The Shanghai Lawyer
Vol. 2 , No. 3 - March 18, 2003
Shanghai is one of the most dynamic and fastest growing mega-cities in the world. It is quickly establishing itself as the leading financial and economic center of the Far East, on par with the likes of Paris and New York. The Shanghai Lawyer is a bi-weekly publication providing up-to-date newsworthy articles and legal information to professional and business persons around the world. We hope you enjoy the newsletter and welcome your comments and feedback.
Letters from Shanghai
The weather is warming up in Shanghai day by day and Spring is on its way. According to local tradition, Spring officially arrives when the daytime highs reach 10 degrees Celsius or more for five consecutive days. Usually this occurs sometime in the middle of March. So far this year we have been only able to string together about 2 or 3 days, but weather forecasts for the upcoming week point to a general warming trend so it looks like we may be on track.
With the arrival of Spring comes the spring-cleaning and sprucing up of the City. One of my favorites is the work crews limbing trees along roads and in parks. The whole operation involves a crew of 30 or 40 workers. The work is all done by hand and some of the tasks are actually rather dangerous - in particular the limbers. Several small teams of a few workers each, physically climb the trees armed with hatchets and handsaws and gingerly pick their way to the tops of the trees and ends of the tree branches to lop off the tips. Those branches must give out sometimes resulting in potentially nasty falls. Another group follows on the ground gathering the twigs and branches and tying them up in manageable bundles. Taking up the rear is the pick up crew, which load the bundles into trucks for haul off to god only knows. Although everything is done manually, one has to marvel at the efficient organization and speed the crew makes their way down a street. They can literally cover a city block in about 30 minutes. The workers are undoubtedly predominately from the rural provinces as the Shanghainese consider manual labour to be beneath them. Whenever I see large groups of these rural labourers in action, either on the streets or in construction sites, I am reminded of the almost limitless number of individuals in the countryside and rural provinces waiting for their turn to come to the big cities to get a piece of the action.
By - Blaine Turnacliff You may contact Blaine directly at bturnacliff@lehmanlaw.com | |
LEHMAN, LEE & XU Opens Shenzhen Off
Lehman, Lee & Xu is pleased to announce the opening of its new office in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. Please direct all inquiries to attorney Zdravko Jelic at | |
Shanghai Mayor Pledges to Rein in Real Estate Market
Shanghai Mayor Han Zheng has expressed an intention for his municipal government to regulate the real estate industry in an effort to rein in the runaway prices that have begun to go up since the city won the bid for the 2010 World Exposition. He told Xinhua during an interview on the sidelines of the on-gong session of the national legislature, the National People's Congress (NPC), that the regulation will be realized by controlling the land supply instead of administrative degrees.
The mayor also stated that as an international metropolis with a population of 16 million, Shanghai should forge a real estate market structure that can meet the needs of all sectors, especially those of ordinary people. The municipal government encourages the building of housing that sells for 3,000-5,000 yuan (US$360- 600) per square meter to make them affordable to ordinary people. The total area of commercial housing completed in the city last year reached 18 million square meters and more than 18 million square meters were sold.
(Source: Xinhua News)
Did you know?
Last year in Shanghai, villas occupied 12 percent of the total residential projects last year. The total construction area in 2002 rose 18.6 percent from 2001 to 5.48 million square meters. |
Dogs get Electronic Tags
All dogs in Shanghai must have electronic identification chips inserted into their necks by next year or they will be confiscated from their owners, according to the city's public security bureau. The chips, which are injected into a dog, hold information about its owner, medical background and what shots it has received.
The chips last for 20 years, which means one should last for the entire life of an average dog, which tends to be 16 to 17 years. There are currently some 89,000 registered dogs in the city, and a huge number of unregistered mutts.
