China will develop faster and smarter high-speed trains offering passengers a wide variety of choices, according to a special plan for the country’s high-speed train technology development during the 12th Five-Year Plan period (2011-2015) recently released by the Ministry of Science and Technology. The country’s high-speed rail development has entered “a second spring” after an “unexpected brake.”

Priority given to technological development

Smarter high-speed trains

The special plan noted that during the 12th Five-Year Plan period, the country will make efforts to improve the safety of high-speed railways, develop a wide variety of intelligent and energy-efficient high-speed trains, ensure the sustainable development of high-speed rail technologies, and master the key technologies for high-speed trains and related equipment.

Intelligent technology will allow trains’ monitoring, speed control, condition determination, and fault detection operations to be conducted digitally, said Ding Rongjun, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and general manager of CSR Zhuzhou Electric Locomotive Research Institute Company.

The top speed of a high-speed test train developed by CSR Corporation recently increased from 500 kilometers per hour to 575 kilometers per hour. “The test train integrates various technologies such as Ethernet and the Internet of Things, and can directly determine specific weather conditions. After it is struck by lightning, the train can automatically adjust its speed and optimize related operations to ensure safety,” said Zhao Xiaogang, chairman of CSR Corporation.

In order to reduce smart trains’ energy consumption, the country will carry out research in new traction drive technology based on permanent magnetic motors, according to the special plan. Ding explained that the new traction drive technology featuring fast energy transmission and low energy losses can reduce trains’ energy consumption by more than 15 percent as there is no physical contact between the transmission movable parts.

The speeds of most high-speed trains in China were reduced after the Wenzhou bullet train crash on July 23, 2011. All high-speed trains which used to run 350 kilometers per hour were order to operate at a maximum speed of 300 kilometers per hour, except those on the Beijing–Tianjin Intercity Railway and Shanghai–Hangzhou High-speed Railway. Many people believe that high-speed rail development has slowed down in the country.

"It is a misinterpretation," Zhao said, adding that the number of overseas orders CSR Corporation has received has greatly increased, instead of dropping, since the Wenzhou bullet train crash. The company's revenue from overseas markets increased nearly 250 percent last year from the previous year. "Foreign markets will be a major source of revenue for CSR Corporation," he said.

The special plan said that in order to meet the diverse needs of domestic and overseas consumers, China will customize high-speed trains according to the conditions of different regions and infrastructure facilities as well as different speed requirements. The country will develop a series of high-speed trains for high-speed and conventional railways as well as for export.

"The family of China's high-speed trains will be further expanded," Ding said. In addition to existing trains with operating speeds of 200 kilometers per hour, 250 kilometers per hour, 300 kilometers per hour, or 350 kilometers per hour, there will probably be trains with speeds of 180 kilometers per hour or 160 kilometers per hour for inter-city travel. In addition to existing eight-car and 16-car trains, there will probably be six-car and 12-car trains. All these possible changes are aimed at meeting the diverse needs of different clients.

Industry insiders noted that China still has a long way to go in developing truly fast and safe high-speed trains.

Export business only accounts for less than 10 percent of the total revenue of China CNR Corporation, which is the largest transportation equipment exporter in the country, a relevant official from the company said.
 

Turkish and Chinese businessmen expressed their willingness to help Tunisia develop a modern railway network during a meeting held on Tuesday in Tunis with the Tunisian Ministry of Transportation.

Mehmet Nazif Gunal, chairman of Turkish company MNG and Zheng Changhong, president of SINOMACH International – a company specializing in railway construction – met with the Tunisian Minister of Transportation Abdelkarim Harouni to discuss means of developing Tunisia’s transportation infrastructure.

During the meeting, Harouni presented a briefing detailing the challenges currently facing Tunisia’s transportation sector.

“One of the shortcomings is the lack of interconnection between different regions, despite being a small country. This has, in a sense, contributed to the creation of differences between certain regions in terms of development,” he said.

According to a statement issued by the Ministry of Transportation, the government aims at increasing the capacity of Tunisia’s rail-transport system. “One of the priorities of the country is to establish a developed railway network and ensure a modern fleet to transfer people as well as goods,” said Harouni.

