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☆ Insurer AIA's new business value rises marginally in third quarter
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Oct 31 (Reuters) - Asia-focussed insurer AIA Group Ltd (1299.HK) reported a 1% rise in quarterly new business value on Tuesday as sales recovered from pandemic lows in its main markets of China and Hong Kong. The insurer's value of new business, or VONB, rose to $741 million in the third quarter from $735 million a year earlier. VONB measures expected profits from new premiums and is a key gauge for future growth. Reporting by Harshita Swaminathan and Selena Li; Editing by Devika SyamnathOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

HONG KONG, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Hong Kong aims to restore its reputation as a global financial hub by playing host to a bevy of top Wall Street executives this week, defying critics who say a talent crunch and geopolitical tension will hobble its ambition. Alongside the main theme of "navigating through uncertainty", the summit is widely expected to focus on whether Hong Kong can remain a global financial centre after almost three years of border controls and pandemic restrictions. COVID-19 CONTROLSThe two-day summit, organised by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) - the de-facto central bank - has suffered at least two marquee participants dropping out after contracting COVID-19. Those who make it will look for reassurances of the city returning to pre-pandemic normalcy, making it easier for them to move talent to Hong Kong. Reporting by Scott Murdoch in Sydney and Kane Wu and Selena Li in Hong Kong; Editing by Sumeet Chatterjee and Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Goldman Sachs launches Chinese infrastructure real estate joint venture
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Selena Li | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

HONG KONG, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs (GS.N) has launched a joint venture in China with local logistics company Sunjade in a bid to boost investment in Chinese logistics and infrastructure real estate assets, the U.S. bank said on Monday. The bank is forming the new unit via its investment arm Goldman Sachs Asset Management, which has invested more than $50 billion globally in real estate businesses, according to a company statement. It did not disclose the shareholding structure or capital commitment to the platform. The joint venture, which focuses on projects located in China's first-tier cities and surrounding areas, has invested in a 240,000-square-meter project with four institutional-grade warehouse assets located in Shanghai and its neighbouring area. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Selena Li; Editing by Kirsten DonovanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Mubadala, KKR to invest about $1 bln in Asia
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Oct 24 (Reuters) - KKR & Co (KKR.N) and Abu Dhabi state fund Mubadala Investment Co (MUDEV.UL) said they had entered into an agreement to invest about $1 billion in Asia. The agreement, announced on Sunday, will see the two firms investing across performing private credit opportunities in the Asia Pacific region. Mubadala, which manages $243 billion in assets, said in a joint statement it would deploy its capital alongside KKR’s existing pools of capital, including capital from the KKR Asia Credit Opportunities Fund, a $1.1 billion credit investment vehicle KKR closed in May. In APAC, KKR has deployed nearly $3 billion in credit capital since 2019. The credit business in the region is part of KKR’s about $178 billion global credit platform.

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

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

Marcus, Goldman's consumer banking business, will be absorbed into the wealth unit, the sources said, confirming an earlier Wall Street Journal report. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterThis is the biggest shakeup since the company's investor day in early 2020 when it outlined plans for four core units: investment banking, global markets, consumer and wealth management and asset management. The reorganization comes as the Wall Street titan seeks to boost its income from fee-based businesses and cut its reliance on volatile trading and investment banking revenues. The changes also signal Marcus, the consumer unit, is being relegated after Chief Executive Officer David Solomon expressed big ambitions to build a mainstream digital bank. But the consumer banking unit that launched in 2016 has struggled to gain traction and suffered from delays.

☆ Goldman plans major overhaul to combine key units -source
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Oct 16 (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs (GS.N) is planning a major reorganization to combine its biggest businesses into three divisions with its storied investment banking and trading businesses being merged into a single unit, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters. It would mean CEO David Solomon's ambition to build a mass-market digital bank via consumer banking unit Marcus will take a backseat. The combined investment banking and trading group will be overseen by Dan Dees and Jim Esposito, who are currently global co-heads of Goldman's investment banking, and Ashok Varadhan, now co-head of its global markets division, according to a report from Bloomberg. Goldman reported a 48% slump in second-quarter profit, which beat forecasts due to gains in fixed-income and commodities trading. But the consumer banking unit, launched in 2016, is still struggling to gain traction, and will be brought into asset and wealth management.

