韩国SKT拟11亿美元入股中国联通

SKT eyes China Unicom stake

韩国最大的移动电话运营商SK Telecom（SKT）计划出资约11亿美元，购买中国第二大移动电话集团中国联通（China Unicom） 10%的股份，此举将使SKT在利润丰厚的中国市场立足。

South Korea's biggest mobile phone operator SK Telecom is planning to buy a 10 per cent stake in China's second-largest mobile group China Unicom for about $1.1bn in a move that would give it a foothold in the lucrative Chinese market.

据SKT已经接洽的一些银行家表示，该公司目前正处于延聘顾问进行此笔投资的阶段，可能“很快”就会选定顾问。

SKT is now in the process of hiring advisers to make the investment and the mandate is likely to be awarded “imminently，” according to bankers who have been approached.

首尔一位银行家表示：“SKT希望今年达成交易——它们有50名员工正在研究对中国进行一项大额投资。”其他人士证实，该公司的目标就是中国联通。

“SK Telecom is looking to make a deal this year – they have 50 people looking at a very large investment into China，” said one banker in Seoul. Others confirmed the target was China Unicom.

在韩国业已饱和、规模为170亿美元的本土市场上，该国手机运营商一直在力图开发新的收入来源。

South Korean mobile operators have been struggling to develop new revenue sources in their saturated $17bn home market.

它们一直在第三代网络（3G）方面大举投资，希望无线数据服务能够创建一个新市场。目前，该项服务占SKT总收入的四分之一左右。

They have been investing heavily in third generation networks in the hope that wireless data services – which now contribute about a quarter of SKT's total revenue – will create a new market.

然而，分析人士对SKT投资联通持怀疑态度。他们表示，中国联通的前景不太明朗，而且在任何重组事宜上，这家韩国公司不太可能拥有多大的决定权。

However， analysts were sceptical about the investment， saying that China Unicom had an unclear future and it was unlikely the Korean company would have much say in any restructuring.

与规模更大的竞争对手中国移动相比，中国联通的收入及利润都相形见绌。自1999年在港上市以来，中国联通的股价已跌逾一半。

China Unicom's revenues and profits are dwarfed by those of its larger rival China Mobile， and its shares have fallen by more than half since listing in Hong Kong in 1999.

根据中国联通目前大约110亿美元的市值推算，此笔交易的价值将约为11亿美元。

Based on its current market capitalisation of about $11bn， the deal would be worth about $1.1bn.

分析人士称，中国电信企业的资本支出需求很大，而且还要考虑3G问题，这加大了中国企业进一步向类似SKT等投资者筹资的可能性。

Analysts said Chinese telecom companies had large capital expenditure demands and still had to account for 3G， raising the prospect that investors such as SKT would be tapped for further funds.

SKT发言人Cindy Kang昨日表示，该公司“正继续寻求进入中国市场的可能性”，但她拒绝就任何对中国联通的投资发表置评。

Cindy Kang， an SKT spokeswoman， yesterday said the company was “continually looking for possibilities to enter the Chinese market” but declined to comment on any investment in China Unicom.