The minister also discussed the anticipated Maghreb High Speed Railway Line ??(LGV), which would connect Algeria to Libya through Tunisia with 800km of railway. Harouni also laid-out initiatives related to the creation of logistical zones in Tunisian ports and the establishment of a deep-water port.

The president of SINOMACH International expressed his interest in investing in rail transport projects in Tunisia and providing funding to help the country undertake the construction initiatives discussed during the conference.

Gunal, the chairman of Turkish MNG, in turn expressed his country’s desire to encourage investment in Tunisia. He stated that he was “optimistic” about the success of Tunisian-Turkish cooperation in the transport sector, and that the Tunisian business environment is,  ”secure and transparent.”
 

Singapore's historic Tanjong Pagar Railway Station was bathed in revolving shades of orange, pink and purple lights on Wednesday evening.

Less than a year after it ended life as an active train station, models sashayed down a makeshift runway to show the latest clothing from Italian fashion house Valentino and show off one of Singapore's architectural gems.

The art deco building at the edge of Singapore's central business district, with its murals in the main hall and four marble statues on its portico entrance, closed in June last year as part of a deal that saw Malaysia move its rail operations to a new site nearer the border with Singapore.

Malaysia and Singapore were briefly joined in a union after independence, and the station and the area alongside the railway tracks were considered Malaysian territory under agreements forged by former British colonial rulers.

Malaysia handed the railway station over to Singapore last year, effectively giving up sovereignty over the land in return for sites in other parts of the city-state and Singapore's help in developing an investment zone in southern Malaysia.

The station, which opened in 1932, has been named as a national monument.

"We try to do our fashion show in an interesting and different location every year. The Tanjong Pagar Railway Station is historical, it's interesting and it's never been used for a fashion show before," Grace Lee, editor of fashion magazine NuYou told Reuters.

Nuyou, which is Chinese for girlfriend, organized the show with sister magazine Female.

"We're working with RED Valentino, the baby in the Valentino stable, as it expands into Asia," added Female's creative editor Jeanette Ejlersen.

Introduced in 2004, RED, which stands for Romantic Eccentric Dress, offers a more contemporary, casual spin to more traditional Valentino attire.

The Singapore Land Authority, which owns Tanjong Pagar Railway Station, closed the building to facilitate the removal of railway track, furniture and equipment.

It plans to redevelop the area while preserving the station facade and individuals and will allow it to be used for events and activities on application, a spokeswoman said.

Strong demand for power equipment in North America helped to drive first-quarter orders of $10.4 billion, compared with a forecast for $10.1 billion in a Reuters poll.

Orders in Asia, however, fell 11 percent year-on-year, dragged down by weaker demand in Chinese construction and rail transportation markets. Softness in the Mediterranean also weighed on orders in Europe, which slipped 5 percent.

"North America continues to look positive on both the power and automation front, while China remains an open question as far as the timing of new investments in key sectors for ABB like construction," chief executive Joe Hogan told a news conference.

Surveys earlier this week showed European factories had their worst month in April since June 2009, while China showed some improvement after a muted start to the year. The United States has been faring better, but surprisingly weak jobs data last week raised fears this may not continue.

Chief financial officer Michel Demare said he expected a faster recovery in China's industrial sector, although a question mark still hung over the timing of a rebound in the key nuclear, construction and rail transportation segments where ABB sells high margin products like switches and circuit breakers.

Shares in ABB were down 3.3 percent by 1248 GMT, compared with a 0.8 percent firmer European industrial goods and services sector index .SXNP.

"Positive on North America, but more guarded otherwise," Vontobel analyst Panagiotis Spiliopoulos who has a 'buy' rating on the stock, said in a note.

"While investors should focus on solid order growth, the situation at low voltage and power systems and the more guarded margin outlook could weigh on the stock."

MARGIN PRESSURE

ABB is hoping a global push to upgrade electrical grid infrastructure and use energy more efficiently will drive long-term demand for its products, which are used by oil, mining and utility companies.

