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Reuters GraphicsMany U.S. importers are still sanguine, but their supply chains could still be disrupted as Vietnam's apparel makers depend on China for about half of their input materials, according to the country's industry association. XINJIANG LINKSWhile the halted shipments represent a tiny portion of the $27 billion worth of garments and footwear Vietnam exported to the U.S. last year, compliance risks may lead to more painful adjustments for Vietnam. That, in turn, will hit U.S. consumers as Vietnam is their main source of cotton apparel, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. However Nike has significantly reduced its output of apparel and footwear in Vietnam despite the country remaining its main manufacturing hub, according to its latest annual report updated to May 2022. Two officials from U.S. footwear and apparel industry trade associations said the new rules have had no major impact so far on Vietnam and blamed recent job cuts on lower global demand.

☆ SEC Climate Rules Could Decide Whether U.S. Firms Face Tough EU Law
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Paul Kiernan | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Illustration: Preston Jessee/WSJThe European Union plans to require thousands of U.S. companies to disclose extensive details about how their operations affect the climate—unless the Securities and Exchange Commission passes rules that EU officials see as tough enough to take their place. More than 3,000 U.S. companies are expected to have to gather and disclose data on their greenhouse-gas emissions and those of their suppliers and customers under a European Union law passed in 2022. The law says non-EU companies can get out of the new rules only if they face equivalent requirements elsewhere.

[1/4] South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol delivers remarks to the U.S.-Korea Business Council at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 25, 2023. He said the two countries' economies had been facing new challenges and the economic slowdown was unsettling the investment environment. "Competition for technological hegemony, energy issues and climate crises are casting more uncertainties on business activity day by day," Yoon said. "This cooperation should extend beyond semiconductors to future emerging technologies such as AI, Quantum, SMR (Small Modular Reactors) and more," Yoon said. Core technologies from the United States and South Korea's advanced manufacturing capabilities would "create enormous synergies that will benefit both countries," he said.

☆ Retailers to tackle sustainability at key conference
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

They will discuss the challenges facing their businesses as inflation causes consumers in Europe and elsewhere to reduce spending. The European Commission is drawing up new rules on textile waste that will make companies responsible for managing the waste their products create. Decathlon, the world's biggest sporting goods retailer, sells repair services, spare parts and tools for people to repair their own bicycles, tents, and kayaks. Retailers are working with local authorities ahead of an EU law that will require member states to separately collect textile waste by Jan. 1, 2025. Firms including Decathlon, Mango, Inditex, and IKEA recently created an association in Spain for the management of textile waste.

☆ The IRA isn’t good for just U.S. stocks. Here are some emerging markets names that will benefit too
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The Inflation Reduction Act does more than buoy U.S. clean energy stocks – it's also an opportunity for emerging markets firms. But the IRA also represents an opportunity for emerging markets firms. "This is a win, win, win," said Paul Desoisa, co-portfolio manager of the Global Emerging Markets strategy at Martin Currie, a specialist investment manager at Franklin Templeton. Here are some places where emerging markets firms stand to benefit. Some possible contenders include Korea's Hanwha Solutions, a multinational with a solar energy business Hanwha Qcells, abrdn's Khwaja said.

☆ Government watchdogs propose tougher scrutiny of nonbank financial companies
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Washington, DC CNN —In response to last month’s turbulence in the banking industry, financial regulators on Friday proposed a more comprehensive approach in identifying and addressing threats to financial stability, including closer scrutiny of nonbank financial companies. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen announced a new framework proposed by the Financial Stability Oversight Council that outlines the vulnerabilities in the financial system and the tools regulators can use to address those risks. The proposal also reverses guidance issued in 2019 that made it more difficult for nonbank financial companies, such as hedge funds and insurers, to be designated as systemically important institutions. “It is an important preventative tool to address systemic risks that may arise from a nonbank financial firm whose activities or distress could threaten the financial system.”FSOC has the power to designate nonbank financial firms as systemically important institutions if their failures pose a threat to financial stability, which would place those firms under the supervision of the Federal Reserve. Firms would be able to request a hearing if FSOC makes a proposed designation.

