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☆ HSBC 2023 results: $3 billion China writedown hits annual profit
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-21 | by ( Juliana Liu | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Of the total, $3 billion was related to BoCom, one of China’s biggest banks, while $2 billion was from selling its retail banking business in France. Separately, HSBC made $3.4 billion in provisions to cover expected credit losses and other charges related to its exposure to the commercial real estate sector in mainland China. The property market has since entered a prolonged slump, marked by an ongoing decline in real estate investment and sales of property. The charges reported by HSBC cast a shadow over its record annual profit, which came in at $30.3 billion, up 78% from 2022. In October, rival Standard Chartered reported a $186 million credit impairment charge related to commercial real estate in the country.

Persons: “, Matt Britzman, Hargreaves Lansdown, Mark Tucker, — Hanna Ziady Organizations: Hong Kong CNN — HSBC, China’s Bank of Communications, HSBC, HSBC isn’t, Chartered Locations: China, Hong Kong, Asia, France, BoCom, Mainland China

☆ Julius Baer declines to confirm Signa exposure
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ZURICH, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Julius Baer's Chief Executive declined to confirm on Wednesday whether the private bank's 606 million Swiss franc ($693 million) exposure it disclosed earlier this week is to toppled property giant Signa. The CEO said it was too early to say what specific lessons could be learned relating to the large exposure in its private debt business. Troubled property group Signa, which owns scores of high-profile projects and department stores, declared insolvency on Wednesday. Signa, controlled by an Austrian magnate, has borrowed heavily from banks including Julius Baer, which on Monday disclosed it had an exposure of more than 600 million Swiss francs, the largest in its private debt loan book, to a European conglomerate. "I believe Julius Baer will be able to continue its risk appetite and its risk capacity as we have on average in the last few years."

Persons: Julius Baer's, Philipp Rickenbacher, Julius Baer, Rickenbacher, Noele Illien, Elaine Hardcastle, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: Financial Times, Global Banking, Thomson Locations: ZURICH, Austrian

Owen Chow Ka-shing, one of the 47 pro-democracy activists charged with conspiracy to commit subversion under the national security law, arrives at West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts building, in Hong Kong, China November 29, 2021. On the first day of closing submissions, one of the handpicked national security judges, Andrew Chan, said a verdict would "tentatively" come in three to four months, with 10 days set aside for closing submissions. Beijing says the national security law brought stability to the city after monthslong pro-democracy protests in 2019. "Communication with the public is much easier, (it's) easy to manipulate those means in order to endanger national security," he added. Thirty-one of the 47 charged have pleaded guilty - which could qualify them for reduced sentences.

Persons: Owen Chow Ka, Lam, Andrew Chan, Hong, Jonathan Man, Man, Gwyneth Ho, Owen Chow, Gordon Ng, Leung Kwok, Helena Wong, Benny Tai, Joshua Wong, Gerry Doyle Organizations: REUTERS, Hong, Thomson Locations: Kowloon, Hong Kong, China, HONG KONG, United States, Beijing

☆ How to invest $1 million for the next decade, according to private bankers and wealth advisors
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-09 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

The next 10 years will be unlike the last two decades for investors, according to investment advisors and wealth managers. Those conditions could create more volatility and lower returns for assets that have done well over the past decade, according to Monchau. ELTIFs allow individual investors to invest alongside institutions in assets like infrastructure, private equity and private credit. "The ability to generate income is going to be far and away the better place for the next decade for investment," he said. For younger investors more than 10 years from retirement, Cox recommends a 100% equity portfolio, maximising returns with low-cost index ETFs.

