Asia-Pacific

Capital Calls: Carlyle, UK SPAC deal, Beauty marks

2 Aug 2023

Concise views on global finance: The buyout shop’s fee challenge comes into sharper relief for boss Harvey Schwartz; banker Michael Klein aims to use his latest shell company to buy a British investment firm for $1.6 bln; and $7 bln cosmetics maker e.l.f. is looking glamorous.

Toyota tops up tank to fuel a hard drive

2 Aug 2023

Rising sales helped net income surge ahead by 75% in Koji Sato’s first quarter behind the wheel of the $230 bln Japanese carmaker, pushing the stock to an all-time high. To keep up the pace, though, he has to speed electrification and outpace competition from China and beyond.

HSBC invites shy investors to turnaround party

1 Aug 2023

Boss Noel Quinn is upping targets at the $160 bln bank after first-half pre-tax profit more than doubled. It’s good timing: pushy shareholder Ping An and its breakup hopes may have been effectively silenced, but other owners need convincing that Quinn’s overhaul has legs.

Capital Calls: Uber’s road trip to redemption

1 Aug 2023

Concise views on global finance: The $95 bln ride-sharing firm notched its first operating profit and more than doubled free cash flow, but its valuation is lagging.

Fast-fashion wars are warmup for Amazon battle

1 Aug 2023

E-commerce app Temu is taking on larger rival Shein in selling cheap Chinese-made goods to Western consumers. The company owned by $119 bln PDD offers a broader range, making it more like an online dollar store. That puts it on a collision course with the $1.4 trln US titan.

Capital Calls: Sequoia, Heineken, Moneyball

31 Jul 2023

Concise views on global finance: The venture capital firm issues a refund to cryptocurrency investors; the $57 bln brewer slashes its operating profit outlook; Steve Cohen’s New York Mets baseball team and its whopping $364 mln payroll is a mess, but in sports beta is the alpha.

The BRICS are better off disbanding than expanding

31 Jul 2023

Developing countries are understandably unhappy that rich nations don’t address their needs. But they won’t get much from a club including giant China and near-pariah Russia. Brazil, India and other emerging economies might achieve more by creating a new group, says Hugo Dixon.

Capital Calls: Bank of Japan, StanChart

28 Jul 2023

Concise views on global finance: Governor Kazuo Ueda shook markets by introducing a more flexible approach to controlling government bond yields, but he can easily retreat if inflation drops. Meanwhile, Bill Winters’ lender is improving but the heavy lifting is far from over.

Chinese AI arrives by stealth, not with a bang

28 Jul 2023

Beijing’s new rules for the technology are less onerous than expected. Armed with vast data troves, giants from Alibaba to Baidu are leading the industry’s development. But President Xi Jinping’s focus on national security and censorship, plus US chip curbs, will slow progress.

VW and Xpeng get much-needed mutual fuel injection

27 Jul 2023

The $77 bln German carmaker has bought a 5% stake in $18 bln Xpeng. Access to the electric-vehicle maker’s technology could boost VW’s own flagging business in the People’s Republic. But Xpeng equally needs the cash to help withstand a fierce domestic EV price war.

Capital Calls: Mastercard vs. weed

27 Jul 2023

Concise views on global finance: The credit card company wants to end cannabis purchases on its debit cards. It took a similar stance with adult content site Pornhub. In the end, pot smokers will find a workaround.

BlackRock makes a sharp bargain with Mukesh Ambani

27 Jul 2023

The world’s largest money manager, run by Larry Fink, is teaming up with India’s richest man to re-enter the country’s asset management business. The duo can grow fast in the cutthroat $540 bln sector riding on Reliance’s network. It justifies the US firm giving up on control.

Japan will gain from ultra-cautious ratesetters

27 Jul 2023

The world’s third-largest economy is on the cusp of a virtuous circle where inflation lifts wages and spending. But the central bank needs to tread carefully. If it prematurely declares victory and tightens policy, it could spur a debt rout. The cost of waiting is also growing.

Capital Calls: LVMH’s US dip, Rolls-Royce revival

26 Jul 2023

Concise views on global finance: Shares in the 413 bln euro luxury conglomerate fell 4% as investors fretted about weakness in its once booming US business; the UK airplane engine maker raised its profit forecast for 2023 as its new CEO benefits from travel tailwinds.

GIC’s real estate safe haven is hard to copy

26 Jul 2023

Singapore’s $690 bln sovereign fund nearly doubled its real estate allocations to 13% in three years. Its student homes to logistics portfolio provides a timely inflation hedge for one of the most active investors in its class. Peers trying to catch up will overpay.

Tidy-up puts $70 bln tobacco giant in good company

26 Jul 2023

India’s ITC is spinning off its hotels business but keeping a 40% stake. It’s a partial break from the firm that counts British American Tobacco as its top owner. Yet it may be the best way to close a valuation gap with its Tata-backed rival and fully cash in on a tourism boom.

Capital Calls: Biotech alarm, Spotify’s tightrope

25 Jul 2023

Concise views on global finance: Pharma supplier Danaher’s reduced forecast contrasts biotech doldrums against broader market exuberance, in a warning sign for investors; the Swedish music streamer is caught between margin-hungry investors and music labels.

China’s stimulus tone hits a high pitch

25 Jul 2023

Party leaders are finally admitting they need to do more to support the $18 trln economy and its real estate market. Some fiscal tweaks and measures to speed home sales in big cities may follow. But in raising expectations, what Beijing considers a new normal remains a mystery.

China’s crackdown on IPO risk factors is a warning

25 Jul 2023

Officials want negative descriptions of the country's policies toned down in prospectuses. It's another hoop for firms listing in Hong Kong and the US to jump through, and for regulators to spar over. For global banks and investors, it ups the dangers of doing Chinese deals.

China’s property market is finding a new normal

25 Jul 2023

Slower growth is not necessarily bad. In this Exchange podcast, Cara Li, Head of Asia Pacific Real Estate Investment Banking at Morgan Stanley, says the debt-fuelled engine of the world’s second largest economy is maturing and outlines the benefits of a period of consolidation.