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☆ Morning Bid: Rattled by the China and Fed double whammy
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Underwhelming economic data, along with the ever-deepening property crisis, have unnerved investors and taken Asian stocks to their lowest since November. Zhongzhi Enterprise Group told investors that it was facing a liquidity crisis and will conduct a debt restructuring, two sources told Reuters. European stocks have been hamstrung too, with the pan-European STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) touching a one-month low on Wednesday and eyeing a lower open on Thursday. But it's important to remember that July's meeting came before a raft of U.S. data that underscored the resilient economy. England will face Spain on Sunday, looking to add a world title to last year's European Championship triumph.

Persons: Ankur Banerjee, Zhongzhi, Muralikumar Organizations: Silicon Valley Bank, Credit Suisse, REUTERS, Staff, Zhongzhi Enterprise Group, Reuters, International Trust Co, U.S, Federal, Traders, Australia, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Thomson Locations: Frankfurt, Silicon, Germany, Ankur, Asia, China, England, Spain, Croatia, Singapore

Arkady Volozh, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Yandex Group of Companies, attends a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), Russia June 7, 2019. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File PhotoAug 10 (Reuters) - The co-founder of Russian internet giant Yandex (YNDX.O), Arkady Volozh, on Thursday condemned what he described as Russia's "barbaric" invasion of Ukraine, days after criticism in Russia over his apparent efforts to distance himself from the country. "Russia's invasion of Ukraine is barbaric, and I am categorically against it," Volozh said in a statement. Volozh developed Yandex in Russia, creating the country's largest tech company and ultimately taking it public on the U.S. Nasdaq stock exchange in 2011. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Yandex has sought to balance domestic pressure on one side with its Western investors on the other.

Persons: Arkady Volozh, Maxim, Volozh, –, Yandex, Alexander Marrow, Jason Neely Organizations: Yandex, of Companies, St ., Economic, REUTERS, U.S, Nasdaq, European Union, Thomson Locations: St, St . Petersburg, Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Ukraine –, Israel, Yandex

A view shows Russian rouble coins in this illustration picture taken March 25, 2021. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/IllustrationAug 9 (Reuters) - The rouble hit a more than 16-month low on Wednesday, hampered by strong foreign currency demand and limited supply, with Russia's shrinking trade surplus and widening budget deficit also hurting sentiment. By 1023 GMT, the rouble was 0.2% weaker against the dollar at 97.32 , earlier hitting 97.48, its weakest point since March 25, 2022. It has been under pressure all year from Russia's shrinking balance of trade, as export revenues fall and imports rebound, dropping around 28% year-to-date from levels near 70 to the dollar. Brent crude oil , a global benchmark for Russia's main export, was 0.7% higher at $86.80 a barrel.

Persons: Maxim Shemetov, Egor Zhilnikov, Alexey Antonov, Antonov, Alexander Marrow, Andrew Heavens, Sharon Singleton Organizations: REUTERS, Alor Broker, Brent, Thomson Locations: Alor

☆ New York Times Revenue Rises 6.3%
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( Katie Robertson | More About Katie Robertson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Meredith Kopit Levien, the company’s president and chief executive, said in a statement that more than a third of the nearly 10 million subscribers were now subscribed to more than one Times product. She said more than half of the new digital subscribers added in the last quarter subscribed to the entire bundle of products that The Times offers. Advertising revenue more than doubled in that period, to $5.4 million. At the end of the quarter, there were more than 3.6 million subscribers with either a stand-alone Athletic subscription or who can access the sports site through a Times bundle subscription. Last month, The Times said it would disband its sports desk in the coming months and instead integrate more sports coverage from The Athletic.

Persons: Meredith Kopit Levien, ” Ms, Levien Organizations: Times, Athletic, The Athletic

July 31 (Reuters) - Economic sanctions have been the biggest headache for Russia's business elite since the start of the war in Ukraine, but a drone strike in the heart of Moscow's financial district is forcing companies to think about their employees' safety. Tech giant Yandex (YNDX.O), which has offices dotted around the Russian capital including in Moskva-Citi, asked staff to vacate offices at night, when strikes on the Russian capital have tended to occur. One financial services professional said he did not think the attack would deter people from going to Moskva-Citi. A Telegram channel run by the Russian online media group Mash broadcast photos of the damage done to the digital ministry's headquarters. For one employee at a large Russian company, the attack was a "really scary" warning.

