A few interesting news bits on the medical front are spotlighting both the opportunities and risks that drug and medical equipment makers face in developing the China market. On the opportunity side, Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) has announced an expansion of its relationship with Simcere Pharmaceutical (NYSE: SCR) to introduce its drugs into China. Meantime, homegrown medical equipment maker Mindray Medical (NYSE: MR) is also banking on the market’s potential with its newly announced acquisition of a US ultrasound equipment maker. But US drug giant Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) is also finding the market contains some risks, as it comes under fire for double standards related to its product recall policies in China. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on June 11-13. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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China Eyes EU Luxury Cars As Trade Dispute Rages (English article)
Apple’s (Nasdaq: AAPL) iOS 7 Will Play Nice With Tencent, Sina Weibo (English article)
Censorship Lawsuit Against Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU), China Gets New Life In US (English article)
China Pulls ‘The Croods’ From Cinemas 2 Weeks Early (English article)
Camelot Information Systems (NYSE: CIS) Announces Unaudited Q1 Results (PRNewswire)
After disappearing from the headlines for a few months, venture-funded smartphone maker Xiaomi is popping back into the news with mixed signals about its plans for a new low-end model. I’ve often said that Xiaomi’s marketing-savvy co-founder Lei Jun sees his company as China’s version of Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), since many of the company’s product development and sales tactics look similar to the US tech giant’s. This latest plan for a new low-cost smartphone called Hongmi, or “Red Rice”, seems to follow that pattern, since buzz has been building for a while that Apple may also be preparing to launch a more affordable version of its premium iPhone. Read Full Post…
A day after we saw the latest sign that Lenovo (HKEx: 992) was pursuing a major purchase in the US, we’re getting news of another smaller deal by China’s leading PC maker with word of a new smartphone tie-up with faded Japanese brand NEC (HKEx: 6701). Whereas I quite like the US deal that would see Lenovo buy the low-end server business of IBM (HKEx: IBM), this smaller deal with NEC looks more like Lenovo’s older pattern of buying up dying global brands with little or no real value. Read Full Post…
PC giant Lenovo (HKEx: 992) has announced plans for a major new bond issue, in the latest signal that it still hopes to revive stalled talks to buy IBM’s (NYSE: IBM) low-end server business. More broadly speaking, this announcement also marks a new chapter in Lenovo’s development as it adds bonds to its arsenal of to tools for financing global M&A. In the past, Lenovo typically gave stock to finance a big part of its global M&A, which was the case with its landmark purchase of IBM’s PC business in 2005 and its more recent formation of a joint venture with Japan’s NEC (Tokyo: 6701). Read Full Post…
Some 6 months after buzz first emerged that Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) could soon bring its popular Kindle tablet PCs to China, media are reporting that the product could finally make its debut in the market next month. I’ll be frank in saying that Amazon is coming to the China tablet PC market a bit late, as the space is already quite competitive due to the earlier arrival of Apple’s (Nasdaq: AAPL) iPad, along with tablet offerings from Samsung (Seoul: 005930) and homegrown giant Lenovo (HKEx: 992). But that said, I would also say there’s still no clear leader in the space, meaning Amazon could quickly grab some market share if it makes the right moves. Read Full Post…
I have to commend Yang Yuanqing, chairman of PC giant Lenovo (HKEx: 992), for his company’s latest quarterly results that look quite solid, but even more for his ability to stay on message. Just a year ago, Yang took every opportunity to talk about his desire to overtake US rival Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) to become the world’s biggest PC brand. That message has clearly become yesterday’s news, replaced by the latest mantra that China’s consumer tech giant is setting its sights on smartphone leaders Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) and Samsung (Seoul: 005930) as its next targets. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on May 11-13. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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Alibaba To Invest $294 Mln In Mapping Firm AutoNavi (Nasdaq: AMAP) (English article)
Hyundai Motor (Seoul: 005380) Mulls 4th China Plant: Vice Chmn (English article)
CSRC Approves Citic Securities (HKEx: 6030) To Issue 20 Bln Yuan in Bonds (HKEx announcement)
Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) Building 4th Retail Store in Beijing – Source (English article)
Yum (NYSE: YUM) April Same-Store Sales Fall 29 Pct in China (English article)
The latest reports on Beijing’s plans to issue 4G mobile licenses look like good news for China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL), which could lay the groundwork for China’s largest telco to reach a highly anticipated deal to finally offer an Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) iPhone for its network. But the news isn’t completely positive for China Mobile, as the latest reports also strongly imply that the nation’s other 2 carriers will both be allowed to develop 4G networks using mature, globally developed technologies. By comparison, China Mobile has been forced to build its 4G network using a problem-plagued homegrown Chinese technology called TD-LTE, and had been lobbying hard for the regulator to require one of its rivals to use that standard also. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on April 25. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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Apple’s (Nasdaq: AAPL) Greater China Revenue Grows Just 8 Pct (Chinese article)
China to Mandate 7-Day Returns for E-Commerce Purchases (English article)
China Mobile (HKEx: 941) Buys 15 Pct of USTC iFlytek (HKEx announcement)
New Oriental (NYSE: EDU) Announces Q1 Results, $50 Mln Buyback Plan (PRNewswire)
After years of nonstop talk about making Lenovo (HKEx: 992) the world’s largest PC brand, CEO Yang Yuanqing is readjusting his sights these days onto competing with global smartphone and tablet PC leaders Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) and Samsung (Seoul: 005930). On the one hand, I have to congratulate Yang for finally focusing on the right targets in his quest to build Lenovo into a true global computing leader. But on the other hand, I have serious doubts about whether Yang can challenge either Apple or Samsung, despite his success in overtaking Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) briefly last year to become the world’s largest PC brand. Read Full Post…
