World Business Quick Take

■ Finance
China needs time for reform
China need another five to 10 years before the government will liberalize the country's interest and exchange rates, the China Securities Journal said, citing a researcher at the central bank's monetary committee. Reform to China's exchange rates will have to move in tandem with liberalization of interest rates, which are fixed by the central bank, the newspaper said, quoting from an interview with Li Yang. The central bank will begin the reforms by first widening the range in which saving and lending rates can be set, and by giving state-owned banks greater freedom to set rates, Li said. China's state-owned banks should also improve their risk management practices, and provide a wider range of financial services before they are allowed to freely set interest rates, Li said.

■ Finance
GE to start bad-loan venture
General Electric Co, the world's largest non-bank financial company, wants to set up a venture to collect bad loans for South Korean companies, the country's industry watchdog said. General Electric's financial service subsidiary, Global Financial Restructuring, applied to team with South Korea's Seoul Guarantee Insurance Co and Samsung Capital Co to set up a joint credit collection company, the Financial Supervisory Service said on its Web site. The alliance may give General Electric access to a pool of bad loans at Seoul Guarantee, a 35-year-old company that provides guarantee services to individuals and companies. The US firm will get 30 percent of the proposed venture, Seoul Guarantee a 51 percent stake and Samsung Capital the remaining 19 percent. The proposed venture plans to have 10 billion won (US$8.4 million) in capital.

■ Appliances
Whirlpool sues LG
Whirlpool Corp, the biggest US appliance maker, filed a patent-infringement lawsuit seeking to block South Korean-based rival LG Electronics Inc from selling washing machines for clothing in the US. LG Electronics introduced a line of washing machines that infringe two patents, Whirlpool said in a statement. Benton Harbor, Michigan- based Whirlpool sued in federal court in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Whirlpool is trying to protect sales of its fastest-growing model, the US$1,400 Duet washer and dryer set, which relies on the system in dispute. Major appliance shipments in the US are expected to grow "moderately" in the second half over last year and the Duet sales are credited with helping to boost second- quarter profit by 49 percent.

■ Auto industry
BMW bemoans launch costs
BMW, the German maker of luxury cars, said yesterday that costs connected with the launch and market of new models ate into earnings in the second quarter of the current year, but the group was still hoping to post stable full-year earnings. BMW said in a statement its net profit amounted to 568 million euros (US$642 million) in the period from April to June, a drop of 9.7 percent from the figure for the corresponding period a year earlier. Pre-tax profit before extraordinary items fell by 7.2 percent to 947 million euros in the three-month period, BMW said. "That was due to the high level of expenditure for the product and market offensive, covering the relevant structure and launch costs for the introduction of new models," BMW explained.