Weekend relaxation strategies

The weekend is hours away (count them) and hopefully the two days will give shell-shocked investors a chance to steel themselves for what will likely be another white knuckle week on the markets. We would recommend some deep breathing exercises at your neighborhood yoga studio. Or maybe a weekend jaunt to a beach-rich nation. Lord knows China’s airline industry would thank you for it. An executive with China Eastern Airlines said that the industry has been hit hard by the world economic crisis and that carriers may have to cut back on loss-making routes to reduce costs. The unnamed bigwig also said that, unless things improve, domestic airlines may have to file a joint appeal next year to the government for subsidies and tax breaks. Airlines are far from the only ones feeling the pinch. Our friendly number crunchers at the National Bureau of Statistics said that China’s business climate index in the third quarter dropped below 130 for the first time since the SARS outbreak in 2003. Good times indeed. The government is well aware of the mounting crisis in the markets and has adopted a less-is-more approach to new listings. If you noticed a certain emptiness in the IPO pipeline it’s because the CSRC hasn’t been reviewing listing applications since September. It’s part of a move to boost the markets by curbing equity supply and is expected to continue at least through the end of this month, if not longer.