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☆ China rate scare reminds watchdogs of hidden risks
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Chan Ka Sing | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Overnight borrowing rates for some Chinese financial institutions spiked to 50% on Tuesday, according to official interbank data, far in excess of the average rate of roughly 3.6%. In 2012, a national audit confirmed that local governments had amassed up to 10 trillion yuan in debts. Those have since swelled to 92 trillion yuan, per Reuters. The latest liquidity squeeze is a reminder that short-term dangers will complicate any attempts at more drastic surgery on China’s financial system. CONTEXT NEWSOvernight borrowing costs for some Chinese financial institutions jumped to as high as 50% on Oct. 31.

Persons: Xi Jinping’s, Xi Jinping, Li Qiang, Peter Thal Larsen, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Traders, People’s Bank of, Financial Work, Central Financial Work Conference, Xinhua News Agency, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, People’s Bank of China, Beijing

☆ Larry Fink’s next M&A may go in surprise direction
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Lauren Silva Laughlin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Reuters GraphicsTIPPING THE SCALESThe shift to low-fee products helped BlackRock’s assets under management swell to more than $9 trillion at the end of September. BlackRock’s history with Blackstone means a reunion with Stephen Schwarzman’s $110 billion firm is a persistent Wall Street rumor. BlackRock’s funds operate under a single name, so uniting with Carlyle (CG.O) or Apollo Global Management (APO.N) would pose a branding challenge. Fink might covet MSCI (MSCI.N), the $38 billion firm which aggregates many of the benchmarks tracked by BlackRock’s ETFs. Given Fink’s long record of pulling off opportunistic and transformational deals, it would be foolish to bet against him springing one last surprise.

Persons: Larry Fink, Fink, Merrill, Rowe Price, Janus Henderson, Blackstone, Stephen Schwarzman’s, Carlyle, covet, MSCI, Michael Bloomberg, doesn’t, LSEG –, Peter Thal Larsen, Thomas Shum, Streisand Neto Organizations: CNBC, New York Stock Exchange, Reuters, BlackRock, Blackstone, Barclays Global Investors, Credit Suisse, UBS, nab, Graphics, Apollo Global Management, London Stock Exchange, Thomson Reuters, New, Bloomberg, Wall Street, New York Times, LSEG – Bloomberg, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, BlackRock, Boston, Swiss, New York, United States

☆ Brookfield’s climate deal may run out of energy
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The logo of Australian energy company Origin is pictured in Melbourne, Australia, July 3, 2016. REUTERS/Jason Reed/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsMELBOURNE, Oct 31 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Australia’s top pension fund has aptly chosen Halloween to try to scare Brookfield Asset Management (BAM.TO) and co-bidder MidOcean Energy to dig deeper in their pursuit of Origin Energy (ORG.AX). AustralianSuper said on Tuesday it intends to vote its near-14% stake against the current A$18.7 billion ($12 billion) offer next month. On that score, the pension fund’s intervention may frighten the deal to death. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Persons: Jason Reed, AustralianSuper, Antony Currie, Peter Thal Larsen, Thomas Shum Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Asset Management, MidOcean Energy, Origin Energy, X, Vodafone, Thomson Locations: Melbourne, Australia, –, Brookfield, MidOcean, Spain

☆ BOJ chooses slow path out of zero-rate limbo
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-31 | by ( Peter Thal Larsen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Susana Vera Acquire Licensing RightsHONG KONG, Oct 31 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The Bank of Japan (8301.T) is taking the long road out of zero-interest rate limbo. On the face of it, BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda and his colleagues made few policy changes at their latest meeting. The short-term interest rate remains negative, while the official yield target for 10-year Japanese government bonds is unchanged at 0%. However, the real challenge for Ueda is when to end the era of negative short-term interest rates. The BOJ’s nine-member board maintained its target for short-term interest rates of -0.1%.

Persons: Kazuo Ueda, Susana Vera, Haruhiko Kuroda, Ueda, “, Antony Currie, Thomas Shum Organizations: Japan, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, REUTERS, Reuters, Bank of Japan, U.S, Thomson Locations: Marrakech, Morocco, HONG KONG, Japan

☆ Big government will drive the next market cycle
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-31 | by ( Francesco Guerrera | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Growth picked up while quiescent inflation permitted interest rates to fall. Bereft of government support, central banks tried to stimulate their economies by pushing interest rates to new lows. That means interest rates will struggle to return to the ultra-low levels seen after 2008. The first takeaway is that higher debt levels, inflation and interest rates should be bad for bonds. Vincent Deluard of StoneX has proposed a division between intangible and tangible companies.

