A trend of acquisitions from the East spread across the European continent. Following the royal family funds, Hong Kong capital invested in Europe, including the Li Ka-shing family and the Guo Bingxiang family, etc., with amounts ranging from billions to tens of billions of Hong Kong dollars.
Late summer of 2006
The European financial community is both excited and worried about the large-scale entry of Hong Kong capital.
The one after another acquisition cases have stirred up the silent capital market of old Europe.
Luxurious mansion in Hyde Park, London
The outermost four-story Victorian building is the London office of the Royal Family Fund, where the fund’s chairman Wang Yaocheng and eight vice-chairmen have their offices.
Inside the office of Vice Chairman Dong Mingzhu
Gree Group President Zhu Jianghong is reporting to Wang Yaocheng and Dong Mingzhu. Also listening to the report are the consortium secretary-general and the new secretariat director He Chen and others.
He Chen is a Malaysian Chinese-American with a doctorate from the University of Cambridge Business School in the UK. He once worked for Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, and performed well during the integration of HSBC Bank's Smithsonian Bank in the UK and received unanimous praise from senior management.
As a business elite with 21 years of experience as an executive in international investment banks and comprehensive commercial banks, He Chen is fluent in five languages: Chinese, Japanese, English, French and German, and is an all-rounder with a sharp mind.
In the office, President Zhu Jianghong continued to report:
…
After 13 years of hard work, Gree Group has developed into an internationally competitive comprehensive consumer electronics provider. Its products cover black and white home appliances, mobile computers, cable electricians, lighting and kitchen and bathroom appliances, scanners and back-end equipment, intelligent
Robot equipment, optical cable instruments and other fields.
First half of 2006
Green Group's revenue reached US$51.15 billion, net profit was US$5.912 billion, and profit attributable to the consortium was US$3.882 billion, all of which increased to varying degrees compared with the same period last year.
Among them, total sales increased by 24.6%, profit margin decreased by 3.2%, and paid-in profits increased by 19.5%, further improving the international layout.
The main reason for the decline in profit margins is the decline in prices of color TVs, refrigerators, portable players, computers and mobile phones. The profit margins in this area have shrunk more, affecting the overall profit performance.
Mainly based on the unified deployment of the consortium, a comprehensive price storm was launched against Japanese and Korean home appliance companies to seize the market.
According to the latest statistics:
In the field of consumer goods and home appliances, Green Electric's international market share has grown to varying degrees, driving a large number of Chinese home appliance companies to enter the international market and competing with internationally renowned brands such as LG, Samsung, Philips, Sony, Toshiba, Hitachi, and NEC.
, demonstrating the strong competitiveness of Chinese-funded enterprises.
…
More than an hour later, Zhu Jianghong finished his report with a dry mouth, and gentle applause came from the room.
Wang Yaocheng took the initiative to applaud and said to them:
“As a comprehensive consumer electronics manufacturer, GREE Group is a leading domestic enterprise. Under the leadership of President Zhu, it has made great progress in recent years. It is gratifying to be able to compete with international powerhouses and achieve fruitful results!
"
Dong Mingzhu replied with a smile: "Although Gree Group has achieved some achievements, but compared with the consortium brother enterprises, it lacks something eye-catching. We also ask the chairman to continue to strongly support us. Gree people are confident to hand over
A better answer."
"Hahaha... I understand, you, Miss Dong! You speak up for your old club when you have the chance. Your feelings for Ge Li are not as deep as ordinary ones."
Wang Yaocheng shook his head with a smile and said: "President Zhu and several leaders of Geli are here. Haven't I supported them over the years? Or is my support not strong enough?"
As one of the few female leaders of the consortium, Vice Chairman Dong Mingzhu is a strong woman with a fierce work style. She never minces words and speaks bluntly:
"Over the years, Green Group has gone through a particularly difficult time. It has launched three rounds of price offensives against Japanese and Korean home appliance companies. It is the vanguard of the consortium's strategic containment plan and has made outstanding contributions that are well known to all.
Chairman, please don't be biased. Just take a look at how many companies Hong Kong Cheung Kong Group has acquired and how much money it has invested during this period.
Hong Kong Global Telecommunications Company has invested tens of billions of dollars at every turn, and the scale of the company has expanded like a triple jump. Its business covers Europe, North America and the entire Asia and Africa. In a short period of time, it has become one of the world's top communications companies.
Cathay Pacific Airways and Swire Shipping also continue to make big purchases. Swire Shipping alone has ordered 44 300,000-ton ultra-large ore carriers, 17 ultra-large 11,000-ton container ships, and 21 200,000-ton Capesize dry bulk carriers in the past three years.
ship, as well as 12 300,000-ton supertankers and other ships.
Compared with the consortium brother companies, our Green Group has received lower attention and investment priority. This should be considered by the chairman."
"Hahaha... Miss Dong, Miss Dong, I really can't do anything to you. It's okay for others to say this. Are you embarrassed to say this?"
