Between Hong Kong stocks and US stocks, there is a line of controversy.
Text/Shanshan Xu
01
On or on
Bloomberg quoted people familiar with the matter as reporting that Geely Holding Group's strategic investment of Yijiatong Technology is considering listing in the United States through SPAC backdoor listing. If the transaction is completed, the combined new company will be valued at approximately $4 billion.
Short comments
Against the backdrop of increasingly stringent U.S. regulatory policies, some Chinese stocks have begun to regurgitate. Before didi started to go public in Hong Kong, and then Weilai followed the pace. However, there are also some companies that are still looking for the US stock market.
Founded by Li Shufu and Shen Ziyu, Yijiatong Technology is an automotive intelligent technology company strategically invested and independently operated by Geely Holding Group, mainly developing core technology products such as in-vehicle chips, intelligent cockpits, intelligent driving, high-precision maps, big data and vehicle networking cloud platform.
The strength of traditional american car giants, new cars and even autonomous driving companies is beyond doubt, and as an upstream supplier, Egatong Technology can attract foreign investment by increasing business cooperation opportunities. In addition, it can also explore ways for Geely to expand into the North American market.
However, from the perspective of product structure, the technical barriers to related products such as on-board chips and intelligent driving are relatively high, and data privacy issues may be involved. If Egatong Technology is successfully listed in the United States, it seems difficult to refuse reasonable demands from US regulators.
Last year, the U.S. Stock Exchange announced that Chinese companies listed on the SEC must disclose whether they are owned or controlled by government entities and provide evidence of audit inspections. Whether this involves infringement of trade secrets and unfair treatment of Chinese companies is hotly debated.
There are also voices pointing out that China's core technology companies should avoid listing in the United States. But according to Shen Ziyu's early statement that "the goal of Yijiatong Technology is to become a global platform", it may only be a matter of time before it lands on the US stock market.
02
Collective "sanctions" of car companies
Comprehensive foreign media reports, including Toyota, Nissan, Honda, Volkswagen, Ford, General Motors, as well as Aston Martin, BMW, Jaguar Land Rover, Bentley, Rolls-Royce and other car companies have issued official statements to stop car sales in Russia, while Toyota, Ford, Renault and BMW have closed local factories.
Once the tech industry gets involved with politics, it can no longer be left alone. What has been clear in recent years is that geopolitics is becoming the biggest variable affecting global supply chains.
The continued escalation of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict not only lays hidden dangers for the continued rise in the prices of raw materials such as nickel and palladium, but also threatens the normal production and operation of automobile manufacturers.
Parts inventory bottomed out, upstream suppliers were banned from shipping to Russia, and international logistics was facing an interruption crisis. Under this series of difficulties, some car companies officially announced a strike.
However, the real operation of the above-mentioned car companies has not been disclosed, whether it is a strong sense of crisis or a "sanction" means of taking sides, I am afraid that only insiders know.
Interestingly, American apparel brands such as H&M have earlier said they will suspend all sales in Russia. Edge international brands are jumping beam clowns, but the real embarrassment is the local employees.
Although Volkswagen group said it would be responsible for Russian employees, the employees involved would receive short-term compensation. But in the long run, the unemployed will bear the financial burden, and large-scale unemployment may lead to social instability.
03
Apple made a car to break the news
According to Taiwan media reports, Foxconn and Luxun Precision, the main foundries of Apple's supply chain, may be one of Apple Car's foundry partners, but the two companies will most likely not become the first choice.
Some time ago, Lixun Precision announced that it would jointly establish a joint venture with Chery New Energy, and this news was hyped up, and even eye-catching news headlines such as "Brother Guo Chain Began to Build Cars" appeared.
As Apple's iPhone14 entered the trial production stage, Luxshare Precision rumored that there was no chance of high-end iPhone 14 models, and whether the title party realized the weight of "fruit chain brother".
Leaving aside this layer, with the help of Chery Group's manufacturing and mass production experience, Luxshare Precision most likely wants to use this ability for its own use and continue to break into Apple's car-making supply chain. After all, the foundry profit of an Apple Car should be extremely substantial.
In 2017, Luxshare Precision obtained Apple's AirPods foundry qualification, and then officially announced the acquisition of Wistron's iPhone factory in Kunshan and two subsidiaries in 2020. With this as a sign, it began to compete head-on with Foxconn.
However, compared with the big brother Foxconn, Luxshare Precision's foundry manufacturing experience is relatively small. In addition, Foxconn launched the MIH electric vehicle open platform earlier, and three new energy models have been unveiled, which is a big step ahead of Luxun Precision.
But this time, Apple seems to be more interested in Hyundai and Magna. Compared to the two fruit chain foundries, Hyundai and Magna have better manufacturing experience and knowledge, as well as more advanced production facilities.
For Apple, the product must be a boutique.