"It's a big tournament here in Shanghai, very important for me, " said the Argentine.
Bank of Communications is the only Shanghai-based big firm, in which HSBC holds a 19% share.
Forty-eight regional headquarters of big multinationals were set up in Shanghai in 2011, bringing the total to 353.
The beneficiaries of that policy are China's "Big Three" automakers--Shanghai Automotive Industry, First Automotive Works and Dongfeng Motor--and a handful of other large, state-owned companies.
They sure are, and the latest big ticket sales show just how much Shanghai housing cost averages have gone up.
Until now, most of China's explosive growth in auto sales has been concentrated in the wealthier coastal areas near Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, where big, expensive sedans are popular.
Housing prices in the big eastern seaboard cities like Beijing and Shanghai remain high compared to where they were five years ago, but have been coming down month over month due to the current policies that curb lending to the sector and restrict home purchases, especially for non-resident home buyers, foreign investors, and second or third home buyers.
Shanghai 2010 Expo became our first big opportunity.
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"China's wealth is spreading beyond the entertainment industry's traditionally big markets in eastern cities like Beijing and Shanghai, and moving further out into second- and third-tier cities, " says Echo Yang, who compiled the list for Forbes China.
Shanghai, for example, has had several big setbacks this year.
Mr Omura, less prone to hyperbole, says that all big Japanese cities are in a struggle to compete with the likes of Shanghai, so why should Tokyo have all the advantages?
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Yum had warned investors on February 4, noting earnings would probably take a big hit in the first half of the year given the probe by Shanghai authorities, as my colleague Abram Brown reported.
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Soon big-budget hits such as the "Rush Hour" series and "Shanghai Noon, " followed.
Meanwhile, after a series of big ups and downs, China's stock market, as measured by the Shanghai Composite Index, is trading right where it was about a decade ago.
"They'll be in a position to profit from the big-growth markets, which are the major U.S cities plus foreign destinations like Shanghai, " said aviation consultant Michael Boyd.
The first big one was between GM and SAIC, set up when GM won the bid for a JV in Shanghai in 1995.
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It now attracts big-name hotel brands like the Hyatt, whose famous VUE bar has one of the best city views in Shanghai.
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