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☆ Warren Buffett pays for Indian payments punt
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Warren Buffett, CEO of Berkshire Hathaway Inc, pauses while playing bridge as part of the company annual meeting weekend in Omaha, Nebraska U.S. May 6, 2018. REUTERS/Rick Wilking/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsMUMBAI, Nov 27 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Berkshire Hathaway’s (BRKa.N) foray into the digital payments industry in India did not go well. Warren Buffett’s investment firm on Friday sold its remaining shares in $7 billion Paytm, some five years after making its initial investment, locking in a more than 20% loss, per Breakingviews calculations. But Berkshire only invested $260 million, barely a blip next to its $700 billion-odd of assets at the time. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Persons: Warren Buffett, Rick Wilking, Warren, –, Vijay Shekhar Sharma’s, it’s, Antony Currie, Katrina Hamlin Organizations: Berkshire Hathaway Inc, Omaha , Nebraska U.S, REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Berkshire, X, Thomson Locations: Omaha , Nebraska, Rights MUMBAI, Berkshire, India, Una, China, Rome

☆ Schaeffler’s token bump sets up bigger battle
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Staff Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Nov 27 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Schaeffler’s (SHA_p.DE) token bump for Vitesco Technologies (VTSCn.DE) may not ensure a smooth ride. The 3.4 billion euro German industrial group raised its tender price for shares in auto parts group Vitesco by 3% to 94 euros. On that basis the 94 euros tender price is only a 7% premium above fair value. Assuming enough shareholders now tender, the final merger price for any remaining shares will be set by a third-party valuer. Yet Vitesco’s board, backed by three banks including JPMorgan (JPM.N) and Lazard (LAZ.N), have now published fairness opinions saying the company is worth more than 94 euros.

Persons: Thomas Stierle, David Einhorn’s, Neil Unmack, Warren Buffett, George Hay, Streisand Neto Organizations: REUTERS, Staff, Reuters, Vitesco Technologies, JPMorgan, Lazard, X, Thomson Locations: Frankfurt, Germany, China, Rome

☆ Iron ore gains on China’s property debt-rejig pain
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A steel worker of ThyssenKrupp stands amid sparks of raw iron coming from a blast furnace at a ThyssenKrupp steel factory in Duisburg, western Germany, January 30, 2020. The benchmark December iron ore futures contract on the Singapore Exchange is up 10% this month at $133.45 a ton on hopes Beijing will kickstart the property sector. Anticipating spiking demand from the world’s second largest economy, Citi analysts on Tuesday upgraded their forecast iron ore price to $140 per ton. The optimism on iron ore could further grow if Beijing rolls out more structural reforms, such as the provision of social housing. China’s demand for steel in electric vehicles and green infrastructure has already kept average prices high despite the property slump.

Persons: Wolfgang Rattay, Chan Ka, Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Singapore Exchange, Citi, Hong Kong, HK, X, Thomson Locations: ThyssenKrupp, Duisburg, Germany, HONG KONG, China, Beijing, HK, Rome

☆ Carlyle’s Big Mac China dish is hard to match
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SINGAPORE, Nov 22 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Carlyle (CG.O) may be lagging its peers in the United States. But in China, at least, the buyout firm is finishing a meal that will be hard for others to find. That’s less than the private equity outfit run by Harvey Schwartz was hoping for, but is tasty enough. Given geopolitical tensions and China’s weak economic growth, Carlyle has done well to secure a hassle-free exit. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Persons: Carlyle, repurchasing, Harvey Schwartz, ByteDance, Jack Ma’s Ant, Antony Currie, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, HK, X, Walmart, Thomson Locations: SINGAPORE, United States, China, People’s Republic, Hong Kong, Macau, McDonald’s, Rome

☆ Panasonic’s auto deal deserves a speedy sequel
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Toru Hanai/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsHONG KONG, Nov 22 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Panasonic’s (6752.T)decision to sell part of its automotive unit suggests CEO Yuki Kusumi’s plans are taking a promising turn. The business, which pioneers technology like infotainment systems for the next generation of internet-connected cars, is a growing but capital-intensive opportunity. Selling a stake to Apollo Global Management (APO.N), with the possibility of a listing later, could help fund faster development without denting Panasonic’s balance sheet or returns. This was an obvious target for Kusumi, who previously led the auto unit. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Persons: Toru Hanai, Yuki Kusumi’s, Panasonic’s, it’s, Katrina Hamlin, Francesco Guerrera, Thomas Shum Organizations: Panasonic Corp, Advanced Technologies, Makuhari, REUTERS, Reuters, Apollo Global Management, Sony, Hitachi, Panasonic, X, Walmart, Thomson Locations: JAPAN, Chiba, Japan, HONG KONG, Asia, Rome

