Corporate China’s feverish pursuit of foreign assets has triggered a battle for Starwood Hotels & Resorts, after a group led by Anbang Insurance sought to trump Marriott with a $13bn bid for the owner of the Sheraton chain.

中国企业对境外资产的狂热追逐引发了围绕喜达屋酒店及度假村国际集团(Starwood Hotels & Resorts)的竞购战，以安邦保险(Anbang Insurance)为首的一个财团寻求压过万豪(Marriott)，对喜来登(Sheraton)连锁酒店的东家发出了总价约130亿美元的收购要约。

Just a day after Anbang agreed a $6.5bn purchase of US group Strategic Hotels & Resorts, the all-cash bid is the latest act in an aggressive global buying spree by Chinese companies seeking overseas assets as growth slows at home.

就在前一天，安邦同意斥资65亿美元收购美国酒店集团Strategic Hotels & Resorts，这笔全现金收购是中国企业在全球积极抢购的最新行动。随着国内经济增长放缓，中国企业正寻求收购境外资产。

The bid throws into disarray Marriott’s planned takeover of Starwood, agreed in November, although the US hotel operator said yesterday it remained committed to closing the deal.

这一收购报价无疑是给去年11月达成的万豪兼并喜达屋计划添乱，尽管这家美国酒店运营商昨日表示，它继续致力于完成这项交易。

The bid for Starwood is the boldest yet for Beijing-based Anbang, which has announced at least $23bn in purchases in 18 months, including the $2bn takeover of New York’s Waldorf Astoria hotel.

竞购喜达屋是总部位于北京的安邦迄今发起的最大胆行动。该集团在过去18个月已宣布至少230亿美元收购交易，包括20亿美元收购纽约华尔道夫酒店(Waldorf Astoria hotel)。

Debt-fuelled Chinese companies have been splashing out billions of dollars on assets globally, putting them on track for another record year of acquisitions. Overseas spending by Chinese buyers this year has already reached $102bn, according to Dealogic, just shy of last year’s record of $106bn.

中国企业近来以债务为依托，砸重金在全球范围抢购资产，使它们有望在今年再度刷新收购总额纪录。Dealogic的数据显示，中国买家今年以来的境外支出已经达到1020亿美元，逼近去年全年1060亿美元的纪录。

The unlisted Anbang has powerful political connections. Wu Xiaohui, who founded it in 2004, is married to the granddaughter of Deng Xiaoping, China’s former leader and architect of its transition out of a planned economy.

未上市的安邦具有强大的政治背景。2004年，吴小晖创立了安邦保险集团，他的妻子是中国前领导人、改革开放总设计师邓小平的外孙女。

Under Mr Wu, Anbang has grown rapidly; the size of its registered capital rose from Rmb500m ($77m) in 2004, to Rmb61.9bn ($9.5bn) a decade later. Anbang has sought to emulate the model adopted by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway of using insurance premium cash to fund acquisitions.

在吴小晖执掌下，安邦快速发展壮大；其注册资本从2004年的5亿元人民币（合7700万美元）增至10年后的619亿元人民币（合95亿美元）。安邦试图仿效沃伦•巴菲特(Warren Buffett)的伯克希尔•哈撒韦公司(Berkshire Hathaway)采用的模式，即利用保费收入为收购提供资金。

Anbang has bought a variety of international assets, from Canadian property to Dutch insurance, in the past two years. The only setback was the collapse of a 3.5bn bid for Portuguese lender Novo Banco, after political objections scuppered what would have been the first Chinese acquisition of a systemically important European bank.

从加拿大的地产到荷兰的保险公司，安邦在过去两年收购了形形色色的国际资产。唯一的挫折是以35亿欧元收购葡萄牙银行Novo Banco的计划告败。若交易成功，那将是中国企业首次收购欧洲一家具有系统重要性的银行，但该交易遭到了政治上的反对。

Starwood, which declined to name the bidders, said the unsolicited bid valued its shares at $76 each — higher than the present value of Marriott’s cash and stock offer, which was worth about $63.74 after its shares fell yesterday .

不愿透露竞购者名称的喜达屋表示，这一主动出价相当于每股76美元，高于万豪现金加股票报价的现值（在其股价昨日下跌后约为每股63.74美元）。

Shares in Starwood, which also owns the St Regis and W Hotel brands,rose 7.5 per cent to $75.69 just before midday in New York. Anbang’s partners in the consortium are JC Flowers and China’s Primavera Capital Group, one person involved in the bidding process said.

喜达屋旗下还拥有瑞吉酒店(St Regis)和W酒店(W Hotel)品牌。该集团股价在纽约午盘前上涨7.5%，至75.69美元。参与竞购过程的一名人士表示，安邦在财团中的合作伙伴是JC Flowers以及中国的春华资本集团(Primavera Capital Group)。

Anbang tried to buy Starwood last year, when the US group was undertaking a strategic review, according to one person familiar with the matter.

据一名知情人士透露，安邦去年就曾试图收购喜达屋，当时喜达屋正在进行战略评估。

While Anbang appears to be building an American hotels portfolio, the businesses of Starwood and Strategic Hotels are very different. Starwood manages properties, most of which it does not own. Strategic Hotels owns properties that are managed by other hotel brands.

尽管安邦似乎在构建一个美国酒店的资产组合，但喜达屋和Strategic Hotels的业务非常不同。喜达屋管理很多酒店地产，其中大部分的业主并不是该集团。Strategic Hotels拥有的酒店地产则由其他酒店品牌进行管理。

Marriott has granted Starwood a waiver to discuss a deal with Anbang, which expires on March 17.

万豪已授权准许喜达屋与安邦讨论交易，这一授权将在3月17日到期。