Canadians thank Government
A massive 63% of shareholders (close to 90% when you exclude the Council stakes) have agreed to sell their Auckland Airport shares to the Canadian pension fund.
Why so many?
Simple. The Government’s actions have driven the current share price down so much, that it has made the Canadian offer much more attractive.
The next step, assuming over 50% have also voted for the bid, is for David Parker and Clayton Cosgrove to pretend to impartially consider the bid. They will go through the farce of asking for reports, and taking time to make a decision, and then shock horror they will turn it down.
And then the Canadian pension fund will haul their little behinds into court, and point to massive and compelling evidence they predetermined the matter because persons no less than the Prime Minister (who can sack them) and the Finance Minister (who controls their budgets) has made it very clear they are expected to turn the bid down.
And so the Canadians will get their 24.9% voting share – which is less than the current level of overseas voting strength I suspect.
March 14th, 2008 at 7:12 am
So ends the first season of this gripping drama.
In Season 2, the government will use the tax deducted from the dividends on the Canadians’ shares to purchase shares on other countries’ infrastructure to help fund superannuation in New Zealand.
Hypocritical shits.
March 14th, 2008 at 7:51 am
But the important thing surely is that onto institutionalised bigotry (chinless scarf-wearers), institutionalised corruption (pledge-card rort) institutionalised ignorance (rich pricks) institutionalised racism (haters and wreckers) and institutionalised cronyism (Owen Glenn) we can now add institutionalsied xenophobia – all as sanctioned forms of political debate under the present Labour Government. Makes me proud of my socialist roots! I may as well have not wasted my deluded youth arguing with tories and just joined them straight away, it would hae saved me so much time and effort, now that I realise that bigotry corruption ignorance racism cronyism and xenophobia were all ‘ok’. Last stop – well at least we are safe from sexism and homophobia – until the Labour bigwigs call open season on that, of course, then just watch the sheep join in.
March 14th, 2008 at 8:19 am
Another own goal for Labour. By ensuring the price dropped with their meddling they almost guaranteed that shareholders wold accept the Canadian offer. And to have Cullen and the Prime Minister mouthing off means this is a dead sitter for litigation. Hence John Key’s reluctance to comment. So John is prepared to play the long(ish) game. Because the litigation on this will occur round about the time of the election. I bet she still does not understand nor accept the restrictions on stakeholders (i.e. Ministers) commenting on market sensitive information. Well she will get a lesson on that very soon why people’s property rights on the value of shares are important.
March 14th, 2008 at 8:43 am
This will end up being decided by a judge, in election year no less. Helen has become a very unsafe pair of hands as of late, everything she touches or comments on turns to custard.
March 14th, 2008 at 9:26 am
As if it wasn’t already glaringly obvious that none of these communist ‘leaders’ had ever worked in any organisation that had actually had to earn money, they go and smack Mum and Dad shareholders over the head with their collective stupidity. We are the laughing stock of the rest of the world because our ruling party doesn’t even understand how capital markets work.
March 14th, 2008 at 12:04 pm
So continues the sense of inadequacy of those in a little land, insecure of themselves and their place in their own nation, let alone their own nation’s place and status in the world.
Talk about fear of big capital and offering the position of appeasement to the primate abroad. Have you no pride? Have some self-confidence and belief that we all have the right to assess our own self-interest (as shareholders did, as the government did on behalf of the wider society and economy) and retain some sovereignty over our own affairs. Global capital does not own countries and their decision-making.
FFS, of course our shares have a value only when foreign capital seeks a buy out, why else is most of our economy owned offshore – our investors cannot buy out a company and have a diversified portfolio, their funds are too small. Yet does this mean we have to sell out to foreign owners the entire assets of this land to maximise shareholder value? And is any restraint based simply on a xenophobia which risks foreigners taking a dislike to us? Ignoring the loss of economic control, consider the BOP implications, if we are left to local cash deposits, local rental property or offshore shares for our savings options while foreign owners withdraw their dividends from the economy. And once again, our foreign investment regime is looser than that of Australia and Canada and much of the OECD.
BTW, I posted here a few days that what the government did, would make a Canadian success more likely. Why, because in placating local opposition (to foreign takeover) with political sympathy noise would make it appear that the government had acted to restrict any potential adverse impact and also to limit a sense of possible continuous buy out of our assets. If I was to guess, government in this case will simply legislate to ensure the maximum 25% share vote regime proposed is binding and perhaps look at the matter as a wider approach within the context of wider foreign investor investment. The Canadian offer of this does seem to be based on an astute awareness of the politics of the matter ….
March 14th, 2008 at 3:35 pm
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA………….typical law of unintended consequences biting the socialists in the arse AGAIN………
March 14th, 2008 at 3:36 pm
And again and again and again and again and again………..
March 14th, 2008 at 3:40 pm
Have a read of Bruce Sheppard’s post: http://www.stuff.co.nz/blogs/stirringthepot/2008/03/14/death-of-a-deal/
March 14th, 2008 at 5:04 pm
Before the two Liabor ministers bring in their negative pre-determined by Clark/Cullen verdict it will be considered by the Overseas Investment Commission…I think the Commission will give it the thumbs down so that the Ministers don’t have to make the decision. The Commissioner will be well aware of the fate of the former brave/silly Electricity Commissioner who did what he judged was right and ruled against the requirements of his political Mistress. He was replaced by David CAGILL who has no such scruples and could decide according to the Political will.