Persons: Charles, Henry Monchau, Monchau, There's, Goldman Sachs, Franklin Templeton, Jamie Cox, Cox, it's, maximising Organizations: CNBC Pro, Swiss, BlackRock, Harris Financial Group, Unilever, Nestle, Broadcom Locations: Swiss, Geneva, Richmond , Virginia

☆ Fugitive founder of crypto hedge fund that lost $10 billion arrested in Singapore while attempting to flee
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( Mackenzie Sigalos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Authorities have arrested crypto fugitive Su Zhu, co-founder of bankrupt digital asset hedge fund Three Arrows Capital, who was apparently attempting to flee Singapore. Zhu and co-founder Kyle Davies have both been sentenced to four months in prison, according to Teneo, the financial advisory firm handling 3AC's liquidation. The Singapore Courts ruled against Zhu for deliberately failing to comply with court orders compelling him to cooperate with Teneo's investigation into creditors' claims and the implosion of the multibillion-dollar fund. At its peak in 2022, 3AC managed about $10 billion in assets, making it one of the most prominent crypto hedge funds in the world. The firm added that it may seek further court orders against him.

Persons: Su Zhu, Zhu, Kyle Davies, Davies, 3AC, Teneo, maximising Organizations: Arrows Capital, Airport, Police, Monetary Authority of Locations: Singapore, Monetary Authority of Singapore

Asia's hydropower output fell 17.9% during the seven months through July, data from energy think tank Ember showed, while fossil fuel-fired power rose 4.5%. In India, hydropower generation fell 6.2% during the eight months ended August in the sharpest decline since 2016. In some cases, the hydropower output plunge was a result of efforts to conserve water and alter supply patterns. "This trend of rapidly increasing wind or solar power generation in China could push for hydropower playing this critical regulating function, instead of operating whenever there is water," he added. However, unlike hydro, wind power is harder to forecast and control, as it varies by local weather conditions.

Persons: Carlos Torres Diaz, Rystad, Lauri Myllyvirta, Myllyvirta, Ember, Victor Vanya, Sudarshan Varadhan, Jamie Freed Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, National Bureau, International Energy Agency, Centre for Research, Clean Energy, Air, Thomson Locations: Qiaojia, Yunnan province, Ningnan, Sichuan province, China, Rights SINGAPORE, Asia, India, Vietnam, India's, Philippines, Malaysia, Ember

☆ What happened to shut down Toyota's production in Japan?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

WHAT HAPPENED TO SHUT DOWN TOYOTA'S PRODUCTION IN JAPAN? Toyota's production has been recovering this year, so the outage could be potentially more costly than the 2022 shutdown. Toyota's production in Japan - about a third of its global output - averaged about 13,500 vehicles a day in the first half of the year, Reuters calculations showed. WHAT IS TOYOTA'S PRODUCTION AND SUPPLIER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM? Toyota's system of lean production and just-in-time parts delivery has been adopted across the auto industry and widely studied.

Persons: Taichi Ono, Wiggly, Koji Sato, Akio Toyoda, Tesla, Daniel Leussink, Satoshi Sugiyama, Kevin Krolicki, Christopher Cushing Organizations: Toyota, Kyodo, REUTERS Acquire, Kojima Industries, Lexus, Daihatsu, Hino, TOYOTA, ITS, Thomson Locations: Toyota, Aichi Prefecture, Japan, JAPAN, United States

☆ Winning streak 'keeps the fire going', says Verstappen
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Since those musings at a race won by Mexican team mate Sergio Perez, Verstappen has won every grand prix to go 125 points clear at the top -- the equivalent of five victories -- and take his career tally to 45 wins. Soon to be a triple world champion, Verstappen has a contract to the end of 2028 -- by which time who knows how many wins and titles he will have. If I have to rock up and I have no chance of winning then the fire starts to go away," the Dutch driver said at Spa-Francorchamps. Retired four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel is the only driver to have won nine in a row in a single season, with Red Bull in 2013. Red Bull have yet to end a season with their drivers one-two in the standings and Perez's task is to make sure he finishes runner-up this time.

