Neostem A Chinese Takeover Candidate?

Article Seeking Alpha

Sino Clean Energy Lied in an 8-K to Conceal its Dongguan Fraud

Sino Clean Energy's Dongguan Fraud

U.S.-Listed China Stocks: A Mixed Bag Of Results, But Trading Opportunities Still Exist

Article Seeking Alpha

Mixed Results In The B2C Market In China

Article Seeking Alpha

SEC Microcap Fraud-Fighting Initiative Expels 379 Dormant Shell Companies to Protect Investors From Potential Scams

SEC Trading Suspensions

Massive Trading Suspension Is Largest in Agency History

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2012-91

Washington, D.C., May 14, 2012 — The Securities and Exchange Commission today suspended trading in the securities of 379 dormant companies before they could be hijacked by fraudsters and used to harm investors through reverse mergers or pump-and-dump schemes. The trading suspension marks the most companies ever suspended in a single day by the agency as it ramps up its crackdown against fraud involving microcap shell companies that are dormant and delinquent in their public disclosures.

Microcap companies typically have limited assets and low-priced stock that trades in low volumes. An initiative tabbed Operation Shell-Expel by the SEC's Microcap Fraud Working Group utilized various agency resources including the enhanced intelligence technology of the Enforcement Division's Office of Market Intelligence to scrutinize microcap stocks in the markets nationwide and identify clearly dormant shell companies in 32 states and six foreign countries that were ripe for potential fraud.

"Empty shell companies are to stock manipulators and pump-and-dump schemers what guns are to bank robbers — the tools by which they ply their illegal trade," said Robert Khuzami, Director of the SEC's Division of Enforcement. "This massive trading suspension unmasks these empty shell companies and deprives unscrupulous scam artists of the opportunity to profit at the expense of unsuspecting retail investors."

Thomas Sporkin, Director of the SEC's Office of Market Intelligence, added, "It's critical to assess risks to investors in the capital markets and, through strategic planning, develop ways to neutralize them. We were able to conduct a detailed review of the microcap issuers quoted in the over-the-counter market and cull out these high-risk shell companies."

The SEC's previously largest trading suspension was an order in September 2005 that involved 39 companies. The federal securities laws allow the SEC to suspend trading in any stock for up to 10 business days. Subject to certain exceptions and exemptions, once a company is suspended from trading, it cannot be quoted again until it provides updated information including accurate financial statements.

Pump-and-dump schemes are among the most common types of fraud involving microcap companies. Perpetrators will tout a thinly-traded microcap stock through false and misleading statements about the company to the marketplace. After purchasing low and pumping the stock price higher by creating the appearance of market activity, they dump the stock to make huge profits by selling it into the market at the higher price.

The existence of empty shell companies can be a financial boon to stock manipulators who will pay as much as $750,000 to assume control of the company in order to pump and dump the stock for illegal proceeds to the detriment of investors. But with this trading suspension's obligation to provide updated financial information, these shell companies have been rendered essentially worthless and useless to scam artists.
"This mass trading suspension is an effective and novel way for the SEC to neutralize potential threats to investors," said Chris Ehrman, Co-National Coordinator of the SEC's Microcap Fraud Working Group. "With the ability to leverage staff expertise throughout the agency's offices and divisions, the Working Group is uniquely positioned to take on risk-based matters like these and focus resources where they are needed most."


This SEC enforcement effort has been led by Mr. Ehrman, Robert Bernstein, Jessica P. Regan, Leigh Barrett, and Megan Alcorn in the Office of Market Intelligence along with Microcap Fraud Working Group staff from each of the SEC's regional offices: Tanya Beard, David Berman, Sharon Binger, Melissa Buckhalter-Honore, Lisa Cuifolo, Tracy Davis, Elisha Frank, Kurt Gottschall, Lucy Graetz, Jennifer Hieb, C.J. Kerstetter, Victoria Levin, Aaron Lipson, Michael Paley, Farolito Parco, Jonathan Scott, and Lauchlan Wash.


The SEC appreciates the assistance and cooperation of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Economic Crimes Unit.

