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☆ Profits, guidance up at Ireland's PTSB on NatWest loan deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DUBLIN, March 1 (Reuters) - Ireland's permanent tsb (PTSB) (IL0A.I) posted a jump in annual profit on Wednesday reflecting what it has called its "once-in-a-generation" purchase of loans from rival Ulster Bank. It posted a profit before tax of 267 million euros for 2022 versus a loss of 21 million euros a year earlier. Some 222 million euros of that arose primarily from taking on Ulster's mortgage and SME loan books, it said. Analysts at Davy Stockbrokers said the guidance indicated low- to mid-teen percentage upside to its forecasts and that the pace of European Central Bank interest rate rises could result in further upside. NatWest took a 17% share in PTSB as part of the loans deal, diluting the Irish government's holding to 62%.

☆ Asian shares edge higher, dollar rally takes a breather
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Ankur Banerjee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SINGAPORE, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Asian shares nudged higher on Tuesday, tracking small gains on Wall Street, while the U.S. dollar paused after a sharp rally as month-end flows lift sentiment and investors adjust to expectations of more interest rate hikes. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) was 0.25% higher but was set to end the month down about 6%. China shares (.SSEC) was up 0.4% while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index (.HSI) was 1% higher but was on track to end its three month winning streak as the China reopening rally loses steam. China shares have also been weighed down by rising geopolitical tension, with U.S.-China relations the dominant uncertainty at the forefront of investor minds. The dollar index , which measures U.S. currency against six other peers, rose 0.048% and was set to snap a four month losing streak.

☆ Stocks close slightly up after prior week's selloff
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Chuck Mikolajczak | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

All three main stock indexes climbed more than 1% shortly after the opening bell, in part due to an easing in Treasury yields, and all three closed well off their session highs. Stocks steadily gave up gains throughout the session as U.S. Treasury yields moved off the day's lows. Traders work on the trading floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., January 27, 2023. Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.69-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.41-to-1 ratio favored advancers. The S&P 500 posted 4 new 52-week highs and 8 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 71 new highs and 102 new lows.

Amid a confounding mix of economic signals, Wall Street shares edged up on Monday, a sign of potential bargain hunting. U.S. two-year Treasury yields , the most sensitive to shifts in interest-rate expectations, have risen almost 80 bps in that time, while the S&P 500 (.SPX) has lost 6% from Feb. 2's five-month highs. On Monday, the two-year U.S. Treasury yield fell 2 basis points to 4.785%, while 10-year Treasury yields dropped 2.3 basis points to 3.926%. Bruce Kasman, head of economic research at JPMorgan, has added another quarter-point hike to the ECB outlook, taking it to 100 basis points. The dollar has been the main beneficiary of the shift in expectations for Fed rates.

☆ Wall Street bounces modestly after prior week's selloff
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Chuck Mikolajczak | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Each of the three main indexes climbed more than 1% shortly after the opening bell, in part due to an easing in Treasury yields. The yield on two-year Treasury notes , which typically moves in step with interest rate expectations, slipped after touching a near four-month high. Seagen Inc (SGEN.O) surged 9.73% after the Wall Street Journal reported that Pfizer (PFE.N) was in early talks to acquire the biotech firm. Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 2.30-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.66-to-1 ratio favored advancers. The S&P 500 posted four new 52-week highs and five new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 58 new highs and 82 new lows.

