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Struggling Indian infrastructure heavyweight Adani Group hasn’t tipped over any other large dominoes yet. But another sprawling Indian conglomerate—miner Vedanta Resources—is looking wobbly. Market skittishness in the wake of the turmoil at Adani Group, which came under attack from short seller Hindenburg Research in late January, means that other indebted Indian companies—which otherwise might have muddled their way through the Federal Reserve hiking cycle—could increasingly find themselves under investors’ microscopes. A Vedanta Resources dollar bond due in May 2023 was yielding about 50% on Friday according to Refinitiv—about double the level at the end of January.
The Fed and SVB Won’t Sink Emerging Asia
  + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: 1 min
Dark clouds hovering over the U.S. banking sector may have ironically created a silver lining for emerging economies in Asia—lower oil prices. That comes as the key growth driver for much of the region, China, is ramping back up. Usually that would mean higher energy prices too, and inflation. But this time energy-hungry emerging Asian economies appear poised to benefit from China’s reopening when inflationary pressures are actually easing.
India’s EV Dreams Face a Reality Check
  + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: 1 min
India is determined to build a local component industry as its electric-vehicle market grows. India might be putting the cart in front of the horse when it comes to electric vehicles. EVs are starting to take off, but the government is determined to build a local component industry simultaneously. That might be a big ask, at least until the market reaches substantially larger scale—and certain other supply-side roadblocks are removed.
GoTo shares have declined 72% since its public listing in April last year. Indonesia’s ride-hailing and e-commerce company GoTo Group is racing toward profitability—but perhaps not fast enough for suddenly risk-averse investors. GoTo, Indonesia’s largest technology company, posted an adjusted loss before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization for the fourth quarter of 3.1 trillion Indonesian rupiah, equivalent to $201.89 million. That was less than half what it lost a year earlier, mainly thanks to aggressive cost cutting and a new focus on high-quality profitable users.
SVB Crisis Tests India’s New Finance Hub Potential
  + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: +1 min
Many Indian startups rushed this week to open new bank accounts in India’s Gujarat International Finance Tec-City, known as GIFT city. The swift collapse of Silicon Valley Bank has cast an aspiring Indian finance center into sudden relief. India, which has long been a bit player in global finance, has a chance to boost its role—but only if it moves swiftly to rectify some regulatory barriers. This week, many Indian startups rushed to open new bank accounts in India’s Gujarat International Finance Tec-City, known as GIFT city, once they regained access to their SVB deposits. Accounts set up within the hub’s International Financial Services Center, or IFSC, are free of India’s stringent capital controls since the funds are held in U.S. dollars.
E-commerce and games company Sea has distinguished itself with a laserlike focus on profitability. These days, profit is often the thin green line dividing loved and unloved tech shares. That makes sense in saturated e-commerce markets such as the U.S. But firms that retrench now in places like Southeast Asia, where e-commerce penetration is still relatively low, risk losing out to competitors that are able to grin and bear losses—even in a tough market environment.
Adani Group Stocks’ Recovery Is on Shaky Ground
  + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: 1 min
Shares of embattled Adani Group companies have taken a wild ride over the past six weeks. Recent moves by the conglomerate have helped put a floor under stock and bond prices, but clawing back further ground could be difficult, unless a new panel appointed by the Indian Supreme Court completely clears the group of wrongdoing.
India's rural women are bearing the brunt of climate related shocks like severe drought and extreme weather events, Universal Images Group | Getty ImagesIndia's rural women are bearing the brunt of climate related shocks like severe drought and extreme weather events, which are drastically affecting their daily livelihoods. The climate fund will allow women and communities to fight climate change and help provide new livelihood resources and education, said Clinton. Having access to clean water makes a huge difference in tackling the overall health issues for rural women, she added. In the latest economic survey released in February, the government said rural women were increasingly participating in economic activity. Government schemes and policies have helped rural women, said Akanksha Khullar, a visiting fellow with the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi.
