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There’s a flood of earnings out today from US-listed Chinese firms, so I’ve decided to focus on online video leader Youku Tudou (NYSE: YOKU) and fast rising e-commerce firm Vipshop (NYSE: VIPS), whose shares are showing some unusual reaction to their respective results. In both cases, market outlook was clearly a major factor that helped Youku Tudou shares rally despite a weak report, even as Vipshop tumbled on what seemed like solid results. Read Full Post…
Several news bits from the solar sector show more signs of stabilization after a 2-year-old downturn, even as an ongoing trade war looks set to escalate. The big picture in these news bits does seem to reflect some cautious optimism returning to the sector after the prolonged downturn due to massive oversupply. But that turnaround remains very tentative, and the sector could easily return to turmoil if the current trade war continues to escalate. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on May 16. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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I’ve written too much recently about neglected web portal Sohu (Nasdaq: SOHU), but the latest rumors of a potential tie-up between the company and PPTV, operator of one of China’s leading video websites, are just too irresistible for me to ignore. Those rumors say Sohu is in talks to combine its own online video business with PPTV to create one of the nation’s top 3 players. News of such talks comes just a couple of weeks after leading search engine Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) purchased another top video site, PPS, for $370 million, and indicates a new wave of consolidation in China’s Internet space may be gaining momentum. Read Full Post…
I’ll openly admit that I’ve generally sided with Internet giant Tencent (HKEx: 700) in its ongoing dispute with China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL) over Tencent’s popular WeChat mobile messaging service; but a new report today on the debate is also making me realize that China Mobile’s point has some validity, even if I disagree with its tactics to address the issue. The report I’m talking about cites an executive at Shanghai-based China Merchants Bank (HKEx: 3968; Shanghai: 600036), a leading regional lender, saying his bank is piloting a service on WeChat as it looks to migrate some of its mobile-based services to the platform. (English article) Read Full Post…
After making headlines late last year, a deal that would see a Chinese group buy AIG’s (NYSE: AIG) aircraft leasing unit for $5.5 billion has quietly popped back into the news with word that the US insurance giant has extended the deadline to close a deal by a month. There’s not much more in the reports, which simply cite a stock exchange filing by AIG saying a deadline for the deal has been pushed forward to June 14. (English article) While the deal clearly hasn’t moved ahead as quickly as both sides had anticipated, the fact that they’re extending the deadline by a month means they are still confident they can reach an agreement. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on May 15. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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More than a year after first announcing a potential buyout, telecoms software maker AsiaInfo-Linkage (Nasdaq: ASIA) has finally reached a deal with a group led by a unit of Chinese financial giant Citic that would see its shares de-listed. Investors were unimpressed by the final announcement, with AsiaInfo shares actually closing down by 0.7 percent at $11.60 after it announced a deal to sell itself for $12 per share to the group led by Citic Capital Partners which also includes Singapore’s Temasek sovereign wealth fund. (company announcement) Read Full Post…
After years of inactivity, China’s Internet sector has seen a sudden flurry of M&A deals with potential to consolidate the fragmented space and create some truly world class companies that could one day compete with the likes of Amazon and Google. While commercial factors are mostly behind this sudden M&A spring, Beijing could also play a limited role by encouraging more consolidation, helping to lay the foundation for a vibrant and sustainable Internet sector that could become a global leader. Read Full Post…
Embattled hoteliers and restaurant operators whose business has been hit by China’s H7N9 bird flu outbreak are finally getting some relief with Shanghai’s formal cancellation of its bird flu emergency after the city went 3 weeks without any new cases. (English article) But companies could continue to feel the fallout from the scare for at least the next few months, with by Yum’s (NYSE: YUM) KFC perhaps the most vulnerable to longer term damage. Read Full Post…
Not sure what to do with little Fido or Flurry after your beloved dog or cat moves on to the big Dog House or Cat Palace in the sky? Well now there’s an answer, at least there is in Shanghai, where the government has been hard at work on the problem of what to do with the thousands of pets that die in the city each year. And the answer is: cremation. That’s the official verdict from the city after consulting with animal experts over the last few months to draft a new set of guidelines on the issue. (Chinese article) Read Full Post…
