It's 10.27am on a rain-drenched morning in mid-June, less than two weeks before the handover of Hong Kong to China. It is the annual general meeting of a China-backed company in one of the territory's top hotels.
The company is a record-breaker. When it listed in 1993 it locked up a staggering HK$240 billion ($31 billion) of investors' money - more than all the notes and coins in circulation in the former colony, now a special administrative region of China.
In fact ever since it was listed the company has traded below its issue price. Principally a manufacturer of cars, it is currently producing just enough to keep its factory in Guangzhou open. Last year's losses soared 144%. Its joint venture partner, Peugeot of France, has pulled out. Are there furious investors barracking directors? How many hours will the AGM last? These are the questions Euromoney puts to a spokesman for Denway Investments as we wait outside.
He barely has time to answer. The AGM is over in 11 minutes. The whole thing is conducted in Cantonese. About 20 investors are there.