Archives 2006

Chinese property market still attractive to foreign investors

Chinanews, Beijing, Oct. 12 ¨C Foreign investment activities in Chinese property market reached a climax during the first half of this year. According to Daily Economic News, a report titled “Globalization Leads to Investment Boom” and released by Jones Lang LaSalle, a world real estate services and money management firm, shows that as a burgeoning market, China remains attractive to foreign investors. During the first half of this year, direct investment in Chinese real estate market reached 4.75 billion US dollars, doubling the figure of the corresponding period of last year. The first-tier cities such as Beijing and Shanghai have become foreign businesspeople¡¯s most favorable places for making investments.

Global funds management companies have placed a large amount of their money into the Shanghai property market. By September 2006, 15 buildings had been entirely sold to one company. Transaction volume of these buildings reached 1.8 billion US dollars, most of the buyers being foreign investing companies based in the United States, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. Among these 15 buildings, seven are luxury hotel-style apartments or high-class residential houses later renovated into hotel-style apartments. Insiders say the best time has come for investors to buy luxury hotel-style apartments located in a good place in Shanghai, and their rents are climbing steadily.

Senior manager in Jones Lang LaSalle’s China office Deng Wenjie predicted that multinational companies would continue to expand their business in China. As China further opens its finance sector, more A-class offices will be in demand. As the number of foreign staff workers increases in China, it will stimulate the demand for luxury hotels and hotel-style apartments. Meanwhile, people¡¯s increasing disposable income and the ever-expanding middle class group will benefit domestic shopping malls greatly. As the market becomes more transparent, it will attract more foreign investment.

He also predicted that during the latter half of this year, more transaction deals would be clinched in China. Foreign investors who have a clear investment plan will further increase their investment in China. As competition becomes fierce in the first-tier cities, investors will shift to the second-tier cities to seek for gains.

Senior Financial Analyst

Company Introduction:
XXX is a world leader in enterprise infrastructure software, delivering powerful standards-based platforms for building enterprise applications and managing Service-Oriented Architectures even in heterogeneous IT environments.

This position is responsible to manage pipeline, analyze revenue transactions and generate various revenue reports of the Company in China. To be successful in this position, the person needs to possess excellent communication skills with hands-on experience in analyzing pipeline and revenue transactions in China.

Job responsibilities:
1.Manage the Pipeline and Tracking Process including consolidation of forecast inputs and plans from various regions/verticals, process improvements in the quality of the data and generation of various performance reports and trend reports;
2.Generate Management Reporting Pack including revenue analysis, deferred revenue analysis, product analysis, channel analysis, deal analysis and accounts receivable analysis;
3.Support the Finance Manager and Finance Team;
4.Support ad hoc requests from management;
5.Responsible for revenue reconciliations among Pipeline, General Ledger and Invoice Register.;
6.Responsible for deferred revenue reporting and reconciliation as well as movement analysis in the deferred revenue balances;
7.Participate and interface with other BEA organizations as required to support the pipeline and revenue analysis processes.

Qualifications/Necessary Skills:
1.At least 4 years related experience with a US MNC, IT Company is an advantage;
2.Understanding of SOP97-2 Revenue Recognition;
3.Knowledge of Forecast systems and PeopleSoft;
4.Good written and verbal communication skill in English;
5.Good analytical sense with strong financial background;
6.With positive working attitude and be able to work under pressure.

Education: Above Bachelor

* Please send us your complete resume (both in Chinese or in English) to: ‘topjob_fi112bj@dacare.com’

On-Site Support Engineer

Company Introduction:
XXX is a world leader in enterprise infrastructure software, delivering powerful standards-based platforms for building enterprise applications and managing Service-Oriented Architectures even in heterogeneous IT environments.