As the company flagged in February, a backlog of less profitable orders and aggressive price competition hit operating margins in the first quarter, which at 13.9 percent were below the 15.7 percent seen a year ago.

Nonetheless, cost savings helped compensate for price pressures and net profit in the first-quarter rose 5 percent to $685 million.

"We saw improved profitability in several businesses compared to the end of last year and we intend to build on that momentum to tap the many opportunities we see for profitable growth over the rest of the year," Hogan said in a statement.

Margins came under pressure in ABB's power businesses, which has faced aggressive price competition from Asian peers.

Rival Siemens (SIEGn.DE) said on Wednesday it may revamp its power transmission arm as it grapples with tough competition in the market for transformers and switch gears.

ABB reiterated it expects sales in its early-cycle businesses, which make products ranging from industrial robots to software, to grow at low single-digit percentage rates compared with 2011 levels until economic confidence improves.

In its later-cycle businesses, which produce power transformers for utilities, it expects a strong order backlog to propel growth at a high single-digit percentage rate.

French rival Schneider (SCHN.PA) said last week organic sales would inch higher at best in 2012, hit by a slowdown in Asia and austerity measures in Europe.

Hogan said ABB was seeing good order activity in offshore wind power, contrasting with Siemens which slashed its full-year outlook after incurring a charge related to delayed offshore wind power projects in the second quarter.
 

International diversified resource company, Astra Resources PLC (FWB Code: 9AR), has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with China Railway (Beijing) Vehicles Equipment Co. Ltd (CRVE) relating directly to the commencement of production across Astra’s vast resource suite.
 
The agreement reflects Astra’s desire to enter into a long term and synergetic relationship with a major Chinese State Owned Agency (SOA) such as CRVE and create a strong footprint in the epicentre of the Asian growth corridor.

The MOU also reflects CRVE’s desire to build a long-lasting relationship with a global resource and technology company, such as Astra and support the immediate and future infrastructure (mining equipment) and finance solution requirements of Astra and to begin full scale production for Astra’s Company owned mines.

Further, CRVE will purchase specific resources, including thermal coal and iron ore, from Astra for its significant rail production and infrastructure projects in addition to its massive power generation requirements and close association with China Power.

Astra CEO Dr Jaydeep Biswas says this is a significant step forward for the company in the wake of its recent announcement regarding the geological investigation and feasibility study into its Nigerian thermal coal sites and deposits and the recent favourable report from the Cagayan River Construction & Development Corporation (CRCDC) on its Philippine iron sands project.

“Entering into both formal discussions and contracts with major resource players and buyers, such as CRVE, not only secures long term revenue streams, but also opens the door for further discussions and agreements with regards to our project financing needs and production of Astra’s other major resource assets of iron ore and thermal coal and the imminent commercialisation of the clean coal conversion technology,” Dr Biswas says.

“China represents the biggest resource buying market in the world and Astra are now well positioned to take full advantage of this by entering into this MOU with one of the largest State Owned Agencies (SOA) in China that has a huge appetite for thermal coal and iron ore supply and connection to many of China’s SOA’s.”

The ground breaking MOU was facilitated by Senior China Advisor, Stephane Muller-Margot who  says China’s thermal coal and iron ore needs are immense and during this stage of massive development and urbanisation it is vital that we identify and partner with major resource companies like Astra to ensure a consistent, and secure, supply chain.

“This is the first step in developing a significant relationship with Astra following the signing of a letter of intent (LOI) in January 2012 and to provide all of the necessary project infrastructure and financial support for the various assets that CRVE wishes to lock up for future sales offtake agreements,” Mr Muller-Margot says.

Astra is also in meaningful discussions and negotiations for an extension to this MOU with other Chinese SOA’s to utilise Astra’s Clean Coal Conversion Technology, Gold assets throughout Asia, Agricultural Resources and the production of the company’s ground breaking  T-Steel steel technology.
 