A raft of euro zone inflation figures will also shape investor expectations for next month's central bank meeting. On Monday, the two-year U.S. Treasury yield fell 0.6 basis points to 4.799%, while 10-year Treasury yields dropped 2.9 basis points to 3.922%. Bruce Kasman, head of economic research at JPMorgan, has added another quarter-point hike to the ECB outlook, taking it to 100 basis points. The dollar has been the main beneficiary of the shift in expectations for Fed rates. Additional reporting by Wayne Cole in Sydney; Editing by Susan Fenton and Christina FincherOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Dollar advances as traders consider higher-for-longer rates view
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Ankur Banerjee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, jumped 1.8% last month, according to the Commerce Department. The market is now pricing U.S. interest rates to peak at 5.4% in July and remain above 5% through the end of the year. The Fed is expected to raise rates by 25 basis points at its March 21-22 meeting, though some analysts see the possibility of a 50 basis points hike if inflation stays high and growth remains strong. "We now believe it is a much closer call that officials hike by 50 basis points in March than our earlier 25 basis points assumption," said Kevin Cummins, chief economist at NatWest Markets. The Australian dollar rose 0.12% to $0.673, while the kiwi advanced 0.13% versus the greenback to $0.617.

☆ Morning Bid: Long March ahead
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"If it goes down that road it will come at real costs to China," White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told CNN. China said on Monday it sought dialogue and peace for Ukraine despite the U.S. warnings. European stocks and U.S. futures recaptured some ground on Monday but the DXY dollar index briefly hit its highest since Jan. 6. The new U.S. interest rate horizon remains jarring, however. Meanwhile, Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N) on Saturday reported its highest-ever annual operating profit, even as foreign currency losses and rising interest rates contributed to lower earnings in the fourth quarter.

☆ Fed will be more aggressive starting in March with a 50bps hike, says NatWest's Michelle Girard
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | 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 EmailFed will be more aggressive starting in March with a 50bps hike, says NatWest's Michelle GirardMichelle Girard, NatWest Markets, joins 'The Exchange' to discuss her expectation that the Fed will be more hawkish as inflation reports continue to be hot.

The dollar index , which tracks the greenback against six major peers was at 104.48, steady on the day. "The easy part of the short USD trade is over," said Galvin Chia, emerging markets strategist at NatWest Markets. "Until major releases can change the view, the market bias looks like good news is bad news - a resilient U.S. economy is risk-negative." Something that is bad news for risk sentiment, in this case, the likelihood of higher interest rates, would typically boost safe-haven curencies like the dollar. Reporting by Rae Wee and Alun John; Editing by Lincoln Feast and Sharon SingletonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Instead, despite reporting robust profits, banks' shares have broadly stumbled as they forecast margin pressure, suggesting intensifying competition for customers' deposits and mortage business to come. "It may be that we've seen the peak of margin," said William Chalmers, finance chief of Britain's biggest domestic bank Lloyds (LLOY.L) on Wednesday. Lenders say they have started to pass on higher rates to savers, adding that profitability is rebounding after years of low margins. Pressure to immediately increase the rates banks pay savers has been intensified by the digital offerings from U.S. entrants into the market such as JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs, executives at the top British lenders said. In contrast to floating rates, which broadly track the Bank of England benchmark, fixed mortgage rates have started to fall as competition intensifies.

☆ Dollar retreats as investors come to terms with higher-for-longer U.S. rates
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Rae Wee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nearly all Fed policymakers favoured a scale down in the pace of interest rate hikes at the U.S. central bank's last policy meeting, minutes from the Jan. 31-Feb. 1 FOMC meeting showed on Wednesday. However, they also indicated curbing unacceptably high inflation would be the "key factor" in how much further rates need to rise. "Many central banks around the world ... are trying to put an emphasis in their determination to combat inflation expectations," said Christopher Wong, a currency strategist at OCBC. The kiwi continued to draw some support from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand's hawkish rate rise on Wednesday, after the central bank signalled further tightening ahead to tame high inflation. "The easy part of the short USD trade is over," said Galvin Chia, emerging markets strategist at NatWest Markets.

☆ Lloyds full-year profit flat as bad loan charge weighs
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Feb 22 (Reuters) - Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY.L) reported flat annual profit for 2022 on Wednesday, as a jump in income driven by higher interest rates was offset by mounting bad loan provisions. Britain's biggest mortgage lender reported pretax profit of 6.9 billion pounds ($8.4 billion), unchanged on the prior year and in line with analyst forecasts compiled by the bank. The bank announced it would pay a 1.6 pence per share final dividend and a share buyback of up to 2 billion pounds, taking total shareholder returns for 2022 up to 3.6 billion pounds. Lloyds set aside 1.5 billion pounds over the year to cover potential defaults, compared to a 1.4 billion pound release of provisions in 2021 as the economy rebounded from COVID-19 lockdowns. Lloyds' revenue leapt 14% to 18 billion pounds and it raised its medium and long-term outlook for returns.

