Seoul-Beijing feud cues Lotte to end China misery 3 Mar 2017 The South Korean retailer is under attack from Beijing for letting Seoul use its land for a defence system. Chinese state media is vowing to make life hard for the group. It's hard already. Losses in China have sparked a founding family spat. This rift is a good excuse to exit.
Moms’ fashion chain returns going out of style 2 Mar 2017 J.Jill's IPO may quintuple its private-equity owner's investment. The company has stitched together a better set of financial threads than many rivals, but faces the same threats all retailers do. Buyers hoping to replicate TowerBrook's successful design are pushing the seams.
White House circles America’s welcome wagons 2 Mar 2017 Donald Trump has become the world’s antagonizer-in-chief, questioning the One China policy and imposing travel bans. Interest in visiting the United States, where foreign tourists spend $250 bln a year, has plunged since he took office. A damaged image will hurt the economy.
Viewsroom: SoftBank deal frenzy lacks hard logic 2 Mar 2017 The giant Japanese tech firm has been on a global M&A tear, but shareholders aren’t buying it. President Trump's mix of details-free policy pledges and jingoistic militarism looks dazed, confused and dangerous. Plus: Silvio Berlusconi's AC Milan sale puts Chinese buyers offside.
Cox: Snap IPO marks moment investors donned sweats 2 Mar 2017 The "camera company" debuted successfully because buyers swapped pinstripes for baggy cotton and abrogated their right to fair treatment, good governance and reasonable valuations. If $24 bln Snap becomes the next GoPro, shareholders have only their capitulated selves to blame.
Wells Fargo beats Yahoo on crisis clawbacks 2 Mar 2017 Both companies are docking executives' pay for failing to deal with long-running scandals. Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer is losing some 2016 and 2017 bonuses after a 2014 security breach. Wells' decision to reach further back in time is a more appropriate response to a multi-year mess.
Schulz woos German voters with wrong reforms 2 Mar 2017 Angela Merkel’s Social Democratic challenger wants to roll back some of the labour market reforms pushed through 15 years ago by his own party. This plays well with voters but may harm Germany’s growth prospects. Abandoning excessive fiscal rigour would be the better U-turn.
Growth fetish glues Henkel to value-destroying M&A 2 Mar 2017 The German consumer group is offering $1 bln for GCP Applied Technologies’ sealants and coatings unit Darex. At 16 times the target’s operating profit, Henkel will struggle to cover its cost of capital. The pricey bid is a side-effect of the group’s over-ambitious growth targets.
Cobham’s repeat cash call shows danger in defence 2 Mar 2017 The troubled British military electronics maker is anything but defensive. After reporting a full-year loss it has unveiled plans to raise 500 mln pounds through its second rights issue in a year. Despite hopes for higher spending on armaments, a recovery could be elusive.
Complexity blunts AB InBev’s cost-cutting flair 2 Mar 2017 The mega-brewer expects savings from its SABMiller tie-up to reach $2.8 billion, 14 percent more than its initial estimate. Yet the upgrade is significantly smaller than it managed with previous deals. Taking on ever-bigger targets is testing its knack for squeezing expenses.
GAM offers modest change for big challenges 2 Mar 2017 Under attack from an activist, the Swiss fund manager has shaken up its board. Chairman Johannes de Gier will be replaced by director Hugh Scott-Barrett. That may not be enough to placate shareholder RBR. The bigger issue, though, is that clients are still pulling funds.
Macau’s hot streak depends on mainland momentum 2 Mar 2017 Gaming magnate Sheldon Adelson was right: Macau did hit bottom last year. Casino revenue in the gambling enclave keeps rising, up 18 pct last month to a two-year high. But everything hinges on China's economic health. If strains worsen, Macau's fortunes could change fast.
Northern Ireland may bolster case for own spinoff 2 Mar 2017 If Thursday’s elections produce a stalemate, London may have to rule the thorny region directly. The 9 bln pound cost per year of propping up the region is likely to grow after Brexit, but a united Ireland is problematic too. The north is a prize no one wants.
China bike-sharing turns into VC pileup 2 Mar 2017 Startups Mobike and ofo have raised huge sums. But a glut of venture capital sloshing around, combined with misguided state support for entrepreneurship, has attracted a parasitic swarm of competitors too. Without policy changes, investors could suffer, as could the public good.
