Editorial | China awaits NYSE call on telecoms trio
- Attempt by companies to relist may be seen as testing the water with new US President Joe Biden and Wall Street, and much may depend on the final decision
The off-and-on saga of delisting three Chinese telecoms giants in the United States continues. The latest has seen China Telecom, China Mobile and China Unicom apply to the New York Stock Exchange to reverse delistings ordered by former president Donald Trump. It’s unclear at the moment what the exchange management will decide, or what new President Joe Biden’s stance will be on state-owned companies.
However, a simple question may be asked: why bother relisting? Trump’s executive order banning Americans from trading in firms with alleged ties to China’s military may be a blessing in disguise. The days of prestige listings on Wall Street are no more, especially after overt hostility from Trump and other US politicians. If American investors want to invest in Chinese companies, let them come to Shanghai or Hong Kong. Since their delistings, shares of the telecoms firms have actually soared in Hong Kong.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the three companies listed in New York as American depositary shares (ADSs) to give US and European investors access to trade their equities during US market hours. But today fund managers are compelled to chase where the yield is and China offers an abundance of options from fixed assets to stocks. With the introduction of the northbound Stock Connect, investors can now access mainland stocks through Hong Kong.
Be that as it may, the three firms’ requests for relisting may have a political element. Beijing and Chinese business leaders want to improve relations with the US. The trio may be testing the water with the Biden White House and Wall Street. Certainly, the exit of Chinese capital from the US will be mutually destructive and serves the interests of no one except hawkish ideologues in Washington.
The presidents of both countries must realise there are many common commercial and economic interests worth pursuing. Beijing has not been coy about this. President Xi Jinping has written to Starbucks’ founder Howard Schultz to say he and the giant US coffee chain can play an active role in promoting trade cooperation. That is a not-too-subtle message China welcomes American business. We will know soon whether Biden will reciprocate.
