ICYMI: Premier League soccer club Manchester United is in the final stages of a tense bidding war. In this Viewsroom podcast, our columnists debate the merits of different offers, and what they mean for its investors 🔊
ICYMI: Premier League soccer club Manchester United is in the final stages of a tense bidding war. In this Viewsroom podcast, our columnists debate the merits of different offers, and what they mean for its investors 🔊
ICYMI: Premier League soccer club Manchester United is in the final stages of a tense bidding war. In this Viewsroom podcast, our columnists debate the merits of different offers, and what they mean for its investors 🔊
Covid-19 has halted anti-government protests, but tensions are simmering in Hong Kong. Lawyer and author Antony Dapiran
@antd
tells
@mak_robyn
why another summer of discontent is all but guaranteed in the latest edition of The Exchange. Listen here:
China is ramming through laws to suppress sedition and foreign meddling. Sloppy U.S. retaliation against trade and investment flowing through Hong Kong would hurt. The city is in danger of getting crushed between two battling giants, says
@petesweeneypro
: .
ICYMI: Premier League soccer club Manchester United is in the final stages of a tense bidding war. In this Viewsroom podcast, our columnists debate the merits of different offers, and what they mean for its investors 🔊
ICYMI: Premier League soccer club Manchester United is in the final stages of a tense bidding war. In this Viewsroom podcast, our columnists debate the merits of different offers, and what they mean for its investors 🔊
Covid-19 has halted anti-government protests, but tensions are simmering in Hong Kong. Lawyer and author Antony Dapiran
@antd
explains to
@mak_robyn
how local officials and Beijing are using legal means to silence opponents in this edition of The Exchange:
It is only a few years since the Grexit horror movie ended. But sadly Greece’s creditors, investors and allies need to start worrying about the country again, writes
@Hugodixon
:
Joshua Wong was imprisoned last year for organising protests in 2014. In his new book "Unfree Speech", he makes a convincing case that China's tightening grip on the financial hub is part of a broader threat to global democracy.
@sharonlamhk
Police shot a protester in Hong Kong during clashes on Communist China’s 70th anniversary. Beijing’s quandary has become starker: it needs to restore calm for economic stability, but tougher intervention will fuel further unrest, says
@jgfarb
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been re-elected despite concerns he strong-arms the central bank, judiciary, and media. If he pushes them too hard, India’s democratic institutions will struggle to hold up, warns
@ugalani
It’s time to worry about Greece again. The country’s high deficit and debt are a cause for concern when interest rates and energy prices are rising, writes
@Hugodixon
:
REVIEW: “The push and pull over enacting and expanding the Magnitsky Act, which played out in U.S. courtrooms and backrooms, carries a warning for those enforcing sanctions against Russia today.”
@dasha_reuters
reviews
@Billbrowder
’s “Freezing Order”
American companies have had plenty of time to consider what a Joe Biden presidency will mean for them. Here is what the 2020 election will mean by industry, from finance to tech to weed to transport.
Soccer club Man Utd is in the final stages of a tense bidding war. List to our columnists debate the merits of offers from a Qatari suitor and a chemicals tycoon in this week's podcast 🔊
As president, Joe Biden augurs predictable policymaking and decisive action on Covid-19. But he faces big challenges: a progressive wing rejected by voters, a sore loser with months left in office and a potentially Republican Senate, says
@johnsfoley
.
Jamie Dimon’s latest letter to shareholders is one of his most useful, as he lays out what customers, investors, employees and voters have a right to expect, writes
@AntonyMCurrie
.
ICYMI: Elon Musk is buying Twitter in the name of free speech. Beijing will lean on him to un-ban its troll army, then push him to comply with its extra-territorial sedition law. Tesla's key Shanghai outfit risks being a pawn in the fight:
@petesweeneypro
ICYMI: The crisis in Ukraine is a tectonic shift for global finance.
