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Notice FCCC takes on new challenges within the EU-China Business Association

New addresses, telephone and fax numbers of the Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce (FCCC)

Activities supported by FCCC Webinar: Entering China's Food and Beverage Market for EUSMEs – 29 April 2015, 10h00 Brussels time

Publications FCCC publishes “10 Years: Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce 2005 – 2015”

Advertisement opportunities Advertisement opportunities FCCC 10 th Anniversary publication, Newsletters and Website

Advertisement An Executive MBA by IMD & CKGSB

Hainan Airlines, your direct link from Belgium to China

Past events 8 th China Green Companies Summit (CGCS) – 20-22 April 2015 – Shenyang

Lunch-meeting: Building a Successful Plant in Weihai, Shandong Province – 16 April 2015 – Gent

Meeting with high-level Chinese business delegation – 26 March 2015 – Ghent

Seminar: 'China Market Deregulation and Impact on Financing Solutions’ – March 12, 2015 – Gent

Automotive Several new models launched at Shanghai Auto show

Expat corner Foreign teachers needed

Finance Yuan bank card clearing now open to foreign companies

Foreign investment AmCham urges China to press ahead with reforms

Foreign trade Three FTZs officially launched

Health Chinese scientists genetically modify human embryos

Advertisement CrossTainer: air & sea forwarding services

IPR protection New draft of Patent Law released to solicit opinions

Macro-economy Ethnic Chinese make up 1/5 th of the world’s billionaires

Mergers & acquisitions CRE's parent to take over non-beer assets

Real estate China to merge property registration agencies

Advertisement ChinAccess: Professional Interpreting & Translation Services(EN/NL/CN)

FCCC Newsletter No 406, April 27, 2015 Page 1

Retail China becomes leader in vanity consumption

Science & technology Chinese space station to use LEDs for lighting

Stock markets China stock mania generating debt bubble

Travel Number of business jets on the rise

VIP visits President Xi pushes China-Pakistan Corridor

One-line news

NOTICE

FCCC takes on new challenges within the EU-China Business Association

We have the pleasure to inform you that with 10 years of success behind us, the FCCC is still growing and ready to take on new challenges. We were asked earlier this year to take a leading role in the EU-China Business Association (EUCBA), the organisation that unites all the Chinese business associations in Europe. The EUCBA promotes economic and trade relations between the EU and China.

This will lead to some exciting changes. With the support of the Government of Flanders, we are increasing our activities at the EU level. Our next big challenge will be the co-organisation of the EU-China Business Summit. This Summit and future similar events will give you and other members better exposure to companies and institutions at an EU level.

As from April 1st 2015, EUCBA will operate from their new office at the premises of Flanders Investment & Trade in Brussels. The FCCC will be responsible for the secretariat-general of the EU-China Business Association and we will be partly working in Brussels and in Ghent.

The FCCC will continue to:• Offer Advice and Expertise: the FCCC provides information about the latest economic

and trade developments via publications, weekly newsletters and interviews with member companies offering valuable information on how to enter the Chinese market.

• Meet Chinese Delegations: thanks to its extensive network the FCCC plays an important role in welcoming Chinese delegations to our country. We introduce Flemishentrepreneurs to non-traditional investment areas and help facilitate entry in the Chinese market.

• Exchange Experiences and Share Knowledge: the FCCC regularly organises conferences and round tables on China so participants can exchange experiences, facilitate, collaboration and create networking opportunities.

Our new contact details are provided below.

Members are always welcome to suggest topics for activities (e.g. seminars, lunch meetings, etc.) they would like FCCC to organise.

We look forward to meeting you at one of our next activities and thank you for your support.

New addresses, telephone and fax numbers of the Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce (FCCC)

Please note the new addresses, telephone and fax numbers of the Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce (FCCC).

Offices: Ajuinlei 1, B-9000 Gent – Belgium New telephone and fax numbers: Tel.: +32/9/269.52.46Fax: ++32/9/269.52.99

Registered office: Zenith Building, Koning Albert-II laan 37, 1030 Brussels

FCCC Newsletter No 406, April 27, 2015 Page 2

ACTIVITIES SUPPORTED BY FCCC

Webinar: Entering China's Food and Beverage Market for EU SMEs – 29 April 2015, 10h00 Brussels time

The food and beverage (F&B) sector is moving fast in China now, as consumers look for new trustworthy brands this presents huge opportunities for foreign businesses, particularly those with Geographical Indications (GIs). However, without understanding the market and without officially registered Intellectual Property (IP) in China, IP is not protected and Chinese companies have taken advantage of the fact that many F&B producers do not have these rights, resulting in many counterfeiting F&B products in the market. High quality and well renowned products of GIs are as valuable as trademarks to producers and should be protected in the same way.

The webinar will be delivered by the China IPR SME Helpdesk, the EU SME Centre and IPKey. Together they will discuss the current landscape of the Chinese F&B market and the methods EU SMEs should take when considering entering the market. The webinar will focus on F&B products in the wine, olive oil, beer and spirits sectors and how these products can be protected through Intellectual Property and GIs.

