January, 2020

• 27 January

  Curbs may push Myanmar into China’s orbit

  

  Bloomberg Myanmar signalled that closer ties with China offer an economic buffer if human-rights concerns cause Western nations to curb trade privileges or investment. The persecution of the country’s Rohingya Muslim minority has sparked global condemnation, and led to an International Court of Justice order last week for emergency steps to protect Rohingya from genocide. The controversy imperils Myanmar’s European ...

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• 27 January

  Fujimoris lose support in Peru’s congressional vote

  

  Bloomberg The Peruvian party dominated by the opposition Fujimori family looks set to lose support in congressional elections after years of head-butting with the executive, according to unofficial results. A quick count of voting sheets by Ipsos Peru confirmed exit polls showing the country’s unicameral Congress will be divided between as many as 10 parties, with none having a majority. ...

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• 27 January

  Drugmakers seek ways to halt virus that eludes travel curbs

  

  Bloomberg Drugmakers are racing to find medicines that can curb the spread of the coronavirus as the infection bypasses China’s travel restrictions. Pharmaceutical companies from Gilead Sciences Inc to Moderna Inc are pursuing two main strategies: helping to re-purpose medicines developed against other lethal viruses from Ebola to HIV, and relying on new technologies to develop a vaccine faster than ...

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• 27 January

  Transition bonds can help utilities cut emissions in Japan

  

  Bloomberg Japanese power producers have been emitting more carbon dioxide since a nuclear disaster in 2011 led to an increased reliance on fossil fuels, but a new kind of bond could help them reverse that trend. So-called transition bonds can pay for not-so-green companies to move towards cleaner business models, and Japanese electrical utilities could issue them to help reduce ...

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• 27 January

  SoftBank-led group to invest in AlphaCredit

  

  Bloomberg A group of investors led by SoftBank’s Latin America Fund will invest $125 million in AlphaCredit, the Latin American financial technology platform said. The investment will allow “AlphaCredit to consolidate its place as one of the leading financial technology platforms in Latin America, continue its expansion and leverage the competitive advantages of its proven and profitable business model,” the ...

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• 27 January

  Renault may name CEO ahead of key meet

  

  Bloomberg Renault SA could name a new chief executive officer ahead of a crucial meeting in Japan on Thursday aimed at showing that the deeply-troubled alliance with Nissan Motor Co and Mitsubishi Motors Corp is moving past the Carlos Ghosn era. The French carmaker’s board gave the green light for Luca de Meo to become the new CEO, Le Parisien ...

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• 27 January

  WeWork signs 3-year office space deal with Gympass

  Bloomberg WeWork agreed to provide space in New York to 250 Gympass employees, Reuters reported, citing people familiar with the matter. SoftBank is a minority investor in the gym membership app company and is the majority owner of the US office-sharing company WeWork WeWork and Gympass agreed a three-year deal, according to the sources.

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• 27 January

  Temasek boosts portfolio, will do more on climate change

  

  Bloomberg Temasek Holdings Pte has “significantly” increased the number of companies it’s bought into while boosting the value of its portfolio by about 3%, Temasek International Chief Executive Officer Dilhan Pillay said. The Singapore state investor’s portfolio value as of March 31, 2019 was S$313 billion ($232 billion) — up 1.49% from the year prior. When asked how it has ...

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• 27 January

  Trump loves the ‘swamp’!

  

  The “swamp” just got bigger. You will recall that the swamp was one of candidate Donald Trump’s favourite metaphors in 2016. It disparaged the influence-peddling and lobbying practiced by “special interests” in their quest for government favours and subsidies. Trump pledged to drain the swamp, but in practice he’s doing the opposite — expanding the swamp. The latest and perhaps ...

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• 27 January

  Italy’s Five Star looks close to collapse

  

  The resignation of Luigi Di Maio as leader of Italy’s Five Star Movement is a move that smacks of desperation. The populist party that gatecrashed Italian politics faces crumbling support in the polls and deep internal divisions. It’s hard to see how it can bounce back even with a change at the top. The decision adds to the sense of ...

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