The following press releases and news reports about China companies were carried on October 15-17. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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ChemChina, Sinochem in Talks on Possible $100 Bln Merger: Sources (English article)
Tencent (HKEx: 700) to Sign $3.5 Bln Loan to Finance Supercell Purchase (Chinese article)
Weibo (Nasdaq: WB) Has Nearly Eclipsed Twitter (NYSE: TWTR) by Market Value (English article)
Smartisan Denies Rumors to be Aquired by NetEase (Nasdaq: NTES) (Chinese article)
Tongcheng Eyes IPO in 3 Years After Merger with Wanda Travel (Chinese article)
Bottom line: Many US-listed Chinese companies that have yet to complete privatization bids announced last year are likely to formally abandon the plans in the next few months, after new withdrawals from Autohome and China Information Technology.
Autohome abandons buyout bid
It’s been well over a year since the cresting for a wave of privatization bids by US-listed Chinese firms, which were hoping to leave New York and get better valuations by re-listing back in China. But despite the early enthusiasm, many of the firms that announced such bids at the height of the frenzy have yet to complete their plans.
A small group of larger names, including Internet companies YY (Nasdaq: YY) and Momo (Nasdaq: MOMO), have formally announced the scrapping of their bids. Now 2 more have joined their ranks, with online car specialist Autohome (NYSE: ATHM) and cloud services provider China Information Technology (CNIT) (Nasdaq: CNIT) both announcing they have also abandoned their bids. At the same time, game developer Sky-mobi is moving forward with its own privatization bid, and has just announced the scheduling of a shareholder meeting to vote on the proposal. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: SMIC’s new plan for a $10 billion cutting-edge chip plant shows it could be well positioned to find a place on the global stage by tapping strong government support after an overhaul of its own operations.
SMIC announces $10 bln chip plant
I rarely write these days about SMIC (HKEx: 981; NYSE: SMI), since the company once billed as China’s best hope to challenge global chip giants like Intel (Nasdaq: INTC) and TSMC (Taipei: 2330) has been a major disappointment since its Hong Kong listing a decade ago. But the company’s newly announced plan for a $10 billion cutting-edge plant was enough to catch my attention, and shows SMIC could become a company to watch due to Beijing’s sudden determination to build up a globally competitive chip sector at any cost. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and news reports about China companies were carried on October 14. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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WeWork raises $260 Mln in Funding From China’s Jin Jiang (HKEx: 2006) (English article)
Wanda Recruits Former Executives at Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) China, Guangfa Bank (English article)
Autohome (NYSE: ATHM) Announces Receipt of Withdrawal of Going Private Proposal (GlobeNewswire)
Google, Facebook Participate in Trans-Pacific Cable Linking HK, Los Angeles (Chinese article)
Shared Bike Service Mobike Completes C-Round Funding, Led by Tencent (HKEx: 700) (Chinese article)
Bottom line: Tim Cook’s latest China trip and his announcement of a new R&D center in Shenzhen are part of a campaign to boost Apple’s profile and should help to stabilize its sliding position in the market.
Apple’s Tim Cook back in China
Apple CEO Tim Cook just can’t seem to get enough of China, with word that he’s back in the world’s largest smartphone market just 2 months after his last visit. But unlike past visits, which were mostly confined to bureaucratic Beijing, Cook was in the far more entrepreneurial city of Shenzhen this time, where he attended an innovation conference and announced Apple would open a new R&D center. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Alibaba will have to spend more heavily to rid its marketplaces of trafficking in pirated goods, while its Steven Spielberg partnership is part of a new wave of deeper film tie-ups between China and Hollywood.
Alibaba ties with Spielberg’s Amblin
Internet giant Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) is being rebuffed and embraced in the US in 2 separate headlines, reflecting conflicting feelings many Americans have towards one of China’s largest private companies and their sometimes controversial business practices. In the more upbeat headline, Alibaba’s movie-making unit has just signed a major new tie-up with director Steven Spielberg to co-produce movies from his Amblin Entertainment and distribute them in China. But in a far less friendly overture, Alibaba is also being blasted by a major US apparel group for lack of progress in its battle to stamp out trafficking in pirated goods in its online marketplaces. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and news reports about China companies were carried on October 13. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) to Set Up R&D Center in Shenzhen, Bolster China Ties (English article)
Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) Forms 20 Bln Yuan Internet Project Investment Fund (English article)
Supermarket Operator RT-Mart Closes Stores for First Time in 19 Years (Chinese article)
GM (NYSE: GM) Ventures into China Car-Sharing with App Developer Investment (English article)
Sky-mobi (Nasdaq: MOBI) Announces Shareholder Meeting to Vote on Privatization (PRNewswire)
Bottom line: Yum’s China operation could see profit growth accelerate as it steps up its expansion, providing a boost for its newly listed stock over the next 3-5 years.
Yum China eyes big KFC expansion
Fast food giant Yum (NYSE: YUM) is kicking off a publicity blitz in the run-up to the formal spin off of its China business, discussing ambitious growth targets for its biggest global market. It’s not surprising that the operator of the KFC and Pizza Hut brands is focusing on the future, since its China data in the present is far from impressive. That includes a surprise same-store sales decline in its latest quarterly report, and unimpressive profit growth of around 15 percent. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: LeEco’s major new push into the US smart TV market could achieve some success due to its recent Vizio purchase, though its concurrent smartphone drive will be a dud due to lawsuits and mediocre product quality.
LeEco revs for US smart TV launch
Watch out, Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA) and Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL). Chinese online video superstar LeEco (Shenzhen: 300104) is taking direct aim at the lucrative US online video and smartphone markets, with plans for major new product launches later this month. I’ll admit I’m doing a bit of educated guessing here, since the company formally known as LeTV hasn’t made any formal announcements yet on its US ambitions.
But all the signs certainly point in that direction, following LeEco’s headline-making $2 billion July purchase of Vizio, a struggling maker of cheap, no-name TVs that is one of the biggest and also most obscure names in the huge US market. Added to that is LeEco’s recent issue of invitations to an event set for October 19 in San Francisco, where it says it will announce its “disruptive vision of a connected ecosystem of content-driven smart devices to the US market.” (English article) Read Full Post…
The following press releases and news reports about China companies were carried on October 12. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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Yum (NYSE: YUM) Details Transformation Plans after China Separation (Businesswire)
SF Express Backdoor Listing Plan Approved by China Securities Regulator (Chinese article)
NetEase (Nasdaq: NTES) Breaks into Smart Device Market (English article)
Solar Panel Maker LDK Bankruptcy Approved; Creditors Take Huge Losses (English article)
Shanyang (Shanghai: 600146) Buys US Apparel Brand Oneworld Star for $280 Mln (Businesswire)
Bottom line: Lenovo and other Chinese firms need to abandon their approach that targets declining, older brands for global M&A, and instead focus on organic growth and more strategic assets with better growth potential.
Lenovo eyes Fujitsu’s PC business
The acquisitive Lenovo (HKEx: 992) was in M&A headlines again last week, when media reported it was in talks to buy the aging PC business of Fujitsu, an operation that is largely inconsequential outside its home Japanese market. Such a purchase would continue a trend dating back more than a decade, which has seen Lenovo purchase declining global brands for bargain prices with hopes of resuscitating those names to expand its global footprint. Read Full Post…
