This is just getting silly now. In the space of a few days the New York Stock exchange has reversed its position three times on the matter of listing China Mobile, Telecom and Unicom.
On Monday we reported that the NYSE is delisting the three Chinese telcos in order to conform to some huffing and puffing emanating from the US government. On Tuesday it emerged that, in response to further information from the US state, the decision was being reversed. By Wednesday (today) multiple media are reporting that it had U-turned once more, in response to another lot of guidance from the powers that be. By tomorrow we expect the CEOs of the three companies to be invited to New York to take in a show, followed by cocktails and canapés.
While this is all rather humiliating for the NYSE and its parent company, they seem to be mere pawns on the game of geopolitical chess that is being played with renewed vigour between the US and China. The US is increasingly using its own private sector as a stick to beat China with, while at the same time insisting China be demonised when it does so too.
As we said earlier today, the US might as well just ban everything Chinese. At least that would be honest and everyone would know where they stand. In the meantime expect to see more cases of US companies being made to look ridiculous as they’re made to jump through arbitrary and ephemeral hoops. As if they haven’t been through enough over the past year.