Half of those companies have resumed trading since May 14 after reporting small impact from the quake. But 32 were busy calculating possible damages to company operation resulting from the largest earthquake in three decades to hit China.

Sinolink Securities Co. Ltd. claimed in its research report that the rehabilitation work on the earthquake-struck areas would bring positive impact to the neighboring cement and iron and steel industries. Shares of those companies would benefit. However, it also pointed out the insurance companies might face huge amounts of claims for compensation. But Zhou Guang, analyst with China International Capital Corp. argued the major listed insurance companies would remain stable in operation, as they had bought sufficient re-insurance, hence re-insurance companies would have to shoulder a considerable proportion of losses.

No exact figures of economic losses are immediately available. Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. contended that the earthquake would not have much impact on the national economy, as the places seriously affected were in remote areas. According to the report, Sichuan Province is not a manufacturing center and manufacturing output in Sichuan in only about 2.5 percent of the national total. It also said China's exports and imports would not be noticeably affected because Sichuan is an inland province and is not relevant for China's external trade.

Shrinking Trade Surplus

China's trade surplus growth rate in April was 1 percent lower year on year due to weak global demand, according to the General Administration of Customs.

The total surplus stood at $16.8 billion, with fast growth of imports of up to $102.03 billion. The import growth rate was 26.3 percent, 1.7 percent higher than that of March.

The trade surplus with Europe jumped by 34.8 percent to $12 billion while that with the United States saw much slower growth, rising by 4 percent to $13 billion, according to customs data. The dollar devaluation made Chinese goods more expensive for American consumers at a time when uncertainty about the U.S. economy has hurt consumption. But the euro appreciation against the Chinese currency made Chinese products more attractive to European consumers.

Feng Yuming, analyst with Oriental Securities Co. Ltd., said the U.S. economy would turn for the better in the next half of this year when the U.S. dollar would get strong. Feng expected this year's trade surplus would be lower than that of last year.

FDI Surge

Paid-in foreign direct investment (FDI) in China soared in the first four months to a tune of $35 billion, rising 60 percent from the same period last year.

The number of newly approved foreign-invested enterprises, on the contrary, shrank 23.15 percent to 9,490 in the first four months.

Zhang Hanya, Director of the Research Institute of Investment with the National Development and Reform Commission, said the latest figure showed that China remained a favorite destination for overseas investment.

China's new policies on foreign investment and rising labor costs may have deterred the establishment of some small-scale foreign-invested companies, said Zhang.

Tops in Passenger Car Sales

According to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile Co. took the lead in passenger car sales in the first four months this year.

It was followed by FAW-Volkswagen Co. Ltd., Shanghai Volkswagen Automotive Co. Ltd. Shanghai General Motors Co. Ltd., Chery Automobile Co. Ltd., FAW-Toyota Motor Co. Ltd., Chana International Corp., Beijing Hyundai Motor Co. Ltd., and Dongfang-Nissan Passenger Vehicle Co. Ltd., and Guangzhou Honda Automobile Co. Ltd.

These 10 top sellers sold 1.4545 million passenger cars in the first four months, accounting for almost 60 percent of all passenger cars sold.

NUMBERS OF THE WEEK

7,094 yuan

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the average income of Beijing residents in the first quarter ranked third out of all cities in China, standing at 7,094 yuan ($1,013). Zhejiang Province overtook Beijing as the second highest, while Shanghai residents enjoyed the highest income of 8,413 yuan ($1,202).

24 million yuan

China Petrochemical Corp. (Sinopec) offered a 24-million-yuan ($3.43 million) deal for selling its stakes in five asset management companies, which suffered losses in their daily operation.