NIU LU WIND POWER Workers erect wind turbines on Chengde Weichang wind farm in north China's Hebei Province on July 21. The first phase of the wind farm was completed on the same day

Poultry Ban

China requested the World Trade Organization (WTO) set up an expert panel to probe the U.S. ban on poultry imports from China, and issue a ruling whether the ban violates WTO regulations.

China reiterated in WTO meetings that the ban is discriminatory and that it has damaged the lawful rights and interests of China's poultry industry.

It usually takes more than half a year for a WTO panel to give its final ruling on a trade dispute.

The two countries banned imports of each other's poultry products in 2004 due to the bird flu outbreak. Both agreed to lift the bans at the Sino-U.S. Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade in 2004. China has already reopened the markets to U.S. poultry products, while the United States failed to keep its promise.

GEM Allows Application

The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) announced that it would start accepting initial public offering (IPO) applications for the Growth Enterprise Market (GEM) on July 26.

The Chinese NASDAQ-style stock market welcomes IPOs of firms that specialize in fields like new energy, new materials, biomedical industry, electronic information, modern services and environmental protection, said CSRC.

CSRC expected that 50-100 companies would submit applications on July 26, but it did not reveal when the market will allow open trading.

GEM listing candidates must make profits for the preceding two years and have a combined net profit of at least 10 million yuan ($1.46 million). Alternatively, the company must post net profits of at least 5 million yuan ($730,000) and revenues of at least 50 million yuan ($7.3 million) in the latest fiscal year, with revenue growth of at least 30 percent in the past two years.

SOEs' Profits Down

The profits of China's state-owned enterprises (SOEs) plunged 27 percent year on year in the first half of this year to 553.4 billion yuan ($81 billion), said the Ministry of Finance.

But their year-on-year profit decline started to narrow in the second quarter as the government's massive stimulus package took effect.

Profits of the 138 Central-Government-administered SOEs decreased 26.2 percent to 316 billion yuan ($46 billion).

Mill Cooperation

Wuhan Iron and Steel (Group) Corp., one of the largest steel mills in China, signed an agreement with Australian Centrex Metals Ltd. for joint development of iron ore mines in south Australia as well as other projects.

The agreement still requires approval from the two governments.

According to the agreement, Centrex Metals will issue 15-percent shares to Wuhan Iron and Steel, which will then become the second largest holder of the Australian firm. Wuhan Iron and Steel will pay AU$216 million ($177 million) to gain 60 percent of the stake of the new joint venture.

Safety First

International SOS, the world's leading provider of medical assistance and international healthcare, signed a strategic agreement with New China Life Insurance (NCI) on July 21.

According to the deal, NCI will extend its overseas travel and medical assistance service for its more than 8 million customers. In 2008, only 30,000 VIP customers were entitled to this privilege.

The agreement also marks a step forward in the medical giant's expansion into China. International SOS now operates two 24-hour alarm centers in Beijing and Hong Kong and four international clinics in Beijing, Nanjing, Tianjin and Shekou of Shenzhen.