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☆ Missing metals hit green economy pressure point
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( Lisa Jucca | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

On Thursday, copper producer Aurubis said it had discovered large discrepancies in inventory levels at its Hamburg recycling centre, which strips out used copper and precious metals from discarded computer circuit boards. The 3 billion euro company’s initial assessment of the incident, which comes after a separate theft case in June, suggests missing metals may lead to a hit of at least 100 million euros. That’s about one-fifth of its previously projected annual pre-tax profit of 450 million euros to 550 million euros for the financial year ending in September. And it will expand to roughly 30.1 million tons by 2031, according to McKinsey. But the consultancy reckons global demand will reach 36.6 million tons at the start of the next decade, leaving a gap of more than 6 million tons per year.

Persons: Trafigura, Aurubis, Liam Proud, Streisand Neto, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, International Energy Agency, McKinsey, Thomson Locations: Hamburg, European

☆ UBS cost-cut gains are a double-edged sword
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-31 | by ( Liam Proud | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

LONDON, Aug 31 (Reuters Breakingviews) - UBS’s (UBSG.S) acquisition of Credit Suisse looks increasingly good – maybe a little too good. There were three key questions for shareholders ahead of UBS’s delayed second-quarter results on Thursday, its first since completing the emergency rescue of Credit Suisse in June. And what would UBS do with Credit Suisse’s local business? He’s keeping Credit Suisse’s Swiss business, which allows him to establish a dominant position at home and wring out juicy cost savings. And while some Credit Suisse businesses are disappearing, Ermotti won’t mind.

Persons: Boss Sergio Ermotti, Ralph Hamers, UBS’s, Ermotti, it’s, Sergio Ermotti, Neil Unmack, Streisand Neto Organizations: Reuters, Credit Suisse, UBS, Credit, Suisse’s, Suisse, Swiss Competition, Thomson Locations: Suisse’s Swiss, Switzerland, Schweiz

☆ Shady export leaks suggest Russian sanctions work
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( Pierre Briancon | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

That may be true, but the cracks mostly demonstrate the sanctions’ impact, and why they can be tightened. EU exporters did ship nearly 17 billion euros’ worth of goods to Kazakhstan in the 18 months starting in January 2022. And if exports had grown at the 17% pace of previous years, some 6 billion euros would remain unexplained. Meanwhile, Russia’s efforts to circumvent a G7 price cap on its oil shipments are another sign of Western sanctions’ overall effectiveness. EU exports to Russia declined by 30% to 75.7 billion euros over the same period.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Francesco Guerrera, Streisand Neto, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, European Union, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Western, Union, Eurostat, Thomson Locations: Kazakhstan, Soviet, Moscow, Uzbekistan, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, China, India, Europe, United States, Central Asia, EU

☆ GAM’s end game still has a way to go
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsMILAN, Aug 24 (Reuters Breakingviews) - GAM’s (GAMH.S) long-running takeover saga has entered a critical phase. The ball is now with the opposing shareholders, which control nearly 10% of the asset manager. The NewGAMe crowd has proposed issuing a 25 million Swiss franc convertible bond to give GAM some breathing space. But this won’t cover expected losses, restructuring charges and pension costs amounting to at least 100 million Swiss francs, GAM has calculated. As things stand, to win the game of rescuing this embattled asset manager, investors will have to dig deep.

Persons: Xavier Niel, Sarah Meyssonnier, NewGAMe’s, Lisa Jucca, Coinbase’s, Aimee Donnellan, Streisand Neto Organizations: French, REUTERS, Reuters, Management, GAM, X, Thomson Locations: Paris, France, French, Ukraine

☆ India’s space startups are ready to blast off too
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Amit Dave Acquire Licensing RightsBENGALURU, Aug 24 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Nearly seven million people watched India’s space program make history on Wednesday. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) became the first to land near the moon’s unexplored south pole. Peak XV Partners, formerly Sequoia India and Southeast Asia, in June led a $10 million investment in Digantara, which maps space debris. At $74 million, the bill for India’s moon mission was less than the cost of producing 2013 Hollywood space thriller "Gravity". New Delhi is finalising new foreign direct investment rules, and that will likely turbocharge India’s space startups.

