The biggest of all!(Reuters) - As Alibaba prepares for what could be the biggest tech company IPO to date, the Chinese e-commerce giant has been counseling employees on how to deal with the roughly $41 billion they could unlock through a New York listing.
While some staffers have inquired if premium brand BMW (BMWG.DE) sells cars in Alibaba's corporate orange, others may invest windfall stock gains in property in North America or channel funds back into start-up ventures in China, hoping to build future Alibabas, bankers and financial planners say.
Current and former Alibaba employees hold 26.7 percent of the company, having built up their holdings through stock options and other incentives awarded since 1999, according to securities filings, though these didn't detail the number of employee shareholders.
The IPO windfall - Alibaba could be worth $152 billion, according to the average from a Reuters survey of 25 analysts - will be larger than anything China has seen because of the depth of the group's employee ownership and the size of the company.
HOW TO SPEND IT
As happened after Facebook Inc's (FB.O) IPO in 2012, the new Alibaba millionaires are seen driving up demand for luxury cars and apartments, giving a boost to the economy of China's eastern city of Hangzhou, where the company is based.
But the Chinese government's austerity campaign is likely to keep a lid on too much ostentatious spending, and because the stock listing will be in the United States most of the money employees receive from eventual stake sales would likely be kept offshore rather than flow back to Alibaba's Chinese base.
"Check real estate in Vancouver, not so much Ferraris and real estate in China," said a person closely involved with the IPO who was not authorized to speak publicly on the issue.
Hangzhou is in a part of China already known as a hotbed for entrepreneurship.
As of last year, the city had more than 560 multi-millionaires and in a decade is expected to rival Los Angeles in the number of so-called ultra high net worth individuals, according to property consultant Knight Frank.Alibaba's biggest single shareholder, with a 34.4 percent stake, is Japanese telecoms firm SoftBank Corp (9984.T), followed by U.S. internet group Yahoo Inc (YHOO.O), with 22.6 percent. Other large shareholders include Silver Lake, DST Global and Singapore state investor Temasek [TEM.UL].
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/06/05/us-alibaba-group-millionaires-idUSKBN0EF29W20140605?feedType=RSS&feedName=businessNewsOther China NewsEnvironmental Initiatives Continue in China
China’s Middle Class Develops a Greater Taste for Foreign Goods
UGHHH ?China Internet Fosters Free Speech In an open recognition of free speech, China news agency Xinhua has
cited a government report that China’s internet has become a forum
for free speech in the country.
Baidu Expands in Google’s Backyard
http://kraneshares.com/resources/kraneshares_capitalvue_may27.pdf?utm_source=KraneShares+Weekly+-+General&utm_campaign=83e990e7f5-KraneShares_Weekly_Email10_17_2013&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6d32ba24ce-83e990e7f5-27509461Winners and Losers in the U.S.-China Solar-panel War
June 4, 2014, 1:1
5 PM ET by Claudia Assis ,Energy Ticker
The U.S. government’s decision to impose new, steep anti-subsidy tariffs on Chinese solar panels roiled solar stocks on Wednesday — and it will have wide-ranging implications for consumers and companies just as cheap and plentiful solar products from China have fueled the boom in rooftop solar-power systems.
For a start, there’s no denying that solar modules will become more expensive, and in fairly short order. Who will pay for that increase, however, is unclear. The solar-panel makers affected could absorb some of the costs, or move some of their production out of China. Buyers could switch manufacturers, seeking those not affected by the ruling.
The Solar Energy Industries Association called the tariffs “damaging” for U.S. consumers, and said they will slow the adoption of solar power in the U.S.
The U.S. imposed duties of up to 36% on Chinese solar products in 2012 after concluding the companies had received unfair subsidies from the Chinese government and sold products in the U.S. market below cost, but the duties didn’t include solar panels made with solar cells assembled in other countries.
The Commerce Department set up preliminary duties between 18.
56% to $3
5.21% late Tuesday, but don’t let “preliminary” fool you — tariffs will be collected right away.
China’s Ministry of Commerce said it is “strongly dissatisfied” with Tuesday’s decision. The move “is an abuse of trade remedies, has an obvious hint of trade protectionism and will inevitably lead to the escalation of trade disputes between China and the U.S.,” the ministry said in a statement on its website, according to The Wall Street Journal.
http://blogs.marketwatch.com/energy-ticker/2014/06/04/winners-and-losers-in-the-u-s-china-solar-panel-war/?mod=WSJBlogEither Sunshine Or Thunderstorms
For investors, solar stocks seem to whipsaw on any bit of good or bad news. TSL jumped 31% of its earnings beat, only to fall by the wayside over the next few days. Given just how quickly they move from profits to losses, quarter-to-quarter doesn’t necessarily place them firmly in the “investment” camp.
To that end, the best way to play solar stocks is still the previously mentioned TAN ETF or its rival Market Vectors Solar Energy ETF (KWT[12]). Both offer a broad way to play the entire solar spectrum. And given just how varied the earnings and guidance reports have been, that’s probably the best choice for investors at this point. The good should even out the bad.
The bottom line: Don’t get too excited over the recent gains in solar stock world; there still could be plenty of clouds ahead. A variety of factors will continue to pull the sector in both directions.
http://investorplace.com/2014/06/solar-stocks-fslr-tsl-tan/print
