SMIC Rumbles with Talk of Leadership Change 媒体风传中芯国际领导层变动
Media are awash with talk of a potential major leadership shake-up at SMIC (HKEx: 981; NYSE: SMI), China’s top microchip maker, following the death earlier this week of the company’s chairman from cancer. (English article) SMIC shares were suspended from trading on Thursday at the company’s request, and one report says that David Wang, who was brought in a year and a half ago to rescue the struggling company, was voted off the company’s board after holders of 58 percent of SMIC’s stock voted against him at the company’s annual general meeting. (English article) Since a majority of SMIC stock is held by various Chinese government entities, this sounds very much like a vote of no confidence by SMIC’s major shareholders and could foreshadow Wang’s imminent departure. Chinese media are also reporting that if Wang goes, then many of his top management team could leave with him, throwing the company into further turmoil. (Chinese article) The whole upheaval would come as quite a surprise to me, as the low-key Wang seemed to be doing a good job of turning SMIC around, closing unprofitable facilities and focusing on its core business to post its first profits in four years. Perhaps he lost an important ally when Chairman Jiang Shangzhou died earlier this week. Whatever the case, this kind of management shake-up, if it happens, is likely to spell turmoil for SMIC in the months ahead, just as it seemed to be regaining its footing and starting to realize some of its potential.
Bottom line: Look for big volatility in SMIC stock when trading resumes, due to uncertainty over its future direction if the current CEO and architect of its turn-around leaves.
中芯国际董事长江上舟因病去世後，众多媒体在猜测中芯国际<SMI.N>可能出现的领导层变动情况。周四中芯国际股票停盘，有报导称，一年半前加入该公司的首席执行长(CEO)王宁国未能当选进入董事会，因反对票数达58%。因中芯国际大部分股权由中国政府部门掌握，这个消息看起来像是中芯国际的股东对王宁国没有信心，也可能预示着王宁国会离职。中国媒体也报导称，如果王宁国离职，他的高层管理团队也可能随他离开，让公司陷入更大的困境。我对整件事感到相当吃惊，因为低调的王宁国帮助中芯国际走出困境，他关闭不赢利的部门，让公司专注于其核心业务，实现了四年来的首次盈利。也许江上舟去世後，他失去了一个重要的盟友。无论怎样，这次领导层地震可能预示着中芯国际未来几个月会面临更大的动荡。
一句话：如果现任CEO离职，中芯国际未来发展方向将面临不确定性，估计中芯国际开盘後股价会有大幅波动。
Related postings 相关文章:
◙ SMIC: Forging a Better Future?
◙ Micron Nods to China’s Gadget Clout 美光科技押宝中国电子器件市场
◙ Intel’s Move Nods to China Gadget Clout, Smells Slightly of Desperation 英特尔人事调动突显中国市场影响力
