January, 2020

• 21 January

  Private equity’s mountain of dry powder is a danger sign

  

  Investors keep flocking to private equity in Asia even though returns are declining. They should take heed: Payouts are likely to get worse from here, rather than better. The hunt for yield in a low-interest world has spurred institutional investors from China Investment Corp. to Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund to join the rush into the alternative asset class. Private ...

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• 21 January

  Monte Paschi offers the ‘comfort blanket’

  

  The troubled Italian lender Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA took another big step in its long path to redemption last week by selling subordinated debt for the second time in six months. An 8% coupon is expensive for the world’s oldest bank, but it can hardly complain given its years of troubles. Even though the yield is enticing, ...

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• 21 January

  Germany’s second economic miracle is ending

  

  The cognoscenti of international economics are once again agape, and not in a flattering way, at the budget surpluses Germany’s government keeps running, when instead it should be stimulating the economy with tax cuts and higher spending. The surplus revealed this week for 2019, at 13.5 billion euros ($15 billion), is the fifth in a row, and the biggest ever. ...

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• 21 January

  US equity futures slump amid concern for deadly China virus

  

  Bloomberg US equity futures slipped on Tuesday, pointing to declines after the long weekend as investors grapple with worries about a deadly virus in China that sparked earlier declines across Asia and Europe. Treasuries rose. Contracts for all three of the main gauges were firmly in the red after a miserable session in Asia triggered by the outbreak of the ...

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• 21 January

  Hong Kong stocks fall most in months on Moody’s ratings, virus

  

  Bloomberg A deadly virus in China. A rating downgrade from Moody’s Investors Service. Violent clashes over the weekend. Welcome to Hong Kong, where reasons to sell stocks are mounting ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index fell 3.2%, the most since October 2018, while the MSCI Hong Kong Index dropped 2.7%, hitting its 200-day ...

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• 21 January

  A big buyer tells Boeing to rename troubled 737 Max

  

  Bloomberg Boeing Co should rename its 737 Max to help deflect travelers’ safety concerns once the grounded jet returns to the skies, according to plane leasing-industry veteran Steven Udvar-Hazy. The Max brand is damaged following two fatal crashes last year, and there’s no reason for Boeing to retain it, Udvar-Hazy, the founder and chairman of Air Lease Corp, said at ...

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• 21 January

  SAA crisis deepens as flights cancelled

  

  Bloomberg The financial crisis at South African Airways (SAA) deepened on Tuesday with one of the nation’s largest travel agencies announcing that the airline had cancelled several domestic and international flights. “We are in the process of contacting our customers to advise and assist,” Flight Centre Travel Group said on Twitter. It didn’t provide further details. As many as 19 ...

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• 21 January

  First-half loss to shrink: EasyJet

  

  Bloomberg EasyJet Plc, Britain’s largest low-cost airline, said its loss over the winter low season is set to shrink as the collapse of tour operator Thomas Cook Group Plc pushes more customers its way. The stock rose the most on the FTSE-100 Index on Tuesday after EasyJet said the shortfall for the six months through March is likely to be ...

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• 21 January

  Hazmat suits deployed as security tightens over China virus

  

  Bloomberg The travel industry is stepping up precautionary measures against the virus originating from central China that’s killed four people and infected hundreds, with at least one airline starting to equip planes with hazardous-materials suits for cabin crew. In China, President Xi Jinping ordered resolute efforts to curb the spread of the illness since the disease was first detected in ...

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• 21 January

  Walmart reshuffles leadership ahead of results

  Bloomberg Walmart Inc’s new US chief wasted no time putting his stamp on the unit, appointing his former top lieutenant as second in command and parting ways with the retailer’s head of merchandising. Dacona Smith, a company veteran who most recently served as chief operating officer for Walmart’s Sam’s Club, will become COO under John Furner, according to a memo. ...

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