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☆ Op-Ed: Less affordable homes don't just ruin American dreams, they're a threat to the economy
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | by ( Michael Farr | Keith B. Davis | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

The National Association of Realtors said earlier this month that its housing affordability index fell during the second quarter to its lowest level on record. Not coincidentally, the first quarter of 2021 turned out to the be peak in housing affordability. The consequence has been the massive drop in housing affordability to new lows. But still, housing affordability is as low as it's been since at least 1986. Given its importance to the wider economy, a robust housing market will likely be a precondition to achieving a relatively seamless transition to long-term economic expansion.

Persons: It's, Freddie Mac, Justin Lahart, it's Organizations: National Association of Realtors, Fed

The logo of German chemicals maker Covestro is pictured outside its headquarters in Leverkusen, Germany, July 26, 2019. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsFRANKFURT, Aug 24 (Reuters) - Germany's Covestro (1COV.DE) should engage in formal takeover talks with Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) in the interest of its shareholders, two top-15 investors of the plastics and chemicals maker told Reuters. ADNOC, which is trying to diversify and develop its downstream and renewable energy operations, made a non-binding offer for Covestro of 55 euros per share in June, which was rejected, according to press reports. Rautenberg declined to comment on the price at which he would recommend Covestro accept an offer. Covestro this week appointed Christian Baier as chief financial officer, with Rautenberg noting his past dealmaking experience at private equity firm Permira.

Persons: Wolfgang Rattay, ADNOC, Arne Rautenberg, Covestro, Rautenberg, Christian Baier, Emma, Victoria Farr, Elisa Martinuzzi, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Abu, Abu Dhabi National Oil Co, Reuters, Union Investment, Thomson Locations: Leverkusen, Germany, Abu Dhabi

☆ Three-Stock Lunch: Tesla, Lowe's, and Comerica
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

In this videoShare Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailThree-Stock Lunch: Tesla, Lowe's, and ComericaMichael Farr, president & CEO of Farr, Miller & Washington, joins 'Power Lunch' to discuss Farr's investing take on three stocks: Lowe's, Comerica, and Tesla.

Persons: Comerica Michael Farr, Farr Organizations: Comerica, Miller & Washington

AMSTERDAM, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Investment company Exor (EXOR.AS) was able to build a 15% stake in Dutch healthcare group Philips (PHG.AS) without triggering the usual disclosures thanks to derivatives deals through Goldman Sachs, regulatory filings show. Exor's investment was seen as a vote of confidence in Philips and boosted the Dutch company's shares. Filings by the Dutch Financial Market Authority AFM dated Aug. 14 but published late on Wednesday showed Goldman Sachs had taken an 12.11% stake in Philips using a derivatives structure that included 95 million call options. Sources confirmed to Reuters earlier this week that Goldman Sachs acted on behalf of Exor but could not give more details. Exor and Goldman Sachs (GS.N) declined to comment.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Italy's Agnelli, Roy Jakobs, Exor, Allen, Overy, De Brauw, Philips, Toby Sterling, Pablo Mayo Cerqueiro, Andres Gonzalez, Valentina Za, Victoria Farr, Jane Merriman Organizations: Investment, Philips, Dutch, US Securities and Exchange, Reuters, Overy, Thomson Locations: Philips, Dutch

A sign of Wanda is pictured at the headquarters of Dalian Wanda Group, in Beijing's Central Business District (CBD), China August 8, 2023. China's largest commercial property group has tapped Deutsche Bank for advice on the sale of Infront Sports & Media, the sources said, adding the process is in the early stages and could take months to complete. Headquartered in Switzerland, Infront's businesses include managing Italy's Serie A and the UK Premier League's international media rights, as well as event operations, media rights distribution and sponsorship sales. It raised $320 million through the partial sale of its entertainment unit Beijing Wanda Cultural Industry to pay it off. Spain's Mediapro, which manages international media rights for LaLiga, restructured 900 million euros in debt a year ago selling shares to investors including the group's majority shareholder Southwind.

