The re-construction of four primary schools that were destroyed during the 5.12 Sichuan earthquake in 2008 will be completed by the end of 2008 and one of the major contributors for the re-construction is McDonald's.

In its second quarter financial report the international electronics retailer Best Buy says that it has gained Chinese local government approval to open four new stores in China.

Huiyuan Juice Group said at a press conference in Hong Kong that its net profit had decreased by 7.2% to CNY367.34 million in the first half of 2008.

According to the statistics released by the Ministry of Commerce on July 31, 2008, in the first half of 2008, the combined retail sales of consumer goods in China's rural areas reached 1.622 trillion, a year-on-year increase of 20%.

Carrefour China western regional manager Arnaud Dupont said that the group plans to open five new stores in Sichuan province over the next three years.

Trust-Mart has recently opened its second store in Mianyang, Sichuan Province — the first new large-scale supermarket to be opened in Sichuan Province following the May 12 earthquake.