China plugs big loopholes in real estate crackdown 8 Jan 2021 Beijing has capped bank property loans as a percentage of total credit, a blunter, harsher approach than previous efforts. Indebted developers will suffer, as will lenders. It’s a sign of official confidence that the economic cost of restraining housing speculation is bearable.
Li Ka-shing buybacks would rebuild value 6 Jan 2021 Cash is rolling in from $28 bln CK Hutchison’s restructuring of European and Canadian assets. The Hong Kong billionaire’s ports-to-pharmacies group plans to repurchase stock. With deal-making curtailed by geopolitics, shareholders will appreciate the gesture.
Corona Capital: Spanish banks, British houses 30 Dec 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Unicaja and Liberbank become the latest Spanish lenders to announce a merger; Britain’s housing market continues to defy the country’s dire economic prospects.
Landlords’ post-virus refit will leave scars 29 Dec 2020 Remote working and a boom in e-commerce will force property owners to embrace a makeover. If Amazon and co buy defunct malls and offices become flats, asset values in the $33 trln market could recover. But even post-revamp they will be worth less than five years ago.
Corona Capital: Poverty, Beer cans, Budget hotels 24 Dec 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Hong Kong’s poverty problem was getting worse even before the virus struck; AB InBev sells the family aluminium to cut debt; Whitbread, owner of hotel chain Premier Inn, tries to get its landlords to share the pain.
Corona Capital: Holiday Zoom 18 Dec 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: The video call company is removing the 40-minute time limit on free calls for the holidays – a gift it can easily afford, and one that may not be appreciated.
Viewsroom: Bank dividends and Chinese rentals 17 Dec 2020 European regulators’ cautious lifting of a ban on bank dividends leaves investors in limbo, plus details of an unusually bold growth strategy from Credit Suisse. And the collapse of China’s WeWork-like apartment rental middlemen has left many young tenants homeless and in debt.
Corona Capital: Merck sells Moderna stake 2 Dec 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: The U.S. drugmaker is banking its winnings on an investment in Covid-19 vaccine producer Moderna that dates back to 2015.
Corona Capital: Bitcoin, Lonely Planet 1 Dec 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Bitcoin hit a record, buoyed by inflationary fears, new fans and plain old speculation. Meanwhile Lonely Planet has found a new owner, as it wrestles with an anything-but-lonely market for travel information.
Norway’s offices are prize in $3.4 bln bidding war 26 Nov 2020 Sweden’s Castellum launched an offer for Entra days after the Oslo-based group rebuffed a bid from real estate rival SBB. Reliable government tenants and a relatively stable economy are alluring in a sector ravaged by the pandemic. But the bidders will struggle to create value.
India adds distress to distressed debt deals 25 Nov 2020 Tycoon Gautam Adani narrowly outbid U.S.-based Oaktree with a $4 bln bid for insolvent housing lender DHFL. The offer, however, was submitted late and cheekily expanded on its original plan. It’s the second time the industrialist has blindsided foreign buyers in a worrying trend.
Corona Capital: DraftKings, Palantir Technologies 13 Nov 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: DraftKings gets lucky; Palantir needs to hike faster.
China property IPOs face a problem of plenty 12 Nov 2020 Developers from Sunac to Evergrande are listing management units in Hong Kong, offering exposure to real estate without the usual policy risk. That only goes so far to justify towering valuations as the scarcity value of these asset-light, fast-growth businesses is fading fast.
Corona Capital: Lyft, Vaccine minefield, Peru 11 Nov 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: The U.S. ride-hailing company is tempted by food delivery; Pfizer could face high demand for its coronavirus vaccine; and Peru gets another leadership shuffle just as Covid-19 cases soar.
Corona Capital: Salvatore Ferragamo 10 Nov 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Faded heels-and-loafers brand Salvatore Ferragamo could benefit from a coronavirus vaccine-induced return to airport shopping, but the Florentine fashion house would still need a makeover.
Activists shove Unibail towards chastening Plan B 10 Nov 2020 French mogul Xavier Niel blocked the mall owner’s planned $4 bln rights issue. That’s embarrassing enough for Unibail boss Christophe Cuvillier. But the only realistic way to fix the balance sheet holes from the Westfield acquisition he masterminded is to sell valued U.S. assets.
Corona Capital: Cars, Kalashnikovs, Houses 6 Nov 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Japanese carmakers put their feet down thanks to China’s bounceback; Russia’s Kalashnikov gets a new owner; and rich-country housing markets look surprisingly cheery.
Corona Capital: Ferrari, E-commerce, Fox 3 Nov 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Ferrari leaves its auto rivals in the dust; Russia’s online marketplace Ozon heads for a New York IPO; and Fox avoids the virus-induced advertising drought.
Corona Capital: Friendly’s and Dunkin’ Donuts 2 Nov 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Two Massachusetts casual-dining chains change hands, one in bankruptcy. Friendly's found Covid-19 even more unfriendly than did Dunkin' Brands.
Beijing comes banging on real estate’s door 29 Oct 2020 The central bank has asked developers to report monthly investments, loans and more. It’s an extraordinary step to rein in China Evergrande and peers, which have amassed over $2.5 trln of debt. President Xi Jinping’s push to reallocate investment out of property is gaining steam.