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☆ GSK raises $1.1 billion from Haleon stake sale
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration Acquire Licensing RightsOct 6 (Reuters) - British drugmaker GSK (GSK.L) on Friday said it raised 885.6 million pounds ($1.08 billion) from a discounted stake sale in Haleon (HLN.L), cutting its shareholding to 7.4% in the world's largest standalone consumer healthcare firm. The sale of 270 million shares at 328 pence apiece, represented a discount of about 2.5% to Haleon's last close of 336.25 pence on Thursday. Shares in Haleon were down 1.2% while GSK was marginally up 0.4% at 0800 GMT. Pfizer, which holds a 32% stake in Haleon, said in May it plans to cut its ownership in a "slow and methodical" manner within months. The British drugmaker and Pfizer have agreed to not sell any further Haleon shares for 60 days from the settlement of placing.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Emma Walmsley, Prerna Bedi, Sonia Cheema, Elaine Hardcastle Organizations: GSK, GlaxoSmithKline, REUTERS, British, AstraZeneca, London Stock Exchange, Pfizer, Thomson Locations: Haleon, British, Bengaluru

☆ German defense contractor postpones IPO on eve of debut
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-05 | by ( Jenni Reid | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

German defense contractor Renk on late Wednesday announced it would indefinitely postpone its initial public offering on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange scheduled for the following morning. "In the past days, the market environment has clouded noticeably," the company said in a statement, providing no further details. Shares were set to be offered in a price range between 15 euros ($15.77) and 18 euros, with a total placement volume between 405 million and 486 million euros. It reported an increase in audited gross profit from 124.5 million euros to 164.8 million euros in the fiscal year ending on Dec. 31 2022. European bourses had a mixed first half of the year, with funds raised through listings on the Paris Stock Exchange plunging 92%, while the London Stock Exchange held steady.

Persons: Renk, Susanne Wiegand, bourses, Susannah Streeter, Hargreaves Lansdown Organizations: Frankfurt Stock Exchange, CNBC, Triton, Reuters, Paris Stock Exchange, London Stock Exchange, Schott Pharma, Hargreaves Locations: Augsburg, Germany, Ukraine, Frankfurt

☆ UK's Metro Bank shares suspended multiple times after plunging more than 25%
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-05 | by ( Karen Gilchrist | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON — Shares of Britain's Metro Bank were briefly suspended from trading twice early Thursday, in a volatile session that saw the stock shed more than 29% from the Wednesday close. Investors traded more than 1.6 million shares immediately after the stock market opened Thursday, according to FactSet. Typically, less than 100,000 Metro Bank shares change hands every hour. Metro Bank was valued at £87 million as of the Wednesday close, according to Reuters. As such, the Metro Bank would be subject to higher capital requirements — a concern that has weighed on investors.

Persons: Keefe, Woods, — CNBC's Ganesh Rao Organizations: Britain's Metro Bank, London Stock Exchange, CNBC, Reuters, Metro Bank, Investors, Bank of, Prudential, Authority Locations: London

Its cost was estimated at 33 billion pounds in 2011, but has soared to more than 100 billion pounds ($122 billion) by some estimates. Sunak said Conservative lawmakers would be given a free vote in Parliament on the smoking ban. He used the speech to give party members and voters a glimpse of the man behind his technocratic exterior. Home Secretary Suella Braverman used her conference speech to appeal to the party’s authoritarian, law-and-order wing, advocating tougher curbs on migration and a war on human rights protections and “woke” social values. “I am confident we can win,” said Balwinder Dhillon, deputy mayor of the town of Slough, west of London.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Sunak, he's, ”, ” Sunak, Andy Burnham, ” “, Rain Newton, Smith, “, Margaret Thatcher —, Liz Truss, Akshata Murty, Suella Braverman, Balwinder Dhillon Organizations: Conservative Party, Labour Party, Leeds, Conservative, Manchester, of British Industry, Health, New, British American Tobacco, Imperial Brands, London Stock Exchange, Treasury, United, British Locations: MANCHESTER, England, Manchester, London, “, Birmingham, Midlands, North, Britain, Britain’s, New Zealand, Rwanda, United Kingdom, Slough

☆ Asia’s breakup party is happening under duress
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( Pranav Kiran | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

As with other big breakups in the region however, there are unspoken reasons for him to join the party. Vedanta Resources is in talks with bondholders to extend the maturity by roughly three years on about $3.2 billion of debt due in 2024 and 2025. But even then, Vedanta Resources may still have a funding gap until 2027 under certain conditions, according to JPMorgan. Even if those were sold for as much as $1.5 billion, JPMorgan estimates Vedanta Resources will at most receive only $350 million in net proceeds. For every one share in Vedanta, shareholders will receive one additional share of each of the five new companies.