Astra Resources’ global portfolio includes gold interests in Southeast Asia, coal mine in Africa, iron ore in India, Norway and the Philippines, carbon efficient and commodity businesses, the production of the high-strength T-Steel technology in Hungary, clean coal technology and the provision of mining services housing in Rockhampton, Queensland and a large Agricultural focus on creating Australia as the food bowl for the Asian Region through Astra Agricultural Resources.

Proactive Investors is a market leader in the investment news space, providing ASX “Small and Mid-cap” company news, research reports, StockTube videos and One2One Investor Forums.
 

The Perth-based miner today released its quarterly results, which showed that despite a tough quarter, it was on track to ship up to 5.7 million tonnes of iron ore this financial year.

The report comes after the Pilbara miner announced this week that in joint venture with QR National it was studying the development of a new, multi-user railway to transport ore from the central and south east Pilbara to Port Hedland Port.

Atlas managing director Ken Brinsden said despite the deal with QR, the company was still free to talk with other parties about access to existing railway.

"At Atlas we have always taken pride in having options for development in front of us," he said.
"Our view hasn't changed over the years and we are taking the same view with respect to rail. We think the QR solution is one of a couple of very good solutions and Atlas is in a unique position, we have options in front of us to deliver infrastructure solutions in a way that the junior and mid-tier iron ore scene has never had in the past."

The company's results, released today, revealed a a 13 per cent quarter-on-quarter fall in shipments for the three months to 1.2 million tonnes. Despite the fall in shipments, Atlas said it still expected operating costs of between $42 and $45 a tonne.

"We shipped 1.2 million tonnes in what I would describe being a tough quarter," Mr Brinsden said.

"We were impacted by a cyclone in January, associated wet weather and we were also impacted by some outages on the Utah Port ship loader. January was pretty ordinary from our point of view ... but importantly in February and March, Atlas hit its straps and was essentially back on target for a 1.5 million tonne per quarter run rate."

Atlas outlined that it planned to invest a further $630 million to develop its mining operations to ramp up its export rate to 12 million tonnes a year by the end of 2013.

Whitehaven Coal also released its quarterly results today, outlining that its sales increased in the January-March quarter despite exceptionally wet weather in the first two months of 2012.

Coal sales rose 6 per cent quarter-on-quarter to 1.42 million tonnes, including 1.06 million tonnes produced at its mines and 357,000 tonnes of purchased coal. Sales for the first nine months of the financial year that ends June 30 were 1 per cent lower at 4.71 million.

China Knowledge reported that China South Locomotive & Rolling Stock Co Ltd or CSR, the country largest manufacturer of rail vehicles posted CNY 1.07 billion net profit attributable to shareholders for the first quarter of this year reflecting a YoY decline of 13.31%.

In a statement, the Shanghai and Hong Kong listed firm said its earnings per share were CNY 0.09. Operating revenue reached CNY 19.2 billion in the first quarter of 2012 compared with CNY 20.19 billion the firm realized in the same period of 2011.

As of March 31 2012, the company had CNY 9.85 billion in total assets, whereas it had CNY 9.28 billion at the end of last year reflecting an increase of 6.13%.

CSR has secured a CNY 1.36 billion worth of order from MTR Corp to produce several 350 kilometre locomotives, the first one of which would be delivered in 2013 and start trial operation in 2015 in Hong Kong.

A person familiar with the matter said this was the first high speed rail vehicle order a mainland company acquired from Hong Kong.

Environmental vibrations induced by urban railway traffic are mainly generated from uneven wheel–rail contact in the short wavelength range, according to a study in the 4th issue of SCIENCE CHINA Technological Sciences, 2012.

The introduction of urban railways is one of the most effective ways to deal with traffic problems in large cities. However, in the vicinity of railways, day-by-day vibrations from trains may cause discomfort to people, the malfunctioning of sensitive equipment, and even damage to old buildings, and railways therefore have serious environmental problems. The development of urban railways is now limited by such environmental vibrations.

