Consumer Products and Services

P&G’s innovation drive could use a boost

19 October 2018

Healthy consumers helped the consumer-goods giant report strong sales. Even its troubled razor business has sharpened up a little. P&G is following activist Nelson Peltz’s advice and trying new things. With costs rising and pricing power weak, it can’t afford to slacken the pace.

Unilever and Nestlé’s growth tests pricing power

18 October 2018

Higher prices helped the consumer goods giants boost revenue in the third quarter. Both need to keep charging more to offset rising costs. The risk is that price-conscious customers go elsewhere. It ultimately depends on whether the world economy can cope with higher inflation.

China’s share-backed debt problem is a lasting one

16 October 2018

Some $220 bln of loans backed by stock collateral threaten to worsen a nearly $2 trillion selloff this year in the People's Republic. Beijing is likely to step in to contain the immediate risk, but higher lending costs and moral hazard will hurt for longer.

Beijing’s art auctioneers aim at Western duopoly

16 October 2018

Poly International and China Guardian now dominate the $7.1 billion global market for Chinese art and antiques. Having crushed smaller local rivals, they are expanding abroad. But their parochial, state-protected nature hobbles them. Sotheby’s and Christie’s look safe for now.

Patisserie Valerie fate rests on accounts’ hot air

12 October 2018

The cream cake chain will go under without fresh cash, and its CFO has been arrested. The group’s operating strength implies shareholder Luke Johnson should cough up. That hinges on whether the company’s big cash pile has been stolen, or whether the accounts themselves are rotten.

Tencent’s $230 bln selloff is a double pain

11 October 2018

A tech rout has hit the Chinese giant harder than U.S.-listed rivals like Alibaba. Tencent's loss is increased by its exposure to fickle mainland punters and a large emerging market weighting. But boss Pony Ma’s top problem is a regulatory crackdown undermining the core business.

Self-fulfilling prophecy imperils Chinese shoppers

10 October 2018

Tourism spending during last week’s Golden Week holiday grew a healthy 9 pct from a year ago to nearly $90 bln. Any “consumer downgrade” seems more informed by alarming anecdotes than any hard data so far. There are good reasons, though, to fear the spread of skittish sentiment.

Storage IPO makes sense in a smaller container

8 October 2018

Shurgard, which rents storage lockers to urban dwellers, is raising 575 mln euros to pay off debt and expand. It operates in more countries than UK rivals, with high occupancy rates and margins. At a valuation of 2 bln euros, the low end of the range, it should be a safe choice.

Mattress Firm is the stuff of retail nightmares

5 October 2018

The bed store owned by South Africa’s Steinhoff is filing for bankruptcy protection, and blame spreads wider than a king-sized duvet. Overexpansion, underpricing, predatory online rivals and Chinese dumping make for a fable about how retailers can fail even in a healthy economy.

Unilever bows to corporate version of Brexit revolt

5 October 2018

The Anglo-Dutch group ditched a vote to move its head office to the Netherlands after UK shareholders rebelled. The saga shows the limits of the special treatment that large multinationals can ask from politicians. It also demonstrates what investors can do when they join forces.

KKR takes sides in Southeast Asia’s tech battle

5 October 2018

The buyout firm is investing in a leading Filipino payments startup, alongside Tencent. The main rival is backed by Alibaba. Chinese giants and SoftBank have been burning cash to win users in a regional war of attrition. KKR may get caught in the crossfire.

Unilever should delay its head office vote

3 October 2018

A growing number of UK shareholders oppose the Persil maker’s choice of Rotterdam as its base. Postponing the vote would give investors more clarity on Dutch tax changes, and Unilever more time to spell out the benefits of the shift. Pushing ahead risks an embarrassing defeat.

BHP can hide behind Unilever dual-listing mutiny

2 October 2018

Some big shareholders oppose the Dove soap maker’s plan to switch to one, Dutch, headquarters. Pushy investor Elliott has been calling for a similar corporate overhaul at the world’s largest miner. There are differences, but the campaign for simplicity just got more complicated.

H&M gets too much credit for a patchy new look

27 September 2018

A glitchy supply chain sent the 23 billion euro fast-fashion retailer’s pre-tax profit down a fifth in the third quarter. Strong online demand was a rare bright spot. Investors who bid up the stock 10 percent ignore high levels of unsold stock and sales growth well below targets.

China’s tariff cuts are silver lining of trade war

27 September 2018

Import taxes on many industrial goods are coming down, expanding earlier reductions and lowering the overall rate to 7.5 pct from 9.8 pct. That may blunt charges of protectionism abroad and help companies at home. Expected savings also should result in a stronger Chinese economy.

Unicorns spawn new fantastical tech beasts

27 September 2018

Just a few years ago, a mythology sprang up around startups with a $1 bln paper valuation. India’s Oyo Hotels just became the latest to raise at least that much cash in one go. For the unbridled chaos these investment creatures represent, they might best be labelled centaurs.

Chinese pharma R&D mixes up a potent IPO formula

26 September 2018

WuXi AppTec, a $13 bln group which carries out research and clinical trials for the likes of Pfizer, will list in Hong Kong. An overhaul of mainland rules to spur local drug development means business is booming. After a healthy debut in Shanghai, investors will take note.

Unilever has itself to blame for investor revolt

25 September 2018

A growing group of shareholders want to block the Pot Noodle maker’s plan to pick Rotterdam over London as its global HQ. The move’s benefits are overshadowed by uncertainty over how UK investors will be taxed. Rushing the decision has left Unilever more vulnerable to opposition.

Casino is loser in slanging match with Carrefour

24 September 2018

The troubled French grocer says it talked with its larger rival about a potential tie-up. The latter denies anything of the sort. An informal chat may have occurred but the Rallye-owned supermarket has scuppered a potential fix for its problems by revealing too much too early.

Chinese movie app IPO misses the red carpet

21 September 2018

The owner of ticket seller Maoyan wants to raise up to $1 bln in Hong Kong. Revenue has been climbing, but the unprofitable group is fending off Alibaba in a subsidy war. Box office numbers have cooled too, after a crackdown on fraudulent sales figures and several major flops.