Asia-Pacific

CLSA exodus leaves owner Citic with an empty shell

20 June 2019READY SOON

The brokerage's star analysts are being poached by rivals like Credit Suisse and Jefferies. They take with them much of the brand value China's Citic Securities paid $1.3 bln for in 2013. Such mergers are always tough. But the state-owned group missed opportunities to do better.

Potash makes better sense for BHP than shale

19 June 2019

The miner is weighing whether to press ahead with a $20 bln Canadian project, its most significant investment in years. BHP shareholders, scarred from past blunders, are understandably wary. There may be a case, though, that potash will be more like iron ore than fracked oil.

Apple’s march from China is long and inevitable

19 June 2019

The idea of the iPhone maker shifting 30% of production elsewhere may concentrate minds as the U.S. and China square up in trade talks. Such a move would take years. Detroit and London show economic clusters rarely implode. But they can erode, and the process is hard to stop.

Vision Fund may be Hotel California for investors

19 June 2019

SoftBank’s $100 bln vehicle is almost spent, and CEO Masayoshi Son’s Gulf sponsors are mulling whether to back a sequel. High returns help; toppy valuations don’t. The problem is that tightening Saudi and Emirati purse strings may dent confidence in current cash-burning startups.

Hadas: Hong Kong teaches lessons on taming China

19 June 2019

The Asian financial hub is a special case, but its mass protests make clear that single-minded resolve can push back against an increasingly prosperous and autocratic People’s Republic. Similar focus would help foreign businesses and governments. Donald Trump is mostly failing.

Gloating over Hong Kong distracts Taipei

19 June 2019

President Tsai Ing-wen made an unlikely political comeback largely thanks to unrest in the financial centre that rallied anti-Beijing sentiment. But the island’s citizens are unlikely to glean any economic benefit from Hong Kong’s pain. Tsai’s reform to-do list remains too long.

Central banks can only nudge towards greener world

18 June 2019

The Bank of France boss says climate change may end up being a stagflationary shock. That’s a good reason for rate-setters convening in Portugal to care about global warming. But meddling too much may imperil their independence. It’s up to governments to make a real difference.

China infrastructure bump comes at steeper cost

18 June 2019

Beijing is tweaking rules to allow local authorities to step up spending on public projects, which might add 4 percentage points to infrastructure growth this year. Rule changes should let officials borrow more, but they will face a harder time generating returns.

Sweden provides a cautionary digital tale for HSBC

18 June 2019

Hong Kong’s new online banking licences open the UK-based titan to new challenges in a market that accounts for 30% of pre-tax profit. Scandinavian giants such as Swedbank quickly fell prey to startups. And HSBC will be up against the likes of tech-savvy Alibaba and Tencent.

UBS sets a troubling precedent in China

17 June 2019

The Swiss bank put economist Paul Donovan on leave after misconstrued comments triggered outrage in the mainland. Local rivals fed the unwarranted flare-up. The episode hints at new pressures for outsiders in the country; excessive subservience, however, creates bigger headaches.

Toyota uses financial heft to hedge green bets

17 June 2019

The $176 bln behemoth is spreading clean energy investments across pure electric cars and hybrids as well as hydrogen, partnering with rivals like Subaru to reduce costs. The company’s sheer scale makes the strategy feasible, but Nissan’s more conventional solution is a threat.

Beijing yields to Hong Kong’s financial clout

15 June 2019

Carrie Lam has suspended a bill that would have allowed extradition to the mainland, backing down after protests rocked the city she leads. It’s a defeat for her, and leaves egg on the central government’s face. But for China, Hong Kong’s economic utility trumps political control.

Review: Why an AI apocalypse could happen

14 June 2019

Elon Musk and Stephen Hawking have warned that superintelligent machines could destroy humanity. In "The AI Does Not Hate You", journalist Tom Chivers offers a terrifying primer on why they should be taken seriously. Governments and companies, though, still need convincing.

China’s UK stock debutante lacks a return ticket

14 June 2019

Huatai Securities is set to become the first Shanghai-listed company to offer depositary receipts in London, raising up to $1.7 bln. Its pioneer status should be good marketing for the broker. Plans by UK-listed companies to make the reverse trip, however, remain a distant dream.

Dan Loeb pushes a hidden Sony jewel into the light

14 June 2019

The activist behind Third Point wants the $60 bln Japanese conglomerate to spin off its chips business. It's a sensible step to simplify the sprawl, even with trade tensions and cooling tech demand today. Autonomous cars and snazzy smartphones make its long-term prospects shiny.

Adani’s coal victory Down Under is pyrrhic

14 June 2019

The Indian group has a green light to start digging at Australia's $1.5 bln Carmichael mine, after years of opposition. Yet prices for power station fuel are soft, and the market is oversupplied. Its billionaire owner will feel vindicated, but it's hard to see how he makes money.

Hurricane Trump may give Beijing some cover

14 June 2019

A torrent of rising U.S. tariffs threatens to wash out some of China’s growth. There’s far more behind the slowdown, but just as CEOs cite bad weather to obscure underlying issues, officials could use the trade war to release more stimulus or just blame Trump for missed targets.

Viewsroom: When dealmaking gets difficult

13 June 2019

Raytheon and United Technologies’ planned $114 bln tie-up raises questions about strategy, cost cuts and executive overreach. It’s prompted their shares to tank and activist Bill Ackman to oppose it. And Fiat Chrysler and Renault’s mooted merger has crashed. Can they salvage it?

Pulled IPO sets grim tone for Hong Kong markets

13 June 2019

Warehouse operator ESR shelved plans for a $1.2 bln float, a day after police and demonstrators clashed violently in the Asian financial centre. A high price was one issue, but unrest plus economic headwinds formed a perfect storm. It’s a bad sign for others in the queue.

Trump gives China’s homegrown tech goal a boost

13 June 2019

Beijing’s move to grant 5G telecom licences early is a show of trade war bravura, given the foreign inputs required. Much of its industrial policy, though, has been about encouraging long-term self-sufficiency. Washington’s assault on equipment-maker Huawei now leaves no choice.