Retail

Corona Capital: Wall Street blues, Grocers

4 June 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Pandemic pain is filtering through to investment bankers, and grocers’ viral boost passes its sell-by date.

Europe’s frenzied mall openings hide harsh reality

3 June 2020

Shares in landlords like Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield and Klepierre jumped after they reopened shopping centres. Queues outside IKEA suggest pent-up demand. But fewer shoppers and shorter visits will mean lower retail rents. Investors appear to be pricing in a 50% decline.

Corona Capital: Crisis loans, Jet fighting

3 June 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Bank customers are no longer making a dash for cash, loan drawdowns suggest. Meanwhile, a U.S. block on Chinese passenger flights suggests domestic battles haven’t dimmed President Trump’s desire to make China pay.

Corona Capital: Bank fears, Payments M&A, Coal

2 June 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: A new U.S. regulator wants cities to reopen to prevent bank robberies. Western Union may bid for struggling rival MoneyGram. And the pandemic is hastening the decline of U.S. coal.

Corona Capital: Tech diversity, CNN’s middle age

1 June 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: As big U.S. technology companies’ CEOs speak out about racial inequality, working from home trends could give them a chance to make a real difference; and 24/7 news network CNN feasts on Covid-19 as it turns 40.

Mall-to-retailer relationships will get creative

29 May 2020

Brookfield Asset Management launched a $5 bln fund to invest directly in retailers. It’s an effort to salvage some of the Canadian mall owner’s top customers. As Neiman Marcus and J.C. Penney march into bankruptcy, other real estate owners will rethink traditional rents, too.

Boohoo’s shopping spree needs to nail more looks

28 May 2020

The $5 bln UK online fashion group is buying out minority investors in peer prettylittlething for $400 mln. The fair price counters short-seller warnings of an overly generous payout. Yet the retailer will need to stretch beyond skin-tight tat to justify its own rich valuation.

Corona Capital: GE cash burn, Macy’s lifeline

28 May 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: General Electric’s cash flow will be more negative than expected as Covid-19 damages its aviation and power businesses; and U.S. department-store chain Macy’s borrows more, buying time but not much else.

Vegan boom is heading for a meat-fuelled bust

26 May 2020

Sales of animal product-free food soared in May, bumping up shares in the likes of Beyond Meat. Viral outbreaks at slaughterhouses suggest vegan supply chains are more durable. But as beef giant Tyson cuts prices and a slump looms, appetite for pricier foods could wane.

Alibaba may be China’s secret stimulus weapon

22 May 2020

The e-commerce firm is benefiting as millions of shoppers turn online - quarterly sales rose 22% to $16 bln. But overall domestic demand is weak and Alibaba has been handing out subsidies to kickstart businesses. That makes the $569 bln giant ideally suited to revive consumption.

Corona Capital: Perpetual WFH, Macy’s

21 May 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Facebook and its peers consider making working from home the new normal, while Macy’s gives an insight into a corner of the retail market that was struggling even before the pandemic.

Xiaomi making the most of the crisis

21 May 2020

Rolling out a 5G model during China's lockdown paid off for the online-savvy handset maker. First-quarter sales increased 14% from a year earlier, to $7 bln. Serious setbacks for rival Huawei and virus-powered interest in home gadgets should help sustain the impressive growth.

Corona Capital: China on Wall Street, Wind power

20 May 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: U.S. senators want Chinese firms to share their audited accounts – or face being kicked off American stock exchanges. Plus: why wind energy is the key to an economic and social, as well as environmental, resurgence.

Walmart deserves credit for toilet-paper readiness

19 May 2020

Its biggest rival Amazon is still better at delivery services, which is key right now. But Walmart is ahead of the grocery game, and curb-side pickup will get a boost, too, even after lockdowns ease. And yet its stock is up half as much. Being in Jeff Bezos’ shadow has a price.

China’s JD flexes virus muscle memory

14 May 2020

Since forging its online business model during the 2003 SARS outbreak, the company has grown into a $70 bln force. With logistics providing a Covid-19 edge over Alibaba, JD’s quarterly sales are seen rising 13%. The momentum should help ease plans to raise $3 bln in Hong Kong.

Sony gets an extra life from bored video gamers

13 May 2020

Quarterly operating profit fell 57% as the coronavirus hit everything from electronics to financial services. But its gaming unit beat forecasts thanks to people on lockdown playing Marvel's Spider-Man. News that the PlayStation 5 is on track will be welcomed by investors too.

Virus will accelerate European mall king’s decline

11 May 2020

Unibail-Rodamco is facing a cash crunch as retail tenants withhold rent. Although the crisis looks temporary, the accelerated advance of online shopping is an existential threat to the 7 bln euro Westfield owner. Disposals may be the only way to shrink its 24 bln euro debt load.

Luckin pileup crashes into China’s car lot

8 May 2020

The coffee chain scandal hit shares in Car Inc, a rental firm chaired by Luckin founder Lu Zhengyao. Lu also leads Ucar, whose banks could dump a slug of Car Inc pledged as collateral, triggering a change of control and dragging in Warburg Pincus. It’s a lesson in key-man risk.

Corona Capital: Trouble in the Levant

28 April 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Protests erupted in Lebanon as its Covid-19 lockdown worsens the country’s economic problems. It may be a harbinger of broader virus-related discontent.

Groceries are gluttony for India’s takeaway giants

28 April 2020

Couriers of prepared food are increasingly pushing into dried and fresh fare. It’s a bigger prize in a market dominated by home cooking. That could make SoftBank-backed Grofers, last valued at $650 mln, appealing to Zomato. Such meal combos are unlikely to deliver value, however.