Posted on 05/29/2013 9:28:58 AM PDT by DeaconBenjamin
China's Shuanghui International has made a $4.7bn bid to takeover Smithfield Foods, the world's largest pork producer, in what would be the biggest takeover of a US company by a Chinese firm to date – if it passes regulatory hurdles.
The deal is likely to run into heavy opposition in Washington, where a series of Chinese takeovers have been blocked by politicians and regulators. Shuanghui, also known as Shineway, is China's largest pork producer and is part owned by an investment firm run by Goldman Sachs.
A takeover would give Smithfield entry into China, one of the biggest and fastest growing markets for pork. "This is a great transaction for all Smithfield stakeholders, as well as for American farmers and US agriculture," said Larry Pope, president and chief executive officer of Smithfield. "It will be business as usual – only better."
Shuanghui chairman Wan Long called the deal an "historic opportunity". Wan is a high-profile business leader in China, where he is known as the country's "No 1 butcher" because his company slaughters more than 15m pigs a year.
In March, local media reported that Wan told the National People's Congress that he planned to make Shuanghui a major multinational company and one of the world's largest meat processors.
"The acquisition provides Smithfield the opportunity to expand its offering of products to China through Shuanghui's distribution network. Shuanghui will gain access to high-quality, competitively priced and safe US products, as well as Smithfield's best practices and operational expertise," he said.
The acquisition is subject to regulatory approval by the committee on foreign investments in the United States. Several large takeovers by Chinese companies have been thwarted in the recent past.
(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...
What the f are you babbling about? Try to focus
It won’t be very long before you confuse the trade and budget deficits. Again.
Trust? Not me. Not my dog. Not now. Every horrid act by Mao and the gang of "agrarian reformers" was a contemporaneous event for me. I remember.
Smithfield Foods personnel, don't go crying to Congress for your version of TARP when the Chi-Coms screw the hell out of you all.
They own Pretty Much Everything!
The company can already export to China. The purchase by the Chinese eases that trade because of Shanghui's already-existing distribution network.
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