☆ Monte Paschi rebirth is vindication for Rome
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS / Jennifer Lorenzini Acquire Licensing RightsMILAN, Nov 21 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Italy’s privatisation of bailed-out lender Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena (BMPS.MI) may finally be on the right track. The sale price was nearly 50% higher than last year’s high-stakes 2.5 billion euro capital increase, which cost taxpayers 1.6 billion euros. Rome took advantage of a near-30% rally in Monte Paschi’s shares during the month leading up to the sale. Granted, Rome will never recoup the around 5.4 billion euros it burnt to save Monte Paschi in 2017. Two years ago, interest rates were low and Monte Paschi's recovery seemed a distant prospect.

Persons: Jennifer Lorenzini, Siena, Monte Paschi, Andrea Orcel, Lisa Jucca, Banks, Liam Proud, Streisand Neto Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Banca Monte dei, Treasury, X, Walmart, Thomson Locations: Monte dei, Siena, Italy, Rome, Monte Paschi’s, Monte

☆ Italy not tied to any deadline to exit Monte Paschi, FinMin says
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

View of the entrance to the headquarters of Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS), the oldest bank in the world, which is facing massive layoffs as part of a planned corporate merger, in Siena, Italy, August 11, 2021. REUTERS/Jennifer Lorenzini/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsMARRAKECH, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Italy will exit bailed-out bank Monte dei Paschi di Siena (MPS) (BMPS.MI) when market conditions are appropriate as it is not tied to any deadline, Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said on Friday. After a failed attempt to sell the bank to UniCredit (CRDI.MI) in 2021, Italy agreed with Brussels new privatisation terms that were never fully disclosed. Both Giorgetti and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni have said that the government would try to boost competition among banks with the privatisation of MPS. ($1 = 0.9499 euros)Reporting by Elisa Martinuzzi, writing by Giuseppe Fonte, editing by Jane Merriman and Gavin JonesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Jennifer Lorenzini, Giancarlo Giorgetti, Giorgetti, Giorgia Meloni, Meloni, Elisa Martinuzzi, Giuseppe Fonte, Jane Merriman, Gavin Jones Organizations: Monte, REUTERS, Rights, European Union, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, MPS, Banco, Treasury, Thomson Locations: Monte dei, Siena, Italy, Rights MARRAKECH, Rome, UniCredit, Brussels, Marrakech

☆ US blacklisting is no match for TikTok virality
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, March 3 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The United States’ web of trade restrictions has a TikTok-sized hole in it. The Commerce Department added another 28 Chinese firms to its trade blacklist on Thursday, requiring licenses to acquire U.S. wares. Yet social media app TikTok, which government officials have repeatedly voiced national security concerns over, hasn’t been hit with trade curbs. TikTok parent ByteDance is based in China and has eluded that list, largely because the Commerce Department’s tools affect hard goods, not software. Meanwhile, negotiations between U.S. regulators and TikTok over a security deal have dragged on for years.

☆ UniCredit finds costly fix for faulty CEO pay
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

UniCredit shares are up 75% over the last twelve months, against 22% for the STOXX Europe 600 Banks Index. To give Orcel an incentive to beat his goals again, and to keep the pay-conscious dealmaker happy, UniCredit tweaked the package. It hiked his fixed pay to 3.25 million euros but changed the way the bonus will be allocated. If Orcel hits new and more challenging targets he will earn a bonus of 4.25 million euros, lower than last year’s payout, paid all in stock. But if he overshoots again, he could get up to 9.75 million euros.

☆ UK housebuilders face slow and painful refurb
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, March 1 (Reuters Breakingviews) - UK housebuilding is facing a bleak future. In previous slowdowns, the UK’s Conservative Party bailed out the sector with packages like Help to Buy, which subsidized mortgages to help buyers. After Wednesday’s 9% share price decline, it’s share price is now worth less than half of what it was before the outbreak of Covid-19. With little help on the horizon, UK housebuilders face a slow and painful rebuild. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ Insulin cuts make drug prices a little less bazaar
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

If drug companies don’t play along, insurance companies will go elsewhere. The list price of Sanofi’s (SASY.PA) insulins rose 143% between 2012 and 2021, but the net price fell 54%. Amgen (AMGN.O) offered an autoimmune disease drug earlier this year with two prices. American politicians have been pressuring drug companies to lower prices, and President Joe Biden welcomed the move. In theory, lower list prices mean everyone pays less out of pocket at the pharmacy.