☆ Goldman plans major overhaul, to combine investment banking and trading -WSJ
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Oct 16 (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs (GS.N) is planning a major reorganization as part of which its storied investment banking and trading businesses will be combined, while consumer banking will be absorbed by its wealth unit, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday. The move comes as the Wall Street titan has sought to cut its reliance on volatile trading and investment banking revenues by boosting its fee-based businesses. It would mean CEO David Solomon's ambition to build a mass-market digital bank via consumer banking unit Marcus will take a backseat. Goldman will combine the investment banking and trading businesses into one unit, while merging asset and wealth management into another, the report said. But the consumer banking unit, launched in 2016, is still struggling to gain traction, and will be brought into asset and wealth management.

☆ Singapore's services sector will have to do the 'heavy lifting' from here, says OCBC Bank
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | 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 EmailSingapore's services sector will have to do the 'heavy lifting' from here, says OCBC BankSelena Ling of the bank says Singapore's services sector has "a bit of wind under our wings."

☆ Singapore central bank tightens policy, Q3 GDP tops forecast
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), at a scheduled policy meeting, said it will re-centre the mid-point of the exchange rate policy band known as the Nominal Effective Exchange Rate, or S$NEER. The Singapore dollar was up about 0.3% to S$1.1429 per U.S. dollar after the policy decision. The MAS manages monetary policy through exchange rate settings, rather than interest rates, as trade flows dwarf its economy. The core inflation rate — the central bank's favoured price measure - rose to 5.1% in August on a year-on-year basis. "Q3 GDP obviously benefitted from domestic and border restrictions being eased," said Song Seng Wun, an economist at CIMB Private Banking.

☆ World stocks head back towards 2-year lows as mood sours
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-11 | by ( Dhara Ranasinghe | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

There was a modest respite for Britain's battered bond market after the Bank of England said it would start purchasing inflation-linked debt. And MSCI's world stock index was down 0.5% -- moving back towards roughly two-year lows hit last week (.MIWD00000PUS). Emerging market stocks hit their lowest level since April 2020 and are on track for a near-30% tumble year-to-date, its worst year since the 2008 global financial crisis. GILT RESPITEBritish government bond or gilt yields edged lower, having soared on Monday, following the BoE's latest efforts to shore up the battered bond market. The Aussie dollar fell to a 2-1/2-year low of around $0.6248 and the kiwi dollar hit a low of $0.5536.

☆ War and prospect of rate hikes hoist dollar, gilt wipeout hits Treasuries
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-11 | by ( Selena Li | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"Sentiment has also not been helped by a big core global bond sell off led by UK gilts, notwithstanding a flurry of announcements designed to calm UK debt markets," he added. Treasury yields jumped when trading resumed after Monday's U.S. holiday, with 30-year yields up 11 basis points to an almost nine-year high of 3.956%. That outlook is giving dollar bulls another run and has the greenback drifting toward the milestone highs it scaled last month. The Aussie made a 2-1/2 year low of $0.6260 in the Asia session and the kiwi a low of $0.5541. The Japanese yen , at 145.75 per dollar, was within a few pips of the level that prompted official support a couple of weeks ago.

☆ Credit Suisse names Wang as China securities venture CEO - memo
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

HONG KONG, Sept 29 (Reuters) - Credit Suisse Group AG (CSGN.S) has named veteran banker Jing Wang as chief executive officer of its Chinese securities joint venture effective immediately, according to an internal memo reviewed by Reuters on Thursday. Wang recently worked as the bank's head of China onshore wealth management. A Credit Suisse spokesperson confirmed the contents of the memo. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Selena Li; Editing by Sumeet Chatterjee and Muralikumar AnantharamanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Index investors tend to favour international settlement platforms such as Euroclear but India has said it wants to settle bonds onshore, like China. GLOBAL AMBITIONIndia has sought to be included in global bond indexes since 2013, but that ambition has been held up by a number of factors over the years, and JP Morgan only began considering India's inclusion in its global bond index in 2021. If successful, India would be the last major emerging market to be added to the JP Morgan index. Its inclusion could result in additional flows of as much as $30 billion within 10 months into the Indian government bond market, Morgan Stanley estimated earlier this month. Most of JPMorgan's index investors are in favour of including India in the index, but think issues such as investor verification and settlement rules need to be ironed out first, three of the sources said.