Persons: Anil Agarwal, Ajay Agarwal, Vedanta, Mukesh Ambani, Una Galani, Katrina Hamlin Organizations: Reuters, Vedanta, Vedanta Resources, London Stock Exchange, JPMorgan, Hindustan, HK, Reliance Industries, Thomson Locations: BENGALURU, Mumbai, Hindustan, People’s Republic, Asia, Vedanta

☆ Stock market minnows are grabbing most of the world’s IPOs
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The US is still the biggest single IPO market. It is now the world’s fourth-biggest IPO market when measured by the value of deals, totaling $3.2 billion so far this year, according to data provider Dealogic. Further south, the year-to-date value of IPO deals on Turkey’s Borsa Istanbul has hit $2.3 billion, more than double the value of deals on the London Stock Exchange. Not a ‘pretty picture’The United Kingdom’s IPO market is in more profound trouble, and the loss of the Arm IPO to New York stung. Kerr attributes the decline in the UK’s IPO scene partly to Brexit but also to the growing strength of stock exchanges in emerging markets.

Persons: EY, ” George Chan, Chan, you’ve, they’re, ”, Hidroelectrica, Michael M, Kevin Gordon, Charles Schwab, ” Gordon, Germany’s, Samuel Kerr, Kerr Organizations: London CNN, Nasdaq, CNN, Center, United Arab, Bucharest Stock Exchange, Turkey’s Borsa, London Stock Exchange, Tech, IPOs, New York Stock Exchange, Getty, Federal Reserve, United, Wall, “ Companies Locations: Turkey, Romania, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Hong Kong, United States, United Arab Emirates, China, Jakarta, Frankfurt, Paris, Romanian, Turkey’s Borsa Istanbul, Europe, New York, London

A bitcoin is seen in an illustration picture taken at La Maison du Bitcoin in Paris, France, June 23, 2017. It's a bit old hat, say a cohort of crypto investors who are betting on blockchain technology breathing new life into traditional assets. Others like Franklin Templeton, UBS Asset Management and ABN Amro (ABNd.AS) have launched tokenized versions of assets such as money market funds and green bonds. Indeed, the actual issuance and value of tokenized traditional assets remains small. Some market players now see significant advances.

Persons: Benoit Tessier, Franklin Templeton, Colin Butler, tokenization, hasn't, Morgan Krupetsky, Doug Schwenk, Lisa Mattackal, Medha Singh, Tom Wilson, Pravin Organizations: La Maison du, REUTERS, London Stock Exchange, Mirae, Securities, UBS Asset Management, ABN Amro, Polygon Labs, Reuters Graphics, Northern Trust, HSBC, Ava Labs, Digital Asset Research, Thomson, Reuters Locations: La, Paris, France, U.S, blockchain, Bengaluru

☆ Meet the average CEO of the top UK companies: He's white, rich, and probably named Andrew
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( Kai Xiang Teo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The average CEO of a top UK company is white, rich, and probably named Andrew. That's according to an analysis by People Managing People of the CEOs of the top 100 companies on the LSE. AdvertisementAdvertisementThe average CEO of a top UK company is probably named Andrew, according to an analysis of the CEOs of the FTSE100 companies published by human resources publication People Managing People on Tuesday. People named Andrew don't just make up a large slice of these top executives, however — twelve FTSE100 CEOs were named Andrew or Simon, outnumbering the total 11 female CEOs as of September, per the report. The report also found that the average CEO of a FTSE100 company makes over 127 times the median UK salary in 2022 — which was £33,000.

