Zoomlion Heavy Industry Science & Technology Co. offered to buy U.S. crane-maker Terex Corp. for about $3.3 billion, an attempt by the Chinese company to override an existing deal between Terex and Finland's Konecranes Oyj.
Zoomlion's unsolicited offer, which sent Terex shares soaring Tuesday, appears to be the first time a Chinese construction-machinery company has openly tried to buy a U.S. rival, analysts said. Chinese machinery manufacturers have had limited success penetrating the U.S. market with their own brands. China's equipment market?the world's largest?is mired in a prolonged slump.
Chinese companies have become more aggressive lately about pursuing deals amid concerns about China's weakening economic growth, investment bankers say. Last month, for example, an investor group including China Resources Microelectronics Ltd. and Hua Capital Management Co. made an unsolicited bid for Fairchild Semiconductor International Inc., which already had a deal to sell itself to fellow U.S. company ON Semiconductor Corp.