Persons: Wanda, Tingshu Wang, China's, Wang Jianlin, Infront, Amy, Jo Crowley, Emma, Victoria Farr, Milana, Andres Gonzalez, Kane Wu, Clare Jim, Elisa Martinuzzi, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Dalian Wanda Group, Beijing's, Business, REUTERS, Reuters, Deutsche Bank, Infront Sports & Media, Serie, Premier League's, South East, Olympic Games, Beijing Wanda Cultural Industry, Infront, Companies, LaLiga, Thomson Locations: China, FRANKFURT, Switzerland, Central, South, South East Asia, Dalian, Beijing, Infront

REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsAug 16 (Reuters) - ArcelorMittal SA (MT.LU), the world's second-largest steelmaker, is considering a potential offer for U.S. Steel Corp (X.N), three people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday. ArcelorMittal is discussing a possible offer with its investment bankers, and there is no certainty that it will press ahead with it, the sources said. Representatives for ArcelorMittal and U.S. Steel did not immediately respond to requests for comment. ArcelorMittal's deliberations come after U.S. Steel said on Sunday it had launched a process to explore interest from potential acquirers. The United Steelworkers union supports Cleveland-Cliffs' bid, however U.S. Steel has rebuffed it as "unreasonable".

Persons: Benoit Tessier, ArcelorMittal, Steel, Greg Roumeliotis, Victoria Farr, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: REUTERS, ArcelorMittal SA, U.S . Steel Corp, U.S . Steel, Cliffs Inc, Esmark Inc, Representatives, ArcelorMittal, Steel, . Steel, The United Steelworkers, Thomson Locations: Dunkirk, France, Cleveland, New York, U.S, China, Europe, Frankfurt

This would boost the oil giant's non-binding bid to about 11.6 billion euros ($12.63 billion), the people said. The indication of a raised offer is, however, not in writing, the people cautioned, adding that Covestro will take time to consider any next steps. ADNOC last raised its informal offer to 57 euros per share in July. Covestro shares jumped about 4.2% in a volume spike after Bloomberg News first reported that ADNOC was prepared to sweeten its offer. Earlier in August, Covestro reported a 21% fall in revenues to 3.7 billion euros in the second quarter.

Persons: Toru Hanai, ADNOC, Covestro, Austria's, Emma, Victoria Farr, Maha El Dahan, Yousef Saba, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: REUTERS, Abu Dhabi National Oil Co, Reuters, Bloomberg News, Thomson Locations: Gastech, Chiba, Japan, FRANKFURT, DUBAI, Abu Dhabi, Frankfurt, Maha, Dubai

☆ We can't keep racking up debt without a plan, says Michael Farr
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailWe can't keep racking up debt without a plan, says Michael FarrMichael Farr, CEO at Farr, Miller & Washington, joins 'Power Lunch' to discuss Fitch's downgrade of the U.S. debt rating and more.

Persons: Michael Farr Michael Farr Organizations: Farr, Miller & Washington

☆ Instant View: Fitch downgrades U.S. foreign currency ratings to 'AA+' from 'AAA'
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

The downgrade follows a debt ceiling agreement in June that came after months of political brinkmanship and ultimately lifted the government's $31.4 trillion debt ceiling. Unless they think that fiscal trajectory suggests risk of a default, which I don't think they say, I don't understand the reason for this." “So I don't think the reaction, it should surprise anyone in the markets because we've been through this before. JACK ABLIN, CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER, CRESSET WEALTH ADVISORS IN PALM BEACH, FLORIDA"I'm surprised, but I'm not surprised." "It's really the just the troubled negotiations that take place every time we have a debt ceiling or budget negotiation.

Persons: Thomas White, Fitch, STEVEN RICCHIUTO, ” WENDY EDELBERG, I'm, JASON WARE, Fiitch, MICHAEL O’ROURKE, “, ” BERNARD BAUMOHL, Poor’s, ” MICHAEL SCHULMAN, ANGELO KOURKAFAS, EDWARD JONES, ”, MICHAEL K, FARR, That’s, ” KEITH LERNER, ” “ It’s, ERIC WINOGRAD, ALLIANCEBERNSTEIN, QUINCY KROSBY, doesn't, JACK ABLIN, it's Organizations: REUTERS, United, AAA, USA, ., OF, HAMILTON PROJECT, BROOKINGS, WASHINGTON D.C, ALBION, Fitch, AA, PRINCETON, NEW, ST LOUIS, MILLER & WASHINGTON LLC, ADVISORY, Global Finance, Markets, Thomson Locations: United States, U.S, MIZUHO, WASHINGTON, CITY , UTAH, STAMFORD , CONNECTICUT, NEW JERSEY, ATLANTA, CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA, BEACH , FLORIDA

