Airtel, Vodafone boosted by Indian telecoms ruling 2 Feb 2012 The Supreme Court’s revocation of 122 licences hurts all those using spectrum awarded in the scandal-ridden sale of 2008. But those relying on earlier licences – notably Airtel and Vodafone – should benefit as the market consolidates and threadbare margins rise.
Facebook IPO won’t bring major status update 1 Feb 2012 Already, it essentially has the capital, liquidity and profile of a big publicly listed company. Disclosures will be news only to non-investors. And Mark Zuckerberg will stay firmly in control. The most public private company may just become one of the more private public ones.
Facebook IPO lays bare Wall Street’s laggards 1 Feb 2012 Goldman losing the top spot after leading last year’s investing round is a mild embarrassment. More startling are the absences of Citi and Credit Suisse from the lineup. Shunned by Facebook and falling in the league tables, both risk losing their bulge bracket status.
Hoare Govett deal a boon to both buyer and seller 1 Feb 2012 Jefferies is snapping up RBS’s corporate broker for a song. It could be a handy springboard for the U.S. firm to try to follow JPMorgan’s success using Cazenove to reach UK boardrooms. And it’s an important, if symbolic, first step in state-owned RBS’s investment-banking retreat.
Asia no refuge from U.S. slump for multinationals 1 Feb 2012 For a while, the region’s fast-growing economies helped global behemoths counter lackluster growth in developed markets. But export-dependent Asia has now succumbed. The likes of Caterpillar, DuPont and UPS are losing a key source of global revenue growth.
BofA could do more with its chairman-CEO split 1 Feb 2012 Citi board boss Dick Parsons was flawed but his contacts and visible cool helped the bank in its time of need. His tenure, which may end soon, contrasts starkly with that of Charles Holliday, BofA’s little-known chairman. BofA just isn’t making the most of its good governance.
Freddie outrage needs to end in reform 1 Feb 2012 The U.S. mortgage giant is back in the crosshairs, this time for purported bets against homeowners. The latest tempest, however, is a distraction. Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae need fundamental remodeling. Critics would do well to focus on that rather than political point-scoring.
Post-slump, Cemex expansion looks damaging 1 Feb 2012 The Mexican cement giant grew mightily, but economies of scale top out quickly and transportation costs are high. The forecast loss for the latest quarter is modest, but if big losses outside Mexico continue the company’s $8.1 bln of debt maturing in 2014 will pose a big problem.
NYSE/DB execs deserve spanking for merger failure 1 Feb 2012 Duncan Niederauer and Reto Francioni spent a year pursuing a transatlantic tie-up that the EU never favored. While not as egregious as AT&T’s bid for T-Mobile USA, their ambitions have proven a costly distraction. At the very least, the two should forfeit their bonuses.
Google feeds regulators fresh meat to chew on 1 Feb 2012 Antitrust concerns have swirled around the Internet search giant for years. Now, changes to its data-sharing policies are causing added alarm among lawmakers. So far, Google hasn’t crossed any major legal lines. But the company, led by Larry Page, seems destined to find them.
Ethical economy: The tough road to sensible taxes 1 Feb 2012 President Obama can’t keep his rhetoric straight on taxes. In single speech he endorsed both simplicity and complexity. He’s hardly alone. Confusion and distortion are well-established tax traditions. The first step to a better system is to give justice the highest priority.
Nomura bucks the trend, but not enough 1 Feb 2012 The Japanese bank returned to profit in the last quarter as corporate finance rebounded and fixed income held up. Given dismal markets and the exit of top banker Jesse Bhattal, it could have been worse. But investors will need further improvement to justify keeping the lights on.
Intesa heralds peripheral funding thaw 1 Feb 2012 Italy’s second-largest bank has become the first lender from the euro zone periphery to issue senior unsecured bonds since October. It’s another sign the ECB’s three-year liquidity is helping unfreeze markets. But the expensive deal shows that bank funding is far from normal.
Shanghai needs bigger ideas to be a global hub 1 Feb 2012 The Chinese city has outlined ambitious plans to build a global yuan trading centre by 2015. But key reforms are missing. Without freer capital flows, exchange rate flexibility, and a more open financial regime, Shanghai’s markets can be huge, but not really international.
Europe can’t force Greece into never-default land 1 Feb 2012 Germany would like to prevent Greece from ever defaulting, by forcing it to dedicate its resources to service its debt first. This looks both legally unenforceable and politically untenable. The reality is that Greece will default if it wants to.