China signs cement deal with South Africa

China’s Jidong Development Group and the China Africa Development Fund signed a deal to acquire a majority stake in a US$221 million cement plant in South Africa, the Financial Times reported. Under the deal, which is China’s largest investment in South Africa for over two years, two local partner firms will acquire a minority stake in the plant. Jidong announced that it had already exported production equipment to the factory, its first outside the country. Chen Ying, vice president of Jidong, said that the firm anticipated rapid growth for South Africa’s cement sector in coming years. The deal marks continued interest by Chinese firms in the country: In 2007, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC; 601398.SH, 1398.HK) invested US$5.5 billion in South Africa’s Standard Bank.