HNA Group plans to sell their assets 海航或将分拆重组 [Watch VIDEOS]

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Plans to sell HNA Group assets

Hainan government plans to take over the conglomerate HNA Group and sell off its airline assets, as the coronavirus outbreak has hit the Chinese conglomerate’s ability to meet financial obligations. HNA directly controls or holds stakes in a number of local carriers, including its flagship Hainan Airlines.

HNA Group was once one of China’s most aggressive deal making firms, spending $50 billion to build an empire, investing from Deutsche Bank to Hilton Worldwide.

It began unwinding those bets two years ago to shift the focus to its core airlines and tourism businesses, after drawing scrutiny from Beijing and other overseas regulators.

In December, its chairman Chen Feng said that the firm had faced cash flow shortages that forced it to delay some salary payments in 2019, but vowed to resolve its liquidity risks this year.

The company has in recent weeks come under pressure from the new coronavirus outbreak in China which has forced airlines to cancel thousands of flights.

Hainan Airlines and other airlines have tried to cut their losses by putting foreign pilots on unpaid leave. Hong Kong Airlines, also part-owned by HNA, said on Friday that it will cut 400 jobs.

China’s aviation regulator acknowledged the industry’s pains last week, and said it would support restructurings or mergers to help airlines cope with the epidemic.

海航或将分拆重组

在新冠病毒疫情影响了海航集团的偿债能力之后，海航集团总部所处的海南省政府正在谈判接管海航集团。

海航集团直接控制着或持有数家中国航司的股份，包括海南航空。

12月，海航集团董事长陈峰称，海航面临现金流短缺，这迫使它在2019年推迟部分员工的工资支付，但他誓言今年解决这一流动性危机。

最近几周，新冠疫情迫使航空公司取消数千架次航班，这导致海航承压。

海南航空与其它航司试图通过安排外籍飞行员休无薪假来减少亏损。海航集团旗下的香港航空上周五表示，它将裁员400人。

中国民航局上周表示，它将支持航空业重组或兼并，以帮助航空公司应对新冠病毒疫情。

Significant Drop of

New Coronavirus Cases in China

Hubei announced 349 new cases today, the lowest daily number of infections officially recorded by China in weeks, but it remains too early to predict the end of the current outbreak.

The news of a fall in infections in China comes amid a spike in cases in other Asian countries, notably South Korea, Singapore and Japan.

Infections drop in virus epicenter: Confirmed cases in mainland China increased by 394, according to the country's National Health Commission. Only 45 of those new cases were outside of Hubei, according to the NHC's official figures.

The total number of confirmed cases in mainland China is now 74,576, bringing the global total to 75,727.

Death toll rises: The number of people killed by the virus continues to rise, with 114 more deaths announced in mainland China today, of which 108 were in Hubei province. In total, the global death toll is now 2,128.

South Korea infections jump: There are now 82 cases of the deadly coronavirus in South Korea, the government reported today, after a jump of 31 additional cases overnight. Many of the new infections went to the same church as a previous confirmed patient.

Diamond Princess passengers departing: Large numbers of passengers are due to leave their cruise ship today after two weeks in quarantine on board. Cruise goers from Canada and Israel will be among those allowed off Thursday. A total of 624 cases of the coronavirus have been found on board the ship so far.

BREAKING NEWS:

Two Ship passengers die of the coronavirus

Two passengers of the Diamond Princess cruise ship have died from novel coronavirus today. They are believed to be a man and a woman in their 80s, although their identity and gender is not known at this time.

It comes as passengers from the ship who have tested negative have begun to leave after two weeks of quarantine aboard. A total of 624 cases of the coronavirus have been found on board the ship so far.

More than 620 of the passengers on the Diamond Princess liner have been infected on the ship, which has been quarantined since 3 February, initially with about 3,700 people on board. Nationals from Australia, the US, Canada and Hong Kong who have been quarantined on the ship have been airlifted home.

TIANJIN: 130 Coronavirus Cases

As of February 19, 18:00, Tianjin has confirmed 130 cases of novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

The 129th patient, male, 90 years old, currently living in Baoping Street, Baodi District, Tianjin, no history of travel and work in Wuhan. He's the close contact of the 72nd, 85th and 86th patient. 

The 130th patient, male, 38 years old, now lives in Dazhongzhuang Town, Baodi District, Tianjin, no history of travel and work in Wuhan. He's the close contact of the 64th case and the 99th patient.

新增2例！天津确诊病例增至130例

2月19日6时至2月19日18时，天津新增新冠肺炎确诊病例2例，累计确诊病例130例。

第129号病例，男，90岁，现居住于天津市宝坻区宝平街，无武汉旅行和工作史，系我市第72例、第85例（曾到宝坻百货大楼购物）、第86例确诊病例密切接触者。该患者自2月6日起作为密切接触者在集中隔离点隔离治疗，无咳嗽、咳痰、发热等症状；19日核酸检测结果为阳性，经市专家组确诊为我市第129例病例，为普通型。目前已转往海河医院治疗，流行病学调查工作正在进行中。

第130例患者，男，38岁，现居住于天津市宝坻区大钟庄镇，无武汉旅行和工作史。系我市第64例（曾送第51例确诊病例到宝坻百货大楼）、第99例确诊病例（曾到过宝坻百货大楼购物）密切接触者。该患者1月29日出现发热伴咳嗽、乏力等症状，自行服药后缓解；2月6日自行到宝坻区人民医院发热门诊就诊，被收入隔离病房治疗；19日核酸检测结果为阳性，经市专家组确诊为我市第130例病例，为普通型。目前已转往海河医院治疗，流行病学调查工作正在进行中。

截至目前，本市累计报告新冠肺炎确诊病例130例，其中男性71例，女性59例；危重型2例、重型21例、普通型49例、轻型1例，治愈出院54例，死亡3例。疑似病例212例。累计排查密切接触者1841人，尚有743人正在接受医学观察。

Temperature checks at airports

"Inefficient and ineffective"

One of the enduring images of the current coronavirus outbreak is a space-age looking thermometer pointed at an airplane passenger.