Wang Yaocheng raised his fingers and said:
"Your Yellow River Technology Group has made a net investment of no less than 57 billion US dollars in the past four years. It is the top priority of the consortium, with the highest investment priority and the greatest support. Even the electronics and semiconductor industry does not have such a high investment
investment intensity.”
"Chairman, these are two different things. Please don't change your mind." Dong Mingzhu started to argue but refused to give in at all, and said plausibly:
“The consortium’s huge investment in the LCD panel industry has all been transformed into the core competitiveness of Huanghe Technology Group. By the end of this year, the latest two ninth-generation lines will be put into production, and we, Huanghe Technology Group, are confident that they will wipe out the entire panel industry.
I can issue a military order:
As long as you give us an order and give us 18 months, Huanghe Technology Group is confident that it will kill all its competitors and fully integrate the market."
Having said this, Dong Mingzhu smiled proudly, stretched out nine fingers and said: "I dare not say too much, 90% of the LCD panel market can be won, and if you are interested in the remaining stragglers, it is no problem.
After three rounds of price cuts from 2004 to 2005, Taiwanese companies, which have the largest number of panel manufacturers, are now close to the profit and loss line. One-third of them are losing money, one-third are flat, and one-third have a slight surplus. It is impossible to have the spare capacity to invest in more.
R&D and production line upgrades cannot catch up with Huanghe Technology Group."
"Okay, what I want is your domineering attitude over me."
Wang Yaocheng couldn't help but shout "Okay", he was extremely satisfied with this heroine general under his command. This was a practical general who had been baptized by the bloody market.
Maybe he doesn’t have a high degree of education and doesn’t have the aura of a world-famous university, but Dong Mingzhu is a born fighter with a keen sense of the market and an indomitable fighting spirit.
Her experience is gained through hard work in the market, which is particularly valuable.
Think for a moment
Wang Yaocheng considers that there are still nearly two years before the 2008 financial crisis, and it is too early to launch a fatal blow, so it is better to take it slow.
Wang Yaocheng tapped his slender fingers on the table, considered it and said:
"This matter should be delayed rather than rushed. Korean, Taiwanese, Singaporean and other panel manufacturers still have certain strength, mainly because they have the support of international capital such as the Japanese and American consortium behind them, so they cannot be taken over in a hurry.
Let's do this. Your Yellow River Technology Group will make a scientific argument and prepare for the fourth round of price reductions.
Among them, the price reduction must be done to a certain extent. Even if other panel manufacturers continue to lose blood, the profitability of Huanghe Technology Group must be maintained.
Don't be afraid of additional investment from international capital. Without the advantages of high-generation production lines, no technological advantages, and no cost advantages, any additional investment will be a dead end.
This period, tentatively set at four to five quarters, is intended to cause serious blood loss to panel manufacturers in the international market.
The fat ones lost weight, the strong ones became crippled, and the ones who were already half-dead fell into a big pit and couldn't climb out.
When the time comes, choose the opportunity to strike a fatal blow."
Everyone below was silent...
a moment later
Dong Mingzhu sincerely praised: "Although it takes longer, the chairman's plan is more stable. We can achieve greater victory at less cost, conduct a clearing-out integration of the LCD panel market, and wait until our competitors are dragged down."
When he is half dead, he has no room for resistance."
The sedan chair was carried by everyone, and other people expressed their optimism:
"Haha... the chairman's method is better, more ruthless, and more decisive. He is indeed a boss!"
"Well, boiling a frog in warm water is a good method."
"I agree too."
Wang Yaocheng waved his hand and said: "Okay, that's it. This matter is settled. You Huanghe Technology Group will go back and demonstrate it carefully and come up with a specific implementation plan."
"I understand, Chairman."
Wang Yaocheng changed the subject and asked:
"How is the operating situation of Korean-owned home appliance companies today?"
"Chairman, our secretariat will report this."
He Chen happened to have a special project report from the Hong Kong Guan Fengyun Economic Research Center, which gave a comprehensive explanation of this issue and was quite authoritative.
The people who know you best are your competitors.
The Hong Kong Guanfengyun Economic Research Center has been tracking Samsung, LG and other home appliance companies for many years, and they are the key targets in East Asia. It can be said that they know this very well.
According to the report:
Since Chinese and Japanese home appliance companies joined forces to suppress the situation, it has been like a head-on blow to Korean-owned enterprises, and the blow is not small.
In the first half of 2006, compared with the same period last year, LG Group's international market share dropped by 32.1%, and its total operating income dropped by 46.7%, which was cut in half.
The semi-annual report turned from a profit of 2.76 billion US dollars in the same period last year to a loss of 1.543 billion US dollars. It successfully changed from a prosperous and prosperous company to a low and poor one, achieving spiritual sublimation.
