Wanda’s sports spinoff would help trim flab 5 Jan 2018 The Chinese conglomerate could float sports assets acquired in haste, including a sports marketer and a triathlon organiser, Reuters says. Fresh funds could help cover offshore debts. Streamlining might also persuade regulators to let the main property unit list onshore.
Breakingviews predicts a frothy, frustrated year 5 Jan 2018 Money is cheap, the global economy is motoring, and tech is reshaping the world. Populism is still driving discord and uncertainty, but markets are ebullient. From elections to electric cars, we offer a series of insights into what 2018 has in store for companies and economies.
Beijing will allow a local government default 5 Jan 2018 Despite a long campaign to rein in rampant off-balance sheet borrowing by cash-strapped regional authorities, the practice remains pervasive. Next year officials will tolerate the once-unthinkable: a bond default. That will rattle fixed-income investors onshore and off.
Electric cars will catch up with gas guzzlers 5 Jan 2018 Plans to ban dirty vehicles are stoking investment in clean transport, driving down costs. Consumers could find battery power as cheap as combustion engines for the first time in 2018. But it will be harder to drive up profitability. Automakers will struggle as margins tighten.
Brookfield bets on nuclear plants aging gracefully 4 Jan 2018 Cost overruns building expensive, controversial nuclear plants got Westinghouse into trouble. Servicing, fueling and decommissioning them, however, is a more predictable business. That makes the $4.6 bln Brookfield is paying for the bankrupt Toshiba unit look realistic.
Viewsroom: Debt markets set for wild ride 4 Jan 2018 More government borrowing and less central bank buying will force bondholders to fend for themselves, Breakingviews predicts. Plus, passive funds will force out a CEO, electric vehicles give gasoline cars a run for their money and soccer clubs’ spending splurge will intensify.
Oil bulls look to Trump rather than Iran protests 4 Jan 2018 A tightening global balance of supply and demand for crude means geopolitical shocks could push up prices. Anti-government protests in Iran seem unlikely to disrupt production. A looming U.S. decision on whether to revisit sanctions could have a bigger impact.
Didi provides glimpse into its global playbook 4 Jan 2018 In its first big step abroad, the Chinese ride-hailing powerhouse is paying $600 mln for control of Brazilian peer 99. The buddy-up first and buy later approach could mean Grab, Lyft or Ola will be next. It also suggests Didi-backer SoftBank may have a master plan, after all.
A 400 pct Chinese broker premium begs explanation 4 Jan 2018 Fog is thickening around a missing tycoon’s embattled empire. One holding of Xiao Jianhua’s Tomorrow Holdings, Hengtou Securities, said nine owners will sell a stake to CITIC Guoan for $1.4 bln, or five times the market price. Such mysteries undermine Hong Kong's investor appeal.
Hong Kong will start atoning for missing Alibaba 4 Jan 2018 The city lost many Chinese tech listings to New York. But it is building a critical mass of stocks, analysts and investors, and is poised to weaken governance rules in favour of founders. That sets the stage for the IPOs of rising stars Didi, Toutiao and Meituan-Dianping.
M&A frenzy sets scene for epic tug-of-war 3 Jan 2018 The $3.6 trln of mergers announced in 2017, including huge deals from Disney and Broadcom, sets up some chunky targets for cost cuts. That means job losses, even if buyers say not. Yet given the political climate, shareholders can’t count on the extra profit being theirs to keep.
Tech salad will come with a side of SLAW in 2018 3 Jan 2018 Spotify, Lyft, Airbnb and WeWork are all potentially going public in the coming year. None of them may ever match the scale of a FAANG or BAT. But each is disruptive in its own way, and offers investors a unique play on the future of cities, mobility, work and play. Bon appetit!
Hadas: Albanian mania is cautionary crypto tale 28 Dec 2017 Back in 1996, the Balkan state went wild for investment funds offering 30 percent monthly returns. The final cost was 2,000 lives and five years of lost GDP growth. Bitcoin’s 24 percent monthly gains in 2017 show similar foolishness, but a quick collapse could limit the harm.
Ant’s U.S. march may require China-like steps 3 Jan 2018 Jack Ma's payments business will have to rethink its global strategy after its MoneyGram deal was vetoed. Even an alliance is at risk if rival Euronet bids anew. Instead, just as U.S. companies have bought small stakes in China, Ant could do the same with Western Union or PayPal.
China’s small-fry banks will start merging in 2018 3 Jan 2018 Squeezed by tighter money, cooling property and anxious regulators, the country’s 4,399 lenders will begin to consolidate. Some deals will boost efficiency; others will force crummy assets into healthier banks. For foreign buyers, the challenge is telling which is which.
Duterte’s infrastructure push needs more than cash 2 Jan 2018 A new revenue-raising tax bill will help Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte pay for a “golden age of infrastructure” to increase competitiveness and living standards. The challenge will be to deploy the proceeds efficiently and without fostering corruption.
Ant’s MoneyGram fail becomes America First symbol 2 Jan 2018 Jack Ma’s financial offshoot has scrapped its $1.2 bln purchase of the U.S. cash-transfer company. The Alibaba boss made nice with Donald Trump early on, but his pledge to spark 1 mln American jobs wasn’t enough to get the deal past a new, and bipartisan, prickliness with China.
Predictions 2018 2 Jan 2018 From elections to electric cars, we offer a series of insights into what 2018 has in store for companies and economies. Read our predictions online or download the book
What we got right – and wrong – in 2017 2 Jan 2018 Breakingviews foresaw a dip in mega-deals; bank bailouts in India; and a “Chinese” turn in U.S. governance. But columnists overestimated the pace of change in America, and some fantasy M&A stayed precisely that. With 20/20 hindsight, silence was not always golden either.
Our 2018 predictions on Reuters TV 31 Dec 2017 From the CEOs who should run for U.S. president, to the banks that ought to be sizing up mergers, our writers give their take on the coming year in a series of Reuters video reports.