An agreement, worth 1 billion pounds ($1.51 billion), to transform a dockland in eastern London into a business port for attracting Chinese and Asian companies to develop in Europe was signed in London on Wednesday. ABP Chinese (Holding), a private company founded in 2003, plans to build the Asian business port, the first of such in Europe, and a new financial center in the 130-year-old Royal Albert Dock area in [...]

The BBC reported on Tuesday that at least 14 EU members were opposed to punitive tariffs on Chinese solar panel imports. The tariffs, proposed by EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht, have drawn much attention in recent months and even caused share prices in the industry to plunge. If the proposal is realized, the average 47.6 percent average tax rate will affect almost 21 billion euros ($27 billion) in Chinese [...]

China will take steps to defend its national interest if the European Union were to impose provisional antidumping duties on Chinese solar panels and investigate wireless communications networks, a high-level Chinese government official said on Monday in Brussels. Zhong Shan, China’s chief international trade representative, led a government delegation to the EU headquarters to meet EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht and Jean-Luc Demarty, director-general for trade. Zhong said the [...]

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Monday that Germany firmly opposes a trade probe initiated by the European Commission into imports of Chinese mobile telecommunications products as China and Germany called for free trade amid growing trade tensions between Beijing and Brussels. Merkel made the remarks over breakfast with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, who is in Germany for an official visit from Saturday to Monday. In a joint statement issued Sunday, [...]

At least 14 of the European Union’s 27 member states have voted against a European Commission proposal to impose punitive duties on imported Chinese solar panels, sources told Xinhua on Monday. EU trade officials were arranging additional meetings or calls this week to reach out to at least three EU members that submitted written “no” positions Friday, said sources familiar with the case. Only four members — France, Spain, Italy [...]

China rejects trade and investment protectionism, premier says China and Switzerland signed a Memorandum of Understanding at the conclusion of free trade talks on Friday during Premier Li Keqiang’s visit to Bern, the Swiss capital, in what business leaders called a landmark deal. The signing of the memorandum means Switzerland will soon become the first country in continental Europe and the first of the world’s top 20 economies to reach [...]

Chinese solar panel manufacturers expressed strong opposition Thursday to possible punitive import duties by the EU on Chinese solar panels and urged the EU to drop its trade protectionism to avoid harming the solar industrial chain. In a joint statement released Thursday, major Chinese solar panel makers Yingli Green Energy Holdings Co, Trina Solar Ltd and Canadian Solar Inc said any form of trade protectionism and punitive import duties would [...]

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang published on Thursday a signed article titled “Why Switzerland?” in Neue Zuricher Zeitung, a German-language Swiss daily ahead of his visit to the European country. The following is the full text of the English translation of the article: Switzerland is the first European destination on the list of countries I will visit after becoming China’s premier. In Chinese culture, being “first” always carries symbolic meaning. My [...]

The Export-Import Bank of China confirmed on Monday that it will fund Greek ship owners to book vessels in Chinese shipyards. The bank signed agreements with three Greek shipping companies, Diana Shipping, Angelicoussis and Dynagas, to provide them with loans to order “high-end vessels” in Chinese yards, according to an emailed statement from the bank. The bank plans to enhance cooperation with overseas ship owners and attract more orders for [...]

Summary: Thanks to the promise of European Union residency, many Chinese are buying homes worth at least 300,000 euro in the tiny island nation of Cyprus. But these buyers may not fully appreciate the risks of their investment and the limitations of their residency permits. In the international exhibition area of the just-concluded Beijing Real Estate Trade Fair, agents from one particular country won the favor of a surprising number [...]