Snapshots on today's banking scene, financial market and other business news

As online shopping gain popularity, 2006 witnesses a turning point in China’s consumer to consumer (C2C) market as it overcomes infrastructure bottlenecks. Analysys International and Taobao.com jointly report the notable increase in the number of online buying and selling and the popular use of third-party payment. 

Guangzhou’s land and housing management bureau reports a drastic reduction in property prices since the implementation of macro controls this year. Property prices fell by 6 percent to 6,382 yuan (797.75 US dollars) per sq. meter in September. First-hand property transaction also slowed down in the last three months.  Beijing on the contrary saw a rise in transactions in September. What could have made the difference?

Despite recent cases of security breach in online banking, less than 3 percent of online users adopt third-party security verification in 2005. How can banks solve the problem to maximize benefits of online banking?

China’s electronic payment market has grown by more than 100 percent in 2005 reaching 16.1 billion yuan (2.01 billion US dollars). Behind the glamorous statistics, the popularity of bank cards depends much on whether it can overcome security challenges and traditional consumer behaviors.

With the second biggest Internet population in the world, China has a growing number of Internet entrepreneurs. Shanghai Securities Journal investigated its prospect and obstacles.

China's e-commerce transaction volume has grown by 50-60 percent over the past couple of years and is expected to maintain fast growth for several years to come, said the report released by China Center for Information Industry Development Consulting (CCID Consulting).

Niger has awarded licences to a group of companies from China to explore for uranium to meet the Asian country’s soaring energy demands, Reuters reported.The exploration licences announced were the first for Chinese firms in Niger's uranium sector.

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