The postpandemic reshuffle of the world’s electronics supply chain is speeding up. At the center of the change: India and Apple . Apple supplier Hon Hai Precision Industry , better known as Foxconn, plans to more than double its iPhone production at an existing plant near Chennai, India, to around 20 million units by 2024, The Wall Street Journal reported last week, and roughly triple the number of workers to as many as 100,000.
The postpandemic reshuffle of the world’s electronics supply chain is speeding up. At the center of the change: India and Apple . Apple supplier Hon Hai Precision Industry , better known as Foxconn, plans to more than double its iPhone production at an existing plant near Chennai, India, to around 20 million units by 2024, The Wall Street Journal reported last week, and roughly triple the number of workers to as many as 100,000.
India’s Economy Looks Shaky Under the Hood
  + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: 1 min
India’s economy is losing steam in the one place that has been the South Asian nation’s strongest bulwark against a possible global recession: robust domestic demand. India’s economy slowed further in the December quarter, figures released this week showed, as postpandemic pent up demand ebbed and the country’s manufacturing sector continued to weaken. Asia’s third largest economy recorded year-over-year growth of 4.4% last quarter, down from 6.3% in the September quarter.
Battery Metal Prices Fall Back to Earth
  + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: 1 min
After a substantial stretch when battery makers were desperate for mineral supplies, the shoe is suddenly on the other foot. In the past few months, previously red hot cobalt and lithium prices have cooled dramatically. Supply bottlenecks are easing while China’s demand for electric vehicles, and global demand for many consumer electronics, have ebbed as well. Cobalt has fallen out of favor the most: prices in February were down 61% from January last year, according to Benchmark Mineral Intelligence. Lithium carbonate prices rose rapidly for most of last year, but the metal has seen a sharp correction of 21% since November.
India Signals Its Arrival as a Force in Aviation
  + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: 1 min
Newly privatized Air India is making up for lost time. A turnaround of India’s flag carrier Air India Ltd. could place the country on the global aviation map. The beleaguered airline just kick-started the process with a historic aircraft order. Last week, Air India ordered 470 jets from aircraft giants Boeing Co. and Airbus, marking the largest deal for commercial aircraft in aviation history. The airline also has an option of ordering an additional 370 planes in the future.
For Glencore, coal remains a comfortable cushion until the copper supercycle kicks off in earnest. Coal gave Glencore —one of its last major allies—a lot to be grateful for in 2022. This year, its fortunes will depend more on a metal powering the other end of the global energy transition: copper. The mining and commodities-trading company posted another year of blockbuster earnings Wednesday. Glencore’s adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization rose 60% to a record $34.1 billion, including $17.9 billion from coal mining.
Adani Gets a Reprieve, Courtesy of the Black Stuff
  + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: 1 min
Adani Enterprises, the flagship listed vehicle of the beleaguered Adani Group conglomerate, has long pitched itself as a good environmental, social and governance company—but it has coal to thank for a reprieve during the most turbulent time in its history. On Tuesday, Adani Enterprises swung to a profit of 8.2 billion Indian rupees ($99.3 million) in the quarter ended in December, from a loss of 116.3 million Indian rupees in the year-earlier period, helped by robust revenue growth of 42%. Most of the boost came from its coal-trading business, the firm’s largest segment.
Infrastructure heavyweight Adani Group’s market crisis is coming at an inconvenient time: just as India aims to bulk up its infrastructure to position itself as a manufacturing alternative to China. Adani Group companies’ plunging dollar bonds won’t derail those plans. But they could force some project delays and hamper India’s bid to establish itself in emerging industries. On Wednesday, French oil major TotalEnergies said it would wait for the result of an independent audit before proceeding with a planned $4 billion collaboration with Adani Group on green hydrogen.