Persons: Kevin Lamarque, ” Ronald Reagan’s, Milton Friedman –, Britain’s Margaret Thatcher –, Reaganomics ”, Réka Juhász, Nathan J, Lane, Dani Rodrik, government’s, Vincent Deluard, StoneX, Lockheed Martin, Peter Thal Larsen, Oliver Taslic, Thomas Shum Organizations: Republicans, Capitol, REUTERS, Reuters, Bank, Asset, Monetary Fund, Treasury, Capital Economics, Reuters Graphics Reuters Graphics, Capital, Facebook, Meta, Lockheed, Micron Technology, U.S, Congress, Nasdaq, Energy, Exxon Mobil, Labour Party, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, “, Ukraine, Covid, Europe, United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Japan

☆ BYD’s Halloween bonanza spooks rivals
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A BYD U8 is displayed during the Japan Mobility Show 2023 at Tokyo Big Sight in Tokyo, Japan October 25, 2023. REUTERS/Issei Kato Acquire Licensing RightsHONG KONG, Oct 31 (Reuters Breakingviews) - BYD (002594.SZ), (1211.HK) is delivering a fright to its rivals. The company founded by Wang Chuanfu is expanding its portfolio of premium brands, adding new models for its flashy Denza marque. For rivals trying to compete with the $95 billion group, though, that’s scant consolation. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Persons: Issei Kato, It’s, Wang Chuanfu, Bernstein, that’s, Katrina Hamlin, Peter Thal Larsen, Thomas Shum Organizations: Japan, REUTERS, Reuters, Overseas, Investors, BYD’s, X, Vodafone, Thomson Locations: Tokyo, Japan, HONG KONG, HK, China, People’s Republic, BYD’s Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Spain

☆ Aussie tycoon doubles down as lithium spoiler
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MELBOURNE, Oct 30 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Lithium M&A is becoming a dangerous sport Down Under. On Friday, Hancock Prospecting, owned by Australia’s richest person Gina Rinehart, revealed it had snapped up an 18.3% stake in Azure Minerals (AZS.AX). Unlike Albemarle, it has not tied its hands by declaring the Azure bid to be its best and final offer. But SQM boss Ricardo Ramos can switch to an off-market offer and try to buy other investors’ stakes first. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Persons: Hancock, Gina Rinehart, Chile’s, Rinehart, Albemarle, SQM, Ricardo Ramos, Antony Currie, Peter Thal Larsen, Thomas Shum Organizations: MELBOURNE, Reuters, Australia’s, Minerals, Australian, Liontown Resources, Canaccord, X, Thomson Locations: Western Australia, Liontown

☆ Israel war tests US appeal to global swing states
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( Hugo Dixon | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

FOURNI, Greece, Oct 30 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Joe Biden has sought to portray the United States as a superpower that cares about the rule of law. What’s more, swing states – which back neither the United States nor China – have more power than they did during the old Cold War between the West and the Soviet Union. Such pressure may convince some countries that the United States is pursuing a principles-based foreign policy in the Gaza conflict. The Israeli war may last a long time and its aftermath may be tortuous. But it could also have an important impact on the United States’ influence with swing states and its struggle with China.

Persons: Joe Biden, Vladimir Putin’s, Xi Jinping’s, Barack Obama, Republic –, Biden, Queen Rania, Jordan, Israel, Jake Sullivan, Israel –, Tayyip Erdogan, Benjamin Netanyahu, Mustafa Kamal Kazi, Netanyahu, What’s, Jonathan Cohen, Peter Thal Larsen, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Russian, U.S, Israel, United Nations General, Washington, UN Security Council, Security Council, Soviet Union, Members, United, Reuters Graphics Reuters, U.S . National Security, U.S ., West Bank, Thomson Locations: FOURNI, Greece, United States, Russia, China, Ukraine, Taiwan, Gaza, Israel, Republic, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, U.S, Moscow, Soviet, India, Brazil, wean, Turkey, NATO, South Africa, Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistani, Egypt, Israeli

☆ Japan Inc is only winner in nixed chip deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-27 | by ( Anshuman Daga | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

But this failed tie-up does have a winner of sorts: Japan Inc.That’s precious little consolation for the others involved. Reuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsThe nixed deal also complicates Bain Capital’s exit strategy from Kioxia. Yet Western Digital was set to be the majority partner in the proposed deal. The Nikkei business daily also said that Kioxia and Western Digital were unable to agree on conditions with top Kioxia shareholder Bain Capital. The news sent Western Digital shares down 9%.