☆ Life sciences software startup Benchling lays off 9% of workforce
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 21 (Reuters) - Benchling, which develops software tools for scientists and pharmaceutical research organizations, has laid off 74 employees, or 9% of its workforce, its spokesperson confirmed on Friday. The startup joins a growing number of U.S. firms, including Facebook-parent Meta Platforms Inc (META.O), Amazon.com Inc and several startups, to downsize its workforce amid mounting worries of a recession in the United States. The San Francisco-based company, which filed for an initial public offering in late 2021, was last valued at over $6 billion. Benchling offers cloud-based tools and laboratory automation software that allow researchers to collaborate and track projects. Reporting by Granth Vanaik in Bengaluru and Krystal Hu in New York; Editing by Anil D'SilvaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Yellen calls for 'constructive and fair' US economic ties with China
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Andrea Shalal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, April 20 (Reuters) - The U.S. seeks "constructive and fair" economic ties with China, but will protect its national security interests and push back against China's actions to dominate foreign competitors, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen will say in a speech on Thursday. In excerpts released by Treasury, Yellen laid out the Biden administration's principal objectives for the economic relationship between the world's two largest economies amid ongoing tensions that have thwarted high-level meetings. Yellen said the Biden administration's economic priorities on China included securing U.S. national security interests, fostering "healthy" competition and cooperating, where possible, on global issues such as climate change, debt relief and macroeconomic stability. She said Washington would not compromise on those concerns, even when they forced trade-offs with U.S. economic interests. At the same time, she said the Biden administration was not seeking a "winner-take-all" competition, and believed that healthy economic competition with a fair set of rules could benefit both countries over time.

LONDON, April 20 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Film and TV adaptations of video games have a chequered history. But Nintendo’s “Super Mario”, along with HBO’s “The Last of Us”, is flipping the script. Jefferies analysts estimate that the “Super Mario” movie could add $350 million to Nintendo’s operating profit – equivalent to around 8% of its total for the year ending March 2022. The success of recent adaptations may lead media giants like Walt Disney (DIS.N), Comcast and Netflix to wonder what other goodies lie in video game companies. Follow @olivertaslic on TwitterCONTEXT NEWS“The Super Mario Bros. Movie”, an animated film co-financed by Nintendo and Universal Pictures, was released in North America on April 5.

REUTERS/Dado RuvicLONDON, April 19 (Reuters) - Crypto firms have been left scrambling to find banking partners after the collapse of three crypto-friendly lenders in the U.S. last month, creating a risk their business will become concentrated in smaller financial institutions. Mainstream banks have become increasingly wary of crypto clients following a series of high-profile collapses, including the bankruptcy of major exchange FTX in November last year, and a lack of regulation. "Crypto and Web3 start-ups are telling us they simply cannot get a business bank account," said Marcus Foster, head of crypto policy at Coadec, a body representing UK start-ups. A spokesperson for ING said the bank does not "target or focus actively on crypto firms" so its exposure is "very limited." But for smaller crypto start-ups, securing a banking partner could be more difficult, said Ricardo Mico, the U.S. CEO of Banxa (BNXA.V), a payment and compliance infrastructure provider for crypto.

☆ Upfront's Mark Suster has become the star of LA's booming startup scene. Not everyone is a fan.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Ben Bergman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +29 min

"I have worked with more than 50 VCs and nobody comes close to what it is like to work with Mark Suster," said a founder backed by Suster. "Mark and the Upfront Summit helped put LA tech and investing on the map," said Jeffrey Katzenberg, the cofounder of DreamWorks and WndrCo. Several years ago, a founder whose startup Suster invested in was in a conference room rehearsing their presentation for the Upfront Summit. If you're going to put him on your board, you're letting the fox guard the henhouse. "If you're going to put him on your board, you're letting the fox guard the henhouse."

☆ Raytheon, Lockheed executives banned from China
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

[1/2] Chinese and U.S. flags flutter outside a company building in Shanghai, China April 14, 2021. REUTERS/Aly SongBEIJING, April 18 (Reuters) - China has banned senior executives of Raytheon Missiles & Defense and Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) from entering, working, staying and residing in the country since Feb. 16, the Ministry of Commerce said on Tuesday. Raytheon and Lockheed Martin have been involved in arms sales to Taiwan for a long time, the ministry said. China banned the two U.S. firms from carrying out import and export activities with Chinese enterprises in a bid to prevent Chinese products from being used in their military businesses. Raytheon Missiles & Defense is a unit of Raytheon Technologies Corp (RTX.N).

