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☆ Abu Dhabi's Mubadala to buy majority stake in Fortress Investment from SoftBank
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

May 22 (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi's Mubadala Investment Co will acquire a majority stake in U.S. asset manager Fortress Investment Group from Japan's SoftBank Group Corp (9984.T). Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, Mubadala and Fortress Investment said in a joint statement on Monday. After the completion of the deal, Fortress' management will own a 30% stake in the company, while Mubadala Capital will hold the rest, according to the statement. Fortress management will hold a class of equity that entails it to appoint a majority of seats on the board. Fortress will appoint Drew McKnight and Joshua Pack as co-CEOs and Pete Briger as chairman, the companies said.

It was well below expectations for a 10.9% increase in a Reuters poll of analysts although it marked the quickest growth rate since September 2022. Retail sales jumped 18.4%, speeding up sharply from a 10.6% increase in March for their fastest increase since March 2021. The growth target for this year is set at a low level, which leaves room for the government to wait and see." China has set a modest growth target of about 5% in 2023, after badly missing last year's goal. ($1 = 6.9121 Chinese yuan renminbi)Reporting by Ellen Zhang, Joe Cash, Albee Zhang and Kevin Yao Editing by Shri NavaratnamOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway just hosted its legendary annual investor weekend. Here's what to know.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Before we get to the news, we've got a dispatch from Theron — our in-house Warren Buffett expert — on the legendary conference. That's how Todd Finkle, the author of a new biography on Buffett, described the investor's yearly bash. There were also investment panels, cocktail parties, steak dinners, fun runs, and shopping events during the weekend. The stock market could become "untouchable" if the bank crisis keeps spiraling. Four of the world's top investors agree on the biggest risks that will cause the next recession.

☆ Russia's air force has taken a beating, but its jets could still turn the tables in Ukraine, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Russia's air force has had a limited role in Ukraine, despite numerical and technological advantages. Russia has held its air force back largely because of Ukraine's effective air-defense network. Which raises the question: If Ukrainian air defenses fade, will the Russian Air Force — known as the VKS — finally become a decisive factor in the war? Ukraine's small but resourceful air force put up spirited resistance that mitigated Russia's numerical and technological superiority, however. "So the air force, I think, would definitely be committed much more heavily if they had a chance."

Its stock fell nearly 4 percent lower in premarket. State Street, M&T Bank and Charles Schwab on Monday reported nearly $60 billion in deposit outflows last quarter. State Street’s shares fell more than 9 percent on Monday, its worst single-day performance in three years. Banks are under pressure to raise interest rates to stem the deposit exodus. About $12 billion in deposits left State Street last quarter as customers sought higher rates elsewhere, according to Gerard Cassidy, a banking analyst at RBC Capital Markets.

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☆ China GDP: Economy shakes off Covid legacy to grow 4.5% in Q1
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

But private investment barely budged and youth unemployment surged to the second highest level on record, indicating the country’s private sector employers are still wary about longer term prospects. Retail sales jumped 10.6% in March from a year earlier, the highest level of growth since June 2021. The country’s GDP will grow 5.2% this year and 5.1% in 2024, it predicted. If adjustments are made to account for the impact of delayed economic activity, GDP growth in the first quarter could have been just 2.6%, he said. For example, private investment was extremely weak.

☆ Goldman Sachs and UBS warn that lower inflation won't be enough to make stocks rally — but these 7 investments can help investors earn a profit anyway
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( James Faris | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Investors have mostly yawned at lower inflation data this week, keeping stocks range-bound. Strategists at the asset management arms of Goldman Sachs and UBS are signaling caution. The message from markets is clear: lower inflation isn't necessarily a green light for stocks. Strategists at UBS Global Wealth Management (GWM) and Goldman Sachs Asset Management issued even sterner warnings, with neither seeing much upside for stocks in the foreseeable future. Goldman Sachs Asset Management is also bullish on long-duration assets while the economy weakens, especially compared to riskier high-yield bonds.