Persons: Elliot, Bain, Nobuo Hayasaka, –, Antony Currie, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Japan Inc, Western Digital, Elliot Investment Management, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Toshiba, SK Hynix, Western Digital’s, Development Bank of Japan, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial, –, Western, South Korea's SK Hynix, U.S, Nikkei, Bain Capital, Thomson Locations: HYDERABAD, India, Japan, Tokyo

☆ The case for a career in bond investing
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-27 | by ( Felix Martin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

I sensed familiarity with the recent fate of fixed income benchmarks such as Austria’s hundred-year government bond. For this reason, when bond yields are low, the sensitivity of capital prices to inflation and interest rate shocks is high, and vice versa. The appreciating greenback has been a drag on much of the global fixed income universe for the past decade. The real reason to go into fixed income investing, I explained, is that you get to tell governments what to do. Now that the end of monetary anaesthesia has awoken fixed income from its 15-year coma, I told the MBA students, you’ve got your chance.

Persons: Bonds, That’s, Torsten Slok, GMO’s, Liz Truss, ”, Bill Clinton’s, James Carville, you’ve, Peter Thal Larsen, Streisand Neto, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Treasury, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Apollo Global Management, U.S ., JPMorgan, Economist, UK, Thomson Locations: U.S, Venezuela

☆ Morgan Stanley CEO shift pleases all, thrills none
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-26 | by ( John Foley | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

People take photos by the Morgan Stanley building in Times Square in New York City, New York U.S., February 20, 2020. So the crushing conventionality of Morgan Stanley’s (MS.N)new chief executive selection, announced late on Wednesday, is almost certainly the point. The handover should be fairly civil, since the two CEO also-rans, wealth chief Andy Saperstein and investment management head Dan Simkowitz, both get promotions too. Andy Saperstein, previously seen as a contender for the CEO spot, will retain his leadership of Morgan Stanley’s wealth management business. He will also take on its investment management division, which manages and supervises $1.4 trillion of funds.

Persons: Morgan Stanley, Brendan McDermid, Morgan Stanley’s, Ted Pick, James Gorman, He’s, Morgan Stanley lifer, Morgan, Elon Musk, Gorman, Andy Saperstein, Dan Simkowitz, Goldman Sachs, David Solomon, culls, Wells, Jamie Dimon, aren’t, Goldman, Pick, Antony Currie, Thomas Shum Organizations: New York City , New York U.S, REUTERS, Reuters, Twitter, JPMorgan, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Wall, Thomson Locations: New York City , New York

☆ Russian war economy is overheating on a powder keg
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Pierre Briancon | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

LONDON, Oct 25 (Reuters Breakingviews) - His war on Ukraine may not be unfolding according to plan, but President Vladimir Putin can still claim that the Russian economy is performing, as he says, “better than previously expected”. This kind of understatement is unusual for the Kremlin leader: with a tight labour market and inflation showing no signs of abating, the Russian economy is in fact overheating. And these are conservative numbers, because other types of war spending – such as new construction in the occupied territories – are hidden in other sections of the budget. The Russian currency is down 30% since its January high. Follow @pierrebri on XCONTEXT NEWSThe Russian economy will grow by 2.2% in 2023, the International Monetary Fund said in its October World Economic Outlook.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, “, Putin, Alexandra Prokopenko, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner, Francesco Guerrera, Streisand Neto, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Kremlin, International Monetary, Bank of Russia, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Bank of, Danone, Carlsberg, International Monetary Fund, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russian, Russia, –, Moscow, Europe, Lithuania, microchips, Kazakhstan, Bank of Russia, United States, China, U.S, Beijing

☆ China puts $137 bln Band-Aid on local debt wounds
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Chan Ka Sing | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The funds are to be funnelled to cash-strapped local governments struggling under 92 trillion yuan ($12.6 trillion) of debt. The last time was for a 1 trillion yuan special bond issuance in 2020 to combat the economic fallout from Covid-19. All these plans stem from the ruling Politburo in July calling on regulators to formulate “a basket of measures” to resolve risks stemming from local governments’ debt. CONTEXT NEWSChina’s top legislature approved a plan on Oct. 24 to sell 1 trillion yuan ($137 billion) of sovereign bonds. Separately, the Chinese legislature passed a bill to allow local governments to frontload part of their 2024 bond quotas.