Persons: Amit Dave, Elon Musk, Singapore’s GIC, Pranav Kiran, Coinbase’s, Una Galani, Streisand Neto Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Indian Space Research Organisation, ISRO, SpaceX, XV Partners, Sequoia, Skyroot Aerospace, Hollywood, Twitter, Thomson Locations: Gujarat Science City, Ahmedabad, India, Sequoia India, Southeast Asia, Digantara, New Delhi

☆ Leaving the office for dead may haunt investors
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( Aimee Donnellan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Those moves may herald a requirement for a return to a five-day office week. Average office attendance is only 35%, according to AWA, a consultancy that studied companies in 22 countries during April and May of 2023. Still, a mass exodus of tenants is unlikely as office leases in financial districts like London’s Canary Wharf have around 10 years left. But investors fear that once leases come up for renewal, companies will cull space. If bosses have it their way, office stocks may come back from the dead.

Persons: France’s, BNY Mellon, Jamie Dimon, “, ” BNY Mellon, Francesco Guerrera, Streisand Neto Organizations: Reuters, Boston Properties, Google, JPMorgan, . Tech, Communications, Reuters Graphics, AWA, Alexandria Real, Thomson Locations: London , New York, San Francisco, London, U.S, Alexandria, Britain

☆ Arm’s IPO risks shine brighter than its potential
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( Karen Kwok | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Arm’s revenue is still dominated by its mainstay smartphone business, which contributed to the recent growth slowdown. Nor is Arm’s revenue particularly easy to forecast. In the most recent quarter, which ended on June 30, Arm’s revenue fell by more than 2% year-on-year to $675 million. Arm’s owner, SoftBank Group, was previously planning to sell between $8 billion and $10 billion of shares. SoftBank will have the right to appoint seven out of eight directors to Arm’s board after the IPO, provided its shareholding remains above 70%.

Persons: SoftBank Group's, That’s, Masayoshi Son, hasn’t, SoftBank, Liam Proud, Streisand Neto Organizations: Reuters, Nvidia, Reuters Graphics Reuters, U.S, Nasdaq, SoftBank, Thomson Locations: China, British

☆ World Bank’s green overhaul is slowly taking shape
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-21 | by ( Rebecca Christie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

BRUSSELS, Aug 21 (Reuters Breakingviews) - To step up the fight against climate change, World Bank President Ajay Banga wants to overhaul the lender’s balance sheet without overturning its credit rating. Earlier this year, the World Bank pledged $50 billion over 10 years via changes to how it manages its equity to loan ratio. Such backing has been used before, for example by the UK to fund $1 billion of World Bank projects in India. The central banks would hold those bonds as liquid reserves, while the World Bank could use the SDRs for financing its operations. All of these options are more complicated than if the World Bank’s shareholders simply increased its paid-in capital outright.

Persons: Ajay Banga, Janet Yellen, Lawrence Summers, N.K, Singh, Joe Biden, Yellen, ”, Guarantors, Brad Setser, Stephen Paduano, George Hay, Francesco Guerrera, Streisand Neto Organizations: Reuters, World, Treasury, World Bank, Reuters Graphics, Mastercard, Citigroup, AAA, U.S, Bank, London School of Economics, International Monetary Fund, European Union, U.S ., Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS, U.S, Asia, Banga, India, Japan, China, European, Marrakech, Singh

☆ Saudi binge is fiscal free kick for European clubs
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-18 | by ( Streisand Neto | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The Saudi binge may help European teams raise funds and meet tough new financial rules. The Roshn Saudi League is a top scorer in the football transfer market. UEFA, the governing body for European football, has introduced new rules limiting clubs’ spending on wages, transfers and agent fees to 70% of revenue. European clubs should take the money before the referee's whistle blows. Saudi clubs have spent over 550 million euros buying players from European clubs in the 2023/2024 transfer season, according to Transfermarkt.

