Beijing Building Boom
CNBC's Melissa Lee reports on the building boom from a myriad of construction sites in China's capital.
"But it's not just the city of Beijing gearing up for the Olympics: Businesses are busy building too, hoping they'll see the payoff when the torch is lit -- and long after it's extinguished," reports Lee.
Firms staking claims include Marriott International, which began laying foundations for new J.W. Marriott and posh Ritz-Carlton hotels in 2002, a year after the IOC awarded the games to China. By the Games' commencement, Marriott alone will have added 2,800 new rooms to the market.
McDonald's is beefing up its 811 Chinese restaurants, adding four more eateries in Beijing alone -- two in the Olympic Village, reserved for athletes and media for the Games' duration. The world's biggest restaurant chain is already recruiting 1,200 new employees for its Chinese units.
On the construction end, heavy-equipment manufacturer Caterpillar plans to triple its China sales by 2010. Company spokesman Jim Dugan cited "tremendous" mining and highway work "everywhere" in the country.