Job responsibilities:
1.Identify client critical/complex application issues through onsite support, recommend appropriate solutions, and resolve issue;
2.Communicate closely with the client about schedules, solution, possible risks, and appropriate action plan for system issues;
3.Working knowledge of the entire XXX product family and its application solution;
4.Familiarity with application architecture and risk assessment;
5.Ability to communicate effectively in both oral and written form;
6.Ability to manage client expectations and conflict at customer support;
7.Get high customer satisfaction through onsite support, help the services revenue income

Applicant requirements:
1.B.S. degree, preferably in computer science, information systems, engineering, or mathematics;
2.Typically 5+ years relevant technical work experience;
3.Typical experience in customer Supports, or developing software solutions on XXX product;
4.Ability and willingness to travel, as necessary.

Education: Bachelor or above

* Please send us your complete resume (both in Chinese and in English) to: ‘topjob_it076bj@dacare.com’

Internal Auditor

Company Introduction:
This company soon became a world-renowned camera maker and is now a global multimedia corporation. However, the origins of our success remain unchanged: the passion of our early years and technological expertise amassed over more than 60 years. Canon will continue using its technologies to benefit people as it pursues its objective of becoming a company that is loved by people throughout the world.

Job responsibilities:
1.Draft and implement audit programs based on company’s objective;
2.Practice the on-site audit and make the auditor’s comments;
3.Organize the group meeting for reporting risk and propose the solution to the management;
4.Join and work for the project of other organization;
5.Execute the prior investigation by collecting information and hearing.

Other relevant auditing works. Applicant requirements:
1.Nationality is Hong Kong;
2.Bachelor degree or above;
3.More than 5 years working experience in professional audit firms;
4.Familiar with the process of auditing and project management;
5.Excellent communication skill and interpersonal skill;
6.Excellent English or Japanese both in spoken and written;
7.Excellent PC skill.

Education: Bachelor or above

* Please send us your complete resume (both in Chinese and in English) to: ‘topjob_fi111bj@dacare.com’

Account Manager

Company Introduction:
XXX is a world leader in enterprise infrastructure software, delivering powerful standards-based platforms for building enterprise applications and managing Service-Oriented Architectures even in heterogeneous IT environments.

Job responsibilities:
1.Promote and sell XXX products and service to the targeted accounts: China Post and China Custom
2.Achieve or exceed the sales quota
3.Build up and/or maintain a good reputation of XXX among the targeted accounts and control the relationship with them
4.Find, plan and execute business opportunities which will turn out to be real revenue

Applicant requirements:
1.Bachelor’s degree in computer/telecom/electrical engineering or relevant field
2.Minimum 5-year’s working experience and 3 years or above sales experience in IT industry;
3.Must possess experience in software selling or solution selling
4.Good sales achievements and solid relation with targeted accounts is preferred;
5.Multinational company experience is preferred.
6.Strong sense of responsibility, willing to take more job beyond own scope to help to team to success
7.Hard working, result orientation, team spirit and willingness to take challenges.

Education: Bachelor or above

* Please send us your complete resume (both in Chinese and in English) to: ‘topjob_it075bj@dacare.com’

Market Research Manager

Company introduction:
As one of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies,our business is focused on turning good ideas into innovatives,effective medicines that make a real difference in important areas of the healthcare.

The Market Research manager position is charged with providing the brand team with penetrating and actionable insights gleaned through research, data and analyses. As a core member of brand team, the incumbent will support marketing managers by identifying business issues, designing research project, analyzing the results and providing actionable insights. In addition, the manager is responsible, by working with marketing team, in planning, executing and managing the market research budget for each brand.

Key Responsibilities:
1.Summarize insights learned from past research and agree with marketing on issues to be addressed
2.Identify and agree research projects to be done and associated cost, which is built into the brand action plan
3.Create RFP with brand managers and identify vendors to be invited
4.Independently design and manage market research projects,
5.Effectively communicate with key stakeholders on the research insights
6.Identify and agree with marketing on actions to address key business issues.
7.manage and build the Market research Repository
8.Proactively sharing learning cross brands,
9.Lead market research workshops
10.Build strong relations with high quality external vendors

Qualifications:
To qualify, candidates must have:
1.Bachelor required, but Master preferred in marketing, business administration, statistical analyses Advanced degrees desirable
2.Work Experience: Minimum of 3 years in role with brand management or marketing research responsibilities with min 1 year in pharmaceutical industry
3.Work Requirements: working knowledge of key China pharmaceutical data souces,such as Xiehe and IMS
4.Demonstrate strong skills in communicating with and persuading others
5.Cross functional experience in marketing,strategic planning.MBA is highly desirable
6.Hihgly skilled in powpoint,Excel.Ability to run functions/programming in Excel or other statistics

* Please send us your complete resume (both in Chinese and in English) to: ‘topjob_mkt146sh@dacare.com’

E-mail leads Morgan Stanley analyst to resign

SINGAPORE Andy Xie’s resignation as Morgan Stanley’s chief economist in Asia last week followed an e-mail message in which he characterized Singapore as an economic failure.