☆ China protests U.S. sanctioning of firms dealing with Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Beijing on Saturday protested U.S. sanctions against additional Chinese companies over their alleged attempts to evade U.S. export controls on Russia, calling it an illegal move that endangers global supply chains. "The U.S. should immediately correct its wrongdoing and stop its unreasonable suppression of Chinese companies. China will resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies," it added. However, Foreign Minister Qin Gang on Friday said China won't sell weapons to either side in the war, responding to Western concerns that Beijing could provide outright military assistance to Russia. "Regarding the export of military items, China adopts a prudent and responsible attitude," Qin said at a news conference alongside visiting German counterpart Annalena Baerbock.

☆ Hedge fund career guide: What you need to know if you want a job at an elite firm like Citadel, D.E. Shaw, or Point72
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Insider has talked to a number of hedge funds to get a peek into their recruiting strategies. Sign up for our newsletter to get the latest stories in hedge funds, PE, fintech, and banking — delivered daily to your inbox. Shaw, and Bridgewater are in constant competition for the best and brightest to help them gain an edge in the cutthroat investment industry. Internships and fellowshipsThe opaque and secretive world of hedge funds might not necessarily be an obvious choice for many college graduates. Investment training programsTypically, hedge funds acquired their investment talent after a few years of working at an investment bank.

☆ Senator calls for investigation after Reuters facial recognition report
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Lena Masri | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Senator Ron Wyden has called for the Biden administration to carry out an investigation after a Reuters report showed how Russian authorities are using facial recognition to curb dissent with the aid of U.S. technology. Wyden, who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, said that "American technology shouldn’t be a linchpin in Russia’s authoritarian surveillance machine." His comments came in response to Reuters reporting last month that showed that surveillance and facial recognition have played an important role in the arrests of hundreds of protesters in Moscow -- and that after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, authorities began using facial recognition to prevent people from protesting. The facial recognition system in Moscow is powered by algorithms produced by one Belarusian company and three Russian firms. Russian customs records showed the companies' technologies were still arriving in Russia via third parties between April 1, 2022, and Oct. 31 2022.

☆ China reluctantly keeps sanctions powder dry
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Pete Sweeney | Thomson Reuters | Asia Economics Editor Pete Sweeney Joined Reuters Breakingviews In Hong Kong In September Previously He Served As Reuters' Chief Correspondent For China Economy | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Yet most trade measures Xi has taken so far are best seen as defensive tactics to protect market share from aspirant rivals in the West and India. The easiest option is picking on America’s $120-billion-plus of direct investment stock in China. Of course, that is no way for China to revive the decaying quantity and quality of the investment it receives. Chinese officials consistently say they welcome U.S. trade and investment and there is no reason to doubt them. The move comes after the United States implemented multiple restrictions on sales of chipmaking tools and components to China.

☆ U.S. China committee chair says there's broad support to block American asset managers from investing in Chinese A.I. firms
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Lauren Feiner | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Gallagher told CNBC in a phone interview Tuesday that there was "broad support" among the venture capitalists, and others the committee members met with in California, for barring American asset managers from investing in Chinese AI companies. That's good news in his eyes as he described the AI race between the U.S. and China as neck and neck. He added that American tech companies competing with Chinese firms "don't want us to sort of subsidize their losing the AI race." Gallagher said he believes business leaders now understand that "the behavior of the Chinese Communist Party has changed." And I think the way we've conducted our committee so far, it hasn't been a bomb-throwing exercise.

☆ ChatGPT is better at predicting how stocks will react to news headlines than traditional models, new study shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Jacob Zinkula | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Florida researchers asked ChatGPT to analyze the sentiment of news headlines to forecast resulting stock moves. They said their study "demonstrates the value of ChatGPT in predicting stock market returns." They used this sentiment analysis to compute a numerical "ChatGPT score" and analyzed whether these scores were predictive of the company's stock market performance the next day. The researchers found a statistically significant positive correlation between these scores and the next-day stock performance for the companies they analyzed. "In short, our study demonstrates the value of ChatGPT in predicting stock market returns," the researchers wrote.

☆ JPMorgan, H&M join Google, Meta to buy, collectively, more than $1 billion of carbon removal
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Catherine Clifford | In Catclifford | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

"We see Frontier's advanced market commitment as an important demand signal boost for the carbon removal market. Carbon dioxide emissions from energy production topped 36 billion tons last year, according to the International Energy Agency, with total global carbon dioxide emissions projected to have been 40.6 billion tons in 2022, according to the Global Carbon Project. So far, Frontier has spent $5.6 million buying nearly 9,000 tons of contracted carbon removal from 15 carbon dioxide removal startups that are collectively pursuing seven methods. And Living Carbon is a synthetic biology startup working on engineering natural systems to remove carbon dioxide. "However, the science is increasingly clear: Carbon removal is an increasingly necessary tool for limiting warming.

