In a way, the private equity market in China looks similar to the ways things looked in the U.S. during the late 1970s. Basically, the opportunity was massive. Of course, one of the big beneficiaries was KKR.

Well, the firm is also jumping into the action in China. This week, KKR led an investor group that invested $160 million in a Chinese financial leasing firm, called International Far Eastern Leasing Co Ltd. The other investors included the Government of Singapore Investment Corp and China International Capital Corp. Having such strategic partners is a necessity in China (in terms of dealing with the complex regulations).

Eastman Kodak (NYSE: EK - option chain) stock is trading lower today after the company announced yesterday evening that it will offer $300 million of convertible senior notes due 2017 in a private placement to qualified institutional buyers. Additionally, the private equity fund Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. will buy up to $400 million in notes due in 2017 in exchange for two seats on EK's board of directors. If you think this stock won't be rising too far in the coming months, then it could be a good time to look at a bearish hedged play on EK.

This morning, EK opened at $6.34. So far today the stock has hit a high of $6.34 and a low of $5.81. As of 12:15, EK is trading at $6.16, down 52 cents (-7.8%). The chart for EK looks bearish and S&P gives EK a negative 2 STARS (out of 5) sell ranking.

In the wake of last week's public offering of Dollar General, more IPOs are expected to be coming down the pipeline as private equity firms seek a monetary return on investments made during the boom years. Speculation is that Toys "R" Us and Dunkin' Donuts could be next.

Toys "R" Us Inc. is owned by Bain Capital, KKR, and Vornado Realty Trust (NYSE: VNO). The world's leading dedicated toy and baby products retailer was a public company from 1978 until its acquisition by the private equity consortium in July 2005 for $6.6 billion. It has more than 1,500 stores in 33 countries, and its businesses include Babies "R" Us, eToys.com, and FAO Schwarz, the latter two acquired earlier this year. Main competitors include privately owned KB Toys, as well as big-box retailers Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT).

Over the past few years, it's been hard to find successes in private equity. But, in the case of KKR, there is no doubt that it made a good deal in the leveraged buyout of Dollar General in July 2007 (the company had been public since 1968). The price tag was $7.2 billion.

Now, the company has filed to go public. And, in light of KKR's recent success with the Avago (NASDAQ: AVGO) public offering -- as well as the resurgence in the equities markets -- there's a good chance that Dollar General will also get a nice reception.

As seen on the Blackstone Group's (NYSE: BX) latest earnings conference call, the firm is trying to find ways to diversify its platform beyond buyouts (this is no fluke as other firms, like KKR, are doing the same thing). One of the areas of interest is actually hedge funds.

To this end, Blackstone made a big hire this week, bringing Byron Wien on board as the vice chairman of Blackstone Advisory Services. Actually, he is leaving Pequot Capital Management Inc., which is a hedge fund that is in the process of closing down (assets were as high as $15 billion). The firm is now faces an SEC investigation regarding trading in Microsoft's (NASDAQ: MSFT) stock. This is according to a report in the Wall Street Journal [a paid publication].

Despite the credit crunch and recession, private equity powerhouse, the Blackstone Group (NYSE: BX), was still able to post a profit of $180.8 million in Q2. How was this possible? It certainly helped that the equities markets surged. The upshot was that the Blackstone company portfolio had an average mark-up of 3%.

Yet, the fact remains that the buyout business continues to lag. While valuations are attractive, the problem is that banks continue to be stringy with funding. Unfortunately, without leverage, it's pretty tough to generate strong returns.

Avago has a rich history, going back more than 40 years. In fact, the roots of the company come from Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ).

Yesterday, Avago has set a new chapter in its history; that is, a public offering. The company issued 43.2 million shares at $15 each, which was at the top of it $13-$15 range. What's more, Avago was able to sell 7.2 million more shares than expected.

Avago develops analog semiconductor devices, with a portfolio of roughly 6,500 products. The target markets include diverse areas like wired infrastructure, industrial/automotive electronics, wireless communications and even computing peripherals. Yes, Avago's solutions are certainly ubiquitous.

Shares of private equity firm Blackstone Group (NYSE: BX) surged 21% on Monday. The question is why?

Some have attributed the surge to investors buying on speculation of an upside surprise from Thursday's earnings report. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect the New York-based company to report fiscal third quarter earnings of $0.09 per share, compared to a loss of $0.07 per share in the second quarter, but also a profit of $0.15 per share in the year-ago quarter. Revenue for the third quarter is expected to be 9.1% lower than a year ago to $341.9 million.

The market has made a nice rebound over the past few months, and one question is on every investor's lips: Can it continue?

To get an answer, it might not be a bad idea to look at what the private equity firms are planning. Remember when The Blackstone Group (NYSE: BX) decided to cash out with an IPO and it marked the exact top of the private equity boom? Take a look at how that stock has performed since then.

Well, now The Financial Times reports that "Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, the world's biggest buy-out group, is preparing up to six companies for initial public offerings worth billions of dollars, including Toys 'R Us, as it sells some of its most valuable groups back to the stock market."

At the height of the private equity bubble – in July 2007 – KKR agreed to purchase Dollar General for $7.2 billion. To pull off the deal, KKR was able to borrow $4.7 billion.

Of course, the bubble has since burst and, as a result, there are few successes for the private equity folks.

But now KKR is sensing opportunity. According to a report from the Wall Street Journal [a paid publication], it looks like the firm is in the late stages of filing the necessary legal documents to take Dollar General public.

KKR & Co. is a step closer to being publicly traded, now that the board of its Amsterdam-traded buyout fun has given the green light. If a majority of the unitholders in KKR Private Equity Investors LP (OTC: KPE), the listed fund, consent, the transaction could be finished by October 1, 2009.

This would result in KKR's finally reaching an exchange. The private equity fund tried to go public via initial public offering (IPO) in 2007, after the Blackstone Group (NYSE: BX) raised $4.75 billion that way, but market conditions scuttled the attempt.

Even though the internet continues to erode the music business, there is still investor interest in the sector. Just look at private equity powerhouse KKR. The firm has agreed to form a joint venture with Bertelsmann that will focus on music rights management (KKR will get 51% of the entity).

Actually, even though Bertelsmann has been shedding its music business over the past few years, there are still remaining assets. So, why not lower the risk of these assets by bringing in a financial partner?

When The Blackstone Group (NYSE: BX) went public, many observers -- myself included -- were concerned by the total lack of corporate governance checks and balances.

But at the time, the private equity industry was so hot that Blackstone could do no wrong, and no one cared enough to complain. But now that KKR is mulling a plan to list on the New York Stock Exchange, things could be different. The wheels have come off the industry, at least for now, and the arrogant attitude of "We'll tell you what we feel like telling you and you'll like it" may not play so well.

American International Group (NYSE: AIG), once the world's largest insurer, is selling assets outside the U.S. to repay a government bailout. The Carlyle Group, KKR, JC Flowers, and other U.S. private equity firms and Asian financial groups are reported to be interested in AIG's Taiwanese unit Nan Shan Life Insurance Co.

"Everyone hopes this is going to be a fire sale as AIG is in a difficult situation," said a local partner of Standard & Poor's.

The $52 billion merger of Anheuser-Busch InBev has resulted in some nice opportunities for private equity firms. For example, KKR recently purchased a division of the firm -- Oriental Brewery Co. (the number two brewer in South Korea) -- for $1.8 billion.

Doesn't sound like a lot? Well, it is a big deal. In fact, it's the biggest private equity deal in nine months.