Effective vibration-reduction technologies rely on a good understanding of the excitation source that generates the vibrations. "In recent years, substantial progress has been made in modeling the train–track–ground interaction, and consensus has been reached that the excitation source is the moving of constant loads and uneven contact between wheels and rails," according to background information in the article. "Nevertheless, the contact can hardly be measured directively, so its amplitude and frequency contents are not completely understood, and its quantitative expression remains a problem for further research to address.

Recently, a research group led by Prof. Tao Xiaxin at Harbin Institute of Technology, China, has made a breakthrough in revealing the excitation mechanism. Based on an inversion study in the frequency and wave-number domain, Dr. Wang Futong, a key research member in the group, has found that high-frequency contents are predominant in the excitation. A power spectral density function (PSD) of uneven wheel–rail contact, rather than the track PSD, was suggested to describe the random characteristics of the excitation source. An inversion strategy was then established to obtain the source function from vibration data recorded by an observation array at the ground surface. The wheel–rail unevenness PSD, being the source function for the No. 13 Beijing urban railway, was obtained by the inversion strategy. The result indicated that the source function properly described the track unevenness in the range of wavelengths over 1.2 m, and showed wheel irregularities in the range of wavelengths shorter than 1.2 m.

The researchers found that, in the range of short wavelengths under 1.2 m, the wheel–rail PSD maintained a value higher than the 6th class of the track PSD suggested by the Federal Railway Administration. As urban trains do not travel particularly quickly, this short wavelength range exactly corresponds to the main frequency band of environmental vibrations; i.e., the frequency components of the vibrations stem mainly from that range of uneven excitation. Taking account of only moving constant loads and track unevenness could result in a severe underestimation of the environmental vibrations.

"Whereas the track spectrum reflects only the evenness of the track, the wheel–rail spectrum expresses both the track unevenness and the irregularities of wheels, and it is therefore more suitable to be used as the source function of urban railway traffic," the researchers write. "It is also shown that inversion of the exciting source according to observed ground vibrations is an effective way to detect quantitatively the combined wheel–rail unevenness."
 

After two years of competing with high-speed rail lines, Chinese airlines are trying to find a mutually beneficial solution for both sides.

On Monday, Hainan Airlines Co Ltd launched a joint operating program with Yuehai Railway Co Ltd, which runs the high-speed rail between Haikou and Sanya in Hainan province.

Passengers can buy high-speed rail tickets from Haikou to Sanya when booking tickets on any Hainan Airlines flight to Haikou.

The rail fares will be the same as those offered directly by railways. The airline will eventually sell tickets to other stops on the high-speed rail route.

Hainan Airlines is not the only carrier with such a program.

China Eastern Airlines Co Ltd will start to sell high-speed rail tickets at the end of this month.

Tickets in either direction will be offered between Shanghai and four other cities - Suzhou, Wuxi, Changzhou and Ningbo.

Ticket sales for high-speed rail lines will expand gradually within the main cities of Anhui, Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces and Shanghai, which are under the jurisdiction of the Shanghai Railway Bureau, said Shen Xiaosheng, deputy director of the carrier's publicity department.

He said fares will fluctuate, but joint tickets will cost less than the total air and rail fares if sold separately.

China's high-speed rail service has been operating for two years and has had a broad, adverse effect on airlines' domestic business.

Areas that are getting high-speed rail service are also the most profitable for airlines. All three major State-owned airlines cited high-speed rail service as a factor affecting revenue in their financial reports.

Joint ticketing for airlines and high-speed rail lines could be a way for air carriers to profit from China's high-speed rail system, analysts said.

"High-speed rail services heavily affect the business of flights of less than 500 kilometers," said Yuan Huifang, deputy general manager of marketing and sales at Hainan Airlines. "But we want to find a way to cooperate with rail systems."

Yuan said joint ticketing can help both sides get more passengers.

However, it's not easy for airlines and railways to work together.

Hainan Airlines took almost one year to prepare for the program, and it was difficult to combine the two different ticketing systems, said Wang Yue, manager of product development at Hainan Airlines.

Also, joint operation requires convenient transfers, but few Chinese airports can meet that need. For that reason, Hainan Airlines will promote the program more heavily on international destinations rather than adding more domestic cities, Yuan said.