Investor turned anti-corruption campaigner
@Billbrowder
joins
@dasha_reuters
on The Exchange podcast to discuss
Vietnam checked Covid-19 and is set to be one of the fastest growing economies in the world this year. It’s already a manufacturing dynamo, and looks like a good destination for companies as they shift supply chains out of China, says
@mak_robyn
: .
Huawei, Oppo, Xiaomi and Vivo, have joined together to build a shared platform to rival the Google Play store. It could threaten some 5% of the topline at the $1 trillion parent Alphabet and the de-facto U.S. dominance of Android:
@petesweeneypro
Watch: Tesla shares dropped after the carmaker missed earnings expectations. But CEO Elon Musk is rarely concerned about daily price moves. He’s helping investors by focusing on long-term value.
Dish is acquiring $5 billion in assets from Sprint and T-Mobile US. It also bought more time to use its spectrum. But legal challenges and a tough wireless market still stand in the company’s way, writes
@rob_cyran
.
Capitalist South Korea is dabbling deeper in socialism. President Moon Jae-in likes the idea of the country’s corporate titans sharing their pandemic profit with struggling smaller peers. Longer-term fixes deserve more attention.
@mak_robyn
From finance to tech to weed to transport, companies have had plenty of time to consider what a Joe Biden presidency means. Here is what the 2020 election will mean industry by industry.
Jeff Bezos has transformed shopping, but the way Amazon treats its workers is not so futuristic. Its approach might help short-term profit, but it hurts long-term innovation, writes
@GinaChon
.
After moving into TV and films, Blackstone is investing $1 billion with Hipgnosis Song Management to buy rights from artists like Shakira. Streaming is growing; this is an upbeat addition to Blackstone's playlist,
@jennifersaba
says.
Weeks before probes into U.S. Senator Kelly Loeffler were dropped, her husband donated to Republican campaign groups. The timing brings uncomfortable questions that could have been easily avoided, writes
@GinaChon
.
The Turkish lira’s alarming slide has made investors wary of any emerging country that shares too many of the same economic and financial vulnerabilities. Check out which country is it in the chart below and read
@swahapattanaik
view on
#Turkey
:
Rupert Murdoch’s $16 bln cable group, Fox News, has enjoyed an unrivaled relationship with President Donald Trump. Joe Biden’s victory would rob him of his biggest celebrity.
@jennifersaba
writes:
Chinese developer Evergrande admitted it may formally default. With $10 bln in property bonds maturing in January alone, officials are under pressure to keep the sector from collapsing. The solution is to put more housing in state hands, says
@ywchen1
The world’s central banks have maxed out monetary stimulus, making all safe havens less safe except one. Gold is having a renaissance in the 21st century.
Oman’s Sultan Qaboos is ill. If he dies as the Iran crisis rages, an opaque succession process and shaky finances could deprive a fractious region of a key backchannel when it’s most needed.
@gfhay
writes:
Porn, booze, tobacco, weed and chocolate consumption is rising as the pandemic is encouraging people to give in to baser temptations. But today’s virus vices store up tomorrow’s problems,
@aimeedonnellan
argues:
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is combatting a hot housing market by stopping property investors from deducting mortgage interest.
@jgfarb
explains why this approach might appeal to governments elsewhere:
Tesla has overtaken Toyota as the world’s largest carmaker by market worth. Undeserved as that may be, it shifts boss Elon Musk’s performance bonus into overdrive, writes
@AntonyMCurrie
.
Listen: Jonathan Tepper’s book “The Myth of Capitalism” is full of scary facts: two companies control 90 pct of America beer, while five banks account for half the country’s banking assets. He discusses the inexorable rise of monopolies with
@LiamWardProud
Australia is forcing Facebook and Google to share revenue with local media, after years of digital destruction and fake news scandals. Authorities elsewhere will be following the headlines from Down Under closely, says
@jgfarb
: .
