Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, said on Tuesday the organization "does not believe that the world's second-largest economy will face a hard landing" and that China's decision to transform "from quantity to quality" is the right one. Speaking at the Global Women's Forum 2016, Lagarde said China's lower growth was "deliberate" and healthy as the government has decided to transform the country from a place of mass production to one of quality production, and from investment to consumption.

Ban on borrowing to buy land reserves

Beijing has banned local governments from borrowing from banks to finance land purchases and preparations for property development. They must also reduce the number of institutions responsible for land reserves, whittling down the many departments to just one, according to a joint statement from the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Land and Resources, the People's Bank of China and China Banking Regulatory Commission.

Outstanding social financing rises 13%

Outstanding social financing stood at 141.57 trillion yuan ($21.7 trillion) at the end of January, up 13.1 percent from a year earlier, the central bank said on Tuesday. The amount included local-currency loans of 95.29 trillion yuan for the real economy, a 14.9 percent rise, the bank said in a statement on its website.

Investors eye Kenya's water industry

Chinese firms are eying projects in the Kenyan water industry, executives said on Monday. Speaking on the sidelines of the Africa Water Association Congress and Exhibition in Nairobi, Dick Gong, the regional manager of Dongying Nuoer Chemical Co Ltd, called Kenya the next frontier for investments in water treatment chemicals and technologies.

Chinese top foreign visitors to Thailand

Chinese will become the biggest foreign visitors at coastal destinations in southern Thailand this year, said Anoma Wongyai, who heads Phuket's tourism office. The country's Andaman Sea coast remains their top destinations, led by Krabi, Phuket and Pang-nga. At each, Chinese tourists spend an average 5,000 baht ($138) daily, during a typical five-day visit, said Wongyai.

Companies markets

Chery building Wuhu electric-car plant

Chinese automaker Chery Automobile Co Ltd has begun work on a new 1.56 billion yuan ($240 million) plant in Wuhu, Anhui province, capable of making 60,000 electric, aluminum-framed vehicles a year. The company began selling electric cars in 2008. The first phase of construction is set to be complete in September and will produce 10,000 cars annually. The first model will be a small SUV. Chery said it aims to boost its annual sale of new energy vehicles to 200,000 units by 2020.

Delayed Taishan reactors on track

A project to build two French-designed pressurized nuclear reactors in the southeastern Chinese city of Taishan remains on track despite technical problems, the project's Chinese partner said on Tuesday. China General Nuclear Power Group entered a joint venture with France's EDF to build them in 2007, and the project was scheduled to be completed by 2013. However, the reactors, designed by France's Areva, have been subject to delays in China as well as in France and Finland, amid safety concerns, said Zheng Dongshan, CGN's vice-general manager.

Around the world

InterCon Hotels offers $1.5b dividend

InterContinental Hotels Group Plc, one of the world's largest hoteliers, has promised a special shareholder payout of $1.5 billion, as strong demand across all its regions helped it post a rise in yearly profit. Led by its European business, full-year operating profit rose 4 percent to $680 million. The company runs more than 5,000 hotels under brands such as Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn and InterContinental.

StanChart profit plunges to 18-year low

Standard Chartered Plc profits plunged 84 percent last year, the bank's worst result since 1998, sending its shares down as much as 10 percent on Tuesday. The emerging markets-focused lender said its underlying pretax profit was $800 million, down from $5.2 billion in 2014. The bank reported a loss before tax of $1.5 billion after including restructuring costs of $1.8 billion.

Business leaders urge UK to stay in EU

Almost 200 business leaders have set out the case for the United Kingdom staying in the European Union, warning of a risk to investment and jobs if the country opts to leave the 28-nation bloc in a national vote in June. In a letter published on Tuesday in The Times newspaper, the leaders say business "needs unrestricted access" to the European market in order to grow and invest. Signatories include CEOs at more than one third of the country's biggest businesses, including BP Plc, Burberry Group Plc and AstraZeneca Plc.

(China Daily USA 02/24/2016 page14)