PepsiCo Inc. spanned more than 190 countries and accounted for approximately one-quarter of the world's soft drinks. The vice-president of finance for PepsiCo East Asia had been collecting data on the firm's proposed equity joint venture in Changchun, People's Republic of China (PRC). While PepsiCo was already involved in seven joint ventures in the PRC, this proposal would be one of the first two green-field equity joint ventures with PepsiCo control over both the board and day-to-day management. Every investment project at PepsiCo had to go through a systematic evaluation process that involved using capital budgeting tools such as new present value (NPV) and internal rate of return (IRR). He needed to decide if the proposed Changchun joint venture would meet PepsiCo's required return on investment. He was also concerned what the local partners would think of the project. The final decision would be made after a presentation to the president of PepsiCo Asia-Pacific.
Hutchison Whampoa was considering strategies for its long-term capital structure. The HK$35 billion Hong Kong-based conglomerate had ambitious growth plans in multiple business sectors in different geographies. Traditionally, like many of its domestic peers, Hutchison had relied entirely on short to medium-term bank loans. Its demand for long-term financing, attractive rates in other capital markets (especially the U.S.) and concern about a more diversified investor base had led Hutchison to explore other financing options. In particular, the company was debating the benefits of a Yankee Bond Offering. At the time, Hutchison had already approached Moody's and Standard & Poor's for a bond rating.
Nanpo (Holdings) Limited, a Hong Kong-based Chinese food distributor is planning for its initial public offering on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong. Nanpo was established in 1981 with a mandate to be the sole distributor of poultry, fresh water fish, livestock, and fruit and vegetables produced in Guangdong, the bordering province of mainland China. Throughout the years, Nanpo has built up an admirable market share in many food categories and a distribution channel of 500 wholesalers. Recently, the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation in the PRC reaffirmed its sole distributor status. The management of Nanpo has developed an aggressive growth plan which includes new food processing facilities and forward integration into retail outlets and restaurant chains. Nanpo has turned to the capital market of Hong Kong to finance its future growth. Nanpo's management has decided to float 25% of the company and has engaged a local merchant bank, Hinson Capital, as its lead underwriter. Three weeks away from the planned IPO, Jack Yang, a director of Nanpo, is once again reviewing the details of pricing.
The vice president, finance must quickly address several choices concerning a proposed office relocation. His analysis will likely include discounted cash flow analysis (DCF) and the topics of capital asset pooling and tax benefits. The case compares and contrasts the concepts of DCF and net present value analysis with Seagram's version of EVA (Economic Value Added). The case also provides a unique Asian focus for this type of decision. Office space location and the rent vs. buy option are extremely important decisions faced by a multitude of managers in Hong Kong. The traditional wisdom in Hong Kong has been that buying property was more efficient - especially given the phenomenal appreciation of property values. However, it can serve to distract a firm from its' core competencies and tie up working capital in non-producing assets. Finally, the case also provides a brief overview of capital asset pooling and depreciation tax law in Hong Kong. While the discussion is brief, it nevertheless provides an adequate first step towards further study in this area. Students from other areas of the world will also be interested in examining the differences between their country's tax laws and Hong Kong's.
Two managers attending a financial management course are attempting to compute the cost of capital for Sun Hung Kai Properties Limited, a well-known local Hong Kong firm. The two managers are somewhat confused about the costs of various sources of capital, the calculation of the overall corporate cost of capital, and the appropriate use of the hurdle rate.