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☆ Buy these 12 stocks to profit from higher-than-expected price growth, according to an inflation fund manager who beat 96% of his competitors last year
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( James Faris | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Top fund manager Simon Lack shared 12 top stocks to buy while inflation remains hot. The news confirmed what Simon Lack, a 37-year market veteran who runs a leading inflation fund, has long suspected: that price growth will remain an issue for investors throughout 2023 — and possibly beyond. If high inflation is the new normal, the Fed will struggle to achieve its goal of stabilizing prices, Lack said — at least not without causing a recession. His Rational Inflation Growth Fund (IGOAX) finished in the top 4% of its category in 2022 after beating its index by 14 percentage points, according to Morningstar. By contrast, his fund goes on offense by owning stocks in sectors that benefit from high prices.

☆ Privacy Fears, Abuse Allegations Jeopardize Foreign Surveillance Tool
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Dustin Volz | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The FBI says it has taken steps to protect privacy and civil liberties. intelligence officials are bracing for a fight in Congress over the renewal of a foreign surveillance tool they say is critical to fighting terrorism, thwarting hackers and spying on top rivals like China and Russia, but one that lawmakers in both parties say intrudes on Americans’ privacy. The spy program, classified details of which were revealed 10 years ago by former intelligence contractor Edward Snowden, gathers communications directly from U.S. firms like Alphabet Inc.’s Google, Meta Platforms Inc., Microsoft Corp., and Apple Inc. It allows investigators to copy and search digital communications traversing the internet’s backbone. Senior intelligence officials widely regard it as among their most valuable tools.

The ban is expected to apply to some investments tied to chip production, two of the sources said. China hawks in Washington blame American investors for transferring capital and valuable know-how to Chinese tech companies that could help advance Beijing's military capabilities. The White House declined to comment and the Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. That could include the long-awaited outbound investment order. Efforts to incorporate an outbound investment screening plan in legislation failed last year in Congress.

☆ Column: Fantasy league matchmaking between oil majors and transition upstarts
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Gavin Maguire | Thomson Reuters | Gavin Maguire Is The Global Energy Transition Columnist. He Was Previously Asia Commodities | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

But the eye-catching headline numbers also drew scrutiny from climate trackers and policymakers anxious to see fossil fuel majors show leadership in the renewable energy field. Reuters GraphicsSome of so-called Big 5 majors, especially Europe-based firms BP (BP.L), Shell (SHEL.L) and TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA), already boast major business segments tied to renewable energy. Big exposure to U.S.-based production assets, along with lucrative export streams of oil, gas and fuel were key drivers behind the outsized earnings of U.S. firms. Both firms operate at the front edge of the energy transition in different sectors, and present potentially appealing entry points for majors seeking access to fast-growing specialist areas. As the largest utility company in the United States, the firm is already in the starting line-up for any energy sector discussion.

☆ Biden plans to curb investment by U.S. firms in Chinese tech - NYT
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 9 (Reuters) - The Biden administration is poised to introduce new restrictions on U.S. companies funding the development of advanced computing technologies in China, the New York Times reported on Thursday. It has also been working on curbs to investments by U.S. firms for months and the measures are now largely complete and could be issued within two months, the newspaper said, citing people familiar with the discussions. The details of the pending executive order remain unclear, the report said, but is expected to require companies to report more information to the government about their planned investments in certain adversarial countries. The order would likely prohibit outright investments in some sensitive areas, like quantum computing, advanced semiconductors and certain artificial intelligence capabilities with military or surveillance applications, the NYT said, citing several people familiar with the plans. Reporting by Anirudh Saligrama in Bengaluru, Editing by Kylie MacLellanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

If they start to reverse, then you'll see things reversing for next year, but we have to wait and see," he said. Slashing prices also reflects stiffening competition in some markets as companies struggle with waning consumer demand and households tighten budgets. Kraftliner prices, up 60 euros per tonne in the first half, have since fallen by 120 euros a tonne. Europe's gas rollercoasterWAGES AND BORROWING COSTSSome companies won't make cuts though, as they protect margins or face higher wages and borrowing costs. "It does signal a retreat in operating margins for firms like Smurfit, hence the negative reaction in the share price this morning," he said.