This webinar will highlight the following:• The nature of the Chinese F&B market and how to gain access to it• Intellectual Property for the wine, olive oil, beer and spirits sectors• Introduction to GIs and how to protect them using Intellectual Property• Key case studies.

Join IP expert, Davide Follador, and the EU SME Centre expert, Jon Echanove on Wednesday, 29 April 2015 for: “Entering China’s Food and Beverage Market for EU SMEs”.

This free, 60-minute webinar presentation and 30 minute Q&A session on Wednesday, 29 April 2015 at 10:00am Brussels time (9:00am London, 16:00pm China) will take you through a range of simple, cost-effective measures to develop your F&B business in China and protect its intellectual property. Get valuable insights from our experts, and ask questions live throughout the webinar.

Register

PUBLICATIONS

FCCC publishes “10 Years: Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce 2005 – 2015”

On the occasion of its 10th anniversary, the Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce has issued

FCCC Newsletter No 406, April 27, 2015 Page 3

the publication “10 Years: Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce 2005 – 2015”. The publication bundles interviews with H.E. Qu Xing, Ambassador of the People's Republic of China to Belgium; H.E. Michel Malherbe, Ambassador of Belgium to the People's Republic of China; Mrs. Claire Tillekaerts, CEO of Flanders Investment & Trade; Mr. Stefaan Vanhooren, President Agfa Graphics; Mr. Matthew Taylor, CEO, Bekaert; Mr. Stephan Csoma, Executive Vice President and two other Executives, Umicore; Christian Dumoulin, CEO, Vitalo; Filip Goris, General Manager Asia, Recticel; Mr. Hudson Liu, CEO, Huawei; Mr. Li Shufu, Chairman, Zhejiang Geely Group; Mrs. Chai Hui, General Manager Brussels Branch, ICBC; Mr. Robert Zhao, Chief Representative of the Weihai EU Office in Ghent; Mr. David Liu, Deputy Managing Director, APM Terminals; and Mr. Ma Jian, Chairman, Tianjin Liho Group.

Mr. Geert Bourgeois, Minister-President of the Government of Flanders, wrote the foreword to the publication. Chairman of the FCCC, Mr. Bert De Graeve, provided the introduction and Mrs. Gwenn Sonck, Executive Director of the FCCC, provided some more details about the FCCC.

The publication is available to Members of the FCCC free of charge.

Here is the link to the brochure online.

ADVERTISEMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Advertisement opportunities FCCC 10th Anniversary publication, Newsletters and Website

This year, the Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce celebrated its 10th anniversary! We would like to give your company the opportunity to give more exposure about your companies' activities to Belgian companies active on the Chinese market and Chinese companies present in Belgium.

There are still opportunities to advertise in the second printing of the 10th anniversary publication.

In the link below you can find further information and a proposal for sponsorship as well as advertisement opportunities on our website and newsletters.

Link a dvertisement opportunities

FCCC Newsletter No 406, April 27, 2015 Page 4

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FCCC Newsletter No 406, April 27, 2015 Page 5

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PAST EVENTS

8th China Green Companies Summit (CGCS) – 20-22 April, 2015 – Shenyang

The 8th China Green Companies Summit (CGCS) was held on 20-22 April, 2015 in Shenyang, Liaoning province. Mrs Gwenn Sonck, Executive Director of the Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce (FCCC) and Secretary General of the EU-China Business Association (EUCBA) attended the Summit. The EUCBA was a supporting partner of the summit, which was organized by the China Entrepreneur Club (CEC). The Summit promotes smart and sustainable growth, and builds partnerships through matchmaking events with enterprises and organizations. The three-day event had a theme of “Game changers: Creating new business value”. The summit was first held in 2008 in Beijing with the focus on sustainability in the economy and is one of China's most influential meetings of its kind. Participants discussed the “One belt, one road” initiative, the new Silk Road, the Industry 4.0 concept, the environment, innovation and start-ups. Investment roundtables were held on health, agriculture, and consumption. Green companies roundtables discussed corporate development; the trend from“made in China” to “created in China”; and environmental industries. It was the first time the summit was held in North-east China.

FCCC Newsletter No 406, April 27, 2015 Page 6

Lunch-meeting: Building a Successful Plant in Weihai, Shandong Province – 16 April 2015 – Gent

The Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce and the Weihai EU Office in Ghent organized an information meeting on ‘Building a Successful Plant in Weihai, Shandong Province’. This meeting took place on April 16th at the Voka Box in Gent.

Representatives from the Weihai Economic and Technological Development Zone (Weihai ETDZ) offered an insight into the economic environment and main sectors for investing in the Zone and the EU-China (Weihai) Industrial Park. In addition, Bekaert also shared their experiences of building a successful plant in this zone.

Weihai City is a coastal city in Shandong. Located south of downtown Weihai, the Weihai Economic and Technological Development Zone was set up by the State Council in 1992. Thepillar industries of Weihai ETDZ are electronics, pharmaceuticals, automobile parts, textiles, machinery, food processing, ICT and Environmental Protection Technology. It consists of several industrial zones, including Export Processing Zone (Weihai EPZ), Harbor Industrial Park and EU-China (Weihai) Industrial Park. The EU-China (Weihai) Industrial Park was set up in 2012 and covers an area of 14.4 sq km.