☆ Amazon delivers a regulatory breather to Big Tech
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission said it won’t challenge Amazon.com’s (AMZN.O) $3.9 billion acquisition of physician network One Medical. As the deal moves forward, deal-hungry technology giants can take a small breather. One Medical’s revenue accounted for just 0.2% of all U.S. healthcare spending in 2021, according to Amazon. And while the FTC’s concerns about Big Tech seemed limitless, its resources aren’t. Letting the One Medical deal move forward frees up staff to focus on ones that pose a clearer threat to consumers.

☆ Fresenius takes tentative step on road to breakup
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

On Tuesday evening the $17 billion German medical technology company said it will relinquish control of its listed dialysis firm, Fresenius Medical Care (FMEG.DE), in order to focus on its core businesses. Fresenius currently controls the dialysis business and can appoint its board despite only owning a 32% stake, thanks to its arcane German legal structure. The news sent Fresenius Medical Care stock up around 12% on Wednesday. His core intravenous drugs and hospital operating divisions should be worth 20 billion euros each, according to the UK bank. That implies a total value for the group including debt of 48 billion euros, far above its current 40 billion euro enterprise value.

Lloyds set aside 1.5 billion pounds in 2022 to cover potential loan distress, a year after releasing 1.4 billion pounds of provisions as the economy rebounded from COVID-19. The bank reported pre-tax profit of 6.9 billion pounds ($8.4 billion) for 2022, unchanged on the previous year and in line with analyst forecasts it had compiled. It plans to pay a 1.6 pence per share final dividend and a share buyback of up to 2 billion pounds, taking total shareholder returns for 2022 up to 3.6 billion pounds. Expenses also rose 6% to 8.8 billion, partly due to rising wage bills as Lloyds boosted its staff bonus pool by 12% to 446 million pounds. Lloyds also said it had bought Tusker, a vehicle leasing company that provides electric vehicles via salary sacrifice schemes, for 300 million pounds.

☆ Car financing fintech Carmoola just raised $125 million in a mix of debt and equity. Check out the 12-slide pitch deck it used to raise the fresh funds.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Car financing fintech Carmoola has raised $125 million in a mix of debt and equity. The London-based startup offers credit for used car purchases and incentivizes EVs. Car financing fintech Carmoola has raised $10.3 million in a Series A round led by QED Investors and a further $115 million in debt. The London-based startup, founded in 2022, employs a buy now, pay later approach to car financing by offering loans for used car purchases in the UK. A frustrating and expensive personal journey led to the former CEO of home rental company MoveBubble, moving into the car financing sector.

The London-headquartered bank (HSBA.L) said on Tuesday it would pay a special dividend of $0.21 per share, from the proceeds of the $10 billion sale of its Canada business. HSBC's conservative outlook echoed that of British rival NatWest (NWG.L), which warned last week that profit earned from rising interest rates may have peaked. HSBC said annual expected credit losses rose to $3.6 billion, more than the $3.2 billion analysts had estimated, due to rising inflation pressuring borrowers and lingering problems in China's property market. That matched the $17.5 billion average estimate of 22 analysts compiled by the bank. Meanwhile, HSBC said it still expects to complete the sale of its Russia business in first-half 2023, taking a $300 million loss.

☆ Credit Suisse finds new genre of loose crisis talk
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Reuters reported on Monday that financial regulator Finma is reviewing remarks the Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) chair made in a punishing period late last year. He said in early December that outflows during October, mainly in wealth management, had “completely flattened out”, “partially reversed” and “basically stopped”. He could argue that the outflows had indeed stabilised when he spoke, but then deteriorated again afterwards. Either way, the usual argument for speaking up is to counteract negative rumours, which in Credit Suisse’s case swirled on social media. Credit Suisse’s 6% share fall after the Reuters report suggests that silence might have been a better guard against both risks.

