before purchases by China drive up prices. Cattle
also rose.

China may buy more U.S. pork after ``blue-ear'' disease
forced farmers to cull some herds. Mexico, the second-largest
buyer of U.S. pork behind Japan, has bought 30 percent less than
a year earlier, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said July 12.
Exports to Russia, the fifth-largest importer, are 25 percent
behind last year's pace, the USDA said.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

China's Economy Probably Grew at Fastest Pace in Three Quarters on Exports

(Bloomberg) -- China's economy probably expanded at
near the fastest pace in three quarters, fueled by booming
exports that exacerbated tensions with the U.S. and Europe.

Gross domestic product grew 11 percent in the second
quarter from a year earlier following an 11.1 percent gain in
the three months to March 31, according to the median forecast
of 23 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. The government will
release the figure on July 19 in Beijing.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News