China's business press carried the following stories on Wednesday. China.org.cn has not checked the stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

WTO to investigate US' tariff on China's tires — China Business News

The World Trade Organization will set up a dispute settlement panel at its Jan. 19 meeting to investigate U.S. punitive duties on tires imported from China, at the latter's request.

The Obama administration?decided last?September to impose tariffs of up to 35 percent on tires imported from China for three years, alleging the China imports had disrupted its tire industry.

It usually takes at least half a year for a WTO dispute settlement panel to decide on a case.

China becomes net coal importer — Beijing Business Today

China became a net coal importer for the first time in 2009, according to figures from the General Administration of Customs.

China exported 22.4 million tons of coal last year, about half of 2008 imports, while net imports exceeded 89.10 million tons in the first 11 months of last year. Figures for December imports are not yet available.

Coal expert Huang Teng predicted China's coal import last year to reach 120 million tons, equivalent to a net import of 97.6 million tons.

A disagreement on coal prices between China's coal producers and power plants is behind the surging import last year, as power producers turned to imports as coal prices fell in the global market in the face of depressed demand.

Top 3 iron ore miners give China a cold shoulder — Beijing Business Today

The top three global iron ore miners have not begun any substantial talks with China's steelmakers on contract prices for 2010, unlike in other years when they actively sought negotiations at the beginning of a year. The move is seen as an attempt to marginalize China.

Vale, BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto are now focusing on talks with Japan, according to reports from foreign media. The three companies will hold the talks in Singapore instead of in China.

Lu Jianzhong, a spokesperson for BHP Billiton, refused to comment on the talks, saying the matter is sensitive.

Surging demand for iron ore and rising spot prices in China are giving global iron ore miners increasing leverage in talks with China, said Jia Liangqun from Mysteel.com, a steel information Web site.

Shanda Games buys US Mochi Media — www.people.com.cn

Shanda Games, one of China's top online game operators, announced yesterday that it had signed an agreement to acquire U.S. online game network Mochi Media. It is the first overseas takeover by China's online game operators.

The US$80 million deal is expected to close in the first quarter and San Francisco-based Mochi Media will be paid US$60 million in cash and US$20 million in shares of Shanda Games.

Li Yu, chief executive of Shanda Games, said the acquisition of Mochi Media's global distribution network for online games will help Shanda Games expand its business from high-end games to rapidly-growing casual games, as part of its efforts to build a leading global media platform for online games.