, Columnist
Symbolism Is the Wrong Word for China NYSE Delisting
Kicking three mainland telcos from U.S. exchanges sets a dangerous precedent.
A political move that Beijing will be sure to reciprocate, in time.
Photographer: Brent Lewin/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
It’s easy to dismiss the forced delisting of three Chinese companies from the New York Stock Exchange as symbolism. Instead the move should be branded with a far more powerful word: precedent.
When history is written, it won’t matter that China Mobile Ltd., China Telecom Corp. and China Unicom Hong Kong Ltd. were thinly traded telco stocks. The only thing people will remember is that the U.S. administration started it, leaving the door open for Beijing to follow suit.