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.
Spotify’s $2.5 bln Joe Rogan bump has sound logic 20 May 2020 The Swedish music-streaming service’s shares surged after it signed an exclusive deal with the controversial podcast host. Rogan’s audience, probably about 10 mln strong, makes a mooted $100 mln licence fee seem reasonable, and even helps justify the huge rise in Spotify’s value.
Index makeover sets fresh benchmark for Hong Kong 20 May 2020 The main Hang Seng tracker is welcoming companies with secondary listings and dual-class shares, opening the door to Alibaba, Xiaomi and more. That will help diversify baskets overstuffed with banks and such. It also underscores the local bourse’s plight to attract tech startups.
Sony embraces its inner conglomerate 20 May 2020 The Japanese giant is buying the rest of its financial arm for $3.7 bln as part of a broader shakeup. A new holding company structure clumsily tries to reposition Sony beyond its electronics roots. At least it’s managing the sprawl while thumbing its nose at activist Dan Loeb.
TikTok’s new boss will be hitting the road to D.C. 19 May 2020 Former Disney streaming-video exec Kevin Mayer is to become boss of ByteDance’s popular video app. He was the M&A maestro behind the Magic Kingdom’s acquisitions of Fox and the Star Wars empire. But he may have to learn some new moves to navigate U.S.-China tensions.
Uber-Grubhub’s big obstacle is delivery not price 18 May 2020 Some to-and-fro over value is normal in a potential merger. But for two money-losing companies with volatile stocks, financial tweaks are a second-order issue. The more critical question about combining their meal-delivery operations is whether antitrust watchdogs would block it.
SoftBank’s clouds come with some silver linings 18 May 2020 A record $12.7 bln annual loss surpassed its warnings. But activist Elliott’s push is yielding results, funds are being spent less giddily and asset sales are on. The board is getting a revamp too, as Alibaba’s Jack Ma exits. The taming of boss Masayoshi Son is gaining traction.
China’s chip giant serves nationalism and reform 18 May 2020 The $13 bln SMIC received a $2 bln boost from state funds ahead of a debut on Shanghai’s new STAR board. The firepower reinforces Beijing’s push for tech self-sufficiency. SMIC’s Cayman Islands structure will also test new listing rules that overseas-listed peers could use.
U.S.-China trade escalation singles out hostages 15 May 2020 Further U.S. restrictions on Huawei, along with TSMC’s decision to build a $12 billion American chip plant, heighten tensions between D.C. and Beijing. Multinationals like Qualcomm and Apple became giants by building scale to serve a global market. They are now vulnerable, too.
BT’s misery puts new gloss on old selloff idea 15 May 2020 The UK phone giant is considering offloading part of its $24 bln Openreach network unit, the FT says. CEO Philip Jansen and his predecessors resisted a split. But he urgently needs cash to boost fibre broadband, and a sale could lift BT’s shares from this week’s decade lows.
Delivery app dares Shanghai-to-New York IPO route 15 May 2020 Dada Nexus, backed by JD and Walmart, aims to raise $500 mln on the Nasdaq even as U.S. political backlash against Chinese companies intensifies. Luckin’s scandal raises fresh doubts, as do stock performances of recent debuts. And yet rival bourses are struggling to capitalise.
TSMC’s U.S. reshoring initiative looks wafer-thin 15 May 2020 The Taiwanese chipmaker unveiled plans for a $12 bln factory in Arizona. It will produce a tiny fraction of what Asian plants do with a small workforce and investment spread over nine years. It only goes to show just how hard it will be to move high-tech manufacturing to America.
Tesla pits electric-power hope against experience 14 May 2020 A big battery upgrade could soon make Model 3s as cheap as gas guzzlers, Reuters reports. That’d be a big leap ahead for electric vehicles and could also shake up utilities. But the infrastructure needs work. And boss Elon Musk has a history of overpromising and underdelivering.
Uber-Grubhub may get stomachache from deal fuss 14 May 2020 A tie-up would create the top meal-delivery firm in major markets like New York, Boston and Chicago. Uber’s beefed up lobbying efforts might help federal approval, but even then state antitrust watchdogs may be concerned. It’s a tough taste test for the $57 bln ride-hailing app.
Corona Capital: Air travel, Starbucks 14 May 2020 Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Airlines’ experienced hands offer warning; Starbucks begins dance with landlords.
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.
Silicon Valley gears up to leave Silicon Valley 13 May 2020 Remote work has highlighted the Bay Area’s high costs. Some startups are closing San Francisco offices; giants like Facebook were already expanding their national footprint. Covid-19 will hasten the planting of tech flags across America, altering recruiting and local economies.
Tencent’s post-pandemic vision looks too normal 13 May 2020 Mobile games sales surged 64% to $5 bln in the first quarter. That one-off gain will fade as Chinese people return to offices and schools. Yet where rivals Alibaba and ByteDance are betting on new opportunities, Tencent seems overly focused on returning to business as usual.
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.