☆ AXA’s fling with Monte Paschi ends on high note
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

With its 200-million-euro investment in Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena (BMPS.MI), the French insurer was one of the largest backers of a crucial 2.5-billion-euro capital increase that the hard-beaten lender secured in November. For AXA, supporting the cash call was instrumental to protect its existing insurance distribution partnership with Monte Paschi. The French insurer said on Tuesday it had sold 100 million shares, nearly 8% of Monte Paschi’s total, at 2.33 euros each, pocketing 233 million euros. That’s a 17% gain from the 200 million euros it invested in the cash call. Monte Paschi’s recent strong share-price performance has in any case more to do with the improved economic outlook in Europe and rising interest rates than with any merit of its own.

[1/5] Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni speaks during a news conference to present her government's first budget in Rome, Italy, November 22, 2022. Meloni, a fiery conviction politician, has often spoken out against Italy's reliance on technocrats to solve its economic problems and lambasted alleged interference from "high international finance" and "Brussels bureaucrats". During the election campaign Meloni called in vain for her predecessor Mario Draghi to freeze the sale of a majority stake in ITA. PUSHBACKDeputy Economy and Finance Minister Maurizio Leo, an adviser to Meloni, had proposed splitting his ministry by hiving off the finance department responsible for tax matters. The head of the finance department, Fabrizia Lapecorella, has asked to move to another ministry, two sources said.

☆ Hasbro defines discretionary
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, Oct 18 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Hasbro (HAS.O) toys are absolutely, positively not essential. Chief Executive Chris Cocks partly attributed the decline to over-ordering in the second quarter. Take the gains in that quarter and move them to the third quarter, and sales would’ve still fallen 14% year-over-year. Meantime prices are rising dramatically, and though Hasbro tried to pass on some of those costs, people in the market for Magic: The Gathering and Play-Doh pulled back spending. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ Netflix has a wee bit of room to be smug
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, Oct 18 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Netflix (NFLX.O) is fluffing it's feathers. The company co-founded by Reed Hastings snapped out of its subscriber losing streak, generating nearly $500 million in free cash flow after netting 2.4 million new subscribers in the third quarter. The reversal is a welcome change, and gives it a little bit of room to strut its stuff ahead of an impending price war. That gives it but a tiny bit of time to be smug. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ BYD catches investors at distracted driving
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Investors drove the $93 billion company’s shares up around 5% on Tuesday after the company estimated its net profit nearly quadrupled in the quarter ending September compared to the same period last year. Its global market share overtook Tesla (TSLA.O) in the first eight months of the year, according to Bernstein analysts. Tuesday’s recovery suggests at least some investors now believe that was overdone. BYD is driving into new markets overseas and moving its once budget brand up-market. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ SoftBank loses most from UK e-commerce flop
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Oct 18 (Reuters Breakingviews) - SoftBank Group (9984.T) is seeing the ugly side of the beauty business. The Japanese technology investor on Monday said it had agreed to sell its stake in UK e-commerce group THG (THG.L) for a mere $35 million, compared with an acquisition price in 2021 of more than $540 million. SoftBank was an eager supporter of the one-time tech darling. Investors once thought SoftBank and Son could effectively anoint sector winners by offering them seemingly limitless funding. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ Tricky Monte Paschi cash call comes at high cost
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The fees amount to some 15% of the 857 million euros banks and fund Algebris have agreed to backstop. The fees in Saipem’s (SPMI.MI) 2 billion euro rights issue amounted to less than 5% of the amount banks had agreed to mop up. Monte Paschi says investors have committed 37 million euros and others say they will take up more than 50% of the 900 million euro portion of the rights issue reserved for private investors. That implies the banks may get stuck with some 400 million euros of unsold stock in a worst case scenario. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterFor Monte Paschi, the cost of the rights issue will cut some 15 basis points off its Tier 1 capital ratio target of 14.2% for 2024.

☆ Ye becomes Donald Trump’s social media frenemy
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The rapper formerly known as Kanye West is buying social media firm Parler for an undisclosed price. That may be partly because Trump has launched his own app, Truth Social. That gives the former president’s followers even less reason to engage with Parler and Truth Social. If Musk wriggles out of the Twitter deal, Parler will still have to compete for Trump’s attention. That leaves Ye looking like the least promising of the three would-be social media tycoons.

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