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HONG KONG, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Zeekr, Chinese automaker Geely's upmarket electric car brand, has confidentially filed for a U.S. initial public offering, aiming to raise more than $1 billion, three sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. That compares with a valuation of about $9 billion in its maiden external fundraising last year. In doing so, it joins a growing list of Chinese automakers looking to launch or expand sales of EVs in the region. According to two of the sources, Zeekr also considered Hong Kong as its listing venue but picked New York in the hope of achieving a higher valuation. It said in October it would spin Zeekr off but did not identify a listing venue or the likely value of an offering.

CONTAGION RISKTrust firms were dubbed "shadow banks" because of how they operated outside many of the rules that govern commercial banks. Zhongrong International Trust has been working with local governments, including Qingdao provincial authorities, to source early stage deals in intelligent manufacturing, an executive there said. CCB Trust, Zhongrong International Trust and Avic Trust did not respond to requests for comment. Ping An Trust, Zhongrong International Trust, Everbright Xinglong Trust and Minmetals International Trust have all bought project companies from struggling developers in the last few months, corporate records and company announcements showed. Ping An Trust, Zhongrong International Trust, Everbright Xinglong Trust and Minmetals International Trust did not respond to requests for comment.

HONG KONG/BEIJING, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Chinese regulators and state-owned banks are taking steps to split staff at their workplaces in Beijing, sources told Reuters, as businesses brace for a possible spike in COVID cases after China relaxed virus restrictions in a major policy shift. Other staff are required to work from home, they added. Among China's big four state-owned banks, Bank of China (BOC) (601988.SS) has released a notice to staff that it would split its Beijing workforce into three groups, working in the office on alternate weeks, said a person with direct knowledge. But the bank has yet to decide when to start such rotations, the person added. Other large state banks have also made similar arrangements - splitting up staff into rotating shifts while maintaining a maximum of 10%-20% of staff occupancy in their headquarters in Beijing, said two other people with knowledge of the matter.

HONG KONG, Dec 5 (Reuters) - China may announce 10 new COVID-19 easing measures as early as Wednesday, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters, supplementing 20 unveiled in November that set off a wave of COVID easing steps nationwide. Management of the disease may be downgraded as soon as January, to the less strict Category B from the current top-level Category A of infectious disease, the sources said on Monday, speaking on condition of anonymity. China will allow home quarantine for some of those testing positive, among the supplementary measures set to be announced, two sources told Reuters last week. COVID-19 could be downgraded to Category B management or even Category C, the expert told Yicai. read moreWriting by Ryan Woo; Editing by Alison Williams and Clarence FernandezOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Analysis: Saudi prince seeks Mideast leadership, independence with Xi's visit
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-04 | by ( Aziz El Yaakoubi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

The Saudi government did not respond to requests for comment on Xi's visit and its agenda. It is China's top oil supplier, although fellow OPEC+ producer Russia has increased its Chinese market share with lower-priced fuel. The Chinese delegation is expected to sign dozens of agreements with Saudi Arabia and other Arab states covering energy, security and investments, diplomats have told Reuters. U.S. officials have declined to comment when asked about Saudi-China bilateral relations ahead of Xi's visit. "The relationships with China pale versus those with the United States in terms of both complexity and intimacy," he said.

HONG KONG/SHANGHAI/BEIJING, Dec 2 (Reuters) - China has ordered its top four state-owned banks to issue offshore loans to help developers repay overseas debt, three people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters, rolling out its latest support measure for the cash-starved property sector. The regulators have given 'window guidance', or verbal orders that leave no paper trail, to the banks, setting a date of Dec. 10 by which to make the loans secured against domestic assets, two of the sources said. Funds received after the latest step will allow developers to repay offshore loans and dollar bonds in a bid to repair global investors' bruised confidence in the sector, two of the sources said. Each of the four banks, Bank of China (601988.SS), China Construction Bank (601939.SS), Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (601398.SS) and Agricultural Bank of China (601288.SS), will pick several developers to fund, the three sources said. The People's Bank of China, the central bank, and the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC) did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.

