Diplomacy

Taiwan digs trenches in battle for chip talent

17 Aug 2022

Officials may force Foxconn to unwind an $800 mln deal with a Chinese chipmaker. This follows a crackdown on mainland companies poaching engineers, as Taipei tries to keep its tech expertise to itself. It could make a surprisingly powerful defence against hostile Beijing.

U.S.-China relationship bleeds by a thousand cuts

8 Aug 2022

Beijing has suspended bilateral cooperation on drugs, climate, military and crime over Washington’s support for Taiwan. In the near term little changes; actual collaboration was minimal. The diplomatic freeze will nevertheless further poison a $600 bln trade relationship.

China’s economic plight ups Pelosi visit risks

2 Aug 2022

Despite Beijing’s warnings, U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi landed in Taiwan on Tuesday. Slowing growth and supply chain constraints make it hard for China to retaliate against American or Taiwanese firms. Oddly, that makes a military showdown more likely.

Capital Calls: Heineken’s post-Covid bounce

1 Aug 2022

Concise views on global finance: Beer drinkers are quaffing more than before the pandemic, despite higher prices. But the Dutch brewer’s decision to scrap its 2023 operating profit margin target suggests it can’t entirely escape rising costs.

Global food crisis demands urgent Western response

25 Jul 2022

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has pushed up food and energy costs around the globe. The most urgent problems are in poorer countries, write William Rhodes and Stuart Mackintosh. Rich nations offered insufficient help for Covid-19. International bodies can do better this time.

Russian grain deal gives food crisis a partial fix

22 Jul 2022

Moscow has agreed to lift a blockade on 20 mln tonnes of Ukrainian grain. That should reduce the scale of a Middle East food crisis, and ease prices which remain high versus 2021. Still, Russia could always renege on the new deal.

Capital Calls: Royal Mail, Europe’s chip champion

20 Jul 2022

Concise views on global finance: Britain’s postal provider is eyeing a potentially messy separation, but a nationalisation would make more sense; shares of ASML, which provides cutting-edge machines for chipmaking, look more appealing despite inflation and geopolitical worries.

Review: The cat and mouse game of Russia sanctions

15 Jul 2022

In “Freezing Order”, investor Bill Browder describes lobbying to suspend the assets of those responsible for the death of his Russian employee. Moscow used economic interests and U.S. lawyers to undermine the sanctions. The same tactics threaten the response to the Ukraine war.

Saudi can win two ways in global energy reshuffle

13 Jul 2022

U.S. President Joe Biden will plead for more oil on his visit to the kingdom. Riyadh may be tempted to say no. But with China and India buying cheaper Russian crude, diverting shipments could boost selling prices. Close ties could also unlock more western capital for Saudi.

Capital Calls: Amazon/Just Eat Takeaway

6 Jul 2022

Concise views on global finance: The $1.2 trillion e-commerce giant is reprising its deal offering Prime subscribers membership of UK food delivery outfit Deliveroo with the U.S. arm of its $3 billion Dutch rival.

Unilever ice cream mess is only partly cleaned up

30 Jun 2022

The $116 bln group has sold its Israeli Ben & Jerry’s business after the ice cream maker halted sales in the occupied Palestinian territories. Unilever gets to extricate itself from a no-win situation. Yet the hipster dessert’s ongoing autonomy means the two may clash elsewhere.

Capital Calls: Chinese fishermen, UK’s Jupiter

28 Jun 2022

Concise views on global finance: Joe Biden goes after the People’s Republic’s commercial fishing fleet; the fund manager’s new chief executive has an even tougher task than his predecessor.

Capital Calls: Russian default, Inflation and debt

27 Jun 2022

Concise views on global finance: Moscow defaulted on its foreign debt for the first time in over 100 years, leaving bondholders in limbo; the Bank for International Settlements wants rates raised “quickly and decisively”, but is also worried about higher borrowing costs.

Rwanda’s economic refit gets net-positive free ads

22 Apr 2022

Britain and Denmark want to outsource asylum processing to the East African nation infamous for its 1994 genocide. Regardless of their motives, it chimes with leader Paul Kagame’s plan to build an offshore services hub. Handling refugees looks mercenary but supports his goal.

The cost of corporate kowtowing to China

5 Apr 2022

In “America Second”, Isaac Stone Fish lays into executives who suck up to Beijing. He and Pete Sweeney discuss how politics and economics are forcing U.S. companies to reframe their approach, what legislations might be in the pipeline, and whether military conflict is inevitable.

Ukraine truce or not, pre-war order is gone

22 Mar 2022

Investors are cheering any progress in talks between the country and invading Russia. But even if the fighting stops, the West won’t lift sanctions right away. Relations with Russia will take years to mend. And Europe will still crank up investment in energy security and defence.

Nickel gets nixed, French firms linger in Russia

17 Mar 2022

The war in Ukraine is affecting far corners of global finance. In the Viewsroom podcast, Breakingviews columnists explain how the conflict helped bring nickel trading to a halt in London. And why oil giant Total and carmaker Renault are resisting the exodus by Western companies.

Dixon: War boosts need for “green Marshall Plan”

11 Mar 2022

The West needs more allies, not just to turn Russian President Vladimir Putin into a global pariah, but to show China what will happen if it too throws its weight around. A good way to do this is to supercharge its embryonic plan to help developing countries grow in a green way.

Saudi’s MbS will eventually take Biden’s call

10 Mar 2022

America cannot plug the shortfall from cutting off Russian oil. Increased output from OPEC, and particularly Saudi Arabia, is key. De facto leader Mohammed bin Salman isn’t eager to help the U.S. president, but needs the endorsement of Western cash to transform the economy.

EU charts expensive path towards energy freedom

8 Mar 2022

The European Commission wants to lop over 70% off Russian gas use this year by ramping up LNG purchases, green energy and gas storage. It implies Europeans consuming less energy and paying more than feared for what they use. Pooled EU resources may be needed to cushion the blow.