Hisense Kelon Electrical Holdings Limited, Hisense Kelon or Kelon , , formerly Guangdong Kelon Electrical Holdings Company Limited, is one of the largest white goods manufacturer in China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

, producing refrigerators, air conditioners, freezers and small electric appliances. The company is well known for its brand names Kelon and Rongsheng on mainland China

Mainland China

Mainland China, the Chinese mainland or simply the mainland, is a geopolitical term that refers to the area under the jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China . According to the Taipei-based Mainland Affairs Council, the term excludes the PRC Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and...

. The head office of the company is located in Shunde

Shunde

Shunde District is a district of Foshan prefecture-level city in the Pearl River Delta, Guangdong Province, southeast China.-Administration:Shunde was a county-level city until December 8, 2002, when it became a district of Foshan prefecture-level city...

, Foshan

Foshan

Foshan is a city in central Guangdong province in southern China. The prefectural area under the city's jurisdiction over an area of about 3,840 km² and a population of 5.4 million of which 1.1 million reside in the city proper ....

, Guangdong

Guangdong

Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...

.

History

Founded in 1984 in Shunde, an industrial county

County

A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain modern nations. Historically in mainland Europe, the original French term, comté, and its equivalents in other languages denoted a jurisdiction under the sovereignty of a count A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain...

 in Guangdong, Kelon started to produce refrigerators. Its H shares were listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange

Hong Kong Stock Exchange

The Hong Kong Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in Hong Kong. It is Asia's third largest stock exchange in terms of market capitalization behind the Tokyo Stock Exchange and the Shanghai Stock Exchange and fifth largest in the world...

 in 1996, while A shares were listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange

Shenzhen Stock Exchange

The Shenzhen Stock Exchange is one of the People's Republic of China's two stock exchanges, alongside the Shanghai Stock Exchange. It is based in Shenzhen, China...

 in 1999. In 2006, Hisense Group, another large-scale white goods manufacturer in Qingdao

Qingdao

' also known in the West by its postal map spelling Tsingtao, is a major city with a population of over 8.715 million in eastern Shandong province, Eastern China. Its built up area, made of 7 urban districts plus Jimo city, is home to about 4,346,000 inhabitants in 2010.It borders Yantai to the...

, Shandong

Shandong

' is a Province located on the eastern coast of the People's Republic of China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history from the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River and served as a pivotal cultural and religious site for Taoism, Chinese...

, acquired

Takeover

In business, a takeover is the purchase of one company by another . In the UK, the term refers to the acquisition of a public company whose shares are listed on a stock exchange, in contrast to the acquisition of a private company.- Friendly takeovers :Before a bidder makes an offer for another...

 Kelon and became Kelon's largest shareholder

Shareholder

A shareholder or stockholder is an individual or institution that legally owns one or more shares of stock in a public or private corporation. Shareholders own the stock, but not the corporation itself ....

. In 2007, the company name was changed to Hisense Kelon Electrical Holdings Limited after the acquisition.

H shares trading suspension for 3.5 years (2005 - 2009)

On June 16, 2005, Kelon announced suspending trading its H shares due to "pending the release of an announcement in relation to price sensitive information". It is because Kelon's former chairman and largest shareholder, Gu Chujun

Gu Chujun

Gu Chujun is a Chinese convicted criminal and former business executive and entrepreneur. He is a native of Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province.He studied at Tianjin University and became the Chief Executive Officer of Gelin Ker Holding in Hongkong and the Kelon Group.He acquired Hisense Kelon, Meiling...

, was involved in seizing company assets and was being investigated by the Foshan

Foshan

Foshan is a city in central Guangdong province in southern China. The prefectural area under the city's jurisdiction over an area of about 3,840 km² and a population of 5.4 million of which 1.1 million reside in the city proper ....

 police

Police

The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...

. Gu was later dismissed by the Board of Directors

Board of directors

A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...

of Kelon. The case was settled by the Intermediate People’s Court of Foshan City on 9 January 2009. H shares then resumed trading on 21 January 2009.