President Joe Biden’s plan to send $1,400 to millions is a big sticking point to a stimulus deal. Compromising on who qualifies might clinch an accord. Restricting eligibility will also prevent the wealth gap from growing wider, says
@johnsfoley
.
In a little over six years,
@EliotHiggins
’ Bellingcat has uncovered the perpetrators of mass murder and human rights abuses. Its approach offers both journalistic and strategic lessons for the media industry, writes
@dasha_reuters
:
In "Blood and Oil", authors Bradley Hope and Justin Scheck detail the astonishing rise of Saudi Arabia's crown prince, MbS, through one of the largest royal families to a position of unprecedented power.
@ugalani
reviews the book:
The returns on investing in the net zero transition are increasingly attractive, while the cost of climate inaction could be five times greater still.
@MarkJCarney
and
@topnigel
write on getting finance in shape for
@COP26
in a guest view
Congresswoman Maxine Waters of California is now running the House Financial Services Committee. Wall Street will have to hunker down for a pummeling.
@GinaChon
Podcast: Hong Kong-based lawyer and author Antony Dapiran explains to
@mak_robyn
how local officials and Beijing are using legal means to silence opponents, and why another summer of discontent is all but guaranteed: .
Investors may not always believe China’s official data, but Apple’s warning that iPhone sales rapidly decelerated in the country sends an alarming message about the main engine of global growth.
@rob_cyran
Putin formally ordered troops into two separatist regions of Ukraine, raising the spectre of war. As oil surges toward $100 a barrel, riskier assets are falling out of favour. Any retaliation could further fuel inflationary fires, says
@petesweeneypro
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death hands Donald Trump his third U.S. Supreme Court pick. The anti-regulation bias could last a generation. That may be good for companies – less so their employees and customers, writes
@GinaChon
.
Donald Trump has the power to ramp up production of critical medical supplies and equipment using the Defense Production Act. But declaring the action is only a half-step, writes
@jennifersaba
.
The Ritz, one of London’s best-known hotels, has been sold to an undisclosed Qatari investor for 800 mln pounds. Covid-19 may have upended the world, but some assets are virus-proof, says
@KarenKKwok
:
The U.S. president’s address sparked more market panic. A $50 bln pledge for small businesses hit by Covid-19 is good, but his speech lacked public-health remedies, was full of mixed messages and focused on a Europe travel ban, says
@GinaChon
: .
Watch: A significant portion of shareholders at JPMorgan’s annual meeting pushed for an independent chairman and better information on climate risks. Jamie Dimon has returned to a more activist-looking group of investors, says
@AntonyMCurrie
.
Russian police cracked down on demonstrations in support of Alexei Navalny after his alleged poisoning and arrest. Exiled economist
@sguriev
joins
@dasha_reuters
to discuss how lower real incomes, corruption and YouTube drove people to protest. Listen here
Donald Trump may have lost the White House, but an army of Twitter followers and right-wing media will ensure him a platform. That will serve his interests, from staving off debt payments to being a thorn in the side of his successor, writes
@jennifersaba
:
Netflix is benefiting from lockdowns as people search for online distractions. The streaming service is now even harder for rivals to beat, writes
@jennifersaba
.
U.S. airlines face a dilemma: Taking government money means keeping more employees but diluting shareholders. But perhaps it’s about time, writes
@TheRealLSL
.
Military detentions of Aung San Suu Kyi and other ruling party figures in Myanmar represent a dark turn for a once-bright opportunity. An economy that lured tourists and foreign companies such as Kirin may be headed back to isolation, writes
@JennHughes13
Book review: In feting Rwanda’s ex-guerrilla president, donors and investors ignored autocracy and murder. Michela Wrong’s “Do Not Disturb” will make uncomfortable reading for his international cheerleaders, says
@edwardcropley
.
Loopholes in the U.S. bailout package have allowed large companies to receive money they don’t need, while some small businesses struggle to access the funds. Backlash has started to bubble up, writes
@GinaChon
.