SkyPeople Fruit Juice Reports First Quarter 2012 Financial Results

Press Release

Financial Tables Follow -

SKYPEOPLE FRUIT JUICE, INC.
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
		March 31,			December 31,
		2012			2011
ASSETS		(Unaudited)
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents		$	76,713,489		$	61,154,007
Restricted cash			31,775			316,396
Accounts receivables, net of allowance of $46,577         and $46,529 as of March 31, 2012 and December 31, 2011, respectively			21,782,597			35,999,858
Other receivables			190,210			192,032
Inventories			5,335,964			6,126,376
Deferred tax assets			113,770			174,285
Advances to suppliers and other current assets			175,832			66,528
TOTAL CURRENT ASSETS			104,343,637			104,029,482
PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT, NET			49,784,454			44,277,228
LAND USE RIGHT, NET			6,635,133			6,673,496
OTHER ASSETS			173,233			5,323,162
TOTAL ASSETS		$	160,936,457		$	160,303,368
LIABILITIES
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Accounts payable		$	2,099,190		$	2,972,916
Accrued expenses			3,468,696			4,701,054
Income tax payable			855,217			1,910,779
Advances from customers			-			178,857
Short-term bank loans			8,467,979			6,425,713
Short-term notes payable			-			284,654
TOTAL CURRENT LIABILITIES			14,891,082			16,473,973
SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY
SkyPeople Fruit Juice, Inc, Stockholders' equity
Series B Preferred stock, $0.001 par value;         10,000,000 shares authorized; 1,456,647         issued and outstanding as of March 31,         2012 and December 31, 2011			1,457			1,457
Common stock, $0.001 par value; 66,666,666         shares authorized; 25,690,402 shares         issued and outstanding as of March 31,         2012 and  December 31, 2011			25,690			25,690
Additional paid-in capital			59,189,374			59,189,374
Retained earnings			66,542,611			64,623,453
Accumulated other comprehensive income			14,236,710			14,086,620
Total SkyPeople Fruit Juice, Inc. stockholders'         equity			139,995,842			137,926,594
Non-controlling interests			6,049,533			5,902,801
TOTAL EQUITY			146,045,375			143,829,395
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND EQUITY		$	160,936,457		$	160,303,368

SKYPEOPLE FRUIT JUICE, INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
(Unaudited)
		For the Three month Ended March 31,
		2012			2011
Revenue		$	14,993,500		$	19,414,915
Cost of goods sold			10,207,501			10,809,357
Gross profit			4,785,999			8,605,558
Operating Expenses
General and administrative expenses			1,477,604			816,160
Selling expenses			525,334			454,674
Research and development expenses			142,685			136,467
Total operating expenses			2,145,623			1,407,301
Income from operations			2,640,376			7,198,257
Other income (expenses)
Interest income			69,689			76,312
Subsidy income			433,504			483,067
Interest expenses			(154,812)			(163,795)
Others			(968)			(3,033)
Total other income (expenses)			347,413			392,551
Income before income tax			2,987,789			7,590,808
Income tax provision			928,380			1,929,808
Net income			2,059,409			5,661,000
Less: Net income attributable to non-controlling interests			140,251			368,824
NET INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO SKYPEOPLE FRUIT JUICE, INC.		$	1,919,158		$	5,292,176
Earnings per share:
Basic earnings per share		$	0.07		$	0.20
Diluted earnings per share		$	0.07		$	0.20
Weighted average number of shares outstanding
Basic			25,690,402			25,690,402
Diluted			26,661,500			26,662,599
Comprehensive Income
Net income		$	2,059,409		$	5,661,000
Foreign currency translation adjustment			156,571			1,141,578
Total Comprehensive income		$	2,215,980		$	6,802,578
Comprehensive income attributable to non-controlling interests			146,732			413,802
Comprehensive income attributable to SkyPeople Fruit Juice, Inc.		$	2,069,248		$	6,388,776
Yongke Xue, Chief Executive Officer of SkyPeople, commented, "We continue to be challenged by unpredictable market conditions and rising raw material costs due to the volatile pricing of fresh fruits. We understand that these factors are beyond our control, and have been working to further diversify our segment mix to offset, to the extent possible, the effect of seasonality. Nonetheless, we were able to generate healthy margins in two key product lines. We are also pleased to report solid cash flows generated from operating activities, further strengthening our cash position which enables us to execute our comprehensive growth strategy." "During the quarter we achieved the following important developments which I would like to highlight. First of all, our cash balances had been independently verified, which substantiated our integrity and reassured investors as to our credibility. Secondly, we had commenced operation of a new fruit juice beverage production line in our Huludao Wonder subsidiary, which was expected to help us take advantage of economies of scale and focus on producing high margin fruit juice beverages. Thirdly, we appointed Mr. Xin Ma as our new Chief Financial Officer with confidence that his experience with U.S. publicly traded Chinese companies is an excellent fit to our needs. These developments reflected our management's commitment to focus on enhanced financial transparency, sound investor communications and an operational focus on high margin products. Our top priority continues to be generating solid returns on our investment so as to create long-term value for our shareholders," CEO Xue stated.

