Chinese companies' weak record on foreign deals

CONSIDERING the size of China's economy, it seems inevitable that its firms will eventually play a huge role on the world stage. Yet China Inc's adventures abroad in the past 15 years have been a mixed bag. Thousands of small deals have taken place, some of which will succeed. But of the mergers and acquisitions that have been worth $1bn or more, it is a different story. There have been 56 abandoned deals, 39 state-backed acquisitions of commodities firms at frothy prices, and, lately, wild spre...