中國成為全球并購大戶

A new class of Chinese dealmaker has joined theglobal heavyweights of mergers and acquisitions —business leaders with the connections, confidenceand backing to pursue their own multibillion-dollartakeovers, and even gatecrash others.

一批新的中國交易者加入了全球并購巨頭的行列，這些商界領(lǐng)袖擁有人脈、信心和背景，他們在追逐自己數(shù)十億美元的收購目標(biāo)之余，還大膽攪局別人的收購交易。

In an otherwise lacklustre quarter for M&Aactivity, it was the bids and bargaining from China’sbiggest companies that drove the country’s cross-border deals to record highs, even aspreviously red-hot US takeover activity fell to a two-year low.

要不是來自中國大企業(yè)接連的出價和議價，推動中國跨境交易屢創(chuàng)新高，今年首季并購活動將會低迷，即使此前紅火的美國并購活動也降至兩年低點(diǎn)。

China’s appetite for overseas assets helped push the overall value of cross-border M&Ato $311bn — representing a record 46 per cent of the $682bn in deals in the first quarter,according to Thomson Reuters data. Chinese deals, at $101bn, accounted for roughly a third ofthat cross-border activity, an all-time high.

湯森路透(Thomson Reuters)的數(shù)據(jù)顯示，受中國對海外資產(chǎn)渴求的助推，今年一季度全球跨境并購總價值達(dá)到3110億美元，占6820億美元交易總價值的46%，比例之高創(chuàng)下紀(jì)錄。中資交易總價值達(dá)到1010億美元，占跨境交易總額約三分之一，創(chuàng)下歷史最高紀(jì)錄。

They also took China’s percentage of total global M&A activity to its highest in anyquarter: 15 per cent of deals in the period involved an overseas Chinese acquirer.

首季中國在全球總體并購活動中的比例也達(dá)到了歷史最高點(diǎn)：該季度全球15%的交易涉及在境外收購的中資買家。

China’s dealmaking surge helped to mask a 29 per cent fall in deal value in the US, to $256bn,as M&A activity was slowed by sharp market volatility in January. Europe’s first quartervalues improved on the year before, however, rising 11 per cent to $181bn.

中國并購交易飆升，在某種程度上抵消了美國并購交易下降的負(fù)面影響。美國并購交易總價值下降29%，至2560億美元;受1月份市場大幅波動影響，美國的并購活動有所放緩。但歐洲第一季度交易總價值比去年同期有所提高，同比上升11%，至1810億美元。

For a handful of politically-connected Chinese business leaders — such as Anbang Insurance’sWu Xiaohui, ChemChina’s Ren Jianxin and HNA Group’s Chen Feng — the takeover successes ofearly 2016 have served as an induction into an elite club of global dealmakers: those capableof consecutive billion-dollar deals in a matter of months.

對于一些有政壇人脈的中國企業(yè)領(lǐng)袖來說，比如安邦保險(Anbang Insurance)的吳小暉，中國化工(ChemChina)的任建新(見上圖)，海航集團(tuán)(HNA Group)的陳峰，2016年初達(dá)成的這些收購就像一塊敲門磚，敲開了全球交易者精英俱樂部的大門——里面都是些能在幾個月內(nèi)連續(xù)達(dá)成巨額交易的呼風(fēng)喚雨者。

In several cases, the businessmen have asserted their status with higher bids for existingtakeover targets — upending previously agreed deals, often with superior, all-cash offers.

有時這些企業(yè)領(lǐng)袖向現(xiàn)有的收購目標(biāo)發(fā)出更高報(bào)價，經(jīng)常以更為誘人的全現(xiàn)金報(bào)價攪亂第三方已然達(dá)成的交易，顯露出自己的底氣。

That tactic was best highlighted in March by Anbang’s chairman, who stepped into a months-old deal between Starwood Hotels & Resorts and rival US hotel group MarriottInternational. Earlier this week, an emboldened Mr Wu raised his all-cash offer to $14bn forStarwood, heaping greater pressure on Marriott to increase its cash-and-stock bid. Despiterepeated questions about the source of his funding and warnings from the Chinese insuranceregulator, Mr Wu then attempted to put to rest questions over his ability to pay, telling Chinesemedia he had Rmb1tn in assets.