☆ TikTok stirs up Starbucks workforce solutions
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, Feb 21 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Starbucks (SBUX.O) is embracing the buzz. The coffee chain filed a new patent for a machine to help customize complicated beverages, according to a Business Insider report on Monday. Incoming Chief Executive Laxman Narasimhan faces staffers increasingly eager to unionize just as U.S. labor shortages hover at highs. It is therefore hardly surprising that $123 billion Starbucks wants to streamline drink-making processes. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ Hotels share revival shrugs off two crises
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Feb 21 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Hotel groups are in restoration mode. Chief Executive Keith Barr reckons the year ahead will continue to see strong demand, boosted by China’s re-opening. In 2019, the People’s Republic accounted for around 10% of the hotel market, and its citizens spent over $250 billion on international tourism, according to the World Tourism Organisation. Yet Covid-19 may still hurt spending in the Middle kingdom, and geopolitical tensions may lead to fewer Chinese people travelling. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Despite the overall bonus cuts for staff, Chief Executive Noel Quinn saw his pay package jump 14% to 5.6 million pounds ($6.7 million), from 4.9 million pounds the prior year. Once long-term incentive awards are included, Quinn's total pay could reach 10.5 million pounds, the bank said. The bank's bonus pool for staff was slightly smaller than the $3.5 billion paid last year. HSBC's rival NatWest raised its bonus pool by nearly a quarter to 368 million pounds in earnings last week, and bumped up CEO Alison Rose's pay package to 5.2 million pounds. Barclays meanwhile trimmed its bonus pool slightly, but still paid out 1.8 billion pounds in bonuses.

☆ These high-dividend stocks are expected to rally, with analysts giving one 60% upside
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Weizhen Tan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

High-yielding stocks are back in the spotlight as volatility persists, inflation remains hot and Treasury yields continue to rise. Canadian firm Pembina Pipeline Corporation , as well as EOG Resources, offered high dividend yields at nearly 7% and almost 6% respectively. Both are also expected to have high earnings growth ahead, with forecasts of 146% for Pembina and 62% for EOG. Analysts also give EOG average potential upside of nearly 32%. Hong Kong-listed shipping logistics firm SITC International Holdings also had a notably high dividend yield of 8.5% and nearly 60% potential upside.

☆ HSBC cuts staff bonus pool, lifts CEO Quinn's total pay
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Lawrence White | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Feb 21 (Reuters) - HSBC cut its annual bonus pool by 4% to $3.4 billion in 2022, the bank said on Tuesday, as a global slump in dealmaking led it to trim awards for its bankers. Despite the overall bonus cuts for staff, Chief Executive Noel Quinn saw his pay package jump 14% to 5.6 million pounds ($6.7 million), from 4.9 million pounds the prior year. Once long-term incentive awards are included, Quinn's total pay could reach 10.5 million pounds, the bank said. The bank's bonus pool for staff was slightly smaller than the $3.5 billion paid last year. Rival NatWest raised its bonus pool by nearly a quarter to 368 million pounds in earnings last week, and almost doubled CEO Alison Rose's pay package to 5.2 million pounds.

☆ Shein's ambitions are a bit of a stretch
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Shein’s top-line growth slowed from 57% in 2021 to 45% last year; the company expects that to continue, with its 2025 target implying average annual expansion of 37%. Meanwhile, Shein's projected 13% profit margin dwarfs that of web retailers like China's JD.com (9618.HK). The $118 billion PDD (PDD.O) recently rolled out its Temu shopping service; it is now the most downloaded app in the United States. Using the same 2.4 times forecast 2025 sales multiple the Inditex enterprise trades on, Shein's valuation could top $140 billion. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

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