General and administrative expenses increased by 81% to $1.5 million, mainly due to an increase in legal fees related to the Company's current pending litigations, payroll and related expenses as a result of an increase in employees to handle the increased general and administrative work.

Short seller actions cost money, besides that............ what's the company going to do with their huge cash position. Sitting ducks will be shot, because shareholders don't like the idea of restless money.  

The company has potential but I will wait for a better opportunity. For me the trigger would be a turnaround in financial results or a clever acquisition.

China Marine Food (CMFO) Disappointing Q1 Results

I am out and will take my loss.

Sales

Our revenue decreased by approximately $11.6 million or 43.4% from $26.7 million for the three months ended March 31, 2011 to $15.1 million for the same period ended March 31, 2012. The decrease in revenue was attributed to the decrease in sales of our processed seafood and algae-based beverage products. Sales of our processed seafood products decreased by $10.0 million or 50.2% year over year to $9.9 million, whereas sales of algae-based beverage products decreased by $1.5 million or 22.8% to $5.2 million for the same periods under review.

The processed seafood products operations grew significantly in the first quarter of 2011 compared to the first quarter of 2010 as our products continued to gain market acceptance, particularly in Fujian and Zhejiang provinces. However, as a result of consumers’ perception of food safety in relation to the nuclear radiation leaks in Japan which occurred in March 2011, sales of processed seafood products have been significantly and adversely affected since the second quarter of 2011. While we are confident that the seafood we use to produce our processed seafood products is safe, it is unclear how long it will take for consumer confidence in seafood products to normalize.

2012 is the third year in which we recognize sales of our algae-based beverage products since the acquisition of Xianghe on January 1, 2010. In 2010, our distribution network for the beverage segment was solely Fujian province. After gaining experience in Fujian, we expanded our distribution into Zhejiang province in the second quarter of 2011. The growth from Fujian and Zhejiang has been adversely affected by public concern over the plasticizer contamination in the beverage industry as well as the lower-than-expected temperatures in the southern regions of China during the summer of 2011. Therefore, sales of our algae-based beverage products for the first quarter of 2012 decreased by $1.5 million, or 22.8%, compared to the first quarter of 2011. However, given our continuous contribution to the related sales and marketing campaigns and our expansion plan into additional untapped areas, we expect the sales of our beverage segment to remain strong in the coming years. Accordingly, the number of sales staff has increased significantly since January 1, 2010 from 23 to 96 as of March 31, 2012.

Trading of marine catch is deemed as opportunistic purchases and sales of frozen seafood materials and therefore the sales volume fluctuates significantly from period to period. We intend to buy marine catch in blocks from suppliers when their supplies are high and sell the stocks to customers when market prices go up. Usually the inventory cycle will be less than a year. Though the profit margin from the trading segment is relatively lower compared to that of both processed seafood and algae-based beverage products, the trading segment is a good source of revenue and profit given our expertise in the seafood industry and surplus cash in hand.

