Wealth fund invests US$100m in Visa
CHINA Investment Corp. (CIC), which manages the nation’s US$200 billion sovereign wealth fund, had invested more than US$100 million in Visa Inc.’s initial public offering, the Caijing magazine reported yesterday.
CIC purchased the stake, which has no lock-up period, as a long-term investment, the magazine said. Bai Xiaoqing, CIC’s Beijing-based spokeswoman, declined to comment on the report. CIC would consider investing in overseas IPOs on a case-by-case basis, she said. The wealth fund spent more than US$8 billion buying stakes in the Blackstone Group and Morgan Stanley last year.
Midea’s Little Swan deal wins nod
GUANGDONG Midea Electric Appliances Co. said yesterday its plan to buy 87.7 million shares in washing machine manufacturer Wuxi Little Swan Co. had been approved by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission.
The Guangdong Province-based home appliance manufacturer said last month it agreed to buy a 24.01 percent stake in Wuxi Little Swan for 1.68 billion yuan (US$235 million). It said in a statement yesterday the deal needed approval from the State asset regulator because it was buying the shares from State-owned conglomerate Wuxi Guolian Development (Group) Co.
Chenming Paper to delay HK share offer
SHANDONG Chenming Paper Holdings said yesterday its board had decided to delay a planned share sale in Hong Kong.
Chenming, which said in February that it had received regulatory approval to issue and list up to 409.09 million shares in Hong Kong, did not provide a reason for the delay. The Hong Kong stock market tumbled this year due in part to worries about the U.S. subprime crisis.
Hainan Air profit almost quadruples
HAINAN Airlines Co., the Shanghai-listed carrier backed by U.S. billionaire George Soros, said yesterday that 2007 profit almost quadrupled.
Net income climbed to 651.4 million yuan (US$92 million), or 0.18 yuan a share, from 166.8 million yuan, or 0.06 yuan, a year earlier, the airline said. Sales rose 6 percent to 13.6 billion yuan. Hainan Airlines said in January 2007 profit was boosted by the appreciating yuan and growth in the airline industry. The yuan gained about 7 percent last year.