Market delivers crazy love letter to China’s FedEx 2 Mar 2017 A rally in the newly listed firm behind SF Express makes boss Wang Wei one of China's richest men. At roughly $40 bln, his company is now worth nearly as much as Deutsche Post. That looks like an overreaction, driven by hype over e-commerce and a shortage of tradeable shares.
Exxon stakes long-term growth on short-term fixes 1 Mar 2017 New CEO Darren Woods is ramping up shale drilling to help quickly replace reserves the company recently wrote off. That should shore up any concerns about the dividend for now. But the quest for growth while prices remain under pressure may require more investments.
Cigna-Anthem slugfest may leave both deal-impaired 1 Mar 2017 The two U.S. healthcare insurers are knocking each other around in court over their busted $54 bln merger. Anthem hopes to avoid paying a break fee, while Cigna wants $13 bln in damages. As they fight what are likely to be losing battles, they could miss other M&A opportunities.
Berlusconi benefits from Chinese M&A own goal 1 Mar 2017 The $780 mln sale of AC Milan is the latest takeover to suffer as Middle Kingdom investors struggle to match dealmaking desires with reality. A Chinese consortium may further delay buying the soccer club, handing Italy's controversial businessman and ex-PM a much-needed boost.
Bridgewater’s radical reality is a revolving door 1 Mar 2017 Ray Dalio is relinquishing management duties at the hedge-fund goliath to focus on investing. His co-CEO also stepped down after just 10 months on the job. The $160 bln firm promises radical transparency and truth. Investors may feel shortchanged on both counts.
Amazon outage triggers internet alarm 1 Mar 2017 Websites, apps, connected cameras and the like went dark on Tuesday after a breakdown of the online giant's cloud service. Amazon's dominance, Silicon Valley's self-confidence and users’ reluctance to pay extra for backup all add up to rising risk for the internet of things.
Hadas: Enough with the cult of Warren Buffett 1 Mar 2017 The sage of Omaha's folk wisdom and America cheerleading have been big factors in the unwarranted worship of his style of financial capitalism. Buffett's investing prowess is laudable. He is, however, a big winner in a zero-sum game, and that actually does little for the economy.
Dimming Olympic flame casts long shadow on bloat 1 Mar 2017 Budapest saw the light and became the fourth city to drop its bid for the 2024 Summer Games, leaving only Los Angeles and Paris in the race. With the ranks of potential hosts getting exhausted, one good way to save the global athletic fest would be to cut events back to basics.
France’s Macron faces peril of becoming mainstream 1 Mar 2017 Former front-runner Francois Fillon is persisting with a presidential bid despite new legal woes. That should help Emmanuel Macron. But the centrist is rapidly losing the useful cachet of being an outsider in what’s becoming a straight contest with far-right leader Marine Le Pen.
Research “Big Bang” sifts losers from megastars 1 Mar 2017 Sellside firms must charge fund managers an explicit price for European securities analysis from next year. Research is already competitive - hence brokerage CLSA chopping 90 staff in the Americas. More jobs will go, even as the best analysts command fatter pay packets.
ITV will struggle to fight solo in content wars 1 Mar 2017 The UK broadcaster’s revenue grew by 3 percent in 2016, as its production arm offset a bleak ad market. Low debt means ITV can add to its content locker, even after paying a special dividend. Stiff competition, though, suggests it might be better as target than acquirer.
Burberry self-help makes light work for activists 1 Mar 2017 Billionaire Albert Frere, who was among investors that drove change at Adidas, has built up a 3 percent stake in the trenchcoat-maker. With a turnaround plan and new boss in place, there’s less to do at Burberry. Still, Frere can help ensure the company sticks to its knitting.
Man offers fund managers contrarian bet on selves 1 Mar 2017 Disappointing growth hit the asset manager’s pumped-up shares. It feeds into broader fears over the challenges faced by active management. Yet Man and other stock pickers ought to benefit from central banks printing less money. On that basis its shares don’t look stretched.
HK gas spat should squeeze more from Air Products 1 Mar 2017 A buyout firm has upset the U.S. group's pursuit of Hong Kong-listed Yingde Gases with a rival $1.5 bln proposal. Investors think the intervention could force a higher proposal out of Air Products. That would be a victory for outside shareholders after a rocky few months.