Asia-Pacific

Next Chinese trade war could benefit the planet

8 Apr 2024

As Beijing floods the world with cheap green goods, the West will put up trade barriers. That will delay the energy transition in the United States and EU. But the glut of EVs, solar panels and the like will speed it up in China and much of the Global South.

Google will struggle with Apple-generated AI query

5 Apr 2024

Artificial intelligence presents the first serious threat to the search engine’s 25-year dominance. Parent Alphabet has the money and tech nous to fend off rivals. The bigger financial risk is its $120 bln relationship with the iPhone maker as trustbusters try to pry them apart.

‘Wilful default’ bond spat can shake Hong Kong

5 Apr 2024

A group of creditors including Asian buyout firm PAG say an education firm can but won't redeem a $315 mln offshore debt. It's unusual amid the surge in defaults by Chinese issuers, and suggests investors need to worry about better parts of their portfolios too. 

AI might rewrite Samsung’s memory chip past

5 Apr 2024

The tech giant estimates quarterly operating profit surged 10-fold to $5 bln, as prices for standard data-storage semiconductors recover. New demand for specialised versions that support artificial intelligence might help the company better navigate the next boom-and-bust cycle.

Capital Calls: Green vehicles

3 Apr 2024

Concise views on global finance: French shipping and logistics heavyweight CMA CGM has acquired a 10% stake in Flexis, a joint venture set up by Volvo and Renault to develop electric vans in Europe.

TSMC’s most complex engineering task is itself

3 Apr 2024

The $625 bln chipmaker has built a monopoly in advanced semiconductors by staying in Taiwan. Now it’s expanding abroad, spurred by subsidies and US-China tensions. Despite higher costs, it can generate decent returns. The bigger challenge will be keeping its technological edge.

Wanda’s mall deal bags petrodollar safety net

2 Apr 2024

Wang Jianlin has found the hottest new shoppers in town. ADIA and Mubadala are taking control of his mall unit for $8.3 bln, alongside existing owners led by buyout firm PAG. Gulf money is emerging as an important lifeline for buyers and sellers in China.

Xiaomi enters China’s EV race in fine form

2 Apr 2024

The smartphone maker run by Lei Jun logged 90,000 orders in 24 hours for its debut vehicle and buyers face a seven-month wait. Investors cheered, adding 16% to the group's $48 bln market value. Competition is cutthroat but there's always room for strong upstarts.

Capital Calls: Motorcycle M&A

1 Apr 2024

Concise views on global finance: John Malone’s Liberty Media is buying Dorna, the parent of motorcycling racing championship MotoGP, for 4.3 billion euros. It’s hard to see how the media mogul can make the deal work.

Central banks’ noise helps dollar – and Joe Biden

28 Mar 2024

In February, traders’ hopes of rate cuts by the Federal Reserve sent the currency lower. But it has risen 1.8% in March, partly due to policymakers’ mixed messages. Until the fog clears, the greenback will rule forex markets. That curbs US inflation and may benefit the president.

Tata’s forced IPO will only bring problems

28 Mar 2024

A central bank decision requires the $194 bln holding company of the Indian cars-to-tech conglomerate to list. It could lump Tata Sons with a huge discount and also spotlight the special tax treatment the group’s ultimate owners enjoy. That could force an even bigger upheaval.

LNG angst seeps from consumers to producers

27 Mar 2024

A few years ago, supplies of liquefied natural gas were scarce and prices sky-high. Extra capacity arriving this decade means there could soon be a price-sapping glut. Big suppliers like Qatar and Shell have long-term contracts that can ease the pain, but only up to a point.

BYD is unscathed in China’s electric-car wars

27 Mar 2024

The world’s largest EV maker founded and led by Wang Chuanfu is winning market share and accelerating its profit margins. That suggests the $86 bln company can keep cutting prices and investing overseas despite reporting its slowest quarterly profit growth in two years.

Alibaba sends out SOS on Hong Kong’s market

27 Mar 2024

The Chinese e-commerce giant ditched plans to list its logistics unit in the city and offered to buy out minority shareholders including Singapore's Temasek at a $10 bln valuation, half the mooted worth six months ago. It points to more pain for owners of unlisted Chinese assets.

Capital Calls: Shell and Russia

26 Mar 2024

Concise views on global finance: Russian state giant Gazprom will buy the British energy major’s 27.5% stake in a major Siberian liquefied gas field for the equivalent of $1 bln. Shell is however unlikely to be able to get hold of the cash any time soon.

Ping An and Vanke look made for each other

26 Mar 2024

Pressure is mounting on China's financial giants, including the $90 bln insurer, to support the beleaguered property developer. That is a big ask for Ping An, whose own earnings just slumped 23%. Still, helping Vanke could limit the pain for its own hefty property exposure.

Commodity trading giants get in cotton M&A spin

26 Mar 2024

Singapore's Olam has bested Louis Dreyfus' offer for one of Australia's largest processors of the fibre. The two suitors have battled Down Under in the past, and Olam looks to have the edge for a second win. But the volatility of earnings in this small deal warrants caution.

China and foreign CEOs dance ever trickier tango

25 Mar 2024

Premier Li Qiang welcomed 100 bosses from giants like Apple to a Beijing business confab. Yet Tim Cook is shifting iPhone supply chains elsewhere, while China is pressing ahead with phasing out overseas tech like chips. The increasingly uneasy relationship is primed for missteps.

Glencore can leave Aussie listing plea in the pit

25 Mar 2024

Hedge fund Tribeca reckons the Swiss group would command a higher multiple if it moved its shares to Sydney from London. Down Under’s mining culture, powerful pension funds, and dividend tax breaks sound enticing, but are a valuation chimera for the coal- and trading-heavy firm.

Capital Calls: Wegovy gets a booster

22 Mar 2024

Concise views on global finance: The US government’s decision to pay for weight-loss drugs for some older patients is a big step for makers Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk. Not because it will boost their share prices, but because it makes current valuations less far-fetched.