East China's Anhui Province recorded 1.28 billion US dollars in imports and exports in the first three months this year, up 53 percent over the same period of last year, according to the provincial customs.

The growth rate was 10.6 percentage points higher than the national average. Imports stood at 660 million US dollars, up 106 percent, while exports reached 620 million US dollars, up 20 percent.

Imports and exports in general trade increased by 50 percent to hit 1.06 billion US dollars in the first quarter, or 82.8 percent of the province's total in the period.

Goods including machinery and electrical products, textiles, garments, shoes, tires and rolled steel witnessed steady rises in exports, the provincial source said.

Citibank Gets a Bigger Toehold

Citibank, a unit of U.S. financial giant Citigroup, said it had secured the right to raise its stake in China's Pudong Development Bank to a quarter by the end of April 2008.

If exercised, the option would give Citibank an unprecedented foothold in a largely untapped market of $1.2 trillion in personal savings on the back of mid-sized Pudong Bank's 272-branch network. No foreign player now owns more than 10% of a domestic lender.

Citibank paid 600 million RMB ($72.5 million) for a 5% stake in Pudong Bank earlier this year. Now it has signed an agreement allowing it to pick up a small stake every April from 2006 to 2008 up to a ceiling of 24.9%.

Unemployment in China

China's official urban jobless rate rose to 4.1% by the end of March, despite the economy's sizzling 9.9% first-quarter growth. State media said 7.75 million people were registered as unemployed, an increase of 750,000 from the same period last year. Analysts estimate the real jobless rate could be around 10% and rising.

Annual Inspection of FIEs Extended to End of May

The State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC) and the Registration Bureau of Foreign Investment Enterprises have recently issued a notice extending the deadline for the 2002 annual inspections of foreign-invested enterprises (FIEs) from the end of April to 31 May 2003.

Enterprises applying for annual inspection direct should note the following changes:

1. The deadline for 2002 annual inspection is extended to 31 May 2003.

2. There is no need to submit the acknowledgement of receipt issued by the local authorities for joint annual inspection.

3. Routine formalities concerning the registration of FIEs, such as establishment, alteration of details and business termination, will proceed as normal.

SAIC originally planned to carry out the 2002 annual inspection of enterprises between 1 January and 30 April 2003. All FIEs, foreign enterprises, as well as foreign-funded financial institutions, insurance companies and securities companies registered with SAIC before 31 December 2002 must apply for inspection.

In a move to strengthen the prevention and control of SARS, city-level joint annual inspection departments stopped their on-site services on 22 April instead of 30 April as originally planned to protect the health of the personnel conducting the inspections.

The deadline for annual inspections is thus extended to the end of May and all documents required should be sent by mail.

Source: Hong Kong Trade Development Council

24 Hour Chinese News Channel

A 24-hour news channel run by China's state television went on the air on May 1 promising live reports and faster, more comprehensive coverage. Experts said the CCTV News Channel's format could force authorities to relax censorship and allow competitive reporting, though the channel only mentioned the Sars outbreak four hours into its debut broadcast.

Japan-China Trade Up 40% in First Quarter

Japan remained China's top trading partner in the first quarter of 2003 with $28.4 billion in total trade, according to figures from China's General Administration of Customs. Trade volume between the two countries rose 39.6% during the quarter from a year earlier.

China recorded a $3-billion trade deficit with Japan as a 23.9% year-on-year rise in exports to $12.7 billion was overshadowed by a 55.5% increase in imports to $15.7 billion. The United States ranked second as total trade volume rose 35.8% to $25.6 billion. China had a $9.8-billion trade surplus with the U.S.

The European Union was China's third-largest trading partner, with a 40.3% increase to $25.2 billion. China had a $3-billion trade surplus with the EU. Hong Kong, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, South Korea, Taiwan, Russia, Australia and Canada rounded out China's top 10 trading partners in the first quarter.

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