Persons: Nobody, Yandex, Dmitry Peskov, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Gareth Jones, Mark Potter Organizations: Sunday, Citi, Kremlin, Tech, Reuters, Telegram, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Moskva, Ukrainian, Russia, Moscow, Kyiv, Russian

☆ 3 trends that will redefine sports media as the industry reckons with layoffs, AI, and more
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-25 | by ( Margaret Fleming | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

More news jobs have already been cut this year than in all of 2022 and 2021, per a firm that tracks layoffs. Industry experts explain the three media trends that could replace traditional sports journalism. Wiacek said that the 18- to 30-year-old demographic is key for traditional media organizations, yet the hardest to reach. "The more traditional media outlets are trying to find ways of attracting that audience," Wiacek said. Hanlon said team communications are essential for growing leagues like the NWSL that can't wait around for classic media coverage to pour in, especially in local markets.

Persons: Andy Challenger, It's, Challenger's, Challenger, Conrad Wiacek, Wiacek, Pat McAfee, CJ McCollum, McAfee, famer David Ortiz, JJ Redick, isn't, Tim Hanlon, Hanlon, They're Organizations: ESPN, New York Times, Sports Illustrated, Warner Bros, The Athletic, NFL Media, Times, Los Angeles Times, Industry, Sports, YouTube, Indianapolis Colts, NBA, famer, Leagues, MLS, LA Times, Associated Press, Minor League Baseball Locations: FanDuel, pickleball

☆ The Grim Reaper is coming for the sports desk. Here's what industry experts say could take its place.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( Margaret Fleming | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Industry experts explain the three media trends that could replace traditional sports journalism. But Challenger and other experts say the demand for sports content isn't going anywhere: it's just going to look, and sound, a little different. Wiacek said that the 18- to 30-year-old demographic is key for traditional media organizations, yet the hardest to reach. "The more traditional media outlets are trying to find ways of attracting that audience," Wiacek said. Hanlon said team communications are essential for growing leagues like the NWSL that can't wait around for classic media coverage to pour in, especially in local markets.

By 1156 GMT, the rouble was 1.8% weaker against the dollar at 89.15 after earlier hitting 89.3275, its weakest point since March 29, 2022. It lost 1.8% to trade at 96.74 versus the euro , also a 15-month low. It shed 1.4% against the yuan to 12.23 <CNYRUBTOM=MCX>, a more than 14-month low. The rouble lost a key support factor on Wednesday as a month-end tax period that typically sees exporters convert foreign currency revenues to meet local liabilities passed. Brent crude oil , a global benchmark for Russia's main export, was up 0.1% at $74.41 a barrel.

Persons: C.bank, Yevgeny Prigozhin's, Vladimir Putin's, Alexei Zabotkin, Zabotkin, Alexander Marrow, Jamie Freed, Robert Birsel, Jane Merriman, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Alor Broker, Bank of Russia, Brent, Gazprom, Thomson Locations: Moscow, Russian, Alor, Russia, Ukraine

June 30 (Reuters) - The Russian rouble slumped to a more than 15-month low against the dollar and euro on Friday, weighed down by domestic political risk concerns after an aborted armed mutiny over the weekend and lacking support drivers. By 0734 GMT, the rouble was 0.8% weaker against the dollar at 88.26 after earlier hitting 88.6775, its weakest point since March 29, 2022. It lost 0.9% to trade at 95.97 versus the euro after also hitting a 15-month low of 96.3225. The rouble lost a key support factor on Wednesday as a month-end tax period that typically sees exporters convert foreign currency revenues to meet local liabilities passed. The rouble-based MOEX Russian index (.IMOEX) was 0.4% lower at 2,785.8 points.

Persons: Yevgeny Prigozhin's, Vladimir Putin's, Alexander Marrow, Jamie Freed, Robert Birsel Organizations: Alor Broker, Gazprom, Thomson Locations: Russian, Alor, Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, Brent

First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov said demand for foreign currency had increased sharply in about 15 regions. "The rouble in the cash market sold off sharply on Saturday with buy/offer spreads widening out substantially," said Goldman Sachs in a note. "Should the response to the events over the weekend be additional spending, we think this would be followed by a weaker rouble." Rouble opens at 15-month low vs dollarInvestors globally were watching for ripple effects from the aborted mutiny, with some expecting a move into safe havens such as U.S. government bonds and the dollar. The rouble-based MOEX Russian index (.IMOEX) was 1.2% lower at 2,762.5 points.

