Hong Kong protests

“South Park” makes an anti-diplomat out of Viacom

8 Oct 2019

The animated series is banned in China after it poked fun at Hollywood’s willingness to self-censor. Owner Viacom’s business in the PRC makes it vulnerable to reprisals. For now, it can enjoy the soft power that comes from being one of few U.S. brands prepared to speak its mind.

Hong Kong financial alarm button blinks faster

8 Oct 2019

Emergency laws enacted on Friday triggered a weekend of clashes, during which protesters trashed mainland-linked stores. The subway shut and queues formed at stores and ATMs. Local dollars are already being swapped for greenbacks: more panic will fuel human and capital flight.

Indonesia can learn from Hong Kong’s unrest

4 Oct 2019

Unpopular legislative changes have triggered street clashes, just as in the former British colony. It’s early enough for President Joko Widodo to defuse the tension and salvage his anti-graft credentials. Otherwise, tackling labour laws and other thorny fixes will get tougher.

Hong Kong’s next phase starts with ominous bang

2 Oct 2019

Police shot a protester during clashes on Communist China’s 70th anniversary, in contrast to Xi Jinping’s message of peaceful development. Beijing’s quandary also became starker: it needs to restore calm for economic stability, but tougher intervention will fuel further unrest.

Hong Kong’s politics could knock down developers

27 Sep 2019

In a sign that protests have hit real estate, officials rejected offers for a plot at the former airport as too low. Things could get worse with perception growing in Beijing that property titans are partly to blame for the unrest. It heralds policy changes that crimp earnings.

Jardine maps a road to younger Asia for its peers

20 Sep 2019

The $41-bln conglomerate turned to the southeast when it moved out of Hong Kong ahead of 1997. It thrived, betting on cars in Indonesia and milk in Vietnam. Those economies have cooled of late but long-term prospects, plus uncertainty up north, will encourage more to follow.

Moncler sings like canary in China’s lux coal mine

18 Sep 2019

Boss Remo Ruffini’s statement of the obvious, that Hong Kong protests will dampen sales of its bling puff jackets, is a warning sign for rivals. With unrest deterring shopping-mad tourists, fully rebuilding on the mainland what’s been lost in the Fragrant Harbour will be tough.

Carrie Lam climbdown hints at Beijing’s priorities

5 Sep 2019

Hong Kong’s chief executive withdrew a controversial extradition bill, probably with central government approval. Her other comments implied that mainland officials are focused on risks to China’s positive international image. Trade negotiators should take note.

Hong Kong leader’s overdue concession is a start

4 Sep 2019

Carrie Lam has formally withdrawn an extradition bill which triggered months of often violent anti-government demonstrations. The local market, and battered brands like Cathay Pacific, have rallied. It will take more to appease protesters and keep that recovery going.

Capitalist amnesia enables China’s tough line

2 Sep 2019

Violence in Hong Kong has worsened. A Reuters report, meanwhile, says Beijing rejected compromise with protesters. Investors have ignored ugly crackdowns before, including in Xinjiang; such indifference feeds cynical expectations that harsh measures may be forgiven again.

Hong Kong’s jittery shoppers are a bad omen

30 Aug 2019

Anti-government protests dragged retail sales down 11.4% in July. It’s an early measure of what unrest will cost an economy already on the edge of recession. After past crises like SARS, consumption recovered swiftly; a cooling China and other factors suggest this pain will last.

Hong Kong’s pain offers Singapore a little gain

29 Aug 2019

Anti-government protests have fed demand for visas and safe-haven pads abroad. Singapore has warned wealth managers not to take advantage. Officials fear instability, and angering Beijing, would overwhelm any benefit. The Lion City can offer softer lessons instead.

Hong Kong leader boxes herself into a corner

26 Aug 2019

Carrie Lam keeps failing to defuse a crisis of her own making. Increasingly out of touch, she has become a liability as the economy suffers and China’s anniversary approaches. It’s getting harder to see how she will be the one to find a compromise that subdues violent protests.

Viewsroom: How to read the recession runes

22 Aug 2019

A U.S. downturn is near, judging by past early warning signals from yield curves to bank valuations. But fallout from the 2008 crisis has sapped them of some predictive power. Plus: what the exit of Cathay Pacific’s CEO says about Beijing’s response to the Hong Kong protests.

Beijing’s Hong Kong hard line threatens everyone

22 Aug 2019

President Xi Jinping has peaceful options to calm protests. Instead state media are talking treason and terrorism; the army is on standby. That China would even consider sacrificing its prize financial centre for nationalism shows economic pragmatism is being overruled by anger.

Alibaba drives home costs of Hong Kong unrest

21 Aug 2019

The Chinese giant will delay a mooted $15 bln listing in the Asian hub after brewer AB InBev shelved its own. A trade war and protests are a poor backdrop for big offers. That will deter others and land a fresh blow to a city where business confidence is rapidly on the decline.

Twitter deserves a follow for China mute and block

20 Aug 2019

The $32 bln social network suspended state-backed accounts trying to subvert protests in Hong Kong. It also will stop taking ads from government-controlled media. Beijing’s wedge issue is a good opportunity for Facebook, YouTube and others to reconsider profiting from propaganda.

Li Ka-shing raises fresh glass to diversification

19 Aug 2019

Hong Kong’s richest man is buying the Greene King pub chain for $5.6 bln including debt. Most of his empire’s sales are abroad already. But given the deal injects new capital into the UK, it’s still a boon for Brexit Britain and a minor thumbs-down for his troubled home turf.

Cathay shakeup clarifies China’s corporate muscle

16 Aug 2019

Boss Rupert Hogg and a top deputy resigned abruptly after the $5 bln airline scrambled to quell a mainland backlash related to Hong Kong protests. State carrier Air China owns a smaller stake than Swire, but Beijing’s sway looks bigger. The timing couldn’t be worse for Cathay.

Unrest is recurring cost of Hong Kong’s stinginess

16 Aug 2019

Since demonstrations rocked the city in 2014, economic roots of dissatisfaction have worsened. Housing prices rose, tycoons’ dominance increased, and officials made token gestures while hoarding fiscal reserves. Today’s protests are political, but inequality feeds the flames.