Consumer Products and Services

Amazon is the everything-plus-AI store

30 Apr 2024

The $1.8 trln company is still dominating e-commerce and cloud computing, as first-quarter earnings show. But its valuation trails Microsoft’s, which has plunged into AI. Boss Andy Jassy will play catchup in the coming year. But Amazon may not be as behind as investors think.

Global retailers are headed for Shein reckoning

30 Apr 2024

Zara owner Inditex, H&M and other apparel giants are holding ground against the Asian fast-fashion upstart. However, AlixPartners’ retail expert Matt Clark argues in this Exchange podcast that Shein’s focus on garment quality could threaten the dominance of pricier rivals.

L’Occitane sets a high bar for Hong Kong exits

30 Apr 2024

Chairman Reinold Geiger’s offer to take his skincare group private values it at 6 bln euros, a decent 30% premium. Funding led by Blackstone might help keep a lid on interest expenses while the company restructures and seeks a listing in Europe. Other buyouts will be trickier.

China auto show puts smart at centre of car wars

30 Apr 2024

BYD, Geely and peers touted everything from self-driving software to massage chairs at lower prices than in the past. They are extending a lead over global rivals, with help from tech juggernauts such as Huawei. But global carmakers including Tesla can follow that roadmap, too.

Kotak’s IT slap-down points to a system weakness

25 Apr 2024

Shares of the $44 bln bank fell 13% after the regulator barred it from acquiring new customers online following tech failures. Kotak's rich valuation is slipping away. Targeting growth is a smart punishment but the RBI may need to be tougher. Digital weakness appears widespread.

Time for Kering’s king to consider a step back

24 Apr 2024

François-Henri Pinault, heir to the family fortune, has been at the helm of the 40 bln euro French luxury conglomerate for nearly 20 years. With returns shrinking and as flagship brand Gucci struggles, Kering may benefit from fresh blood – and possibly a new CEO.

Beijing powers up into car wars battleground

24 Apr 2024

The city’s auto show returns, with some 700 exhibitors, for the first time since the pandemic. Foreign brands from Volkswagen to Toyota have to show how they can defend themselves as China’s BYD and new threats like Xiaomi chase market share at home and abroad.

Kate Spade deal veto is lucky dip for trustbusters

23 Apr 2024

US competition cops want to stop Tapestry, owner of the handbag brand, from buying rival Capri. The $8.5 bln merger is a tempting target: well-known products, few political issues, and none of Big Tech’s mighty resources. That offers a chance to road-test novel legal theories.

Chinese stocks have found a bottom

23 Apr 2024

After a $5 trln crash, there are early signs of healthy buying. In this Exchange podcast, Herald van der Linde, HSBC head of equity strategy, Asia Pacific, unpicks the shifting sentiment of Chinese households and implications for the rest of the region’s capital markets.

Buyout barons salivate at Toshiba job cuts

22 Apr 2024

They extract world-beating returns from deals in Japan often without reducing staff because lifetime employment is the norm. Now the private equity-owned conglomerate may cut 5,000 roles. A tight labour market helps, but if layoffs catch on acquirors could both pay and earn more.

ESG is ghost at global retailers’ annual feast

19 Apr 2024

LVMH, Amazon and peers gathered in Paris for the industry’s yearly shindig. The growth areas in the $30 trln sector are Shein-style cheap garments and the Middle East. Both jar with retailers’ previous focus on environmental, social and governance factors.

Czech Sphinx may need to pay up for UK mail morsel

17 Apr 2024

Daniel Kretinsky has been rebuffed in a bid to buy the 72% of 3 bln pound International Distributions Services he doesn’t already own. The Czech billionaire has deep enough pockets to pay more for the owner of Royal Mail. But his target’s board has grounds to dig its heels in.

Walmart-backed IPO makes brick-and-mortar AI pitch

17 Apr 2024

Ibotta is chasing a $2.6 bln public valuation for one of marketing’s oldest tricks: rebates on in-store purchases. Its data-gathering is simple – customers scan receipts – yet solid and profitable. But efforts to cover the company in a high-tech sheen look like a stretch.

Luxury’s great divide will get more striking

17 Apr 2024

Sales at $420 bln LVMH rose a dull 3% in the first quarter. The Tiffany-to-Dior behemoth’s insipid performance points to a broader fragility within the sector. With revenue in the luxury industry flattening, the gap between winners and losers is set to grow wider.

Salesforce’s activist makeover faces trial by M&A

16 Apr 2024

A swarm of pushy investors last year pushed the software firm into cutting costs, returning capital, and de-emphasizing dealmaking. Now it’s mulling a takeover of $11 bln Informatica, the WSJ says. The price will signal whether founder and CEO Marc Benioff has changed his ways.

Powell’s rate cuts may go from steady to steep

10 Apr 2024

Inflation hit 3.5% in March, making a June cut to borrowing costs unlikely. But Fed Chair Jay Powell is running out of time. A decrease in September would be seen to favor President Biden. The November decision is one day post-election. The only other option: take bigger whacks.

Norwegian fund’s podcast guru plays both sides

9 Apr 2024

Nicolai Tangen, head of the country’s $1.6 trln sovereign vehicle, has a side gig hosting interviews with corporate leaders like Elon Musk. The jaunty chats give CEOs cover with one of their few engaged investors. At least the fund is not afraid to vote against his guests.

Tech FOMO prices at a disturbingly high level

9 Apr 2024

Destiny Tech100, a newly listed fund with only $53 mln of stakes in private firms such as SpaceX and OpenAI, is now worth about $700 mln. Investors are clearly overeager to get in earlier on hot trends. A multiple of 13 times net asset value resets the Silicon Valley hype bar.

Beauty boom is busted

4 Apr 2024

Ulta Beauty’s stock plummeted 15% after the $21 bln makeup company’s CEO said lipstick-wearers had less money to put towards their routines. The industry’s M&A trend suggests the glam business can’t stay attractive forever – it has succumbed to a typical cycle like everyone else.

US antitrust push invites creative dealmaking

4 Apr 2024

Policymakers and trustbusters are eyeing new restrictions on mergers and acquisitions. In this Viewsroom podcast, Breakingviews columnists unpack some imaginative workarounds being used by companies ranging from Big Tech to fast food.