The City of Weihai and the City of Ghent have a sister city agreement, while the Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce and the City of Weihai have a longstanding cooperation agreement.

Meeting with high-level Chinese business delegation – 26 March 2015 – Ghent

On March 26, 2015 the China-Platform (the Province of East-Flanders, the City of Ghent, Ghent University and the Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce) in cooperation with Flanders Investment & Trade received a high-level Chinese business delegation in Ghent.

The China-Belgium Technology Center (CBTC) invited this delegation to Belgium to get a better understanding of the investment environment and to seek potential opportunities for businesses, partnerships and R&D cooperation.

The delegation is in the process of seeking partnerships within the following sectors: Environmental protection and Biotechnology, IT, Electronics and E-commerce. A description ofthe visiting companies and their interests for cooperation can be downloaded via the following links: Companies List; Companies Summary.

The CBTC is the first Chinese Technological Incubator in Europe and is based in Louvain-la-Neuve Science Park, a business center with full facilities including 71,000 m2 of offices.

Seminar: 'China Market Deregulation and Impact on Financing Solutions’ – March 12, 2015 – Gent

The Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce (FCCC) organized a seminar focused on 'China Market Deregulation and Impact on Financing Solutions'. This event took place at the Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce/Voka in Gent.

China is currently going through a transitional phase, moving away from an investment driven to a consumption driven economy. This transition is proving to be disruptive, as it is expected to allow for a greater role for free market forces in the economy. As such, it is impacting China’s economic policies and regulatory framework, not in the least for financial services.During the seminar, Mr Jason Lee, General Manager, KBC Bank NV Shanghai and Mr Yvan Jonckheere, Manager Trade Credit Finance, Picanol, provided further background on recent developments and how it will impact the financing of your operations in China. Mr Constant Pompen, Investment Officer, Belgian Corporation for International Investment, presented alternative financing solutions for foreign investments of Belgian companies in China.

AUTOMOTIVE

Several new models launched at Shanghai Auto show

SAIC Motor, China’s biggest carmaker and the owner of local brands Roewe and MG,

FCCC Newsletter No 406, April 27, 2015 Page 7

launched its first SUV that features a new all-wheel drive system at the Shanghai Auto show. Great Wall Motor Co started selling its new Havel premium H6 Coupe and high-end H8 type toexpand its footprint in the SUV market. Sales of domestically-made SUVs in China have surged 108% year-on-year to 728,900 units in the first quarter, compared with a 48.8% growth of all SUVs sold in China for the same period, indicating that domestic car makers are gaining market share in the SUV segment. Lincoln, the luxury brand of Ford, used the show for the China launch of its two new SUVs – the mid-size cross-over Lincoln MKX and full-size Lincoln Navigator. The GLC Coupe by Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz also made its China debut at the show, following its unveiling at the Detroit auto show in January that marked the start of the German brand’s plans to expand into the SUV market. SUVs accounted for more than 25% of China's passenger vehicle market for the first time in March.

The show, held at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai), displayed a totalof 1,343 vehicles, with 109 of them making their world debut and 44 on their Asian debut. Automakers, with Chinese government backing, are making a renewed push for new-energy vehicles, displaying the latest fully-electric models and hybrids. Volkswagen announced plans to locally produce more than 15 new-energy vehicles in China in the next four years, while General Motors will launch a plug-in hybrid version of its Cadillac brand CT6 sedan. Electric and hybrid vehicle sales in the country reached 26,581 in the first quarter of this year, three times the number in the same period in 2014 but still accounting for less than 1% of total sales. Inconvenience about charging was one of the major reasons stopping people from buying new energy cars, according to a new survey conducted by the Shanghai Statistics Bureau. About half of the surveyed said they were not considering buying new energy vehiclesin the near future.

Top 5 must-see vehicles at the Shanghai Auto Show according to the South China Morning Post were the Lamborghini Aventador LP 750-4 Superveloce; Bentley Exp 10 Speed 6; BMW X5 xDrive40e; Tesla Model S P85D; and the BYD – Yuan.

• When Italian luxury carmaker Maserati entered the China market a decade ago, it soldfewer than 40 vehicles in its first year. Last year, it was Maserati's second largest market as sales of its models reached 9,400, more than doubling from 2013. But now Chief Executive Harald Wester acknowledges the company will struggle to maintain that level this year, with the country facing the slowest economic growth in a quarter ofa century and a corruption crackdown orchestrated by President Xi Jinping.

• The growing wealth of China’s entrepreneurs in innovative high-tech industries is the “new money” that will bolster future sales of super luxury cars, according to Ricky Tay,Bentley’s Managing Director in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macao. The firm’s customers based in China come from traditional industries such as property and mining, he added. Bentley’s new SUV, the Bentayga, will go into production in the middle of next year.

• China has ordered Mercedes-Benz to pay CNY350 million and its dealerships CNY7.87 million in fines for manipulating prices in Jiangsu province. They had an agreement to impose a downward limit on the price of E Class and S Class models as well as some spare parts. The carmaker’s penalty was based on 7% of its sales revenue last year while a 1% fine applied to the dealerships involved.

