Global automakers unveil local brands of China

SHANGHAI (AP) - some of the new Chinese cars unveiled at the Auto Shanghai Show this week are affordable for millions of buyers - a happy development for Beijing which could prove costly for global vehicle manufacturers, their production.

General Motors Co. has unveiled the 630 sedan, the first model of its new Baojun badge developed with joint venture partners China. The four doors is based on an older GM car and will have a sticker price of 70 000 to 100 000 yuan (10,700 15 300 $).

Honda Motor Co. posted the S1 four doors clear, compact at the auto show, the first of its new range of Everus which is on sale this week. Nissan Motor Co. showed off the coast of a car without a name, that it intends to sell next year under the Venucia brand.

These so-called "indigenous" marks will be sold in China and their prices are aimed at a segment of the market which is already crowded with cars of lower Chinese brands. They will also be competing with of entry existing models of the Medal of honour of automobiles foreign.

The car makers say they are introducing nameplates with their Chinese joint venture partners so that they can take advantage of the growth of the middle class in China's expansion.

But industry observers, say that this is a new tactic by the Chinese Government, which is not satisfied with the failure of automakers belonging to the State to win market share important for Chinese brands since in partnership with foreigners.

When global car manufacturers between all first in China a quarter of a century ago, they were required to operate in joint ventures designed to help local partners learn and grow. Foreign manufacturers are allowed to keep hold of their technology and other intellectual property in those original agreements. Both parties were happy to divide the fat profits, but the results disappointed the Chinese Communist leaders because international brands such as Buick, Honda and Volkswagen now dominate with 70% of the market.

Manufacture of Chinese models is the "new cost of access to the market" for global automakers, said Mike Dunne, whose consultancy, Dunne & Co., specializing in car Asia markets.

"Beijing is not happy," so authorities has developed a new set of rules that would require some automakers share their technology if they want to expand in China, said Dunne, who wrote a book on the history of General Motors in China.

The car makers did admit that what is happening because it would be "politically incorrect", he said. In doing so, he would risk the ire of Beijing.

Nissan has released some details on the car, that it intends to sell under the brand name Venucia with partner Dongfeng Motor, including price. The company plans to open 100 dealers the year next to sell the car.

Kimiyasu Nakamura, President of the Japanese automaker Dongfeng joint venture, acknowledged the possibility that the new car would be "cannibalize" sales of Nissan of entry-level Sunny.

GM has denied that it was counterproductive in the launch of Baojun, saying: he has decided to create the mark four years to sell cars in the Inland cities of China, where he sees great potential for growth.

"630 Baojun will address the growing demand for affordable transport nationwide," said GM China President Kevin Wale.

GM will make the Baojun, which translates Treasure horse, with the partners of joint venture between Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. and Wuling Automobile Co. cars bearing the insignia of Baojun will be produced at its plant in Guangxi in the southwest of China. They will be sold to approximately 300 dealers before the end of the year.

PSA Peugeot Citroen Chief Executive Philippe Varin said develops a third mark was "part of the deal" for its new joint venture with the car of Chang group ' year, according to a report in the Financial Times in March. Peugeot would not comment on the report.

The French automaker is waiting for final approval for the new operation, which will add the production capacity of 200,000 vehicles and engines a year at a plant in the South of the city of Shenzhen.

Volkswagen AG, Toyota Motor Co., and Hyundai Motor Co. are also considering launching China only brands, said Dunne. Ford China CEO Joe Hinrichs, however, rejected the idea.

The desire by international companies, auto conclude agreements highlights how strongly they are focusing on the automotive market of China, which has been the world more than two consecutive years. Vehicle sales soared by a third party in 2010 in the previous year to 18 million, including $ 13.7 million cars. Sales in China are crucial for the benefits of global car companies, experiencing slower growth of sales in developed Western markets.

Baojun is part of the GM strategy to double sales in China 5 million vehicles by 2015. Nissan, which now earns much of its profits from China, is the growth of sales 15 percent this year.

New nameplates are motorists looking cars good labor markets and prices are under $12,000, a market estimated at 1.8 million vehicles, about the same size as the auto market of the South Korea and twice the size as the Thailand. The segment is expected to increase by 2.5 million by 2015.

"It is bad news" for the automakers, said Klaus Paur, an analyst with Synovate Motoresearch. "These additional markings are competing Chinese brands but also competitors of international brands so comprehensive that Nobody is willing to push in this direction."

PAUR and Dunne said foreign makers will likely bypass the requirements of Beijing at least in part using older technology in new brands.

