April, 2016

• 4 April

  Qatari Diar realty adds London Olympic homes to US$2bn venture

  

  Bloomberg Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Co. is joining U.K. developer Delancey Real Estate Asset Management Ltd. and Dutch pension fund APG Asset Management NV to create a $2 billion home-rental business in London, with properties in the former Olympic athletes’ village and the Elephant & Castle district. The venture, which is subject to regulatory approval, will manage 4,000 homes, ...

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• 4 April

  Starwood CEO sees hotel M&A accelerating after Marriott deal

  

  Bloomberg The battle for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. may be over, but the company’s chief executive officer says it’s just the beginning for lodging-industry mergers. “Clearly the Marriott-Starwood transaction has created a lot of chatter about further consolidation,” Starwood CEO Tom Mangas said on a conference call with analysts in which he and Marriott International Inc. CEO Arne ...

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• 4 April

  UK house prices rise as investors rush to beat tax

  Bloomberg U.K. house prices increased for a ninth month in March as rental investors rushed to purchase property before a tax increase, Nationwide Building Society said. The average price of a home rose 0.8 percent from February to 200,251 pounds ($287,280), the lender said in a statement on Monday. The annual rate of growth surged to 5.7 percent, the strongest ...

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• 4 April

  Manhattan apartment prices top $2mn while condo glut looms

  

  Bloomberg The average price of a Manhattan apartment topped $2 million for the first time, reflecting the closing of deals from a high-end buying frenzy that’s now showing signs of a slowdown. Buyers in the first quarter took ownership of condominiums in some of New York’s most-expensive developments after signing contracts as far back as three years ago, when construction ...

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• 4 April

  Wages are imperfect window into health of US labour market

  

  Bloomberg The true strength of the American labour market may be disguised. Wage growth — described as slow and unconvincing by Federal Reserve officials plotting their path to higher interest rates — is more robust by some measures than commonly acknowledged due to changes in the composition of the workforce. With unemployment close to the lowest in eight years, accelerating ...

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• 4 April

  Brazilian analysts forecast rate cut for 1st time since Nov

  

  Bloomberg Brazil economists lowered their forecast for the benchmark Selic rate for the first time in four months as the currency appreciated further amid speculation President Dilma Rousseff will be ousted. Economists lowered their Selic forecast to 13.75 percent at year-end 2016, from 14.25 percent previously, and also its current level, according to the weekly Focus survey conducted April 1. ...

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• 4 April

  Blackstone to buy HPE’s stake in Mphasis for $825 million

  

  Bloomberg Hewlett Packard Enterprise will sell its majority stake in IT services firm Mphasis Ltd. for about $825 million to Blackstone Group LP, as the U.S. private equity firm expands in India while the computer maker exits tangential businesses. The investment firm will buy at least 84 percent of HPE’s stake for 430 rupees per share, the U.S. company said ...

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• 4 April

  IMF says LatAm bank retreat raises integration need

  Bloomberg Global banks’ withdrawal from Latin America since the global financial crisis could undermine domestic banking systems just as the region requires substantial funding to ignite economic growth, according to a report from the International Monetary Fund. Brazil’s Banco Bradesco SA in July announced the $5.2 billion purchase of HSBC Holdings Plc’s local retail unit, raising concern in the local ...

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• 4 April

  Ailing e-com site Groupon gets $250mn investment

  AFP Groupon, the daily deals ecommerce operator which has been struggling since a hot public share offering, said it received a $250 million investment from a private investment fund. Groupon said it would use the cash infusion from Atairos to boost share repurchases and to revive growth. “Our partnership with Atairos will help accelerate our transformation while better positioning us ...

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• 4 April

  USA stocks dip as Virgin America surges on takeover

  AFP Wall Street stocks opened modestly lower on Monday as Virgin America surged more than 40 percent on news it agreed to be acquired by Alaska Airlines in a $4 billion deal. Five minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stood at 17.771.20, down 21.55 points (0.12 percent). The broad-based S&P 500 shed 2.76 (0.13 percent) to 2,070.02, while ...

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