☆ How India's birth control battle falters in rural district
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Dave Lucas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Zamerun Nisha, 33, lies down after giving birth while a doctor holds and cleans her newborn baby, at the labor ward of a community health center in Bahadurganj subdivision of Kishanganj district, Bihar, India, March 21, 2023. India’s fertility rate, fell to 2.0 in 2019-21, but State health officials estimate Kishanganj's fertility rate at 4.8 or 4.9, creating a population growth problem that the state is trying to curb with the distribution of condoms and birth control pills, as well as the paying 3,000 Indian rupees ($36.50) to women who get sterilized, 4,000 rupees to men, and 500 rupees per surgery to the health workers who perform them. "I talk to women while they are experiencing labor pain and nudge them to undergo sterilization immediately after delivery," said Parvati Rajak, a medical officer in one of Kishanganj’s seven government health centers. "But the final choice is always made by the family." REUTERS/Anushree FadnavisClose

☆ China's consumer, factory prices skid as demand falters
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Reuters Staff | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Tingshu WangIn contrast to surging prices globally, China’s retail and producer inflation has remained anaemic as the consumer and industrial sectors struggle to recover from their pandemic hit. Analysts now think consumer inflation could fall short of Beijing’s official targets this year. On a month-on-month basis, food prices fell 1.4%. GRAPHIC: China's inflation skids, hereFALLING SHORTThe government has set a target for average consumer prices in 2023 to be about 3%. “We think consumer price inflation will rebound in the coming months as the labour market tightens again and will peak at 2.3% in early 2024,” said Zichun Huang, China economist at Capital Economics.

☆ This strategy could save thousands off the cost of college: 'It's a very smart way to start your higher education,' says expert
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-09 | by ( Jessica Dickler | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Gabriel Quezada, 17, is a senior at Early College High School in Costa Mesa, California. His father, Humberto Quezada, said he first heard about the Early College High School in Costa Mesa, California, when Gabriel was in third grade. Although there are up to 900 early college programs nationwide, according to Zeiser, not that many people know about them. 'A very smart way to start your higher education'"The culture is different from your average high school," said David Martinez, principal of the Early College High School. David Martinez principal of Early College High School, Costa Mesa, California

☆ China's March factory activity growth falters on weaker demand - Caixin PMI
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIJING, April 3 (Reuters) - China's factory activity growth stalled in March, weighed down by slowing production and weaker global demand and adding to uncertainty about a post-COVID recovery, a private sector survey showed on Monday. The reading far missed expectations of 51.7 in a Reuters poll, and echoed slower growth in an official PMI released on Friday. However, a property downturn, weaker global demand and financial uncertainty raised doubts about the strength of the rebound. The factory activity was hit by slower growth in production and demand in March with sub-indexes both falling from the previous month. The new export orders sub-index fell to 49.0 after briefly swinging into growth in February, suggesting global demand remains weak.

☆ Asia's factory activity weakens as global demand falters
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Leika Kihara | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"With global growth set to remain weak in the coming quarters, we expect manufacturing output in Asia to remain under pressure," said Shivaan Tandon, emerging Asia economist at Capital Economics. South Korea's PMI fell to 47.6 in March from 48.5 in February, contracting at the fastest pace in six months as export orders took a hit from weak global demand. Vietnam and Malaysia saw factory activity shrink in March, while that of the Philippines expanded at a slower pace than in February, surveys showed. While indications are that the U.S. Federal Reserve will pause its tightening cycle soon, the outlook remains clouded by the banking-sector troubles, still-high inflation and slowing global growth. "Given much of the drag from higher interest rates is yet to feed through to advanced economies, we expect global growth and demand for Asia's exports to remain weak in the coming quarters," Capital Economics' Tandon said.

☆ China's March factory activity growth falters on weaker demand, survey shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Employees work on an electronics production line on Feb. 2, 2023, at a factory in Longyan, Fujian province in China. China's factory activity growth stalled in March, weighed by slowing production and weaker global demand and adding to uncertainty about a post-Covid recovery, a private sector survey showed on Monday. The reading far missed expectations of 51.7 in a Reuters poll, and echoed slower growth in an official PMI released on Friday. However, a property downturn, weaker global demand and financial uncertainty raised doubts about the strength of momentum. Looking forward, economic growth will still rely on a boost in domestic demand, especially an improvement in household consumption," said Wang Zhe, Senior Economist at Caixin Insight Group.