Funds flowing from banks will allow developers to repay offshore loans and dollar bonds, helping to repair global investors' bruised confidence, two of the sources said. Each of the four banks, Bank of China (601988.SS), China Construction Bank (601939.SS), Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (601398.SS) and Agricultural Bank of China (601288.SS), will pick several developers to fund, the three sources said. The third source said that, while the big four banks preferred fresh lending to go to state-backed developers, they would have to include some private firms, which have a greater need for offshore loans. Chinese banks make offshore loans secured against domestic assets to companies that need foreign funds, but regulatory tightening in the last couple of years to rein in debt-fuelled empire-building by corporates hampered that kind of lending. China's central bank will also offer cheap loans to financial firms to buy bonds issued by property developers, separate sources have told Reuters.

☆ Evergrande's EV unit suspends mass production due to lack of orders -sources
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SHANGHAI, Dec 2 (Reuters) - China Evergrande Group's electric vehicle unit has suspended mass production of its only model due to a lack of new orders, two people with knowledge of the matter said, in the latest set of troubles facing the indebted property developer. China Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group (0708.HK) said in mid-September that it had started mass production of the Hengchi 5 model at a plant in the northern city of Tianjin and in late October said it had delivered its first 100 cars. It was not immediately clear how long mass production would stay suspended for. In July，the unit said it had received non-binding pre-orders for more than 37,000 units of the Hengchi 5. Competition in the EV sector has also been intensifying, with Tesla cutting prices and offering incentives in China, weighing on other loss-making competitors.

☆ Exclusive: China to allow home quarantine for some infected with COVID
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Julie Zhu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

HONG KONG, Dec 1 (Reuters) - China will allow some people who test positive for COVID-19 to quarantine at home, among supplementary measures to be announced in coming days, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters. Home isolation for the infected would be a significant change in China's quarantine protocols. Earlier this year, entire communities were locked down, sometimes for weeks, after even just one positive case was found. Last month, new and easier quarantine rules required just the lockdown of affected buildings. Vice Premier Sun Chunlan, who oversees China's counter COVID efforts, on Wednesday urged further "optimisation" of testing, treatment and quarantine policies.

RIYADH/HONG KONG, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia plans to host a Chinese-Arab summit on Dec. 9 attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping during his visit to the kingdom, three Arab diplomats in the region familiar with the plans said on Wednesday. Invitations have gone out to leaders in the Middle East and North Africa for the Chinese-Arab gathering, the diplomats said. The Saudi government communications office did not immediately respond to a request for comment about Xi's visit or summit timing. The Chinese delegation is expected to sign dozens of agreements and memoranda of understanding with Gulf nations and other Arab states covering energy, security and investments, the diplomats said without elaborating. "The level of representation depends on each country with many Arab leaders expected to attend, others would send at least their foreign ministers," one of the Arab diplomats told Reuters.

HONG KONG/SHANGHAI, Nov 25 (Reuters) - China's central bank will offer cheap loans to financial firms for buying bonds issued by property developers, four people with direct knowledge of the matter said, the strongest policy support yet for the crisis-hit sector. China has stepped up support in recent weeks for the property sector, a pillar accounting for a quarter of the world's second-biggest economy. As a result of the crackdown, though, property sales and prices fell, developers defaulted on bonds and suspended construction. Chinese media reported on Monday the central bank planned to provide 200 billion yuan in interest-free relending loans to commercial banks through the end of March for housing completions. Among other recent official support, China's interbank bond market regulator said this month it would widen a programme to support about 250 billion yuan ($35 billion) of debt offerings by private firms.

The report noted that potential disposals of non-core assets may include Fosun's stake in Cainiao. According to Refinitiv data, Fosun has agreed to sell or sold over $5 billion in assets this year. Reuters reported on Tuesday that Fosun has appointed Deutsche Bank to sell its stake in reinsurance company Peak Re. read moreIn 2013, Fosun had invested 500 million yuan as a co-founder of Cainiao, the logistics firm that underpins delivery for Alibaba's e-commerce marketplaces. Cainiao raked in 26 billion yuan in revenue in the six months ended September, up 19% year-on-year and accounting for 6% of Alibaba's total revenue.