630 Baojun is based on the platform of GM's Optra, which is at least eight years old.

Everus S1 is based on the old city and will sell for about $10 700 to 470 Honda dealers in China. The Japanese manufacturer is working with the current joint venture partner group Automobile's Guangzhou to run the mark, also known under his Chinese name Li Nian, which means the idea or theory.

But they will be adding other competitions to a market which is already crowded with 84 brands. It's at a time when sales growth in China car market should cool to about 10% per year.

"Competition wars are about to get serious in China as vehicle market growth cools, and the struggle for market share will intensify, said IHS automotive analyst Paul Newton."

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China to hold talks next week human rights

"Discussions will focus on the evolution of the human rights, including the recent negative tendency of enforced disappearances, illegal detention and arrests and convictions, and the rule of law, freedom of religion, freedom of expression, the rights of labour", the rights of minorities and other issues of concern human rights "the State Department,"said in a news release.

The talks will be held on April 27 and 28 with the Assistant Secretary for democracy, the of the human rights and labor Michael Posner, leading a delegation interagency talks, said the statement.

China has recently extended a crackdown on dissidents, human rights lawyers and protesters challenging the Communist party controls, repression that caused an outcry in Washington and other Western capitals.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said earlier this month that it was "deeply concerned" on the Suppression of China and city "negative tendencies", including the detention of the Chinese artist Ai Weiwei human rights activist.

IA, 53, was arrested on 3 April, he was preparing to Commission a flight to Hong Kong from Beijing. Chinese police said IA, a critique of China's ruling Communist Party, is under investigation for "suspected economic crimes."

China has said that he was willing to discuss its differences on the rights of man "with mutual respect" with the United States after rejecting a critical official report from Washington as interference in its internal affairs.

The State Department said that the talks, the next week would be a channel of in-depth discussions on issues of rights of man between American and Chinese experts.

(Reported by JoAnne Allen;) (Editing by Sandra Maler)

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Political focus of China for the G-20

WASHINGTON - The United States and their allies, frustrated in their efforts to put pressure on China to change its economic policies, are looking to join other nations in developing an international campaign that China may find more acceptable.

At a meeting of Finance Ministers of the Group of 20 nations Friday, the United States hope to advance a set of proposed standards to judge the risks posed by the individual nations for the global economy. These standards could be used at the end of the year to shed light on China to remove its currency to keep its cheap exports.

Even if the exercise is successful, the benefits are probably tangible step or claire. The United States and China have ropin' years on the relative value of their currencies. The Chinese have made modest concessions in recent years, but mainly because internal concerns about inflation and economic dependence on exports.

A senior Treasury official said that it was important for countries to establish common standards, and in particular to highlight the large deficits and large surpluses was both sides of the same issue and deserve the same concern.

"This has not been on the table in the past, but it is that the conversation is moving now and that is useful, said Lael Brainard, Treasury Undersecretary for International Affairs."

The purpose of standards is not lost on China, which has resisted the procedure. In February, the Chinese fought successfully to exclude a significant degree, the reserves of foreign currency from the list of proposed standards.

China holds more than 2.85 trillions of dollars in foreign currency, largest reserve in the world. He pursued a policy aggressive renminbi of printing to buy foreign currency, the value of these currencies of lifting and pressed, the value of its own.

Earlier this week, a senior Chinese official has published an article blasting the standards as a "political tool" intended to make developing nations like China to pay for the economic recovery of the developed countries such as the United States.

Li Yong, vice Minister of finance, has written that developed countries were responsible for their own currencies overprinting, conduct rise the price of basic products and the creation of inflationary pressures in developing countries. Mr. Li wrote that the real purpose of these countries was to increase demand for their exports.

"The problem of external imbalances is a sensitive issue related to the rights of development and growth of China and other potential economies emerging and is another political tool, after the exchange rate used by the developed countries such as the United States to curb the economic development of China's"Mr. Li wrote in the article""which was published on the website of the Ministry of finance.

Still, China has evolved slowly in the direction sought by the international community in recent years. China leaders adopted a plan of five years in October that calls for domestic consumption replace exports as the driver of economic growth. The country also allowed its currency appreciate 4.4 per cent against the dollar since last June. US officials described it as a 10 percent effective increase because the rate of inflation in China is much higher in the United States.

The United States adopted a role for the Group of 20 as the main forum for international economic coordination.

The Group of 7, which has already played this role, is composed of nations whose economy is driven by consumption and the currencies that float freely in response to the request. The new seats at the table, however, take place primarily by countries such as China, the India and the Brazil who manage their currencies to create a competitive advantage for their exports.