Persons: Yevgeny Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin's, Andrei Belousov, Belousov, Alexey Antonov, Goldman Sachs, Rouble, Alexander Marrow, Karin Strohecker, Kim Coghill, Ed Osmond Organizations: rouble, Alor Broker, Brent, Sinara Investment Bank, Thomson Locations: Russian, Russia, Rostov, Moscow, Voronezh, Lipetsk, Alor

June 26 (Reuters) - The Russian rouble hit its lowest in nearly 15 months against the dollar on Monday before paring some losses, as investors responded for the first time to an aborted mutiny by heavily armed mercenaries in Russia over the weekend. By 0727 GMT, the rouble was 0.5% weaker against the dollar at 85.15 , after hitting 87.2300 in early trade, its weakest point since late March 2022. With the rouble not trading over the weekend, Russian banks had offered exchange rates well above the official rate beyond 90 to the dollar, but those were gradually easing as tensions subsided. Rouble opens at 15-month low vs dollarInvestors globally were watching for ripple effects from the aborted mutiny, with some expecting a move into safe havens such as U.S. government bonds and the dollar. The rouble-based MOEX Russian index (.IMOEX) was 1% lower at 2,767.9 points.

Persons: Yevgeny Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin's, Alexey Antonov, Rouble, Brent, Sinara, Alexander Marrow, Kim Coghill Organizations: Sinara Investment Bank, Thomson Locations: Russian, Russia, Rostov, Moscow, Alor, Washington

☆ Saudi Arabia: What is the nation hoping to achieve amid transfer takeover and what happens next?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-25 | by ( Kaveh Solhekol | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Sky Sports News chief reporter Kaveh Solhekol analyses this transfer market trend... Why are Saudi Arabia spending huge sums on foreign players all of a sudden? Saudi Arabia is looking to expand its economy through other industries in order to help guarantee its financial future. It wants to put Saudi Arabia on the map and raise its profile. What else is Saudi Arabia hoping to achieve? Has Saudi Arabia distorted the transfer market forever?

Persons: Cristiano Ronaldo, Mohammed Saad, Ballon, Karim Benzema, Sergio Ramos, Bernardo Silva, Heung, Min Son, Kaveh, Mason Mount Chelsea, Declan Rice, Saudi Arabia —, sportswashing, Jamal Khashoggi, Oscar, West Ham's Marko Arnautovic, Lionel Messi, Ruben Neves, Kalidou Koulibaly, Hakim Ziyech, Erling Haaland, Harry Kane, Mohammed Hamdi, It's, Son Organizations: Saudi Pro League, Al, Alawwal, Anadolu Agency, Getty Images, Real, Chelsea, Premier League, Sky Sports News, Sky Sports, Manchester United, Arsenal, Soccer, Qatar, eventual, Argentina, Amnesty, Rights, Rights Watch, United, Super League, Brazil, Communist Party, Chinese Super League, MLS, Al Jazira FC, Saudi, Tottenham, Spurs Locations: Al, Shabab, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Getty Images Saudi Arabia, Real Madrid, Bournemouth, Saudi, United Nations, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Greece, Egypt, China, Europe, Al Hilal, Al Jazira, Abu Dhabi, Qatar

☆ Sports News and Analysis
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

With a win at the French, the 36-year-old from Serbia now has 23 major singles titles, the most for any men’s tennis player ever. He’s also on path to another shot at a calendar Grand Slam.

Persons: He’s Locations: Serbia

☆ The Athletic Cuts Nearly 4% of Its Newsroom
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Katie Robertson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The Athletic, the sports news outlet owned by The New York Times, laid off nearly 4 percent of its newsroom on Monday. David Perpich, the publisher of The Athletic, and Steven Ginsberg, its executive editor, announced “a significant reorganization” of the newsroom in a note to the staff. They said the publication was shifting away from having one beat reporter per sports team to broader coverage “telling the most compelling stories for fans across the teams in a given league, drawing on both local and national reporting expertise.”Nearly 20 people will be laid off as part of the reorganization, while more than 20 reporters will be moved to new assignments, they said. “Even with the changes being announced today, the size of our newsroom will grow this year compared to last, as will our overall investments in our editorial group in the years ahead,” Mr. Perpich and Mr. Ginsberg wrote. “At the end of this process, we will have more than 100 beat reporters on teams.”