"I believe more railway stations and airports will be built together for joint operations," she added.

Carriers must improve their services to deal with the ongoing expansion of high-speed rail service, analysts said.

As much as 3,500 kilometers of new high-speed rail lines will be built in 2012. The four main north-south routes, including one between Beijing and Guangzhou, will be finished this year, the People's Daily reported in February.

The heaviest competition from high-speed rails won't come until 2013 or 2014, as most of the new lines won't go into service until the end of 2012, said Li Lei, an aviation analyst at CITIC Securities Co Ltd.

Airlines might abandon some feeder flights, which can be replaced by high-speed rail service, while adding flights to other routes, Li said.
 

The Dalian research and development center of the China CNR Corp Ltd recently took orders from Bangladesh for producing rail car traction inverters and network control systems. It is the first export of China's proprietary high-speed train components.

Industry observers said the orders show Chinese companies have their own core technologies now and can compete with their overseas peers.
 

China and Thailand have agreed to beef up cooperation in the land and water transportation sectors, according to a joint statement issued by the two governments on Thursday following Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra's first official China visit.

The two countries also signed an agreement on facilitating railway cooperation during her visit, particularly in the area of high-speed rail construction.

According to the joint statement, the two countries agreed to boost cooperation in multiple areas in order to further their bilateral partnership.

They vowed to promote greater cooperation in traditional and non-traditional security sectors and jointly address terrorism, trafficking and illegal migration.

They will facilitate two-way investment and continue to promote the use of local currencies in bilateral trade and investment in order to lower the impact of exchange rate risks, the statement says.

The two countries are also committed to strengthening cooperation in the areas of agriculture, science and technology, ocean and environmental protection, it says.

Both sides plan to set up a joint laboratory for climate and marine ecosystem research and seek closer cooperation in the clean energy sector, according to the statement.

To step up cultural exchanges, the two countries agreed to promote the establishment of Chinese and Thai language and culture centers and encourage more students to study abroad, the statement says.

They also pledged to enhance cooperation in tourism, public health, water resource management, flood and disaster prevention and post-disaster reconstruction, according to the statement.

The statement was issued at the end of Yingluck's visit, which lasted from April 17 to 19.
 

Chow Chung-Kong, former chief executive officer of subway operator MTR Corp., was named chairman of Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing Ltd. (388) and declared he would capture opportunities for Asia’s biggest bourse.

The 61-year-old, who oversaw the MTR’s merger with another train company and expansion overseas, replaces Ronald Arculli, 73, who stepped down after a maximum consecutive six years on the job. Chow has also been CEO of Australian pallet provider Brambles Ltd. and non-executive director for Standard Chartered Plc. His initial term is for two years.

Hong Kong Exchanges was surpassed as the world’s biggest bourse operator by CME Group Inc. amid global competition from alternative venues and as large initial public offerings from China slow. The exchange has accounted for 5.5 percent of world IPOs this year compared with 13 percent in 2011 and 18 percent in 2010, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

“Chow is quite qualified for this new role, having had experience with diverse global and multinational companies,” said Sandy Mehta, chief executive officer at Hong Kong-based Value Investment Principals Ltd. “With MTR (66) he is imminently familiar with local China issues and managing ‘on the ground’ in Hong Kong. While he hasn’t operated a financial sector company before, his long association as a board member of Standard Chartered gives him strong credentials and certainly stature and contacts for his new role at the exchange.”

Formal Approval
Chow, whose appointment requires formal approval from Hong Kong CEO Donald Tsang, said the bourse “will listen carefully to market participants, particularly those in Hong Kong to capture opportunity for the exchange.

“Hong Kong Exchanges is very much an integral part of the international financial center of Hong Kong,” he told reporters after a board meeting in the city today.

Chow has good credentials though lacks financial experience, said Steven Leung, Hong Kong-based director of institutional sales at UOB-Kay Hian Ltd., a brokerage in Singapore.

Hong Kong Exchanges shares were unchanged at HK$127.70 at the close, while the benchmark Hang Seng Index rose 0.3 percent.