Xie, a Shanghai-born economist who worked at Morgan Stanley for nine years, sent the message to his colleagues after attending the International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meetings last month in the Southeast Asian island state.

In the e-mail message, he questioned why Singapore had been chosen as host for the conference and said that delegates “were competing with each other to praise Singapore as the success story of globalization.”

Xie also made unsubstantiated allegations about the use made of Singapore’s financial services by corrupt officials and businessmen in Indonesia.

The $118 billion Singaporean economy has experienced three recessions since the 1997 Asian financial crisis, and is expected to grow by as much as 7.5 percent this year.

The city-state is grappling with growing competition from China and India, the most populous and second most populous countries, respectively, where labor costs are less than a quarter of those in Singapore.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong of Singapore said last month that the city- state’s economy could sustain annual growth of 3 percent to 5 percent for the next 10 to 15 years as the country expanded industries from information technology to tourism.

Singapore is ending a four-decade ban on casinos. The government plans to triple tourism revenue to $19 billion and double visitors to 17 million by 2015.

Officials from the public relations departments of the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the government information service declined to comment on the contents of Xie’s message. They also declined to be identified.

When reached on his cellphone Monday, Xie said that he had not decided on what he would do next.

“I’m not at liberty to comment on anything,” Xie said. “I’m in Guangzhou, and I’m taking a break on top of a mountain. It’s quite nice here.”

Morgan Stanley confirmed the contents of the e-mail message, but the firm, based in New York, said that it did not elaborate on the reasons behind departures of employees.

“This is an internal e-mail based on personal suppositions and aimed at stimulating internal debate amongst a small group of intended recipients,” Cheung Po-ling, a spokeswoman for Morgan Stanley in Hong Kong, wrote in a statement. “The e-mail expresses the views of one individual, and does not in any way represent the views of the firm.”

“Morgan Stanley has been a very strong supporter of Singapore, and has a great deal of respect for Singapore’s achievements,” Cheung said.

Morgan Stanley has handled $1.5 billion in merger deals in Singapore this year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg News.

It advised Temasek Holdings, the Singapore government investment company, in its purchase in March of a 9.9 percent stake in Tata Teleservices, based in Mumbai, India.

Xie worked at the corporate finance division at Macquarie Bank in Singapore before joining Morgan Stanley.

Morgan Stanley star analyst Andy Xie resigns

BEIJING (Reuters) – Morgan Stanley’s star Asia Pacific economist, Andy Xie, has resigned and is expected to embark on a new career elsewhere, the U.S. investment bank and an industry source said on Sunday.

Xie, whose widely-read reports on the Chinese economy have boosted Morgan Stanley’s image in the region, tendered his resignation last week and had left the firm as of Friday, said Hong Kong-based spokeswoman Po-ling Cheung.

“An internal memo was sent out (on Friday) informing employees that he has resigned from the firm,” she said by telephone.

“He has left the firm,” she added.

Xie confirmed the news by telephone, but declined to say what he would do next.

A source close to Morgan Stanley said that Xie would likely join another firm in the industry in the near future.

U.S. Insurers Press China for Access

BEIJING — American life insurance companies are pressing China to make good on WTO commitments to give them equal access to its booming market, arguing that they can help meet the needs of a fast-aging population, the head of an industry group said Tuesday.

Insurers want Beijing to remove obstacles that limit their ability to set up nationwide operations and cap foreign ownership of a Chinese insurer at 50 percent, said Frank Keating, president of the American Council of Life Insurers.

