March, 2019

• 3 March

  Asia factory woes extend to February

  

  Bloomberg Sentiment at Asia’s factories charted another weak month in February amid softening global demand and trade-war jitters. But there were signs of bottoming too: The Caixin China purchasing managers index rose to 49.9, recovering from its biggest drop since July 2015, even as it stayed below the 50 line that separates contraction and expansion. “There is a silver lining ...

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• 3 March

  Doubt grows on Celgene deal as Bristol-Myers holder balks

  

  Bloomberg Doubts are beginning to gather around the pharmaceutical industry’s biggest-ever takeover after Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.’s second-largest shareholder said that it doesn’t favour a $74 billion takeover of Celgene Corp. Wellington Management Co., which manages about $1 trillion in assets, said in a news release that it “does not believe that the Celgene transaction is an attractive path” for broadening ...

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• 3 March

  German car industry to invest $45 billion in electric-vehicles

  

  Bloomberg Germany’s automotive industry will invest over 40 billion euros ($45 billion) in electric vehicles over the next three years to triple the number of models vying for buyers, the head of the VDA car industry association said. The plan is pivotal to reach ambitious goals in the European Union to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and requires the expansion of ...

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• 3 March

  HP slips on disappointing outlook for ink supplies

  

  Bloomberg HP Inc.’s shares declined as much as 13 percent after the company warned that sales for its high-margin printer supplies business would fall for the rest of the year, presenting a setback for its effort to boost profitability. HP printer supplies revenue will decline 3 percent for the rest of 2019, driven by weaker demand in Europe, the Middle ...

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• 3 March

  Vale CEO steps down temporarily after failing to avoid dam disaster

  

  Bloomberg Fabio Schvartsman stepped down temporarily as chief executive officer of Vale SA as the world’s largest iron ore producer comes under increased government scrutiny for failing to prevent a second deadly burst of one of its hundreds of tailings dams in Brazil. “Even totally assured of my righteous ways and having fulfilled my duty, I request the board to ...

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• 3 March

  US agencies bicker over ethanol plan as higher fuel use looms

  

  Bloomberg President Donald Trump’s pledge to his rural agricultural base to allow year-round sales of higher blends of ethanol is spurring differing opinions between two key federal agencies. US Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue told lawmakers in a House hearing that a final rule to allow widespread sales of those higher blends “won’t happen” by the summer-driving season following delays from ...

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• 3 March

  It made sense for Trump to walk away in Hanoi

  

  With the abrupt breakdown of the Hanoi summit, the diplomatic negotiations between the United States and North Korea got a reset, and that’s a good thing. If dialogue resumes, it will be on a firmer, more realistic basis. President Trump’s swoon for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un had worried many observers who feared the president would make a rushed, ...

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• 3 March

  S Korea’s economy is alive but not well

  

  Send out a search party for South Korea’s economy. Domestic activity is in a tough spot, but the Bank of Korea seems preoccupied with second-guessing the Federal Reserve and parsing any trade accord between the US and China. The central bank kept its benchmark interest rate at 1.75 percent on February 28, a non-step that was widely forecast. The flaw ...

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• 3 March

  Invoking Great Recession is a great distraction!

  Well, that’s a relief! Malaysian Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng says a global financial crisis-style recession isn’t likely today. “The January 2019 price decline was not caused by recession or any kind of weak demand … The same severe GDP contraction Malaysia suffered in 2009 is nowhere to be seen today.” Fantastic. But who says it’s the same? Throwing up ...

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• 3 March

  Macron can revive his French revolution

  France’s Yellow Vest protest movement seems to be losing steam. Turnout is diminishing, public support is weakening, and anger has flared over anti-Semitism in its ranks. If the marchers are mostly staying home, though, the problems they identified haven’t gone away. In fact, they could define President Emmanuel Macron’s remaining time in office. The protesters first took to the streets ...

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