But unlike ICBC and its peers, Ant neither took deposits, nor piled risky loans onto its balance sheet. Free from the red tape that binds regular banks, the loans facilitated by Ant ballooned. Digital offerings accounted for half of overall consumer loans in China, Fitch Ratings calculated in 2021. Ant is set to become a licensed financial holding company, putting it under the close watch of China's main banking regulator. Beijing wants Chinese consumers to consume, so is likely to indulge controlled growth of consumer credit.

Feb 7 (Reuters) - Emerging market bond and equity funds received heavy inflows in January after a dry patch last year, aided by China's reopening and softening inflation pressures worldwide. According to Refinitiv Lipper data, which covers over 33,700 emerging market (EM) funds, EM equity funds received $13.2 billion, and EM bond funds obtained $11.36 billion in January. Fund flows: EM equities and bondsIn 2022, EM bond funds faced a combined net outflow of $26.26 billion. In January, the iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF and iShares JPMorgan USD Emerging Markets Bond ETF received $3.2 billion and $2.4 billion, respectively, while iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF and BlackRock Emerging Markets Fund; Inst obtained over $1 billion each. Initial euphoria over China's reopening has fizzled out and EM assets have seen slight declines in February.

☆ U.S. firms in Taiwan making 'contingency' plans amid China tensions
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TAIPEI, Feb 7 (Reuters) - Almost half of companies surveyed by the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Taiwan are revising or plan to revise their business continuity plans amid tensions with China, while a growing number reported being impacted by those strains. China, which views democratically-governed Taiwan as its own territory, has been stepping up military drills across the Taiwan Strait since then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taipei in August. "We are aware that companies are either initiating or renewing their planning efforts, operational contingency planning. We know that's going on," AmCham Taiwan President Andrew Wylegala told reporters. Reporting by Faith Hung; Editing by Ben Blanchard and Raju GopalakrishnanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ More U.S. firms are outsourcing remote talent abroad
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | 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 EmailMore U.S. firms are outsourcing remote talent abroadArjun Ramani, writer at The Economist, and Peter H. Diamandis, founder and executive chairman of the XPRIZE Foundation, join 'The Exchange' to discuss an increase in firms outsourcing labor, the implications of offshoring talent, and how Covid disrupted the labor market.

☆ Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Meta, Align Technology, Coinbase, Eli Lilly and more
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Hakyung Kim | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Late Wednesday, Meta reported revenue that topped analysts' expectations and announced a $40 billion stock buyback plan. Firms also responded positively to Meta's earnings report, with Bank of America and Goldman Sachs rating the stock a buy. W.W. Grainger reported adjusted quarterly earnings of $7.14 per diluted share, which came in ahead of the $7.01 per share estimated by analysts, according to FactSet. Align Technology — The orthodontics company saw its shares surge 28% the day after its quarterly earnings and revenue beat analysts' expectations, according to Refinitiv. The company posted earnings and revenue that came in short of analysts' estimates, according to FactSet.

☆ U.S. investors have plowed billions into China's AI sector, report shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Alexandra Alper | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

According to the report, 167 U.S. investors took part in 401 transactions, or roughly 17% of the investments into Chinese AI companies in the period. Those transactions represented a total $40.2 billion in investment, or 37% of the total raised by Chinese AI companies in the 6-year period. According to the report, U.S. investor GSR Ventures invested alongside China's IFlytek Co Ltd (002230.SZ) in a Chinese AI company after the speech recognition firm was added to a trade blacklist. Silicon Valley Bank and Wanxiang American Healthcare investments group made investments in Chinese AI firms alongside China's Sensetime before the powerhouse in facial recognition technology was added to the same trade blacklist. Only one Chinese AI company that received funding from U.S. investors is involved in developing AI applications for military or public safety uses, according to CSET.

