China’s oil and resource companies have been on a buying binge over the last year, snapping up global assets at what look like relative bargains from cash-strapped global companies under pressure to raise money. Beijing has been paying the bills for most of the purchases so far, but the latest announcement from oil refining giant Sinopec (HKEx: 386; Shanghai: 600028; NYSE: SNP) indicates that China may be testing the waters to see if investors are willing to help pay some of the bill in this global buying binge. If that’s the case, Beijing may soon face some major resistance from its major resource companies’ shareholders, who are likely to question whether Sinopec and other Chinese resource firms are getting good value for their money.
Tag Archives: CNOOC
News Digest: January 31 报摘：2013年1月31日
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on January 31. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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- Lenovo (HKEx: 992) Announces Fiscal 3rd Quarter Results (HKEx announcement)
- ChinaHR Begins Layoffs, Some Employees Protest (English article)
- Ruth’s Chris Steak House (Nasdaq: RUTH) Expands Global Presence to China (Businesswire)
- CNOOC (HKEx: 883) Announces Business Strategy For 2013 (HKEx announcement)
- EU Requests Huawei, ZTE (HKEx: 763) To Raise Exported Product Prices 29 Pct (English article)
US Elections Behind, A123 Sale Moves Ahead 美国大选之后，A123出售新进展
After a stormy 2012 that saw growing trade friction between China and the US, I’m happy to see that 2013 is getting off to a better start with Washington’s approval of a potentially sensitive sale of a bankruptcy US technology firm to a Chinese buyer. Many readers will know that I’m talking about the case of A123 Systems, a former high-flying US battery maker that fell on hard times as new energy industries worldwide experienced a broader downturn in demand for their products.
CDB, China Gas Power More Energy 中国企业持续进行能源并购交易 M&A
Just a week after Canada approved the $15 billion purchase of oil exploration firm Nexen (Toronto: NXY) to Chinese rival CNOOC (HKEx: 883; NYSE: CEO), we’re seeing a couple of interesting new M&A deals in the energy sector, one involving policy lender China Development Bank and the other from Hong Kong-listed China Gas (HKEx: 384). The common theme is that many Chinese energy investors are relatively flush with cash right now, and are looking for bargains in a global sector where asset prices have become depressed due to lingering effects of the global downturn. But that said, these 2 deals are both quite different, with the first most likely being driven at least partly by Beijing while the latter looks like a more traditional private sector deal.
Advice to US: Approve A123 Sale 美国政府应为万向集团收购A123放行
In writing this blog, I generally try to keep my own views muted and focus instead on the latest news and what it means for the companies involved. But I’m making one of my occasional exceptions to that rule today to say that the US really should go ahead and approve the sale of bankrupt battery maker A123 Systems to a Chinese company, since this deal seems to have few if any national security implications and blocking it would send a bad signal about Washington’s commitment to fair trade.
Canada OKs CNOOC Buy, AIG Tests US 中海油竞购尼克森获批
Fresh on the heels of a victory in its bid to buy Canadian energy exploration firm Nexen (Toronto: NXY), China is preparing to test its luck once again with another sensitive attempt to buy one of the largest US aircraft leasing companies from insurance giant AIG (NYSE: AIG). I previously predicted the Canadian government would ultimately approve the purchase of Nexen from state-run Chinese oil major CNOOC (HKEx: 883; NYSE: CEO), which the government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper finally did just before the weekend after months of foot dragging. But a separate group of state-backed buyers that includes China’s biggest bank ICBC (HKEx: 1398; Shanghai: 601398) should look closely at the fine print in final Nexen verdict, which could presage a bumpy flight path ahead in their surprise $5.5 billion bid for ILFC, the aircraft leasing arm of AIG.
News Digest: December 8-10 报摘： 2012年12月8-10日
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on December 8-10. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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- Chinese Group In Talks To Buy AIG (NYSE: AIG) Air Lease Arm (English article)
- Canada OKs CNOOC (HKEx: 883), Petronas Bids for Nexen, Progress Energy (English article)
- Suntech (NYSE: STP) Announces Preliminary Q3 Financial Results (PRNewswire)
- Tesco (London: TSCO) China to Establish E-Commerce Platform in H1 2013 (English article)
- CDH Investments Leaves Focus Media (Nasdaq: FMCN) Buy-Out Group -Source (Chinese article)
China Tries New Resource M&A Approach 中国转变全球资源并购策略
New reports from Down Under are saying that China’s leading power distributor State Grid Corp has made a major purchase in Australia, a move that initially looks controversial but could actually mark the start of a smarter approach by Chinese firms to global M&A in the sensitive resource and energy sectors. State Grid, which has been on a global buying spree over the last year, has announced it is acquiring 41 percent of ElectraNet, a grid operator in the Australian state of Queensland, from a local government entity. (English article) No value of the purchase was given, but Australian media had previously reported that State Grid would pay A$500 million for the stake, equal to about $523 million.
News Digest: November 29 报摘： 2012年11月29日
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on November 29. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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- CNOOC (HKEx: 883), Nexen (Toronto: NXY) Reapply For US Deal Approval (English article)
- Yingli (NYSE: YGE) Announces Largest Module Supply Contract in Company History (PRNewswire)
- Vancl Reduces Workforce Ahead of IPO (English article)
- Jingdong Mall Obtains 5 Bln Yuan in Credit for Supplier Financing (English article)
- Shanda Cloudary Aims For April 2013 IPO, Hires Merrill As Underwriter (Chinese article)
M&A: CNOOC Yields, AgBank Insures 中海油为收购尼克森再让步 农行收购嘉禾人寿股份获批
I’ll start the day with a look at news on 2 M&A deals, one domestic and one international, that show how difficult such transactions still are for Chinese firms. The first involves what looks like a big step forward in oil major CNOOC’s (HKEx: 883; NYSE: CEO) bid for Canadian rival Nexen (Toronto: NXY), which is controversial only because of its political overtones. The second involves Agricultural Bank of China’s (HKEx: 1288; Shanghai: 601288) receipt of regulatory approval to buy a controlling stake of an insurance company named Jiahe, though in this case what’s most interesting is the long amount of time it took to win the approval.
News Digest: November 21 报摘： 2012年11月21日
The following press releases and media reports about Chinese companies were carried on November 21. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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- China Mobile (HKEx: 941) to Buy Fetion from Ultrapower (Shenzhen: 300002) – Source (English article)
- CNOOC (HKEx: 883) Accepts New Canadian Terms to Win Nexen Deal Nod: Report (English article)
- Agricultural Bank of China (HKEx: 1288) Approved For Jiahe Insurance Investment (HKEx announcement)
- Phoenix New Media (NYSE: FENG) Reports Q3 Unaudited Financial Results (PRNewswire)
- Toys“R”Us Launches Dedicated Web Store in China (Businesswire)
