BizChina

The first exported China train 10th Aug. 2011

The Chinese State-owned company that made the trains involved in a deadly crash last month has signed a 2.54 billion yuan ($395 million) contract to provide trains to Turkmenistan.

China South Locomotive and Rolling Stock Corp (CSR) signed the deal recently and is due to start delivery to the central Asian country in 21 months, the company said in a statement on Monday.

This is the second major order announced by CSR after a high-speed train crash near the eastern city of Wenzhou on July 23 killed 40 people and injured nearly 200 others.

German automaker BMW latest concept model i8 in Chinese media 2011.

German automaker BMW AG says rising sales in China helped its profits more than double to euro1.81 billion ($2.5 billion) in the second quarter, even as the growth of that key market began to ease.

The net profit figure released Tuesday compares to euro834 million a year ago and easily beat the euro1.475 billion average estimate from analysts surveyed by FactSet. Revenues in the quarter rose 16.5 percent to euro17.9 billion, just shy of forecasts.

The company credited a high-value model mix, with its 5-series sedan and X-3 sport utility showing large sales volume increases. Sales in China rose 52 percent, even as the overall Chinese car market increased by 20 percent, cooling its previous red-hot growth somewhat due to the end of state-sponsored stimulus measures.

ChinaJoy 2011 Debut Show

China's fledgling services sector grew in July at its slowest pace in three months as new orders ebbed, a private survey showed, in a further sign that tight monetary policy is sending chills through the world's second-biggest economy.

The HSBC's Services Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) edged down to 53.5 in July from 54.1 in June, signalling strong but slowing growth. The 50-point level demarcates expansion from contraction.

The slowdown signalled by HSBC PMI contrasts with a services PMI compiled on behalf of the government which rose to 59.6 in July, from June's 57, as new orders climbed. This index is published by the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing.

A pull-back in China's services sector, which accounts for under 45 percent of its economy, would mirror the plight of its manufacturers, who are grappling with tight policy and softening global demand.

China's Haier and Japan's Sanyo have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Haier's acquisition of a portion of Sanyo's home appliance division, said a senior Haier company official on Tuesday.

The two parties are expected to ink a formal agreement at the end of September, said Hair Group Vice President Du Jingguo.

Haier, China's home appliance giant, intends to acquire Sanyo's refrigerator, washing machine, and other electrical-appliance businesses in Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam, according to the MOU.

The acquisition would also cover Sanyo's washing machine brand AQUA.

The company did not disclose the amount of the transaction.

Haier would have two research centers and four manufacturing bases in Japan and Southeast Asia after the acquisition, Du said.