☆ A key recession indicator suggests the Fed may slash rates soon
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

There's another bond market signal flashing and it could mean the Fed's about to step in. The Fed raised short-term interest rates by a quarter percentage point as expected today, with market watchers expecting one more increase this year and three more in 2019. But there are other bond market signs, too, and the recent rally in bonds at the shorter-term end of the Treasury curve may just be the indicator with the most troubling track record. In effect, the bond market is telling us that the Fed could be on the brink of making a policy pivot as the economy falters. Investors are shifting focus back to the Fed's thinking on interest rates, with a PCE inflation update due Friday.

☆ Rising Antarctic ice melt will dramatically slow global ocean flows, study finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( David Stanway | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Natalie Thomas/SINGAPORE, March 29 (Reuters) - Rapidly melting Antarctic ice is dramatically slowing down the flow of water through the world's oceans, and could have a disastrous impact on global climate, the marine food chain and even the stability of ice shelves, new research has found. The "overturning circulation" of the oceans, driven by the movement of denser water towards the sea floor, helps deliver heat, carbon, oxygen and vital nutrients around the globe. But deep ocean water flows from the Antarctic could decline by 40% by 2050, according to a study published on Wednesday in the journal Nature. Ocean overturning allows nutrients to rise up from the bottom, with the Southern Ocean supporting about three-quarters of global phytoplankton production, the base of the food chain, said a second study co-author, Steve Rintoul. Reporting by David Stanway; Additional reporting by Gloria Dickie in London; Editing by Alex RichardsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Humza Yousaf sworn in as Scotland's leader as bid for unity falters
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Andrew Macaskill | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Newly elected leader of the Scottish National Party, Humza Yousaf (centre), signs the nomination form to become First Minister for Scotland, with his proposer Shona Robison and seconder Neil Gray, at the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh. MSPs will vote on Mr Yousaf's nomination to be Scotland's sixth First Minister later today. Yousaf had been expected to offer his leadership rival, whom he only defeated by only about 2,000 votes, a more senior role. During his leadership campaign, Yousaf had said he would depart from Sturgeon's "inner circle" style of leadership in favour of a "big tent" approach. Yousaf said on Tuesday that Shona Robison - a close friend of Sturgeon - will serve as his deputy first minister.

☆ Swipe your badge or get fired? Employers and workers face a reckoning over returning to the office.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Rebecca Knight | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Employers are hardening demands for workers to return to the office and quashing resistance. Apple is tracking employee attendance and has threatened action against staff who don't work from the office at least three days a week. Today, though, as a recession looms, companies are rolling back perks and demanding workers return to their desks or risk termination. After 2020's COVID-19 lockdowns forced office workers to work from home, many of them discovered the benefits of remote work. Many of the same companies demanding workers return to the office have recently conducted mass layoffs — some more than once.

☆ Russian forces advance in Ukraine's Bakhmut - Russian-installed leader
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Andrew Osborn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, March 28 (Reuters) - Russian forces are moving forward in the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut despite fierce resistance and have almost taken full control of a metals plant there, a Russian-installed leader in the region said. His assertion ran counter to Ukrainian and Western descriptions of the situation in the city, which they have said is stabilising as a Russian offensive falters. "The (Wagner) guys are moving forward, of course they are moving forward, though it takes their hardest efforts to do that," Pushilin told state TV presenter Vladimir Solovyov. British military intelligence has said that the Russian assault has stalled, mainly as a result of heavy troop losses. Ukrainian military commanders have said their own counter offensive - backed by newly-delivered Western hardware - is not far off, but have stressed the importance of holding Bakhmut in the meantime.

☆ As banking sector confidence falters, central banks called on to do more
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Davide Barbuscia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

NEW YORK, March 26 (Reuters) - Some investors and analysts are calling for more coordinated interventions from central banks to restore financial stability, as they fear that tumult in the global banking sector will continue amid rising interest rates. On Friday, shares of Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE) plunged amid concerns that regulators and central banks have yet to contain the worst shock to the banking sector since the 2008 global financial crisis. Global central banks including the Federal Reserve have recently taken measures to enhance the provision of liquidity through the standing U.S. dollar swap line arrangements. "The issue with European banks and big U.S. banks at the moment is confidence. Meanwhile, overall deposits in the banking sector have declined by almost $600 billion since the Fed began to raise interest rates last year, the biggest banking sector deposit outflow on record, noted Torsten Slok, chief economist at Apollo Global Management.