He said China’s life insurance market, now about one-tenth the size of the $540 billion-a-year U.S. market, could grow in coming years to become the world’s biggest.

Keating said his group pressed regulators in meetings this week to bring China’s licensing system in line with its promise to the World Trade Organization to treat foreign and Chinese insurers equally.

China’s current system requires foreign insurers to apply to open new offices one at a time, while Chinese competitors can win permission for a nationwide operation, Keating said.

China promised in 2004 to end such geographic restrictions and officials acknowledge that they are no longer required by regulations, but regulators still use the old system, he said.

“Our message here was a gentle chiding message that as this process goes forward it is important to be prompt, to be fair and to provide a competitive market for all,” Keating told reporters.

China faces a Dec. 11 deadline for meeting commitments to open its banking, insurance and other financial industries to foreign competitors.

Trade groups say Beijing has met most of its commitments to repeal formal barriers to foreign competition. But they say that in some areas, companies are still waiting for promised regulations that are meant to put them on an equal footing with Chinese competitors.

Keating said he told Chinese officials that foreign insurers can help Beijing cope with the needs of a rapidly graying population by selling life insurance, annuities and other retirement-related services to millions of families who can afford them.

That would let government focus on helping the poor, he said.

Keating, a former governor of the U.S. state of Oklahoma, said he plans to meet with U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson in hopes of having equal treatment in insurance made part of a U.S.-Chinese dialogue on economic matters.

The dialogue was launched last week when Paulson visited Beijing.

Keating also said that while Beijing has met its WTO commitment to let foreign investors own up to 50 percent of a Chinese insurer, his group wants to see that limit raised to allow full ownership.

The American Council of Life Insurers represents 377 companies that sell life insurance, annuities and pensions, including about 20 that operate in China.

U.S. insurers accounted for $1.5 billion of the $61.6 billion in life insurance premiums paid in China last year, according to Brad Smith, the insurance group’s vice president for international relations.

The Chinese market for insurance has been growing by 15 percent to 20 percent a year over the past decade, Smith said.

Smith said he couldn’t estimate what share of China’s insurance market foreign companies might be able to capture. But elsewhere in Asia, foreign companies account for 25 percent of Japan’s insurance market and 13 percent of South Korea’s, he said.

Insurers hope to see Beijing create tax and other incentives for families to invest in annuities, long-term health care policies and other retirement services, Keating said.

“That will free the government to focus on the 60 million poorest people,” he said. “That’s good public policy.”

Calpers looks at investing in China

The California Public Employees Retirement System, the largest US public pension fund, is considering investing for the first time in Chinese companies, aiming both to capitalise on the country’s booming economy and to raise its exposure to emerging markets.

Such a move by Calpers, which has not invested any of its $208bn (€164bn) portfolio in Chinese companies because of poor corporate governance standards, could have a ripple effect on other US public pension funds and increase demand for Chinese shares.

In an interview with the Financial Times, Russell Read, Calpers’ recently appointed chief investment officer, indicated that the fund could begin by investing in Chinese companies with US or international listings through American Depository Receipts and Global Depository Receipts.

He said the pension fund’s staff could recommend the strategy to Calpers’ board in the coming months.

Mr Read, who shaken up Calpers’ investment strategy since joining in June, said the issue of how to invest in China and other emerging markets was a primary focus for the Sacramento-based fund. “Investing properly in the emerging markets . . . is fundamental to our investment success,” he said.

Calpers, which has a reputation as a tough guardian of shareholders’ rights, has so far excluded China from its list of investable markets.

The list is updated yearly and is up for re-evaluation by the Calpers board in February, although permission to invest in ADRs and GDRs could come sooner.

In spite of China’s fast-growing economy, its capital markets have proved disappointing to foreign investors. The local stock markets have been volatile and are closed to all but a small group of investors picked by the Chinese government.

However, several big companies, including the state oil giants Petrochina and CNOOC and telecommunications operators China Telecom and China Mobile, have listings in Hong Kong and trade ADRs in the US.

Calpers has some real estate holdings in China. Other US public pension funds also have a degree of exposure to China, although in most cases it appears to be limited to real estate.