☆ Fraud Economy: How Current Economic Trends Lead to More Corporate Scams
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Linette Lopez | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Get ready for what will feel like an inescapable wave of corporate fraud. And as interest rates have risen, the stock market has fallen off — which makes it harder to get dollars by whipping up new investors or offering stock. Despite Scheck's assertion that the risk of a wave of corporate fraud has heightened, he didn't want to speak in historical analogies. There be icebergsOf course, there's also fraud that goes undetected in times of easy money — companies where the very act of existing means stretching the truth. Kreuger had managed to hide that he had stretched the company's finances beyond solvency by raising money on the US stock market while it was raging.

☆ Great Fraud Reckoning Will Expose Scam Companies, Cause Stock Market Chaos
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Linette Lopez | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Get ready for what will feel like an inescapable wave of corporate fraud. And as interest rates have risen, the stock market has fallen off — which makes it harder to get dollars by whipping up new investors or offering stock. Despite Scheck's assertion that the risk of a wave of corporate fraud has heightened, he didn't want to speak in historical analogies. Kreuger had managed to hide that he had stretched the company's finances beyond solvency by raising money on the US stock market while it was raging. That may have been enough when the stock market was on a heater and investors were winning, but it's not enough when the stock market is falling, the economy is slowing, and everyone from regulators to lawmakers to kids on TikTok want answers.

☆ Nearly a year on from the supposed Russian exodus, most major companies have yet to withdraw
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

PATRIK STOLLARZ | AFP | Getty ImagesAfter Russian troops invaded Ukraine in February 2022, companies across the G-7 major economies and the European Union announced plans to cease business operations in Russia. The report published earlier this month documented a total of 2,405 subsidiaries owned by 1,404 EU and G-7 companies that were active in Russia at the time of the first military incursion into Ukraine. Of the EU and G-7 companies remaining in Russia, the research found that 19.5% were German, 12.4% were American owned, and 7% were Japanese multinationals. Various companies told Barclays that there were a host of challenges to fully divest. "There have also been suggestions that the assets (including intellectual property) of companies that leave Russia will be nationalised."

☆ Private equity giants are still racing to fill 2024 associate seats. See 8 firms — from Carlyle to Bain Capital — that have been recruiting first-year investment bankers for jobs that won't start for
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Emmalyse Brownstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Last year's on-cycle recruiting kicked off earlier than ever, and many junior bankers weren't ready. In an effort to win the war for talent that was raging last year, private equity firms pushed their recruiting efforts earlier than in ever— to late summer. To be sure, not all private equity firms kicked off on-cycle recruiting in August. It usually involves an intense week-long period (although sometimes shorter or longer) where private equity firms rush in to snag the top talent. The bottom line shows the month and year analysts started their roles, and the yellow line indicated when on-cycle recruiting began that season.

☆ Goldman Sachs: China's reopening economy is gaining momentum, and these 50 stocks are best positioned to benefit from the robust rally
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( James Faris | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Goldman Sachs recently boosted economic growth estimates for both China and Europe. Since November, the SSE Composite Index (in dark blue) and the STOXX Europe 600 (in purple) have beaten the S&P 500 (in light blue). That led Goldman Sachs to boost its 2023 GDP estimate for the nation from 4.5% to 5.5%, driven by an 8.5% increase in inflation-adjusted consumption. Robust growth in China now means that Europe will avoid a recession this winter, according to Goldman Sachs. But Chinese stocks won't be the only ones to benefit from the nation's economic boom.

☆ The private equity industry is racing to fill 2024 associate roles after last year's hyper competitive hiring tactics backfired
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Emmalyse Brownstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

☆ U.S. Economy Slows, but Europe’s Picks Up, Raising Hopes World Will Avoid Recession
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( David Harrison | Paul Hannon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Consumer confidence in the eurozone has recovered in recent months as the threat of energy rationing fades. Two of the world’s largest economies moved in opposite directions at the start of the year, with U.S. businesses reporting further declines in activity in January while the eurozone saw a modest pickup. The divergence suggests that while the U.S. economy continues to lose momentum, Europe’s could be stabilizing, at least for now. The pace of contraction in U.S. firms slowed in January, according to new business surveys released Tuesday, a possible signal that the economy could be bottoming out, thanks to slowing inflation and resilient demand.

