July, 2016

• 19 July

  The hidden risk to sovereign bonds isn’t inflation

    Mark Gilbert The Bundesbank dropped something of a bombshell this week. The eurozone’s most influential central bank and the guardian of all things sacred to monetarists, suggested that sovereign bonds should contain clauses that would automatically delay repayment to investors for countries in financial difficulty. Not paying on schedule may not be the same as default, but it won’t ...

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• 19 July

  Japan’s SoftBank plunges after $32 bn ARM purchase

  

    Tokyo / AFP SoftBank plunged more than 10 percent on Tuesday as investors gave the thumbs down to the Japanese mobile giant’s whopping $32 billion purchase of British iPhone chip designer ARM Holdings. The sharp drop bucked an upward trend in the broader market after a public holiday, with the benchmark index rising for the sixth straight session. SoftBank ...

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• 19 July

  S&P 500 futures slip amid earnings with stocks at all-time highs

  

    Bloomberg S&P 500 Index futures slipped on Tuesday following a mix of earnings reports, as investors weighed the prospects for further gains after equities closed Monday at fresh records. Netflix tumbled 13 percent on weaker-than-anticipated subscriber growth, and Philip Morris International Inc. dropped 2.2 percent after its earnings missed forecasts as the strong dollar hurt sales outside of the ...

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• 19 July

  Markets move little on mixed earnings; Saudi’s Ma’aden sinks

  

    DUBAI / Reuters Gulf stock markets mostly moved little in early trade on Tuesday, restrained by weak oil prices and mixed corporate earnings, while Saudi Arabian Mining Co (Ma’aden) fell sharply after announcing a plunge in second-quarter profit. The Saudi stock index dropped 0.3 percent in the first half hour as Ma’aden slid 4.4 percent. It posted a 51 ...

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• 19 July

  BofA beats estimates as Moynihan vows deep cuts

  

    Bloomberg Bank of America (BofA) Corp. posted higher profit in each of its four main businesses as bond-trading revenue increased more than analysts estimated and expenses fell. The second-biggest US bank by assets led financial stocks higher this week after reporting earnings per share of 36 cents, beating the 33-cent average estimate of analysts. Net income dropped 21 percent ...

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• 19 July

  Indian state banks to get capital boost of $3.4bn

  

    Bloomberg State Bank of India and Indian Overseas Bank are among 13 state-owned Indian lenders that will receive a total of 229.2 billion rupees ($3.4 billion) in capital as the government seeks to contain risks in the banking industry while sustaining credit growth. The State Bank of India will get 75.8 billion rupees, while Indian Overseas Bank will receive ...

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• 19 July

  Schroders fund pushes stake limit in Russia-based Sberbank

  

    Bloomberg Rollo Roscow has maxed out his holdings of Sberbank PJSC, the Russian lender that has surged as much 119 percent from late January. If he had his way, he’d probably buy more. The advance in the London-traded stock comes after a 46 percent rally in 2015 and has been driven by a rebound in oil prices and a ...

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• 19 July

  BEA shares dip after Elliott’s legal action

  

    BLOOMBERG Bank of East Asia (BEA) Ltd. shares dropped the most in two weeks in Hong Kong after Elliott Management started legal action alleging that the family-run lender acted improperly when issuing stock, which it says diluted minority investors and entrenched management control. The stock sank as much as 2.8 percent on Tuesday, the biggest intraday slide since July ...

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• 19 July

  Eurozone bank sector improves: ECB survey

  

    Frankfurt / AFP Europe’s financial sector is showing further signs of mending and banks are increasingly competing for custom by easing credit standards, a key European Central Bank survey showed on Tuesday. The ECB said its quarterly bank lending survey (BLS) showed banks are easing credit standards for loans to companies. However, this is an encouraging sign, since the ...

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• 19 July

  Santander doubles fintech bet with $200 million fund

    Bloomberg Ana Botin, the chairman of Banco Santander SA, is doubling the lender’s bet on fintech. Spain’s biggest bank said that it was boosting its investment in Santander InnoVentures, its London-based financial technology fund, to $200 million from $100 million. The fund takes minority stakes in promising startups, aiming to incorporate innovative technology in its banking operations. “A deeper ...

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