CHINA Metallurgical Import and Export Corporation became the latest mainland company to seek a back-door listing on the stock exchange, paying $140 million for a 39 per cent stake in Chee Shing Holdings.
The Bank of China announced it would centralise its interbank market operations and capital market activities.
Trade officials announced the United States was going to promote the APEC into a free trade zone with tariff cuts, and would seek to bring non-members (notably Europe) on board to give it global status.
Spurred by Chinese Vice-Premier Zhu Rongji's appointment as central bank governor, the renminbi's value gained strongly on the Shanghai swap market, while red chips plunged in Hongkong amid continued economic uncertainty on the mainland.
US President Bill Clinton and Japanese Prime Minister Kiichi Miyazawa announced on Tuesday they had made some ''significant progress'' on narrowing trade differences.
Turnover on the stock market fell to its lowest levels since Easter.