EXPAT CORNER

Foreign teachers needed

China is facing a crisis in the recruitment of teachers from overseas. An imbalance between supply and demand means the country will need thousands of foreign teachers this year, but many of the expats seeking work are unwilling to become teachers. At least 4,000 foreign teachers will be needed in the 2015-16 academic year, according to Niu Chen, Co-founder of CCZChina Education Co, an agency in Zhengzhou, Henan province that recruits foreign teachers. “The statistics are incomplete, so the actual demand may be even greater,” Niu told China Daily at a Conference on the International Exchange of Professionals in Shenzhen, Guangdong province. The situation has been exacerbated because some provinces and regions have raised the bar for the recruitment of teachers from overseas. The Beijing government released a series of regulations in September to strengthen the management of foreign teachers, stipulating that foreigners who want to teach in China should have at least five years experience, and that those wishing to teach languages should have “Teaching

FCCC Newsletter No 406, April 27, 2015 Page 8

English as a Foreign Language” or “Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages” certificates.

FINANCE

Yuan bank card clearing now open to foreign companies

China intends to break the monopoly of UnionPay in the domestic market for yuan bank card clearing by allowing foreign and other domestic companies to apply for a clearing license starting in June. According to an agreement with the World Trade Organization (WTO), China should open its bank card clearing market by August 2015. Institutions with at least CNY1 billion in registered capital can apply for a bank card clearing license from the People’ Bank of China (PBOC) and the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC). The license allows theholders to process transactions made through bank cards issued under their brands. Foreign players, such as Visa and MasterCard, will also be allowed to obtain the license by setting up a domestic unit or acquiring a local clearing agency. Companies can start applying from June 1 but it will take about two years for an applicant to go through the approval, preparatory and opening procedures. Foreign players that only offer cross-border foreign currency bank card clearing services don’t need to apply for the license but they will be required to report their business operations to the authorities. China UnionPay, the sole player in the country’s bank card yuan clearing market, has more than 4.6 billion bank cards in circulation, and a network covering over 150 countries and regions. Central bank data showed that China had 4.9 billion bank cards at the end of 2014, and the value of credit and debit card transactions totaled CNY449.9 trillion last year, the Shanghai Daily reports.

• A power-transformer maker has become the country's first state-owned company to default in the onshore note market, and the second in just a fortnight to default in China's fledgling bond market. Baoding Tianwei Group Co, a unit of China South Industries Group Corp, said it cannot meet interest payments due on a bond. Cloud Live Technology Group Co, a restaurant-turned-internet firm, also missed a principal payment, becoming the second privately-owned company to default on onshore bondsafter Shanghai Chaori Solar Energy Science & Technology Co, which defaulted on its interest payment a year ago.

• Tian Hong Asset Management Co remained the top fund in China in the first three months of this year due to a jump in managed assets by cooperating with Alibaba. Assets under management by Tianhong Zenglibao jumped 23% in the first three months to CNY711.7 billion. Total assets under management were worth CNY727.4 billion in the first quarter, nearly triple the CNY260.6 billion of managed assets of second-ranked China Asset Management Co.

• Fierce competition for customers and the threat of loan defaults are wearing bank bosses down in China. At least 20 senior executives at banks in mainland China have resigned so far this year, the Securities Daily reported. The number of resignations was based on filings made to stock exchanges by listed banks and the reasons given for the executives departures ranged from poor health and age to “personal reasons”.

• Current Vice Minister of Finance Wang Baoan has been tipped to lead the National Bureau Statistics (NBS) following the appointment of outgoing Director Ma Jiantang to the Chinese Academy of Governance as Executive Vice President.

• China’s central bank and commercial banks sold an estimated CNY156.5 billion worth of foreign currency in March, the highest since the same month in 2013. Solid capital inflows in the past had been a vital channel for the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) to provide yuan liquidity for the economy, but a wave of outflows in recent months has made it difficult for the central bank to ensure ample money supply.

• Haitong Securities Co has flagged the riskiest bond borrowers. Inner Mongolia Nailun Group must pay CNY540 million in principal and interest on an 8% note on May 20. Packaging maker Zhuhai Zhongfu Enterprise Co's CNY590 million of 5.28% securities due May 28 was also on the list. Haitong also flagged China Erzhong Group Deyang Heavy Industries Co's bonds due in October and paper maker Henan Yinge Industrial Investment Holding Co's 2017 debentures that investors are able to sell back in December.

FCCC Newsletter No 406, April 27, 2015 Page 9

FOREIGN INVESTMENT

AmCham urges China to press ahead with reforms

China is being urged to press ahead with reforms to create a more transparent and fair environment for foreign businesses in industries including agriculture, banking, and informationtechnology, according to the 2015 White Paper issued by the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in China. Despite the improvements made, “substantial problems” haveremained in four policy priority areas: rule of law, market access, standards, and intellectual property rights, the Chamber said at a press briefing in Beijing. “Non-transparent, unclear, and inconsistent rule-making was identified by 65% of our members as limiting their ability and willingness to invest in China, and has remained a top challenge to business for the last four years in a row,” AmCham said. China’s rule-making about information and communications technology (ICT), for example, which is “by some measures the largest single category of U.S.exports to China” and a key issue in the U.S.-China Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) negotiations, had lacked transparency, AmCham said. The Chamber also said it was hopeful that China “will seriously and significantly” open up further to foreign investment, especially in the financial services, agriculture, automotive, and health-care sectors.

