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China’s regulator has approved Geely’s acquisition of Ford’s Volvo unit, clearing one of the last remaining hurdles to the high-profile deal, a source with knowledge of the matter said Thursday.
The deal could be completed as early as next week, said the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity as the discussions remain private. Get the full story »
U.S. mobile phone maker Motorola Inc. has sued China’s Huawei Technologies Co. for alleged theft of trade secrets, highlighting the fast-growing Chinese firm’s difficulty in shaking the nation’s reputation for piracy.
In the amended complaint, filed on July 16 in a federal court in Chicago, Motorola claimed an engineer shared information about a Motorola transceiver and other technology with Huawei’s founder, Ren Zhengfei, a former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army. Get the full story »
One of 19 styles of children's jewelry recalled. (CPSC)
Tween Brands Inc., owned by Dress Barn Inc., recalled some Chinese-made children’s metal jewelry on Tuesday, due to high levels of cadmium in them.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said the company decided to pull out about 137,000 metal necklaces, bracelets and earrings priced between $7 and $16 and sold at Justice, Limited Too and an online store.
Cadmium is toxic if ingested by children.
Don Lee | The U.S. trade deficit unexpectedly jumped in May, to the highest level since November 2008, prompting some analysts to sharply cut their economic growth forecasts for the just-completed second quarter and other economists to warn of rising risks of a double-dip recession.
The Commerce Department said Tuesday that the trade gap rose to $42.3 billion in May, up nearly 5 percent from April’s $40.3 billion. Economists had expected the May deficit to dip slightly to about $39 billion as oil prices were lower and retail sales fell that month. Get the full story »
General Motors’ first-half sales in China, the world’s biggest auto market, exceeded sales in its home U.S. market for the first time, according to data released on Friday. GM’s China auto sales jumped 48.5 percent to 1.21 million units in January through June, compared with the 1.08 million light vehicles it delivered in the U.S. over the same period, company data showed. Get the full story »
Internet giant Google Inc said it plans to stop automatically redirecting users of its Google.cn site to its Hong Kong page, in a bid to secure renewal of the company’s China service license. Get the full story »
Caterpillar Inc. said on Monday that it had broken ground in Xuzhou, China, for a plant that would build large excavators and that it had opened a plant there to make small and medium-size excavators.
Excavators are modern-day steam-shovels. They often have buckets and are used by builders to dig in confined areas.
Get the full story »
About 7,300 children’s tiaras, made in China and imported by Wilton Industries Inc. of Woodridge, have been recalled because they contain high levels of lead, which is dangerous for young children.
U.S. fast-food giant McDonald’s Corp. formed a five-year strategic alliance Friday with China subway operator Shenzhen Metro Group Co. under which McDonald’s will have first pick of the prime retail spots in the subway operator’s underground commercial spaces and above ground property projects. Get the full story »
The era of cheap manufacturing in China is coming to an end.
Rising wages spurred by a series of labor disputes at factories in China, coupled with the country’s just-announced decision to allow its currency to rise in value — making it more expensive to build things there – will lead to higher prices for tech gadgets, cut into corporate bottom lines and force companies to rethink manufacturing strategies anchored in China, the world’s assembly line. Get the full story »
China’s move to end its currency’s peg to the dollar initially fanned enthusiasm for crude, since a stronger yuan will make dollar-based commodities such as oil cheaper in China and bolster demand, but oil prices gave up earlier gains Monday afternoon as uncertainty set in about how quickly China may implement currency changes trimmed oil prices.
Crude gained 64 cents, to settle at $77.82 a barrel, on the New York Mercantile Exchange after rising as high as $78.92.
Retail prices for gasoline in the United States have climbed over the last week and are headed back toward a national average of $2.80 to $2.90 per gallon with higher prices on the West Coast, said Tom Kloza of the Oil Price Information Service. Get the full story »
Leaders of some of the Group of 20 nations meeting in Canada this weekend will want to hear more about how China plans to make its currency more flexible, Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said Monday.
“Some countries will want to see more detail and perhaps even a schedule of some sort,” he told reporters when asked whether China’s announcement on Saturday that it would make the yuan more flexible meant the currency issue would not be such an important topic at the meetings.
Get the full story »
Caterpillar Inc. , the U.S. machinery giant that sells billions of dollars of earth-moving equipment and other products to China each year, said on Saturday it was heartened by China’s move to gradually make the yuan more flexible, saying it would help lift U.S. exports.
“Caterpillar is encouraged by this development,” said Rich Lavin, a group president with the company who is responsible for emerging markets, “and we believe over time that a stronger Chinese currency will promote more exports from the U.S. to China.” Get the full story »
Reuters | Caterpillar Inc and Navistar International Corp are finalising a 4
billion yuan ($586 million) truck and engine manufacturing tie-up with
China’s Jianghuai Automobile, a source with direct knowledge of the deal
said on Friday.
Initial investment in the project will be twice as much as the amount
previously disclosed — 2 billion yuan — as Jianghuai and Navistar are
also planning a separate 50-50 diesel engine tie, the source told
Reuters.
“There will actually be two joint ventures. The engine venture is meant
to be a supplier for the truck project,” said the source.
Reuters | U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Thursday that reform of China’s exchange rate is “critically important” to the U.S. and global economies, and that a more flexile yuan was in China’s interest.
