U.K.-based Standard Chartered Bank has opened its first village bank, Inner Mongolia Helingeer Standard Chartered Village Bank, making it the first foreign bank to enter China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

According to information from Chinese Internet auction website Taobao.com, the website is currently cooperating with local commerce departments around China to fight sales of fake and shoddy products, and users who are found selling fake products in their online shops on Taobao.com will have their accounts permanently disabled.

With a store area of 170,000 square meters, Jiuguang Department Store owned by the Hong Kong-based Lifestyle International Holdings has been opened at the Harmony Times Square in the Suzhou Industrial Park, making it the largest individual department store in China.

The fast food chain McDonald's has recently announced plans to launch a one-year promotion by cutting the prices of 40% of its products in China.

The international apparel retailer Hennes & Mauritz has announced that the company plans to open 225 new specialty stores around the world in 2009, and its first specialty store will be opened in Beijing this spring.

Taiwanese computing, communications and consumer retailer Tsann Kuen has announced plans to return to the Chinese mainland market in 2009.