• Finance Minister Lou Jiwei criticized U.S. proposals for sectors to be closed to foreign investment under a Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) being negotiated between Washington and Beijing. Lou said that the U.S. “negative list”, while outlining prohibitions on key infrastructure, technology and national security investment, failed to provide specific definitions for its restrictions.

FOREIGN TRADE

Three FTZs officially launched

China officially inaugurated three new free trade zones (FTZs) on April 21 in Guangdong, Tianjin and Fujian. Each will cover around 120 square kilometers. China’s first FTZ, set up in Shanghai in September 2013, will also be quadrupled in size, taking in the Lujiazui financial hub, the manufacturing zone of Jinqiao and the high-tech base of Zhangjiang. This will increase its area more than four-fold to 120.27 square km. “FTZs are important for exploring new paths and acquiring new experiences for further reforms and opening-up,” the Chinese government said in a statement. Since its establishment in 2013, the Shanghai FTZ has introduced a raft of policies to reduce red tape, simplify customs procedures, limit government interference, widen market access across service sectors and deregulate financial markets. The Guangdong zone will aim for better economic cooperation with Hong Kong and Macao, lowering the thresholds for investors, especially in areas such as financial services, shipping services and technology services. Hong Kong and Macao companies will be allowed to issue yuan-denominated bonds in the mainland and explore ways for firms in the zone to sell yuan-denominated shares in Hong Kong. With its proximity to Taiwan, the Fujian zone will play a role in boosting cross-strait ties and become a “core region” of the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. The Tianjin FTZ will promote integrated development with nearby Beijing and Hebei province. The government also released a new version of the negative list for investments in the new free trade zones. The list specifies restrictions for foreign investment in 122 business areas, down from the previous 139 in the list adopted by the Shanghai zone. Foreign investorsare still barred from sectors such as air traffic control, internet mapping, radio and TV production and postal services. Foreign investments are restricted to joint ventures with domestic companies in sectors such as health care, securities companies, mutual fund management and shipping agencies, the Shanghai Daily reports.

Pilot free trade zones, now operating in four areas, must have the courage to roll out bolder reforms, Premier Li Keqiang said as he visited Xiamen, part of the Fujian Pilot FTZ. “FTZs should not become places for favorable policies. Instead, they should be a powerhouse of reforms,” Li said.

• Export duties on rare earths will be eliminated on May 1, the Ministry of Finance said. Rare earths－ a group of minerals that are crucial to the technology and defense industries－ as well as tungsten and molybdenum will be exempt from tariffs, and wrought aluminum products will also enjoy a zero rate. The move will reduce the prices of rare earths by 20% to 25%. In 2014, rare earth exports reached 28,000 metric tons, up 27.3% from a year earlier. The average export price was CNY83,000

FCCC Newsletter No 406, April 27, 2015 Page 10

per metric ton, down 47.8%.

HEALTH

Chinese scientists genetically modify human embryos

A team of Chinese scientists have successfully edited human DNA in an embryo for the first time, winning support at home but prompting controversy in the West. Huang Junjiu, AssociateProfessor of Biology at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, and colleagues used cutting-edge technology to “cleave” a gene responsible for beta thalassemia, a common and sometimes deadly blood disorder among children in south China. The paper detailing the workwas submitted to the journals Nature and Science but was turned down over ethical objections. Writing in the journal Protein & Cell, the authors said they were aware of the ethicalissues. They used “non-viable” embryos discarded by hospitals, or eggs fertilized by multiple sperm. One critic, British biologist Edward Lanphier, told Nature that “we need to pause this research and make sure we have a broad-based discussion about which direction we are going”. Chen Guoqiang, Professor of Biology at Tsinghua University, said the critics' demands were arbitrary. “To do as they say, no research should be done on human embryos at all,” he said. “The editing of human DNA holds the key to cure many diseases, maintain health, retain youth, live long. These will all be possible in the future and free many families from pain and suffering,” he added. Huang's team experimented with 86 discarded embryos and found that editing was successful only in 28, or about 30% of embryos, the South China Morning Post reports.

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IPR PROTECTION

New draft of Patent Law released to solicit opinions

A new draft of the Patent Law, based on the version sent to the State Council in early 2013 for approval, was released on April 1 to solicit opinions. The new draft addresses challenges in legal protection, such as difficulties in collecting evidence, insufficient compensation and high costs, Song Jianhua, Director of SIPO's Law and Treaty Department, said at an IP forum on April 20. Courts can order suspects to provide financial records and other evidence if rights owners have already made failed efforts to access them, according to the draft. “We also suggested punitive damages, about two to three times compensation, in the case of malicious infringements,” Song said. The amended draft also has added regulations about online counterfeit cases. Zhu Xuezhong, Law Professor at Tongji University, said the revisions would not only keep China's legal system in line with global trends but also help meet demands from within the country, including new provisions such as partial industrial design and protection of diagnosis and treatment methods for animal or plant diseases.

