China Biting Own Mother Nipples !

This comes out at  Nanyang Siang Pau front page today, but it is not been reported in other papers. I completely fail to understand why the Chinese government would want to attack their long time 大恩人 as Kuok was among the first group of overseas tycoons that helped China during her difficult years (during and after the Korean War, America was sanctioning China which as a result China depended on these people to 'smuggle" essential items through). It is only when I showed the paper to my daughter that she explains to me it is because a Chinese GLC lost their bids to buy Australia' s CSR to Kuok's Wilmar group by a smallish margin last week. I think the Australian authority would rather see 50% of their sugar production goes to Kuok than to a Chinese GLC. (you can see here again how bad is China's image in the international scene) Hence the Chinese throwing their shit here.

But all their accusations here are flawed. Kuok's group may be a known player in the commodities market, but compare to people like Cargill, Unilever etc, they are just another small boy. And to say one can corner a grain market is just too laughable. But you can see very clearly here China's true colors. Friends of the Revolution ? No lah, revolution eats its own children :-

新华社批郭鹤年抢高粮价

【中国企业家网】新华社昨日撰文针对马来西亚首富郭鹤年家族重金收购内地粮食小麦，导致内地小麦价格上涨;这是官方媒体首次公开撰文批评海外富豪的动作，香港明报解读称此动作反映了中央忧虑通胀发生的心态。以下是明报对此解读全文：


内地官方媒体新华社昨日撰文，点名马来西亚首富、糖王郭鹤年家族控股的“益海嘉里”等境外粮企，重金“抢粮”，引发农民惜售心理加剧，导致内地小麦价格愈抢愈高。但有分析员认为，小麦价抢高主因水稻减产，并非与粮企抢粮有关，然而这次官方媒体大喊粮价高，或反映中央对通胀的忧虑日渐升温。


本报昨致电“益海嘉里”在新加坡上市的母公司丰益国际，但对方表示不愿评论。


指多个集团纷纷直接收购粮食新华社指出，如“益海嘉里”等境内外私营粮食企业“抢粮”，导致粮价上涨。而今年抢购战激烈，主因除中国储备粮管理总公司带领下的地区储备粮管理公司外，央企中粮集团和中国华粮物流集团也加入到收购队伍，加上一些小公司以及外企如益海嘉里等委托当地粮食收购企业等直接收购。在产量没有明显增加下，收购需求又较去年猛增，终导致了价格疯涨。


分析员：涨幅“癫癫地”


据郑州商品期货交易所数据，今年9月到期的小麦期货价，昨日收报每吨2299 元(人民币.下同)，不到一个月上升逾1.5%。表面升幅好像不甚厉害。不过，新华社引述的例子是，自今年6月收购启动以来，山东济宁粮价几乎每天都在迅速上升，已从开秤初期的每公斤1.86 元涨到了目前的1.92 至2 元，涨幅多达7.5% ，远高于最低保护价1.8元。一位中资分析员向明报记者说：这样的涨幅“癫癫地”，但料此升势不能持久。


申银万国消费品分析师王海涛表示，今年因中国南方夏季水灾，水稻减产，同为粮食作物的小麦需求顺势上升。因预期小麦价升，农户惜售心理明显。但他认为，小麦价格走高不会维持太久，因国家小麦库存充足，市场调控能力强，内地小麦需求稳定，且国际小麦价格走势平稳。况且， “小麦储存对天气湿润度有一定要求，囤积过久会影响质量，农户届时不得不出售”。


从市场占有率看，益海嘉里和中粮掌握了内地油脂价格的控制权，而在食用油方面，益海嘉里无疑是行业老大;此外，近年来，益海正大举进入内地精品面粉市场。内地媒体曾尖锐地指出，如果没有国家干预，益海嘉里和中粮可轻松调整产品价格，获得高额利润。


益海需新利润增长点


针对益海进军面粉及大米加工业，王海涛分析称，丰益目前所在的食用油市场加工产能已严重过剩，需要寻找新的利润增长点。不过， “益海主攻利润率较高的深加工业务，生产高端产品，相信对相关行业冲击不大，对小麦需求也有限”。




SYDNEY/SINGAPORE: Singapore's Wilmar International is buying Sydney-based CSR's sugar business for US$1.5 billion (US$1 = RM3.22) in a surprise deal that trumps China's Bright Food Group and gives it control of more than half of Australia's raw sugar output.


CSR, the world's fifth-largest sugar-refiner, said yesterday Wilmar had agreed to buy its Sucrogen sugar arm, ending a year-long effort to either spin-off or sell the asset and pushing its share price up as much as 5 per cent in a weak broader market.


After a 150-year history in sugar, CSR is selling Sucrogen, a household name in Australia, to focus on its core building materials operations. Wilmar, the world's largest listed palm oil producer, is using the deal as a springboard for further expansion into sugar.


"This latest acquisition proves that Wilmar is well on its way to becoming a dominant global sugar player and will significantly raise the possibility of the injection of (Malaysian tycoon) Robert Kuok's sugar business into Wilmar," said Alvin Tai, an analyst at Malaysian brokerage OSK Group.


Kuok is the uncle of Wilmar chief executive Kuok Khoon Hong.


The deal was also a coup for CSR which has been trying to demerge Sucrogen from its core building materials business for a year.


The CSR board over the weekend rejected a lower formal offer from China's Bright Food Group, which has been chasing CSR since the start of the year.


One source close to Bright Food said the price agreed was A$1.68 billion (A$1 = RM2.71) and news of Wilmar's rival bid had taken it by surprise.


CSR chief executive Jeremy Sutcliffe, who was brought in to run the company in April due to his experience brokering major deals in the metals recycling sector, said Wilmar won the race with an offer at the "very last gasp".


"At the end of the day they (Bright Food) didn't quite get there in terms of price or certainty," he said.


UBS and Lazard advised CSR on the deal. Australia & New Zealand Banking Group advised Wilmar.


It was one of two major takeovers for corporate Australia yesterday after Centennial Coal Co Ltd agreed to a US$2 billion offer from Thailand's Banpu Public Co Ltd.


The Australian government's watered down plans for a big mining tax late last week were expected to clear the way for a string of deals in the resources sector.


Wilmar's purchase price was A$1.347 billion for equity and A$403 million for debt, 6 per cent higher than a conditional A$1.65 billion offer Bright Food made to CSR's board late last week.


Wilmar's shares rose as much as 2.3 per cent to S$5.88, (S$1 = RM2.31) outperforming a slight fall in Singapore's headline index.


"This is positive news as it'll help jump start their strategy to expand in the sugar business and (represents) the next growth driver for Wilmar," said DBS Vickers analyst Ben Santoso.


Santoso expected the new business to see synergies from capitalising on Wilmar's extensive distribution to China and Asia.


CIMB analyst Ivy Ng said the deal was positive in the medium term as it gave Wilmar knowledge to expand to other parts of Asia.


"But in the short term, based on what they have so far it does not appear the acquisition will significantly increase their earnings," said Ng.


"In the longer term, it would be good if they can replicate the business in other parts of Asia like China, India and Indonesia, but you won't see that tomorrow."


CSR said the deal was expected to be completed by the last quarter of 2010, and is conditional on approval by Australia's Foreign Investment Review Board. - Reuters