The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on November 21-23. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) Aims for China Launch of App Play Store Next Year: Sources (English article)
China Restarts IPO Process for 10 Companies as Stocks Stabilize (English article)
Bottom line: Jack Ma’s meeting this week with Barack Obama and quick followup with major funding commitments for entrepreneurs are part of Alibaba’s efforts to improve its government relations and lay a stronger foundation for future growth.
Alibaba’s Ma hobnobs with Obama
Alibaba’s(NYSE: BABA) outgoing founder Jack Ma is quickly becoming China’s business ambassador to the west, following recent meetings with British Prime Minster David Cameron last month and now this week with US President Barack Obama. I’m usually slightly skeptical of such efforts, which seem more intended to grab headlines and hype Alibaba rather than to do anything substantive.
But even I was impressed at how quickly Alibaba has followed up with its pledge to help young entrepreneurs during the Obama meeting, with its new announcement of more than $400 million in assistance to start-up business owners in Hong Kong and Taiwan. It’s quite likely that these 2 programs were already in the works when Ma met with Obama on Wednesday in Manila, on the sidelines of the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit that brings together world leaders from the Pacific Rim. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Baidu’s new joint venture bank with Citic could help it catch up to stumbling private banks backed by Tencent and Alibaba, which are struggling due to restrictions on their operations by Beijing.
WeBank seeks new funding
Two headlines are highlighting the opportunities and challenges that private banking is presenting for China’s Internet giants. The larger of the news items has online search leader Baidu(Nasdaq: BIDU) forming a joint venture with traditional banking giant Citic Bank (HKEx: 998), as it plays catch-up with Internet rivals Tencent(HKEx: 700) and Alibaba(NYSE: BABA). The second headline involves Tencent’s recently formed WeBank online bank, which is reportedly looking to raise $1 billion nearly a year after its official launch.
China’s Internet companies have rushed into financial services over the last 2 years, as Beijing tries to breathe new life into a stodgy sector previously dominated by big state-run firms. Both Tencent and Alibaba have been at the forefront of the movement, with each getting licenses to open private banks earlier this year under a new pilot scheme. But the transition has been filled with obstacles, partly due to lack of regulation but also because of resistance from the traditional banks. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Innovation Works’ China OTC IPO plan shows the year-old small-cap board is rapidly becoming a popular place to list for money-losing companies that might have previously gone to New York.
Innovation Works files for China OTC listing
China’s year-old over-the-counter (OTC) market is suddenly becoming the hot place for new listings by young tech firms, with word that the technology incubator founded by Google’s (Nasdaq: GOOG) former China head has become the latest in a recent string of companies to file for listings there. The OTC application by Innovation Works highlights a new path to market for money-losing Chinese companies that might have previously chosen to list in New York.
The main stock exchanges in China and Hong Kong don’t allow money-losing companies to list, with the result that many private start-ups used to go to New York where profitability isn’t a requirement. But New York investors are also increasingly showing lack of interest in money-losing Chinese firms, causing their shares to languish and some like online video site Youku Tudou (NYSE: YOKU) to sell themselves and de-list. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: The MSCI’s inclusion of US-listed Chinese stocks like Baidu and Alibaba in some of its emerging market indexes will support the shares by attracting more long-term investors.
Alibaba, Baidu get support from MSCI inclusion
Investors who previously looked enviously at Chinese Internet stocks but were too afraid to buy due to their volatility have new reason for confidence, with word that one of the world’s top index compilers will include the country’s top names in some of its indexes. The move by MSCI has been long overdue, and comes just months after the global index compiler disappointed China boosters by declining to allow Shanghai- and Shenzhen-listed A-shares into its emerging markets indexes.
This particular move will also come as a welcome development to people who argue that China’s best companies are better served by listing their shares in overseas markets like the US and Hong Kong rather than at home. Many Chinese Internet companies that previously listed in New York have been abandoning the market recently by launching privatization bids, with an aim of eventually re-listing in China to try for better valuations. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Alibaba and Baidu’s inclusion in MSCI indexes and SouFun’s new dual listing in China highlight reasons why overseas markets are still an attractive place for leading private Chinese companies to list.
SouFun eyes dual listings in China, NY
Two new developments last week highlighted why overseas listings are still beneficial and even desirable for some Chinese companies, even as a flood of New York-listed firms move ahead with plans to leave New York and re-list in China.
