Americas

Booze-free beverages are no small beer

11 Jul 2024

Carlsberg’s $4 bln deal to buy soft-drinks maker Britvic is just the latest foray by a big brewer into serving the alcohol-averse. In this Viewsroom podcast, Breakingviews columnists discuss whether it’s a seismic tobacco-like shift or a frothy attempt to fizz up profit margins.

Microsoft opens windows onto AI antitrust paradox

10 Jul 2024

The software behemoth is ceding its non-voting board seat at OpenAI, the ChatGPT maker essential to its artificial intelligence plans. Building a silicon mind may take $1 trln, however, making deep pockets as powerful as governance rights. A bigger, messier crackdown looms.

Amazon dresses up its drab fashion with Saks stake

10 Jul 2024

The online retailer wants to boost its luxury appeal by backing the upscale chain’s $2.7 bln deal for Neiman Marcus. It should give boss Andy Jassy insight into richer shoppers as he mulls a rival to bargain sites Shein and Temu. Pursuing both ends of the market is a smart look.

Economic cycle’s age is as problematic as Biden’s

9 Jul 2024

The US president’s record is pristine when it comes to an indicator that stymied former incumbents who lost re-election: unemployment. But that’s changing, and the cumulative effect of inflation makes for a mishmash of mediocrity. For Joe Biden, the election may come too late.

Stubborn IPO lull defies supply and demand logic

9 Jul 2024

Despite solid market debuts by Reddit, Galderma and Viking, the $49 bln raised in the first half is the lowest tally since 2016. It’s vexing for buyout firms with $3 trln of assets to sell and investors with $10 trln in cash to spend. Economic theory suggests a price imbalance.

Copper’s green step change is an uphill struggle

9 Jul 2024

Supplies of the red metal have to motor if the world is to adequately decarbonise. In this Exchange podcast Tae-Yoon Kim, senior energy analyst at the International Energy Agency, lays out the challenges that need to be overcome if the private sector is going to make that happen.

Drugmaker’s US listing journey starts with failure

9 Jul 2024

Shares in $2 bln Indivior, which in June switched its primary venue from London to New York, fell 42% after flagging slower opioid-treatment sales. Investors may fear that CEO Mark Crossley took his eye off the ball. With little broker coverage, it risks becoming an orphan stock.

Big Beer’s low-alcohol Plan B has too much froth

9 Jul 2024

Carlsberg, AB InBev and Asahi have set toppy targets for their teetotal products. Health concerns and Gen Z’s aversion to alcohol imply that’s a safe bet. But at $13 bln the market is still puny – and if the likes of Coca-Cola muscle in there will be a smaller barrel to share.

Boeing’s future CEO has same mess, different day

8 Jul 2024

The $113 bln jet maker will plead guilty to criminal charges and pay a fine related to fatal crashes. Extra cash pledged for safety might not dent the entrenched duopolist’s earnings. Problem is, without forced improvements, the controversy awaiting Boeing’s next boss continues.

Paramount deal offers sneak peak of media 3.0

8 Jul 2024

Shari Redstone agreed to pass her family’s empire to rising Hollywood mogul David Ellison’s Skydance. The $8 bln deal, wildly lopsided in their favor, may raise investors’ hackles. Yet it’s a key test of media also-rans’ likely next chapter: supplying content to streaming giants.

Global economy finds new ways to keep growing

8 Jul 2024

Despite fears of a slowdown, world GDP is expanding at 3.5% a year, faster than in 2023. As the US engine loses thrust, Europe and emerging markets are picking up. A sluggish China and geopolitical confrontations are risks. But for now, investors can enjoy a Goldilocks moment.

Shein maps out how to charm the world in India

5 Jul 2024

The $63 bln fast fashion giant is relaunching four years after it was banned, this time in an alliance with Mukesh Ambani's Reliance. If Shein can claw its way back into a country that aggressively curtailed Chinese interests, partnerships may be the way forward elsewhere too.

Labour’s election win brings power and pitfalls

5 Jul 2024

Keir Starmer is Britain’s new prime minister after his Labour Party won over 410 seats in Thursday’s vote. The electoral landslide gives clarity, a mandate to boost growth and potentially a path to tax wealth. But self-imposed constraints mean change may be too gradual.

Why AI may fail to unlock the productivity puzzle

4 Jul 2024

The world’s richest economies are grappling with slowing growth in output. Many investors believe artificial intelligence can provide a much-needed boost. But four features of the technology suggest the benefits will be limited – and might even achieve the opposite outcome.

Bosch’s Whirlpool bet may end in rinse cycle

4 Jul 2024

The German group is eyeing the struggling $6 bln US home appliance maker, Reuters says. Expanding stateside makes sense given growth in Bosch’s main European units is slowing. But its target may be just as tricky if interest rates and inflation keep hammering US consumers.

Data centre boom reveals AI hype’s physical limits

4 Jul 2024

The investor frenzy over artificial intelligence assumes there will be enough infrastructure to support apps like ChatGPT. But a $1 trln rush to build data centres faces planning restrictions and energy constraints. That will limit processing power and push up costs for users.

Trump’s gains supercharge higher-for-longer trade

3 Jul 2024

The former president’s improved odds of re-election are pushing up yields on longer-term Treasury bonds. His tax and trade agenda would add to inflationary pressure, keeping rates high. But an unpredictable race and uncertainty about Trump’s policies will leave investors on edge.

Tougher trustbusting will last beyond US election

3 Jul 2024

In just a few years, competition cops Jonathan Kanter and Lina Khan reversed a lax consensus that existed for decades. The November ballot threatens to derail some of their efforts. Much of the agenda has staying power, however, both in the fine print and the bigger principles.

Good luck finding a new Boston Celtics pot of gold

2 Jul 2024

The leprechaun-logoed NBA champs are for sale after two decades under venture capitalist Wyc Grousbeck’s group. At a mooted $6 bln, the investment return would top US stocks and private equity. A repeat depends on the dubious scenario of broadcast rights rising wildly again.

MicroStrategy is hedge funds’ favorite meme stock

2 Jul 2024

The $26 bln firm’s shares have leapt on a bitcoin buying binge, funded by bonds that can turn into stock. Unlike GameStop’s ragtag punters, MicroStrategy depends on hedge funds such as Citadel piling in. Thing is, they rely less on a rising share price than a wildly volatile one.