Shougang Corp, the only Beijing-based steelmaker, will sell as much as 3 billion yuan of short-term debt to repay loans.

The company will sell one-year securities on Friday to institutional investors via the inter-bank market, the steelmaker said in a statement published on the Chinabond website. Huaxia Bank Co will underwrite the sale.

Share sale plan

Tongling Non-ferrous Metals Group Co, China's biggest copper smelter, plans to raise 2.15 billion yuan to secure raw material supplies and increase production of higher-value products.

The Anhui-based company will sell 150 million new shares to 10 institutional investors.

The funds, which will be used to buy a stake in a mining company and build a copper foil plant, will reduce Tongling's reliance on raw copper suppliers and help reverse a decline in earnings from smelting.

GRAPEVINE

Ping An's next move

Ping An Insurance (Group) Co intends to seek regulatory approval for its plan to raise funds as soon as market sentiment improves, the South China Morning Post reported yesterday, citing unidentified shareholders of the company.

Ping An shares fell earlier this year after it said it planned to raise 160 billion yuan selling shares and bonds. Market conditions are "better" and the insurer is preparing to apply to the regulator, the sources said.

BIZ UNUSUAL

Salary negotiator

Lin Yan, a 26-year-old girl in Nanjing, earns 20,000 yuan a month helping graduates to negotiate salary. Four years ago, Lin was refused by about 40 enterprises when she went to Nanjing to find job because she could not agree with employers on salary. Lin then started her own business negotiating salaries for others. She takes 10 percent of the agreed monthly salary as her remuneration from each of her clients.

Milk melons

More than 500 kg of "milk watermelons" are available at Beijing markets now. Watered with milk, the pulp of these melons is sweeter than the ordinary ones. The milk watermelons are sold at 24 yuan per kg, 4 yuan higher than the regular watermelons.

A farmer surnamed Wang, who thought up the unique idea, said most of his "milk watermelons" have been booked in advance. Wang, who was inspired by the concept of "milk strawberry", has won the title of "watermelon king" in Daxing district of Beijing with this innovative idea.

BIZ MOVES

Baosteel president

Shanghai Baosteel Group, China's top steelmaker, has named He Wenbo as its new group president.

He, a senior engineer, has been the vice-president of Baosteel Group since 1998, and has accumulated wide experience in management and iron and steel market.

He graduated from Northeast University in 1982 and received his EMBA degree from China Europe International Business School in 2001.

LOCAL

Airport expansion

Shenzhen will invest 6 billion yuan to expand Shenzhen Baoan International Airport, according to the Shenzhen bureau of public works.

Shenzhen will reclaim 13.23 sq km from the sea beside Baoan International Airport. A 3,600 m runway, a parallel runway, a new terminal building and some supporting facilities will be built on the reclaimed area.

The expansion project aims to enable the airport handle 30 million passengers and 1.5 million tons of cargo per year in order to meet the development goal of Shenzhen's aviation portfolio by 2015.

Wind power

Jiuquan, in Gansu province, will exploit its rich wind-power resources to become a global giant in the field of renewable energy.

Altogether 28 new wind farms, with a combined installed capacity of 10.65 million kW, will be built around Jiuquan, a far-flung Gobi desert city by 2015.

(China Daily 05/07/2008 page15)