The first development saw MSCI, one of the world’s top index compilers, say it would include Chinese companies in its products for the first time by choosing several US-listed firms, including Internet titans Alibaba(NYSE: BABA) and Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU). The second saw investors applaud a plan by leading online real estate services firm SouFun (NYSE: SFUN) to take control of a Shanghai-listed company, a move designed to gain access to Chinese capital markets while maintaining its New York listing. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Vipshop’s third-quarter revenue shortfall is the latest signal that China’s e-commmerce sales are set to slow after a period of rapid growth, and could pressure the company’s stock over the next few months.
Warm autumn chills Vipshop sales
Discount e-commerce superstar Vipshop (NYSE: VIPS) has suddenly lost some of its luster, after announcing a revenue shortfall that sparked a 27 percent plunge in its stock. The unusual revenue miss looks even more unusual in China’s broader booming e-commerce sector, where leaders Alibaba(NYSE: BABA) and JD.com (Nasdaq: JD) are still basking in the glow of a record-breaking Singles Day online shopping blitz last week. (previous post)
The bigger question that many will be asking this week is whether there’s any broader significance to Vipshop’s new announcement that it missed its previous third-quarter revenue forecast by 6 percent. (company announcement; Chinese article) Some others have warned of a similar slowdown, and I previously said the big Singles Day sales totals were at least partly manipulated by online merchants trying to meet tough targets set by online mall operators. (previous post) Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Tencent’s recent cash-raising frenzy probably signals a major equity investment coming in the next few months, with a merged Meituan-Dianping or Activision as the most likely targets.
Tencent raises more cash via syndicated loan
Tencent(HKEx: 700) may be the lowest-key of China’s big 3 Internet companies, but the company has been far louder on the money- raising scene by borrowing billions of dollars in cash lately. The social networking (SNS) giant has raised billions through a series of bond issues over the last year, and now looks set to raise another $1.5 billion through a syndicated loan that it’s reportedly negotiating with several major western lenders.
All this raises the question of what exactly Tencent is targeting with all the new cash. The company has been the least acquisitive of China’s big 3 Internet companies, which include itself, Alibaba(NYSE: BABA) and Baidu(Nasdaq: BIDU), amid a major consolidation in China’s Internet over the last 2 years. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Alibaba’s 60 percent sales growth on Singles Day is truly impressive, but was almost certainly boosted by merchants that delayed logging transactions on its network until the 24-hour period to help meet their sales targets.
Alibaba shatters Singles Day sales record
The numbers are in, and e-commerce juggernaut Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) has posted a record performance for this year’s Singles Day online shopping extravaganza that has surprised even me for the margin by which it surpassed last year’s record. I’ll end the suspense right away and reveal that Alibaba posted 91.2 billion yuan ($14.3 billion) worth of sales over its platforms during the 24-hour online shopping binge, up more than 50 percent from last year’s $9.3 billion. (company announcement)
To put that in perspective, Alibaba posted $112 billion in gross merchandise value (GMV) for goods sold over all its platforms in this year’s entire second quarter. That means the Singles Day total is equal to 13 percent of its entire total for the 3 months through September, quite impressive for a single day. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: A deal for Alibaba to buy a minority stake in Hong Kong’s SCMP looks logical despite dubious sourcing in reports on such talks, and could help to revive the group’s flagging fortunes by bringing in new partnerships and other resources.
Alibaba eyes traditional media with SCMP investment rumors
Just days after word emerged of a major shake-up in the newsroom of the South China Morning Post (HKEx: 583), new reports are saying that Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba(NYSE: BABA) may be interested in a major investment or even outright purchase of Hong Kong’s leading English-language newspaper. Sourcing on the reports is quite flimsy, which I’ll describe shortly and makes me slightly dubious that such talks are happening.
But such a move also has a certain logic, since the SCMP’s current owner is reportedly looking to sell the newspaper that has a relatively modest current market value of about HK$2.8 billion ($360 million). What’s more, Alibaba has also been moving aggressively into the media and entertainment spaces, including its recent purchase of leading online video site Youku Tudou(NYSE: YOKU) and formation of a joint venture with a leading mainland financial newspaper. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on November 12. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) Generated $14.3 Bln GMV on Global Shopping Festival (Businesswire)
Perfect World to Reaquire Online Literature Unit from Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) – Source (Chinese article)
