Daimler AG, the world's biggest truck maker, and Beijing-based Beiqi Foton Motor Co. Ltd., China's biggest commercial-vehicle maker, will sign a preliminary agreement before the beginning of the Summer Olympics to form a commercial-vehicle venture in China.

The two automakers, which are creating the company to meet increasing demand for trucks here, will make Mercedes-Benz trucks, Foton vehicles and Mercedes-Benz engines, according to an announcement issued by Foton on July 28.

While the deal will let Daimler manufacture its trucks in China, Foton will also benefit from the German manufacturer's advanced technologies.

Daimler also has a venture with Foton's parent, Beijing Automotive Industry Holdings Corp., which makes Mercedes-Benz sedans in Beijing.

Attracting Multinationals

In a fresh bid to attract more quality overseas enterprises, the Shanghai Municipal Government said on July 27 that it has put in place new regulations to encourage more multinationals to set up their regional headquarters in the city.

When a newly registered company selects Shanghai as its regional headquarters, the local government will provide funding during its start-up period and give it a preferential office rental policy. It also will recommend that the company's high-level foreign managers apply for permanent residency in the city.

Liu Jie, an official at the Shanghai Headquarters Economy Promotion Center, said that the city has trumped other mainland towns in attracting the regional headquarters of multinationals. But unlike Hong Kong and Singapore, which are home to 6,000 and 9,000 corporate headquarters, respectively, Shanghai still has a long way to go.

IBM Offers Bank Advice

IBM Corp. will establish a center of excellence for banking in Beijing-one of seven in the world-to serve domestic banks.

The new center will support China's banking clients and address issues in core banking systems and payments, IBM said in a statement issued on July 28. The company also will help Chinese banks cope with increased competition, strict regulations and overseas merger and acquisition risks.

"Chinese banks face great opportunities and challenges, and it's time for them to modernize," said Ian Hurst, IBM's General Manager of Global Financial Services Sector, in the statement.

Innovative Pioneers

The Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) said it selected 91 companies as "National Innovative Enterprises" on July 28 after they completed a two-year trial operation to accelerate the country's level of technological innovation.

Among the companies selected were China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp., Aluminum Corp. of China Ltd. and Lenovo Group.

They all passed expert panel evaluations jointly conducted by MOST, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council and the All-China Federation of Trade Unions.

P&G Price Hikes

Procter & Gamble, the American personal care and household products company, has decided to raise prices for its products in China by as much as 10 percent, Zhang Qunxiang, spokesman for P&G China, announced on July 27.

As a result of soaring raw material costs, the company will raise the prices of its Pampers disposable diapers and Whisper sanitary napkins by 10 percent as of the end of July.

Zhang said that the price increases were part of a strategy that the company previously announced in mid-July to raise its global prices by up to 16 percent.

Industry insiders said the company's huge advertising expenses also put pressure on it to raise prices.