Tag Archives: CNOOC

MULTINATIONALS: Unigroup’s Micron Bid Offers Trust-Building Opportunity

Bottom line: The purchase of Micron by Tsinghua Unigroup offers a good chance for Sino-US confidence building if Washington signals it will fairly consider such a deal and Unigroup demonstrates its actions are commercially driven.

Micron sale offers chance to boost Sino-US trust

A potential mega-deal that would see China’s Tsinghua Unigroup buy leading US memory chip maker Micron Technology (Nasdaq: MU) could become a major trust-building exercise between China and Washington if handled properly, but could also quickly end in an angry war of words if the opposite occurs. Both sides need to take important steps to ensure fair trade in the case, which is sensitive because it involves the acquisition of a US high-tech leader by a company with close ties to China’s top science university.

For its part, Unigroup could take steps to show its independence from Tsinghua University, and more broadly to show that it is a commercially-focused business that doesn’t make decisions based on government orders or support. For its part, Washington could signal it is willing to consider a deal that appears to pose no threat to national security, even though it would see a major technology company taken over by a Chinese peer. Read Full Post…

US Approves Lenovo’s IBM Server Buy

US security reviewer clears Lenovo’s IBM buy

A summer full of negative news for Sino-foreign trade relations got a rare piece of positive news over the weekend, with word that the US has approved the sale of IBM’s (NYSE: IBM) low-end server business to Chinese PC giant Lenovo (HKEx: 992). The case looks a bit like another deal between the pair of tech giants nearly a decade ago, when IBM agreed to sell its high-profile PC business to Lenovo, only to see the deal run into political headwinds before finally getting approved by Washington. But this latest approval is slightly different, as it comes against a backdrop of heightened trade and other national security tensions between China and the west, especially from the US. Read Full Post…

State Asset Sales: Removing The “SOE” Stigma

Beijing opens protected sectors to private money

Everyone is getting quite excited these last 2 days about word that Beijing will soon launch a major new sell-down of its stake in many of China’s largest state-owned enterprises (SOEs), in a bid to breath new life into these bureaucratic behemoths. The news certainly looks like a positive sign all around, providing an exciting new opportunity for investors who would prefer to own major companies that behave more commercially rather than the current group that take their orders from Beijing.

Equally important, the shift could help many of these state-run giants to shed their “SOE stigma”, which often carries connotations of state-control, bureaucracy and political agendas. Such a shift could fuel a new wave of outbound M&A by some of these giants, whose major global purchases often raise suspicions among host governments who currently view such SOEs as tools used by Beijing to execute its political goals. Read Full Post…

News Digest: January 21, 2014

The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on January 21. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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  • Lenovo (HKEx: 992) Still Aims To Buy IBM (NYSE: IBM) Low-End Server Unit (Chinese article)
  • ZTE (HKEx: 763) Announces Preliminary Results For Year 2013 (HKEx announcement)
  • Peugeot Moves Closer To Dongfeng (HKEx: 489) Deal As Sales Sag (English article)
  • CNOOC (HKEx: 883) Announces 2014 Business Strategy, Development Plan (PRNewswire)
  • Game Operator Linekong Lands $80 Mln In Series C Funding (English article)

Outbound M&A Starts Strong In 2014

Wanxiang cleared to bid for Fisker

After logging another strong year in 2013, outbound acquisitions by Chinese firms are getting off to another strong start in the New Year with 3 major new deals in the headlines last week. These latest deals reflect a broad range of targets, both in terms of industries and company health, in a welcome relief from an old pattern that saw Chinese companies often chase sickly, troubled western firms. Read Full Post…

News Digest: September 21-23, 2013

The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on September 21-23. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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  • China To Limit Construction Of New Solar Panel Factories (English article)
  • PetroChina (HKEx: 857) Supplier Wison Says Records Seized, Can’t Contact Chairman (English article)
  • Camelot Information Systems (NYSE: CIS) Enters Into “Going Private” Agreement (PRNewswire)
  • Sohu (Nasdaq: SOHU) Discusses Sogou Special Dividend Distribution (PRNewswire)
  • CNOOC (HKEx: 883) Begins Trading on Toronto Stock Exchange (PRNewswire)

China M&A Finance Goes Global With CNOOC, Citic Securities

Citic Securities in mega bond issue

An interesting new trend has major Chinese firms financing their global expansions with mega bond offerings, with leading brokerage Citic Securities (HKEx: 6030; Shanghai: 600030) and oil exploration giant CNOOC (HKEx: 883; NYSE: CEO) becoming the latest to tap international debt markets. This kind of overseas mega bond issue isn’t really new for Chinese firms, as many in sectors ranging from telecoms to real estate have issued similar corporate debt in the past. But what’s new now is that these latest offers are coming from companies that have made major acquisitions over the last year, and now they’re testing the markets to see if bond buyers will help to pay for those assets. Read Full Post…

News Digest: May 2, 2013

The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on May 2. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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News Digest: February 26 报摘:2013年2月26日

The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on February 26. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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  • ZTE (HKEx: 763) To Increase Smartphone Revenues By 30 Pct In 2013 (Businesswire)
  • Qihoo (NYSE: QIHU) To Provide Internet Security Products to Commerce Ministry (PRNewswire)
  • Yum (NYSE: YUM) Cutting Some Supplier Ties After China Food Scare (English article)

Free Trade Wins as US OKs Nexen Sale 美国为中海油收购尼克森放行 自由贸易的胜利

In a big victory for free trade, the US has approved the sale of Canadian oil exploration giant Nexen (Toronto: NXY) to China’s CNOOC (HKEx: 883; NYSE: CEO), removing the last major obstacle that could have stopped the landmark deal. The US approval was decidedly low-key, with Nexen formally announcing it had received the final major green light it needed to close the sale. (English article) The development marks the second major approval of a potentially sensitive deal by the US in the last month, and is the latest indicator that such deals that pose no real risk to national security and are likely to move forward for now without political resistance.

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Free Trade Wins as US OKs Nexen Sale 美国为中海油收购尼克森放行自由贸易的胜利

In a big victory for free trade, the US has approved the sale of Canadian oil exploration giant Nexen (Toronto: NXY) to China’s CNOOC (HKEx: 883; NYSE: CEO), removing the last major obstacle that could have stopped the landmark deal. The US approval was decidedly low-key, with Nexen formally announcing it had received the final major green light it needed to close the sale. (English article) The development marks the second major approval of a potentially sensitive deal by the US in the last month, and is the latest indicator that such deals that pose no real risk to national security and are likely to move forward for now without political resistance.

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