Features

Apollo’s divergent path outshines Blackstone

28 Sep 2023

Marc Rowan’s $55 bln asset manager found permanent capital in insurance. Steve Schwarzman’s firm uses small-fry investors. That led Apollo to safer assets, while Blackstone is leaning into buyouts that suffer from high rates. Apollo’s valuation can shed its boringness discount.

Microsoft’s gaming M&A takes it to the next level

27 Sep 2023

The $2.4 trln group’s Activision deal has been picked at by regulators, and it’s exposed to consoles that may be upended by cloud gaming. Still, the $69 bln play diversifies Microsoft into mobile. And it leaves the group better placed to fight the industry’s content wars.

Meloni’s Italian job is a lesson for EU’s right

26 Sep 2023

In her first year, the PM pledged Rome’s commitment to NATO and fiscal discipline. That may be a template for nationalist parties trying to copy her success. Yet she also wasted time on culture wars. As growth stalls and immigration soars, the rest of her term will be tougher.

Green energy’s tailwinds blow the other way

22 Sep 2023

Falling costs, cheap capital, and supportive politicians spurred a $7 trln global rush into renewable power. Now fractured supply chains and higher interest rates mean the transition is more expensive. These new headwinds will test the resolve of consumers - and of governments.

Saudi’s $700 bln PIF is odd sort of sovereign fund

21 Sep 2023

Hyperactive transactions, erratic funding and an unusual asset mix set the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund apart from more cautious state-run investors. As Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman tries to reach $2 trln by 2030, the PIF will keep making headlines – both good and bad.

Anti-obesity drugs can shrink more than patients

20 Sep 2023

Wegovy and other weight-loss treatments could transform public health. That may hurt medical, food and fitness companies, while potentially affecting activities from drinking to gambling. This shrinking revenue demands a new investment concept: total unaddressable markets.

New economic rules shatter US bonds’ crystal ball

19 Sep 2023

Government debt has been signaling a downturn for 440 days, but there’s been no recession. The famed predictive power of the yield gap between different vintages of Treasuries is waning. As the global economy evolves, warnings from the fixed-income markets can be safely ignored.

Guest view: Bank balance sheets hide climate risks

15 Sep 2023

While regulators fret about lenders’ exposure to higher interest rates, the dangers from global warming are building in the shadows. Unless banks reset their financial statements, investors and the planet will be worse off, writes Natasha Landell-Mills of Sarasin & Partners.

Disney starts drafting broadcast TV’s grand finale

14 Sep 2023

Boss Bob Iger, whose career started at ABC, is now mulling how best to separate the business. Rival network owners Comcast, Paramount and Fox eventually will grapple with the same decision as linear TV viewership dips below 50%. The financial scripts are destined to be messy.

China’s growth is buried under great wall of debt

13 Sep 2023

Local government investment arms owe $11 trln to creditors including state banks. That’s hobbling the world’s second-largest economy. Beijing needs to force asset sales and let some fail. It will be painful but relying on consumers who are unwilling to spend is a dead end.