☆ Analysis: Israel's judicial reform turmoil threatens economic growth, investment
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( Libgeorge Marc Jones | Marc Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

REUTERS/Nir Elias/Illustration//File PhotoLONDON, July 30 (Reuters) - Israel's economy may face ratings downgrades, falling foreign investment and a weaker tech sector if turmoil arising from the government's contentious judicial reforms continues, investors and analysts warn. Reuters GraphicsMaplecroft's Kinnear said comparatively low inflation versus similar countries had buoyed investment, but more civil unrest could derail incoming cash. The reform backlash "threatens to push the economy onto a permanently lower growth path," Nicholas Farr, emerging Europe economist with Capital Economics wrote in a note. Moody's cut Israel's sovereign credit to a "dislike" stance, while S&P said on Thursday the unprecedented protests would lower economic growth this year. S&P warned in May that it could lower its AA- Israel rating "if regional or domestic political risks escalated sharply, depressing Israel's economic, fiscal, and balance-of-payments metrics."

Persons: Nir Elias, Benjamin, Hamish Kinnear, Reuters Graphics Maplecroft's Kinnear, Morgan Stanley, Roger Mark, Mark, Kinnear, Nicholas Farr, Moody's, Fitch, Natalia Gurushina, VanEck, Libby George, Marc Jones, Sharon Singleton Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Middle East, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Copley Fund Research, Reuters Graphics, Gross, TECH, Israeli Innovation Authority, Capital Economics, P, Fitch, AA, Thomson Locations: Israel, North Africa, Europe

REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach/File PhotoFRANKFURT, July 27 (Reuters) - New construction plunged in Germany during the first half of the year, data on Thursday showed, the latest sign of stress in the property market of Europe's largest economy. The data underscore a steep rut that dominates the nation's real-estate sector in its worst crisis in decades. "There's strong caution in project development," said Sven Carstensen, chief executive of Bulwiengesa. The nation's property industry will ask the government for multi-billion euro support at a meeting with Chancellor Olaf Scholz in September, Reuters reported last week. "The situation is dramatic," said Jan-Marco Luczak, a parliamentarian who has pushed for a property tax cut demanded by industry.

Persons: Kai Pfaffenbach, Sven Carstensen, Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Marco Luczak, Marcus Gwechenberger, Bulwiengesa, Florian Schwalm, EY, Karim Rochdi, Tom Sims, Hugh Lawson Organizations: REUTERS, Bulwiengesa, Reuters, European Central Bank, Thomson Locations: Frankfurt, Germany, FRANKFURT, Frankfurt's

☆ Rudy Giuliani concedes he made 'false' statements about Georgia election workers
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( Ryan J. Reilly | Summer Concepcion | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Rudy Giuliani, former lawyer to Donald Trump, speaks to members of the media as he leaves federal court in Washington, DC, US, on Friday, May 19, 2023. Rudy Giuliani conceded in a court filing Tuesday that he made "false" statements about two Georgia 2020 election workers who are suing him over baseless claims of fraud that he made against them. "Defendant Giuliani, for the purposes of litigation only, does not contest that, to the extent the statements were statements of fact and other wise actionable, such actionable factual statements were false," Giuliani wrote in a signed stipulation that he said was intended to "avoid unnecessary expenses in litigating what he believes to be unnecessary disputes." Giuliani had claimed that Freeman and Moss were "passing around USB ports like they were vials of heroin or cocaine." The filing by Giuliani comes after Georgia's State Election Board last month dismissed its yearslong investigation into alleged election fraud at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, clearing Freeman and Moss of wrongdoing.

