Antong Holdings, parent company of Chinese domestic operator Quanzhou Ansheng Shipping, will receive around US$8.4 million in government subsidies, after disclosing estimated losses of at least US$428 million for 2019.
Antong was placed under judicial management to restructure its debts on 18 December 2019 after failing to settle payments to suppliers, including container lessors and bunker suppliers. The company said it also risks being delisted from the Shanghai Stock Exchange.
A company representative told Container News that operations remain normal, and that repayment plans are being discussed with creditors.
Antong said the world economic slowdown in 2019 and US-China trade tensions affected demand for domestic container shipping. The outlook for 2020 remains uncertain, with COVID-19 affecting economic activity.
Quanzhou Ansheng is 16th in Alphaliner’s Top 100 liner operators, with a total carrying capacity of 145,772TEU. The company operates approximately 50 container routes on China’s coast and on the Yangtze River.
Although publicly listed, Antong’s founders, brothers Guo Dongze and Guo Dongsheng, retain over 54% of the company’s shares.
The first sign of trouble in the Antong group arose in May 2019, after the China Securities Regulatory Commission issued a warning to Antong for providing RMB2.48 billion (US$358 million) of funds to Guo Dongze for his personal use.
Around the same time, Fujian Southeast Shipbuilding applied to the Chinese courts to freeze Antong’s assets over non-payment for four feeder vessels that were ordered in December 2017. Antong revealed in June 2019 that several parties had filed lawsuits against the company, claiming around RMB600 million (US$86.8 million) after Guo Dongze allegedly provided unauthorised guarantees. This resulted in the Guo brothers’ shareholdings in Antong being frozen by the courts.
The government subsidy, announced on 13 March 2020, purports to support the business operations of Antong’s subsidiaries.
The Chinese government appears to have initiated a bailout of Antong in September 2019, when two state-owned entities, China Merchants Port Holdings (CMPH) and AVIC Trust, established China Merchants Antong Logistics Management Co., a joint venture with Antong. AVIC Trust also set up a trust fund to finance Antong’s logistics business.
Subsequently, the Guo brothers removed themselves from Antong’s management, with CMPH’s Vice-General Manager, Zheng Shaoping, appointed Antong’s chairman.
Martina Li
Asia Correspondent