Persons: Al Hilal's, Neymar, Fahd bin Saad Al, Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior, Germain, Rúben Neves, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Len Blavatnik, China’s, Oscar, Marouane, Hilal, Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Neil Unmack, Thomas Shum, Pranav Kiran Organizations: Soccer, Al, Saudi Pro League, REUTERS Acquire, Reuters, Paris Saint, Saudi, Saudi Public Investment Fund, Britain’s Premier League, Premier League, Deloitte’s Sports Business, UEFA, Deloitte, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Bloomberg, BBC, Thomson Locations: Al Hilal, Paris, France, Saudi, Hilal, Saudi League, Al, Ittihad, Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, Kingdom, Saudi Arabian

☆ ECB core obsession raises risk of policy mistake
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( Francesco Guerrera | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Headline inflation in the euro zone has halved in the past nine months and was 5.3% in July. Granted, both headline and core inflation are currently above the ECB’s 2% target. In fact, core tends to follow headline inflation because its narrower composition makes it stickier. That’s because, as the chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve Jerome Powell said recently, headline inflation is “really what the public experiences”. ECB President Christine Lagarde has pledged to be “data-dependent”.

Persons: Wolfgang Rattay, Martin Heidegger, that’s, Joachim Nagel, Germany’s Bundesbank, Klaas Knot, Lucrezia Reichlin, Michele Lenza, Jerome Powell, Christine Lagarde, Klaas, Neil Unmack, Oliver Taslic, Streisand Neto Organizations: European Central Bank, REUTERS, Reuters, ECB, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Financial Times, U.S . Federal, Eurostat, Central, Thomson Locations: Frankfurt, Germany, German, Ukraine

☆ BAE’s stratospheric space deal has sound logic
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

People gather at the BAE Systems' booth during the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) Global Force Symposium & Exposition in Huntsville, Alabama, U.S. March 28, 2023. REUTERS/Cheney Orr/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Aug 17 (Reuters Breakingviews) - BAE (BAES.L) is showing off its deep pockets. On Thursday, the $37 billion maker of war ships and armored vehicles said it will splurge over $5.5 billion in cash on Ball Corp’s (BALL.N) aerospace arm. BAE CEO Charles Woodburn beat off private equity bidders including Blackstone (BX.N) to seal the deal, which bulks up his exposure to civil and military space surveillance solutions. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Persons: Cheney Orr, Ball, Charles Woodburn, Woodburn, Woodburn’s pricey, Aimee Donnellan, EY’s loveless, Neil Unmack, Streisand Neto Organizations: BAE Systems, Association of, United States Army, Global, REUTERS, Reuters, BAE, Blackstone, Ball Aerospace, Twitter, TPG, Thomson Locations: Huntsville , Alabama, U.S

☆ High services costs make UK rate-cutting laggard
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Governor of the Bank of England Andrew Bailey speaks as he attends a press conference for the Monetary Policy Report August 2023, at the Bank of England in London, Britain, August 3, 2023. Alastair Grant/Pool via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Aug 16 (Reuters Breakingviews) - UK inflation is slowing, according to many metrics. Unfortunately, those are not the ones the Bank of England values the most. Prices in that category grew 7.4% in July, faster than June’s 7.2%, due to more expensive restaurants, hotels and airfares. Policymakers keep a close eye on services’ prices and wage growth, which hit a record in the three months to June.

