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☆ China may have to resort to a tried-and-tested tactic to power its 'new leap forward'
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-06 | by ( Clement Tan | In Clemtan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Liu Liqun | Corbis Documentary | Getty ImagesChina may want a "new leap forward" in "productive forces" — but President Xi Jinping may need to resort to an old tactic to hit the country's ambitious growth target this year, one economist warns. While scant on specifics, the work report appears to suggest Beijing is refraining from the aggressive, bazooka-like stimulus that some markets observers were expecting. China has historically resorted to infrastructure building as a short-term fix to boost growth, particularly after the 2008-09 financial crisis. Goldman Sachs economists said that this pledge is the "most important positive surprise" from this year's government work report. Chinese Premier Li Qiang delivers a speech during the opening of the second session of the 14th National People's Congress at The Great Hall of People on March 5, 2024 in Beijing, China.

Persons: Liu Liqun, Xi Jinping, Wang Dan, Wang, Erica Tan, Goldman Sachs, Li Qiang, Li, Lintao Zhang Organizations: Bund, Getty, Hang Seng Bank, CNBC, China Investment Corporation, Maybank, Seng Bank, National People's Congress, of People Locations: China, Beijing, overcapacity, Covid, Gorges

☆ Warnings, liquidity boost and proverbs — China's tools for propping up its stock market
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-06 | by ( Clement Tan | In Clemtan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Chinese financial authorities have been striving to prop up the country's stocks through various measures, including steps aimed at increasing the liquidity in the market, warnings against malpractices and falling back on proverbs. With the onshore markets already erasing gains after the People's Bank of China announced steps to boost liquidity last month, there are doubts whether this familiar Beijing playbook will have a meaningful impact on markets. On Tuesday, Central Huijin, a unit of the mammoth sovereign wealth fund China Investment Corporation, said it had expanded purchases of exchange-traded funds linked to the country's onshore stocks to safeguard market stability. China Securities Regulatory Commission had also warned Monday against "malicious" short-selling and said it would step up scrutiny of margin financing following a volatile trading session. On Sunday it had assured to protect the interests of investors after onshore markets plunged as much as 3% before paring losses Friday.

Organizations: People's Bank of China, China Investment Corporation, China Securities Regulatory Commission Locations: Beijing, China

☆ Thames Water woes could have bigger ripples
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, June 28 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The UK government is working on plans to nationalise Thames Water, Sky News reports. The indebted utility, which lost its chief executive on Tuesday, may be placed into a special administration regime, with ministers worrying about the company's ability to shoulder 14 billion pounds of debt. UK water companies, privatised by Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s, were supposed to be sleepy investments churning out inflation-proof dividends. Thames, owned by Macquarie (MQG.AX) until 2017, had debt equivalent to 80% of its 17.9 billion pounds regulator-defined asset value last September. Its current shareholders, which include Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System and China Investment Corporation, last year pledged to invest 1.5 billion pounds to prop it up.

Persons: Margaret Thatcher, Neil Unmack, Eli Lilly, Aston Martin, George Hay, Streisand Neto Organizations: Reuters, Sky News, Macquarie, System, China Investment Corporation, Twitter, Thomson Locations: Thames, Yorkshire, Ontario, Canada

The deal fits the Italian group's plan to increase the share of gas in its total hydrocarbon production and is expected to boost its earnings immediately, Eni said in a statement. Eni, which is controlled by the Italian government, owns 63% of Vaar and is the main beneficiary of cash dividends from the Oslo-listed unit. VAAR EXPANDING IN NORWAYUnder the agreement, Eni will acquire Neptune's entire portfolio other than its operations in Germany and Norway. The German operations will be carved out prior to the Eni transaction and the Norwegian operations will be acquired by Vaar directly from Neptune in a separate deal, the two groups said in a statement. The Vaar transaction will close immediately prior to the Eni deal with the proceeds from the Norway sale remaining with the business purchased by the Italian group.

Persons: Italy's Eni, Eni, Claudio Descalzi, Descalzi, Vaar, Torger Roed, Rothschild, Ernst, Young, Shadia Nasralla, Terje Solsvik, Alvise Armellini, Jason Neely, Simon Cameron, Moore, Philippa Fletcher Organizations: Eni, MILAN, Italy's, Neptune Energy, Vaar Energy, LNG, Eni's Gas, Royal Bank of Canada's, Neptune, China Investment Corporation, Carlyle Group, CVC Capital Partners, HSBC, White, Case, Thomson Locations: Europe, Algeria, Indonesia, Milan, Russia, Oslo, Norway, Vaar, NORWAY, Germany, Norwegian, Neptune, Neptune Norway, Italian, Britain, Netherlands, LNG, London

[1/2] Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon speaks during the Goldman Sachs Investor Day at Goldman Sachs Headquarters in New York City, U.S., February 28, 2023. REUTERS/Brendan McDermidHONG KONG/SHANGHAI, March 31 (Reuters) - A flurry of top financial executives have visited China for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic as global financial giants seek to cement their relations with Beijing at the start of President Xi Jinping's new term. International financial institutions and investors are welcome to expand in China, the chairman of the country's securities regulator said. Goldman Sachs' Solomon and Blackstone (BX.N) CEO Stephen Schwarzman met Peng Chun, chairman of China Investment Corporation (CIC), this week, according to official social media posts from the $1.35 trillion sovereign wealth fund. Meanwhile, Chip Kaye, Warburg Pincus's CEO, met Beijing's major Yin Yong during his visit to the city last week, according to a municipal statement from Beijing.

☆ Eni’s $6 bln Neptune swoop will be a haggle-fest
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( George Hay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, Dec 1 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Eni (ENI.MI) is hunting for a bargain in the North Sea. Italy’s $52 billion oil major is mulling a bid for oil and gas producer Neptune Energy, Reuters reported on Wednesday, for an equity value of around $5 billion to $6 billion. Given Neptune’s owners CVC Capital Partners, Carlyle (CG.O) and China Investment Corporation last year wanted to list the business for $10 billion, Eni may have to haggle a bit. The UK government recently extended its windfall tax on North Sea drillers to 2028. And the Italian group’s own North Sea expertise may help it argue that the mooted offer price is generous.

LONDON, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Eni (ENI.MI) is in preliminary talks to buy private-equity backed gas and oil producer Neptune Energy for around $5 billion -$6 billion, a source with knowledge of the matter said on Wednesday, adding that no official bid had been submitted. Neptune produces around 130,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boed), three-quarters of which is gas. It has operations in Norway - home to Eni's Var unit - Britain, Indonesia - where Neptune shares licences with Eni - Algeria, the Netherlands and elsewhere. A banking source confirmed talks had taken place in recent weeks, but that the outcome was "far from guaranteed" as valuations differed. Eni and Neptune declined to comment.

☆ China's cbank deputy under probe for suspected violations - anticorruption body
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SHENZHEN, China, Nov 5 (Reuters) - China's top anti-corruption watchdog said on Saturday it is investigating Fan Yifei, one of six deputy governors of China's central bank, over "suspected serious violations of discipline and law". Fan, 58, has held the deputy governor position since early 2015, before which he had held senior roles with China Construction Bank (601939.SS) and China Investment Corporation. Chinese President Xi Jinping has stepped up efforts in recent years to weed out corrupt Communist Party officials in the financial sector. The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) announced the investigation in a statement but did not give any details. In May, the CCDI said it was investigating Sun Guofeng, the former head of the central bank's monetary policy department, for suspected violations.

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