FAW Group execs under investigation

Global Times - Nearly 30 senior executives of State-owned automaker FAW Group have been under investigation for the disappearance of over 20 billion yuan ($3.2 billion) in property assets during an ongoing listing process, and several of the executives have been restricted from traveling abroad, the 21st Century Business Herald newspaper reported Tuesday, citing anonymous insiders.

FAW's former chairman Zhu Yanfeng was also probed by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the CPC recently over the case, the report said, noting, however, that it was only a "procedure," and Zhu, deputy secretary of the Jilin provincial committee of the CPC, appeared in a public official capacity in the provincial capital Changchun Monday.

Meanwhile, the newspaper said it has confirmed that Zhou Yongjiang, FAW's deputy chief economist, has been detained in a corruption investigation related to the property case, without giving a source.

"Real estate investment has been a tradition in FAW Group," an unamed source told the newspaper, "and the investment funds have often disappeared without a trace in many projects."

The investigation into FAW's missing assets by the central disciplinary commission and the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee will conclude soon, and FAW's listing plan may be further postponed, the report said.