Certificates of conformity must accompany all shipments of consumer goods by November 12.  Read about these important regulations on the AmCham website. AmCham thanks member company Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A for providing this information.

Updated Alert for Tainted Milk: 53,000 Infants Sick - News from Beijing United Family Hospital

The number of children across the country who have become sick after drinking milk formula that was tainted with the chemical melamine has grown to 53,000, according to China’s Health Ministry. The Xinhua News Agency reported on Sunday that the ministry confirmed that 13,000 infants have been hospitalized, and almost 40,000 other infants and young children have received outpatient medical treatment and consultation as a result of contaminated milk.

Read the full article on the Beijing United Family Hospital website, including a listing of the manufacturers with contaminated products.

Read exclusive articles written by Senators John McCain and Barack Obama in the October issue of AmCham’s China Brief magazine.

As published in AmCham’s China Wire newsletter, Yao Shenhong, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce, says that the Ministry of Commerce has not yet received an anti-monopoly examination and approval application from Coca-Cola regarding its acquisition of Huiyuan Juice. Read more on the AmCham site.

Many of us have heard or read anecdotes recently regarding new Chinese visa policies and the increased stringency of visa policy enforcement. As the specifics of each case vary greatly, we are asking our members to relate their recent personal experiences with the China business visa process in order to gauge the impact of these recent changes on them and their business operations.

AmCham members, please watch your e-mail box for a link to the visa survey.

If you are a current member and didn’t get a copy, please e-mail Bill.Hart@amcham-china.org.cn to get the link.

The chamber will be compiling the results of this survey in the coming days.

AP report quotes an official with the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Commerce saying that the office is not accepting business visa applications related to general matters, such as attending conferences, visiting factories and business negotiations. The good news is there is an end in sight; the restrictions are expected to be lifted on September 20. Read the full story. 

This report comes from a friend of the chamber.  

On the round trip return from Tianjin this morning, a colleague and I were stopped at a routine police checkpoint getting back on the old Tianjin highway to return to Beijing. The police asked for passports, which we have never carried internally in China unless flying.

A US driver’s license and my complex’s residence were card not sufficient. Even though they could see us in their computer system (including passports, photos and residence permits), they required actual faxes of the passports and residence permits before they would let us pass. Luckily someone was at home and was able to fax my colleague her the passport/residence permit quickly. They finally let us go without requiring my secretary to go to the office to fax mine. Lesson for everyone is it is best for westerners to keep our passports/residence permits on our persons at all times, at least through September.

There are many more stories like this being told this summer in the capital city. Got one to share?

Following the recent earthquake in southwestern China, many AmCham-China member companies have made significant efforts to the relief effort. Read the list of companies, the amount of their contribution and the agency where they directed their funds.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs (MOCA — the government agency responsible for disaster relief) is offering to publicize the donations made by AmCham member companies, should that be of interest. Each day MOCA compiles a press release, including a list of contributions, and issues it to Xinhua and CCTV.

If you represent an AmCham member company and would like to add your name to the list, please e-mail Julie Leng  - Julie@amcham-china.org.cn

Please post information about your contribution on this site as well.

Posted by Laura

The American Chamber of Commerce in China expresses its deep concern and sympathy to the people of China affected by the devastating loss of life and property damage resulting from the earthquake in Sichuan Province.  In response, AmCham-China pledges the sum of  RMB 1 million to aid the relief efforts.  These funds will be made available after consulting with Chinese disaster-relief officials to determine where they can be used most effectively and immediately.

“Our members live and work in China, and our hearts go out to the families of the victims of this disaster,” said AmCham-China chairman James Zimmerman. “Many of our member companies have already stepped forward to offer support and aid.”

AmCham will continue to work with the Chinese Government to make information available to members about where and how they can offer further support as new information becomes available.

If you represent an AmCham-China member company and would like to share what your firm has done to provide earthquake relief, please post your story here, or send an e-mail to Julie Leng  Julie@amcham-china.org.cn .

Posted by Laura

In an effort to assist those companies and individuals helping people affected by the recent earthquakes, Xinhua PR Newswire is offering AmCham members the free use of its press release distribution service within the country.  Organizations offering aid to the victims of the earthquakes can distribute their messages through XPRN’s network in China that covers over 9,000 journalists from over 3,000 newspapers, magazines and online media from across China. These press releases can include both a text announcement about their aid efforts and an accompanying photo or image.

For more information please contact:

Tailei Zhang of Xinhua PR Newswire in

Beijing at 10-58645288; 10-58645299
 

Jack Ni of Xinhua PR Newswire in

Shanghai at 21-61135934.

About Xinhua PR Newswire
Xinhua PR Newswire (XPRN), an alliance created between Xinhua Finance and PR Newswire, assists companies and organizations in delivering their news releases to the media, individual and institutional investors, and the general public worldwide, with clipping, monitoring, measurement and media intelligence services. Utilizing PR Newswire’s global news distribution network, Xinhua PR Newswire can send clients’ press releases to 170 countries and regions in 40 languages.

Posted by Laura