HONG KONG, Nov 22 (Reuters) - Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) has laid off about one-third of its China-based investment banking team and nearly half of its research department, sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters, as part of a global restructuring and as its China business slows. Credit Suisse declined to make specific comments on the layoffs in China when contacted by Reuters. Two sources said that more than 20 China-based investment bankers have been notified about the job cuts at Credit Suisse Securities (China), the bank's 51%-owned joint venture. Credit Suisse's China annual report shows it had 68 people in its investment banking department at the end of last year. At Credit Suisse's China venture, about 10 research staff have been let go, the sources said.

☆ Exclusive: China set to fine Ant Group over $1 billion, signalling revamp nears end-sources
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Julie Zhu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The central bank has been in informal communication with Ant about the fine over the past few months, said three of the sources. It plans to hold more discussions with other regulators about Ant's revamp later this year and announce the fine as soon as the second quarter of next year, said a source. Ant's fine would be the largest regulatory penalty imposed on a Chinese internet company since ride-hailing major Didi Global was fined $1.2 billion by China's cybersecurity regulator in July. The fintech firm's affiliate, e-commerce titan Alibaba Group (9988.HK), last year received a record fine of 18 billion yuan ($2.51 billion) for antitrust violations. The PBOC, however, is unlikely to formally disclose the application till Ant wraps up its revamp, added the sources.

☆ EXCLUSIVE Evergrande eyes onshore assets as sweetener for offshore debt restructuring -sources
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Clare Jim | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Once China's top-selling property developer, Evergrande has been at the centre of a deepening property debt crisis that has seen multiple developers default on offshore debt obligations over the past year, leaving many negotiating debt restructuring. Evergrande's $22.7 billion worth of offshore debt, including loans and private bonds, is deemed to be in default after missed payment obligations late last year. Chinese developers including Evergrande - the world's most indebted - typically have few assets abroad that can be used in offshore debt restructuring. It said it expected due diligence work on the group to be completed soon after the update, and aimed to announce a specific restructuring plan before year-end. Evergrande and bondholders are now trying to determine what onshore assets could be offered as credit enhancement, the two people said.

☆ Exclusive: Evergrande eyes onshore assets as sweetener for offshore debt restructuring
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Clare Jim | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

HONG KONG/WASHINGTON, Nov 16 (Reuters) - U.S. regulators gained "good access" in their review of auditing work done on New York-listed Chinese firms during a seven-week inspection, four sources with knowledge of the matter said - a key step forward in resolving a long-standing bilateral dispute. Inspectors with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) conducting the inspection in Hong Kong gained all the information they requested, one of the sources said. They were also allowed to print out some documents to more easily review information despite some initial hesitancy from Chinese officials, the source said. Authorities in China have long been reluctant to let overseas regulators inspect local accounting firms, citing national security concerns. Reporting by Xie Yu and Julie Zhu in Hong Kong, Chris Prentice in Washington; Editing by Sumeet Chatterjee and Edwina GibbsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

HONG KONG/SYDNEY, Nov 15 (Reuters) - The fintech arm of Chinese e-commerce firm JD.Com (9618.HK) aims to win Beijing regulators' approval to list in Hong Kong as soon as the end of the year, three people with direct knowledge of the matter said, after a first attempt failed earlier this year. Reuters reported in May that JD Tech's original plan for a Hong Kong IPO was put on ice because it could not get regulatory approval for the deal to proceed. As a domestically incorporated company, JD Tech - JD.Com's fintech, cloud and artificial intelligence unit - needs approval from the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) to list offshore, including in the Chinese-controlled territory of Hong Kong. JD Tech, which was hived off as a separate unit in mid-2017, had appointed several banks to work on the IPO, but progress had slowed as it failed to win regulatory approval first time around, sources have previously told Reuters. read moreReporting by Julie Zhu and Kane Wu in Hong Kong and Scott Murdoch in Sydney; Editing by Sumeet Chatterjee and Kenneth MaxwellOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

