E-commerce

Corona Capital: LVMH, L’Oréal, Pandemic bonds

16 Apr 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout. LVMH holds onto the luxury of cash, cutting its dividend; L’Oréal makes the best of lockdowns with more than 50% growth in e-commerce sales in the first quarter; and even Covid-19 fails to trigger pandemic bonds.

For staff, Jeff Bezos is more CEO than trailblazer

8 Apr 2020

The Amazon founder has transformed shopping. But the way the $950 bln firm treats its workers is not so futuristic. Like Walmart, it only recently provided protective gear to warehouse employees. That might fit with short-term profit, but not with long-term innovation.

Huawei’s home safety net looks less sturdy

1 Apr 2020

Earnings at the telecoms equipment giant hit $9 bln in 2019, although growth slowed as U.S. curbs whacked overseas handset sales. That has forced a refocus on China. Unfortunately local carriers are spending less than hoped on 5G, and smartphone rivals like Xiaomi look tough.

Meituan Dianping delivers extra side of ESG

31 Mar 2020

The $58 bln Chinese takeaways-to-taxis company expects a rough first quarter after Covid-19 closed eateries and curbed travel. With the outlook hazy, Meituan instead directed investors to the aid it’s providing customers. The initiatives may be useful in a fight against Alibaba.

JD certifies that old buyback habits die hard

18 Mar 2020

The Chinese e-commerce giant unveiled a $2 bln share repurchase plan amid a global crash. A possible second listing in Hong Kong may explain it, and JD is at least using cash on hand. Corporate obsession with such financial engineering probably will be pandemic-proof.

Pinduoduo feels Chinese small shopkeepers’ pain

12 Mar 2020

Petty online merchants hit by the coronavirus outbreak will weigh on the $41 bln e-commerce group’s earnings. Unlike rival Alibaba, Pinduoduo doesn’t host many big brands. The company may have to burn a lot of cash subsidising its stable of struggling mom-and-pop outfits.

DoorDash puts its valuation to the taste test

4 Mar 2020

The SoftBank-backed delivery service filed for an IPO as coronavirus puts extra strain on investors already wary of tech listings. Even on a good day, it may be worth about 40% less than its last $13 bln price tag. Owners are in for a reckoning whether they sell shares or not.

Virus may vindicate JD’s frail e-commerce strategy

2 Mar 2020

China’s $56 bln retailer expects first-quarter sales to rise at least 10%. As peers grapple with supply chain disruptions and labour shortages, JD’s less lucrative model of holding inventory and shipping goods looks more resilient. Pressure for rival Alibaba to follow will grow.

Jeff Bezos climate pledge has more flash than cash

18 Feb 2020

The Amazon boss can without a doubt help with the $10 billion global-warming fund he’s seeding. Microsoft founder Bill Gates could be a role model. But the scale of the climate crisis means even this amount of cash from the world’s richest person has whiffs of do-gooder-ism.

Walmart sales slip sets tone for wider worries

18 Feb 2020

The largest retailer in the United States posted slower-than-expected sales during the critical holiday season. It follows others like Target and Macy’s. Amazon is booming, but Walmart remains a better litmus test for the health of the American consumer.

Alibaba’s virus response is as much VC as ESG

13 Feb 2020

The Chinese e-commerce company is waiving merchant fees and slashing logistics costs. It’s just the sort of relief that local businesses need during a debilitating outbreak. And the startup-like use of cash-burning subsidies should help Alibaba keep customers and find new ones.

Shopify lives high life as e-tailing shovel seller

12 Feb 2020

The $65 bln Canadian software firm dominates a fast-growing niche building and servicing online shops, many of which marry cheap Asian goods with western marketing skills. It’s a combination that can run far. With the stock trading at 31 times estimated revenue, it’ll have to.

Tech deal review puts VCs in regulatory purgatory

11 Feb 2020

Alphabet, Amazon and Facebook are among firms that will be providing data on tiny acquisitions to the FTC under new orders. Transformative deals are also worrying, though the ad hoc scrutiny of tech seems biased. It is the next impediment to VCs exiting investments.

ICE-eBay deal would signal return of merger mania

4 Feb 2020

The $52 bln NYSE owner may want to buy the $30 bln online-commerce firm. There’s little benefit to the combo. But it is the kind of tie-up that frothy markets and a lack of savvy alternatives throw up. Investors’ withering reaction should warn ICE boss Jeffrey Sprecher off a bid.

Bezos-Saudi spat has e-commerce proxy war

3 Feb 2020

Tensions between Riyadh and the Amazon boss may seem a stateside phenomenon. Yet Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Jeff Bezos have backed different horses in the battle for the $34 billion Middle East e-commerce market. That implies risks for both sides.

Amazon cloud, shipping power puts rivals in shade

30 Jan 2020

Jeff Bezos’s e-tailing giant spent heavily last quarter to fend off Microsoft’s surge in cloud computing and retail rivals with faster shipping. It paid off with rapid growth, a fat bottom line and a return to the trillion-dollar club. That should spur Bezos to invest yet more.

Mukesh Ambani’s empire will be cast in fresh light

2 Jan 2020

India’s richest man can reap two big benefits from carving up his sprawling Reliance Industries. First, he would fulfill a promise to make the $130 bln oil-to-telecom conglomerate almost free of debt. It also should help achieve a higher, tech-like valuation from investors.

Africa’s Alibaba looks more lemon than unicorn

19 Dec 2019

Jumia’s post-IPO limp could be life-threatening. The continent’s first billion-dollar tech firm has just enough cash to make it to 2021. But with losses widening due to high delivery costs and short-sellers questioning online transaction numbers, raising more money will be tough.

Ocado does enough to keep investors believing

29 Nov 2019

The 9 billion pound UK online retailer has signed an e-commerce deal with Japan’s Aeon. Ocado is loss-making, and fees are far-off. But like any tech player, its pitch is more about reassuring investors that a punchy valuation is underpinned by growing demand for its know-how.

Alibaba listing opens new front in Tencent rivalry

27 Nov 2019

Hong Kong investors can own both Chinese tech giants after the e-commerce firm’s $11 bln local offering. If regulators permit, the pair will soon be fighting over mainland shareholders, as well as digital payments and cloud computing. Tencent’s scarcity value has been downgraded.