Eight Things Chinese Money Is Buying in America Right Now
Here is the opening of this informative article from Bloomberg:
Chinese companies, driven by favorable government policies and a desire to gain overseas assets, are on an unprecedented acquisition spree in the U.S. They've announced a record $40.5 billion of U.S. deals this year, already nearly double the amount for all of 2015. Here's a sample of what Chinese money is buying.
Strategic Hotels & Resorts Inc.'s portfolio includes Four Seasons properties in Austin and Silicon Valley, as well as the Intercontinental Miami and Chicago. China's Anbang Insurance Group Co. is paying about $6.5 billion to buy the hotel group from Blackstone Group LP—just three months after the New York-based private equity firm acquired it.
Anbang is also currently the lead bidder for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc., after twice topping Marriott International Inc.'s bid. Starwood owns real estate valued at about $4 billion, including the St. Regis in New York. Anbang's latest offer values Starwood at about $14 billion.
General Electric Co. agreed to sell its appliances business to China's Haier Group Co. for $5.4 billion in January—$2 billion more than Electrolux AB had agreed to pay for the business before the deal collapsed amid opposition from the U.S. Justice Department. Haier will need antitrust approval from authorities in the U.S., Mexico, Canada, and Colombia.
Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science & Technology Co., a Chinese industrial machinery manufacturer, is pursuing Westport, Conn.-based cranemaker Terex Corp. After Terex agreed to a merger with Finnish competitor Konecranes Oyj, Zoomlion made an unsolicited counter-bid in January; last week it upped the offer to $31 a share.
China's richest man agreed in January to buy Legendary Entertainment LLC, producer of Godzilla and the Dark Knight trilogy and co-producer of Jurassic World, for as much as $3.5 billion. Wang Jianlin is set to become the first Chinese person to control a Hollywood film company.
