It seems every major carmaker these days is thinking about electric vehicles in some capacity. At one of the world’s largest auto shows in Shanghai this year, several manufacturers boasted their snazzy concept cars and talked up imminent launches. Electric-vehicle sales are rising fast, and battery installation is climbing — largely thanks to China, where battery demand rose more than ...
Read More »$3tr bond beast runs the show in Europe
It’s been a surprisingly good year for Europe’s government bond markets. Yields are down across the board even though the European Central Bank (ECB) is no longer adding to its 2.7 trillion euro ($3 trillion) bond stockpile. The central bank might not be adding to its holdings, but it’s still maintaining them at that vast level and that has a ...
Read More »How Brexit consumed a British Prime Minister
Prime Minister Theresa May was popular once. That may be hard to remember as she steps down in two weeks’ time, but it’s true. Just three years before her own political party forced her to step aside, she was hailed by politicians and citizens as the wisest choice to lead the UK’s separation from the European Union (EU). Then came ...
Read More »Huawei gets kicked in the teeth by the British
When it comes to 5G-enabled smartphones, Britain is a pretty decent bellwether: It’s one of just five countries currently rolling out the new mobile standard. So the decision by BT Group Plc, the UK’s former national carrier, not to offer 5G handsets made by Huawei Technologies Co. augurs badly for the beleaguered Chinese telecoms firm’s consumer aspirations. The mobile operator ...
Read More »Indian democracy was dying before Modi came along
NarendraModi’s emphatic re-election victory makes inevitable something that was long feared: the transformation of India from secular democracy to Hindu majoritarian state. Far from helping to reverse the global tide of illiberal figures and movements, voters in the world’s largest democracy have advanced it. Modi won with a landslide despite having failed miserably in his central mission: to create jobs ...
Read More »Europe stocks advance with bonds following EU election
Bloomberg Stocks rose in Europe on Monday and markets were mixed in Asia as investors mulled three weeks of global declines amid escalating US-China trade tensions. Core sovereign bonds in the European Union advanced after mainstream parties held their ground against populists in elections. The Euro Stoxx index rose, helped by Fiat Chrysler’s proposed merger with France’s Renault, which drove ...
Read More »India’s Sensex gains amid optimism Modi win to drive growth
Bloomberg Indian equities advanced amid continued optimism that Prime Minster Narendra Modi will adopt more policies to spur growth in Asia’s third-biggest economy. The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.6 percent to 39,683.29 in Mumbai, adding to a series of record highs this year after capping its best week in seven months. The NSE Nifty 50 Index advanced 0.7 percent, ...
Read More »China’s first bank seizure since 1998 shows hidden loan risk
Bloomberg China’s first government takeover of a bank in more than two decades has underscored the potential for increased stress at regional le- nders that piled into off-book financing in recent years. Regulators said that they would assume control of Ba-oshang Bank Co. for one year because of “serious†credit risks. The Inner Mongolia-based lender, once seen as a model ...
Read More »5 banks face lawsuit over Australia foreign exchange scandal
Bloomberg Citigroup Inc, Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc and JPMorgan Chase & Co are among five banks named in a class action lawsuit in Australia seeking damages for colluding on foreign-exchange trading strategies. UBS Group AG and Barclays Plc were also named in the suit lodged on Monday in the Federal Court by Maurice Blackburn Lawyers. The action claims ...
Read More »Negative rates push small Japan banks into structured finance
Bloomberg Japan’s regional banks have long been relegated to the sidelines in one of the most lucrative corners of the lending market while regular loans got gradually less profitable. Now some are fighting back. Shizuoka Bank Ltd has lined up a network of 40 local lenders that will invest in structured assets such as project finance and non-recourse real estate ...
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