March, 2019

• 19 March

  US stocks rise before Fed decisions; Treasuries slip

  

  Bloomberg US equities climbed as investors awaited this week’s central bank decisions, including word from a recently more-dovish Federal Reserve. The euro strengthened while Treasuries slipped. The S&P 500 Index continued rising on Tuesday after climbing to a five-month high the day before. Consumer-discretionary, materials and semiconductor stocks led the charge. The Dow Jones and Nasdaq 100 gauges followed suit, ...

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• 19 March

  Hong Kong’s weak dollar victim of China stocks

  

  Bloomberg The rally in Chinese stocks has been bad news for the Hong Kong dollar. Equity investors are selling the currency for the Chinese yuan and buying mainland shares through the stock trading connects, according to Ronald Man, a strategist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. That’s keeping the Hong Kong dollar lower in the spot market, he said. The ...

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• 19 March

  ‘Cheap’ pound may rally to $1.45 on Brexit clarity

  Bloomberg The pound is a bargain and may strengthen to $1.45 once the uncertainty surrounding Brexit starts to get resolved, according to Merian Global Investors Ltd. The $45 billion London-based money manager has a long position on sterling, betting the economy will improve as soon as the protracted chaos over the UK’s separation from the European Union is over. “Sterling ...

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• 19 March

  China considers excluding Boeing 737 from trade deal

  

  Bloomberg China is looking at excluding Boeing Co’s troubled 737 Max jet from a list of American exports it would buy as part of a trade deal with the US, people familiar with the matter said. Boeing jets were featured on a draft list of American products China would buy to reduce its trade surplus with the US, the people ...

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• 19 March

  Delta continutes to pursue bankrupt Alitalia’s takeover

  

  Bloomberg Delta Air Lines Inc will continue to pursue a takeover of Alitalia SpA’s operations after a potential partner dropped out, leaving the Italian government with only one industry suitor willing to take the unprofitable flag carrier off its hands. The US airline said it was continuing discussions with state-controlled railway Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane SpA about taking a stake ...

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• 19 March

  Prada loses $864mn in value as China slump hits profit

  

  Bloomberg Prada SpA shares fell to the lowest close since 2016 as slower Chinese spending contributed to an unexpected drop in the Italian fashion house’s annual profit. The Hong Kong-listed luxury group attributed a slump in Asia mostly to Chinese tourists reining in spending in Hong Kong and Macau because of the weakness in the yuan. Other luxury brands, including ...

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• 19 March

  Steinhoff names ex-CEO among those behind questionable deals

  

  Bloomberg Steinhoff International Holdings NV identified eight people, including former Chief Executive Officer Markus Jooste, as those allegedly behind questionable transactions that brought the global retailer to near collapse. The company’s executives were compelled by a South African parliamentary committee to release the names even as Chairwoman Heather Sonn and Chief Executive Officer Louis du Preez warned it could jeopardise ...

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• 19 March

  BA adds ‘door’ in business-class salvo

  Bloomberg British Airways unveiled the business-class seat it’s counting on to fend off Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd and other rivals in markets including London-to-New York, the world’s most lucrative route for corporate travel. The “Club Suite” will transform into a flat bed, a feature now standard after BA introduced it in the 1990s, but will also come with a door, ...

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• 19 March

  GE sees cash burn up to $2b as turnaround costs weigh

  

  Bloomberg General Electric Co. will burn as much as $2 billion of cash this year as the manufacturer tries to repair its balance sheet and put its reeling power business back on stable ground. Free cash flow from the company’s industrial businesses will decline in 2019 as restructuring costs hit at least $2.4 billion, GE said in a presentation detailing ...

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• 19 March

  Germany’s investor confidence rises as global risks subside

  

  Bloomberg Investor confidence in Germany’s growth outlook improved for a fifth straight month as global risks subsided, suggesting Europe’s largest economy will shake off its weakness as the year progresses. A gauge measuring prospects for the next six months rose to minus 3.6 in March, the highest in a year, beating an estimate for a gain to minus 11. Despite ...

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