Anyone who thought that Chinese telcos behaved like commercial companies is getting a lesson in the country’s unique blend of capitalism, with news that all 3 state-run carriers have been ordered to slash their promotional spending. In any other market, such a move would carry huge anti-competitive overtones and the regulator would quickly step in and stop such coordinated action. But this isn’t any other market, and the order to slash spending is coming from the government organization that is effectively the major shareholder of China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL), China Unicom (HKEx: 762; NYSE: CHU) and China Telecom. (HKEx: 728; NYS:E CHA) Read Full Post…
The web clean-up that began in April with a relatively innocuous-looking crackdown on Sina’s (Nasdaq: SINA) video sites is showing signs of becoming a major movement, with word that regulators in Beijing are investigating 52 website operators for violent and pornographic content, including giants Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) and Youku Tudou (NYSE: YOKU). News of this new clean-up comes after similar reports emerged last week that online game operators were coming under similar scrutiny, and indicates the current crackdown could last for the next few months. Read Full Post…
E-commerce leader Alibaba has long insisted on a shareholding structure that would put all decision making powers in its top managers, and now we’re getting a taste of what that could mean with word that the company will buy a stake in one of China’s best known soccer teams. On the surface at least, this deal doesn’t look very attractive. Most or all of China’s soccer clubs are losing money, and the league has a record for poor marketing and also a series of corruption scandals that have hurt its reputation. Any ordinary Alibaba shareholder would probably instantly veto such a purchase if he had that kind of voting power. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on June 6. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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China Probes Baidu, Youku Tudou (NYSE: YOKU) Over Violent Shows -Xinhua (English article)
Just a day after the solar panel sector was hit by a new negative trade ruling from the US, Trina Solar (NYSE: TSL) gave its investors another unwanted surprise with word that it is preparing to raise more than $200 million through a combination of new stock and bond offerings. Trina joins a growing list of solar panel makers that are looking to western capital markets as confidence returns to the sector following a prolonged downturn dating back to early 2011. Read Full Post…
Two big fund-raising stories are in the headlines as people return to work after the Dragon Boat holiday, including a new IPO filing by online recruitment site Zhaopin.com and a big new funding round by a year-old mobile news app developer. The first news bit has seen Zhaopin announce a price range for its IPO nearly a month after making its first public filing for the offer. Meantime, the app whose name translates roughly to Today’s Top News, is showing big promise in the mobile news space, with word that its developer has just raised an impressive $100 million in new funding. Read Full Post…
UPDATE:Following original publication of this post, I was informed that Tencent wasn’t among the buyers of shares that raised $1.8 billion in JD.com’s IPO. Tencent did buy $1.3 billion worth of JD.com shares through a concurrent private placement at the time of the IPO, raising its stake in JD.com to 20 percent.
JD.com execs talk up June 18 event
E-commerce giant JD.com (Nasdaq: JD) was well represented in the microblogging realm this past week, generating debate about the company’s surprisingly high valuation following its listing last month in New York. Meantime, electric car (EV) sensation Tesla (Nasdaq: TSLA) also got some new buzz from big-time booster Li Xiang, founder of the recently listed Autohome (NYSE: ATHM), who disclosed the launch of a new app and talked about the EV maker’s strong early China sales. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on June 5. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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Lenovo (HKEx: 992), IBM Said to Seek Extension in U.S. Review of Deal (English article)
Trina Solar (NYSE: TSL) Announces Offering Of $150 Mln In Convertible Notes (PRNewswire)
Tencent (HKEx: 700) in Talks to Acquire Lottery Firm LotySynergy (HKEx: 1371) (English article)
As IPO Nears, Alibaba Preps Employees For $40 Bln Windfall (English article)
NQ Mobile (NYSE: NQ) Probe Turns Up No Problems After Short Seller Attack (Chinese article)
Some interesting new fund raising is taking place at opposite ends of the corporate universe in China, with plans coming from Internet giant Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) and automotive stalwart Volkswagen (Frankfurt: VOWG). One move will see Baidu potentially issue a major new bond, while VW will raise money by issuing yuan-denominated securities backed by its China-based auto loans.
While these 2 plans are quite different in nature, they do collectively reflect the growing number of options available to foreign investors looking for different kinds of exposure to the China market. It’s also worth noting that these options will bring new types of risk, especially as China’s economy shows signs of slowing that could lead to growing defaults from local governments, companies and even consumers. Read Full Post…
US erects new trade barrier for Chinese solar panels
In a move that should surprise no one, the US has announced it will levy new punitive tariffs on China-made solar panels to close a loophole from an earlier ruling. This move won’t help anyone and could seriously stifle the industry’s development just as it starts to emerge from a prolonged downturn. It also looks worrisome from a broader perspective for Chinese panel makers, since signs are emerging that their products could also be shunned in Japan and India, 2 of the world’s other promising emerging markets for solar power plant construction. Read Full Post…
The alliance between Tencent (HKEx: 700) and JD.com (Nasdaq: JD) formed earlier this year is quickly revving up to challenge Alibaba’s dominance of China’s C2C e-commerce segment, with word of 2 big new moves in the space. This new alliance immediately challenged Alibaba shortly after its formation, pooling the 2 companies’ resources to create a player with a quarter of the market in the lucrative B2C space that sees major retailers sell their products to consumers online. But Alibaba still has near-complete dominance over the equally lucrative but more fragmented C2C space, sometimes called online auctions, which sees individuals and small merchants sell their products to consumers online.
