NORTH AMERICA

U.S. to continue probes against steel cylinder imports from ChinaThe U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) on June 24 cleared the way for the U.S. government to continue anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigations against imports of high-pressure steel cylinders from China.The USITC determined that there was “reasonable”indication that a U.S. industry had been materially hurt by high-pressure steel cylinders from China， which were allegedly subsidized by the Chinese government and sold in the United States at less than fair value.As a result， the U.S. Commerce Department will continue its antidumping and countervailing duty probes that began on May 31 against these Chinese products.U.S. manufacturer Norris Cylinder Company has asked for anti-dumping duties of up to 176.25 percent to offset what it says is unfairly low prices charged by its Chinese competitors. The company also wants the U.S. government to impose additional countervailing duties on these Chinese products.U.S. Commerce Department is expected to make its preliminary ruling on the countervailing duty investigation in August and on the anti-dumping duty investigation in October. (Xinhua)Co-op between Chinese， US companies promote energy-efficientThe ongoing cooperation among Chinese and U.S. companies and cities could help local neighborhoods to become more energy-efficient against the backdrop of spiking energy prices， two energy giants’ executives told Xinhua in a recent interview.“We have been working together on a range of things”from solar projects to the eco-city initiative， James Rogers， chairman of Duke Energy， said on the sidelines of an Asia Society event.“Our mission is to help make our communities the most energy- efficient ones in the world，” said Rogers， also chief executive officer of the North Carolina-based Fortune 500 company.Duke Energy and ENN in May paired with Charlotte in North Carolina and Langfang in northern China’s Hebei Province to ink a four-party eco-partnership deal， as the two cities will collaborate on promoting energy-efficiency education and encouraging local community action.Duke Energy will collaborate and share knowledge with ENN in developing the eco-city and adapt what is learned from the eco-city development as it deploys energy technologies in its U.S. service areas in the future.The cooperation between governments and between businesses will create new “insight and value”， and it will turn out to be mutually beneficial to local people， Rogers said.This agreement is of critical importance， as both nations share similar energy and environmental challenges， Wang Yusuo， chairman of ENN， a leading Chinese private energy company， told Xinhua.“The eco-city initiative will target at energy generation， transmission， use and recovery， which is important for future city planning and could provide more energy options to consumers in the future，” Wang noted.The technical groups of two companies have been mapping out the action road map and time frame in a bid to promote the joint development of technologies to help build green cities， Wang said. (Xinhua)Ministry: US export control disappoints ChinaA spokesman of the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said on June 28 China is deeply disappointed at the United States’ decision to withhold export control of high-tech products to China， saying such move was “discriminatory.”“The persistent US discrimination against China is not in line with the efforts to establish a Sino-US cooperative relationship of mutual respect that benefits each other，” said MOC spokesman Yao Jian in a statement on MOC website.The remarks of discontent came after the US Department of Commerce rejected the inclusion of China into its new list of license exception， Strategic Trade Authorization(STA)， this month.“On one hand， the United States is mad at its trade deficit with China， yet it restricts exports to China and refuses to facilitate imports by Chinese companies，” Yao said， adding that such moves are contradictory.Yao said US exports to China have expanded rapidly in recent years， but exports of high-tech items lag far behind goods such as agricultural products.China’s trade with the United States climbed by 22.3 percent to $169.52 billion in the first five months of this year with a trade surplus of US$65.5 billion， according to the Customs data.Yao said the Chinese market potential would open up huge business opportunities for US companies to widen their exports to China.“The unreasonable export control not only constrains the trade development between the two countries， but directly damages the interests of US firms and reduces their job opportunities，” he added.According to the US Commerce Department， the STA regime aims to build higher fences around a core set of items whose misuse can pose “a national security threat” to the United States.The new US license exception given to 44 countries and regions eliminated the need for US exporters to seek licenses in nearly 3，000 types of transactions annually.Items such as electronic components for use on the International Space Station， cameras for search and rescue efforts for fire departments， components for civil aviation navigation systems for commercial aircraft， airport scanners， and toxins for vaccine research will be eligible for the new license