read moreAbout 10 officials from the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) and the Ministry of Finance (MOF) have arrived in Hong Kong and joined the audit inspection, which started on Monday, three of the people said. State-owned China Southern Airlines and data centre company GDS Holdings are among the U.S.-listed Chinese companies for audit inspection in the Asian financial hub, two separate sources said. Reuters reported last month that U.S. regulators had picked a number of U.S.-listed Chinese companies including e-commerce majors Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (9988.HK) and JD.com Inc (9618.HK) for audit inspection. It was not clear whether the Chinese officials would be present for every step of the inspection process with PCAOB representatives. The onsite inspections by the PCAOB are being conducted in the Hong Kong offices of the selected Chinese companies' audit firms, said two of the sources.

read moreAbout 10 officials from the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) and the Ministry of Finance (MOF) have arrived in Hong Kong and joined the audit inspection, which started on Monday, three of the people said. However, in a speech on Thursday, PCAOB chair Erica Williams said agency officials had arrived in Hong Kong to begin the inspections. As with all inspections, they will look at factors, including the audits of the selected companies and the overall quality control systems of the audit companies. State-owned China Southern Airlines and data centre company GDS Holdings are among the U.S.-listed Chinese companies for audit inspection in the Asian financial hub, two separate sources said. The onsite inspections by the PCAOB are being conducted in the Hong Kong offices of the selected Chinese companies' audit firms, said two of the sources.

☆ HSBC to raise best lending rate to 5.125% after HK rate hike
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterPedestrians wearing face masks following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, walk past a HSBC bank branch in Hong Kong, China February 22, 2022. REUTERS/Lam YikHONG KONG, Sept 22 (Reuters) - HSBC Holdings (0005.HK), said on Thursday it raised its best lending rate in Hong Kong by 12.5 basis points to 5.125% effective Sept. 23 after the city's central bank raised the base rate charged through its overnight discount window by 75 basis points. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority earlier on Thursday raised the base rate charged through its overnight discount to 3.50% from 2.75%. read moreHong Kong tracks U.S. interest rate moves because its currency is pegged to the U.S. dollar, although local banks have some leeway to lag U.S. moves when setting prime rates. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Donny Kwok and Selena Li; Editing by Christian SchmollingerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Hong Kong central bank raises interest rate after Fed hike
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterHONG KONG, Sept 22 (Reuters) - The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) on Thursday raised its base rate charged through the overnight discount window by 75 basis points to 3.5%, hours after the U.S. Federal Reserve delivered a rate hike of the same margin. Hong Kong's monetary policy moves in lock-step with the United States as the city's currency is pegged to the greenback in a tight range of 7.75-7.85 per dollar. The Fed delivered its third straight rate increase of 75 basis points on Wednesday and signalled borrowing costs would keep rising, underscoring the U.S. central bank's resolve not to let up in its battle to contain inflation. read moreRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Donny Kwok and Selena Li; Editing by Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Himani SarkarOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Does FedEx's bleak outlook flash a warning signal for investors? Here's what the pros say
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( Zavier Ong | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

FedEx 's bleak preliminary earnings and outlook sent shockwaves through the market and stocks lower during last Friday's trade. And the World Trade Organization similarly painted a grim picture, with an August report pointing to "stagnating global trade growth." It's one of those tea leaves you can take when you look at the global economy. Investors are not entirely sure which way the global economy, inflation and growth are going. "Investors are not entirely sure which way the global economy, inflation and growth are going.

☆ Chinese millionaires to double by 2026, Credit Suisse says, despite slowing economy
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-20 | by ( Selena Li | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Arnd WiegmannHONG KONG, Sept 20 (Reuters) - The number of Chinese millionaires is expected to double by 2026, according to a report by Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) issued on Tuesday, despite Beijing's national drive to ease wealth inequality and a sharply slowing economy. Total household wealth in China reached $85.1 trillion in 2021, up 15.1% or $11.2 trillion from 2020. That number in China is expected to double to 12.2 million in five years time, the report said. The bullish China wealth growth outlook comes even as the world's second-largest economy narrowly avoided contracting in the second quarter as widespread COVID-19 lockdowns and the slumping property sector hit consumer and business confidence. However, the Swiss private bank remains upbeat about five-year growth outlook, with global household wealth expected to increase by $169 trillion by 2026.

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