Persons: Bank of England Andrew Bailey, Alastair Grant, Andrew Bailey, Bailey, Francesco Guerrera, Exor’s Philips, Bain, Neil Unmack, Streisand Neto Organizations: Bank of England, Monetary, REUTERS Acquire, Reuters, Bank of, Office, National Statistics . Services, European Central Bank, U.S . Federal Reserve, Twitter, FC Barcelona’s, Messi, Thomson Locations: London, Britain, Bank of England, June’s

☆ Exor’s Philips bet looks well-timed
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The Agnelli family’s investment company on Monday said it bought a 15% stake in the toothbrushes-to-defibrillators group for 2.6 billion euros ($2.8 billion). Philips’ shares are down some 62% since the peak in April 2021, and it now looks much cheaper than the sum of its parts. Based on peer multiples, its diagnostics business could be worth 14 times 2024 EBITDA, while its connected care unit, which helps hospitals manage patient data, might be valued at 18.5 times EBITDA. Lastly, throw in the consumer division, which makes toasters and TVs, and could fetch 12 times EBITDA. Using Refinitiv forecasts, that would imply a total enterprise value of 33 billion euros, and equity of some 24 billion euros, after taking off debt and 2.4 billion euros for legal costs estimated by Bernstein analysts.

Persons: John Elkann, Agnelli, Philips ’, EBITDA, Bernstein, Roy Jakobs, Philips, Karen Kwok, Bain, BoE, Neil Unmack, Streisand Neto Organizations: Reuters, Koninklijke Philips, U.S . Department of Justice, Philips, Twitter, FC Barcelona’s, Messi, Siemens, Thomson

☆ UK GDP jump offers little relief to BoE
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The larger-than-forecast 0.5% rise in GDP in June meant that output grew 0.2% in the second quarter compared to the previous three months. That’s a modest acceleration but not enough to force the Bank of England to hike rates again in September. Jeremy Hunt, Britain’s finance minister, was quick to claim credit for the GDP numbers. Less rational is the sharp jump in sterling and UK bond yields, fuelled by market expectations that the BoE will now have to raise rates in September. Sure, June GDP numbers were strong but they were flattered by the absence of the bank holiday that had depressed May’s figures.

Persons: That’s, Jeremy Hunt, BoE, Francesco Guerrera, Aimee Donnellan, Streisand Neto Organizations: Reuters, England soccer, Bank of, Conservative, Twitter, Siemens, Thomson Locations: Bank of England, Britain

☆ Stingy UK bank saving rates may become a non-issue
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Liam Proud | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

LONDON, Aug 10 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Banks are keeping the fruits of higher interest rates for themselves. Between January 2022 and May 2023, the Bank of England hiked rates by 4.25 percentage points. The nine largest UK banks boosted the interest on easy-access savings accounts by 1.18 percentage points, the FCA found. The upshot is that they’ll have to bid more aggressively for funding in the future, for example by raising interest rates on savings accounts. Second-quarter results suggest it too is paying more for funding: interest expense almost doubled between the second half of 2022 and the first half of 2023.

Persons: juicier, BoE, George Hay, Streisand Neto Organizations: Reuters, Authority, Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group, Bank of, FCA, Monday, Reuters Graphics Reuters, NatWest, Barclays ’, Lloyds, Banco Santander, Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria, European Central Bank, Bank of England, ECB, Spanish, Financial, HSBC, Santander UK, Nationwide Building Society, TSB Bank, Virgin Money, Bank, Thomson Locations: Britain, Spain, Bank of England, Italy, Hungary

☆ Italian bank tax flip-flop leaves lasting scars
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Aug 9 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The Italian government has raced to soothe bank investors spooked by its ill-thought-out bank windfall tax. The government has now said that the levy will be capped at 0.1% of total assets. If so, and applied to banks’ Italian businesses, then the total haul would be just under 2 billion euros, according to UBS. Still, bank shares have only partially recovered. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Persons: tanking, Siena, That’s, Giorgia Meloni, Neil Unmack, Francesco Guerrera, Streisand Neto Organizations: Reuters, Banca Monte dei, UBS, Banca, Banco, Twitter, Siemens, Thomson

☆ Italy’s bank tax may be anything but “one-off”
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Italy's Infrastructure Minister Matteo Salvini attends the upper house of parliament ahead of a confidence vote for the new government, in Rome, Italy, October 26, 2022. REUTERS/Guglielmo MangiapaneLONDON, Aug 8 (Reuters Breakingviews) - As summer surprises go, the one Matteo Salvini sprung on Italy’s banking sector on Monday evening was as unwelcome as they get. In a late-night press conference, Italy’s deputy prime minister announced a windfall levy on lenders’ profits to help pay for cheaper mortgages and income tax cuts. The government is looking to raise less than 3 billion euros from the tax, Reuters reported citing sources close to the matter. Shares in Italy’s two largest banks – Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP.MI) and UniCredit (CRDI.MI) – dropped more than 5% in morning trading.

