After months of maintaining a relatively low profile, China Mobile’s (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL) recently named new President Li Yue is finally making a splash in the headlines with some interesting strategic announcements that look like one of his first breaks with former longtime Chairman Wang Jianzhou. The 2 biggest new moves will see China Mobile develop its own brand of cellphones, and also establish an Internet company. I personally don’t find either of those 2 moves extremely exciting, though both could certainly have implications for many of China’s smartphone makers and Internet companies.
Journalist China
Alibaba Retains Yahoo Ties 雅虎高管进入阿里巴巴董事会
There’s an interesting new announcement from leading e-commerce firm Alibaba, which could be simply a straightforward board appointment but could also signal a potential positive development for its stormy relationship with longtime US partner Yahoo (Nasdaq: YHOO). I’ll make a strong disclaimer now and say that everything I’m about to write is highly speculative, since there’s nothing in this new announcement besides the naming of a Yahoo senior executive to Alibaba’s board. But that said, the fact that Alibaba is making the announcement at all is noteworthy, since these 2 companies have not made many upbeat joint announcements in the recent past due to their difficult elationship under previous Yahoo CEO Carol Bartz.
Hesitant SAIC Eyes SE Asia 踌躇的上汽关注东南亚市场
Just a month after I accused SAIC (Shanghai: 600104) of having a weak stomach for overseas expansion, we’re getting word that China’s leading automaker may be preparing to move into Southeast Asia with its longtime US partner General Motors (NYSE: GM). If the reports are correct, this would look like a smart move for SAIC, taking it into a relatively straightforward region similar to its own home market in partnership with a globally experienced major partner like GM.
Auditor Tussle With US Regulator, Defections Ahead 审计机构与SEC角力
Media are buzzing with word that the US securities regulator is once again tussling with major auditors over access to the accounting records of US-listed Chinese firms, in the latest chapter of an ongoing story; but what has me more intrigued is the scramble that is probably taking place behind the scenes, as those same auditors try to figure out what they will do when the inevitable happens and they are forced to share their records with the US Securities and Exchange Administration.
ZTE Gears Up For Govt Hand-Outs 中兴积极准备获得政府支持
Having been locked out of the US and worried about the potential for similar problems in Western Europe, struggling telecoms equipment maker ZTE (HKEx: 763; Shenzhen: 000063) is fighting back by doing what it knows best: taking free money from Beijing. I don’t want to sound too negative here, but this latest deal between ZTE and China Development Bank is exactly what ZTE should NOT be doing, at least if it ever wants to convince the world that it’s a serious commercial company. But perhaps the company simply doesn’t care anymore what others think, and there’s also the very real possibility that ZTE is simply fighting for its very survival at this point.
Solar: LDK Cuts, First Solar in China 中国光伏产业：几家欢喜几家愁
There’re quite a few news bits coming from the solar sector today, with more downbeat news from struggling LDK Solar (NYSE: LDK) even as 2 western panel makers make important new inroads to the China market. Meantime, Canadian Solar (Nasdaq: CSIQ) is also getting some good news in the form of new financing from a major western commercial lender for a new solar power project in Canada.
Baidu on the Downtrack? 百度在滑落？
Excitement over the first serious challenge to Baidu’s (Nasdaq: BIDU) longtime supremacy in online search seems to be getting a bit overblown, with investors jumping on just about any excuse to punish Baidu and reward fast-rising challenger Qihoo 360 (NYSE: QIHU). Some may find it a bit odd that I’m defending Baidu at this juncture, since I’ve been a regular critic of this company that has abused its dominant position in online search for years to squelch potential rivals. But all I’m really saying is that it’s far too early to write a death notice for Baidu, which still has plenty of fight left in it as it tries to defend its dominant position that has seen it control more than 70 percent of China’s lucrative online search market for years.
Xiaomi Ties With Kingsoft in Cloud 小米斥资百万美元购买金山云股权
High profile smartphone maker Xioami is making headlines with word that it has purchased a stake in a unit of software maker Kingsoft (HKEx: 3888), in what could be the first in a new wave of tie-ups for this fast-rising company that aspires to be like global tech giant Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL). I have to admit that I’m not exactly sure what Xiaomi hopes to do with this new tie-up, which has it purchasing around 10 percent of Kingsoft Cloud Group, which is Kingsoft’s cloud computing unit. (Chinese article) The purchase price is quite modest, with Xioami paying just $1.82 million for its 10 percent stake. There’s not much other information in the report, though it does point out that Xioami’s charismatic co-founder Lei Jun is a major stakeholder in Kingsoft.
Yum’s China Salad Days In the Past? 百胜集团在中国的高速扩张终结？
KFC and Pizza Hut owner Yum Brands (NYSE: YUM) has banked on the China story for much of its growth over the last decade, building itself into one of the world’s biggest China plays by deriving more than half of its revenue from the fast-growing market. So it was almost inevitable that the company would take a big hit when the China market started to stall, which is exactly what has happened in Yum’s latest earnings report. That report saw Yum make the somewhat shocking announcement that its China same-store sales to fall around 4 percent in the fourth quarter from year-ago levels. (English article)
China 48th To Get iPhone 5 中国成为第48个发售iPhone 5的国家
Some 2 and a half months after the rest of the world got its first chance to buy the newest iPhone, Chinese consumers will finally get their chance to buy Apple’s (Nasdaq: AAPL) latest smartphone starting in mid December. Apple formally announced the iPhone 5 will officially be available in the world’s largest mobile market starting December 14, marking the end of a long and convoluted odyssey that saw the country receive its iPhones months behind the rest of the world. No reason has been given for the huge delay, but the signs indicate the big amount of extra time was created by a massive Chinese bureaucracy and ineptitude by the nation’s 2 carriers who will formally offer the iPhone 5, China Unicom (HKEx: 762; NYSE: CHU) and China Telecom (HKEx: 728; NYSE: CHA).
China Tries New Resource M&A Approach 中国转变全球资源并购策略
New reports from Down Under are saying that China’s leading power distributor State Grid Corp has made a major purchase in Australia, a move that initially looks controversial but could actually mark the start of a smarter approach by Chinese firms to global M&A in the sensitive resource and energy sectors. State Grid, which has been on a global buying spree over the last year, has announced it is acquiring 41 percent of ElectraNet, a grid operator in the Australian state of Queensland, from a local government entity. (English article) No value of the purchase was given, but Australian media had previously reported that State Grid would pay A$500 million for the stake, equal to about $523 million.