Persons: Xi Jinping, Xi Jinping’s, Antony Currie, Thomas Shum Organizations: of, People, REUTERS Acquire, Reuters, Monetary, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, HONG KONG, Covid

☆ Foxconn’s China woes expose supply chain dilemma
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( Chan Ka Sing | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Yet, coming less than 100 days ahead of Taiwan’s presidential election in January, it is difficult to see surprise tax raids on Foxconn as having no geopolitical implications. For multinationals, the tax audits expose Foxconn’s difficulty in navigating the global business environment as tensions across the Taiwan Strait escalate. For global onlookers anxious to reduce their Chinese dependency, Foxconn could be the most telling case on the true cost of reshoring. The audits come less than three months ahead of Taiwan’s presidential election in January 2024 and amid Foxconn’s drive to expand its production outside China. Foxconn’s founder Terry Gou, who stepped down as company chief in 2019, is running as an independent candidate in Taiwan’s upcoming presidential election.

Persons: Foxconn, Terry Gou, It’s, Foxconn’s, Lisa Jucca, Thomas Shum, Katrina Hamlin Organizations: Reuters, Apple, Hai Precision Industry, Global Times, Eastern, Democratic Progressive Party, Foxconn, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, China, Taiwan, Foxconn, Beijing, Vietnam, Republic, Shanghai, Taipei

☆ Time is ripe for another push on carbon pricing
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( Hugo Dixon | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Other technologies, such as green hydrogen and carbon capture, are still a long way from maturity. Around 50 countries have some form of carbon price, double the number 10 years ago, and another 23 countries are planning to introduce one. The snag is that China’s carbon price is low and the United States doesn’t have a federal levy. Others argue that governments should combine carbon pricing with financial support for the most vulnerable and targeted subsidies for fledgling technologies. To hit climate targets, the carbon price would need to be $135 a tonne in advanced economies and $45 a tonne in large emerging ones by 2030.

Persons: Jin Mao, Aly, Joe Biden’s, There’s, Rishi Sunak, Michael Jacobs, it’s, Peter Thal Larsen, Oliver Taslic, Thomas Shum Organizations: Financial, REUTERS, Reuters, International Energy Agency, European Union, Global, International Monetary Fund, Reuters Graphics Reuters, British, Pew Research, University of Sheffield, IMF, Africa Climate, United, European, Climate Leadership Council, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, Pudong, China, United States, Paris, Africa, European Union, U.S

☆ China’s leaders speed towards Japanisation
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( Edward Chancellor | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

LONDON, Oct 20 (Reuters Breakingviews) - China’s real estate market is in decline. The trouble is that China’s economic imbalances are far worse than Japan’s in 1990. Yet China’s GDP per capita has reached only half of Japan’s level in 1990. China’s economic misdirection is catalogued in Yasheng Huang’s “The Rise and Fall of the East”. After 1978 the authorities gave provincial governments substantial freedom to promote economic growth and rewarded them for meeting a growth target.

Persons: Xi, Xi Jinping, Huang, –, Xi’s, Beijing’s, Peter Thal Larsen, Oliver Taslic, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Monetary Fund, South, Asian, IMF, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Bank for International, MIT Sloan School of Management, HK, Communist, Huawei, Washington, Thomson Locations: Marrakech, People’s Republic, China, South Korea, Japan, deflate, Tokyo, California, Beijing, Taiwan, Communist

☆ India and Japan will be Asia's next power couple
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-19 | by ( Pranav Kiran | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomes Japan Prime Minister Fumio Kishida upon his arrival at Bharat Mandapam convention center for the G20 Summit, in New Delhi, India, Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023. Evan Vucci/Pool via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsBENGALURU, Oct 19 (Reuters Breakingviews) - India and Japan are edging closer. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's governments form part of the so-called Quad security grouping with the United States and Australia to counter Chinese expansionism in Asia. Now the two countries are setting up an investment fund together. That’s delivering on a pledge by Kishida to invest 5 trillion yen, or some $42 billion, into India over the next five years.

