Note to D.C.: Jack-hammer away on infrastructure 3 Aug 2016 With interest rates at record lows, there's growing support on the campaign trail for rebuilding U.S. roads and bridges. Donald Trump called for at least doubling the $275 bln in spending proposed by Hillary Clinton. To grow jobs, wages and GDP, it's a policy deserving of a deal.
Tax overhaul boosts Modi’s reform credentials 3 Aug 2016 India is set to pass a bill paving a path to a long-awaited goods and services tax. Exemptions will dilute the potential boost to growth. But the bill is evidence that the prime minister can compromise to get things done. That bodes well for a long wish list of other reforms.
China’s draconian IPO rules squeeze foreign banks 3 Aug 2016 Local media say the securities watchdog may seize licences from brokerages that don't properly audit firms that come to market. Other recent rules leave underwriters exposed to botched listings. That might help cut the IPO backlog. It also further sidelines foreign banks.
Cox: Trump’s taxes underscore bizarre campaign 2 Aug 2016 The GOP candidate is being goaded reality-TV style by Warren Buffett and Mark Cuban to disclose his IRS returns. At stake isn't just whether he paid enough as with Mitt Romney. Rather, Trump's billionaire bona fides are in question despite an election pegged on income inequality.
Regions will shore up China’s smaller banks 2 Aug 2016 Risk is mounting at midsized lenders, and capital buffers are eroding. Beijing wants to rein the upstarts in, but provinces need regional financial champions to keep lending. As Industrial Bank raises nearly $4bln from backers in Fujian, expect others to follow suit.
Uber can take fight for rest of Asia up a gear 2 Aug 2016 After folding its China unit into rival Didi, the ride-hailing app can compete harder elsewhere in Asia. It is less far behind India's Ola and Grab in Southeast Asia. Uber must balance the conflicts this could create with Didi with the need to show global growth.
Uber reverses out of dead end in China 1 Aug 2016 The U.S. ride-hailing app is handing Uber China to larger local rival Didi Chuxing. In exchange, Uber gets 20 pct of an enlarged $35 bln group. It's a humiliating reversal after a high-profile battle. The combined group can cut back on subsidies and focus on turning a profit.
Chinese investors up the ante in online games 1 Aug 2016 Gaming outfit Shanghai Giant, Alibaba boss Jack Ma, and partners are buying Israel's Playtika for $4.4 bln. This looks pricier than Tencent's recent purchase of the firm behind Clash of Clans. Plus, casino-style games are even more at risk of being overtaken by the latest hit.
Fosun’s deleveraging story strains credibility 1 Aug 2016 The Chinese conglomerate plans to offload up to $6 bln of assets by end-2017 to shore up its credit rating. Yet it has just unveiled new deals worth one quarter of that. Fosun is saying one thing and doing another. It may also find it easier to buy trinkets than to sell them.
BOJ does bare minimum for Abenomics reboot 29 Jul 2016 Japan's central bank added just $26 billion of equity funds to its annual asset-buying binge. That is about as little as it could do without disappointing markets or Prime Minster Shinzo Abe. The BOJ is running low on options and probably wants to keep some powder dry.
Baidu’s ad recovery is a work in progress 29 Jul 2016 Earnings at China's top search engine fell by over a third in the second quarter after a crackdown on healthcare advertising. Baidu says the setback is temporary and margins will recover. But other parts of its search business are vulnerable too. Investors may be too sanguine.
India pharma deal suggests Fosun is an M&A junkie 29 Jul 2016 The Chinese conglomerate's drug unit is buying India's Gland Pharma for up to $1.3 bln. Shortages should boost prices of injectable drugs in the U.S., a key market for the KKR-backed group. Either way, Fosun's latest deal binge jars with its promise to cut debt.
Trump Inc rapidly turning from virtue to vice 28 Jul 2016 Real-estate success helped him win the GOP nomination, but there's growing scrutiny of his record. Fellow New York mogul Mike Bloomberg led the charge at the Democratic convention. Trump's long trail of slippery business dealings will make his policy proposals harder to stand up.
UK banks can take heart from May’s radio silence 28 Jul 2016 The UK prime minister has so far avoided references to the financial sector. The silence may herald industry taxes to plug Brexit-linked revenue losses. But it might not, and UK lenders have less to fear on capital demands, structural separation and interest rates.
Cox: Banking ghosts haunt Clinton in Philadelphia 28 Jul 2016 Long before Donald Trump upended politics by excoriating the establishment, Andrew Jackson attacked a pillar of the City of Brotherly Love: the Second Bank. It got him re-elected and firmly established the Democratic Party, whose candidate is now threatened by a similar campaign.
Japan’s $265 bln spree is deliberately puffed up 28 Jul 2016 Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is touting a huge stimulus package to revitalize his "Abenomics" project. Actual new state spending will be far less. Still, the eye-catching total is designed to boost confidence, shore up his political support, and prod the Bank of Japan into action.
China’s bank watchdog is pushing on a balloon 28 Jul 2016 Regulators may restrict smaller lenders from the riskier parts of the $3.5 trln market for wealth management products. That would protect savers and limit the hazards caused by repackaging loans as short-term investments. Banks will probably just search for new loopholes, though.
TPP trade deal morphs into crude economic symbol 27 Jul 2016 Democrats are making the pact a bigger issue at their convention than even Republicans did at theirs. Team Clinton has been pushed to voice opposition. Specific ideas on how to fix TPP, however, are in short supply. The uproar also overlooks a real issue for workers: technology.
Europe gets pragmatic with budget delinquents 27 Jul 2016 The European Commission doesn’t want to fine Spain and Portugal for flouting EU budget rules. That may look toothless, but piling on fines when both are struggling to cut their deficits doesn’t make much sense and risks political backlash.
Barnier’s Brexit gig better than it looks for UK 27 Jul 2016 Brussels' ex-financial services tsar is to lead EU talks over Britain's exit. Michel Barnier has at times raised British hackles, but he largely treated the City of London fairly. Arbitration won't be smooth, but the identity of the negotiator could have been worse.