China's ChiNext Stock Market Kicks Off

China's ChiNext stock market, a long-awaited Nasdaq-style second board that aims to turn local start-up firms into the next Microsofts or Intels, kicked off trading this morning with strong gains, in line with expectations.

The first batch of 28 companies made their listing debut on ChiNext, part of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange in southern China, with share price gains of 46 percent to 123 percent at the opening compared with their initial public offering prices.

Market expectations held that at least one-third of stocks would more than double on their first day of trading. It is typical for IPOs listing in Shenzhen to double or triple on the first day of trade because of their low capitalisation.

The 28 listees, almost all private companies in contrast with the state-owned corporations that dominate China's main board, completed IPOs over the past several weeks at prices averaging a hefty 56 times 2008 earnings.
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China and the United States started their annual trade talks yesterday in east China's Hangzhou city, aiming at addressing trade issues and laying the groundwork for a meeting between leaders of the two countries in Beijing. Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan told the opening session of the Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade that as influential powers, China and the United States should firmly oppose all types of trade protectionism, promote both countries' economies and help lift the world out of recession. Wang co-chaired the 20th JCCT talks with U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke and U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk in a garden compound in the capital of east China's Zhejiang province.
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Chinese city commercial banks should avoid aiming to expand in terms of size and speed, and ranking among peers, according to Liu Mingkang, chairman of the China Banking Regulatory Commission, in a statement posted on the commission's website.

The statement said the foundation of Chiina's economic recovery is not yet solid, and city banks should pursue prudent growth and pay more attention to and prepare for economic changes.

China's 136 city commercial banks achieved an average capital adequacy ratio of 13 percent by the end of 2008. Non-performing loans ratios stood at 2.3 percent and the provision coverage ratio was 114 percent.

By the end of June, total assets of city commercial lenders hit 5 trillion yuan or 732 billion U.S. dollars, up 37.9 percent from a year ago.
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Non-performing loans of commercial banks in China dropped to 504.5 billion yuan at the end of September, which was 55.8 billion yuan less than the number at the beginning of this year, according to China's banking regulator.

The NPL ratio fell by 0.76 percentage points, compared with data reported at the beginning of 2009, to 1.66 percent.
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A code of ethics for the use of mobile phones has been launched by Egypt's official telecoms regulatory body.

The 16-point guide includes advice about when to switch phones off and warns against annoying others with ringtones and loud conversations.

Some of the guidelines are: Don't annoy others with your loud conversations.

Choose a non-annoying ringtone. On receiving a text message, verify the information mentioned in it before circulating it. And calling people when they are resting or sleeping is also to be avoided.

Investors Cautious on ChiNext

Trading begins Friday on ChiNext, China's newly launched Nasdaq-style market, with over nine million registered investors. Financial experts and investors say the stock exchange designed for start-ups offers several opportunities for both the companies that list on it and those who buy their shares. But most investors say they are still cautious about investing in companies on the new board.