Reuters reported that the Chinese authorities had made “their first known arrest” in the corruption investigation. Zhang Rongkun, chairman of Fuxi Investment Holding Co. and China’s 16th richest man was arrested for “alleged impropriety” involving a loan of city funds, the news agency reported.

The Taipei Times said the director of the city’s Economic Commission, a “top judge” and the vice head of the Shanghai Maritime Court, had all been “relieved of their duties”. No official reason was given for the dismissal, but the newspaper linked it to the pension fund investigation, which centres on “the alleged misuse of up to US $400 million” from the city’s retirement fund.

The International Herald Tribune reports that Yuan Yonglin, an executive of Shanghai Haixin Group, a company that makes 2008 Olympic mascots, also is being investigated for “involvement” in the pension fund scandal.

According to the International Herald Tribune, the crack-down is “part of a perennial campaign to stamp out rampant abuses that threaten to erode public acceptance of Communist rule”.