The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on January 13. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
══════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) To Invest Over $500 Mln In Indian Startup (English article)
Facebook (Nasdaq: FB) Discussed Possible Investment In Xiaomi – Sources (English article)
Sinopec (HKEx: 386) Plans To List Retail Unit In Hong Kong – Report (English article)
China’s Wanda Cinema Seeks To Raise $203 Mln In Scaled-Back IPO: Sources (English article)
China Domestic Market Cellphone Output Drops 21.9 Pct in 2014 (Chinese article)
Bottom line: Unbecoming behavior by people like Alibaba’s Jack Ma and JD.com’s Richard Liu reflect poorly on China’s corporate sector, and reflects a lack of professional standards.
Alibaba’s Ma, JD’s Liu on bad behavior
Alibaba’s (NYSE: BABA) charismatic founder Jack Ma is known for speaking his mind, but he was on the defensive last week after inflammatory remarks he made about rival JD.com (Nasdaq: JD) were published in a book. JD.com graciously accepted Ma’s rare apology for the remarks, even as its founder Richard Liu was also in the Internet gossip columns for his own controversial behavior related to a rumored break-up with his longtime young girlfriend. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Alibaba’s new forays into India and South Korea look like good choices for its first major drive into foreign markets, as such markets are more similar to and have stronger links with China.
Alibaba eyes India investment
It’s been interesting to watch where China’s top Internet firms are placing their bets as they embark on an international expansion to show the world they can compete outside their home market. India is emerging as one destination of choice, with word that e-commerce leader Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) is following smartphone sensation Xiaomi into the market with a major new acquisition target. At the same time, other media reports are saying that Alibaba is also in talks for another major investment in South Korea. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: The sale of a major stake in Bitauto reflects a growing alliance between buyers Tencent and JD.com, and could be followed by a similar sale of a stake in Bitauto rival Autohome.
JD, Tencent buy into Bitauto
A newly announced deal that will see Internet giants Tencent (HKEx: 700) and JD.com (Nasdaq: JD) buy nearly a third of online auto specialist Bitauto (NYSE: BITA) is filled with intriguing implications for China’s consolidating online sector. The deal further cements a growing alliance between Tencent, China’s largest social networking (SNS) operator, and JD, the second largest e-commerce firm. At the same time, the tie-up with Bitauto has fueled speculation that the country’s other major listed online car specialist, Autohome (NYSE: ATHM), could become an acquisition target by one of China’s other leading Internet firms. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: 55Tuan’s listing plan stands a 50 percent chance of succeeding due to its modest size and broadly positive market sentiment, but could ultimately fail due to its loss-making status.
55Tuan files for Nasdaq IPO
I spent much of December predicting we’d see the first listing of a Chinese group buying site this year, and now that may happen with the first official IPO filing by a Chinese Internet company in 2015. But my prediction that the listing would come from sector leaders Dianping or Meituan was off the mark, and now it appears that 55Tuan may take the prize as China’s first listed group buying site. It’s still not completely certain that 55Tuan will be the first, since the company made previous attempts at such an offering but ultimately had to scrap the deal due to lack of interest. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on January 10-12. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
══════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Bottom line: Lenovo’s branding relaunch set for April could see it retire some of its local brands obtained through recent acquisitions, helping to improve its sales through better consumer awareness.
Lenovo prepares for brand overhaul
PC maker Lenovo (HKEx: 992) is hinting at a major overhaul for its crowded stable of brands later this year, in a move to simplify the many names it has acquired in a buying spree over the last decade. This kind of move is long overdue for Lenovo, which launched its global buying binge a decade ago with a landmark deal to buy the PC business of IBM (NYSE: IBM). To this day Lenovo still counts the Think name it got from IBM as one of its leading PC brands, though it has also added a number of other major names over the last 10 years. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Huawei could make significant progress in the US smartphone market this year if it devotes more resources to the campaign, while LeTV’s smartphone foray looks necessary but could face difficulty due to stiff competition.
Huawei to step up US smartphone campaign
Rapid developments in the smartphone space are showing no sign of slowing in the New Year, with the latest reports that stalwart Huawei is preparing for a major new push in the US, as online video specialist LeTV (Shenzhen: 300104) prepares its own campaign to enter the crowded arena. Of these 2 news bits, the Huawei one looks like the most significant, as it will see the company make a major play at a US market that is the world’s largest but has been elusive for the Chinese telecoms giant. LeTV previously hinted at its plans to enter the crowded smartphone space, and its relatively late arrival means its endeavor in the crowded field could ultimately fail. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Dunkin’ Donuts’ second attempt to enter China stands a better chance of success due to a better choice of partners, and also will benefit if it tries to give its brand a more upscale image.
Dunkin’ finds new China partner
The small club of foreign fast food chains with more than 1,000 stores in China could soon gain a new member, with word that donut giant Dunkin’ Brands (Nasdaq: DNKN) is gearing up for a second try at the market. Before I go any further, I should disclose that I’m a big donut fan and was quite disappointed when Dunkin’ ended its first China foray more than a year ago. But that said, I’m a bit more optimistic that it will succeed this second time around for several reasons, including valuable lessons that it learned from the failure during its first time in the market. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on January 9. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
══════════════════════════════════════════════════════
Huawei In Major Adjustment For US Market Accounting For Just 4 Pct Of Sales (Chinese article)
China Bans Private Cars From Providing Taxi Services Via Apps (English article)
Dunkin’ (Nasdaq: DNKN) Strikes Deal To Open 1,400 Stores In China (English article)
Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) Introduces Online Real Estate Platform (English article)
Lenovo (HKEx: 992) To Launch New Brand Campaign In April (Chinese article)
Bottom line: TCL and Lenovo will face uphill battles in rebuilding the Palm and Motorola brands due to stiff competition and lack of experience building upscale brands.
TCL to resuscitate Palm
It’s no secret that PC giant Lenovo (HKEx: 992) has big plans for its recently acquired Motorola smartphone brand, and now we’re learning that cellphone stalwart TCL (HKEx: 2618; Shenzhen: 000100) has similar plans for the former superstar Palm brand. That’s the latest word coming from Las Vegas, where Lenovo, TCL and other Chinese gadget makers are showing off their latest wares at CES, the world’s biggest consumer electronics show that happens this time each year. While TCL was low-profile about its newly acquired Palm brand, Lenovo was much louder about its plans to relaunch Motorola smartphones in its home market next month. Read Full Post…