Persons: David Perpich, Steven Ginsberg, ” Mr, Perpich, Ginsberg, “, ” Organizations: The New York Times, The Athletic

[1/3] A tyre produced by the Finnish group Nokian Tyres on display at a dealership in Moscow, Russia, March 23, 2023. Nokian Tyres' protracted departure illustrates the growing headwinds faced by Western companies that have yet to fully depart the country. "The war changed the operating environment in a rapid and unpredictable way," Nokian Tyres' Chief Transformation Officer Johanna Horsma told Reuters. Additional valuation requirements published in mid-December came in the middle of Nokian Tyres' transaction, he added. The buyer needs to be well selected to avoid scammers, said Nokian Tyres' Horsma.

Persons: Maxim Shemetov, Johanna Horsma, Finland's Fortum, Germany's, Peter Wand, Baker McKenzie, Thomas Kormendi, Kormendi, Alexei Moiseev, Moiseev, Nokian, Tatiana Stanovaya, Elopak, Baker McKenzie's Wand, Alexander Marrow, Darya Korsunskaya, Matt Scuffham, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: Nokian Tyres, REUTERS, Finland's, U.S . Treasury, Reuters, Companies, Thomson Locations: Moscow, Russia, finalising, Ukraine, Western, Frankfurt

[1/2] A security guard stands next to the Trinity icon at the Trinity Lavra of St. Sergius in the town of Sergiyev Posad, Russia, July 18, 2022. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/File PhotoMay 27 (Reuters) - Patriarch Kirill, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, on Saturday dismissed his expert on art and restoration for obstructing the transfer of a historic 15th-century Trinity icon to the Church from a Moscow museum. On Saturday, Patriarch Kirill decreed that Kalinin be dismissed from his post "in connection with the obstruction of bringing the icon" to Moscow's Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. Kalinin was also banned from the priesthood, according to the note published on the Russian Orthodox Church's website. Patriarch Kirill said last year that those who died fighting in Ukraine would be purged of their sins.

☆ I would give up my pension for an Inter win, says 100-year-old fan ready for Milan derby
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Claudia Greco | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Claudia GrecoPADUA, Italy, May 9 (Reuters) - Passionate Inter Milan fan Enrico Vanzini went to the club's San Siro stadium to watch his team play for the first time in 2022. "I prayed to God to give me the joy of Inter winning, and hopefully He will agree," he said, wearing an Inter t-shirt with his name inscribed on the back. "I would do anything (for a win), including (giving up) my small pension." Vanzini, who received his Inter t-shirt from the club to mark his 100th birthday, began testifying about his experiences of the Holocaust in the early 2000s. But he has a suggestion to help the team defeat Milan and reach the first Champions League final since 2010.

☆ FIFA confident of agreement on Women's World Cup TV rights
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SYDNEY, May 6 (Reuters) - FIFA secretary general Fatma Samoura is confident the global governing body's threat of a Women's World Cup TV blackout in Europe this year will bring broadcasters to the table with improved offers for the rights. Some 1.12 billion viewers tuned into the 2019 World Cup in France across all platforms, according to a FIFA audit of the tournament. Infantino said broadcasters had offered only $1 million-$10 million for the rights for this year's tournament in Australia and New Zealand, compared to $100 million-$200 million for the men's World Cup. Former FIFA Council member Moya Dodd said this week that the governing body had itself devalued the rights of the Women's World Cup by historically bundling them with those of the men's tournament. The ninth Women's World Cup kicks off in Sydney and Auckland on July 20.

