On Monday Missouri's two U.S. senators weighed in on one international business trend, and on Tuesday they opined on another. Republican Kit Bond and Democrat Claire McCaskill agreed with each other both times, so there was bipartisan agreement -- on both sides of the tough issues raised by the globalization of business.
On Monday in St. Louis, the senators were among a group of business leaders and politicians greeting a Chinese delegation
en route to Annapolis, Md., for economic talks with Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson. The topics were regional exports to China, which they favor, and also Chinese investment in the region, which they also like. They're especially enthusiastic about the prospect of building an Air China freight hub at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport, which would make it easier to deliver higher-value Chinese imports to the Midwest.
On Tuesday the topic was the
unsolicited bid by Brazilian-Belgian brewer InBev SA for Anheuser-Busch Cos. As the Deal reports (subscription required) both senators
have pledged to do what they can to stop it.
But if the senators are of two minds about the costs and benefits of globalization, most of their constituents probably are too. So, for that matter, are folks in China, Belgium and Brazil. And we're only going to see more of this.
The plain fact is that, in more and more industries, the advantage lies with the companies with the biggest global footprint. If a company is not sufficiently global, it will sooner or later be hearing from one that is. That's what's happening to A-B. It's what underlies the problems at Hershey Co., which is caught between its control by a trust that doesn't want to cede local control and the fact that only 14% of its sales come from outside the U.S.
That Chinese delegation in Annapolis isn't here just to sign soybean deals and talk about airports. They also want to invest in plant, equipment and whole U.S. companies to get closer to their customers and protect against currency fluctuations. They think they've been unfairly turned back in the past, and they're looking for a fairer shake. At the same time, they want to guard against outsiders buying up too many of their own companies, in financial services and in other sectors.
Of course, China has been willing to open up its beer market. Both InBev and A-B have acquired and developed extensively there -- to the point where, if the two do combine, they'll have a
powerful position in the world's most desirable beer market. Wonder if that came up when the Chinese visited St. Louis on Monday? -
Kenneth Klee
Join Corporate Dealmaker's LinkedIn forum
Juergen Lasowski
And the winners are...
