Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) said it would launch more financial services in China, after it has been in cooperation with a Chinese bank in Jinan, capital of east China's Shandong Province for one year.

According to Qiu Yunzhang, board chairman of Jinan City Commercial Bank, CBA would help the bank start personal business service, mutual acting service, and improve services for small or medium-sized Chinese firms.

Qiu said the preparation work for these new businesses had been completed.

Market observers said the move, following CBA's purchase of 19.9 percent stake in another Chinese city bank -- Hangzhou City Commercial Bank this April, indicated the Australian bank was progressive in developing its business in China.

China's significant population, rising incomes, and the full opening of the banking sector to foreign cooperation, are most attractive for foreign banks, observers said.

Earlier this week, Pangaea Capital Management of Singapore purchased 289 million non-traded shares worth of China's Huaxia bank for about US$125 million to become the first foreign venture auctioned to buy into China's banks.

CBA, which ranked 35th among the banks on the globe, entered the Chinese banking industry last year by acquiring 11 percent of China's Jinan City Commercial Bank.

The cooperation also gave the Australian lender an option to increase that holding to 20 percent by May 14,2008.

"China is very, very important in our global business strategy," said Richard Williamson, head of CBA's international business development department. "And the Jinan venture sets an excellent example of how we do business in other parts of China."

(Xinhua News Agency September 10, 2005)