Persons: Max Verstappen, Johanna Geron, Sergio Perez, Verstappen, Red Bull, Sebastian Vettel, Christian Horner, Horner, Perez, Checo, Max, Bull, Alan Baldwin, Ken Ferris Organizations: Belgian, Prix, Red Bull Formula, Spa, Zandvoort, Red, Thomson Locations: Spa, Belgium, Azerbaijan, Mexican, Abu Dhabi, Baku, London

☆ UniCredit lifts 2023 goals after bumper quarter
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A logo on the UniCredit SpA headquarters in Milan, Italy, on Saturday Jan. 22, 2022. Italian bank UniCredit on Wednesday raised its net profit and shareholder reward targets for the year after posting much stronger than expected quarterly results as higher rates lifted revenues. UniCredit said it now expects a 2023 net profit of at least 7.25 billion euros ($8 billion), compared with more than 6.5 billion earlier. It plans to return at least 6.5 billion to investors through share buybacks and dividends, versus a previous goal of at least 5.75 billion. Revenues jumped by a quarter yearly, to 5.97 billion euros, topping analyst forecasts, boosted mainly by the gap between rates charged to lend and the still very low rates paid on deposits.

Persons: UniCredit, Andrea Orcel Organizations: UniCredit Locations: Milan, Italy, Italy's, UniCredit

☆ Ecuador launches debt buyback plan aimed at Galapagos protection
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Marc Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/4] A pelican is seen on Santa Cruz Island, part of the Galapagos Islands, Ecuador. REUTERS/Santiago ArcosLONDON, April 26 (Reuters) - Ecuador has launched a long-awaited debt buyback plan that will free up money to protect its Galapagos Islands, one of the world's most precious ecosystems and the inspiration for Charles Darwin's Theory of Evolution. "The Offeror is making the Offer... as part of a broader refinancing operation to channel savings and promote certain conservation and sustainability efforts," the buyback plan said. The operation is private, the country's finance ministry said in a message to journalists, and cannot be discussed. Reporting by Marc Jones; Editing by Sandra MalerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Credit Suisse lodges $440 mln London claim against SoftBank
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A view shows the logo of Credit Suisse on a building near the Hallenstadion where Credit Suisse Annual General Meeting took place, two weeks after being bought by rival UBS in a government-brokered rescue, in Zurich, Switzerland, April 4, 2023. REUTERS/Pierre AlbouyLONDON, April 19 (Reuters) - Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) has lodged a $440 million claim against Japan's SoftBank Group Corp (9984.T) in London as it presses ahead with formal proceedings in a dispute borne from the failure of Greensill Capital, a finance firm. A SoftBank spokesperson accused Credit Suisse of trying to shift blame for its own poor investment decisions and said the case was entirely without merit. "Credit Suisse continues to prioritize maximising recovery for investors in the supply chain finance funds," a spokesperson for the Swiss lender said. Credit Suisse is the biggest name to date to become ensnared in market turbulence unleashed by the collapse of U.S. lenders Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.

China currently dominates the supply chain for many of the entries on Europe's list of "strategic" metals. By which time not more than 65% of any strategic metal's consumption will be able to come from a single third country. Europe has no strategic metal inventory, unlike the United States, China and South Korea. Given such a humble starting point, it seems unlikely EU strategic metal reserves are going to come any time soon, if they come at all. What started as a response to China's dominance of critical metals supply has been accelerated by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

☆ Perez on pole in Saudi Arabia as Verstappen hits trouble
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"You really feel the Formula One cars coming alive in this place and maximising that lap was very important," said Perez of what was also his second career pole. "Every session was going really well, every time we were on the track the car was working really well. Mercedes' George Russell and Ferrari's Carlos Sainz will share the second row with Canadian Lance Stroll fifth for Aston Martin and Esteban Ocon sixth for Renault-owned Alpine. Seven times world champion Lewis Hamilton, winner in Saudi Arabia in 2021, will start seventh for Mercedes. "It was really, really on the limit," he said.

