COSCO executive director resigns

China Cosco Holdings Co, a listed company that is owned by the country's largest shipping and logistics group, announced Saturday that one of its executive directors has resigned after the company disclosed he was under investigation by related authorities, the latest anti-corruption move made by the government against State-owned enterprises.

Xu Minjie, executive director at China Cosco, has resigned for "personal reasons," the company said in a statement filed to the Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) and Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

The company disclosed on Friday that Xu was under investigation by related departments without providing further details.

China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company (COSCO). China Cosco's parent company, also announced on its website later Friday that the group will uncompromisingly follow the requirements for anti--corruption issued by the Communist Party of China.

It also clarified that a rumor that the group's former chairman Wei Jiafu was banned from leaving the country as "baseless."

Calls to the China Cosco headquarters by the Global Times Sunday were not answered.

Concerning enquiries by the Global Times about whether the businesses and management of China Cosco have been affected by the investigation, Fan Zhijun, a manager at COSCO Bulk Carrier Co, an affiliated company of China Cosco, said he "had no idea."

Although China Cosco pledged in the statement that the investigation of Xu will have no negative impact on the company, and all its businesses are doing well, stock investors showed less confidence in the company.

Share prices of China Cosco in Shanghai and Hong Kong declined by 3.95 percent and 5.04 percent, respectively, on Friday.

China Cosco Holdings, which has been suffering losses since 2011, received special treatment in 2012 under stock regulations by the SSE.

If it continues its losses this year, it will face the possibility of delisting.

In the first three quarters of this year, the company reported a total loss of 2.03 billion yuan ($333.3 million). a decrease of 4.4 billion yuan from the loss of 6.4 billion yuan recorded in the same period of last year.

"It is still difficult for China Cosco Holdings to turn profits from losses this year, because its larger profits partly come from sales of its assets," an analyst who preferred to be anonymous told the Global Times Sunday.

A subsidiary company of China Cosco sold 21.8 percent of the shares it held in the China International Marine Containers (Group) Ltd for $1.22 billion in May.

Xu's case comes after recent investigations of Jiang Jiemin, head of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) of the State Council and deputy secretary of the SASAC committee of the Communist Party of China. Jiang is also the former board chairman of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC).

Several other senior managers from CNPC are also under investigation for alleged corruption.