Roads & Transportation

Where is MAN’s defence against VW?

27 Jun 2011

The German truckmaker has mounted almost no resistance to VW's attempt to take effective control without paying a premium. Sure, Germany's lax takeover regime makes VW's assault hard to repel. But MAN's management could have done more to help investors push up the price.

Indonesia’s economy chugs towards gridlock

23 Jun 2011

Investors have fallen for Indonesia's resourcesled transformation. But the country is rapidly outgrowing its highways, ports and power grid. The problem isn't financing but a parliament paralysed by corruption allegations. At this rate, the growth story could come under strain.

Dollar Thrifty rivals drive too hard a bargain

9 May 2011

Hertz pulled a Uturn by returning with a hostile $2.2 bln bid to challenge the stalled Avis proposal. But when considering Dollar Thrifty's improved performance and deal synergies, the sweetened offer still looks too low. Either Avis or Hertz needs to step up with more money.

China’s truckers sound bum note on reforms

26 Apr 2011

Sure, fuel price hikes and high fees penalise the truck drivers who staged last week's strikes. But pricier petrol is essential for a more balanced, less polluted China. If the authorities are too wary of upsetting vested interests, necessary reforms will be stifled.

IPO hopefuls want to sit around OpenTable

7 Apr 2011

The backers of nearly every company to market with an Internet angle Zipcar, Pandora, Zillow are conjuring comparisons to the restaurant reservation site whose shares have quintupled since their debut. While similarities exist, none have OpenTable's moat or network effect.

China may spur growth with Panama Canal rail idea

14 Feb 2011

A railroad across Colombia, carrying coal westward and Chinese semimanufactured goods eastward, looks plausible. Colombia's infrastructure shortage is a major barrier to growth; efficient and rapid Chinese help in providing it could have a huge multiplier effect.

Corruption comes second in China rail scandal

14 Feb 2011

Sacking the railway head for disciplinary violations looks less like a new dawn in fighting graft, and more like a move by the centre to rein in China's biggest monopoly. At least that should increase accountability, and curb the railway operator's worrying obsession with speed.

Fiat’s CEO must brush up on diplomatic skills

7 Feb 2011

Sergio Marchionne threatened to move the carmaker's operations to the U.S. and complained of shyster loans from Washington. Though he has apologised, he must take greater care not to anger the U.S. and Italian governments or undermine his recent victory over Italy's unions.

Upbeat UPS can’t be counted on as a bellwether

1 Feb 2011

The U.S. package delivery giant historically has foretold broader economic prospects. So its expectation of recordhigh profit in 2011 should be encouraging. But three dynamics are weakening its role as a GDP fortune teller: online spending, efficiency and international growth.

Ford’s shareholders take heads out of sand

28 Jan 2011

They wiped more than 10 pct off the automaker's $65 bln market cap. Ford warned last summer that profit would drop. Had investors listened, they wouldn't have hyped the shares to begin with and they shouldn't now overdo the gloom. Ford's longerterm turnaround looks on track.

India needs solution to $1.5 trillion puzzle

24 Jan 2011

That’s what it will need to invest in infrastructure over the next decade if it is to reach 10 percent GDP growth. The government and banks won’t be able to carry that load on their own. Financial liberalisation could help fill the gap.

EasyJet is a poor omen for airline results

20 Jan 2011

Travel disruption, lower nonticket revenue and high fuel prices trashed fullyear profit estimates for the UK lowcost carrier. Rivals face similar pressures, and EasyJet could make a comeback. But investors are unlikely to give its rookie management much benefit of the doubt.

GM IPO boosts first giveth, then taketh – sort of

17 Nov 2010

Upping the sale price and size provides evidence of a process managed carefully to be successful. The price increase reduces the US government's loss and the breakeven target for its remaining stake. But selling a third more stock offsets the benefits, making it close to a wash.

China’s GM investment looks hard to justify

16 Nov 2010

The U.S. automaker looks likely to secure a 1 percent investment from its China partner. That could put some juice in GM's IPO, if investors sense further cooperation. Yet it is hard to see what SAIC will get for its troubles. China's regulator may yet put the brakes on.

VW’s Piech could run over truck minorities

15 Nov 2010

The chairman of German carmaker Volkswagen wants to consolidate its truck interests. A deal with Sweden's Scania and rival MAN makes sense, but would be complex. And Germany's lenient takeover rules could help VW gain control of MAN without paying a proper premium.

European truckmakers could clear M&A highway

2 Nov 2010

Good results have boosted Europe's truck manufacturers this year, while crossshareholdings and competition issues remain obstacles to M&A. Even so, the pressure for consolidation remains. Fiat's coming demerger looks like a catalyst for deals in Europe and perhaps globally.

French train furor turns to bad protectionist joke

15 Oct 2010

Paris wants to stop Channel Tunnel train operator Eurostar buying Germanbuilt rolling stock from Siemens, a competitor to France's Alstom. Experts are laughing down the security concerns raised as an excuse. EU authorities should jump on France's latest protectionist outrage.

VTB must justify high price for railway bank deal

5 Oct 2010

Russia's secondlargest lender intends to buy TransCreditBank, which is being spun off by Russian Railways. Although the deal has pluses, the valuation of up to 2.2 times Tier 1 capital looks demanding. VTB's independent shareholders should question whether the price is merited.

Excessive costs make U.S. rail look a boondoggle

1 Oct 2010

The $117 bln Amtrak estimate for the BostonWashington highspeed rail service far exceeds the $17 bln cost of China's longer highspeed train or the adjusted costs of earlier services in France and Japan. U.S. public sector contracting may be more economic drain than stimulus.

Obama’s offensive may not charm business or GOP

7 Sep 2010

The president's plans to spend $50 bln on roads and railways and grant businesses $300 bln of investment tax credits have merit. But they don't look enough to sway disillusioned executives. And Republicans are in no rush to pass a second stimulus before midterm elections.