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The luxurious Yuanhua International Building, a hotel complex established by Lai Changxing, accused of heading a major Chinese smuggling ring, on Thursday failed to sell at its first auction, amid a media frenzy.
The minimum bid of 168 million yuan (20.3 million US dollars) for the unfinished 30-storey building, covering 75,800 square meters, in Xiamen city center received no response in the auditorium packed with the media and only a dozen potential bidders.
Lai fled to Canada after being charged with masterminding a network that smuggled 10 billion dollars worth of goods into Chinafrom Hong Kong under the protection of corrupt officials. The smuggled goods included cigarettes, heating and cooking oil, textiles, chemicals and other raw materials.
Lai is now facing extradition proceedings in a Canadian court.
Xia Gangzhai, chief auctioneer of the Xiamen International Commodity Auction Center, announced closure of the first auction after the promotion film was aired.
He explained that no one paid the 250-US-dollar deposit to register as a bidder for various reasons.
He told reporters that his firm had received many inquiries before the abortive auction, which suggested a wide interest in the five-star hotel.
A number of potential bidders wanted to make a decision after more scrutiny, he added.
A second auction will be held soon.
(China Daily July 19, 2002)
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