• The number of intellectual property rights cases accepted by Shanghai’s courts last year rose 15% from 2013 to 7,688, the Shanghai Higher People’s Court said. The number of civil cases handled in the period increased 28% to 6,064 of which 463 related to firms from Hong Kong, Taiwan and overseas. In the criminal and administrative cases, 19 of the 562 people tried were given prison terms of between three and seven years.

MACRO-ECONOMY

Ethnic Chinese make up 1/5th of the world’s billionaires

Ethnic Chinese account for a record one-fifth of all billionaires in the world this year, rising from17.6% in 2014, according to the China Rich List 2015 compiled by the U.S. business magazine Forbes. The 370 billionaires identified each had at least USD1 billion in net assets and were led in the wealth stakes by 86-year-old Hong Kong magnate Li Ka-shing, with an estimated USD33.3 billion in assets, followed by fellow Hong Kong property tycoon Lee Shau-kee and Dalian Wanda Chairman Wang Jianlin. In all, 213, or about 57%, of the billionaires came from the mainland, 9% came from Hong Kong and 9% from Taiwan. The rest came fromother countries. Collectively, their wealth has grown by more than 20% annually over the last three years, with mainland businesspeople accounting for a growing share of the fortunes. This year's top 10 richest included five people from the mainland, up from one two years ago. Four Hong Kong tycoons were among the 10 richest, down from five in 2013. Three mainland internet pioneers – Jack Ma of Alibaba, Pony Ma of Tencent, and Robin Li of Baidu – were among the top 10. Ma was fourth on the list, with his net assets rising 127% in value since last year. Li Hejun, founder of solar panel maker Hanergy, was fifth, with his fortune more than doubling in the year. Real estate was the biggest source of Chinese billionaires, accounting for80 members of the super-rich, followed by retail with 25 billionaires. Pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and finance were next. Liu Qiangdong, the 40-year-old founder of business-to-customer shopping platform JD.com is the youngest in the top 100 with a USD7.4 billion fortune, the South China Morning Post reports.

• The average monthly salary of white-collar workers in Shanghai was the highest in thefirst quarter in China at CNY6,774, recruitment portal zhaopin.com said. Beijing was second with CNY6,688, marginally edging Shenzhen out at CNY6,682. In Shanghai, positions in financial trusts and auction industries were the best paid with an average monthly salary of CNY10,284, followed by professions such as accountants and lawyers who earned around CNY8,910. Nationally, the average salary for internet and e-commerce positions was the highest at CNY8,626.

• The building of the world’s first commercial fourth-generation nuclear power plant may start in Jiangxi province in 2017, if the government approves the project. Using China-developed high-temperature gas-cooled reactors, the first generating unit will be operational by 2021.

• The MNI China Business Sentiment Indicator, a gauge of current business sentiment, deteriorated to 48.8 in April, the worst since the start of 2009, Market News International, a unit of Deutsche Boerse Group, said in a report. The reading is also the first time that confidence has sunk below 50 since the financial crisis. The indicator

FCCC Newsletter No 406, April 27, 2015 Page 12

stood at 52.2 in March. The monthly poll covers about 200 executives from Shanghai and Shenzhen-listed manufacturing and service companies.

• The Chinese government has decided that companies hiring people who have been jobless for more than six months will receive tax advantages. Previously, this policy only covered those who had been unemployed for more than a year. Taxation reduction and exemption policies will be expanded from benefiting small businesses initiated by graduates or registered jobless people to cover sole-proprietorship enterprises.

• Chinese Premier Li Keqiang criticized bureaucratic delays in carrying out risk assessments for big development projects. “People at some places have made these assessments into a joke,” Li said. A week earlier he had already blasted officials for dragging their feet and delaying carrying out economic reforms. Li said some assessments, including those covering the environment and safety, were necessary, but some local government departments did not have enough professional staff to carry them out swiftly and efficiently.

• China’s factory activity contracted at its fastest pace in a year in April. The flash HSBC/Markit Purchasing Managers’ Index fell to 49.2 in April, below the 50-point levelthat separates growth in activity from contraction on a monthly basis. The weak purchasing index adds to a growing number of signs that China’s economy is decelerating more rapidly than most analysts had expected. New orders declined further to a one-year low of 49.2 from March’s 49.8.

• The urban jobless rate was at 4.05% at the end of March, against 4.1% at the end of 2014. China created 3.24 million new jobs in the first quarter, down from 3.44 million during the same period last year. China aims to create at least 10 million new jobs in 2015 and keep the urban jobless rate below 4.5%.

MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS

CRE's parent to take over non-beer assets

China Resources (Holdings) will pay HKD28 billion to buy all of the non-beer businesses of Hong Kong-listed China Resources Enterprise (CRE) to dispose of the latter’s risks and improve share price performance. Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley will buy up to 242 million shares, or 10% of China Resources Enterprise’s issued share capital. The deal will reduce the public floatation of the company to 38% from 48% currently.

• Chinese private conglomerate Fosun International will take a 20% stake in Canadian circus and entertainment firm Cirque du Soleil. Fosun will help the circus to further develop in China and boost its chances of success. The first show in China will be staged in June. In January, Fosun took over the French resort chain Club Med for USD1.3 billion before taking a 5% stake in UK tour operator Thomas Cook two monthslater.