exception.Yao reiterated that loosening of export control against China is a major concern for China. (Xinhua)China boosts US debt holdings in AprilChina upped its holdings of U.S. Treasury debt by US$7.6 billion in April， the first increase after five straight declines， the Treasury Department said on June 15.From last November to March this year， China cut its total holdings by US$30.4 billion. Despite the reduction， China remains the largest buyer of U.S. Treasury debt.This latest increase brings total U.S. Treasury debt held by the People’s Bank of China to US$1.1525 trillion.Japan， the second largest foreign holder of U.S. Treasury debt， cut its holdings by US$1 billion last month， bringing its total down to US$906.9 billion.Britain， the third largest holder， bought US$7.8 billion of U.S. Treasury debt in April， bringing its holdings up to US$333 billion.Total foreign holdings of U.S. Treasury securities reached US$4.4891 trillion in April.China also boosted its holdings of Japanese long-term debt last month by 1.33 billion yen， its largest purchase since January 2005. (China.org.cn)China securities regulator says looking into accounting issuesCorporate misbehaviour， unfamiliarity with the U.S. market and some practices involved in overseas listings had all contributed to recent investor distrust of Chinese companies， said Wang Ou， vice head of research at the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC).“First， we have to admit that some of our companies may have flaws. Second， our (companies’) understanding of the U.S. market and the measures to tackle risk there may be inadequate，” Wang said at a conference in Beijing this weekend.“We have contacts with the U.S. and its relevant regulatory bodies and we’re studying the issue together.”Reuters saw the footage of his comments in a video posted on the China Business News website.Investors have sold off foreign-listed Chinese companies in recent weeks following a flurry of accounting scandals and fraud allegations.On June 27th， shares in meat processor China Yurun Food (1068.HK) dived 20 percent on market speculation that short-seller Muddy Waters was about to issue a negative report on the company.Wang’s comments coincide with a visit to Beijing by officials from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board.The delegation arrived in Beijing to meet Chinese regulators to discuss cross-boarder oversight， hoping to sign an agreement on accounting supervision by the end of this year， the official Xinhua News Agency reported on June 24.However， experts are doubtful whether there is much the CSRC can do to deal with the situation as most of the Chinese companies listed overseas have an offshore parent company.“All the CSRC is likely to do is to try to stop Chinese companies from listing abroad without their permission， but it’s a difficult problem for them because they really don’t have jurisdiction over them， so these companies fall into a regulatory black hole，” said Paul Gillis， visiting professor of accounting at Peking University’s Guanghua School of Management.Much of the questionable accounting has involved reverse mergers， a type of backdoor listing in which a foreign company merges with a U.S. shell company.To overcome regulatory hurdles， many Chinese companies have also set up legal structures under which control of a mainland-based company can be transferred to an overseas entity via certain contracts.CSRC’s Wang said this practice would expose Chinese companies to potential legal risks， another source of worry for overseas investors. (Reuters)Tianjin pharma firm to build base in USTianjin-based pharmaceutical company Tasly Group is investing $40 million to build a production and training center in Maryland， US， to help prepare for the entry of its Compound Danshen Dripping Pills (CDDP) into the American market， the company announced in Shanghai on June 2nd.The 430，000-square-foot facility is expected to be complete within a year and a half， and will serve as a base for further clinical trials of CDDP as well as its future production， packaging and warehousing.CDDP is a TCM (traditional Chinese medicine) for treating coronary diseases. It started its US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) application in 1997 and successfully passed the Phase II clinical trial last year. If it passes the Phase III trials， it will be the first combination Chinese medicine – which means it includes both Western medicine and TCM – given the all clear for marketing in the US.The company expects to put its star product on US store shelves as early as 2014， benefiting some 10 million patients， it said.“Tasly Group aims to become an international company and help push forward TCM onto the global market，” Tasly chairman Yan Xijun said.While many TCM companies are busy applying for approvals from the European Union (EU)， Tasly is focusing on FDA approval.“FDA certification is even stricter than that of the EU， so if CDDP passes FDA tests， entry into the EU will be an easier process and the company will achieve its global goal，”Guo Fanli， pharmaceutical researcher at the CIC industry research center， said.“Tasly’s domestic test results show that CDDP is safe， so we expect it to pass the Phase III test. But if it fails， the company will have to turn its focus back to the domestic market，”Guo said. (Global Times)