INDUSTRIAL STRENGTH: The Metallurgy China 2010 was held on May 11-14 in the International Exhibition Center in Beijing. Together with three other expos there, it attracted more than 1,000 companies from 30 countries and regions (LIU DEBIN)

Inland Bonded Area

China's first inland bonded area, Cuntan Bonded Area in Chongqing Municipality, will open for business by the end of May, after its first-phase construction passed state appraisal on May 11.

The 8.37-square-km area connects the Cuntan Harbor, on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, and the Jiangbei International Airport. Construction of the second and third phases is slated for completion in 2015.

The bonded area will focus on harbor business, air transportation, foreign trade, export-oriented processing and commodity displays, and is expected to accelerate the opening of China's central and western inland cities.

The bonded harbor area has attracted 94 domestic and overseas enterprises with 22 preferential policies.

Anti-Dumping

China started on May 10 to review anti-dumping measures it imposed in 2005 against imported chloroprene rubber from Japan, the United States and the EU, said the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM).

At the request of domestic chloroprene rubber producers, MOFCOM will examine the possibility of continued dumping actions and damages after the current round of anti-dumping measures come to an end, MOFCOM said in a report on its website.

In May 2005, MOFCOM imposed anti-dumping duties ranging from 2 percent to 151 percent on imported chloroprene rubber from these countries over a five-year term.

The review is scheduled to wrap up in 12 months.

Carbon Tax

China may impose a carbon tax on enterprises in its industrial sector from 2012 to curb carbon dioxide emissions in a bid to encourage energy saving and the development of environmentally friendly industries, reported the Economic Information Daily.

Coal, natural gas and oil companies would have to pay carbon taxes in accordance with their carbon dioxide emissions, while energy saving and environmentally friendly industries are likely to be subsidized with revenue from the tax.

The tax would start at 20 yuan ($3) per ton of carbon dioxide, and reach 50 yuan ($7.3) a ton by 2020.

Lenovo's Smartphone

Chinese personal computer (PC) maker Lenovo Group Ltd. is about to take on Apple's iPhone in the domestic market with its smartphone, LePhone, in May, said a China Daily report.

The world's fourth largest PC maker expects to sell more than 1 million of its LePhone smartphones nationwide in the coming 12 months with a low-pricing strategy. LePhone will start shipping in China next week, with a base price that is half the iPhone's cost.

In addition to the present WCDMA version for China Unicom, Lenovo is working with China Mobile and China Telecom to launch products that support TD-SCDMA and CDMA2000 networks.

LePhone will be sold through Lenovo's own PC sales channels as well as 1,600 China Unicom stores.

Illegal Banks Uncovered

Chinese police and finance authorities in April uncovered 26 underground banks that offer illegal services in south China's Guangdong Province, said a Xinhua News Agency report.

The illegal banks were uncovered in a joint operation between the Shenzhen police, commercial banks and foreign exchange management authorities on April 22, during which 71 people allegedly involved in illegal money transactions were arrested.

The underground banks had established offices in Hong Kong or Shenzhen, carrying out money-laundering services and illegal foreign exchange deals. Their illegal operations involved 12.7 billion yuan ($1.86 billion).