		2012				2011
REVENUE, NET
Processed seafood products		$	9,903,103			$	19,868,771
Marine catch			-				75,976
Algae-based beverage products			5,180,826				6,711,817
			15,083,929				26,656,564
COST OF REVENUE (inclusive of depreciation and amortization)
Processed seafood products			(7,270,735	)			(13,123,646	)
Marine catch			-				(47,350	)
Algae-based beverage products			(3,214,251	)			(3,873,104	)
			(10,484,986	)			(17,044,100	)
GROSS PROFIT			4,598,943				9,612,464
OPERATING EXPENSES:
Depreciation and amortization			(696,070	)			(663,287	)
Sales and marketing			(4,581,249	)			(1,586,120	)
General and administrative			(538,141	)			(660,632	)
Stock-based compensation			(667,246	)			-
TOTAL OPERATING EXPENSES			(6,482,706	)			(2,910,039	)
(LOSS) INCOME FROM OPERATIONS			(1,883,763	)			6,702,425
OTHER INCOME (EXPENSES):
Rental income			49,305				23,968
Interest income			33,049				21,164
Interest expense			(35,306	)			-
(LOSS) INCOME BEFORE INCOME TAXES			(1,836,715	)			6,747,557
INCOME TAX EXPENSE			(207,720	)			(1,129,801	)
NET (LOSS) INCOME			(2,044,435	)			5,617,756
Less: net loss attributable to non-controlling interests			46				44
NET (LOSS) INCOME ATTRIBUTABLE TO CHINA MARINE FOOD GROUP LIMITED		$	(2,044,389	)		$	5,617,800
Other comprehensive income:
- Foreign currency translation gain			830,593				738,499
COMPREHENSIVE (LOSS) INCOME		$	(1,213,796	)		$	6,356,299
Net (loss) income per share attributable to China Marine Food Group Limited
- Basic		$	(0.07	)		$	0.19
- Diluted		$	(0.07	)		$	0.19
Weighted average shares outstanding
- Basic			29,697,976				28,977,976
- Diluted			29,697,976				28,977,976

Short Seller Drops Muddy Waters Model for SEC

Article Boomberg

Alfred Little exposed! Good job that he works now for the SEC ................the SEC needs experts in the field.

U.S. audit watchdog reports progress in China

Article Reuters

Analysis: China gas reforms spark investment boom

Article Reuters

Sino Gas International Holdings, Inc. (SGAS.OB) Take-Over Candidate

China's big state companies, confident on the outlook for domestic natural gas reforms, are buying up local distributors and raising fresh capital - and making gas the hottest prospect for energy investment in the world's top energy consumer.

The prospects for expansion and acquisitions also have China's natural gas distributors trading like growth stocks, instead of bog-standard utilities.

China is pushing energy price reforms and spending billions of dollars on gas imports and infrastructure to cut the use of coal, which supplies over 70 percent of its energy but has made it the world leader in mine accidents and greenhouse emissions, and among the worst in air pollution.

While nuclear power and renewables such as solar and wind are also benefiting from the shift, for now gas looks set to gain the most, since plentiful supplies and its use in industrial production and conventional thermal power plants mean it can be developed quickly and efficiently.

"Natural gas is clean energy that is enjoying a lot of state policy support," said Liu Yang, chief investment officer of regional fund house Atlantis, which manages $4 billion and holds shares of Hong Kong-listed Chinese city gas distributors.

"The city gas sector has been under-invested and is just about to take off," she said.

By leveraging their financial muscle and grips on upstream supplies, Chinese oil majors, are well-placed to take over more smaller rivals, including unlisted companies.

"All the small city gas companies will be swallowed up by PetroChina or Sinopec one day," said an executive at a Hong Kong-listed gas distributor. He requested anonymity as his company purchases natural gas from PetroChina.

GROWTH STOCKS

China is moving to double the share of gas in its overall energy supply to more than 8 percent by 2015, when consumption should reach 260 billion cubic meters (bcm), while coal will be cut to just over 60 percent. By 2030, gas use will hit 500 bcm, about what the European Union consumes today, according to industry forecasts.