Persons: Matteo Salvini, Guglielmo Mangiapane, –, Siena, Francesco Guerrera, headwinds, Peter Thal Larsen, Streisand Neto Organizations: Italy's, REUTERS, Guglielmo Mangiapane LONDON, Reuters, Banco, Banca Monte dei, Twitter, Siemens, Thomson Locations: Rome, Italy, Spain, Hungary

☆ Sweaty Europe can kill two birds with one pump
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-07 | by ( Pamela Barbaglia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

What may be less immediately obvious is that heat pumps are the best way to do both. In Europe, currently only 16% of residential buildings use heat pumps, according to a study from the European Heat Pump Association (EHPA) based on data from 21 countries including non-EU Britain and Norway, with 20 million heat pumps installed. On average buying and installing a heat pump could cost up to $13,000 compared to $2,500 for a gas boiler. Heat pump sales rose 35% in Italy last year, making it Europe’s second-biggest marketplace after France, EHPA data shows. To meet net-zero targets by 2030 EHPA estimates Europe would need 60 million more heat pumps installed by 2030.

Persons: Remo Casilli, Olaf Scholz’s, Joe Biden’s, António Guterres, George Hay, Oliver Taslic, Streisand Neto Organizations: Popolo, REUTERS, Remo Casilli LONDON, Reuters, International Energy Agency, IEA, European Union, Pump Association, Reuters Graphics, U.S . Energy Information Administration, Carrier, Mitsubishi Electric, Daikin Industries, El, El Corte Inglés, Thomson Locations: Italy, Rome, Europe, EU Britain, Norway, France, Germany, Poland, Brussels, Britain, United States, U.S, U.N, El Corte

☆ Lifted by Lea Michele, ‘Funny Girl’ Recoups on Broadway
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-07 | by ( Michael Paulson | More About Michael Paulson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Broadway revival of “Funny Girl” starring Lea Michele is now officially a hit: It has recouped its capitalization costs, completing a remarkable box office turnaround of the sort rarely seen in the commercial theater. The show’s lead producers, Sonia Friedman, Scott Landis and David Babani, announced on Monday that the production had made back the $16.5 million it cost to mount. That milestone not only gives the production bragging rights, but also means that “Funny Girl” can generate a profit during the last few weeks of its run, which ends on Sept. 3. Only a handful of Broadway productions have announced the recoupment of their capitalization costs since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, as higher expenses and smaller audiences have made the always challenging economics of Broadway even more difficult. Critics were underwhelmed; the show won no Tony Awards (it was only nominated for one); and by summer its sales had drooped.

Persons: Lea Michele, Sonia Friedman, Scott Landis, David Babani, Barbra Streisand —, Beanie Feldstein, Critics Organizations: Wilson Theater

☆ UK net-zero ‘pragmatism’ is an odd way to get real
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-04 | by ( George Hay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

Yet official UK figures do not suggest the way to get real on climate change is to go any slower. Sunak himself has defended Britain’s record on climate and says he cares about reaching its 2050 net-zero target. As such the net cost of net zero may be more like 344 billion pounds over three decades, or perhaps only 0.4% of GDP per year. Policy certainty will meanwhile encourage foreign investors to help pay for Britain’s transition, reducing its exposure to gas price shocks. UK energy secretary Grant Shapps said on Aug. 2 that the government remained “absolutely committed” to hitting its net-zero carbon targets by 2050.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Sunak, dawdling, Andrew Forrest, ”, ” Sunak, Michael Gove, Grant Shapps, “, Neil Unmack, Streisand Neto, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, Sunak’s Conservative Party, Budget, Reuters Graphics Reuters, ’, McKinsey reckons, Britain, Conservatives, Thomson Locations: Britain, London, China, United States, North