May 4 (Reuters) - The Russian rouble climbed to a more-than-one-month high on Thursday, gaining for a fifth straight session, as oil prices staged a partial recovery, countering the impact of reduced foreign currency supply. By 0923 GMT, the rouble was 1% stronger against the dollar at 78.44 , its strongest mark since April 3. The rouble has also benefited with a lag from high oil prices throughout April, which translates to higher export revenues for Russian exporters. Russian stocks are unlikely to see any serious buying interest before Russia's long weekend, said Sinara Investment Bank analysts. Geopolitics are partly to blame for Russian stocks' recent decline, while investors globally fear recession, hence the sustained drop in Brent, Sinara said.

[1/4] A logo is on display in the office of Sberbank, Russia's state-owned dominant lender and one of the country's leading technology players, in Moscow, Russia, March 28, 2023. But it also highlights challenges as Russia's tech development becomes increasingly reliant on one state-owned player. Since 2020 it has cast itself as a technology company as well, and is now seeking a bigger slice of Russia's shrinking technology pie. "There are restrictions on some of them, it is a very complex technology," Belevtsev said. "There is already a lot of cooperation on engineers and technology," Belevtsev said.

May 2 (Reuters) - Tinder owner Match Group (MTCH.O) has said it will quit Russia by June 30, citing the need to protect human rights, one of many Western firms to leave since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine last year. "We are committed to protecting human rights," Match said in an annual impact report published on Monday. "Our brands are taking steps to restrict access to their services in Russia and will complete their withdrawal from the Russian market by June 30, 2023." Match shareholder Friends Fiduciary Corp said Match had set an example for others to follow in tying its decision to the human rights risks faced by the Ukrainian people. Moscow denies committing war crimes including forced deportations of children, and says the ICC decision is meaningless as Russia is not a member.

April 27 (Reuters) - The rouble steadied on Thursday, with the market looking ahead to Friday's interest rate decision, as favourable month-end tax payments propped the Russian currency up amid a significant drop in oil prices. By 1322 GMT, the rouble was 0.2% stronger against the dollar at 81.44 and had gained 0.6% to trade at 89.76 versus the euro . Month-end tax payments that usually lead exporters to convert foreign currency revenue to meet local liabilities are putting a floor under the rouble. Oil prices dropped almost 4% on Wednesday, extending sharp losses from the previous session, driven by fears of a U.S. recession and an increase in Russian oil exports which dulled the impact of OPEC production cuts. "We still see no reason for the central bank to change the rate and its rhetoric, but inflation risks will continue to concern the central bank more than economic growth," said Dmitry Polevoy, head of investment at Locko-Invest.

April 20 (Reuters) - Cybersecurity company Group-IB has finalised its exit from Russia, the group said on Thursday, cutting ties with its original market in an effort to spur its global expansion ambitions. Already harbouring global ambitions, Group-IB moved its headquarters to Singapore in 2019. Volkov has sold his 10% stake in the Russian company, Group-IB said in a statement. The stand-alone Russian business has been sold to local management and will be operating under the new brand F.A.C.C.T. Group-IB said Sachkov had sold his 37.5% stake in the Singapore entity to members of top management there.

April 12 (Reuters) - Sberbank (SBER.MM), Russia's dominant lender and a leading technology company, is finding graphics cards the trickiest hardware item to replace in the absence of Western providers, CEO German Gref said on Wednesday. Sberbank needs the cards for its artificial intelligence services and super computers and Western sanctions over Moscow's actions in Ukraine have curbed Russia's access to some technology imports. "We depend first and foremost on technology called hardware," Gref told lawmakers in the Federation Council, Russia's upper house of parliament. "And probably the most critical position is graphics cards, microelectronics - video cards for high-performance computing." In the absence of Western imports, local companies have enhanced efforts to increase domestic production and cushion the blow.

By 2027, the IMF expects Russia's economic output to be 7% lower than forecasts made before Moscow sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, had suggested. "An exodus of multinationals, loss in human capital, isolation from global financial markets, and impaired access to advanced technology goods and know-how will hamper the Russian economy," an IMF spokesperson said. "A sharp worsening in the terms of trade could lead to a significant decline in both the current account surplus and in fiscal revenues," the IMF spokesperson said. Russia says its 2023 deficit will not exceed 2% of gross domestic product (GDP), but many analysts think it will surpass that level. The current account surplus shrank by a little over 73% in the first quarter on an annual basis to $18.6 billion, the central bank said on Tuesday, hurt by the sharply lower energy revenues.

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