REAL ESTATE

China to merge property registration agencies

China will merge its property registration agencies before the end of this year. “So far, 27 out of 32 provincial level regions on the mainland have consolidated their provincial registration departments,” the Ministry of Land and Resources' Property Registration Bureau said in a statement. “But when it comes to lower level places, only 151 out of 3,100 cities and counties have done the work, which means more than 95% of them have yet to begin the consolidation.” The Ministry urged local government to speed up the process.

FCCC Newsletter No 406, April 27, 2015 Page 13

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RETAIL

China becomes leader in vanity consumption

China is driving the rapid growth of global vanity consumption – money spent on self-indulgence and enhancement of appearance and prestige – according to a Bank of America Merrill Lynch global research report. The investment bank said that the vanity capital market inthe Greater China region, which covers the mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan but not Macao, grew at an annual rate of 15.6% and led the world in the past five years. Consumption on luxury watches, jewelry, haute couture, fine wines, Ivy League education, private jets and cruises are all part of vanity capital, while in the mid-range market, cosmetics, smart phones and health supplements also fall into this category, according to the study. The future growth in the region is likely to continue outpacing other parts of the world through to 2018, with an estimated rate of 8.2% annually. Worldwide spending in the area rose 6% year-on-year to USD4.5 trillion last year, although the global consumption market remained soft amid a sluggish economic recovery, the South China Morning Post reports.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Chinese space station to use LEDs for lighting

China’s first space station in the Tiangong program – scheduled for completion in 2022 – will rely exclusively on LEDs for illumination. Thanks to their compact size, light weight, long life and energy efficiency, LEDs are today found just about everywhere on earth, from smartphones to solar-powered street lamps. But it was China's space program that pioneered their use in space, according to a recent report by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). LEDs made their debut in space when China's manned spacecraft Shenzhou 7 carried three astronauts to undertake the first Chinese spacewalk in 2008. Chinese-developed LEDs consume less than three-quarters of the energy of the metal-halide lamps used by other nations' space programs.

• The first of China’s new-generation satellites for its Beidou global navigation and positioning network has entered its designed work orbit, marking a new milestone to having global coverage by 2020. The satellite, launched on March 30, is the 17th added to the system and will substantially expand coverage. China will start testing the inter-satellite links of the Beidou Navigation Satellite System from July 3. Since the

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first launch of a Beidou satellite in 2000, China has launched 16 of the system’s satellites.

• A supercomputer used by China to develop a hypersonic space weapon was too slow,having a processing speed only a tenth of that of its American counterpart, according to a researcher involved in the highly sensitive project. China owns the world’s fastest computer, the Tianhe-2 developed by the National University of Defense Technology. The computer has held the No 1 position for more than two years with its speed of 33.86 quadrillion calculations per second, outperforming the second-placed machine, the Titan in the U.S, by nearly two to one. But the one used for weapons research wasnot as powerful as NASA’s Pleiades supercomputer.

STOCK MARKETS

China stock mania generating debt bubble

China’s current stock market craze is generating a debt bubble estimated at CNY1.6 trillion to CNY1.7 trillion. Analysts have expressed alarm at the huge level of borrowings by retail investors to buy shares, warning they may suffer if a likely correction hits. Over the past 12 months, the Shanghai Composite Index (SCI) has doubled to record levels not seen since 2008. Since March, the SCI has risen by roughly a third. “Worryingly, leverage has also risen over the course of this rally. Margin loans outstanding in Shanghai and Shenzhen reached CNY1.6 trillion, two and a half times higher compared to six months earlier,” according to a Barclays report. “It pays to err on the side of caution. China retail investors opened nearly 5 million trading accounts in March alone, a stampede that has continued into April. A survey by China’s Southwestern University of Finance and Economics found that two-thirds of new investors last year did not complete high school. Hence, there are valid concerns that these risky bets could turn sour for these inexperienced retail investors, thereby disrupting the current rally,” Barclays explained. Goldman Sachs estimated margin financing is now equivalent to 1.6% of China’s GDP last year. A Macquarie Research report added: “A-share margin positions have reached levels that exceed historical bubble peaks elsewhere. Yet it very well might go higher,” the South China Morning Post reports.

• The Shanghai Stock Exchange’s trading turnover exceeded CNY1 trillion for the first time last week, but the data could not be properly displayed because its software was not designed to report numbers that high. The Chinese stock market has nearly doubled over the past six months on hopes of monetary easing. Retail investors have been opening accounts at a record pace.

• The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) is studying a cross-strait trading link between the Shanghai and Taipei stock exchanges, similar to the link between the Shanghai and Hong Kong bourses, which has seen a net capital flow of CNY199 billion since its opening last November. By the end of March, 30 Taiwan financial institutions had obtained approval from the regulator to invest in the mainlandsecurities market under the Qualified Foreign Institutional Investor (QFII) program.

• Earnings growth at China-listed companies is likely to be the slowest in three years in 2015. Reuters surveyed analyst estimates of full-year net profit at 704 Shanghai- and Shenzhen-listed firms that recently booked 2014 earnings, and found average growth for 2015 of 7%. That compared with 7.7% in 2014 and a spike of 18% in 2013.