Most of airports are using these temperature checks as part of expanded screening for novel coronavirus, and those measures might seem reassuring. If someone doesn't have a fever, it seems like they're fine - right?

But it turns out not a single coronavirus case has been caught by airport temperature checks, despite more than thousands of passengers being screened a month.

"Inefficient and ineffective": It isn't the first time the method has been called into question.

Earlier this month, British researchers published a study showing that temperature checks will fail to detect a coronavirus infection nearly half the time.

In Israel, temperature checks have been used in the past for outbreaks such as Ebola and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) but they were found not to work.

Female Medics Shave Their Heads

to show their determination to fight coronavirus

Fifteen female medical workers from Gansu Provincial Women's and Children's Hospital were sent to Wuhan to work on Saturday and it is said 14 of them ended up have their heads shaven to show their determination to fight the novel coronavirus.

Trending footage shows around a dozen nurses having their long locks shorn at a send-off ceremony and many of them can be seen having tears in their eyes.

They were scheduled to leave the city of Lanzhou, provincial capital of Gansu, the same afternoon, and all of the medical workers had volunteered to go completely bald as a way to prevent infection

Pet owners 'walk' their dogs

from their windows

Pet owners who are in home quarantine have started to 'walk' their dogs from their windows and balconies using super long leads during the coronavirus outbreak.

Trending videos show residents standing by their windows while holding onto their pooches which are attached to lengthy leashes. They take the animals home by pulling the ropes.

While some internet users regarded the clips 'funny', most people warned that method is 'dangerous' and 'cruel'. Media urged people not to copy the practice in a social media post that shared the footage.

Oaktree Capital Sets Up First Wholly Foreign-Owned Bad-Loan Unit in China

Oaktree Capital Management, a Los Angeles-based distressed debt manager, became the first foreign company to set up a wholly owned unit in China under a trade accord with the U.S.

The move sets up Oaktree to expand its $6.5 billion footprint in China’s vast bad-debt market as corporate defaults mount. At the end of 2019, Chinese banks sat on 2.41 trillion yuan ($345 billion) of bad loans, or 1.86% of outstanding loans, government data showed. China’s four state-owned asset-management giants resolved roughly $70 billion of nonperforming loans last year, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Global vulture investors are eyeing opportunities in China as a rising number of companies struggle with defaults after years of debt-fueled business expansion. Corporate defaults across the country spiked to about $18.6 billion in 2019, up from a record $17.44 billion in 2018, according to Bloomberg data.

Oaktree Capital completed registration of Oaktree (Beijing) Investment Management Co. Feb. 14, according to a statement (link in Chinese) from Beijing’s financial regulatory department. With registered capital of $4.55 million, the Beijing-based company will engage in investment management, consultancy and asset management, according to public information. 

Under a phase-one trade accord with the U.S., China agreed to allow American asset managers to apply for licenses to buy nonperforming loans directly from Chinese banks. Previously, foreign asset managers could buy Chinese distressed assets only through local bad loan companies.

橡树资本落地北京  此前已投资中国不良资产超65亿美元

2月17日，北京市地方金融监督管理局披露，全球知名不良资产投资管理公司橡树资本的全资子公司--Oaktree（北京）投资管理公司已于2月17日在北京完成工商注册，注册资本542万美元。

这意味着，中国资产管理市场市场迎来了首个外资玩家。

橡树资本是全球最大不良资产投资机构，在投资界素有“困境资产投资之王”、“华尔街秃鹫”之称。该公司成立于1995年，于2012年在纽交所上市，总部位于洛杉矶，目前管理资产规模约1200亿美元。

Russia temporarily bans most Chinese visitors amid coronavirus epidemic

Russia will temporarily ban Chinese nationals from entering the country due to the virus outbreak centered in China that has infected more than 73,000 people worldwide, Russian authorities said Tuesday.

The entry ban goes into effect Thursday at midnight Moscow time for an indefinite period, according to a decree signed by Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin. The government said it took the move due to the “worsening epidemiological situation” in China.

Russia already had cut off most Chinese visitors by closing the long land border with China and Mongolia and imposing other travel restrictions. The new entry ban won't affect travelers who need to transfer flights at Russian airports, authorities said.

So far, Russia has had only three confirmed cases of the COVID-19 disease caused by the virus — two Chinese citizens who were treated and released, and a Russian national infected on the Diamond Princess cruise ship now quarantined in Japan.

However, Russian authorities have taken significant steps to try to keep the virus from spreading, including hospitalizing hundreds of people as a precaution after they returned from China.

Russia halted most air traffic to China, suspended all trains to China and North Korea, and temporarily stopped issuing work visas to Chinese citizens. Chinese students studying in Russia were told not to return until March 1.

Earlier this month, the prime minister said Russia might start deporting the foreigners infected with the virus.

俄罗斯暂时禁止中国公民入境

近期想要去俄罗斯的人要注意了！

根据俄罗斯联邦政府决议案，自莫斯科时间2月20日零时起，俄罗斯临时禁止持工作、私人访问、学习和旅游签证的中国公民入境。

自2月19日起，俄罗斯暂停受理、审批和颁发中国公民的工作邀请函和境外中国公民的工作许可，暂停受理、审批和颁发中国公民的私人访问和学习邀请函，俄罗斯联邦驻华大使馆领事处暂停签发工作、私人、旅游、留学签证。

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