I’m not a close follower of global game console leaders Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) and Sony (Tokyo: 6753), but the latest reports of the latter’s launch plans for its PlayStation in China seem to reflect the recent state of disarray at the ailing Japanese giant. Microsoft was quick to formulate a China plan for its popular Xbox after Beijing recently lifted a decade-old ban on foreign consoles, forming a joint venture and launching the consoles last month. By comparison, only sporadic reports have emerged over that time about Sony’s plans, including the latest confusing reports that indicate the company will try to launch its PlayStation 4 in China by the end of the year. Read Full Post…
New overseas investments by 2 of China’s top 3 Internet firms hint at where future priorities will lie for e-commerce leader Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) and Internet search giant Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU), which have made new purchases in the US and Brazil, respectively. More broadly speaking, the relatively modest size of these latest investments reflects the very real fact that major M&A targets have mostly disappeared by now, putting pressure on the cash-rich trio of Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent (HKEx: 700) to look overseas for places to invest. Based on the nature of these new investments and other similar recent ones, it’s becoming clear that overseas companies are most interested in the Chinese companies’ cash and would probably prefer to avoid being seen as a “made in China” company. Read Full Post…
Several significant telecoms stories are buzzing through the headlines as China returns to work after a long holiday, led by news that iPhone sales have gotten off to a roaring start after initially hitting a regulatory roadblock in the world’s largest mobile market. Also of interest is word that China and the European Union are close to settling a long-running dispute that could give European networking equipment makers better access to the lucrative Chinese market. And finally there’s a bit of regulatory news that looks like a positive sign, showing China is trying to cut its vast bureaucracy to provide easier market access for makers of telecoms products. Read Full Post…
A Chinese group has failed in its bid to buy a top global aircraft leasing firm for the second time in 2 years, with word of the collapse of talks by domestic aviation giant AVIC and Chinese sovereign wealth fund CIC to purchase Europe’s Avolon. This second case follows another failed bid by a lesser-known group to buy US giant ILFC last year, and shows that Chinese firms still have a bit to learn when doing this kind of M&A. Some politics may also have been at play in this latest case, since AVIC is also designing a new large commercial aircraft that it hopes will someday compete in a lucrative market now dominated by Boeing (NYSE: BA) and Airbus (Paris: AIR). Read Full Post…
The microblogging realm has been relatively quiet this past week as Chinese tech executives enjoy the long October 1 holiday. Still, a few couldn’t completely stay away from their online accounts, led by TCL’s (Shenzhen: 000100) thoughtful Chairman Li Dongsheng who hinted at a possible tie-up with struggling former Taiwanese smartphone giant HTC (Taipei: 2498).
Meantime, LinkedIn’s (NYSE: LNKD) China chief Derek Shen commented on the current overheated investment environment in China’s Internet, reinforcing a view I’ve been stating for a while now. Finally there was Lenovo (HKEx: 992) CEO Yang Yuanqing, who let his deputies do the talking on his behalf as he donated a portion of his annual bonus to rank-and-file company employees in a goodwill gesture for the third straight year. Read Full Post…
Two major new global investments are highlighting a recent trend that has Chinese buyers moving beyond their traditional comfort zones of resources and manufacturing and into other less familiar areas like real estate and sports clubs. The first case will see domestic insurance company Anbang Insurance buy New York’s landmark Waldorf Astoria hotel for a supercharged price of nearly $2 billion. The second deal has media reporting that Wang Jianlin, founder of real estate giant Wanda Group, is preparing to buy a stake in Spanish soccer club Atletico de Madrid. Read Full Post…
The solar power sector has become a highly volatile place these days, with company stocks rallying one week on upbeat news, only to tumble days later on more downbeat signals. Much of the volatility owes to 2 factors that have created big uncertainty: protectionism and doubts about funding for many new power plants now being announced. Both of those factors are at play in a new string of downbeat news on industry lead Canadian Solar (Nasdaq: CSIQ), as well as struggling Chaori Solar (Shenzhen: 002506) and the now defunct former superstar Suntech. Read Full Post…
US-listed Chinese companies have made a flurry of strategic moves on Wall Street over the long October 1 holiday, with former high-flyers Qihoo 360 (NYSE: QIHU) and 58.com (NYSE: WUBA) taking steps to prop up their sagging share prices. The correction now taking place is long overdue, following huge run-ups in New York-traded Chinese stocks over the last year and a half. Still, the sell-off doesn’t bode too well for car rental firm eHiCar Services, which has just become the first major Chinese firm to file for a Wall Street IPO following the blockbuster listing for Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) last month. Read Full Post…
So much has been written already about the sudden approval of the iPhone 6 in China, after several weeks of unexplained delays, that I thought I would focus on the broader implications of this surprise move in the ongoing war of words between the US and China over cyber security.
I praised iPhone maker Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) in August for emerging as a voice of reason in this war of words after it decided to use China-based servers for to store some of its local user data (previous post), and it seems like more praise is in order this time as well. Only this time the praise should go to Beijing, for finally taking a break from the cyber security war of words by realizing that companies like Apple are far more interested in doing business than engaging in cloak-and-dagger spying games. Read Full Post…
Just months after tapping financial markets for nearly $250 million, solar panel maker Trina (NYSE: TSL) has just announced another plan to raise a similar amount as it tries to take advantage of improving sentiment towards its sector. Such fund-raising would have been unthinkable as recently as a year ago, when recovery of the solar panel sector was far from certain following a prolonged downturn. In a relatively positive sign, Trina’s latest fund-raising plan didn’t trigger a major sell-off in its shares, indicating investors are more confident of the company’s and the sector’s future prospects. Read Full Post…
Senior and mid-level executives from a wide range of Chinese tech firms were on the move this past week, crossing the Pacific to tour some of the top US tech names in Silicon Valley. Stops on the tour, co-organized by a Chinese outfit with the colorful name of Geek Park, included such Internet giants as Google (Nasdaq: GOOG), Twitter (NYSE: TWTR), as well as newer companies like Airbnb and Pinterest, and electric car powerhouse Tesla (Nasdaq: TSLA). But certainly the biggest and most intriguing stop on this Silicon Valley tech tour was a visit to the global headquarters of Facebook (Nasdaq: FB), which also happens to be in the process of opening a China office. Read Full Post…