The lion's share of that additional supply will go to new gas-fired power plants.

China's installed gas-fired capacity will more than quadruple to 220 gigawatts by 2020 from 40 gigawatts last year, creating a gas power equipment market worth 26.5 billion yuan ($4.2 billion) a year for 2011-2020, nearly seven times the average size of the market in the prior five years, Barclays estimates.

The gas sector was virtually non-existent in China until the late 1990s, and while billions of dollars have been poured into construction of pipelines and terminals over the past decade, more than two-thirds of China's 600-plus cities still have no access to gas supplies.

Driving the state firms' push into the gas distribution sector is a government decision to bite the bullet and start freeing up state-controlled domestic prices, to encourage gas importers and producers.

Gas prices are linked to crude oil in the Asia market but inside China have been strictly controlled - like electricity and petroleum product prices - since the authorities fear volatile energy costs could hinder industrial development and create hardships for households.

One of the companies that could be an attractive play is Sino Gas International Holdings (SGAS) traded on the OTC. The company, through its indirectly wholly-owned subsidiary, Beijing Zhong Ran Wei Ye Gas Co., Ltd. ("Beijing Gas"), and the subsidiaries of Beijing Gas, is a leading developer of natural gas distribution systems in small and medium size cities in China, as well as a distributor of natural gas to residential, commercial and industrial customers in China. The company owns and operates natural gas distribution systems in 34 small and medium size cities and serving approximately 234,749 residential and seven industrial customers. Facilities include approximately 1,635 kilometers of pipeline and delivery networks with a daily capacity of approximately 130,000 cubic meters of natural gas. The company owns and operates natural gas distribution systems in Beijing, Hebei, Jilin, Jiangsu, Anhui and Yunnan Provinces. The company's website is:
 http://www.sino-gas.com.

With diluted EPS of $0.23 this company is way undervalued with a P/E below 2. More information in their 10-K. Don't take the non-binding going private proposal of $0.48 if you are a shareholder. It's just a scratch from the company's real value.

Sino Gas International Holdings, Inc.

Consolidated Statements of Income

For the year ended December 31, 2011 and 2010

(Stated in US Dollars)

		Notes		12/31/2011				12/31/2010
Sales		2(r)		$	41,680,718			$	32,174,248
Cost of revenue		2(s)			23,372,296				19,810,913
Gross Profit					18,308,422				12,363,335
Operating Expenses
Selling expenses					2,485,698				1,776,315
General and administrative expenses					4,677,798				3,299,785
Total operating expenses					7,163,496				5,076,100
Operating Income					11,144,926				7,287,235
Other Income/(Expense)
Investment income		2(s)			1,384,935				800,745
Other income					207,010				56,275
Other expense					(323,394	)			(136,654	)
Impairment loss					(791,569	)			(73,457	)
Interest income					25,618				14,841
Interest expense					(2,426,737	)			(2,706,784	)
Gain on disposal of subsidiaries		18(a)			1,128,776				-
Total other income/(expense)					(795,361	)			(2,045,034	)
Earnings from continued operation before tax					10,349,565				5,242,201
Income taxes		2(t),15			(2,265,313	)			(1,200,096	)
Income from continued operation					8,084,252				4,042,105
Income/(loss) from discontinued operation, net of tax		18(b)			106,305				(442	)
Net income				$	8,190,557			$	4,041,663
Net income attributed to common stockholder				$	8,055,576			$	4,041,663
Net income attributed to non-controlling stockholder				$	134,981			$	-
Earnings Per Share		2(z),16
Basic: - Net income				$	0.29			$	0.15
- Income from continued operation					0.28				0.15
- Income from discontinued operation					0.01				0.00
Diluted: - Net income				$	0.23			$	0.15
- Income from continued operation					0.23				0.15
- Income from discontinued operation					0.00				0.00
Weighted Average Shares Outstanding
- Basic					28,213,167				27,013,799
- Diluted					37,476,056				27,013,799