今年3月，安邦董事長闖入喜達(dá)屋酒店及度假村國際集團(tuán)(Starwood Hotels & Resorts)與競爭對手美國酒店集團(tuán)萬豪國際(Marriott International)已進(jìn)行了數(shù)月的交易，正是該戰(zhàn)術(shù)的最佳示范。本周早些時候，吳小暉信心十足地對喜達(dá)屋提出140億美元的全現(xiàn)金報(bào)價，給萬豪施加提高其現(xiàn)金加股票報(bào)價的更大壓力。盡管這筆潛在交易的資金來源一再引起疑問，而且中國保險監(jiān)管機(jī)構(gòu)發(fā)出警告，但吳小暉試圖打消外界對其支付能力的疑慮，他向中國媒體表示，他有1萬億元人民幣的資產(chǎn)可以動用。(此后，據(jù)報(bào)道，安邦牽頭的財(cái)團(tuán)上周四晚發(fā)布聲明稱，出于多方面的市場考慮，該財(cái)團(tuán)決定不再繼續(xù)推進(jìn)對喜達(dá)屋的收購。)

Anbang’s original bid for Starwood came just one day after it had secured a $6.5bn deal for 15prime US luxury hotel properties owned by private equity group Blackstone.

就在向喜達(dá)屋提出首次報(bào)價的前一天，安邦剛達(dá)成了一筆65億美元的交易，收購了私人股本集團(tuán)黑石(Blackstone)旗下15家高檔的美國豪華酒店地產(chǎn)。

“You get extra points for certainty right now because we are closer to a ‘risk-off’ than a ‘risk-on’market,” explains Michael Carr, global co-head of M&A at Goldman Sachs, who says thispartly explains why Chinese companies are winning the fiercest bidding wars.

高盛(Goldman Sachs)全球并購主管邁克爾•卡爾(Michael Carr)解釋道：“眼下確定性可以帶來加分，因?yàn)槭袌銮榫w更接近‘避險’，而非‘冒險’。”他表示，這在一定程度上解釋了為什么中國企業(yè)在激烈的競購戰(zhàn)中頻頻勝出。

In February, ChemChina succeeded in the the biggest outbound acquisition a Chinesecompany has made to date with its $44bn all-cash buyout of Swiss agrochemical companySyngenta — the largest-ever takeover in the chemical sector. It came a mere four months afterchairman Ren finalised a $7.7bn takeover of Italian tyremaker Pirelli.

今年2月，中國化工以440億美元全現(xiàn)金報(bào)價成功收購瑞士農(nóng)業(yè)化學(xué)品企業(yè)先正達(dá)(Syngenta)，這是中國企業(yè)迄今達(dá)成的最大一樁海外收購，也是化工行業(yè)有史以來最大一筆收購。而就在短短4個月之前，中國化工董事長任建新敲定了對意大利輪胎制造商倍耐力(Pirelli) 77億美元的收購。

Chinese aviation and logistics conglomerate HNA Group also returned to the market in thefirst quarter, agreeing to buy US electronics distributor Ingram Micro for $6bn in February. Justmonths earlier, group chairman Chen Feng had added US-listed aircraft lessor Avolon Holdingsfor $2.6bn and closed a $2.8bn takeover of airport operator Swissport last year.

海航集團(tuán)也在今年第一季度重返并購市場，這家中國的航空和物流集團(tuán)在2月份同意以60億美元收購美國信息技術(shù)經(jīng)銷商英邁(Ingram Micro)。就在幾個月之前，海航董事長陳峰以26億美元將在美國上市的飛機(jī)租賃公司Avolon Holdings收入囊中，去年還曾以28億美元買下機(jī)場運(yùn)營商瑞士空港(Swissport)。

But this spate of deals has not been solely based on the personalities of the chairmenthemselves. Experts say low interest rates, coupled with a growing reliance on in-houseinvestment banking expertise on the mainland, have enabled the wave of first-quarter deals.

但這一連串的交易并不完全基于企業(yè)領(lǐng)導(dǎo)者的個性。專家們表示，低利率，再加上日益信賴國內(nèi)的投行專長，推動了中國企業(yè)第一季度對外收購大潮。

“Now they have the liquidity and sophistication to do this,” says Raghu Narain, head ofcorporate advisory at Natixis. “These leaders have been able to amalgamate the resourcesthat have allowed them to go out.”

法國外貿(mào)銀行(Natixis)的企業(yè)咨詢主管拉古•納拉因(Raghu Narain)表示：“現(xiàn)在他們有流動性和成熟度進(jìn)行并購。這些領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人能夠整合讓他們走出去的資源。”

China’s central bank has cut interest rates six times during the past year and a half, loweringthe cost of bank financing. In addition, mainland regulators have recently grantedpermission, or so-called “road passes”, for multiple companies to hunt down the sametakeover target.