Chow was appointed April 10 as a director of the exchange for two years along with Timothy Freshwater, a former vice chairman for Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s Asian unit. Arculli was re-appointed to the board for one year. Of the 12 non-executive board members, six are appointed by the city’s government.

‘Right Candidate’
“Chow’s track record with the MTR and management skill has been quite good, and he successfully managed public expectation on the MTR operations, so he’s the right candidate to be chosen by the government,” UOB-Kay Hian’s Leung said before the vote. “His weakness is that he doesn’t really have any experience in the financial field or relationship with the industry.”

During Chow’s tenure at the MTR, where he retired on Dec. 31, the company merged with another Hong Kong railway operator and started work on a HK$66.9 billion ($8.62 billion) connection to China’s high-speed-rail network. MTR also expanded operations to London, Stockholm and Melbourne, and last month reported a 21 percent increase in underlying profit for 2011 from a year earlier.

Hong Kong Exchanges under Arculli attracted large international listings, including luxury goods makers Prada SpA (1913) and L’Occitane International SA. The bourse’s share price more than doubled to HK$128.80 on April 20 from HK$56.55 on April 27, 2006, when Arculli became chairman.

Slow Growth
Growth has slowed, with the bourse reporting a 1 percent increase in net income in 2011 as IPOs declined and trading volume slumped amid Europe’s debt crisis and efforts by China to cool its economy.

At $17.8 billion, Hong Kong Exchanges’ market value is second in the Bloomberg World Exchanges (BNWEXCH) index behind CME Group, which is valued at $18.1 billion. The Chicago-based derivatives venue became the biggest exchange company on March 19, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

Chow “certainly has the capability, experience and vision to be part of the whole Hong Kong board, even to the point to lead the board to the next plateau,” Vincent Lee, an elected board member of the Hong Kong Exchanges and chairman of brokerage Tung Tai Securities Co. said before the decision. “To be a good chairman, he doesn’t need to be a specialist. I look forward to working with him.”

Jockey Club, Knighthood
Chow, like his predecessor, was born and raised in Hong Kong. He has also been involved with the city’s Jockey Club as a steward since March last year. Arculli was chairman of the organization.

Knighted for “services to industry” in 2000, Chow’s award was gazetted on the same day as those of actor Sean Connery and Virgin Group Ltd. founder Richard Branson.

“My wife and a friend that I had invited to the ceremony were quite excited,” he said. “I thought they were excited to see me receive the knighthood, but in fact it was to see Sean Connery. They were disappointed when he decided to receive the knighthood in Scotland.”

While Arculli was behind attracting companies from Prada and L’Occitane to resource giants Vale SA and Glencore International Plc, bourse CEO Charles Li has also strengthened ties to China.

The exchange hosted the first yuan-denominated IPO outside of China last year and plans to start offering yuan currency futures in the third quarter. The company will spend HK$3 billion ($386 million) on technology upgrades over three years to boost trading speeds, expand its derivatives business and offer connections to mainland Chinese markets.

Chow declined to comment today on speculation the bourse may bid for the London Metal Exchange.

LME Speculation
The exchange is seeking an acquisition loan to back a possible bid for the LME, two people familiar with the matter said on April 12. “Urgent action” is required to build businesses in financial derivatives and commodities to meet its goal of being a comprehensive financial center for China, the bourse said in its earnings statement on Feb. 29. Arculli declined to comment when asked if the bourse is bidding for overseas exchanges at the annual general meeting yesterday.

“The future of Hong Kong, and the exchange, lies in the combination of China’s high growth and rising economic power and Hong Kong’s long history of international connection,” Chow said April 12. “That’s the combination that will propel the city forward.”
 

SHENZHEN, China, Apr 26, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- ZTE Corporation ("ZTE"), a publicly-listed global provider of telecommunications equipment and network solutions has announced that its generation SDR-based GSM-R products have passed European Integrated Railway Radio Enhanced Network (EIRENE) certification and achieved the certificate from TUV Rheinland, which is a global leader in independent inspection and certification service. The achievement not only indicates the maturity, stability and reliability of ZTE GSM-R products but also showcases that ZTE's GSM-R products are suitable for the European global railway communication market.

