DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ China's COVID surge hits Beijing trading floors, Shanghai finance hub
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SHANGHAI, Dec 19 (Reuters) - COVID-19 is sweeping through trading floors in Beijing and spreading fast in the financial hub of Shanghai, with illness and absence thinning already light trade and forcing regulators to cancel a weekly meeting vetting public share sales. Internal surveys by several big asset managers and banks suggest more than half of their employees in Beijing, the epicentre of the virus surge, have tested positive. Stock trading volume also eased last week. DISRUPTIONThe pandemic also has an impact on initial public offerings (IPOs), with the China Securities Regulatory Commission calling off a weekly meeting vetting them last week. To be sure, years of strict COVID rules have left a lot of businesses well placed to handle disruption.

China held a news conference on COVID prevention and control measures at 3 p.m. (0700 GMT) on Tuesday amid record COVID infections and protests in Shanghai and Beijing. read moreAsian shares also rallied as unsubstantiated rumours swirled that the unrest might prompt a loosening of the COVID restrictions. OPEC+ started to lower its output target by 2 million barrels per day (bpd) in November, aiming to shore up oil prices. Markets are also assessing the impact of an upcoming Western price cap on Russian oil. read moreThe price cap is due to come into effect on Dec. 5, when an EU ban on Russian crude also takes effect.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies including Russia, known as OPEC+, are set to hold a meeting on Dec. 4. Analysts at Eurasia Group suggested in a note on Monday that weakened demand out of China could spur OPEC+ to cut output. OPEC+ started to lower its output target by 2 million barrels per day (bpd) in November, aiming to shore up oil prices. read moreMarkets are also assessing the impact of an upcoming Western price cap on Russian oil. read moreThe price cap is due to come into effect on Dec. 5, when an EU ban on Russian crude also takes effect.

☆ China's CIFI suspends all offshore debt payments, starts restructuring
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

HONG KONG, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Shanghai-based property developer CIFI Holdings (0884.HK) said on Tuesday it has suspended payments on all of its offshore debt after it failed to reach an agreement with creditors to which it owes $414 million in total. CIFI said in a filing it has engaged Haitong International Securities Company Limited as financial advisor and Linklaters as legal adviser to facilitate a restructuring of its $6.85 billion offshore debt, as it is likely to come under continued pressure to generate sufficient cash flows for repayments. CIFI and Longfor had borrowings of 114 billion yuan ($15.61 billion) and 212 billion yuan, respectively, as of June, and Greenland had 122 billion yuan. But it added its offshore debt issues do not materially affect its onshore financing arrangements as a whole and that its commercial operations remain normal. CIFI said on Oct. 13 it had not met certain offshore interest and amortisation payments due to delays in remittances during an extended holiday in mainland China.

Chinese equities make up 31% of the MSCI Emerging Market index (.MIEF00000PUS), a popular stock index that many funds track and benchmark their performances against. Fund research firm Morningstar tracks nine new emerging market ex-China equity mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that were created this year, matching the number of launches in total over the previous two years. If Aubrey was to remove China from its emerging market strategy, the Indian market would take a significant portion, while the rest will be spread around other countries including Vietnam, Brazil and Mexico, he said. OUTFLOWSAndrew McCaffery, Fidelity International's global chief investment officer, said they have received increased requests from clients for emerging markets excluding China strategies, although the purpose was to “break China out as an allocation separately within global portfolios”. “The challenge is that they (global investors) are not going to be quick to add back in,” he said.

☆ BNP Paribas gets regulatory nod to set up China asset management joint venture
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Selena Li | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

HONG KONG, Oct 18 (Reuters) - BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA) has received Chinese regulatory approval to start building an asset management venture with Agricultural Bank of China (AgBank) (601288.SS), the two companies said, allowing the French firm to tap a $4 trillion market. Reuters reported in September last year that BNP's asset management arm was in talks to form a wealth management venture with a unit of AgBank, taking advantage of China's opening up of its financial markets for foreigners. BNP Paribas Asset Management and ABC Wealth Management, a wealth arm of AgBank, will fund the new platform, according to Monday's filing. Since China deregulated financial markets in 2019, allowing foreign asset managers to set up majority-owned ventures with local banks, a flurry of foreign firms including BlackRock and Amundi have launched majority-controlled units locally. The new platform will add to BNP Paribas' 49%-owned asset management joint venture with brokerage firm Haitong Securities which mainly runs mutual funds.

☆ Oil rises as supply fears overtake recession worries
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Oil rebounded on Thursday after sliding 1% in the previous session as concerns over tight supplies heading into winter eclipsed fears of a global recession. Oil rebounded on Thursday after sliding 1% in the previous session as concerns over tight supplies heading into winter eclipsed fears of a global recession. Brent crude futures rose 50 cents, or 0.6%, to $90.33 per barrel by 0319 GMT, recouping their losses in early Asia trade. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 45 cents to $83.39. Meanwhile, some Chinese refineries are considering increasing runs in October, eyeing stronger demand and a potential reversal of Beijing's fuel export policy, which could boost crude oil demand.

Search resuls for: "Haitong"

7 mentions found