Persons: Andrew, That's, —, Andrew don't, Simon, Finn Bartram Organizations: People Managing, LSE, Service, London Stock Exchange, University of Cambridge, BBC, Fortune, Pew Research, Economic Policy Institute Locations: —

☆ The average CEO of a top UK company is white, rich, and probably named Andrew: report
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( Kai Xiang Teo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The average CEO of a top UK company is white, rich, and probably named Andrew. AdvertisementAdvertisementThe average CEO of a top UK company is probably named Andrew, according to an analysis of the CEOs of the FTSE100 companies published by human resources publication People Managing People on Tuesday. People named Andrew don't just make up a large slice of these top executives, however — twelve FTSE100 CEOs were named Andrew or Simon, outnumbering the total 11 female CEOs as of September, per the report. The report also found that the average CEO of a FTSE100 company makes over 127 times the median UK salary in 2022 — which was £33,000. AdvertisementAdvertisementThis isn't the first time someone has tried to put together a composite image of an average CEO of the top companies in the country.

OneWeb, the British satellite giant, completed its combination with French rival Eutelsat Thursday, setting the stage for a European challenger to Elon Musk's space internet venture Starlink. It comes as competition is heating up between different players in the multibillion-dollar space industry. Likewise, OneWeb also targets enterprise customers, but offers a different service capability thanks to its LEO network – similar to SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet. Eutelsat will remain headquartered in Paris, and OneWeb will continue operating in London with its name changed to Eutelsat OneWeb. Commercial deals are gaining traction in the space industry, with Musk's Starlink service working alongside businesses including Spain's Telefonica and French firms Marlink and Speedcast.

Persons: Elon, Morgan Stanley, OneWeb, Starlink, Eutelsat, Eva Berneke, Neil Masterson, Masterson, Musk's Organizations: Telecom Italia, Deutsche Telekom, Euronext Paris Stock, London Stock Exchange, Eutelsat, CNBC, Spain's Telefonica, SpaceX, SES Locations: British, Orange, Paris, London

☆ Britain grapples for agreement over listing rules overhaul
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( Huw Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Signage for the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Britain's financial regulatory body, is seen at its head office in London, Britain, March 10, 2022. The decision by UK chip designer Arm Holdings to list in the United States triggered calls in Britain to make London more attractive as a listings destination by easing the rules. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has proposed combining its "premium" and "standard" listing categories, and ease other listing requirements such a requirement for a detailed financial track record, prompting sharp criticism from shareholder groups. The new rules would be confirmed before the end of this year, which the FCA would seek to implement speedily, Pritchard said. Julia Hoggett, CEO of London Stock Exchange, said London was already an attractive listings venue, and "narratives" that keep it down needed challenging.

Persons: Toby Melville, Sarah Pritchard, Pritchard, Julia Hoggett, Hoggett, Huw Jones, Alex Richardson Organizations: Financial, Authority, REUTERS, Arm Holdings, Financial Conduct Authority, London Stock Exchange, Thomson Locations: London, Britain, New York, United, United States

☆ LSEG's Refinitiv Eikon platform suffers outage in Europe
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Sept 25 (Reuters) - Users of London Stock Exchange's (LSEG.L) Refinitiv news and data platform Eikon said on Monday they experienced brief outages across some countries in Europe. LSEG said it was working to resolve the issue. We are working diligently to identify the problem and resolve it as soon as possible," a Refinitiv customer support executive said in an email. As of 1119 GMT live prices appeared to be updating and some Eikon users also said the service had resumed. Reporting by Danilo Masoni; Editing by Amanda Cooper and Susan FentonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: LSEG, Danilo Masoni, Amanda Cooper, Susan Fenton Organizations: London Stock, Thomson Reuters, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Europe, LSEG

☆ UK stocks open lower after Fed's hawkish stance; BoE on watch
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The London Stock Exchange Group offices are seen in the City of London, Britain, December 29, 2017. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index (.FTSE) was down 0.5% by 0710 GMT, while mid-cap stocks (.FTMC) dipped 0.4%. The Fed held its interest rates steady on Wednesday, but stiffened a hawkish monetary policy stance that its officials increasingly believe can succeed in combating inflation. Asian stocks tracked the lacklustre mood in U.S. peers on Wednesday after the Fed revised its economic projections. JD Sports Fashion (JD.L) climbed nearly 6% to the top of FTSE 100 after the sportswear retailer forecast a higher annual profit.

