Business news for Mon, 24 Dec 2007 & with word plans. 35 news.

THE US hotel chain Days Inn is expected to become the first international hotel brand to debut in the Changbai Mountains in northeast China's Jilin Province early next year, the administration committee of the mountain resort has said. By renovating a hotel in Chixi District of the nature reserve for 120 million yuan (US$16 million), the Days Inn hotel will offer 122 European-style rooms. It plans to be operational on January 18.22.

THE yuan climbed to the strongest since a link to the US dollar was scrapped two years ago after the central bank said exchange-rate flexibility will rise, spurring speculation it plans to widen the daily trading band. The yuan rose 0.3 percent to 7.3475 per US dollar at 5:30pm in Shanghai, bringing gains this month to 0.7 percent. The central bank set the reference rate at 7.3315 yesterday, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trade System. The rate touched 7.3405 yesterday, the highest since the peg ended in July 2005. The People's Bank of China said in a statement last Friday that it will let the market play a bigger role in setting the exchange rate.

FRENCH cookware producer Groupe SEB has completed a partial tender offer for Zhejiang Supor Cookware Co, China's largest producer of kitchen appliances. The two companies will finish the settlement within this week, Supor said. Under the deal, SEB paid 2.3 billion yuan (US$312 million) to buy a maximum of 49.1 million shares at 47 yuan per share from the public to boost its stake in Supor from 30 percent to 52.74 percent. Seb's investment in Supor, worth a total of 327 million euros (US$469.8 million), will give it access to a sales network across China and localize its production to increase price competitiveness. SEB, which makes Tefal cookware, announced plans to buy 61 percent of Supor last year but the acquisition drew opposition from China's cookware industry amid worries of a monopoly being created. In April, the Ministry of Commerce gave a green light to SEB's plan after a public hearing for more open competition in China's non-strategic industry. Construction on

NANYANG Commercial Bank plans to at least double its network on the Chinese mainland in two years, after it opened its local incorporation yesterday to fully tap the mainland market. The bank said in Shanghai yesterday it would offer unlimited yuan services. The Hong Kong-based bank gained the approval to set up the local incorporation with a registered capital of 2.5 billion yuan (US$341 million) from the China Banking Regulatory Commission on December 4. The local incorporation was set up on December 14. Nanyang Commercial Bank has six branches and one sub-branch on the Chinese mainland in cities of Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Dalian and Haikou. "Network expansion is a key part of the local incorporation's business development," a bank spokesman said. He said the bank would first focus on major cities in the Pearl River Delta, Yangtze River Delta and coastal areas in the geographic expansion. It will also seek opportunities to open outlets in

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks rallied on Monday, led by financial companies, after Merrill Lynch (MER.N) took steps to shore up its balance sheet with plans to raise up to $6.2 billion and sell a lending unit.

Maxjet announced a series of measures to try to help passengers stranded or whose future travel plans are affected by its collapse

NANYANG Commercial Bank plans to at least double its network on the Chinese mainland in two years after it opened its local incorporation today. Nanyang Commercial Bank (China) Ltd opened in Shanghai yesterday to offer unlimited yuan services to Chinese. The Hong Kong-based bank gained approval to set up the local incorporation with a registered capital of 2.5 billion yuan (US$341 million) from the China Banking Regulatory Commission on December 4. Nanyang Commercial Bank has six branches and one sub-branch on the Chinese mainland in Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Dalian, Haikou and Shanghai. "Network expansion is a key part of the local incorporation's business development," the bank said. The bank will first focus on major cities in the Pearl River Delta, Yangtze River Delta and the coastal area. It will also seek other opportunities in other areas. The bank will focus on personal financial planning products and services in retail banking. In corporate banking,

Downtown, the Galleria area and Midtown can all boast high-rise living. Soon, Chinatown will too.

FRENCH cookware producer Groupe SEB has completed a partial tender offer for Zhejiang Supor Cookware Co, China's biggest producer of kitchen appliances. The two companies will settle the deal this week, Supor said. Under the deal, SEB will pay 2.3 billion yuan for a maximum of 49.1 million shares at 47 yuan a share from the public to boost its stake in Supor from 30 percent to 52.74 percent. Seb's investment in Supor, worth a total of 327 million euros, will give it access to a sales network across China and localize its production to increase price competitiveness. SEB, which makes Tefal cookware, announced plans to buy 61 percent of Supor last year but the acquisition drew opposition from China's cookware industry amid worries of a monopoly being created. In April, the Ministry of Commerce gave a green light to SEB's plan after a public hearing for more open competition in China's non-strategic industry. Supor's US$15-million factory in Vietnam, designed to produce 7.9

Buoyed by a robust growth in Indian market, two-wheeler maker Honda Motorcycle Scooter India (HMSI) is planning to set up a second manufacturing unit as it expects sales to cross the 1.2 million units per annum mark by March 2011.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock index futures rose on Monday, lifted by news Merrill Lynch plans to sell a lending unit and with investors eyeing retailers as the busy holiday shopping season draws to a close.

Reuters - Stock index futures rose on Monday, lifted by news Merrill Lynch plans to sell a lending unit and with investors eyeing retailers as the busy holiday shopping season draws to a close.

Merrill Lynch plans to sell its capital lending business to General Electric's commercial finance arm.

Analysts predict that next year’s initial public offerings will include a steady stream of activity, including credit card issuer Visa’s $10 billion I.P.O., Reuters reported. Visa, the biggest deal so far in 2008, is coming to market after MasterCard’s stellar $2.4 billion 2006 I.P.O. The company said late on Friday its plans to list the shares [...]

SHANGHAI stocks rose for a fourth day today, pushing the index to its highest close in more than a month since November 21. The Shanghai Composite Index, which tracks yuan-denominated A shares and hard-currency B shares, jumped 1.37 percent, or 132.48 points, to close at 5,234.26 at 3pm today. The Shanghai index opened at 5,132.91 at 9:30am today, 31.13 points higher than its close at 5,101.78 at 3pm last Friday. Winners in the Shanghai market outnumbered losers 647 to 113 and 86 were unchanged. The Shenzhen Composite Index, which covers the smaller mainland stock market, gained 1.72 percent, or 23.69 points, to 1,399.58. Consumer-related stocks including Suning Appliance Co and Gree Electric Appliances Inc gained after the government said it plans to subsidize farmers' purchases of electrical appliances. Suning Appliances, China's second-biggest home-device retailer, gained 3.76 percent, or 2.47 yuan (34 US cents), to 68.12 yuan. Gree Electric Appliances Inc, China's

Target Corp., Home Depot Inc., Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and other big-box retailers — buffeted by sagging sales and the housing slump — are pulling the plug on new-store plans in and around Chicago. The pullback is another sign of the darkening outlook for 2008, as retailers turn cautious ...

Charles J. Fiore Co., one of the best-known suppliers in the local professional nursery and landscape business, plans to open a nearly six-acre location on the West Side to meet the growing demand for plants and flowers in the city. The plant wholesaler — whose clients include big ...

THE chief executive of Fraport, the operator of Europe’s second-largest airport in Frankfurt, is planning to negotiate higher landing fees with Ryanair at Frankfurt Hahn.

Lee Myung-Bak coasted to victory in South Korea's election by promising to be an andquot;economy presidentandquot; but his party must win upcoming general polls to keep bold reform plans on course, analysts say.