☆ Maersk has ways to grow again despite headwinds
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Container ship "Evelyn Maersk" is loaded during snowfall at a container terminal in a harbour amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in Hamburg, Germany, April 6, 2021. Arch rival and privately-owned Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) is deploying cash reserves on acquisitions to diversify away from container shipping. Maersk also needs to strengthen its logistics and services unit, where organic revenue fell 19%, dragged down by lower retail demand, particularly in North America. Last year's purchases of Pilot and LF Logistics helped prop up the division, but Maersk needs to invest more. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Persons: Evelyn Maersk, Fabian Bimmer, A.P, Moller, Boss Vincent Clerc, EBITDA, Clerc, Pamela Barbaglia, Pierre Briancon, Streisand Neto Organizations: REUTERS, Fabian Bimmer LONDON, Reuters, Maersk, Walmart, Nike, Unilever, CMA CGM, Mediterranean Shipping Company, LF Logistics, Twitter, Adidas, InBev, Thomson Locations: Hamburg, Germany, North America

☆ LSEG’s dealmaking payoff arrives in installments
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( Neil Unmack | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group) CEO David Schwimmer speaks during the Reuters NEXT Newsmaker event in New York City, New York, U.S., December 1, 2022. Yet two and a half years after CEO David Schwimmer got the keys, the London Stock Exchange operator is growing revenue and mostly beating its targets. The deal increased LSEG’s exposure to selling data, typically a more predictable source of revenue. Annual subscriber value, a closely watched metric which measures the recurring revenue in LSEG’s data division, rose nearly 7% in the first six months of the year. Schwimmer’s dealmaking is paying off, but the former Goldman Sachs (GS.N) banker has a few more installments to collect.

Persons: David Schwimmer, Brendan McDermid, Blackstone, Schwimmer, dealmaking, Goldman Sachs, LSEG, Thomson, Peter Thal Larsen, Streisand Neto Organizations: London Stock Exchange Group, Reuters, REUTERS, Brendan McDermid LONDON, London Stock Exchange, London Stock, Thomson Reuters, Microsoft, Deutsche, Jefferies, P, Revenue, Blackstone, Thomson Locations: New York City , New York, U.S, Refinitiv, Breakingviews

☆ Klein's UK SPAC deal is more swan song than encore
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The northern English county is the home of serial acquirer CorpAcq, led by the brother of “Take That” singer Jason Orange, which Klein’s Churchill Capital Corp VII (CVII.N) special-purpose acquisition company vehicle now hopes to buy. The deal, which values the investor in plumbing to fork-lift leasing groups at $1.6 billion including debt, may struggle to relight the fire of the depressed SPAC sector. Klein’s planned deal comes amid a growing lack of patience by SPAC investors. CorpAcq could yet be magic for SPAC investors. Churchill’s sponsors, including Klein, will waive most of their founder shares, which typically vest when a deal is done.

Persons: Peter Rawlinson, Michael Klein, acquirer, “, Jason Orange, Klein’s, SPACs, Klein, Simon Orange’s, Pamela Barbaglia, Aston Martin, Neil Unmack, Streisand Neto Organizations: Lucid, Churchill Capital Corp, Nasdaq, Lucid Motors, Reuters, Blank, Cotton Traders, Twitter, Thomson Locations: New York City , New York, U.S, Cheshire, Stockholm, Brexit, Japan

☆ Richard E. Grant Fights Grief With ‘A Pocketful of Happiness’
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( Amy Bloom | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

One is Joan Washington, whom we get to know as passionate and commanding, a great teacher, a wonderful mother, a smartass and a woman who understood and loved her husband, deeply. To be clear, I make no complaints about her, and neither Grant nor I criticize anything she does in this book. It is not her fault that Richard E. Grant has adored her since he wrote her a fan letter when he was 14. I could have done without all of that, because, like Richard E. Grant, I just wanted more of the feisty, unvarnished, irritable, generous, wise, unimpressed Joan Washington. Amy Bloom’s most recent books are “Flower Girl” and “In Love: A Memoir of Love and Loss.”A POCKETFUL OF HAPPINESS | By Richard E. Grant | 336 pp.