Persons: Rudy Giuliani, Donald Trump, Defendant Giuliani, Giuliani, Ruby Freeman, Moss, Freeman, Shaye, Michael J, Gottlieb, Gallagher, Shaye Moss, Trump, Ted Goodman, Goodman, Josh Cradduck Organizations: Trump, Willkie, Farr, New, NBC, Farm Arena, FBI, Georgia Bureau of Investigations Locations: Washington , DC, Georgia, litigating, New York, Atlanta, Freeman

It was a paid ad by a group of high-tech companies protesting against Netanyahu's judicial policies, which analysts say have unleashed a slew of risks, both for Israel's economy and for his own political future. Israel's shekel moved on every twist and turn in parliament as efforts to reach a judicial compromise intensified and finally crashed. For now, Israel's economy is relatively robust, with growth forecast at 3% this year and unemployment at a 3.5% rate. Even if Netanyahu chooses to scrap plans for further judicial changes, damage will be hard to fix. The tech sector has a lot to lose if more controversial judicial changes come because firms need a trusted legal system to protect their intellectual property.

Persons: Netanyahu, Moody's, Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's shekel, Morgan Stanley, Itzchak Raz, Netanyahu's, They're, Raz, Avi Hasson, Nicholas Farr, Amir Yaron, Amotz Asa, Asa, Shalom Hartman, Maayan Lubell, William Maclean Organizations: Government, Hebrew University, Israel Innovation Authority, Nation Central, Capital Economics, Analysts, Bank, Thomson Locations: JERUSALEM, Israel, Jerusalem

☆ Farr: Given the tremendous rally this year, a reversion makes sense
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailFarr: Given the tremendous rally this year, a reversion makes senseMichael Farr, President & CEO of Farr, Miller & Washington and Chief Market Strategist at Hightower Advisors, discusses the market rally and which stocks are high on his radar.

Persons: Email Farr, Michael Farr, Farr, Hightower Organizations: Miller & Washington and Chief, Hightower Advisors

"I am worried because we are in a deep real estate crisis. And the real estate crisis needs clear, structured and downright radical steps to fix it," Mattner said. For years, Germany's property market has been seen as a safe haven, becoming a major draw for foreign investors. Recent data shows the stress the property sector is facing as the European Central Bank hikes interest rates, with little respite in sight. The fall is "catastrophic," said Andreas Beulich, head of the Federal Association of Independent Real Estate and Housing Companies.

Persons: Kai Pfaffenbach, Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Andreas Mattner, Mattner, Tim, Oliver Mueller, Mueller, Scholz, Danyal, Andreas Beulich, Mathias Duesterdick, ”, Andreas Naujoks, Simone Zapke, Emma, Victoria Farr, Matthias Inverardi, Sharon Singleton Organizations: REUTERS, German Property Federation, German Construction Industry Federation, Reuters Graphics, European Central Bank, Federal Association of Independent, Housing Companies, Centrum Group, ECB, Thomson Locations: Frankfurt, Germany, Germany's, Europe's, Kai Pfaffenbach FRANKFURT, Baden, United States, Sweden

☆ Berlin aims to have "best equipped" NATO army division in Europe in 2025
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( Sabine Siebold | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Heiko BeckerBERLIN, July 17 (Reuters) - Germany is confident it will have the best equipped army division amongst European NATO allies in 2025, Army Chief Alfons Mais told Reuters, as countries are scrambling to gear up their troops in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. At the moment, Berlin does not have a single combat-ready division, a military unit comprising more than 20,000 troops. It aims to have the first of three divisions operational by 2025, with the second to follow in 2027. "It will be sufficient, in any case, to contribute the best equipped division of all European NATO partners in 2025. "But supporting Ukraine is more important right now than establishing a division, as NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has stressed," he underlined.

Persons: Boris Pistorius, Heiko Becker BERLIN, Alfons Mais, Mais, Jens Stoltenberg, Olaf Scholz, Sabine Siebold, Emma, Victoria Farr, David Evans Organizations: German, Bundeswehr, REUTERS, NATO, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Hammelburg, Germany, Ukraine, Berlin, Dutch, Iraq, Afghanistan, Kyiv

☆ Farr: The best advice for the second half is to stick to your discipline
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailFarr: The best advice for the second half is to stick to your disciplineMichael Farr of Farr, Miller & Washington and Hightower Advisors discusses whether investors should carry on or try to cash in some of the profits they enjoyed from the huge market gains in the first half of the year.

