Equity fund units drop 18% in July

    CHINESE investors fled stock funds in July, seeking safe haven in bond and money market funds as share prices plunged, according to latest mutual fund data.

    The number of units held in China’s equity funds at the end of July was 18 percent smaller than a month earlier, according to the Asset Management Association of China. This reflects heavy redemptions by investors during the month. The value of assets under management in stocks funds shrank by 27 percent during the month to 1.296 trillion yuan (US$202.59 billion). Investors also pulled out of balanced funds, which invest in both stocks and bonds, resulting in a 23 percent slump in the number of fund units.

    Tencent invests in messaging app firm

    KIK Interactive Inc., a Canadian startup behind a popular messaging app, has turned to Tencent Holdings Ltd. for a US$50 million investment that values the company at US$1 billion.

    The deal gives Kik a financial jolt in its bid to take on deep-pocketed rivals Snapchat Inc. and WhatsApp, owned by Facebook Inc. Thousands of miles away from Silicon Valley in Waterloo, Canada, where BlackBerry Ltd. is based, Kik has quietly amassed more than 200 million users for its Kik Messenger app.

    China Telecom first-half net profit falls 4%

    CHINA Telecom Corp. yesterday said first-half net profit fell 4 percent from a year earlier as regulatory polices, such as value-added tax reform, weighed on earnings.

    China Telecom said net profit for the half fell to 10.98 billion yuan (US$1.72 billion) from 11.44 billion yuan a year earlier, while its operating revenue dropped to 164.95 billion yuan from 165.97 billion yuan. For the first half of 2015, the company added 5.82 million mobile subscribers from the end of last year, putting the total number to 191 million, it said.

    Zijin vows to boost oversight of chemicals

    ZIJIN Mining Group Co., the owner of China’s largest gold mine, will strengthen control over dangerous chemicals after explosions in Tianjin killed more than 100 people last week.

    Zijin will inspect how it buys, ships, stores and uses chemicals including sodium cyanide, according to a statement posted Tuesday on its website that cited a board meeting hosted by chairman Chen Jinghe. The checks will run through December and anyone found to be responsible for accidents related to safety and the environment will be fired, it said.