Biden’s $2 trln road trip can’t start soon enough 31 Mar 2021 Republicans think the president’s infrastructure plan is too big; progressive Democrats think it’s too small. The cost is deceptive because projects still have to surmount local politics and red tape. The main thing is to agree something so that investment and jobs can follow.
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: Vaccine storage 16 Nov 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Warehouse centers get another boost with Moderna’s vaccine prospects.
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.
Corona Capital: Covid-19 tests, Bed Bath & Beyond 1 Oct 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Diagnostic company Quidel predicts a quarterly earnings bonanza; meanwhile the pandemic turns a struggling retailer into a winner, at least temporarily.
Corona Capital: U.S. sports’ virus-bubble success 29 Sep 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Professional hockey and basketball associations scored victories keeping infection rates low or at zero in spectator-free games. And less traveling and more sleep helped players up their game. Wall Street take note.
Breakup could remove Benettons’ Italian roadblock 24 Sep 2020 Atlantia, the clan’s infrastructure group, is at loggerheads with Rome over the sale of its crisis-hit motorway unit. Spinning off the division could end the dispute by establishing a fair market price. It’s a risky manoeuvre, but the threat may bring the government to the table.
Big price for trains just about stays on track 15 Sep 2020 Blackstone’s infrastructure group may be offering what looks like top dollar – $20 billion – for Kansas City Southern, a 133-year-old U.S. freight railroad. But with interest rates so low, big prices for relatively predictable assets with stable returns may become the new normal.
Corona Capital: Movies, Magazines 7 Sep 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: the U.S. opening weekend of Christopher Nolan’s time travel epic “Tenet” suggests punters aren’t hurrying back to cinemas; Future, publisher of “Metal Hammer” and “Horse & Hound” rocks its way through the crisis.
UK LBO jalopy offers buyout barons last wild ride 14 Aug 2020 Roadside repair group AA is drawing interest from private equity again. It’s still crippled by a 2.7 billion pound debt load from past takeovers. With a cash injection and thorough service, a new driver could make a decent return, but it would still be a risky journey.
Corona Capital: Telemedicine, Outdated movie rules 10 Aug 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Men’s wellness outfit Hims matches the online medical consultation trend with a financial one, namely blank-check companies; and Washington finally scraps a “Gone with the Wind”-era regulation.
VW’s China acceleration leaves Renault in the dust 30 Jul 2020 An uptick in Middle Kingdom car sales helped Volkswagen boss Herbert Diess restate a pledge to make an annual profit, following a half-year loss. By contrast, the French carmaker is losing money and market share. New Renault CEO Luca de Meo’s cost-cutting plan needs more fuel.
Italy road saga hands Benettons life-saving finale 15 Jul 2020 The clan’s infrastructure group Atlantia could end a government dispute over a bridge disaster by letting state actors invest in its motorway unit, and list it. The shakedown may leave the group with a stake worth just 5 bln euros, but it’s better than a threatened expropriation.
China’s Didi looks short on engine power 23 Apr 2020 The ride-hailing giant unveiled a three-year plan. Hard-to-compare targets and more of the same bets hardly inspire, especially as tech peers Alibaba and Meituan grab Covid-19 opportunities in health and more. Didi’s $53 bln valuation is vulnerable without a stronger drive.
Virus hands Elon Musk electrifying cost challenge 2 Apr 2020 Tesla’s boss has ironed out most of its production snafus and amassed enough cash for the carmaker to go almost a year without revenue before running out of juice, longer than Ford or GM. But Musk can only pull that off if he has finally mastered how to keep costs under control.
Beijing helps gas guzzlers at clean cars’ expense 2 Apr 2020 The government might ease electric vehicle production quotas and delay raising emissions standards. It will ease some pressure on battered conventional auto giants, which generate jobs for millions. But it’s more bad news for struggling new energy startups like Nio.
Mitsubishi is too mild a mediator for Nissan 27 Mar 2020 Mitsubishi Corp, second-largest shareholder in the eponymous carmaker, is mulling a 10% stake in Renault, Reuters reports. It’s a small step, but could signal an overdue adjustment within the troubled troika. The French group will have to give more to get Nissan on board.
Cheap gas drives auto industry to distraction 19 Mar 2020 With crude oil futures near $26 a barrel, drivers might lose enthusiasm for electric vehicles if governments put support on hold and let pump prices free-fall. But the push away from hydrocarbons is about more than petrol costs. Carmakers are ill-advised to let investment slide.
Alstom’s M&A detour has lower chance of derailment 17 Feb 2020 The French train maker is paying $6.7 bln for Bombardier’s locomotive unit, after its preferred deal with Siemens was blocked. Bulking up can counter the threat of China’s CRRC. Success hinges on punchy synergies and a green light from the sticky antitrust signal box in Brussels.
Atlantia charts tentative path to road truce 24 Jan 2020 The $19 bln infrastructure group’s new boss wants outsiders to invest into its units. These include embattled motorway operator ASPI, which risks losing a rich road concession after a bridge collapse. Opening ASPI’s capital to state investors offers a way out of the crisis.