The man who smokes, shoots rabbits and invests
We noted the ascendancy of Lou Jiewi to his post as the head of China’s new investment company. Unlike his associate Gao Xiqing, he appeared to be something of a rough cut stone. We learned a little more about him today, as he tours the US. WSJ:
Lou Jiwei, chairman of China Investment Corp., which has $200 billion in assets, is in the U.S. for a series of meetings that have so far included the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, the state’s big pension fund, and scheduled sessions here yesterday with the Treasury secretary, the head of the International Monetary Fund, congressional heavyweights and World Bank senior management…
“We’re focusing on financial portfolios,” he said in a session at the World Bank…Mr. Lou said China sought investments in natural-resource conservation and clean energy. “Although I smoke myself, we won’t invest in the tobacco industry,” he said…
Mr. Lou said CIC’s $5 billion investment in Morgan Stanley wasn’t typical of what he is seeking. He said Morgan Stanley had approached CIC, comparing the opportunity to a rabbit appearing in front of a simple farmer. “If we see a big fat rabbit, we will shoot at it,” he said. But commenting on the plunge in the stock market since the December investment, he said, “Some people may say we were shot by Morgan Stanley.”
Americans have increasingly lost touch with what life was like prior to this modern splendor. A man who smokes and shoots at big fat rabbits appears in some ways a more robust figure by comparison. Not surprising. After all, China is simultaneously living in both the 19th and 21st centuries.