Nissan’s partners can help it shift to higher gear 8 Feb 2018 The $42 bln Japanese automaker's operating profit tanked, as it discounted cars in America and a domestic inspection scandal took its toll. That will keep its laggard valuation stuck in neutral. Nissan's challenge is to make the most of its alliances with Renault and Mitsubishi.
Ola puts SoftBank in back seat with overseas drive 5 Feb 2018 The Indian ride-hailing outfit wants a slice of the action in Australia. The intrusion into one of Uber’s strongholds will irk SoftBank, which is a big investor in both firms. The Japanese group’s minority stakes clearly are not enough to stop fights between taxi startups.
Gasoline tax is obvious infrastructure piggy bank 18 Jan 2018 The U.S. Chamber of Commerce wants a 25 cents-a-gallon increase to raise $400 bln for investment in transportation. It seems a contrary proposal coming from a group whose members just secured huge tax cuts. But it makes sense: American gas is cheap, and a higher levy is overdue.
Indonesian ride-hailing unicorn races to relevance 18 Jan 2018 Go-Jek is bringing in new backers including Alphabet and Temasek, sources say, as it expands its platform model across Southeast Asia. To ward off local rivals and be a serious contender in a cutthroat business, the now $4 bln startup has to grow quickly. Deep pockets help.
Uber’s next ride-share could be in Southeast Asia 17 Jan 2018 After struggling in China and Russia, the app operator swapped its businesses there for stakes in Didi and Yandex. Another sensible partner would be $6 bln-plus Grab, which shares a backer in SoftBank. As Uber aims for an IPO, it's a good region in which to cut further losses.
Ford’s Living Cities dream needs financial reality 9 Jan 2018 The automaker is developing ambitious software to boost urban connectivity and companies’ revenue while reducing pollution and congestion. Trouble is, the best way to profit from this grand city plan is to make and sell lots of self-driving cars. That’s where Ford lags rival GM.
Mobike veers cautiously into Didi’s taxi lane 8 Jan 2018 The Chinese bike-sharing unicorn has secured an investment from carmaker FAW as part of a wider push to expand into shared automobiles. It's an effort to rattle rival Ofo's alliance with $56 bln ride-hailing giant Didi. Catching up will be a slog, but may be worth the effort.
Duterte’s infrastructure push needs more than cash 2 Jan 2018 A new revenue-raising tax bill will help Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte pay for a “golden age of infrastructure” to increase competitiveness and living standards. The challenge will be to deploy the proceeds efficiently and without fostering corruption.
SoftBank’s ride-hailing roadmap is unreadable 21 Dec 2017 The Japanese group invested yet more in China’s Didi, as part of a $4 bln fundraising, and wants to put billions into Uber. Yet as Didi expands abroad, fresh conflict with Uber is inevitable. SoftBank may envisage a merger, but for now it is funding both sides of an arms race.
China’s belt will get tighter and its road bumpier 20 Dec 2017 Xi Jinping's ambitious infrastructure plan enters its fifth year with some notable struggles. Countries are pushing back for political and economic reasons while Chinese banks grapple with mounting debt. So-called Belt and Road projects require more of a team effort in 2018.
A deluge of scandals in Japan will drive change 19 Dec 2017 Embarrassing lapses in governance and, perhaps even more painfully, in quality control have dented the country's reputation. The revelations are likely to continue in 2018. Company bosses will need to show that they understand what is really going on inside their organisations.
China’s shared bikes will merge into car lane 18 Dec 2017 A plague of two-wheeled startups has exhausted investor cash and municipal patience. After a cull, the biggest survivors, Mobike and Ofo, will resist calls to form a monopoly. Instead they will chain themselves to other shared-economy winners like taxi app Didi Chuxing.
M&A friction limits EU single-market opportunity 13 Dec 2017 Two Spanish ministries are interfering in a 16.5 bln euro Italian bid for local toll-road group Abertis. France and Italy similarly meddled in recent cross-border deals within the euro zone. Building scale isn’t proving as borderless as proponents of EU champions would like.
Uber’s taxi U-turn sets better Southeast Asia path 11 Dec 2017 Co-founder Travis Kalanick used derisive terms to describe the regulated industry he was trying to upend. Uber's new boss, however, just struck a deal with Singaporean taxi company ComfortDelGro. The JV should help it pare losses and compete in a tough market with rival Grab.
Jack Ma enlarges his Chinese payments peloton 5 Dec 2017 Having invested in bike-sharing giant Ofo, Alibaba affiliate Ant is putting another $300 mln into rival Youon. That's 80 mln potential users to lock into Ma's Alipay system. The move reflects rising stakes in a cutthroat battle with Mobike, backed by payments rival Tencent.
Tesla could hit second gear with Shanghai factory 22 Oct 2017 Elon Musk may soon be able to build his electric cars in China. That's essential for catching up or keeping pace with rivals in the fast-growing market. It'll also take pressure off production trouble in the United States. A troubling tariff problem, however, is apt to remain.
Lyft’s new $1 bln of cash spells gains over Uber 19 Oct 2017 The ride-hailing app has secured new funding led by Alphabet and a nearly 50 pct valuation increase. Its larger rival is struggling to regain momentum and is close to a down-round investment from SoftBank. Uber has the scale, but Lyft’s less aggressive approach is paying off.
Spanish toll-road bid steamrollers Benettons 18 Oct 2017 ACS has made a 17 billion euro offer for infrastructure operator Abertis, using the balance sheet of its German unit Hochtief. The price is better than a rival bid from Atlantia, controlled by Italy’s Benetton family. It owes more to cheap debt than economic sense.
Ford’s clever electric van plan in China 4 Oct 2017 The U.S. carmaker is changing course in China, insiders told Reuters, as sales slow. New state policies open an opportunity for Ford to build electric commercial vehicles. That could help meet quotas - and electrify Ford SUVs. Much depends on the partner, and battery supply.
China “Belt and Road” waves red flag for investors 18 Sep 2017 Beijing’s vision of infrastructure connecting some 70 countries already has fund firms rushing to create vehicles to lure investment. But broad index ETFs miss that many projects make little commercial sense. Skeptical punters should focus on a narrower set of potential winners.