Australia's government said yesterday it would decide within three months whether it would be in its interest to allow Chinese steelmaker Sinosteel Corp (中國中鋼) to increase its stake in Australian iron ore miner Murchison Metals Ltd.
Australia’s Foreign Investment Review Board announced on Wednesday that state-owned Sinosteel is barred for 90 days from buying a “substantial shareholding” in the Western Australia state miner.
Sinosteel already holds a 2.4 percent stake in Murchison, but applied to the government last month to increase that holding to more than 15 percent.
Sinosteel has not said how much of Murchison it wants, although media reports say it wants to take the company over. A company spokesman was not immediately available for comment yesterday.
National newspaper the Australian reported yesterday that the 90-day delay signaled a significant toughening of the government’s approach to Chinese investment in Australia.
However, Treasurer Wayne Swan, who makes the final decision on such foreign acquisitions based on a national interest test, said the move merely sets a firm timetable for his ruling.
“We welcome foreign investment. We welcome it from everywhere, including from China,” Swan said. “But we will apply decisions on a case-by-case basis in the national interest.”
Swan declined to discuss the merits of Sinosteel’s acquisition of Murchison, a relatively small player in Australia’s growing iron ore industry.
The newspaper said the government is apparently concerned about any consolidation of Chinese control in the vicinity of the Murchison mine after clearing Sinosteel in January to buy 100 percent of Midwest Corp, another iron ore miner in the area.
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