• High-net-worth Chinese are the biggest financial risk-takers in the world, with nearly allof them confident they can manage their investments and reach their financial goals, according to a survey by U.S. asset manager Legg Mason and Citibank. The survey covered more than 4,200 affluent investors across 20 markets, including 250 mainlanders with an average net worth of USD2.5 million. The Chinese were the most optimistic investors, with about 60% of them planning to increase their equities this year.

• The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) has approved a second batch of 25 IPO applications for this month, following its approval of the first group of 30 applications on April 2. Two batches of IPO applications will be approved every month from now on. The CSRC has already approved 123 IPOs this year.

• The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said it will crack down on “increasing” illegal trading activity, including: financial fraud involving the mergers and acquisitions of listed companies; stock price manipulation using capital or information

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advantages; insider trading on the share transfer platform for unlisted companies; trading on the basis of non-public information by employees of securities firms; and futures market manipulation.

• Three out of four families with investments say they have profited from this year's first-quarter rally in the stock market. In contrast, only 16% of families saw profits in the second half of 2013 when the nation's stock market slumped to a record low, according to a study carried out by Southwestern University of Finance and Economics in Chengdu, for which 5,000 families were interviewed by phone between January and March. It found that 6% of them traded on the stock market. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 16% in this year's first quarter after surging 58% in the second half of last year.

TRAVEL

Number of business jets on the rise

Some 297 business jets were registered in mainland China at the end of last year, up 16% from a year ago, according to Asian Sky Group, the Hong Kong-based aviation consultants. The growth, though slower than the 26.7% surge in 2013, underscores the enthusiasm of billionaires for status symbols, despite President Xi Jinping’s ongoing anti-corruption and austerity drive. 28 of the top 100 wealthiest people owned a total of 41 private jets. The jets cost between CNY30 million and CNY500 million.

• China's top train maker CSR Corp plans to go head-to-head with European rivals suchas Alstom in bidding for a range of contracts including rolling stock for Britain's GBP50billion High Speed 2 rail line linking London and Birmingham. Construction is due to begin in 2017, with trains running from 2026, followed by an extension to Manchester and Leeds opening by 2033.

• Taxi-hailing app company Uber will launch helicopter rental services in Shanghai and Hangzhou. Customers would be able to book a 30-minute flight within Shanghai on anEC135 helicopter provided by Shanghai-based Kaijet Aviation. A chauffeur-driven Mercedes will pick up passengers and take them on to their destination after the flight.Trips will cost CNY2,999 per person.

VIP VISITS

President Xi pushes China-Pakistan Corridor

China and Pakistan launched a plan for energy and infrastructure projects in Pakistan worth USD46 billion. China’s President Xi Jinping oversaw the signing of 51 agreements and MOUs in Pakistan aimed at establishing a China-Pakistan Economic Corridor between Pakistan’s southern Gwadar port on the Arabian Sea and China’s Xinjiang autonomous region. The plan is part of China’s “Silk Road” plan. Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said the corridor would transform Pakistan into a regional hub and enable China to create a shorter and cheaper route for trade and investment with south, central and west Asia and the Middle East and Africa. Xi and Sharif also symbolically broke ground on five projects via a video link. The two countries set a target of raising bilateral trade to USD20 billion in three years. Two-way trade exceeded USD16 billion last year, marking an annual growth of 12.57%. The agreed projects foresee the creation of road, rail and pipeline links that will cut several thousand kilometers off the route to transport oil from the Middle East to China.

The Silk Road Fund (SRF) for investment announced its first project as it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with China Three Gorges Corp and the Pakistan Private Power and Infrastructure Board to provide capital to build the Karot Hydropower Project on the Jhelum river in northeast Pakistan.

• Chinese President Xi Jinxing and Japanese Premier Shinzo Abe met in Jakarta on thesidelines of an Asia-Africa summit for only the second time since taking office, but Aberefused to apologize for Japan’s wartime aggression and one of his Ministers visited the Yasukuni shrine shortly after the meeting, limiting any prospect of improved relations. The Asia-Africa summit is commemorating the 60th anniversary of the 1955 Bandung Conference which led to the Non-Aligned Movement.

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ONE-LINE NEWS

• China’s Interpol office has released a list of 100 wanted economic fugitives. The people on the list, published on the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection’s website, are mostly mid-level officials and company executives. The list showed the suspects’ photographs, identification and visa numbers, the country they fled to and the crimes they are accused of committing. The first fugitive on the 100 list has meanwhile been arrested.

• China will approve the construction of six to eight nuclear reactors this year, the ChinaNuclear Industry Association said in an annual report. Another eight reactors would gointo commercial operation this year, which would be the biggest annual rise in China’s history. China currently has 23 reactors in commercial operation with a total installed capacity of 21.4 gigawatt (GW).

• China Southern Power Grid (GSPG) is now being investigated for corruption, as it allegedly sold low-ranking official positions in return for bribes totaling millions of yuan.The position of county Branch Manager was allegedly sold for CNY3 million. Four of the company’s executives are being investigated for graft.

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