Shanghai's skyscrapers and expressways attest to its status as China's commercial capital, but some may prove to be liabilities as the city faces its biggest scandal in years. China's leaders, gearing up for a major Communist Party congress next year, have sent investigators to check on allegations that a third of a $1.2 billion public pension fund was illicitly invested in potentially risky real estate and road projects.
See "Shanghai Pension Scandal Could Spread", Elaine Kurtenbach, San Francisco Chronicle, September 4, 2006