☆ Dubai's Majid Al Futtaim cuts 105 jobs as new CEO makes mark
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Hadeel Al Sayegh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DUBAI, March 16 (Reuters) - Dubai's Majid Al Futtaim (MAF) has cut 105 jobs out of its total staff of 46,000, the Middle Eastern shopping mall developer and operator told Reuters, as its new CEO seeks to boost returns. Three sources familiar with the move said it was part of a restructuring following the abrupt removal of former chief executive Alain Bejjani in January. "These measured actions and continuous business-as-usual reviews enable Majid Al Futtaim to deliver competitive returns to our shareholders while maximising opportunities for value accretive, profitable and sustainable growth," it added. MAF was founded by Emirati businessman Majid Al Futtaim, whose death at the end of 2021 was announced by Dubai's ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, who paid tribute to him as one of the emirate's pioneers. Reporting by Hadeel Al Sayegh; Editing by David Goodman and Mark PotterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Although Polish teams have struggled to make a mark in European competitions and the country's coefficient places them 27th in the UEFA standings, there has been steady improvement in the last five seasons. In terms of value, we have a competitive structure similar to the Premier League, even though we have no government sponsorship or oligarch investment," Mioduski said. "So now we are at a point where our clubs are well-managed and run with a talent pool where private investment, like private equity, can take the clubs and the league to the next level." Mioduski said they have reached a point where they would welcome external investment both in the league and its clubs. "The Polish league as a whole has been developing more slowly but in a much more competitive fashion, with teams... maximising their limited resources," he added.

"We feel it's the right thing to do by allowing all shareholders to vote on such critical issues rather than keeping it away from the voting process," Lui told Reuters. Ping An in November urged HSBC to lower costs by cutting jobs and disposing of peripheral non-Asian businesses. "The shareholders will need to demonstrate that the requisition is valid before it can be formally accepted," a spokesperson for HSBC said. HSBC's other institutional shareholders, particularly in Britain, have so far shown little appetite for a break-up. Lui told Reuters that HSBC has requested both proposals to be submitted as 'special' resolutions, which he said shows the lender is "very worried" that the proposal will be passed.

☆ Column: Fantasy league matchmaking between oil majors and transition upstarts
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Gavin Maguire | Thomson Reuters | Gavin Maguire Is The Global Energy Transition Columnist. He Was Previously Asia Commodities | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

But the eye-catching headline numbers also drew scrutiny from climate trackers and policymakers anxious to see fossil fuel majors show leadership in the renewable energy field. Reuters GraphicsSome of so-called Big 5 majors, especially Europe-based firms BP (BP.L), Shell (SHEL.L) and TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA), already boast major business segments tied to renewable energy. Big exposure to U.S.-based production assets, along with lucrative export streams of oil, gas and fuel were key drivers behind the outsized earnings of U.S. firms. Both firms operate at the front edge of the energy transition in different sectors, and present potentially appealing entry points for majors seeking access to fast-growing specialist areas. As the largest utility company in the United States, the firm is already in the starting line-up for any energy sector discussion.

WARSAW, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Poland aims to get training time on Leopard 2 battle tanks down to five weeks at a centre where Ukrainian soldiers are likely to be taught how to operate the Western battlefield workhorse against Russia's invasion. The village of Swietoszow in western Poland, near the German border, hosts one of just three Leopard training centres in Europe - the others are in Germany and Switzerland. "If we intensify training (by maximising the number of) instructors, our time and our weekends, we can train an entire crew in five weeks," Major Maciej Banaszynski, Poland's Leopard training centre commander, told Reuters on Tuesday. "Leopard tanks are third-generation tanks. Banaszynski said Polish instructors were running Leopard training courses for tank crews and for drivers.

☆ German union warns Amazon of rolling pre-Christmas strikes
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, Dec 18 (Reuters) - German union Verdi on Sunday called on workers at Amazon warehouses across Germany to support rolling strikes in coming days in a protest over pay, aimed at maximising disruption to the online retailer's pre-Christmas business. Amazon, which does not recognise collective bargaining agreements in Germany, did not immediately respond to an e-mailed request for comment. Verdi said Amazon staff in Germany earned several thousand euros a year less than their counterparts at companies with collective bargaining rights. It said alternating strikes would hinder Amazon management's attempts to prepare for stoppages. The union did not immediately respond to a question as to whether its Amazon members had been balloted over the strike action.

