HUGE LOGISTICS M&A

China Merchants steering merger to port

Wednesday, November 18, 2015

Mainland transport conglomerate China Merchants Group is said to be in talks to acquire logistics group Sinotrans & CSC the latest deal in the country's state-owned sector.
The two companies have been locked in discussions about how to reorganize, financial magazine Caixin reported in citing sources close to China Merchants.The Hong Kong-listed units of Sinotrans & CSC Sinotrans (0598) and Sinotrans Shipping (0368) informed the Hong Kong stock exchange on Sunday that their parent group was considering a strategic reorganization involving another state-owned enterprise.China Merchants had total assets worth 624 billion yuan (HK$758 billion) at the end of last year, Caixin reported, while Sinotrans & CSC had 109 billion yuan. The move comes at a time the central government is encouraging restructuring and mergers among state- owned enterprises. The domestic shipping industry's largest firms, China Ocean Shipping (Group) and China Shipping Group, have also been in talks to merge.China Merchants' business takes in ports, shipping and financial services. Sinotrans & CSC is involved in logistics and vessel chartering. REUTERS