World Trade Weakens, but Maersk Will Float On
  + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: 1 min
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India Embraces Budgetary Caution—And Infrastructure
  + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: 1 min
India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman expressed confidence that the budget gap could fall to 4.5% by fiscal year 2026. New Delhi fought off its populist impulses and clawed back some fiscal space this week, announcing a relatively conservative federal budget. Falling spending on subsidies should give a large assist—but realizing the country’s big infrastructure push will still be a lift. That would be particularly true if public markets continue shunning infrastructure heavyweight Adani Group.
Adani Group’s Moment of Truth
  + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: 1 min
Global investors, who largely funded Adani Group ’s rising debt in recent years, are shunning its bonds after an attack from a New York-based short seller. Regaining markets’ confidence—or finding new private funding—will be essential to avoid problems as the Indian conglomerate’s dollar bonds start coming due. After a brief rally following Adani Enterprises’ successful completion of a new share offer on Tuesday in India, prices of many of the group’s dollar bonds—including issues from Adani Ports and Adani Green maturing in 2024—continued their slide on Wednesday. Adani Enterprises, whose shares are now at half of the offer price on the new issue, on Wednesday evening in India said it was canceling the sale and would return the proceeds to investors.
News about Adani appeared on a sign at the Bombay Stock Exchange, where shares of the group’s companies have plunged. The sprawling conglomerate built by Gautam Adani is under attack by short seller Hindenburg Research , which successfully deflated electric-vehicle maker Nikola Motors in 2020. Adani Group denies the allegations and says the short seller is trying to smear its reputation and derail a public stock offering. Shares of the group’s companies have plunged since Hindenburg’s report, wiping out nearly $64 billion in market value. Hindenburg’s report comes amid a $2.5 billion secondary share sale by Adani Enterprises that closes on Tuesday.
India’s Reliance Industries Deserves More Patience
  + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: 1 min
Reliance Industries , India’s most valuable company, is undergoing a transformation—its fourth this century. Chairman Mukesh Ambani probably deserves more shareholder love than he is getting right now. Delayed gratification is always a tough sell. Despite high interest rates, Reliance secured board approval last week to raise as much as 200 billion Indian rupees, equivalent to $2.5 billion, to pay short-term debt maturities and double down on its 5G cellular rollout, new energy ventures and to expand its retail business.
Google’s Big India Opportunity Faces a Challenge
  + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: 1 min
India wants to tame big tech’s dominance and it has its antitrust sights on Google. The giant company will be a tough nut to crack. Last week, Google lost an appeal in India’s Supreme Court to block an antitrust order that requires it to make significant changes to the way its Android operating system does business with smartphone makers, app developers and users. It strikes at the company’s core business model for Android and may force the technology giant to alter its approach in its largest market.
Liquefied Natural Gas Will Have a Less Frenzied 2023
  + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com   time to read: 1 min
Last year was the year of liquefied natural gas. Russia’s decision to curtail pipeline gas supplies to Europe sent prices through the roof and threatened to push Europe into recession. The panic-induced price spike of 2022 probably won’t recur this year—but betting on lower prices would also be unwise. LNG prices have slid after a much milder than expected winter in Europe. Asian LNG spot prices have fallen nearly 67% from the record highs reached in August last year.
Copper prices will benefit from new demand from clean-energy applications over the next few years. Commodities bulls have left the pen, ready for a long run. Odds are that 2023 will end with industrial-metal prices, at least, higher than they are now. Three-month copper futures are trading at $9,100 a metric ton on the London Metal Exchange, already up 9% in 2023 according to FactSet. And iron-ore prices rallied by almost 50% from early November to the end of 2022, according to CEIC, a data company.
Initial public offerings from Indian startups have remained largely in the deep freeze for the past 12 months. A Sequoia Capital-backed beauty and personal-care-products startup is now hoping to break the curse. At the tail end of 2022, the parent of Indian personal-care-products startup Mamaearth—Honasa Consumer Ltd.—filed for an initial public offering. The company plans to issue new shares worth 4 billion Indian rupees ($49 million) and sell 46.8 million existing shares. Investors including Sofina, Stellaris Venture Partners and Fireside Ventures would sell part of their stakes while Sequoia would stay put.
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