Persons: Toby Melville, BoE, Siddarth, Sherry Jacob, Phillips Organizations: London Stock Exchange Group, City of, REUTERS, Treasury, Federal Reserve, Bank of, Fed, Bank of England, Thomson Locations: City, City of London, Britain, London, Bengaluru

☆ The IPO market has been frozen for 2 years. Arm and Instacart point to a thaw coming in 2024.
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-20 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Before Tuesday, the grocery brand secured a $10.2 billion valuation fully diluted, far below the $39 billion valuation it earned during the pandemic. Experts explained what Instacart and Softbank-backed Arm's debuts means for the broader IPO market, which has been ice-cold for 2 years. AdvertisementAdvertisementExperts say venture capital firms, stock market investors, and any private company mulling an IPO will be closely monitoring the how newly-public names trade over the coming months. "But I do think the public market getting behind companies [like Arm and Instacart] is a signal the market is opening up." "The IPO market is open but it's not indiscriminate," Coben told Insider on Tuesday.

Persons: Munafo, Craig Coben, Coben, Rachel Gerring, Gerring, Instacart, it's, Jerome Powell's Organizations: Service, Arm, Federal Reserve, Fund, London Stock Exchange, Bank of America Locations: Wall, Silicon, Americas

☆ London stocks open higher on surprise CPI data
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The London Stock Exchange Group offices are seen in the City of London, Britain, December 29, 2017. The exporter-heavy FTSE 100 (.FTSE) rose 0.6% by 0705 GMT, while the sterling weakened 0.4% against the U.S. dollar, hitting its lowest levels since May. Britain's annual consumer price inflation (CPI) unexpectedly fell to 6.7% last month from 6.8% in July, data showed, while economists polled by Reuters had forecast CPI would rise to 7.0%. M&G (MNG.L) gained 3.3% after the insurer posted a better- than-expected 31% rise in its first-half operating profit. Mid-cap stocks (.FTMC) soared 1.4%, boosted by a 3.8% rise in Dunelm Group Plc (DNLM.L) after the homeware retailer said it expected higher sales volumes to drive earnings in 2024.

Persons: Toby Melville, BoE, Siddarth, Rashmi Organizations: London Stock Exchange Group, City of, REUTERS, Bank of England, U.S ., Reuters, Dunelm, Thomson Locations: City, City of London, Britain, Bengaluru

☆ FTSE 100 slips at open ahead of Fed, BoE monetary policy decisions
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The London Stock Exchange Group offices are seen in the City of London, Britain, December 29, 2017. REUTERS/Toby Melville/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSummaryCompanies FTSE 100 down 0.1%, FTSE 250 off 0.2%Sept 18 (Reuters) - UK's FTSE 100 slipped at open on Monday as investors await interest rate decisions from the U.S. Federal Reserve and the Bank of England (BoE), while Britain's main manufacturing trade body cut its forecast for the sector's growth for this year. The exporter-heavy FTSE 100 (.FTSE) slipped 0.1% by 0712 GMT, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 (.FTMC) was down 0.2%. Britain's main manufacturing trade body cut its forecast for the sector's growth for this year and next, citing a sharp fall in factory output and economic uncertainty. Reporting by Siddarth S in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'SouzaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Toby Melville, BoE, Siddarth, Savio D'Souza Organizations: London Stock Exchange Group, City of, REUTERS, U.S . Federal Reserve, Bank of England, Phoenix Group, Mondi, Sezar, Thomson Locations: City, City of London, Britain, Russia, Moscow, Bengaluru

☆ FTSE 100 climbs nearly 1% as China data boosts miners
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Signage for the London Stock Exchange Group is seen outside of offices in Canary Wharf in London, Britain, August 3, 2023. REUTERS/Toby Melville/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSummary FTSE 100 climbs 0.9%, FTSE 250 adds 0.3%Sept 15 (Reuters) - UK's FTSE 100 extended gains on Friday, driven by miners following better-than-expected economic data from China, while the prospects of global central banks nearing the end of their monetary tightening cycle further boosted risk sentiment. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index (.FTSE) climbed 0.9% by 0705 GMT, after it hit a six-week high in the previous session. Tracking metal prices higher, miners (.FTNMX551020) gained 0.9% after the data from top consumer, China, was published. Reporting by Siddarth S in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-PhillipsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Toby Melville, Siddarth, Sherry Jacob, Phillips Organizations: London Stock Exchange, REUTERS, Investors, U.S . Federal Reserve, Bank of, European Central Bank, Thomson Locations: Canary Wharf, London, Britain, China, Bank of England, Bengaluru

