Government & Agencies

Cox: France’s Macron can’t turn 41 fast enough

21 December 2018

The tail end of the president’s 40th year proved more eventful than he bargained for. The “gilets jaunes” caught him unawares and hardened the perception of him as an aloof dauphin. Business is still hopeful, but Macron needs more than rich Parisians’ backing to reform France.

U.S. cyber allegations risk bigger rift with China

20 December 2018

The United States indicted Chinese hackers while its allies condemned cyber thefts. The moves, like the recent detention of Huawei’s CFO, are ostensibly separate from trade talks, but Beijing won’t see it that way. The Trump administration may have to choose its priority target.

Drones prove disruptive capacity – in a bad way

20 December 2018

Rogue devices forced London's Gatwick airport to close, grounding flights and stranding thousands of passengers the week before Christmas. Even known risks with new technology - already highlighted by UK aviation authorities - can be hard to manage.

U.S. Oleg Deripaska deal tougher than it looks

20 December 2018

Washington’s decision to lift sanctions on En+ and allow the Russian oligarch to keep a 45 pct stake sounds lenient. Yet it looks difficult for Deripaska to sell his stake for cash or exercise decisive influence. After a messy beginning, the U.S. raid seems a qualified success.

Facebook headed for Big Tobacco-style backlash

20 December 2018

A number of U.S. states may follow the District of Columbia in suing the $380 bln social network for misusing customer data. It’d be reminiscent of the 1990s fight against cigarette makers. A similar outcome would leave Facebook paying huge fines and bound by tighter rules.

EU Brexit safety net still means trauma for London

20 December 2018

The bloc will allow banks to use UK clearing houses for a year, the minimum to spare $60 trln of swaps being cancelled if Britain can’t agree an exit deal. The temporary waiver also gives Europe a negotiating tool, and forces banks to shift business and staff across the Channel.

East Africa will buck global great rift trend

20 December 2018

Twenty-five years after genocide, Rwanda’s economy is motoring sufficiently to need new markets. The potential inclusion of Ethiopia would make East Africa a single market of 250 million people. If it prospers, it would provide a useful counterpoint to global balkanisation.

City is even less diverse than RBS makes it look

19 December 2018

The UK bank’s hire of a female CFO and potentially a female CEO too is unusual. But 50 FTSE-350 companies have no women on their executive boards at all. With firms often restricting them to non-P&L roles like HR, female CEOs will remain depressingly scarce.

Italy’s budget truce may yet herald 2019 hangover

19 December 2018

Rome’s anti-austerity executive has ended a damaging EU row by backing down over its deficit, cheering domestic asset prices. But its restraint looks largely cosmetic. Investors may soon fret about the risk of a recession and how to refinance public debt without much ECB support.

Mnuchin pins market volatility on wrong president

18 December 2018

The Treasury secretary partly blames the Obama-era Volcker Rule for big swings in stocks. But prices aren’t as choppy as 2009, before the prop-trading ban was adopted. And the rule barely affected equities trading. It’s the policies of Mnuchin’s volatile boss fanning the flames.

The 2019 stock market reversal: how it happened

18 December 2018

Few people would have disagreed at the beginning of the year that the nine-year-long bull market was reaching its end phase. That didn’t diminish the shock when stocks began to plunge in earnest. Breakingviews lays out a fictional account of how the good times came to an end.

UK audit reform leaves unfinished business

18 December 2018

Britain wants companies to use two auditors and stricter Chinese walls between consulting and book-keeping. The moves should help competition, but they won’t be as effective as radical options like breaking up groups and market-share caps, nor prevent failures like Carillion.

Xi passes up his chance to play Santa

18 December 2018

In a speech to mark 40 years since China’s shift to a more market-orientated economy, the president failed to announce bold new measures and wasted a chance to offer the U.S. trade concessions. It’s a stark reminder of how far hopes have fallen for liberalisation on Xi’s watch.

Boeing foots the bill for competitive misstep

17 December 2018

The aerospace giant lifted its offer for control of Embraer’s regional-jet business to $4.2 bln. It’s not the greatest deal – rival Airbus got Canada’s Bombardier for a song after Boeing’s aggressive trade tactics backfired. But it’s better to pay up than leave a flank exposed.

Facebook might be the JPMorgan of the tech world

17 December 2018

Mark Zuckerberg’s social network faces more Washington pain in 2019. But tougher internet regulation could increase the burden on rivals, as Dodd-Frank financial rules did to small lenders. Facebook may emerge stronger, like Jamie Dimon’s bank after its time in the hot seat.

Wall Street could use remedial lectures on culture

17 December 2018

The New York Fed’s push to improve industry behavior deserves top watchdog billing. Goldman’s 1MDB mess is only one reminder the message hasn’t totally sunk in. Slower economic growth in 2019 could expose more lapses. It’s a good time for boss John Williams to badger his charges.

Canada faces off against vampire squid to south

17 December 2018

U.S. tax cuts and protectionism are going to suck the life out of the Canadian economy. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has two options: join the fiscal race to the bottom, or address the reasons Canada was already falling behind its neighbor. Looming elections add to the urgency.

Eskom creditors may yet share South Africa’s pain

17 December 2018

Plans to fix a $30 bln debt crisis at the state power group hurt everybody but bondholders. Besides a state bailout and tariff hikes, the utility wants to cut a third of its wage bill. Union pressure and weak government finances mean private lenders could have to take a loss too.

J&J’s talc crisis will linger for years

14 December 2018

Investors erased $40 bln of market value after Reuters revealed the U.S. company knew for decades its baby powder was sometimes tainted by asbestos. Based on past consumer scandals, the real hit could be smaller but long-lasting. Lawsuits and brand damage don’t easily dissipate.

Review: The attack of the killer fridges has begun

14 December 2018

The world is ever more connected via the internet, from cars and power grids to home appliances and toys. That means ever more things are dangerously hackable, security expert Bruce Schneier writes in “Click Here to Kill Everybody.” His title isn’t as hyperbolic as it may sound.