中國央行在過去一年半時間里6次降息，從而降低了銀行融資成本。此外，內(nèi)地監(jiān)管機(jī)構(gòu)最近發(fā)放許可，即所謂的“路條”，允許多家公司競購?fù)皇召從繕?biāo)。

In November, Beijing Enterprises Water Group, Beijing Capital Group and China EverbrightInternational, were all found to be competing for German waste management company EEW.Beijing Enterprise won the contest in February for $1.6bn.

去年11月，北控水務(wù)集團(tuán)(Beijing Enterprises Water Group)、北京首都創(chuàng)業(yè)集團(tuán)(Beijing CapitalGroup)和中國光大國際(China Everbright International)被發(fā)現(xiàn)全都在競購德國廢棄物管理公司EEW。北控水務(wù)在今年2月以16億美元贏得競標(biāo)。

Miranda So, a Hong Kong-based partner at Davis Polk & Wardwell, says: “A ‘road pass’may not mean exclusivity for a Chinese buyer, as we have seen cases where a second Chinesebuyer enters bidding for the same asset.”

達(dá)維律師事務(wù)所(Davis Polk & Wardwell)駐香港的合伙人Miranda So表示：“‘路條’未必意味著某個中國買家獲得排他性，因?yàn)槲覀兛吹竭^第二個中國買家競購相同資產(chǎn)的案例。”

Even as M&A activity slumped in the US, the trend of large corporates seeking to lowertheir US tax bills by acquiring an overseas-headquartered rival remained prevalent.

即使在美國并購活動驟降之際，大企業(yè)尋求通過收購總部位于海外的競爭對手來降低美國稅負(fù)的趨勢依然盛行。

For example, US conglomerate Johnson Controls agreed a $20bn reverse takeover of Ireland-based Tyco International — a deal that would have the same effect as a so-called ‘tax inversion’.

例如，美國企業(yè)集團(tuán)江森自控(Johnson Controls)同意以200億美元逆向收購總部位于愛爾蘭的泰科國際(Tyco International)，該協(xié)議將與所謂的“稅負(fù)倒置”有異曲同工之妙。

Meanwhile, US company IHS agreed to combine in a $13bn all-stock deal with UK-basedfinancial information provider Markit in a deal that would create a corporate informationpowerhouse based in London — and also lower its tax bills.

與此同時，美國公司IHS簽署了130億美元的全股權(quán)交易，同意與英國金融信息提供商Markit合并。該交易將產(chǎn)生一個總部位于倫敦的企業(yè)信息巨擘，同時也會降低該公司的稅負(fù)。

Anu Aiyengar, JPMorgan’s head of M&A in North America, said deal activity had sloweddown in certain sectors such as healthcare and tech, which were very busy in 2015, whileothers — such as financial services and industrials — have picked up.

摩根大通(JPMorgan)北美并購主管阿努•艾延加(Anu Aiyengar)表示，交易活動在醫(yī)療和科技等特定行業(yè)減緩——這些行業(yè)的并購活動在2015年非常紅火——同時金融服務(wù)和工業(yè)企業(yè)等其他部門的并購活動開始啟動。

Bankers say one area that remains ripe for further dealmaking is the consumer sector, whichproduced some of last year’s blockbuster transactions but saw relatively little dealmakingactivity in the first quarter.

銀行家們表示，有望涌現(xiàn)進(jìn)一步交易的領(lǐng)域是消費(fèi)板塊。該板塊去年出現(xiàn)了一些大筆交易，但今年一季度的交易撮合活動相對較少。

Jens Welter, head of consumer and retail group at Credit Suisse, says the buyers are there.

瑞信(Credit Suisse)消費(fèi)者和零售事業(yè)群主管延斯•韋爾特(Jens Welter)表示，買家正在物色機(jī)遇。

“Strategic acquirers continue to be very confident and those that pursue a specific strategyare being rewarded when it comes to M&A . . .” he says. “Overall, the larger deals thatcaptured the headlines last year were highly complex and relied on intricate structures. Someof that will continue to happen in highly consolidated sectors.”

他說：“戰(zhàn)略收購者繼續(xù)非常自信，就并購而言，那些追逐具體戰(zhàn)略的人得到了回報(bào)……整體而言，去年登上新聞頭條的較大型交易非常復(fù)雜，依賴錯綜復(fù)雜的架構(gòu)。其中一些交易將繼續(xù)出現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)高度整合的行業(yè)。”