Chasing the Chinese

EYECATCHERS

Genial David Rockefeller, the quintessential capitalist, visited China, chatted amiably with Chou En-lai for two hours, and came home last week with a deal. Chase Manhattan Bank, of which Rockefeller is chairman and major stockholder, will become the first U.S. correspondent that the Bank of China has had in 24 years. Other U.S. banks will probably follow Chase by year's end. Though Chase will not soon open a branch in Peking, it will begin immediately to handle remittances and letters of credit.

More services will be offered when the U.S. and China agree on repatriating funds that were frozen in both countries when the Communists took over. Rockefeller predicted that these assets may be unblocked "within weeks." Even so, Sino-American trade will not expand to its fullest until the U.S. Congress grants Most Favored Nation status to China.

Still, the banking deal was a coup for Rockefeller. Chase's archrival, New York's First National City Bank, passed Chase in deposits in 1969, and much of "Citibank's" growth has been due to booming overseas operations. But in May Chase beat Citibank to the punch, opening the first U.S. banking office to appear in Moscow since 1922. Indeed, the Communists, who like to deal with the topmost people, are captivated by the very name of Rockefeller.

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