標緻的未來: 更多的資金 更少的藉口

PSA Peugeot Citroën is betting that money really does make the world go round.

標緻雪鐵龍(PSA Peugeot Citroen)押注的是“有錢能使鬼推磨”。

The French auto maker is raising EUR3 billion ($4.13 billion) in fresh equity via a rights issue and a capital injection from the French government and its Chinese joint venture partner Dongfeng Motor Group ; each investor will take a 14% stake.

這家法國汽車生產商將通過配股和來自法國政府及中國合資夥伴東風汽車集團(Dongfeng Motor Group)的注資拿到30億歐元（合41.3億美元）的資金；注資後法國政府和東風汽車將分別獲得標緻14%的股權。

That might look like pawning the family silver on the cheap. Dongfeng and the French state will get most of their shares at just EUR7.50 a share, a 40% discount to the current market price.

這或許看上去像是廉價典賣了家當。東風汽車和法國政府將以僅僅每股7.50歐元的價格獲得大多數股份，這較當前市場價格低40%。

But more capital could at least make a recovery at Peugeot more credible.

但至少，更多的資金會令標緻的復甦顯得更爲可信。

Peugeot's timing is less than ideal: the company is raising capital equivalent to two-thirds of its market capitalization just as Europe's car market starts to pull out of a brutal slump. Existing Peugeot shareholders, who currently hold 74.5% of the shares, will be left with 58%, assuming they take up all the shares available to them.

標緻選擇的時機不太理想：該公司籌集的資本相當於其市值的三分之二，而此時歐洲汽車市場正開始擺脫嚴重滑坡。標緻現有股東目前持有該公司74.5%的股份，交易完成後如果他們持有所有可獲得的股份，持股比例將爲58%。

What Peugeot will get from a deeper partnership with Dongfeng is also questionable. The Chinese auto maker, which is only spending about a quarter of its cash hoard on the deal, could look smart if it has strengthened its European ties at the low-point in the continent's car cycle. Dongfeng alone isn't big enough to address Peugeot's scale problem in an industry where the biggest auto makers are the most competitive.

標緻與東風加深合作能得到什麼也引人懷疑。這家中國汽車廠商在這樁交易上只花費了大約四分之一的現金儲備，如果它已經在歐洲汽車行業週期的低點加強了與歐洲的聯繫，則是明智之舉。在最大的汽車廠商競爭力最強的汽車行業，東風一家的規模也不夠大，無法應對標緻的規模問題。

But with 16 million cars sold in China last year it is already a larger market than Europe and will be Peugeot's biggest by 2015. The French company's target to triple unit sales in China by the early 2020s is an ambitious one, notes Erich Hauser at ISI: Peugeot's market share, through its joint venture with Dongfeng, is just 3.6%. Securing the focus of Dongfeng, which also works with Nissan, Honda, Renault and others, can only help.

但中國去年乘用車銷量達1,600萬輛，已經超過歐洲，到2015年將成爲標緻最大的市場。這家法國公司的目標是到2020年代初將中國的銷量增加兩倍。ISI的豪澤(Erich Hauser)認爲，這是個雄心勃勃的目標：標緻通過其與東風的合資企業佔據的市場份額僅爲3.6%。獲得東風的重點關注只會帶來助力。東風還與日產(Nissan)、本田(Honda)、雷諾(Renault)等公司建立了合作關係。

More importantly, the money could help Peugeot deal with some pressing problems. Peugeot argues its EUR4.15 billion net debt burden puts it at a disadvantage to debt-free global peers. The French group pays around EUR750 million a year in financing costs, which will be halved thanks to the deal. Peugeot still doesn't expect to generate operational free cash flow until 2016.

更重要的是，這筆資金能夠幫助標緻應對一些緊迫問題。標緻聲稱，其41.5億歐元的 負債令其在面對沒有債務的全球同行時處於不利地位。標緻每年支付約7.5億歐元的融資成本，而與東風的交易完成後，這個數字將減半。標緻預計要到2016年才能實現運營 現金流。

The deal, however, should allow Peugeot to fund much-needed investment. Global auto makers on average put about 8% to 9% of their sales toward capital expenditure and research and development. The French car maker spends about two percentage points less than its rivals.

但該交易應能讓標緻得以爲急需的投資項目提供資金。全球汽車廠商平均將8%-9%的銷售額投入到資本開支和研發。標緻這方面的開支約比競爭對手低兩個百分點。

As a result, Peugeot is behind in hot areas like hybrid technologies. It also needs to invest in markets like Russia and Latin America. In Russia, Peugeot buys just 30% of parts locally, which leaves it exposed to swings in currencies and makes it harder for the French company to compete.

因此，標緻在混合動力技術等熱門領域落後於同行。它還需要投資於俄羅斯和拉美等市場。標緻在俄羅斯當地採購的零部件僅佔30%，因此容易受到匯率波動影響，參與競爭的難度也更大。

Peugeot still has plenty of problems. But with more money, a new chief executive and signs of recovery in Europe, the French auto maker is fast running out of excuses.

標緻還有諸多問題。但有了更多的資金、新的首席執行長和歐洲市場復甦的徵兆，這家法國汽車廠商很快就沒借口了。