Sustainability

Corona Capital: Ford narrows the gap

30 Jul 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: The Detroit automaker put in a better second-quarter performance than expected. That’s good news for under-pressure CEO Jim Hackett – and allows Ford to close some of the distance to rival GM.

All sides could gain from $42 bln NorNickel reset

28 Jul 2020

An agreed management shakeup would protect the role of CEO Vladimir Potanin, who holds 35% in the Russian miner, and dodge legal disruption. Rusal, with 28%, could eke out more control. Other investors would get a better-run company, and a lower risk of ecological catastrophe.

Corona Capital: Baseball, Gas cloud, Luxury goods

28 Jul 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Baseball’s Covid-19 cases put popular college sports competitions in jeopardy; a recovery in drilling for gas is bad news for the environment; Gucci and other luxury retailers finally embrace the digital revolution.

Silver rally may have a bright, green future

23 Jul 2020

The white metal’s price is up more than gold's so far this year. Silver’s industrial uses mean it shines when lockdowns lift, but there’s a political dimension too. As an ingredient in solar panels, it could benefit from U.S. presidential hopeful Joe Biden’s clean-energy plan.

Hydrogen investing is a lottery worth playing

22 Jul 2020

The element has huge potential as a carbon-free energy source. Prior false dawns, sky-high valuations and the difficulty of identifying which companies will endure are causes for investor caution. But the scale of the opportunity means there’s also a risk of missing out.

Biden’s climate smorgasbord lacks some key dishes

15 Jul 2020

The presidential hopeful borrowed plenty of ingredients for his four-year, $2 trln plan for clean infrastructure and energy. It lacks detail and omits the role of private investors and the fate of fossil-fuel firms. But his politically well-pitched proposal has broad appeal.

Green laggards face a rising tide of short selling

15 Jul 2020

A new BNP Paribas fund will hedge investments in companies embracing the energy transition by betting against shares in refuseniks. Shorting ESG sinners isn’t easy, and has even caused controversy. But as disclosure improves it can play a growing role in sorting sheep from goats.

BlackRock warrants a spot on its climate watchlist

14 Jul 2020

The $6.5 trln asset manager voted against 53 companies for environmental missteps in the past 12 months and put 191 more on notice. It’s much better than the previous year, and necessary after CEO Larry Fink’s call to climate arms. But BlackRock’s own role needs monitoring too.

Corona Capital: Lockdown diets, Beating the Fed

14 Jul 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Covid-19 is prompting diets for both animal and human; and the Fed takes a hit on a garbage deal.

Biden task force lacks sense of dollars

9 Jul 2020

A wish list from the U.S. presidential candidate’s advisers runs the gamut from universal healthcare and zero emissions to racial equity and infrastructure spending, plus tax increases. Missing is much, if any, clarity on the financial equation. Trillions of dollars are at stake.

Biden policy palette would paint Wall Street blue

9 Jul 2020

Proposals from a task force working for the U.S. presidential hopeful would leave high finance worse off, from splitting up banks and raising taxes to giving Americans accounts at the Fed. They’re just ideas, but the broad outlines of a Democratic presidency are becoming clearer.

BBVA’s green bond is the lightest shade possible

8 Jul 2020

The Spanish bank issued 1 bln euros of contingent convertible hybrid debt, with an environmentally friendly label. The perpetual and fungible nature of bank capital muddies the link to sustainable projects. Demand for such debt gives bankers reason to keep pushing the envelope.

Corona Capital: Texas hold it

7 Jul 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: The iconic State Fair of Texas has been canceled as coronavirus cases in the region soar. The decision adds some $500 mln to the Lone Star State’s economic and human toll from the pandemic.

Norilsk Nickel underlines funds’ ESG blind spot

2 Jul 2020

The Russian miner had a bad pollution record even before it leaked 21,000 tonnes of fuel in the Arctic Circle. Passive investors like BlackRock have pledged to engage more closely with ESG miscreants. But when the company is controlled by oligarchs, they may just be ignored.

Corona Capital: Tesla, OPEC

2 Jul 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Tesla speeds past its traditional rivals, and OPEC’s next meeting shapes up to be a bruising encounter.

Oil majors’ Atlantic divide shows up in valuation

2 Jul 2020

U.S. and European producers’ divergence in climate change action is becoming increasingly obvious. Yet investors value Exxon Mobil and Chevron higher than Royal Dutch Shell and BP. At least for now, investors seem reluctant to view energy transition awareness as a good thing.

Tesla market milestone puts Musk pay in overdrive

1 Jul 2020

The Silicon Valley upstart has overtaken Toyota to become the world’s largest carmaker by market worth. Its rapid ride to a $210 bln value also starts the clock on another huge payout for CEO Elon Musk. But production and income show investors have gotten ahead of themselves.

Corona Capital: Drug hoarding, Vacation-free world

1 Jul 2020

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Stockpiling of Covid-19 treatment remdesivir may come back to haunt the Trump administration, while a forecast of $3.3 trillion in lost tourism is more than an inconvenience for some national economies.

BP’s $5 bln chemicals sale is easy bridge to burn

29 Jun 2020

The UK oil major is offloading its remaining petrochemicals assets to privately held Ineos. Selling out of a growth area for an unspectacular price would usually seem like a strategic goof. But BP was a small player, and CEO Bernard Looney needs cash for his zero-carbon pivot.

Central banks have a way to spur greener recovery

24 Jun 2020

Fed chief Jerome Powell and ECB boss Christine Lagarde are purchasing bonds without taking account of whether they are supporting the carbon-intensive status quo. There are good reasons for that. But they can at least demand more disclosure of climate risks before buying.