☆ FTSE 100 inches higher on Fed pause bets; ECB decision on watch
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Signage for the London Stock Exchange Group is seen outside of offices in Canary Wharf in London, Britain, August 3, 2023. REUTERS/Toby Melville/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSummaryCompanies FTSE 100 up 0.3%, FTSE 250 flatSept 14 (Reuters) - UK's FTSE 100 opened higher on Thursday after U.S. inflation data bolstered bets that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates steady next week, while Melrose and Unite Group fell in ex-dividend trading. The exporter-heavy FTSE 100 index (.FTSE) edged up 0.3% in early trade, while the domestically focussed FTSE 250 index (.FTMC) was flat. Shares of real estate firm Unite Group (UTG.L), product testing company Intertek Group (ITRK.L) and aerospace supplier Melrose (MRON.L) declined between 0.5% and 1.5% as they traded ex-dividend. Reporting by Siddarth S in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu SahuOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Toby Melville, Siddarth, Subhranshu Sahu Organizations: London Stock Exchange, REUTERS, Federal Reserve, Melrose, Unite Group, European Central Bank, Unite, Intertek, Thomson Locations: Canary Wharf, London, Britain, Bengaluru

☆ EU states consider easing post-Brexit derivatives clearing plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( Huw Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

But the Spanish EU presidency wants to water this down. Under the draft law, EU securities watchdog ESMA would determine minimum clearing thresholds. The European Parliament is also finalising its own position, before it meets with EU states to thrash out a final text. EU clearing customers "shall clear at least proportions" of euro derivatives in an active account, the compromises say, specifying no minimum clearing figure from the outset. If not enough clearing is being done in the EU within 18 months, ESMA should specify the proportion of clearing that each customer must undertake through their EU accounts, the compromises say.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Lawmakers, Huw Jones, Alexander Smith Organizations: REUTERS, European Commission, European Union, EU, London Stock Exchange, Deutsche Boerse's Eurex, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Britain, London, Frankfurt, Spanish, EU

☆ SoftBank's Arm set to debut on Nasdaq after biggest IPO since 2021
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A smartphone with a displayed Arm Ltd logo is placed on a computer motherboard in this illustration taken March 6, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSept 14 (Reuters) - SoftBank's chip designer Arm Holdings (ARM.O) is set to debut on the Nasdaq on Thursday, in what is expected to be the biggest test for the U.S. IPO market after a listing drought that lasted for nearly 16 months. Hopes of a revival in the IPO market largely depend on the success of the high-profile listings of Arm and other marquee startups, including grocery delivery firm Instacart and marketing firm Klaviyo. Arm also told investors its royalty fees, which account for most of its revenue, were accumulating since it started collecting them in the early 1990s. Royalty revenue came in at $1.68 billion at the latest fiscal year, up from $1.56 billion a year ago.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, iPhones, it's, Susannah Streeter, Hargreaves Lansdown, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Manya Saini, Niket, Arun Koyyur Organizations: REUTERS, Arm Holdings, Nasdaq, U.S, Apple, Intel, London Stock Exchange, SoftBank, Android, Nvidia, Devices, Broadcom, Qualcomm, Micron Technology, Barclays, JPMorgan, Mizuho Financial Group, Thomson Locations: Samsung's, China, New York, Bengaluru

LONDON (AP) — Global energy giant BP, one of Britain’s biggest and most recognizable companies, is scurrying to find a new chief executive after CEO Bernard Looney became the latest corporate leader to step down amid questions about his personal conduct. BP conducted an internal review last year after receiving allegations about personal relationships between Looney and other company employees. “The company has strong values and the board expects everyone at the company to behave in accordance with those values,” BP said. Looney had spent his entire career at BP after joining the company as an engineer in 1991. Soon after becoming CEO, Looney set a goal of achieving net zero emissions by 2050 — in line with goals then adopted by the U.K. government.

