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Politics : Dutch Central Bank Sale Announcement Imminent? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: sea_urchin who wrote (22166)	12/9/2004 8:44:44 PM
From: Jamey	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 81019

It's an ETF Exchange Tracking Fund (GLD) that tracks the price of gold. Each share is worth one/tenth ounce of gold. James

To: sea_urchin who wrote (22166)	12/10/2004 4:29:27 AM
From: GUSTAVE JAEGER	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 81019

Commentary: Corporate China steps onto the world stage By William Pesek Jr. Bloomberg News Friday, December 10, 2004 Anyone who is surprised that a much coveted part of International Business Machines is now in Chinese hands had better get used to it, and get used to it fast. "It's just started," says Donald Straszheim, president of Straszheim Global Advisors in Santa Monica, California, referring to what could be the most significant business trend of the decade: Chinese companies rapidly becoming more "internationally acquisitive." On Wednesday, China's mergers and acquisitions boom moved into high gear when Lenovo Group agreed to pay $1.25 billion for IBM's personal computer business. It is the biggest acquisition of a U.S. company by a Chinese competitor, and it lifts China's largest PC maker to third in global rankings and gives it a marquee-caliber brand. As Chinese companies evolve from prey to predator, they are poised to benefit from a possible currency revaluation. If the yuan rises by 10 percent, 20 percent or even 40 percent against the dollar, as some analysts expect, acquisitions of companies and properties overseas will become that much cheaper. In other words, we haven't seen anything yet from China. Even with an undervalued yuan, China is carrying out a two-phase strategy for mergers and acquisitions. Phase one, Straszheim says, focuses on locking up foreign sources - mining companies, mostly - of the commodities China needs to feed its economy. Just about every company of this sort in Canada, Australia, Southeast Asia, Africa and elsewhere is a target. The second phase, which is just getting under way, features acquisitions of household-name companies to bolster global sales and distribution. Since brands take time to build, it's logical for companies like Lenovo, the household-appliance maker Haier Group or the phone-equipment maker Huawei Technologies to look for quick entry points into the United States. "Many American companies or brands that are struggling, aren't being well managed or otherwise are out of favor may be rejuvenated with a new Chinese partner," Straszheim says. "Maybe a China buyer will bail you out of that awful stock." Lenovo is emblematic of China's global ambitions, especially as the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games approach. In March, it became the first Chinese enterprise to join the International Olympic Committee's global sponsorship program. Lenovo will provide computer equipment and services to the Turin Olympic Winter Games in 2006 and in Beijing in 2008. Scooping up the IBM unit will improve Lenovo's name recognition, amplifying the benefits of its Olympics investments. Expect other Chinese companies to follow Lenovo's lead in the next few years. The lead-up to 2008 will be a coming-out party for corporate China. We can expect initial public offerings planned to coincide with the Olympics, as well as mergers and acquisitions. All this may be an eye-opener for U.S. executives suddenly receiving overtures from Chinese competitors. China's per-capita income is about a seventh that of the average U.S. consumer. And for all the excitement about its outlook, China has few internationally known companies that operate on a global scale and market their products abroad. China is often seen as a place to harness cheap labor to improve profits in the West, not as a direct competitor in corporate boardrooms. Yet, as Lenovo shows, Chinese companies are going global, something observers like Joseph Quinlan, chief market strategist at Banc of America Capital Management in New York, have been predicting this year. So far, Quinlan says, attention has centered on how much foreign capital is flowing into China. That focus is shifting to the mounting tide of foreign investment flowing out of China as more firms reach overseas. The trend should prompt reconsideration of U.S. calls for a revaluation of the yuan, which is pegged at about 8.3 to the dollar. Just wait until a stronger yuan makes U.S. icons like Pebble Beach, Rockefeller Center and Universal Studios - all bought up by the Japanese in the 1980s - cheaper. A stronger yuan will also make the IBMs of the world less expensive for growth-hungry Chinese companies. All this may confront a pro-business White House with a be-careful-what-you-wish-for dilemma on the yuan. The overseas expansion of Chinese enterprises comes with major risks. Will companies inexperienced at running operations abroad successfully integrate a well-established U.S. company? Will finicky consumers around the globe buy products from a lesser-known company like Lenovo? Still, the purchase of IBM's unit underscores a shift in technology manufacturing and, more generally, economic growth, to Asia. Get ready America - corporate China is coming faster than you may have dared to believe. iht.com