SHENZHEN, China/HONG KONG, Nov 15 (Reuters) - Chinese tech giant Tencent Holdings (0700.HK) has begun a new round of job cuts targeted at its video streaming, gaming and cloud businesses, four sources close to the matter said. Two of the sources said some staff in IEG were informed last week they were being laid off. Tencent already cut jobs earlier this year, alongside peers, including Alibaba Group (9988.HK) and smaller Chinese tech companies such as Xiaohongshu. In August, Tencent disclosed its employee numbers fell to 110,715 by the end of June from 116,213 in March. Refintiv data shows analysts expect Tencent to report flat revenues or a small contraction on Wednesday, when it publishes third-quarter results.

☆ Ant's consumer finance unit to more than double capital to $2.62 bln
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

HONG KONG, Nov 14 (Reuters) - The consumer finance unit of China's Ant Group will increase its registered capital to 18.5 billion yuan ($2.62 billion) from 8 billion yuan previously, and take on new investors, an exchange filing released on Monday said. Ant, which will retain its 50% stake in the unit, Chongqing Ant Consumer Finance Co Ltd, will invest 5.25 billion yuan as part of the capital injection, according to the filing made by the unit's minority shareholder Yuyue medical (002223.SZ). Hangzhou Jintou Digital Technology Group, a company controlled by the local government, will invest 1.85 billion yuan and become the second biggest shareholder with a 10% stake, according to the filing. ($1 = 7.0662 Chinese yuan renminbi)Reporting by Julie Zhu; Editing by Toby Chopra and Susan FentonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

HONG KONG, Nov 5 (Reuters) - U.S. audit watchdog's onsite inspection of the audit work of New York-listed Chinese companies, which started in Hong Kong in September, has ended, three people with knowledge of the matter said, raising hopes of a resolution of a long-pending dispute. The inspection started in Hong Kong after the two countries signed a pact in August to resolve a dispute that threatened to exclude more than 200 Chinese companies, including tech giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (9988.HK), from U.S. exchanges. Reuters reported in August that U.S. regulators had picked a number of U.S.-listed Chinese companies, including e-commerce groups Alibaba and Yum China Holdings Inc for onsite audit inspection. U.S. regulators have for more than a decade demanded access to audit papers of U.S.-listed Chinese companies, but Beijing has been reluctant to let U.S. regulators inspect its accounting firms, citing national security concerns. Reporting by Xie Yu and Julie Zhu in Hong Kong; additional reporting by Chris Prentice in Washington; Editing by Sumeet Chatterjee, Louise Heavens and Jane MerrimanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

HONG KONG, Nov 4 (Reuters) - China may soon shorten COVID-19 quarantine requirements for inbound travellers from the current 10 days to seven or eight days, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Friday. Such a move would follow China's decision in June to slash quarantine time for inbound travellers by half. Health officials at the time said the shorter incubation period of the Omicron variant allowed for shorter quarantine times. Travel in and out of China has plunged as the country pursues "dynamic COVID zero" policies that include mandatory quarantine and RT-PCR tests for travellers upon arrival. International flights to and from China are at a small fraction of pre-COVID levels.

HONG KONG, Nov 3 (Reuters) - Wall Street major Morgan Stanley (MS.N) is expected to start a fresh round of layoffs globally in the coming weeks, three people with knowledge of the plan said, as dealmaking business takes a hit due to rising inflation and an economic downturn. One of the sources said the bank's 30-plus technology investment banking team in Asia Pacific will also be affected by the cuts. Morgan Stanley last month reported a 30% slump in third-quarter profit, missing analysts' estimate as a slowdown in global dealmaking hurt its investment bank business. Gorman is currently in Hong Kong at a high-profile financial summit aimed at re-opening the city to international investors after nearly three years of strict COVID restrictions. Reporting by Kane Wu and Julie Zhu in Hong Kong, Scott Murdoch in Sydney and Lananh Nguyen in New York; Editing by Sumeet Chatterjee and Richard PullinOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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