There is broad agreement that defines the relationship unbalanced between these two countries - receivable on the one hand, the exporters of the other - is a major fault that threatens global stability. There is much less agreement on the proper allocation of economic pain associated with possible solutions.

The objective of the current process is to break this controversial pieces manageable. France, the current Chairman of the group, has spent this year trying simply to create an agreement on the rules for the analysis of the nations which may be supplemented by time, heads of State gather in Cannes this fall. These rules would be used to single out nations that represent the greatest risks for further study.

A French official said he hoped there would be "further progress" Friday.

As to highlight the gap must be filled, the two parties will meet separately Thursday. The Group of 7 Finance Ministers consult quietly in Washington. During this time, heads of State of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - the emerging powers called BRIC - met on Chinese Hainan Island.

The Governor of the Central Bank of Australia, Glenn Stevens, meanwhile warned Wednesday there was too of focusing on the relationship between the United States and China.

In describing the problem of global imbalances in terms of both countries, he said, "risks simplify problems and therefore to reduce the likelihood of solutions". Mr. Stevens spoke to the American Australian Association in New York.

He noted that the United States described once Japan trade problems.

David Jolly contributed reporting from Paris and Xu Yan contributed research of Shanghai.

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China holds the worshippers to pray in Public - New York Times

BEIJING--The police arrested dozens of members of an underground Protestant Church Sunday after the Congregation tried to pray in a public square in the North of the capital.

The raid on the Church, which sought to pray outside after he was expelled from its building under pressure from the Government, was part of a broad crackdown on dissent in the past seven weeks. The campaign led to the imprisonment of scores of lawyers, writers and rights activists, and the repression of unauthorized worship.

Authorities also have a less obvious threats, cancellation of events also various the Saint Patrick's day parades and debate this weekend collegiate tournament.

The Protestant Church, Shouwang, was expelled last week from space that he rented after the landlord do step to renew pressure on the Government lease. The Congregation, whose 1,000 members are one of the largest churches not registered in China, sought legal recognition since 2006.

According to members of the Church, the pastor, the Reverend Tianming Jin and other church leaders were blocked by police to leave their homes Sunday. Dozens of members of the Church were seized as they emerged from the Metro station Zhongguangcun Plaza, a popular shopping area where the services were to take place.

By 8 o'clock in the morning, hundreds of police officers, two police officers in uniform and dress, invading the region. They interviewed the bystanders and grouping members of the Church on bus, dragging and shoving those who refuse to go.

At one point given, a group of police kicked and beat a group of four young people. As one of the buses is identified, the Congregation withdrew a prayer sheet and begins to sing.

A man who answered the phone at the Haidian police station, several blocks from the site of the planned service of prayer, declined to answer questions about the detentions. Most of those arrested Sunday have been brought to a nearby primary school, where they were briefly questioned and photographed. Among those detained was a photographer from the New York Times, which came out later.

After years of tolerance by the religious authorities churches not registered, called House Churches, have faced pressure to dissolve or to accede to the system of State-controlled congregations. The Government first forced Shouwang, meaning watchtower, out of his rented in 2008. In 2009, the church paid 4.1 million for a floor, in an office building but the owner, under pressure from the authorities, has refused to hand over the keys. Until last week, the Church had gathered in a restaurant.

The Church has not hidden its plans to gather outside, announcing the service on the Internet. In his last sermon last week, Mr. Jin warned his flock that they would probably meet resistance. "At this time, the challenges are enormous," he said. "For all that we met, we offer our thanks to God." "Compared to what you face on the cross, that we face today is really negligible."

Cancelled debate tournament was to have drawn students from 16 universities at the Institute of technology in Beijing, where they were to have ropin' on the theme of the Chinese revolution of 1911. The revolution against the Qing dynasty, a reputation that helped cement Sun Yatsen as the founding father of modern China, may not seem controversial at first glance.

But organizers can courted disorder by urging students to recognize, as the site Web of the tournament, only "" victory revolutionary source of inspiration, but what is hidden more deep below: the awakening of the consciousness of the people of the country and to the dissemination of the system of democracy. ""

Web site also encourages students to "think more deep of nationalism, democracy and livelihood, to continue to open new trails in a pioneering spirit, will keep fighting for the renovation and development of the nation".

Zhang Ming, a judge for the competition and a Professor of political science at the Renmin University in Beijing, said the municipal Committee of the Communist Youth League ordered the organizers to cancel the event Friday night, a day before the opening debate.

"Everyone was very disappointed", Mr Zhang said in a telephone interview Sunday. "It's really hate for them to do so." Organizers said they were trying to negotiate with the Committee, but they could not interfere with the decision. ?

Xiyun Yang contributed reporting.

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