洛杉矶时报 中国公司海外扩张的先兆

中国民生银行公司在10月8日表示它同意购买美国联合银行控股公司（UCBH）9.9%的股份，这会是中国大陆银行的第一笔美国战略投资。UCBH称这次交易有“历史重要性”。

　　分析家认为北京民生银行的举动可能是一个先兆。中国公司（Corporate China）正瞄准其触角的全球扩张，争取建立品牌，获得管理人才，开拓新市场。上海海通证券（Haitong Securities）的邱志诚（音译，Qiu Zhicheng）表示，中国“政府迫不及待让更多公司投资海外。”

　　UCBH一直渴望在中国做同样的事情，今年同意斥资2.05亿美元购买上海商业发展银行股份。UCBH的主席兼总裁胡少杰（Thomas Wu）表示，与民生银行的合作将为双方创造竞争优势。

　　银行分析师邱志诚则表示民生银行多次强调全球化战略，但他补充说这种策略可能是短视的，“我认为民生在国内市场仍有很大的发展空间，这样的收购将加大它管理银行的成本和困难。”

　　对中国而言，民生和UCBH的交易将代表投资流的逆转。在最近几年，美国和其他外国银行试图涉足中国潜在厚利的金融服务产业。美国银行和花旗银行以及其他银行已经收购大型中国银行的股份。尽管北京限制境外投资对中国银行机构的入股比例不超过25%，但它已经向外国公司开放其金融服务产业，

　　在美国，充满现金的中国向外发力（特别是在获取自然资源及技术方面的运动）已经触发了关切以及政治抵制。两年前，由于一些国会成员以及其他人的强烈批评，中国海洋石油总公司（CNOOC Ltd.）撤消收购尤尼科公司的竞投。（作者 Don Lee）（原题：中国的银行购买美国的银行）

Chinese bank to buy stake in U.S. bank

By Don Lee, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

October 9, 2007

SHANGHAI -- China Minsheng Banking Corp. said Monday that it had agreed to buy a 9.9% stake in UCBH Holdings Inc. of San Francisco in what would be the first U.S. strategic investment by a mainland Chinese bank.

UCBH, the parent of United Commercial Bank, called the deal "historically significant."

Analysts said the move by Beijing-based Minsheng was likely to be a harbinger. Corporate China is aiming to expand its reach globally in a bid to build brands, acquire management talent and tap new markets. The Chinese "government can't wait to have more companies invest overseas," said Qiu Zhicheng, an analyst with Haitong Securities in Shanghai.

UCBH has been looking to do the same in China, agreeing this year to buy Shanghai-based Business Development Bank Ltd. for $205 million.

That purchase is expected to close in the fourth quarter. UCBH said the Minsheng deal -- which requires the approval of U.S. regulators -- would "fully satisfy the equity funding needs for UCBH's pending acquisition in China."

Thomas S. Wu, chairman and chief executive of UCBH, said the partnership with Minsheng would also create significant competitive advantages for both institutions. "This alliance will enable customers of both Minsheng and UCBH to conduct business with a broader scope of products and services more conveniently and efficiently," he said.

UCBH's main rivals among institutions catering to Asian Americans, East West Bancorp Inc. and Cathay General Bancorp, both based in Southern California, could feel pressure to increase their business connections with China.

United Commercial was founded in 1974 as United Federal Savings & Loan Assn. to serve San Francisco's Chinese community. It has assets of more than $10 billion and branches and offices across California as well as in New England, New York, Georgia, the Pacific Northwest, Texas, China and Taiwan.

Minsheng -- whose shares are held mainly by non-state-owned entities -- has $111.9 billion in assets, a market capitalization of $30.1 billion, 298 branches and 1,370 ATMs in China, according to UCBH.

Founded in 1996 and said to be China's seventh-largest bank by market value, Minsheng has made clear its ambitions to expand outside its country.

"It has emphasized its globalization strategy many times," said Qiu, the banking analyst, adding that the strategy might prove shortsighted. "I think Minsheng still has a large room to develop in the domestic market, and such acquisition will increase its costs and difficulty in managing the bank."

For China, Minsheng's UCBH deal would represent a reversal of the flow of investments. In recent years, U.S. and other foreign banks have tried to get footholds in China's potentially lucrative financial services industry. Bank of America and Citibank, among others, have acquired stakes in large Chinese banks. Beijing has opened its financial services industry to foreign firms, though it has restricted foreigners' investments to 25% of a Chinese banking company.

In the U.S., the outward push by cash-rich China, especially in its campaign to acquire natural resources and technology, has triggered concern and political resistance. Two years ago, a Chinese oil and natural gas company, CNOOC Ltd., withdrew its bid to buy Unocal Corp. after it provoked intense criticism from some members of Congress, among others.

Under the terms of the deal, Minsheng would acquire its stake in two phases, first purchasing 5.4 million new UCBH shares at $17.79 each -- a discount to Monday's closing price of $19.36.

The first phase would take place in the current quarter. In the second phase, next year, Minsheng would pay between $115 million and $172 million through another share placement, a purchase of public market shares or both, UCBH said.

法新社 中国经济与中共队伍同步壮大

自上世纪70年代末改革开放以来，中国已经取得很大的经济繁荣。

　　中国经济现在是世界第四大经济体，因此，即将举行的中共十七大将是人们关注的焦点。这次党代会将修改和确定到2012年的经济建设蓝图。

　　下面是有关中国经济的一些主要事实：

　　政策：根据宪法，中华人民共和国要在马列主义指导下“沿着中国特色的社会主义道路”前进。现实看来有所不同。在6月底，中国有520万家私人企业，雇用6930万员工，略少于7300万共产党党员人数。

　　规模：中国国内生产总值（GDP）去年增长11%，达到21.1万亿元（按目前的汇率折合2.8万亿美元），仅次于美国、日本和德国。尽管采取了一系列降温措施，2007年上半年GDP仍然增长11.5%。

　　股票：关闭股市是毛泽东1949年夺取政权后首先要做的事情之一。现在，股市重新开放并持续红火。上证指数在2006年上涨130%，今年又上涨112%。

　　贸易：高生产率、低工资，以及——批评者说——人为压低价格的货币，已经使中国成为世界工厂。中国的贸易盈余近几年来直线上升。贸易顺差在2006年创1774.7亿美元的历史记录，今年肯定会超过这个记录，因为到8月底就已经达到1617.6亿美元。

　　贫富差距：中国变得越来越富，但贫富差距正在扩大，特别是城市和农村的差距正在扩大。去年，中国城市居民平均收入是农村居民的3.28倍，而在2004年只有3.21倍。

　　外汇储备：中国的外汇储备在6月底达到13300亿美元。自2006年年初以来，中国的外汇储备一直是世界上最大的外汇储备。中国刚成立一家公司，负责把大致六分之一的外汇储备投资于国际市场。