China has taken steps to make sprawling government-controlled firms more efficient as economic growth continues to slow.
China’s cabinet approved:
- A deal that fuses two of the country’s biggest state-owned transport and logistics firms
- China Merchants Group’s acquisition of logistics group Sinotrans & CSC Holdings Co
The Cabinet approved the deals by placing China Merchants assets worth an estimated 624 billion yuan ($96 billion) and Sinotrans & CSC assets worth about 109 billion under the same roof.
China Merchants’ business includes ports, shipping and financial services, while Sinotrans & CSC is involved in logistics and vessel chartering.
A statement from Sinotrans said that: “The acquisition will result in economies of scale and synergies in areas including integrated logistics, resource and bulk cargo transport, development of industrial parks, port and air transport operations and equipment manufacturing.”
Earlier in December, China’s cabinet approved the merger of the two biggest state-backed shipping conglomerates, China Ocean Shipping (Group) Co (COSCO) and China Shipping Group Co.
Source: Reuters