☆ Hyundai Motor Group to invest $18 bln in South Korean EV industry by 2030
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Heekyong Yang | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, April 11 (Reuters) - Hyundai Motor Group said on Tuesday it planned to invest 24 trillion won ($18.14 billion) in South Korea's electric vehicle (EV) industry through 2030, bolstering its presence in a segment that is set to dominate long-term global automotive demand. The investment plan by the group, which includes Hyundai Motor Co (005380.KS), Kia Corp (000270.KS) and Hyundai Mobis Co Ltd (012330.KS), came as President Yoon Suk Yeol attended a groundbreaking ceremony for Kia's first designated electric vehicle plant. It added that the government would expand tax benefits for domestic EV facility investment for a five-fold boost in production capacity by 2030. The South Korean auto group said last year it would invest more than $10 billion in the United States by 2025 to enhance collaboration with U.S. firms in advanced technology. Shares of Kia and Hyundai Motor closed up 4.9% and 3.3%, respectively, on Tuesday versus a rise of 1.4% in the benchmark KOSPI (.KS11) index.

☆ Exclusive: The University of California has invested billions in venture capital firms since 2000 and it has lost hundreds of millions so far. Here's why.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Ben Bergman | Darius Rafieyan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Insider obtained UC Investments' returns through a Public Records Act request. Unlike many other financial institutions, VC funds are not required to show their return on investment in startups. UC Investments, which has been managed by Jagdeep Singh Bachher since 2014, declined to comment. Though selling early produced an initial windfall, UC Investments could have ultimately missed out on substantial gains from these VC funds. By comparison, UC Investments earned a 8.3% return for its investment in public markets.

☆ China March services activity accelerates on new orders - Caixin PMI
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIJING, April 6 (Reuters) - China's services activity in March revved up at the quickest pace in 2-1/2 years on robust new orders and job creation and a consumption-led post-COVID recovery, a private-sector survey showed on Thursday. The upbeat figure echoed an official PMI released last week, which shot to the highest level in more than a decade. Thanks to improvements in customer demand, the rate of new orders was the sharpest since November 2020, the Caixin survey showed. Notably, new export orders in the services sector grew at the fastest pace on record. Caixin/S&P's composite PMI, which includes both manufacturing and services activity, rose to 54.5 in March from 54.2 a month prior, marking the quickest expansion since June.

Firms that concentrate on stocks, however, rode a late month market rally to small gains, according to investors and industry data. Many hedge funds are still compiling March and first quarter numbers, but preliminary reports from research firm Hedge Fund Research showed the average hedge fund was off 1% last month and ended the quarter flat. The macro hedge fund is down nearly 9.5% year-to-date through March, the source added. The Balyasny Atlas Enhanced fund gained 0.8% in March and is up 1% for the year. A Goldman Sachs report, based on returns posted by the bank's prime brokerage's clients, showed fundamental long/short funds gained 1.04% in March.

☆ Stock-Based Pay and Bonuses Fall Under Finance Chiefs’ Cost-Cutting Knife
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Mark Maurer | Jennifer Williams-Alvarez | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Videogame company Unity Software is looking at reducing the number of shares it grants as part of compensation but hasn’t made any decisions yet. Some finance executives are tweaking compensation expenses—including stock-based pay and bonus eligibility—in the latest move among U.S. companies to cut costs from increasingly lean operations as recession concerns grow. Videogame company Unity Software Inc. and business-software firm Salesforce Inc. are among businesses weighing or moving ahead with bringing down stock-based compensation, while companies such as DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse parent Designer Brands Inc. and Facebook owner Meta Platforms Inc. are planning adjustments to worker bonuses. Firms like Google are making other trims to the employee experience by eliminating popular perks like snack bars and choosing software and equipment vendors based on cost.

Repsol says the plant, which transforms used cooking oil into so-called sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), has attracted plenty of customers. But it is concerned Europe's investment environment will complicate the industry's efforts to take off. "Europe needs to step up and throw its weight behind a domestic SAF industry to ensure it does not fall behind." That's a bit under 1% of global aviation fuel demand," said Jonathan Wood, Neste's vice-president of renewable aviation. "America's programme of both federal and state incentives for SAF production is the mark of global leadership on the net-zero transition," IAG told Reuters.

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