☆ The shafts of light in a dark, dark world
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Hugo Dixon | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

The Ukraine conflict has made inflation and debt even worse. The conflict in Ukraine and the early stages of a cold war with China mean it’s hard to get global consensus on anything. The G20, whose members include China, India and Russia, played a big role tackling the 2008 global financial crisis. Meanwhile, the war has strengthened the alliance between America, Europe and like-minded countries across the world. But there is increasing pressure on the World Bank and other multilateral development banks to perform part of this task.

☆ Explainer: A field guide to climate jargon
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Nov 4 (Reuters) - Representatives from the world's nations meet in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, on Nov. 6-18 to flesh out the rules of a new global climate pact. Here is a guide:GLASGOW PACTReached at the 2021 U.N. climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland, the Glasgow Pact marked the first time a U.N. climate agreement mentioned the goal of reducing fossil fuel use. With time running out for steep emissions cuts, the pact also urges nations to come up with more ambitious climate plans. NATIONALLY DETERMINED CONTRIBUTIONSNDCs are the pledges that each country makes to reduce its emissions and adapt to climate change from 2020 onward. 'LOSS AND DAMAGE'Although richer countries have agreed to provide them with funding to address the impact of climate change, poorer countries continue to press for an agreed basis to assess liability for the losses and damage caused by climate change, and calculate compensation.

☆ Yen stealth intervention aimed at maximising effects, says Japan finance minister
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Tetsushi Kajimoto | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Full details of the intervention moves will be available when quarterly intervention data is published, due early this month. "We cannot tolerate excessive currency moves by speculative trading," Suzuki told reporters. "We are closely watching currency market moves with a high sense of urgency and we'll respond appropriately to excessive fluctuations." Japan spent 6.3499 trillion yen ($42.7 billion) on currency intervention in October to prop up the yen, the finance ministry said on Monday, leaving investors keen for clues about how much further the authorities might step in to soften the yen's sharp fall. The yen has since the Oct. 21 intervention been moving in a range below the psychological threshold of 150 yen versus the dollar.

☆ Breakingviews: Twitter deal sadly upholds primacy of shareholders
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Lauren Silva Laughlin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

After more than six months of ping-ponging, second-guessing, whistleblowing, arguing and mud-throwing, Elon Musk on Thursday closed his $44 billion deal to buy Twitter (TWTR.N). The social media firm, its employees, its new owners, its creditors and the rest of the world are probably worse off. If Twitter shares had followed the same trajectory as social media rival Snap (SNAP.N) since March 31, losing more than 80%, its investors would be some $38 billion worse off. If capitalism is about maximising value for the almighty shareholder, regardless of the consequences for other stakeholders, the Twitter saga upholds that primacy. loadingCONTEXT NEWSElon Musk completed his deal to buy social media firm Twitter for $44 billion on Oct. 27.

☆ European game is not sustainable, says Super League backer
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Alexander Hübner | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MUNICH, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Bernd Reichart, CEO of the company backing a proposed Super League, said on Wednesday that European football is losing its leading role in world sport and that clubs are not maximising their potential under the current system. Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus were amongst 12 clubs to announce a breakaway Super League in April 2021 but after a hostile reaction from across the game and from fans and governments alike the move promptly collapsed. One aspect of the initial Super League proposition which angered fans was that it was a closed competition for Europe's elite clubs, but Reichart said that was no longer the case. U.S. investment bank JP Morgan had been set to finance the Super League in 2021 but Reichart said it will now be "starting from scratch". Reichart has also written to UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin seeking a meeting to discuss issues related to the Super League, according to a letter obtained by Reuters.

☆ Vestas launches 'world's tallest onshore tower for wind turbines'
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-29 | by ( Anmar Frangoul | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A Vestas wind turbine photographed in Denmark. The company said Tuesday it would launch an onshore wind turbine tower with a hub height of 199 meters. In a statement, the Aarhus-headquartered company described it as "currently the world's tallest onshore tower for wind turbines." The growing size of wind turbines has led to concerns about whether port infrastructure, highways and the ships used to install turbines at sea can cope. The last few years have seen a number of major offshore wind energy projects take shape.

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