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My first reaction to a report about Shanghai’s latest business scandal was one of disgust, as I read about scoundrels who use homemade radio devices to block mobile signals and send thousands of cellular spam messages. Anyone who owns a cellphone is well aware of the spam problem, receiving dozens or even hundreds of such unwanted text messages each month offering everything from restaurant discounts to rip-off investment schemes. Read Full Post…
Media are buzzing about the latest survey on China’s most valuable brands, with each providing its own interpretation of the latest list from global advertising giant WPP (London: WPP) and its Millward Brown affiliate. Many companies that I regularly write about are at the top of the list, but an equally interesting is who isn’t there. I’m referring to consumer brands that are common elements of daily life for most people, printed on everything from shampoos to instant noodles. This category is currently dominated by foreign names, but the new list hints that 1 or 2 Chinese firms could be positioned to become the country’s first equivalent of Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) or Unilever (London: ULVR). Read Full Post…
Update: Since originally writing this, the MIIT has finally formally issued 4G licenses, allowing each of the 3 major telcos to operate a service based on the homegrown TD-LTE standard. China Mobile will formally launch service on December 18.
It’s a new day, so I figured that’s a good enough excuse to write about the latest 4G wireless services rumors, which seem to be coming almost daily at this point. The newest rumors look a bit sexier than other recent chatter, this time unveiling the brand name industry leader China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL) will use for its new service, and also adding the company will finally offer an Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) iPhone for the network when it formally launches service later this month. Word of the actual launch date, in this case December 18, was probably the least interesting news in this latest report. That’s because every report I’ve read these last few months nearly always contains a launch date that is ultimately incorrect, and there’s no reason to believe that this new report will break that trend. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on December 4. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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The recent rush by Chinese web firms into the financial services has gained a new member, with word that real estate services SouFun (NYSE: SFUN) will enter the sector. I’ve generally been skeptical of this sudden swarm into financial services, which was touched off earlier this year by e-commerce leader Alibaba, since this new stream of online investment products looks rife with potential for controversy. But that said, this latest move by Soufun actually looks quite logical and shrewd, since the company’s core real estate business already has very close ties with the traditional financial services industry. Read Full Post…
This week’s China visit by British Prime Minister David Cameron is stirring up a flurry of activity from the big 4 Chinese state-run banks, 3 of which have just announced new tie-ups in Europe. The move by Chinese banks into Europe isn’t all that surprising, since the EU is China’s biggest trading partner and London is one of the world’s top 2 financial centers alongside New York. What is slightly surprising is the suddenness of this flurry of activity, which I suspect is at least partly driven by a directive by Beijing for the nation’s big 4 lenders to go global and internationalize China’s currency, the yuan. Read Full Post…
Next year is set to become the year of 4G in China, with the nation expected to spend well over 100 billion yuan ($16.4 billion) on new mobile networks that offer lightning-fast data speeds for mobile subscribers. The spending bonanza marks an excellent chance for China to show its commitment to free trade, after many were disappointed when foreign companies received only a small fraction of the business in a major series of contracts back in August. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on December 3. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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I thought I’d get into the Christmas spirit in this first work day after Thanksgiving in the US, so let’s take a look at what solar panel makers LDK (NYSE: LDK) and Trina (NYSE: TSL) are getting in their holiday stockings with the latest company news reports. It seems the struggling LDK won’t be getting much, with word that a Chinese court has added further delays to a case where it is owed $40 million in a business dispute with rival Canadian Solar (Nasdaq: CSIQ). The news looks a bit better for Trina, whose Christmas stocking is filled with another smaller solar company that it is acquiring as the industry consolidates. Read Full Post…
An interesting picture is emerging from the mini-rush of Chinese IPOs now hitting the market, as reflected by word that online car seller Autohome has cut the size of its upcoming New York offering. On the one hand, the 4 companies to launch IPOs in the last month have all seen their shares perform quite well since their trading debuts. But at the same time, the size of the offerings has been rapidly shrinking, and all have seen their trading volumes drop dramatically since their first trading days. That seems to indicate the market is filled with speculators right now, and there’s much less longer-term interest in the companies once their shares start trading. Read Full Post…
It may be quiet in the US during the Thanksgiving holiday, but shareholder lawyers were hard at work scrutinizing the new management-led buyout offer for online game operator Giant Interactive (NYSE: GA), with at least 2 hinting they will file lawsuits to seek a better bid. This is the second time we’ve seen lawyers question a buyout offer for a US-listed Chinese firm, following a similar development for privatizing telecoms software maker AsiaInfo-Linkage (Nasdaq: ASIA). Both cases highlight the challenges that such buy-outs can face, especially when buyer groups have strong ties to the companies they are seeking to privatize. Read Full Post…
