Disney rethinks its China strategy

December 2, 2013 4:00 pm

Disney rethinks its China strategy

By Howard Yu and Stefan Michel

The story. When China lifted a ban on Walt Disney characters in 1978 and joined the World Trade Organisation in 2001, the US entertainment company saw a huge potential new market for sales and distribution of film, television content and DVDs in an increasingly liberalising economy. Read more of this post

China’s Top 100 Brands: Private Companies Gaining Ground

Dec 3, 2013

China’s Top 100 Brands: Private Companies Gaining Ground

China Mobile ranked as the country’s No. 1 brand in 2013, according to research from Millward Brown and WPP. China’s homegrown private brands are gaining ground against their state-backed peers, reflecting progress, experts say, in the country’s push to rebalance the economy. Read more of this post

China’s Latest IPO Investment: Death

Dec 2, 2013

China’s Latest IPO Investment: Death

ISABELLA STEGER

If childbirth was the investment theme for November in China, then this month investors will have the chance to invest in something quite the opposite — a funeral services provider. Shanghai-based Fu Shou Yuan Group Ltd. is set to become the first such company in the country to go public. The biggest operator of cemeteries and provider of funeral services in China is looking to raise around $200 million in an initial public offering in Hong Kong, a person with knowledge of the matter said Tuesday. Read more of this post

A Profitable Trade: Illicitly Shipping BMWs to China; Lucrative Re-Sales of Luxury Cars Targeted by Federal U.S. Investigators

A Profitable Trade: Illicitly Shipping BMWs to China

Lucrative Re-Sales of Luxury Cars Targeted by Federal U.S. Investigators

ANDREW GROSSMAN

Dec. 2, 2013 6:57 p.m. ET

In the U.S., the sticker price for a BMW BMW.XE -1.77% X5 sport-utility vehicle is just over $56,000. In China, BMW advertises the same car for nearly three times that, creating an opening for arbitragers to buy the vehicles in the U.S. and ship them to China for a quick profit. Read more of this post

Uncovering the market’s hidden blue chip stocks in Australia

Uncovering the market’s hidden blue chip stocks

December 4, 2013 – 2:20PM

Most investors know Woolworths and Commonwealth Bank of Australia are some of the most reliable earners listed on the ASX. That’s a big reason why they are considered the bluest of blue-chip stocks. But if a steady earnings profile makes a blue-chip stock, then the list would extend beyond the top 50 to include other names – some better known than others – such as Carsales.com, Mermaid Marine, Silver Chef and Corporate Travel Management. What most investors want when they buy shares in a company is exposure to a business that’s on a firm financial footing, a history of steady earnings growth, and decent prospects – all at a reasonable price. Sounds simple, really – except we all know it’s not. But we’ve tried to make things a little bit easier for you by measuring the stability of earnings, operating income and dividends paid of each and every one of the biggest 300 listed companies by market capitalisation, to come up with a short list of the businesses that have had the steadiest earnings profile over the past 10 years.

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Shareholder Activism Rises Down Under; The Most Recent Target Is Seen as a Test of Activism Efficacy for Larger Companies

Shareholder Activism Rises Down Under

The Most Recent Target Is Seen as a Test of Activism Efficacy for Larger Companies

ROSS KELLY

Dec. 2, 2013 6:35 a.m. ET

Shareholder activism, made popular in the U.S. by the likes of Carl Icahn and Dan Loeb, is taking root in Australia as investors bristle over years of poor returns and conservative capital management. Washington H. Soul Pattinson SOL.AU -1.03% & Co., Australia’s second-oldest listed company, is the latest to find itself in the cross hairs of investors who think management isn’t doing enough to generate value. In October, the 110-year-old company, which has interests in businesses ranging from pharmaceutical retailing to coal mining, became the subject of an assault by two of its largest shareholders: Australian fund manager PerpetualLtd. PPT.AU -1.21% and investment banker Mark Carnegie. Read more of this post

Australia Food-Bowl Dream Seen at Risk as Foreign Cash Shunned

Australia Food-Bowl Dream Seen at Risk as Foreign Cash Shunned

Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s election pledge to turn Australia’s remote north into a food bowl for Asia has set him on a collision course with his own government over foreign ownership of agricultural land. Local farmers and officials have warned Abbott’s vision for the sparsely populated region will fail unless he allows greater investment from countries such as China and Indonesia. The government’s decision last week to block a U.S.-led $2 billion purchase of crop handler GrainCorp Ltd. has put a cloud over Abbott’s vow after his Sept. 7 election win that Australia is “open for business.” Read more of this post

Taubman’s Bet on Asia Shakes Investors’ Faith; Investors Worry the Company Is Too Tied Up in Asia Projects

Taubman’s Bet on Asia Shakes Investors’ Faith

Investors Worry the Company Is Too Tied Up in Asia Projects

ROBBIE WHELAN

Dec. 3, 2013 7:57 p.m. ET

In late October, executives from Taubman Centers Inc., TCO +0.32% the luxury retail real-estate empire built by the Taubman family of Michigan, gathered with local officials and business leaders in Hanam City, South Korea, to celebrate the groundbreaking of a massive mall the company is building there. Read more of this post

Lessons from Asia’s reversal of fortunes; Myanmar’s emergence on the international stage is stealing some of Thailand’s thunder

December 2, 2013 5:55 pm

Lessons from Asia’s reversal of fortunes

By Gwen Robinson

Myanmar’s emergence on the international stage is stealing some of Thailand’s thunder, writes Gwen Robinson

The short flight from Bangkok to Yangon on Sunday took the usual 55 minutes and transported passengers from Thailand’s thriving metropolis to the more surreal world of Myanmar’s former capital. But this time, the “tale of two cities” – one just emerging from the shadows, the other on a rapid development track – had reversed, like a movie in which the actors suddenly swap roles. Read more of this post

China Bond Trading Dives; Cheapening Bond Prices Fail to Whet Investors’ Appetite

China Bond Trading Dives

Cheapening Bond Prices Fail to Whet Investors’ Appetite

SHEN HONG

Dec. 2, 2013 4:31 a.m. ET

SHANGHAI—Trading volume in China’s bond market has plummeted in recent months, in another reminder of how the country’s shifting interest-rate environment has taken a toll on a once fast-expanding financial sector. Read more of this post