Samsung Electronics' international market share fell by 27.6%, its total operating income fell by 41.6%, and two legs were cut off.
at the same time
According to the semi-annual report, a profit of US$3.44 billion in the same period last year turned to a loss of US$969 million. Samsung Electronics can no longer pay for its semiconductor projects, and instead needs blood transfusions.
The main reason for the decline of these two representative Korean companies from glory is that Wang Yaocheng always thinks about them and would hit them a few times from time to time, which made them feel sour.
Of course, there are still different reasons for subdividing it.
Take LG Group as an example:
In terms of large-screen LCD TVs, mobile phones, refrigerators, office appliances and portable audio-visual equipment, they are almost jointly encircled and suppressed by consortium companies, and their lives are very difficult.
The field of LCD screens is a key development project for LG Electronics. It is the only remaining panel manufacturer in the entire Korean Peninsula. It fell into serious losses due to three rounds of price cuts by Huanghe Technology Group.
The reason is very simple. The labor and transportation costs on the Korean Peninsula are higher than those on Taiwan. Coupled with the backward R&D technology, currently only the 6.5-generation line can produce normally.
The eighth-generation line that has spent huge sums of money to develop is a loser. The product yield rate has not been able to exceed 30%. It is equivalent to producing 100 LCD panels, and more than 70 of them are scraps. In this case, it is really possible to pay for the pants without losing money.
Ghost.
In a short period of time, it is impossible for LG to obtain the key evaporation machine, and it will not be able to solve the fatal problem of ultra-low yield.
In addition, LG Electronics' home appliances and mobile phone products are facing pressure from Chinese and Japanese manufacturers. Large-scale price cuts have encroached on market share. A situation has emerged where a pack of wolves has killed a tiger. The future prospects are really worrying.
Samsung Electronics is in another situation. Its own LCD panel business has long been divested. The price reduction of LCD panels is good news for it, which will help reduce costs and compete with competitors.
Of course, in the fields of home appliances, computer equipment, mobile phones, portable players and other products, Samsung is also facing attacks from competitors and has lost a large swath of the mid- to low-end market.
The main problem for Samsung Electronics is that Lee Kun-hee, the head of the consortium, is obsessed with the electronics and semiconductor industry and has invested heavily in the wafer industry for the second time, which has seriously dragged down the overall performance.
The international DRMA memory chip market has experienced a three-year boom. The world's major monopolies have tacitly maintained prices, making crazy profits.
Micron Technology only has DRMA memory chip business, which made a huge profit of US$3.76 billion in 2005.
Elpida earned 1.16 billion US dollars a year, Qimonda earned 630 million euros, and France-Italy Semiconductor earned 2.94 billion euros.
As the leading companies in this field, how much do the number one Atlantic Jinko and the number two Hynix earn?
Atlantic Jinko is not a listed company and does not need to publish corporate financial reports, but according to industry insiders:
In fiscal year 2005, Atlantic Jinko Group raked in about 16.5 to 17 billion U.S. dollars from its DRMA memory business alone, which simply shocked the public.
Hynix is equally crazy. According to its public annual report, its net profit in fiscal year 2005 reached US$12.7 billion, of which its DRMA memory chip business contributed US$9.77 billion.
The profit margin is as high as 68.2%, which means more than 2/3 of the operating income is pure profit. Do you think it is crazy or not?
Therefore, Li Jianxi's intestines turned green with regret.
Samsung Electronics invested heavily in the wafer industry in 2005 and 2006, spending huge sums of money to build three 8-inch wafer fabs, a 10-inch wafer fab, and a 12-inch wafer fab.
The current three eight-inch wafer fabs are being completed and put into operation one after another, and the other two more advanced wafer fabs are expected to be put into operation by the end of this year and the middle of next year respectively.
Samsung Electronics has invested a huge amount of money in its second venture, with a total investment of US$21.5 billion. The US-funded consortium is not a good person. Samsung Electronics needs to spend more than one billion US dollars every year on bank interest alone.
The problem now is that the new projects have not yet yielded profits, and Samsung Electronics has taken the lead in losing profitability in its traditional areas of strength, and is losing ground under the siege of Chinese and Japanese companies.
Faced with this situation, I wonder how Li Jianxi's gamble will end?
"Haha... the only thing is death."
A cold and stern look flashed in Wang Yaocheng's eyes, and he made this comment to Samsung Electronics without mercy.
Follow other people's paths and leave others with nowhere to go.
Wang Yaocheng not only faithfully adheres to this principle, but also practices it personally, never giving Samsung Electronics a chance to take off.
He knows very well how terrifying this company is, how strong it is, and how explosive it is.
In this historical time and space, the glory of Samsung Electronics will be borne by the companies under the Royal Family Fund. You should eat kimchi instead, and forget about the electronics and semiconductor industry.
Thinking of this, Wang Yaocheng had a cold smile on his lips, which made Dong Mingzhu feel cold.
Damn it, which company is the chairman thinking about again?
You can only wish for more blessings for yourself.