ZTE's GSM-R system (GSM for Railways) is a comprehensive digital mobile communication system specially designed for railway communication. It provides location and feature-based addressing on the basis of advanced speech call items regulated in GSM Phase 2+ such as group calls, broadcast calls, multiple priorities and forced disconnection, effectively satisfying railway requirements including high-speed railways.

The test was performed in TUV Rheinland (Shanghai) between ZTE GSM-R and railway terminal (specifically, Sagem's handheld mobile station and Funkwerk's vehicle-held mobile station -- both have passed EIRENE certification and received European railway recognition). Taking five months to complete, the result shows that the features and performance of ZTE's GSM-R system fully comply with European EIRENE rules.

With outstanding compatibility features; the product can smoothly connect with products from other vendors, meeting all necessary requirements in railway communication including shunting mode.

"Railway communication requires high levels of security and reliability due to the nature of business." ZTE GU Product General Manager, Mr. Pu Yingchun said, "Based on the deep understanding of railway communication and global mature SDR BTS commercialization, ZTE provides a leading solution that is highly secure and reliable and works exceptionally well in a high-speed mobile environment providing global railway operators with professional communication and dispatching services which are key to functionality."

ZTE's GSM-R system has been trialed in Ural, Russia, and has passed testing on Russian Railways.

About TUV Rheinland Group

Headquartered in Cologne, Germany, the TUV Rheinland Group is an international certification authority, with branches in over 61 countries all around the world. As world renowned international certification authority, it has over 140 years' history in the respect of product inspection and certification; it has a whole set of complete and strict inspection theory and method and commits to being the leader of safety, security and quality certification service providers, which makes it the full authority of independent product security and quality inspection and management.

[TUV Rheinland is a global leader in independent inspection services, founded 140 years ago. The Group maintains a presence at around 500 locations in 61 countries with 14,500 employees. Annual turnover is EUR 1.3 billion.

The independent experts stand for quality and safety for people, the environment, and technology in nearly all aspects of life. TUV Rheinland inspects technical equipment, products and services, oversees projects and helps to shape processes for companies. Its experts train people in a wide range of careers and industries. To this end, TUV Rheinland employs a global network of approved labs, testing and education centres.
 

Companies from China will be conducting work on the Qazvin-Rasht-Astara railway, which is a priority for Iran right now, Iranian Deputy minister of roads and city planning Ahmad Sadeghi said, ISNA reported.

The railroad would begin in Iran's Hormuzgan port of Khuzestan province, forward to Iran's center of Gazvin, then to Bender-Enzeli port, and to Amirabad port.

Sadeghi also noted that aside from Chinese, other foreign companies are currently working on railway's construction.

Qazvin-Rasht-Astara railway is a part of the North-South transport corridor implemented by Azerbaijan, Russia and Iran. Investments worth $400 million have been made in the construction of the railway.

Investments were planned to be drawn at the expense of banks of project member countries, as well as from other regional financial institutions.

During the preliminary years the volume of freight transportation via the railway is projected at six million tons a year, with a subsequent increase in the volume of freight to 20 million tons per year.

A CONTRACT has been signed between the China Railway First Group and the Works and Transport Ministry for the supply of four Bailey bridges over the next three months to be used during emergencies.

A deal was signed between ministry permanent secretary Commander Francis Kean and executives of the Chinese company for the supply of four spans which are estimated to be worth more than $1.9million.

A government statement said initially it had been planned to bring in the bridges as a temporary crossing for the broken Moto bridge in Ba, however, because of the time factor the plan was shelved.

The Heavy Compact HD 200 Portable Steel Bridge is a prefabricated bridge composed of three-metre panels that can allow vehicles to cross.

Each bridge span is 51 metres long and can accommodate a maximum load of 30 tonnes.

The bridge components will be kept in a storage facility and assembled when the need arises.

The Moto bridge was damaged during the recent floods.