On Chinese Media

Money China

Issue No. 11， published on November， 2014

Private Equity Spring

The first group of 50 private equity fund management institutions received their private equity fund licenses in March of 2014. The State Council later issued the Several Opinions on Further Promoting the Healthy Development of Capital Markets and initiated the important decision to “cultivate the private equity market.”

For a long time， investor confidence in private equity firms has been low， mainly due to their lack of identity. Such misgivings have inhibited cooperation. More important， as private equity firms are not included under private industry regulation， they do not receive the attention they deserve either from the government or the market. Specifically speaking， neither upstream nor downstream services are available to them， brokerage and research institutions do not have service groups tailored to their needs， and private banks do not sell private equity products. There is no channel for sunshine private equity offerings， and they have limited support in such aspects as productive innovation and personalized background. Having to do everything for themselves， they do not constitute a fundamental industry， and are regarded as marginalized enterprises in a gray zone.

Since official implementation in 2013 of the Securities Investment Fund Law， however， state support and supervision of the private equity industry has intensified. Although related rules still need to be improved， professionals nonetheless believe that the long disassociated gray zone “guerrilla”private equity force may， through policy approval and support， and after a decade of painstaking growth， at last gain “regular army” status.

Regulation of private equity firms will have far-reaching influence on their future development. First， according to the government， “It can be concluded that private equity now constitutes an industry.” Support from stream-service chains will also constantly strengthen. Second， the industry will have more scope under state supervision and can thus be more innovative.

China Newsweek

Issue No. 43， published on November 24， 2014

New Approach to South China Sea

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang spoke at the first ASEAN 2014 10+8 meeting on the topic of political security， identifying a “dual-track” approach to the South China Sea issue. This marked the first time a Chinese leader specified a “dual-track” solution to this matter. It signifies a “fine tuning”of Chinas policy as regards the South China Sea dispute – from refusing to resolve the South China Sea issue through multilateral channels to acknowledging the possibility on certain multilateral occasions of solutions that involve multilateral interests.

China initiated in the ChinaASEAN （10+1） Foreign MinistersMeeting held in Myanmars capital Nay Pyi Taw a “dual-track” resolution to the South China Sea issue， whereby specific disputes are solved through negotiations and consultations by the countries directly concerned. China and ASEAN countries may thus work together to uphold peace and stability in the region.

From the point of view of Chinas diplomacy， implicit in this thought is the changing regional situation and the transition of its role within it. The focus of China and ASEAN was for some time on development and trade cooperation. This took precedence over the South China Sea issue， whose sensitivity called for greater subtlety.

Now， however， times have changed， and in view of the attention the matter has drawn from the global media and public the matter can no longer be avoided. Furthermore， China is “bigger” and the scope of its relationship with ASEAN constantly expanding. Consequently the issue of political security must be tackled. If we handle this issue appropriately， Chinas peaceful rise will be smoother.

Sanlian Life Weekly

Issue No. 47， published on November 24， 2014

How Can We Eradicate Haze？

How much do we know about fog and haze？ Even specialist researchers cannot produce exact data. Globally speaking， although scientists worldwide have carried out research based on the Great London Smog of 1952 and the Los Angeles Toxic Cloud， China， with its sonic development speed， constitutes the most complicated research case. The country has experienced 100 or more years of coal burning pollution， and 50 years of vehicle and diverse chemical emissions in the contemporary era.

Why has haze pollution worsened so dramatically in the past two to three years？ If related to human economic activity， why should its severity exceed the gradual curve of economic development？ Does air pollution accelerate at a specific rate？

Energy conservation and emission reduction call for financial investment. Strong technology and strict supervision are also essential. The emission reduction mission has entered into the deep water zone.

There are still many gaps in our abilities to deal with fog and haze. Scientific research into how secondary particles are generated， sequences of haze occurrences in peripheral provinces and regions， accurate forecasting of future air quality， and the exact level of detriment PM2.5 exert on human health is hence imperative.

Caijing

Issue No. 34， published on December 1， 2014

The Tracing of Fugitive Corrupt Officials

In the past few years， hunting down suspected embezzlers and recovering their ill-gotten gains has been a main mission of the Chinese government. The pursuit of officials suspected of such crimes is upmost in this task. In early 2014， Chinese President Xi Jinping stated that“the last route of retreat” to foreign countries should be blocked， and that they should not be a haven for corrupt elements. All must be tracked down and brought to justice no matter what the cost.

The “Fox Hunt 2014” campaign， in operation since July 22， 2014， exemplifies the governments determination. By November 23， 2014， 318 suspects had been seized in 57 countries and regions， and 169 criminals arrested. Moreover， 149 suspects were persuaded to return to China. Of these， 88 had embezzled more than RMB 10 million. Since the launch of “Fox Hunt 2014，” all 60 of the overseas operation groups accomplished their missions in around four months. Meanwhile， October 10 saw the establishment of the central Anti-Corruption Working Group， which is responsible for the work of the International Tracing Office.

There is now an international consensus on the anti-graft campaign. The APEC meeting in Beijing in early November adopted Chinas first draft transnational anti-corruption declaration： the Beijing Declaration on Fighting Corruption. It constitutes a pledge on the part of all APEC members to eliminate “corrupt havens” in the Asia-Pacific region.

China Economic Weekly

Issue No. 45， published on November 24， 2014

The Legendery ShanghaiHong Kong Stock Connect

Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect， a new model of cross-border investment risk control， constitutes a major institutional innovation in the capital market.

Charles Li， CEO of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited， enjoyed a moment of relief on the evening of November 17， 2014. That day， Chinese mainland investors had bought RMB 10.5 billion worth of Hong Kong stocks at the opening of Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect. The first-day trading volume was RMB 1，768 million， accounting for around 16.8 percent. Hong Kong investors， meanwhile， bought RMB 13 billion A Shares. The remainder were sold out by 1：53 pm.

Chinese mainland， Hong Kong and Shanghai investors are no strangers to Hong Kong Stock Connect. It has a seven-year history that originates in an innovative model known as the “Hong Kong Stock Express” that set the Hong Kong market antennae tingling. It was tough joint mainland-Hong Kong promotion of RMB internationalization that propelled the “Hong Kong stock express” through the sevenyear transition period that led to Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect.

“Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect does not denote a reallocation of stocks between Shanghai and Hong Kong， but rather the introduction through market integration and impact of the huge external increments outside of the two metropolises capital markets，” Charles Li said.