Persons: Email Farr, Michael Farr, Farr Organizations: Miller & Washington, Hightower Advisors

☆ Three-Stock Lunch: DAL, WBA & LOW
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

In this videoShare Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailThree-Stock Lunch: DAL, WBA & LOWMichael Farr, Hightower Advisors, joins ‘Power Lunch’ to discuss three stocks: Delta, Walgreens and Lowe's.

Persons: Michael Farr, Hightower Organizations: DAL, WBA, Hightower Advisors, Walgreens

☆ Germany's Covestro rejects takeover proposal from ADNOC -Bloomberg News
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

FRANKFURT, June 22 (Reuters) - German plastics and chemicals maker Covestro AG (1COV.DE) has rejected an initial takeover proposal from Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) saying the offer was too low, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday citing people familiar with the matter. The stock jumped as much as 3.7% after the report was published, after trading down earlier in the day. Two people familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday that ADNOC had approached Covestro with a takeover proposal worth more than 10 billion euros ($11.00 billion). It would probably only be a matter of price whether the existing shareholders would accept such a takeover offer," Arne Rautenberg, fund manager at Union Investment, told Reuters. Covestro, a maker of transparent polycarbonate plastics, as well as chemicals for insulation and upholstery foams, in April issued earnings guidance that reassured markets about its growth prospects.

Persons: ADNOC, Covestro, Arne Rautenberg, Gursimran Kaur, Victoria Farr, Jason Neely, Conor Humphries Organizations: Covestro, Abu Dhabi National Oil Co, Bloomberg, Reuters, Union Investment, Thomson Locations: FRANKFURT, Abu Dhabi, Bengaluru, Emma, Frankfurt

☆ Poland wants to boost its minimum wage by 20% — and it's got economists worried
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The Polish government has proposed an increase to national minimum of around 20% in 2024, a move economists believe will keep inflation higher for longer. Jan Woitas/picture alliance via Getty ImagesPoland's government has proposed a record rise in the national minimum wage of more than 23%, a move economists are worried will exacerbate double-digit inflation. In an interview with state-controlled news agency PAP last month, Polish Family and Social Policy Minister Marlena Malag said the minimum wage increase was designed to help people cope with the increased cost of living. Consumer price inflation in Poland eased in May, but still increased 13% year-on-year. He highlighted that given a "notable increase" in the number of workers that receive minimum wage in Poland in recent years, the impact of the latest increase is likely to be "meaningful."

Persons: Jan Woitas, —, Donald Tusk, Marlena Malag, Adam Glapinski, Rafal Benecki, Benecki, Nicholas Farr Organizations: Justice, Getty Images, Coalition, European, Social, National Bank of Poland, Monetary, ING Poland, Capital Economics Locations: WARSAW, Poland, Warsaw, Central, Eastern Europe, Polish, Europe

[1/2] A general view of ADNOC headquarters in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates May 29, 2019. REUTERS/Christopher Pike/File PhotoJune 20 (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has approached German plastics and chemicals maker Covestro AG (1COV.DE) with a takeover proposal worth more than 10 billion euros ($10.9 billion), two people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday. The OMV deal would indirectly also increase ADNOC's holding in both European petrochemicals maker Borealis and Abu Dhabi-listed petrochemicals company Borouge (BOROUGE.AD). SABIC (2020.SE), also of Saudi Arabia, in the same year purchased a stake of almost 25% in Swiss chemicals maker Clariant (CLN.S). Thanks to a 2007 deal to buy GE's plastics unit, SABIC competes with Covestro in polycarbonate plastics.

