China's listed central state firms report rising profits -- China's listed centrally administered state-owned enterprises (SOEs) posted strong profits for 2017 as the country's mixed-ownership reform has enhanced their competitiveness and improved financial performance. Among 53 listed central state firms that have so far filed annual reports with the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges, 43 firms, or more than 80 percent, witnessed surging profits last year. Xinjiang Bayi Iron and Steel Co. said its net profits surged more than 30 times last year to 1.17 billion yuan (about 185 million U.S. dollars). Its operating revenue rose 69.44 percent to 16.76 billion yuan.
Xinjiang becomes major power supplier -- Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has supplied electricity to 250 million people in 16 provinces and cities across the country. Xinjiang has supplied 150 billion kwh of electricity, including 34 billion kwh of new energy power, since the region began outbound power transmission in 2010, according to the Xinjiang branch of the State Grid Corporation of China.
Less than half of Macao's restaurants, retailers report increase in revenues in January -- Less than half of Macao's restaurants and retailers registered a year-on-year rise in revenues in January this year, as compared with that of December last year, the Special Administrative Region's statistics service said on March 20. Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that 31 percent of Macao's restaurants registered a year-on-year rise in revenues in January, down 13 percentage points as compared with that of December last year. With regards to retail trade, 48 percent of interviewed retailers reported a year-on-year sales increase in January, down 13 percentage points from that of December 2017. On the other hand, 37 percent of the interviewed retailers registered a year-on-year sales decline, up 14 percentage points as compared with that of December 2017.
China's appetite for foreign exchange expands -- China's February deficit in foreign exchange transactions rose from the amount registered in January. Forex purchases by banks stood at 124.2 billion U.S. dollars, while sales stood at 132.5 billion dollars in February, a transaction deficit of 8.2 billion dollars, up from 900 million dollars in January, according to the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE).
China's fiscal revenue up 15.8 pct in first two months -- China's fiscal revenue rose 15.8 percent year on year to 3.66 trillion yuan (577.3 billion U.S. dollars) in the first two months of 2018, official data showed on March 21. The growth was much faster than the 7.5-percent rise registered in 2017, according to the Ministry of Finance website. The central government collected more than 1.82 trillion yuan in fiscal revenue, up 19.1 percent year on year, while local governments saw fiscal revenue expand 12.7 percent to 1.83 trillion yuan. During the January-February period, fiscal spending rose 16.7 percent year on year to 2.9 trillion yuan. Expenditure on transportation surged 55.7 percent to 147.5 billion yuan.
China's power use rises 13.3 pct in first two months -- China's electricity consumption, a key barometer of economic activity, rose 13.3 percent to 1.06 trillion kilowatt hours in the first two months of 2018, official data showed on March 20. The rate was higher than the 6.6-percent increase for 2017, according to data released by the National Energy Administration (NEA). Electricity used by the service sector rose 18.8 percent, followed by a 15.2 percent increase for residential power use and 12.6 percent for the agricultural sector. Power consumption in the industrial sector went up 11.5 percent, the NEA said.
Tibet welcomes 18th listed firm -- China's securities regulator has approved the IPO application of a Tibetan securities firm, which will bring the number of listed companies to 18 in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. Registered in the plateau region in 1997, ChinaLin Securities mainly offers securities transaction and investment consultancy services, said the Tibetan branch of China's Securities Regulatory Commission. Tibet had its first listed company in 1995.
China's raw coal output up in 2017, first growth since 2014 -- China's raw coal output rose in 2017 due to rebounding demand and high-quality capacity, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on March 19. In 2017, the output of raw coal stood at 3.52 billion tonnes, up 3.3 percent from the previous year, the NBS said in a statement. The reading marks the first positive growth since 2014, after the 2016 figure hit a six-year low. China's crude oil output dropped 4.1 percent year on year to 191.5 million tonnes in 2017.
Nepal's export to China surge by 72 percent -- Nepal's export to China surged by 72 percent during the first seven months of the current fiscal year that began in mid-July 2017, a central bank report revealed. As the Himalayan country has been struggling to reduce ballooning trade deficit, the rise in exports to China has come as relief to the country which is heavily dependent on remittance for financing most of its imports.
U.S. wine exports to China rise 10 pct in 2017 -- The value of U.S. wine exports to China, including the Chinese mainland, China's Hong Kong and Taiwan, rose by 10 percent last year, figures released March 19 showed. According to the Wine Institute, a California-based trade association of 1,000 California wineries and wine-related businesses, the export value to China jumped to over 210 million U.S. dollars in 2017 driven by China's economic growth.
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