Persons: Joan Washington, ” Olivia, Grant, Barbra Streisand, Richard E, ”, —, Amy Bloom’s, Simon Organizations: Schuster

☆ Opinion: The Donald Trump and Hunter Biden surprises
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( Richard Galant | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +20 min

So it was remarkable Wednesday when the deal for Hunter Biden to plead guilty to two misdemeanors for his failure to pay taxes on time fell apart in a federal courtroom after the judge raised questions about it. Special counsel Jack Smith unexpectedly added a major allegation to the indictment charging former President Donald Trump with mishandling classified documents. The Trump and Hunter Biden developments underlined how America’s political climate is being shaped by what happens in the courts. This addition, an alleged surveillance tape conspiracy, almost reads like a spy novel.”“It features Trump employee and co-defendant Walt Nauta’s surprise clandestine trip to Florida. To W. James Antle III, it was the Hunter Biden plea deal snafu that brought to the forefront the “powerful split screen that drives” how Republican voters see the emerging 2024 presidential race.

Persons: Robert Burns, beasties, ”, Burns, aren’t, Hunter Biden, Jack Smith, Donald Trump, ” Smith, Trump, Dana Summers, Norman Eisen, Walt Nauta’s, Nauta, De Oliveira, De Oliveria, ’, ” Eisen, James Antle III, Hunter, Joe Biden’s, Maryellen Noreika, ” “ Noreika, couldn’t, Joe Biden, wasn’t, ” Bill Bramhall, Mitch McConnell, Sen, Dianne Feinstein, Julian Zelizer, “, ” “, Walt Handelsman, Elon Musk’s, Twitter “, Bill Carter, it’s, … Musk, —, Musk, ” Carter, Bill McGuire, ” McGuire, Mark Wolfe, Cassandra Lovejoy, Clay Jones, David Grusch, Jason Colavito, Colavito, Barbara Lee, Abigail E, Moore, ” Lee, Michael Bociurkiw, Odesa, Vladimir Putin’s, ” Bociurkiw, “ Handshakes, ” Netanyahu Israel’s, Benjamin Netanyahu, Frida Ghitis, Netanyahu, Drew Sheneman, Peniel, Joseph, Kamala Harris, Sophia A, Nicole Hemmer, Patrick T, Brown, David J, Skorton, Frank R, Lisa Benson, Barbie, Dean Obeidallah, ‘, GOP Sen, Ted Cruz, Mattel, Barbie —, Greta Gerwig’s, Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling —, ” Obeidallah, Taylor Swift Taylor Swift, Swift, Barbra Streisand, Margaret H, Willison, O’Connor Sinéad O'Connor, Andrew Chin, Sinéad O’Connor, Sarah Gundle, Taylor, Sinead O’Connor’s, ” Don’t, Lawrence, Kara Alaimo, Jill Filipovic, Jeff Pearlman, He’s, Catherine Steenkeste, David A, Andelman, Mort Rosenblum, who’s, he’s, ” We’ll Organizations: CNN, Mar, Trump, Justice Department, Fox, Republicans, GOP, of Justice, New York Daily, Times, Twitter, SpaceX, World Meteorological Organization, University College London, Pentagon, “, Disney, Supreme, Agency, Education, African, Trinity, Warner Bros, Warner Bros ., Billboard, Machine, Vogue Theatre, International Herald Tribune Locations: Scottish, Florida, Bedminster, New, California, Rhodes, Corfu, Evia, Europe, United States, Odesa, Miami, York, Ukrainian, Kyiv, Israel’s, North America, Vancouver, Canada, White, Paris, Seine, gunpoint, ”

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