Beijing's policy to spur domestic spending is prompting retail giants to step up their push into the mainland market. Fast food chain McDonald's Corp said it would double its outlets to more than 2,000 in three years, increasing investment by 40% next year only. Separately, Swedish-based furniture retailer Ikea announced its plans to invest about Rmb1bn (USD150m) to build a second store in Beijing that would open for business in 2012. The store, with 50,000 sq. m of retail space, is to be located in Daxing district.

 

 

 

 

Fisker Automotive, an American automaker of electric vehicles based in Irvine, California, plans to sell its luxury Karma model in China, teaming up with a local distributor of top auto brands. Fisker has reached a deal with vehicle retailer and service provider China Grand Automotive Group to sell Fisker vehicles in its more than 200 outlets. The Fisker Karma is due to debut in China at the Shanghai Auto show next April and to begin deliveries by the autumn, according to the company statement on its website. The company plans to sell 15,000 Karma vehicles per year globally.

 

 

 

 

According to the Obama administration’s statement two days of talks with a high-level delegation from China produced results that should benefit US companies ranging from manufacturers of computer software and wind turbines to beef producers. The agreements announced cover areas that have been the source of sharp disagreement between the two nations, and which a series of US administrations have failed to resolve. These include rampant piracy of US IP and China's continued barriers to American beef.

 

 

 

 

Singapore health-care services firm Raffles Medical is prepared to invest up to SGD300m (USD228.5m) to build an international hospital in China, according to its chairman Loo Choon Yong. Raffles, which has already opened a medical centre in Shanghai, may set up a general hospital with a few areas of excellence such as cancer treatment, cardiology and fertility. Loo said Raffles may enter a JV or make its own investment with a mix of internal cash, debt and equity. It may take about three years to build a hospital from the time a suitable site in one of T1 cities is found, according to the chairman.

 

 

 

 

Tencent Holdings Ltd began offering its instant message service to overseas users launching its multi-language version of the online chatting tool. According to Marc Violo, product manager of the newly launched instant messaging product that is currently available in English, Japanese and French, QQ International (QQi) offers a bridge to non-Chinese users to connect with the huge user base in China. QQi, available on Windows and Mac OS, integrates third-party applications through which Tencent\'s local partners provide information and news for expatriates. According to the company, it already has 2m registered users.

 

 

 

 

Korean Air is adding a new route to boost its growing Chinese market presence, as its air passenger revenue in 2010 from the country surged 33% yoy, according to the company statement. The carrier plans to launch a route in H1 of 2011, connecting Cheongju, a city two hours by car from Seoul, and Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang province. The Korean carrier also plans to expand its presence in second-tier cities in central China, including Wuhan and Xi'an, and it will increase the frequency of flights on its existing routes serving Zhengzhou, Jinan and Kunming.