China Telecom Move Signals Industry Shuffle 中国电信高层调整预示或出现行业高层换血

By newsdoug on November 3, 2011

Shuffle coming for China telcos It seems to be the season for executive shuffles at the top of major state-run companies, with telecoms now looking set for major changes with a new announcement that a new CEO will take over at the top of the Hong Kong-listed China Telecom (HKEx: 728; NYSE: CHA). (Chinese article) Under the change longtime head Wang Xiaochu will stay on as chairman of China Telecom’s state-run parent, but this move looks like the first step before his eventual removal from the company to make way for new, younger leadership as the Communist Party itself is gears up to install its own new set of leaders as part of its regular change every 10 years. China Telecom’s shift comes as rival China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL) also prepares to edge out its long-serving Chairman Wang Jianzhou to make way for new leaders (previous post), and comes less than a week after a major shuffle in the banking world that saw top executives at Agricultural Bank of China (HKEx: 1288; Shanghai: 601288) and China Construction Bank (HKEx: 939; Shanghai: 601939) take on new positions in the nation’s financial regulators. (previous post) So you’re probably asking yourself, what does it all mean for the telecoms space? The answer is that we probably won’t see much change immediately, but should see both China Mobile and China Telecom become more aggressive over the longer term as their younger, new leaders try to reshape these slow-moving state-run giants into more nimble, competitive players. That new stance could also see them become more assertive in terms of global M&A, an area that China Mobile has tried before without much success, and which China Telecom and China Unicom (HKEx: 762; NYSE: CHU), the nation’s other major carrier, have yet to seriously consider. With China Telecom’s new announcement, Unicom becomes the only major telco that has yet to announce a big change at the top — an ironic twist since it is probably the company in biggest need of new leadership as it struggles for direction. (previous post) But in light of the China Telecom announcement and the broader changes taking place at state-run companies, it wouldn’t surprise me to see a similar shake-up at Unicom by the end of the year.

Bottom line: A shake-up at the top of China Telecom signals a broader industry shuffle that will see the country’s 3 major telcos become more aggressive both at home and abroad.

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