Persons: Narendra Modi, Fumio Kishida, Evan Vucci, Fumio, Kishida, Wood Mackenzie, Sajjan Jindal, India’s, Lakshmi Mittal, JBIC, Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: Indian, Japan, Bharat, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Reuters, National Investment, Infrastructure Fund, Japan Bank, International Cooperation, Japan External Trade Organization, Nippon Telegraph, Telephone, Reuters Graphics, Teck Resources, Nippon Steel, ArcelorMittal, Japan Fund, Thomson Locations: New Delhi, India, Japan, United States, Australia, Asia, Reuters Graphics India, China, Russia, South, Teck, Indian

☆ China’s GDP allows room for stimulus waiting game
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-18 | by ( Chan Ka Sing | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

HONG KONG, Oct 18 (Reuters Breakingviews) - For any major economy, 5% growth ought to be respectable. Yet anxiety over the attainability of that official target this year is one reason China's policymakers have faced growing calls from global stakeholders for more stimulus. The country’s GDP has grown 5.2% in the first nine months of this year. The world’s second-biggest economy grew 5.2% in the first nine months of 2023. The Chinese government has set a 5% growth target for this year.

Persons: Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Services, National Bureau, Statistics, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, Beijing, China

☆ Globalisation woes create new winners and losers
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-17 | by ( Francesco Guerrera | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

Over the past seven decades, the world economy has grown 14-fold, powered by a 45-fold expansion in global trade, according to the World Trade Organization. World trade as a percentage of GDP peaked at 61% in 2008. The first is rising geopolitical tensions between the United States and China. The retrenchment is probably going to be gradual: global trade was still worth 57% of world GDP last year. For 2024, the WTO said growth in goods trade would pick up to 3.3%, virtually unchanged from its April estimate of 3.2%.

Persons: Chris Helgren, Joe Biden, Xi Jinping “, ”, Caroline Freund, Aaditya Mattoo, Alen Mulabdic, Michele Ruta, Ursula von der Leyen, it’s, Laura Alfaro, Davin Chor, Dario Perkins, GlobalData’s Perkins, Peter Thal Larsen, Streisand Neto, Thomas Shum Organizations: Warehouse Union, REUTERS, Reuters, World Trade Organization, Economic, Reuters Graphics Reuters, HK, Amperex Technology, European Central Bank, GlobalData, Lombard, Companies, Bureau of Labor Statistics, ECB, Thomson Locations: Vancouver , British Columbia, Canada, Netherlands, United States, China, Beijing, Washington, U.S, Taiwan, Mexico, Vietnam, People’s Republic, Latin America, Chile, Brazil, Ukraine, Geneva

☆ Breakingviews: Globalization woes create new winners and losers
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-17 | by ( Francesco Guerrera | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

☆ Putin and Xi’s strengthening bond has a weakness
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-17 | by ( Lisa Jucca | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The $190 billion two-way trade relationship is up 29% since 2021, and has roughly doubled since Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014. A warm meeting between Putin and Xi will reaffirm China’s intention to carry on this robust business. Yet Russia’s lack of viable trade avenues makes its leader look more like a vassal than a peer to the Chinese president. Follow @LJucca on XCONTEXT NEWSRussian President Vladimir Putin is attending the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing on Oct. 17-18 where he is expected to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping. China and Russia declared a "no limits" partnership in February 2022 during a previous Putin visit to Beijing, just days before Moscow troops launched an invasion of Ukraine.

Persons: Vladimir Putin’s, Xi Jinping, Brent, Putin, Xi, Vladimir Putin, Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, People’s, Reuters Graphics, Bank of France, Centre for Research, Energy, Clean, HK, Forum, Soviet Union, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, Beijing, Ukraine, People’s Republic, Crimea, Reuters Graphics Moscow, Russia, Europe, U.S, Republic, China, Hague, Moscow

☆ US grand strategy can prop up the global order
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-16 | by ( Hugo Dixon | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

But the United States can prevent the rules-based order from collapsing if it keeps steering a steady course with regards to Russia and China. If the United States holds firm on its grand strategy, any new geopolitical risks should be similarly contained. One explanation for the current outbreak of crises is that the United States is weaker and more internally divided than it was during the so-called “Pax Americana” era. It could easily drop down the United States’ list of priorities, says Michel Duclos, a former French diplomat who is a fellow at the Paris-based Institut Montaigne. He will struggle to unite the U.S.’s allies as he is not a champion of either the NATO military alliance or the rules-based global order.

