August 2007 China News

Mystery room discovered at China's terra cotta tomb

BEIJING, China (AP) -- Chinese researchers say they have found a strange pyramid-shaped chamber while surveying the massive underground tomb of China's first emperor and theorize it was built as a passageway for his soul.

Remote sensing equipment has revealed what appears to be a 100-foot-high room above Emperor Qin Shihuang's tomb near the ancient capital of Xi'an in Shaanxi province, the official Xinhua News Agency reported Sunday.

The room has not been excavated. Diagrams of the chamber are based on data gathered over five years, starting in 2002, using radar and other remote sensing technologies, the news agency said.

Archaeologist Liu Qingzhu of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences was quoted as saying the room is unlike any ever found in a Chinese tomb.

"Qin himself was very unusual, so it's not unexpected that his tomb should also be unique," Liu told the news agency.

Archaeologists theorize that because the room was built on top of Qin's mausoleum and seems to have ladder-like steps leading up, it was intended as a passageway for his spirit, Xinhua said.

Qin, who ruled from 221-210 B.C., is credited with starting construction of the Great Wall and commissioning an army of terra cotta soldiers to guard his tomb.

Thousands of the terra cotta warriors were discovered more than 20 years ago by peasants from a local commune who were sinking wells.

China-made Chryslers by 2010

BEIJING (Reuters) -- The first made-in-China Chrysler cars, built by local partner Chery Automobile Co., could reach the United States or Europe within 30 months, as ambitious Chinese rivals race to penetrate the world's big auto markets.

Ten-year old Chery, Geely Automobile and Brilliance China Automotive Holdings already export to developing markets, but have had little success in mature markets where competition is more intense.

The two partners will develop, manufacture and distribute Chery-made small and sub-compact cars in North America, Europe and other major automotive markets under Chrysler brands.

"The first product within one year, and then into the United States and Western Europe within two to three years," Chrysler Group Chief Executive Tom LaSorda told reporters Wednesday at a ceremony marking the strategic alliance.

Chrysler needs a partner to help develop small cars because of the cost of designing, making and marketing a vehicle in a segment where prices and margins are small, analysts said.

"I would say there are endless possibilities," said LaSorda. "We are looking at multiple approaches," adding that volumes could be "maybe 50,000 or 100,000 and maybe more" depending on the region.

But like the Koreans and Japanese before them, the price advantage enjoyed by Chinese exporters is offset by poor quality, outdated design and the lack of brand recognition.

A Brilliance unit said last week the failure of its BS6 sedan to pass a crash test in Germany was only a temporary setback and it still expected to sell 158,000 cars in Europe over the next five years.

Jiangling Motors Group's sport utility vehicle Landwind failed the same test in 2005, fueling doubts about the reliability of Chinese-made vehicles.

China, the world's second-largest auto market, last year became a net vehicle exporter for the first time, but sales were mostly to South Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

The Chrysler-Chery tie-up was first announced last year but was delayed due to the sale of Chrysler by parent DaimlerChrysler to Cerberus Capital Management.

Chery, a medium-sized auto company based in eastern China, has posted fast sales growth at home by offering a line-up of inexpensive vehicles, but must convince European and American consumers it can build safe vehicles.

"Quality and safety are our main concerns," said Yin Tongyao, Chery's chief executive.

With the Chery deal, Chrysler sees its sales outside North America doubling over the next four to five years, as it branches out from the NAFTA region, its home market.

That development path has helped many local automakers expand rapidly to where they now account for around a quarter of China's car sales - a market that roared ahead at 30 percent last year - and could capture a 40 percent share within four years.

Zhongxing Automobile is planning to export 50,000 pickups and SUVs to Mexico this year as a springboard to break into the U.S. market within two years. The vehicles will on average be a fifth cheaper than comparably equipped brand-name competitors.

Campbell to sell soups in China, Russia

CHICAGO (Reuters) -- Campbell Soup Monday laid out plans to sell soup in Russia and China as it tries to capture sales in those fast-growing markets.

Campbell said soup consumption in Russia and China, the world's two largest markets for such products, far exceeded that of the United States.

In the United States, about 14 billion servings of soup are consumed each year, Campbell said, compared with about 32 billion in Russia and about 320 billion in China. Nearly all of the soup consumed in Russia and China is homemade.

The company's entrance into both markets comes as income levels are rising and consumers are looking for convenience, Chief Executive Douglas Conant said in a statement.

In Russia, the company plans to introduce beef, chicken and mushroom varieties of "Campbell's Domashnaya Klassika," or Campbell's Home Classics. The broths will first go on sale in the Moscow region in October.

Analysts say premade soup producers, including foreign ones, have good prospects in Russia.

"People used to prefer cooking at home and now, with many rushing doing business, people are actively switching to semi-finished products," said Vladislav Kochetkov from Finam investment company.

"There are Campbell Soup's products sold in Russia, but not very widely and the company does not promote its products here very actively," Kochetkov said. "If it enters the market more actively and invests heavily in marketing and promoting its products, the prospects are not bad at all."

In China, Campbell will introduce two Swanson-brand selections: a clear chicken broth and a classic broth known there as Gao Tang, with a combination of chicken, Hainan ham and pork.

Campbell has been selling Swanson broth for more than 20 years in Hong Kong, where it said it had more than a 90 percent share of the broth market.

The broths will make their debut in early October in five cities in the Guandong Province: Guangzhou, Shenzen, Donguan, Zhongshan and Foshan.

Duo dance ban aims to curb passion

SHANGHAI, China (AP) -- Chinese educators are toning down plans to teach students to waltz after parents said they worried about puppy love and falling grades, local media has reported.

The revised dance steps allow students to dance by themselves or in large groups, the Xinhua News Agency said Monday, without explaining exactly how that would work.

"They don't have to dance with specific partners, which will be more easily accepted by both students and their parents," Yin Guochen, an official with the State General Administration of Sports, was quoted as saying.

Xinhua also quoted an Education Ministry official as saying another version would see students organized into groups of four and changing partners with each song.

"This way, the risk of young love would be lowered," a ministry official, Yang Guiren, was quoted as saying.

Concerns that students would "fall in love and lose track of exam results" already have pushed back plans to introduce dancing from September to the end of the year, the report said.

Although Chinese schools are mixed, parental disapproval and academic pressure mean relationships between students are unusual before the university level.

Ballroom dancing has long been considered a form of healthy exercise in China, with large groups gathering in parks or sports grounds to whirl away to piped-in music.

The idea of introducing it in schools was inspired primarily by worries over poor health and rising obesity among students.