☆ Goldman Sachs shares 4 cities that will suffer a 2008-size crash in home values — and breaks down why they believe home prices across the US will now fall further than they originally thought
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( William Edwards | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

In some cities, the damage will be as bad as it was across the US in the mid-2000s, the bank said. Attention homeowners and real-estate investors, Goldman Sachs has bad news: home prices are going to fall further in 2023 than they had previously thought. Goldman SachsWhile Karoui, Viswanathan, and Walker see national home prices falling by 10% peak-to-trough, they see prices in cities where home values have soared above average falling more. What other firms are sayingGoldman Sachs isn't the only Wall Street bank calling for further home price declines in 2023. Morgan Stanley strategist James Egan said in a January note that he sees home prices falling by 4% in 2023 thanks to stagnant demand.

☆ Analysts love these stocks that are flush with cash — giving one over 75% upside
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( Weizhen Tan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

"We prefer companies generating cash rather than those that need capital to grow. The higher the free cash flow yield, the better a company's position to meet its debt obligations. A company with a high free cash flow is also able to access cash more quickly in the event of an emergency or opportunity. Using FactSet data, CNBC Pro screened for stocks that boast lots of cash and could be well positioned for a rocky year. U.S.-listed Chesapeake Energy Corporation was the only energy stock to appear on the screen, with its free cash flow yield at nearly 14%.

☆ Mexico Bans Climate Startup’s Experiment to Cool the Earth
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Eric Niiler | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A California tech entrepreneur says he might move his plan to launch sunlight-reflecting particles into the atmosphere to the U.S. or another country, after Mexican officials blocked the project. “There is no law that prevents me from doing this,” said Luke Iseman , chief executive and founder of Make Sunsets. The startup had raised $750,000 in venture capital and other funds with the idea of selling “cooling credits” to U.S. firms, according to Mr. Iseman.

☆ The case for investing in China's reopening is strong. Here's how to proceed with caution
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Patti Domm | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +11 min

Strategists see China's markets easily scoring double-digit gains this year. The case for investing outside the U.S. is strong, particularly with the dollar coming off its highs and looking at further downside. "While China's reopening is undoubtedly a turning point, there remain reasons to be cautious," wrote Barclays equity strategists. But still the prospects for China's economy are much brighter than they were just several months ago. The Covid lockdown has been so damaging to the Chinese economy, they want to get back to a growth path in 2023."

☆ U.S. firms pessimistic about economic growth this year, Fed survey shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

But that is twinned with the cost of such action as the Fed tries to dampen demand across the economy. "On balance, contacts generally expected little growth in the months ahead," the Fed said in its survey, known as the "Beige Book," which was conducted across its 12 districts through Jan. 9. Many Fed districts said that the pace of increases had slowed from that of recent reporting periods while almost half of all districts reported wage pressures had lessened. "On balance, contacts across Districts said they expected future price growth to moderate further in the year ahead," according to the report. That said, "while some districts noted that labor availability had increased, firms continued to report difficulty in filling open positions," the report noted.

☆ New Zealand business confidence at lowest since 1974
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Lucy Craymer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WELLINGTON, Jan 17 (Reuters) - New Zealand's business confidence in the fourth quarter of last year hit its lowest level since 1974 as companies grapple with higher interest rates, cost pressures and soft demand, a private think tank said on Tuesday. A net 70% of firms surveyed expected general business conditions to deteriorate compared with 42% pessimism in the previous quarter, the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research's (NZIER) quarterly survey of business opinion (QSBO) showed. It added that business confidence is now at its lowest level since 1974, while on a seasonally adjusted basis it is the weakest since the survey started in 1970. On a seasonally adjusted basis, 73% expected business conditions to worsen, versus 43% pessimism recorded in the previous period. NZIER said the survey was undertaken following the more hawkish than expected central bank meeting in November and this was weighing on sentiment.

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