Didn't see this in the Atimes piece (which looks somewhat like a summary lifted from wikipedia anyway), but this item sure shows just how connected AIG is with the Bush regime. And I can't help but comment, wow, AIG's run on the Dow Industrials was something like a glorious 4 years! It would be interesting to do a comparison and contrast of AIG with HSBC--the British-Chinese banks that always seems to misplace my money when I wire it to them. At any rate, here we see AIG acting like a private equity firm. When will these guys ever learn? If you want to be private equity, don't publicly list. That way guys like Spitzer can't come after you and do a 'Tyco' job on you.
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/2006-12-11-dubai-ports_x.htm AIG unit to buy Dubai company's U.S. ports Updated 12/12/2006 12:53 AM ET E-mail | Save | Print | Subscribe to stories like this DUBAI (Reuters) — State-owned Dubai Ports World said on Monday that it had agreed to sell its U.S. port operations to an American International Group unit after relinquishing control to allay concerns about U.S. national security. DP World will conclude its deal with AIG Global Investment Group in the first quarter, the Gulf Arab company's chief executive, Mohammad Sharaf, told Reuters. He declined to give a value for the deal. DP World took over facilities at six major U.S. ports when it acquired Britain's Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation for $6.8 billion in February, becoming the world's third-largest container port operator. "We have reached a deal covering 100% of the U.S. assets," Sharaf said Monday. "It will be a cash deal." Jamal Majid Bin Thaniah, group chief executive of Dubai Ports and Jebel Ali Free Zone Authority, which includes DP World, in October told U.K. publication Lloyd's List that the company expected the winning bid price to exceed $700 million, or about 10% of the price it paid for P&O. AIG declined to comment on the price it had agree to pay for P&O's U.S. port business. Publicly traded U.S. companies are bound to reveal the price of acquisitions if they are deemed material, or significant to the company's capital base. AIG Global Investment Group, part of American International Group, the world's largest insurer, has more than $635 billion in assets. AIG would not come under disclosure requirements if the price is about $700 million, as it would for larger purchases. AIG Global Investment Group has a track record of investments in various infrastructure businesses, including power, waste and water operations, it said. DP World agreed to sell its P&O facilities in New York, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Miami, Tampa and New Orleans after U.S. lawmakers threatened to block the company, saying they feared giving a state-owned Arab company control of U.S. port terminals would pose a threat to national security. With a political firestorm threatening to become a diplomatic crisis, DP World announced it would sell P&O's U.S. assets at the behest of Dubai's ruler and hold them separately until a suitable buyer could be found. Those arrangements would remain in place until the deal was completed and cleared by regulators, Sharaf said. The forced capitulation of a government-controlled company in the United Arab Emirates, a U.S. ally and frequent port of call for American warships, reinforced Arab concerns that their U.S. assets could be targeted for security reasons. Some Arab investors said at the time the uproar smacked of racism. U.S. critics of the deal, including Democrats and members of President Bush's Republican Party, note that two of the Sept. 11 hijackers came from the UAE and that the country once recognized the Taliban government in Afghanistan. Copyright 2006 Reuters Limited. Click for Restrictions. Posted 12/11/2006 9:51 AM ET _______________________________________________ Marxism-Thaxis mailing list Marxism-Thaxis@lists.econ.utah.edu To change your options or unsubscribe go to: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/marxism-thaxis