(Source: Shanghai Daily)
Shanghai Essentials
Shanghai's Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone ("FTZ") is China's biggest and oldest free trade zone approved by the State Council in June 1990. It incorporates various functions including free trade, export processing, and logistic warehousing and bonded commodities' displaying. FTZ's are currently the only location in China where foreign investors can set up 100 % owned companies that can do the import and export business. Companies established in this zone can enjoy tax benefits and exemptions from custom duties and licenses, such as the ability to do trade in local RMB, currency conversion, and issuance of VAT invoices and repatriation of profits. |
Mayor Reveals Urban Plan
Mayor Han Zheng has revealed his plans for Shanghai to complete the first phase of a deep-water port in Yangshan islands off the coast of eastern China by 2007. The major mission of the major's government is to lift the city's GDP per capita to reach US$7,500 by 2007 and to make every effort to make Shanghai an international center of economics, finance, trade and shipping.
The first phase of Yangshan Deep Water Port -27.5 kilometers away from Luchaogang in the city's Nanhui District -started last June and consists of a deep-water port in Yangshan islands, a 32-kilometer-long bridge, and auxiliary facilities. According to a general plan, the project will eventually create an 18-square-kilometer area with 20-kilometer deep-water coastal line. More than 50 berths will be constructed, with a handling capacity of more than 25million TEU (twenty equivalent units) per year. For the future urban planning, Shanghai will expand its focus from 600 square kilometers in the downtown area to an overall planning of 6,000square kilometers -including much of the suburban area.
In addition, the State Council, China's Cabinet has approved investment of about 10.7 billion yuan (US$1.3 billion) to build the world's longest bridge linking Shanghai with Ningbo port in neighboring Zhejiang Province. The bridge will span 36 kilometers across Hangzhou Bay and take five years to build. After completion, the new bridge will cut travel time between Shanghai and Ningbo by two hours.
(Source: Shanghai Daily)
Shanghai legal problem? Tell us about it. . . Mergers & Acquisitions * Incorporations * Commercial Contracts Contact Blaine Turnacliff at bturnacliff@lehmanlaw.com |
German Elevator Giant Opens Asian Headquarters in Shanghai
The world's third largest elevator producer and most important subsidiary of Germany-based industrial giant ThyssenKrupp AG, ThyssenKrupp Elevator, has announced the establishment of its Asian headquarters in Shanghai.
ThyssenKrupp Elevator has become one of the major elevator providers in Asia, with more than 100 agencies across the region. The company's business in China had witnessed rapid growth. For instance, during the 2001-2002 fiscal year, business in China increased by 25 percent.
ThyssenKrupp AG and Shanghai Baogang Group have developed a joint venture, Shanghai Krupp Stainless, with a total investment of 1.4 billion US dollars. In addition, ThyssenKrupp AG is also the major investor for the maglev railway project in Shanghai, the first of its kind in China.
(Source: Xinhua)
Need to File a Patent or Trademark in China? Contact LLX at mail@lehmanlaw.com and click below to download a Power of Attorney: | | |
UK Wins War for Chinese Students
The fight for China 's most lucrative export product - Chinese students - was in full swing on March 8 and 9 in Shanghai, with two major educational fairs taking place simultaneously. All international universities took part in these fairs and the Chinese have become the largest, sometimes dominating foreign student body at departments of international studies.
The annual education fair at the Everbright exhibition center looked this year rather empty compared to previous years, when sometimes stringent crowd control was necessary to keep the enthusiasm for a foreign study in check. This time the British Council is organizing its own education fair for the first time in the same weekend, orders from the ministry of education that wanted to strengthen the fairs by combining them. The British effort pays off. While solid figures are lacking, most students have the UK as their first country of choice.
(Source: Chinabiz.com)
Swiss Firms Rush into Shanghai
Swiss companies are pouring a growing amount of investment into Shanghai. Companies such as Roche, Nestle and Schindler, have set up branches in this city. By the end of January, Shanghai had approved 109 Swiss investment projects worth US$1.26 billion in contracted investment, according to the Shanghai Foreign Economic Relations and Trade Commission.
In 2001, Switzerland was the third-largest European investor in Shanghai, according to the Swiss Chinese Chamber of Commerce. Projects mostly cover sectors such as pharmaceuticals, electronics and machinery. In addition to the big names, more and more small and medium-sized Swiss companies are looking to tap the local market.
(Source: Shanghai Daily)
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