Persons: Christopher Pike, Abu Dhabi's, ADNOC, Sultan, Jaber, Lanxess, SABIC, Ludwig Burger, Patricia Weiss, Christoph Steitz, Hadeel Al, Greg Roumeliotis, Louise Heavens, Sharon Singleton, Elisa Martinuzzi, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: United, United Arab Emirates, REUTERS, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, Covestro, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: Abu Dhabi, United Arab, Covestro, Europe, Saudi Aramco, Saudi Arabia, Swiss, Frankfurt, Hadeel Al Sayegh, Dubai

[1/2] A general view of ADNOC headquarters in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates May 29, 2019. ADNOC and Covestro declined to comment. The OMV deal would indirectly also increase ADNOC's holding in both European petrochemicals maker Borealis and Abu Dhabi-listed petrochemicals company Borouge (BOROUGE.AD). SABIC (2020.SE), also of Saudi Arabia, in the same year purchased a stake of almost 25% in Swiss chemicals maker Clariant (CLN.S). Thanks to a 2007 deal to buy GE's plastics unit, SABIC competes with Covestro in polycarbonate plastics.

June 16 (Reuters) - German bus services firm Flix, owner of the Greyhound brand in North America and FlixBus in Europe, has stepped up preparations for a possible stock-market listing, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. Flix has invited investment banks to pitch to manage its share sale in recent weeks, said the sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. U.S. corporate finance house Evercore (EVR.N) is advising Flix on the process, the sources said. Flix, set up in 2011 by three entrepreneurs in Munich to try to make bus travel cheap, runs bus and train services across 40 countries. So far this year, only one stock market listing has taken place in Germany, raising $479 million, according to Refinitiv data.

Persons: Flix, Evercore, IONOS, WE, Hidroelectrica, Emma, Victoria Farr, Pablo Mayo Cerqueiro, John O'Donnell, Barbara Lewis Organizations: Greyhound, Reuters, Atlantic, Thomson Locations: North America, Europe, Germany, Ukraine, Munich, Permira, BlackRock, London

Since Jones and his company are bankrupt, the trials would not normally be allowed to proceed without bankruptcy court permission. Jones has said that he can not afford to pay the Sandy Hook defamation judgments, and is attempting to resolve all legal claims against him through a settlement in bankruptcy. Leonard Pozner and Veronique De La Rosa, whose six-year-old son Noah was killed in the Sandy Hook shooting, would proceed to trial in October. Without a placeholder value, the Texas defamation claims could be given far less weight than the defamation claims that have already resulted in $1.5 billion in verdicts, according to Jones’ court filings. The case is Alex Jones, U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, No.

Persons: Sandy Hook, Alex Jones, Jones, Christopher Lopez, Lopez, Sandy, Leonard Pozner, Veronique De La Rosa, Noah, De, De La Rosa, Marcel Fontaine, Fontaine, De La, Fontaine's, Jennifer Hardy, Vickie Driver, Crowe, Ray Battaglia, Pozner, Willkie Farr, Gallagher Read, Dietrich Knauth Organizations: U.S, Speech Systems, De La, CNN, Bankruptcy, Southern, Southern District of, Dunlevy, Systems, Thomson Locations: U.S, Houston, Newtown , Connecticut, Texas, Parkland , Florida, Southern District, Southern District of Texas

[1/2] Uday Kotak, Managing Director of Kotak Mahindra Bank poses for a picture at the company's corporate office in Mumbai January 15, 2015. Kotak General Insurance, which is fully-owned by Indian banking giant Kotak Mahindra Bank (KTKM.NS), did not respond to Reuters queries. While the Kotak insurance unit's interest in selling a stake has been reported earlier, its talks with Zurich, the potential deal size and valuation are being reported for the first time. More than 30 companies operate in India's general insurance market, where annual premium collections grew 11% to reach $26.7 billion in 2021-22, helped by rising financial literacy and income levels, CareEdge Ratings said in a report. Already, foreign companies such as Germany's Allianz and South Africa's Lombard have general insurance partnerships with Indian banking or financial groups.

Persons: Uday Kotak, Kotak, South Africa's Lombard, Ergo, Sriram, Tom Sims, Victoria Farr, Aditya Kalra, Jacqueline Wong Organizations: Mahindra Bank, REUTERS, Danish, Zurich Insurance, Kotak, Zurich eyeing, Insurance, Asia's, Germany's Allianz, South, Thomson Locations: Mumbai, India, Zurich, MUMBAI, South Africa's, Europe, China, Frankfurt

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