Persons: Bernard Looney, Looney, Murray Auchincloss, ”, “, Bob Dudley, Harvey Weinstein, Jess Staley, Jeffrey Epstein, Jeff Shell Organizations: —, BP, London Stock Exchange, Greenpeace, Barclays, . Locations: Ukraine

☆ Analysis: Investors call 'peak pessimism' for beaten-up UK stocks
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-13 | by ( Naomi Rovnick | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

"It feels like we've passed the peak of pessimism about the UK," said Daniel Lockyer, senior fund manager at 7 billion-pound investment and advice group Hawksmoor Investment Management, which increased its exposure to UK companies in August. Consumer stocks are outperforming as investors bet on the UK cost of living crisis becoming less intense. Reuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsLeigh Himsworth, UK fund manager at Fidelity International, said he was "trying to pick off UK retailers we can buy", while it was also "time to pick up some of the (UK) real estate sector." But while noting good economic reasons to call an upturn for UK stocks, fund managers also stressed the need for further steps from policymakers to revive interest in British equities. Premier Miton is lobbying policymakers to introduce a new tax-efficient investment vehicle for UK stocks.

Persons: Toby Melville, we've, Daniel Lockyer, Morningstar, Martin Walker, Walker, Samuel Tombs, Reuters Graphics Reuters Graphics Leigh Himsworth, Spencer, Neil Birrell, Premier Miton, Miton, Savvas Savouri, Naomi Rovnick, Dhara Ranasinghe, Sharon Singleton Organizations: London Stock Exchange, REUTERS, Inflation, LONDON, Apple, FTSE, Investment Management, Global, Reuters, Bank of England, Reuters Graphics Reuters Graphics, Fidelity International, Premier, Fidelity, Thomson Locations: Canary Wharf, London, Britain, U.S, COVID, outflows

☆ Packaging giant Smurfit Kappa's shares fall 11% after WestRock merger announcement
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Shares of Dublin-based packaging group Smurfit Kappa plunged 11% at Tuesday's market open in London after it announced it would combine with U.S. peer WestRock to create an industry juggernaut. The companies will form Smurfit WestRock — set to be one of the largest packaging companies in the world — run through a holding company incorporated and domiciled in Ireland. It will seek a New York listing with a standard listing on the London Stock Exchange. WestRock shareholders will receive one Smurfit WestRock share and $5 cash, equivalent to $43.51 per share. "We identified [Westrock] as an asset that we can develop with and combine with to be an even better asset.

Persons: Kappa, We've, Tony Smurfit, CNBC's Organizations: U.S, London Stock Exchange Locations: Dublin, London, Ireland, York, United States, . London

WestRock stockholders will get one share in the new company, called Smurfit WestRock, and $5 in cash for each share they hold, which works out to $43.51 per share, the companies said in a statement. Smurfit Kappa shareholders will receive one new Smurfit WestRock share for each share they hold. That could make the deal more than 20% accretive to Smurfit Kappa's earnings per share, the statement added. Smurfit WestRock will be domiciled in low tax Ireland with its global headquarters in Dublin. Smurfit Kappa will de-list from Euronext Dublin, the latest blow for the Irish bourse as building materials giant CRH prepares to leave later this month.

Persons: WestRock, JP Morgan, Jefferies, Tony Smurfit, Ken Bowles, Irial Finan, Smurfit, Yadarisa, Padraic Halpin, Louise Heavens, Jason Neely Organizations: Kappa, Europe's, JP, Smurfit, Smurfit Kappa, London Stock Exchange, Irish bourse, Thomson Locations: DUBLIN, COVID, South, Central, North America, Europe, Ireland, Dublin, New York, Bengaluru

☆ These 10 China-focused ETFs are up this year — and one is expected to rise by another 40%
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Chinese stock markets have failed to perform in 2023. All three major indexes have lost money for investors over the past week, month, three months, six months, and year. As a result, shorting the Chinese currency has been one of the most profitable investments this year, according to analysis by CNBC Pro of FactSet's ETF performance data. CNBC Pro screened for global China-focused ETFs that have posted positive returns this year to date. A weighted average analysts' price target for companies in the ETF points toward a further 22.4% upside over the next 12 months, according to FactSet data.

Persons: Thierry Wizman, Goldman Sachs, Brent Organizations: Shenzhen Component, Shanghai, Index, U.S, CNBC Pro, Singapore ., London Stock Exchange, U.S ., Macquarie, People's Bank of, China Energy, New York Stock Exchange, bbl, Goldman, Dragon, China Communication Services Locations: Shenzhen, China, New York, London, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Singapore, People's Bank of China, Macquarie, Dragon China, U.S

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