The following press releases and news reports about China companies were carried on September 20. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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Wanda Rejected as Viacom’s (NYSE: VIAb) Paramount Abandons Stake Sale Plan (Chinese article)
Internal Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) Probe Nets 17 for Corruption, Worst at Nuomi Unit (Chinese article)
China Unicom (HKEx: 762) Offers Biggest iPhone 7 Subsidies, Up to 49 Pct (Chinese article)
Zeus Entertainment (Shenzhen: 002354) Halts Plan to Invest in Baidu Video (English article)
Bottom line: China Mobile and its peers could take a big hit to their voice call revenues as they roll-out anti-fraud systems to counter negative publicity, while Alibaba could suffer similar but smaller impact to its pre-paid phone card business.
China Mobile cracks down on phone conmen
The same week it officially lost its crown as China’s most valuable listed company, China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL) is back in the headlines with more bad news related to a swell of publicity involving the nation’s rampant phone fraud. Normally I might dismiss this story, since phone fraud has been common in China for years and is really nothing new. But another similar case this year ended up becoming a huge headache Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU), and cost the online search giant huge sums in both market value and lost revenue. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and news reports about China companies were carried on September 3-5. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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China Opens Antitrust Investigation Into Uber’s Deal with Didi (English article)
Yum (NYSE: YUM) to Sell Stake in China Unit to Ant, Primavera Ahead of Spinoff (English article)
The following press releases and news reports about China companies were carried on August 20-22. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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Xiaomi Suits Up for a Debut on Apple’s (Nasdaq: APPL) US Home Turf (English article)
Tencent Boosts JD.com (Nasdaq: JD) Stake to 21.25 Pct Becomes Top Stakeholder (Chinese article)
Lufax Plan for IPO by Year-End Unchanged, Prefers Domestic China Listing (Chinese article)
Yunda Follows Other Parcel Delivery Firms with Plans for 17.7 Bln Yuan Back Door Listing (Chinese article)
China Unicom (HKEx: 762) to Eliminate Roaming Fees From October (Chinese article)
Following signs earlier this year that they were resisting a call to end to domestic roaming fees, China’s big 3 wireless carriers are finally reversing course and bowing to pressure from the telecoms regulator to follow a practice already common in much of the world. But leading telco China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL) is taking its time making the transition, saying it will gradually phase out such fees over the next 2 years. Smaller rival China Telecom (HKEx: 728; NYSE: CHA) appears to be moving more quickly, while the perpetually befuddled China Unicom (HKEx: 762; NYSE: CHU) has yet to state its policy on the issue. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: China Mobile’s strong profit growth shows the company has executed well on its 4G strategy, including strong promotion of data services that have rapidly become its single largest revenue source.
China Mobile notches strong Q2 profit growth
After a bumpy period over the last 2 years as it rolled out its new 4G network, leading wireless carrier China Mobile (HKEx: 941; NYSE: CHL) is finally reaping strong results from its efforts with some of the best profit growth I’ve seen in a long time. The company has just reported its interim results, which show that its profit jumped an impressive 9.2 percent in the second quarter, as it took advantage of its early entry to 4G to consolidate its place as the nation’s leading telco. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: China Telecom’s cancellation of roaming fees and focus on the Internet of Things signal it wants to become a leader and aggressively roll out new services under its new chairman Yang Jie.
China Telecom to end roaming fees
Just days after receiving a vote of confidence by a major global investor, China’s smallest mobile carrier China Telecom(HKEx: 728; NYSE: CHL) is showing new signs of life that make it look a potential company to watch among the nation’s stodgy big 3 teclos. Those signs are coming in one of the first major speeches from China Telecom’s new chief, who says the telco will become China’s first to eliminate domestic roaming fees, a move that was long overdue but has been strongly resisted by the sector. At the same time, Yang Jie is saying China Telecom will place strong emphasis on Internet of Things services, which many believe are the wave of the future. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: GIC’s investment in China Telecom represents a vote of confidence in the company over the next 2 years, as it makes strong gains in 4G and data services and could become more aggressive under new leadership.
GIC bets on China Telecom
China’s smallest wireless carrier China Telecom(HKEx: 728; NYSE: CHA) has just received a vote of confidence from one of the world’s better-known global investors, with the new disclosure that Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC has purchased 5 percent of the telco’s Hong Kong-listed shares. That decision comes amid mixed signals coming from China Telecom, which has just received new leadership after its former chairman was booted out for corruption. On a more positive note, China Telecom has been posting strong growth in its year-old 4G business, though the foundation for that growth was largely laid by yet another previous leader who left the company about a year ago. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Telefonica is likely to finalize its divorce with Unicom in the next 2 years, following the latest halving of its holdings in its Chinese partner to 1 percent as part of a sell-down of non-core assets.
Telefonica dumps more Unicom shares
For some reason that’s not completely clear to me, Spanish telco Telefonica (Madrid: TELF) doesn’t want to admit that its decade-long marriage with China Unicom (HKEx: 763; NYSE: CHU) was a dud and is headed for divorce. That’s my latest assessment, following reports that the Spanish carrier has further sold down its stake in its Chinese partner, leaving it with a miniscule 1 percent of Unicom’s shares. This particular sale was probably driven mostly by a need for cash. But I really don’t understand why Telefonica didn’t just completely dump the rest of its shares and finally end this marriage that never produced anything useful for either side. Read Full Post…
The following press releases and news reports about China companies were carried on July 9-11. To view a full article or story, click on the link next to the headline.
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Installment Plan E-tailer Qufenqi Raises 3 Bln Yuan in Pre-IPO Funding (English article)
Telefonica Raises $364 Mln from China Unicom (HKEx: 762) Share Sale: Sources (English article)
Striking Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) Workers in China Return to Work – For Now (English article)
China Logistics Said Poised to Price $433 Mln IPO at Top End (English article)
Bottom line: China Telecom could become less aggressive in 4G this year under its new leadership, while China Mobile remains the investor best bet among China’s 3 carriers due to early entry to 4G.
China Telecom zooms in 4G
It’s been a long time since I’ve looked at the bigger China telecoms landscape for total subscribers and 4G service, so the release of the latest monthly data from the nation’s 3 major carriers seems like a good opportunity to assess the situation. Not surprisingly, all 3 have posted anemic overall subscriber growth since the start of the year due to an increasingly saturated market. But a look at 4G shows a more diverse picture, with China Telecom (HKEx: 728; NYSE: CHA) acting far more aggressively than rival China Unicom (HKEx: 762; NYSE: CHU) in the quest for new subscribers. Read Full Post…
