Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. Earth Science News .




POLITICAL ECONOMY
China to allow fully private banks this year
by Staff Writers
Shanghai (AFP) Jan 07, 2014


China will allow three to five fully private banks to be set up this year as part of efforts to further open up the sector, the banking regulator said.

At a work conference on Monday, the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) said it will allow private capital either to take part in restructuring existing banks or set up new ones at their own risk, according to a statement.

"The first batch of three to five private banks will be set up on a trial basis," the CBRC said, adding they will be approved when conditions are "mature".

Communist authorities retain a strong grip on the economy. At present almost all banks are state-owned, either at the national or local level, although some have floated minority stakes.

Senior bank officers must be approved by the CBRC.

The latest move is in line with a document released in November after a key Communist Party meeting at which Beijing pledged to open up its financial sector to both foreign and private capital.

But in a sign that controls would only be loosened so far, the regulator said the new entities would be subject to strict procedures and enhanced supervision.

So far nearly 70 private banks have won tentative approvals from China's industry and commerce authorities, the state-backed Securities Daily reported.

Companies keen to establish private banks include home appliance retailer Suning and Internet giant Alibaba, which has an existing third-party payment business division, state media said.

The CBRC also pledged gradually to relax restrictions on foreign capital entering the domestic banking sector and conducting yuan business.

EU official says China's financial sector largely closed
Beijing (AFP) Jan 07, 2014 - China's financial sector is not open enough to foreign participation and key obstacles remain to investment, a top European Union official said Tuesday.

"Chinese banks are some of the biggest and most powerful banks in the world," Michel Barnier, European commissioner for internal market and services, told reporters.

"They shouldn't and do not fear competition," he added.

Barnier spoke at the end of a visit to China for talks with officials, including Finance Minister Lou Jiwei.

The 28-nation EU and China announced in late November the launch of negotiations for a landmark investment agreement, even as they clashed bitterly last year over commercial disputes ranging from Chinese solar panels to European wine.

Barnier complained that foreign banks take up a mere two percent of the Chinese market.

"So there is definitely room for progress," he said, adding that more openness in China's banking sector is in its own interest.

"We hope that European banks can be welcomed in China as we welcome Chinese banks in Europe," he said.

Barnier cited as obstacles restrictions on investment levels in joint ventures and the difficulty in obtaining licences for banking or insurance activities.

"It's difficult to get licences," he said. "There are many difficulties for foreign companies because of these controls or restrictions. These are obstacles to the participation in the Chinese market."

Barnier, however, praised as progress an emphasis on "rule of law" in decisions taken by China's ruling Communist Party at a key meeting in November, that made commitments to various social, economic and legal reforms.

"This is a very good thing," he said, also praising China's opening of its auto insurance market to European and other foreign companies.

EU trade chief Karel De Gucht in November urged the bloc to defend itself more aggressively against China, saying it would not "get anything from the Chinese by being polite".

.


Related Links
The Economy






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle








POLITICAL ECONOMY
Walker's World: Germans turn against EU
Paris (UPI) Jan 6, 2013
In Brussels, the high priests of the great European project are telling themselves the worst is over. They are wrong; the real crisis is about to begin. The new crisis is political rather than economic and it has started in Germany. The Christian Social Union, dominant political party in Bavaria and the essential partner to Chancellor Angela Merkel's government, has become euroskeptic. ... read more


POLITICAL ECONOMY
Classes reopen in Philippine typhoon zone

Typhoon brings unexpected medical relief to Philippine town

South African Trauma Center Launches Portable Electronic Trauma Health Record Application

Haitian president urges his country to come together

POLITICAL ECONOMY
Sony unveils game service as PS4 sales top 4.2 million

S. Asia takes 71 percent of market for ship breaking

New compounds discovered that are hundreds of times more mutagenic

ISRO raises GSAT-14's orbit

POLITICAL ECONOMY
Senegal to fine Russian ship for 'fishing illegally'

Local factors cause dramatic spikes in coastal ocean acidity

Los Angeles likely to score driest year since record-keeping began

Major reductions in seafloor marine life from climate change by 2100

POLITICAL ECONOMY
Trapped ships break through Antarctic ice

El Nino tied to melting of Antarctica's Pine Island Glacier

US icebreaker heads to Antarctic to help stuck ships

Pine Island Glacier sensitive to climatic variability

POLITICAL ECONOMY
New study may aid rearing of stink bugs for biological control

Important mutation discovered in dairy cattle

Chinese scientists create high-yield, salt-resistant rice variety

Hong Kong arrests 64 for smuggling baby formula

POLITICAL ECONOMY
Longmanshen fault zone still hazardous

Ground-breaking work sheds new light on volcanic activity

Supervolcano eruptions are triggered by melt buoyancy

One dead as cyclone skims France's Reunion island

POLITICAL ECONOMY
French defence minister sees no need for more troops in C. Africa

Colonel Ndala: slain hope of reformed DR Congo army

Fighting across South Sudan despite peace talks: army

Attacks on Chadians in C.Africa will not go 'unpunished': president

POLITICAL ECONOMY
Turning Off the "Aging Genes"

Money Talks When Ancient Antioch Meets Google Earth

Reading a good book may make permanent changes to your brain

Finnish research team reveals how emotions are mapped in the body




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement