Sharp and Hon Hai

　　夏普和鴻海

　　Law of the jungle.

　　叢林法則。

　　A deal between a Chinese firm and a Japanese tech giant hits trouble.

　　一家中國企業和日本科技巨頭的交易陷入困局。

　　AS HUMAN beings are also animals, to manage one million animals gives me a headache. So declared Terry Guo, the chairman of Taiwan s Hon Hai, earlier this year. His firm sFoxconn division is China s biggest contract manufacturer and makes most of Apple s whizzydevices. He has since apologised for his remarks and insisted they were taken out ofcontext. Perhaps they were, but fresh signs emerged this week that he does indeed believein the law of the jungle.

　　富士康擁有超過1百萬員工，人類也是動物，如何管理這100萬動物讓我很頭疼 ，這是今年年初鴻海集團主席郭臺銘曾發表的言論。他旗下的子公司富士康是中國最大的合同制造商,并為蘋果公司供應了最多的先進配件裝置。后來他為此番 員工動物論 出面道歉同時堅稱媒體的報道是斷章取義。或許關于此事的報道是有失偏頗,但從這周的最新跡象可以看出的是，他確實信奉 叢林法則 。

　　Mr Guo made a splash in March when he announced an unusual deal with Sharp, an ailingJapanese technology giant. Hon Hai and Foxconn Technology, an affiliate, said they wouldinvest over $1.6 billion in Sharp in return for around a tenth of the company. Sharp, hit badlyby the downturn in the market for flat-screen devices, needed the cash. Hon Hai was keento get the inside track to advanced glass technology much valued by Apple, its main customer. Both sides trumpeted this as a done deal.

　　今年3月郭臺銘宣布了和困境中的日本科技巨頭夏普公司的合作而一石驚起千層浪 。他的鴻海集團及旗下的富士康科技集團宣稱他們會耗資超過16億美元收購夏普約 10%的股份。因液晶平板設備行業衰落而遭遇重創的夏普現在急需現金流。而鴻海又急切希望能在有利平臺上改進鏡面板工藝技術，這是它最大客戶蘋果公司最看中的價值。當時雙方都表示這樣的合作會是板上釘釘的事.

　　Alas, a deal is not always a deal in the corporate jungle. The Japanese firm s share price hasfallen by some two-thirds since March, when the two firms shook hands. Sharp s investorsbelieved that Hon Hai had thrown the firm a reliable lifeline. But Mr Guo s investors wererather less pleased. The ill-timed deal would, by one estimate, mean Hon Hai having to writedown the value of its investment by NT$12 billion this year.

　　可惜,在企業競爭中風云變幻, 交易 往往并不容 易 成 交 。自今年三月兩家公司握手言歡以來，夏普公司的股價已經下跌了三分之二。夏普的投資者慶幸鴻海當初扔出了一根結實的救命稻草，但郭臺銘公司的投資者并不那么高興。據估計，這樁時機不好的交易會讓鴻海今年損失120億新臺幣約合4億美元。

　　The bombshell hit on August 3rd, a day when Sharp s shares fell by 28% on news of ananticipated loss of $1.2 billion in the second quarter. Hon Hai said the two firms had agreedthat due to the current price volatility of Sharp shares, Foxconn will not be required to fulfilits subscription obligations. Alas, that news seemed to surprise Sharp, which put out a tersenote saying no revision had been agreed.

　　8月3日，因夏普第二季度預計虧損12億美元的資訊公布，夏普股價應聲暴跌了28%。鴻海方面表示由于夏普股價大跌，雙方已經達成共識，富士康可以不用按之前商議的價格履行認購義務。但是，鴻海的這個說法顯然讓夏普有些意外，后者隨后簡要表示雙方并沒有要重新議價。

　　What is going on? Kirk Yang of Barclays Capital, a bank, reckons it unlikely that Sharp willforce Hon Hai to honour its original deal. He thinks the likely outcome is for Hon Hai to takea 9.9% stake in Sharp but at a price closer to ￥200-300 rather than ￥550,where the shares stood when the deal was agreed in March. Others speculate that areworked deal may give his firm a bigger stake in Sharp.

　　到底發生了什么?巴克萊資本投行的分析師楊應超認為夏普不太可能逼迫鴻海按初期約定的價格履行交易。他認為比較可能的結果是鴻海按每股近200-300日元收購夏普9.9%的股份，而不是按3月和夏普談定交易時每股500日元的價格。其他機構揣測這樁要重新商談的交易也有可能會夏普在總收購價不變的前提下多送一些股份給鴻海。

　　That might seem like good news for Hon Hai. If Mr Guo does not pour all the cash he haspromised into Sharp, his investors would be relieved. The contradictory statements thisweek may simply be a result of Sharp s internal bureaucracy moving more slowly than thedynamic Mr Guo, in which case the Japanese company may well confirm a revised dealshortly.

　　對于鴻海來說這看上去是個好消息。如果郭臺銘可以不按之前承諾給夏普的價格去兌現入股，他的投資者會著實松一口氣。雙方在本周截然不同的表態也可能僅僅是因為內部官僚作風的夏普沒有靈敏的郭先生對市場的反應快罷了，隨后夏普可能就會很快確認重議交易。

　　Still, there is reason to think this might prove a Pyrrhic victory for Hon Hai. After all, it wouldstill be saddled with a stake in a debt-laden firm with diminishing prospects. Bywithdrawing a much-needed lifeline, it might well be propelling Sharp towards eventualbankruptcy. Mr Guo surely knows that in the jungle, mistakes can prove fatal.

　　不過，雖然如此，鴻海集團這樣的勝利也可能只是皮洛士式的慘勝。畢竟它將要背負起的是一個負債累累前景又更凄風冷雨的公司。如果撤出這救命稻草一般的注資，它可能會加劇夏普走向破產。郭臺銘很清楚在弱肉強食競爭激烈的叢林中，任何一點失誤都會是致命的。

　　Sharp and Hon Hai

　　夏普和鴻海

　　Law of the jungle.

　　叢林法則。

　　A deal between a Chinese firm and a Japanese tech giant hits trouble.

　　一家中國企業和日本科技巨頭的交易陷入困局。

　　AS HUMAN beings are also animals, to manage one million animals gives me a headache. So declared Terry Guo, the chairman of Taiwan s Hon Hai, earlier this year. His firm sFoxconn division is China s biggest contract manufacturer and makes most of Apple s whizzydevices. He has since apologised for his remarks and insisted they were taken out ofcontext. Perhaps they were, but fresh signs emerged this week that he does indeed believein the law of the jungle.

　　富士康擁有超過1百萬員工，人類也是動物，如何管理這100萬動物讓我很頭疼 ，這是今年年初鴻海集團主席郭臺銘曾發表的言論。他旗下的子公司富士康是中國最大的合同制造商,并為蘋果公司供應了最多的先進配件裝置。后來他為此番 員工動物論 出面道歉同時堅稱媒體的報道是斷章取義。或許關于此事的報道是有失偏頗,但從這周的最新跡象可以看出的是，他確實信奉 叢林法則 。

　　Mr Guo made a splash in March when he announced an unusual deal with Sharp, an ailingJapanese technology giant. Hon Hai and Foxconn Technology, an affiliate, said they wouldinvest over $1.6 billion in Sharp in return for around a tenth of the company. Sharp, hit badlyby the downturn in the market for flat-screen devices, needed the cash. Hon Hai was keento get the inside track to advanced glass technology much valued by Apple, its main customer. Both sides trumpeted this as a done deal.

　　今年3月郭臺銘宣布了和困境中的日本科技巨頭夏普公司的合作而一石驚起千層浪 。他的鴻海集團及旗下的富士康科技集團宣稱他們會耗資超過16億美元收購夏普約 10%的股份。因液晶平板設備行業衰落而遭遇重創的夏普現在急需現金流。而鴻海又急切希望能在有利平臺上改進鏡面板工藝技術，這是它最大客戶蘋果公司最看中的價值。當時雙方都表示這樣的合作會是板上釘釘的事.

　　Alas, a deal is not always a deal in the corporate jungle. The Japanese firm s share price hasfallen by some two-thirds since March, when the two firms shook hands. Sharp s investorsbelieved that Hon Hai had thrown the firm a reliable lifeline. But Mr Guo s investors wererather less pleased. The ill-timed deal would, by one estimate, mean Hon Hai having to writedown the value of its investment by NT$12 billion this year.

　　可惜,在企業競爭中風云變幻, 交易 往往并不容 易 成 交 。自今年三月兩家公司握手言歡以來，夏普公司的股價已經下跌了三分之二。夏普的投資者慶幸鴻海當初扔出了一根結實的救命稻草，但郭臺銘公司的投資者并不那么高興。據估計，這樁時機不好的交易會讓鴻海今年損失120億新臺幣約合4億美元。

　　The bombshell hit on August 3rd, a day when Sharp s shares fell by 28% on news of ananticipated loss of $1.2 billion in the second quarter. Hon Hai said the two firms had agreedthat due to the current price volatility of Sharp shares, Foxconn will not be required to fulfilits subscription obligations. Alas, that news seemed to surprise Sharp, which put out a tersenote saying no revision had been agreed.

　　8月3日，因夏普第二季度預計虧損12億美元的資訊公布，夏普股價應聲暴跌了28%。鴻海方面表示由于夏普股價大跌，雙方已經達成共識，富士康可以不用按之前商議的價格履行認購義務。但是，鴻海的這個說法顯然讓夏普有些意外，后者隨后簡要表示雙方并沒有要重新議價。

　　What is going on? Kirk Yang of Barclays Capital, a bank, reckons it unlikely that Sharp willforce Hon Hai to honour its original deal. He thinks the likely outcome is for Hon Hai to takea 9.9% stake in Sharp but at a price closer to ￥200-300 rather than ￥550,where the shares stood when the deal was agreed in March. Others speculate that areworked deal may give his firm a bigger stake in Sharp.

　　到底發生了什么?巴克萊資本投行的分析師楊應超認為夏普不太可能逼迫鴻海按初期約定的價格履行交易。他認為比較可能的結果是鴻海按每股近200-300日元收購夏普9.9%的股份，而不是按3月和夏普談定交易時每股500日元的價格。其他機構揣測這樁要重新商談的交易也有可能會夏普在總收購價不變的前提下多送一些股份給鴻海。

　　That might seem like good news for Hon Hai. If Mr Guo does not pour all the cash he haspromised into Sharp, his investors would be relieved. The contradictory statements thisweek may simply be a result of Sharp s internal bureaucracy moving more slowly than thedynamic Mr Guo, in which case the Japanese company may well confirm a revised dealshortly.

　　對于鴻海來說這看上去是個好消息。如果郭臺銘可以不按之前承諾給夏普的價格去兌現入股，他的投資者會著實松一口氣。雙方在本周截然不同的表態也可能僅僅是因為內部官僚作風的夏普沒有靈敏的郭先生對市場的反應快罷了，隨后夏普可能就會很快確認重議交易。

　　Still, there is reason to think this might prove a Pyrrhic victory for Hon Hai. After all, it wouldstill be saddled with a stake in a debt-laden firm with diminishing prospects. Bywithdrawing a much-needed lifeline, it might well be propelling Sharp towards eventualbankruptcy. Mr Guo surely knows that in the jungle, mistakes can prove fatal.

　　不過，雖然如此，鴻海集團這樣的勝利也可能只是皮洛士式的慘勝。畢竟它將要背負起的是一個負債累累前景又更凄風冷雨的公司。如果撤出這救命稻草一般的注資，它可能會加劇夏普走向破產。郭臺銘很清楚在弱肉強食競爭激烈的叢林中，任何一點失誤都會是致命的。