PRESS DIGEST - China - Dec 16

BEIJING/SHANGHAI, Dec 16 (Reuters) - Chinese newspapers available in Beijing and Shanghai carried the following stories on Tuesday. Reuters has not checked the stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

SHANGHAI SECURITIES NEWS

-- China's State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, which oversees state-owned enterprises, is exploring ways to directly hold shares in those companies, the commission's chairman Li Rongrong said in an internal meeting. Currently, the commission controls the firms through their unlisted parents.

-- China's economy may expand by about 9.5 percent in 2008, slowing to 8 percent in 2009, forecast the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, a key government think tank. It also said the government's fiscal revenue would exceed 6 trillion yuan ($877 billion) this year, up 17 percent from 2007.

-- China Construction Bank (601939.SS) plans to set up a network of rural banking outlets in China, by itself or through partnerships with foreign lenders, in order to boost lending to farmers.

-- Chinese high-end restaurant chain South Beauty Group has raised 300 million yuan by selling a small stake to private equity firm CDH Investments and China International Capital Corp. South Beauty operates nearly 40 directly owned restaurant outlets in big cities including Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin.

-- Shares in Shenzhen Nanshan Power Co (000037.SZ) jumped their 10 percent daily limit on Monday after the company disclosed, one month after the event, that it had terminated a financial agreement with Goldman Sachs.

-- Tianjin Guangyu Development Co 000537.SZ estimated it would make a loss this year, swinging from a net profit of 46.7 million yuan last year, because of a 172.0 million hit to profits caused by increased provisioning for receivables.

-- Sales of land use rights in Shanghai, Nanjing, Hangzhou and Suzhou have so far this year plunged 80 percent from a year earlier.

-- Five new equities-focused mutual funds have been approved by the securities regulator since November compared with zero bond-focused funds, a reversal of the pattern seen a few months ago.

CHINA DAILY (www.chinadaily.com.cn)

-- Thirty-nine small travel agencies in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, have shut down due to the worsening global financial situation.

PEOPLE'S DAILY

-- A commentary said a sound Sino-U.S relationship is good for the prosperity of the world. The new year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. ($1 = 6.84 yuan)

Last Updated: December 16, 2008 09:42 Beijing Time