☆ Bitcoin is built for this moment as global banking credibility falters: Placeholder's Chris Burniske
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | 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 EmailBitcoin is built for this moment as global banking credibility falters: Placeholder's Chris BurniskeChris Burniske, Placeholder partner and former head of ARK Invest’s crypto department, joins 'The Exchange' to discuss the broader attitude towards cryptocurrencies, where there could be more regulatory pressure in the crypto space and more.

☆ Hardline US Republicans oppose bank deposit guarantees beyond $250,000 limit
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( David Lawder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/3] A sign reads “FDIC Insured” on the door of a branch of First Republic Bank in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S., March 13, 2023. REUTERS/Brian SnyderWASHINGTON, March 20 (Reuters) - Hardline Republicans in the House of Representatives on Monday vowed to oppose any universal federal guarantee on bank deposits above the current $250,000 limit, throwing a major roadblock to a key tool regulators could deploy if bank runs re-emerge as financial confidence wobbles. The upheaval has been marked by uninsured business depositors fleeing smaller community and regional lenders toward the largest banks perceived as "too big to fail." Independent Community Bankers Association President Rebeca Romero Rainey said in a statement that depositors in safely run small banks should get the same guarantees that uninsured depositors in SVB and Signature Bank received. Runs could re-emerge if another bank falters, and if the institution is large enough, regulators will again declare a systemic risk exception and guarantee its uninsured deposits, he added.

☆ First Republic Bank plunges 30% on report that it's evaluating strategic alternatives including a potential sale
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

First Republic Bank plunged 30% on Thursday following a report that it was considering a sale. The bank has been roiled by the collapse of its regional banking peer, Silicon Valley Bank. Almost 70% of First Republic's deposits have no FDIC insurance and the bank has $4 billion in unrealized bond losses. First Republic Bank has many similarities to Silicon Valley Bank, including the fact that nearly 70% of First Republic Bank's deposit base doesn't have FDIC insurance. First Republic Bank is also sitting on $4 billion in unrealized losses on its held-to-maturity bond portfolio, which is what sparked the initial downfall for Silicon Valley Bank last week.

☆ Argentina swaps $21.7 billion in domestic debt, dimming default risk
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The swap exchanges old debt for new bonds maturing in 2024 and 2025, according to an economy ministry statement Thursday. "In this way, the uncertainty about the debt maturities of the coming months is cleared up, helping to preserve the sustainability of the Treasury debt," the ministry said. The swap, first announced Monday, prompted global rating agency S&P to slash Argentina's local currency rating to 'SD/SD' (selective default) from 'CCC-/C' Thursday. Though the debt swap is technically voluntary rather than a forced restructuring, the agency - and indeed the markets - still appear to view it as a distressed event. Argentina also still has an eye-watering estimated $170 billion of local debt due, given the swap only pushes back the payment deadline.

☆ Meta considering a standalone social network that sounds a lot like Twitter
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

The concept is similar to Reddit or Discord, but a departure from how Meta’s other platforms function. If Meta’s new platform were decentralized, it could allow third parties to build apps and features into the platform, potentially giving users experiences beyond what Meta itself might build. Meta declined to comment beyond its statement, including in response to questions about the new platform’s potential features or a timeline for launch. Many of them had an early jump in users following Musk’s takeover at Twitter, but have since struggled to gain widespread adoption. But its growth has slowed in recent months, in part as users struggle with the somewhat less straightforward and user-friendly nature of a decentralized platform.

Imports dropped, too, government data showed on Tuesday, also partly reflecting weak foreign demand, since the country brings in parts and materials from abroad for many of its exports. Exports in the two months were 6.8% lower than a year before, after a 9.9% annual fall seen in December. "Given the high inflation in the U.S. and Europe, demand from there should keep weakening, which also dampens the processing demand in China," said Iris Pang, chief economist for Greater China at ING. Commerce Minister Wang Wentao on Thursday cautioned that downward pressure on China's imports and exports would increase significantly this year, because of the risk of a global recession and weakening external demand. China's January-February imports of crude oil were down 1.3% on the same period last year, while imports of natural gas fell by 9.4%.

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