Persons: Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Mike Segar, Vladimir Putin, –, Biden, David Hannay, Benjamin Netanyahu’s, ”, Jake Sullivan, Michel Duclos, Putin, ’, Peter Thal Larsen, Oliver Taslic, Thomas Shum Organizations: Democratic, Belmont University, REUTERS, Reuters, U.S, Reuters Graphics Reuters, United Nations Charter, –, Montaigne, Kyiv, Trump, NATO, Thomson Locations: coronavirus, Nashville , Tennessee, U.S, Israel, Gaza, United States, Russia, China, Ukraine, Afghanistan, Korea, Vietnam, Soviet, Soviet Union, Iraq, Washington, China’s, Taiwan, Africa, Azerbaijan, Europe, Asia, India, Saudi Arabia, French, Paris, Beijing, Japan, South Korea

☆ Tycoon’s lithium grab leaves investors hanging
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-16 | by ( Antony Currie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Australia’s richest person has stifled Albemarle’s (ALB.N) A$6.6 billion ($4.2 billion) pursuit of lithium producer Liontown Resources (LTR.AX) with deft use of the country’s takeover rules. At A$3 a share, the offer represented a near-100% premium to Liontown’s undisturbed price. And because she never paid more than the A$3 a share Albemarle put on the table, her share purchases did not count as a superior offer. CONTEXT NEWSU.S.-based lithium producer Albemarle on Oct. 16 said it has abandoned its A$6.6 billion ($4.2 billion) offer for smaller Australian rival Liontown Resources, citing “growing complexities associated with the proposed transaction” as a reason. The firm said that in building its stake it never paid more than A$3 per share, the same price as Albemarle’s takeover offer.

Persons: Gina Rinehart, Kent Masters, Rinehart, Albemarle, Masters, Liontown, Kathleen, It’s, Hancock, Lisa Jucca, Katrina Hamlin, Thomas Shum Organizations: MELBOURNE, Reuters, Liontown, Kent, Liontown Resources, Thomson Locations: Western Australia, Hancock, Liontown

☆ Why an economic soft landing may prove elusive
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-13 | by ( Edward Chancellor | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

His latest book, “You Always Hurt the One You Love: Central Banks and the Murder of Capitalism”, won’t make him any friends in monetary policymaking circles. The Fed responded by reducing interest rates to zero and employing various tools to lower bond yields. These economic imbalances prevented central banks from returning interest rates to normal levels. Unless, that is, liberalising economic reforms are enacted that boost productivity and allow interest rates to rise. Bernard Conolly’s book, “You Always Hurt the One You Love: Central Banks and the Murder of Capitalism” was published in hardback in September.

Persons: Bernard Connolly, Connolly, won’t, they’ve, Michael Woodford, ”, Alan Greenspan, staved, Lehman, Edward Chancellor’s “, Bernard Conolly’s, Peter Thal Larsen, Streisand Neto, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, European Monetary Union, European Commission, Banks, U.S . Federal, stoke, Lehman Brothers, Fed, Reuters Graphics, Treasury, Securities, Thomson Locations: U.S, United States, British, Europe, American, “, ”, disequilibrium, intertemporal, Central

☆ Infosys campus pullback signals hard jobs reboot
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Employees of Indian software company Infosys walk past Infosys logos at their campus in the Electronic City area in Bangalore September 4, 2012. REUTERS/Vivek Prakash/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBENGALURU, Oct 13 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Clients are cutting back on IT spending as the global economy slows. India’s second biggest technology services firm by market capitalisation Infosys (INFY.NS) has twice cut its revenue growth forecast this year. IT firms provide well-paying jobs in urban India where less than half of workers have regular wages or salaries. As a result, Infosys revenue grew 16% annually between financial year 2021 and 2023, twice the rate during the prior three years.

Persons: Vivek Prakash, That’s, Pranav Kiran, Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: Indian, Infosys, REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, U.S, Tata Consultancy Services, X, Ericsson, Qantas, Thomson Locations: Electronic, Bangalore, India

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