Transportation

Jack Ma enlarges his Chinese payments peloton

5 Dec 2017

Having invested in bike-sharing giant Ofo, Alibaba affiliate Ant is putting another $300 mln into rival Youon. That's 80 mln potential users to lock into Ma's Alipay system. The move reflects rising stakes in a cutthroat battle with Mobike, backed by payments rival Tencent.

Viewsroom: Uber’s hard route back onto the road

30 Nov 2017

The ride-hailing app has hit a damaging set of speed bumps including accelerating losses, a bruising court battle with Alphabet and covering up a security breach. But new Chief Executive Dara Khosrowshahi’s most important challenge is proving the firm can handle the long haul.

GM drives towards self-disruption

30 Nov 2017

The biggest U.S. automaker reckons its technology and expertise give it the edge in autonomous vehicles, and that it could one day make more money at better margins from robo-taxis than its current business. That’s a challenge to how investors think as much as to Uber and Google.

Uber’s year of efficiency backfires

29 Nov 2017

The ride-hailing app’s 2017 goal was to grow while minimizing subsidies and cash burn. Instead, quarterly losses accelerated to nearly $1.5 bln. Uber faces a slew of problems, but has yet to answer a basic existential question: can it develop a sustainable business model?

Uber backers face head-on collision with greed

28 Nov 2017

SoftBank is offering to buy shares in the ride-hailing firm at a $48 bln valuation. Even with a 30 pct markdown to the last fundraising, investors could cash out and make many multiples of their money. The prospect of a $500 bln colossus, however risky, will cloud the thinking.

Uber cover-up makes new boss’s job even harder

22 Nov 2017

The ride-hailing app paid off hackers but didn’t tell regulators, or 57 mln people whose data might have been exposed. It’s an ugly coda to ex-CEO Travis Kalanick’s irresponsible reign. With Uber’s London future, for one, in the balance, Dara Khosrowshahi has his work cut out.

Uber-Volvo deal scrapes self-driving surface

20 Nov 2017

Providing 24,000 vehicles for the ride-hailing service’s autonomous fleet could pump $1 bln into the Swedish carmaker’s tank. While a decent chunk, the car industry of the future ought to generate multiples of that from running robo-taxis and selling a plethora of other services.

Uber and Geely perform flying-car stunts

15 Nov 2017

Both the U.S. ride-sharing company and the Chinese automaker have bet on Jetsons-like transport. The deals may generate some helpful buzz, but driverless vehicles are a more immediate prize. And as drone makers also have found, regulation is a bigger problem than innovation.

Qatar Airways gets seat for any Cathay dealmaking

5 Nov 2017

The Middle Eastern group is buying 9.6 pct of the troubled Hong Kong outfit for $661 mln. Building small stakes in rival airlines rarely works well. But should top shareholder Swire seek to sell, it now has a second party to play off against Air China, Cathay’s other big backer.

Twin tailwinds help Ryanair weather pilot crisis

31 Oct 2017

The 20 bln euro no-frills airline will meet its full-year profit goal despite a rostering mess that cost it thousands of flights. Passenger numbers were up 11 pct in the six months to September. Ryanair’s fare cuts helped, but it also got lucky with rivals’ bankruptcies.

Fiat Chrysler looks boxed in by M&A options

24 Oct 2017

Sergio Marchionne's revamp is picking up speed. But the carmaker is still worth little more than half the 40 bln euros at which the Agnelli family might consider a sale. That figure is beyond Chinese suitor Great Wall and a stretch for global peers. Fiat may be stuck where it is.

Wanderlust, not shopping, drives China tourism 2.0

9 Oct 2017

More people spent China's "Golden Week" holiday on Thai beaches than in Hong Kong malls. As Chinese tourists eschew shopping for sight-seeing, offshore luxury retailers could lose custom. But as the travelling middle class spreads out, there are bound to be more winners.

Amazon’s delivery self-help may have AWS effect

5 Oct 2017

The e-commerce goliath's web needs led it to build something for itself that became a big and profitable business. Jeff Bezos is now testing a way to ship goods to save money, a venture that could threaten UPS and FedEx. Amazon's solutions are a growing problem for others.

Ford’s clever electric van plan in China

4 Oct 2017

The U.S. carmaker is changing course in China, insiders told Reuters, as sales slow. New state policies open an opportunity for Ford to build electric commercial vehicles. That could help meet quotas - and electrify Ford SUVs. Much depends on the partner, and battery supply.

Warren Buffett is wise to keep on truckin’

3 Oct 2017

The Berkshire Hathaway boss has a soft spot for old-school businesses, even ones facing tech upheaval. His investment in truck-stop operator Pilot Flying J, with some $20 bln in revenue, fits the nostalgia bill. It'll be a long haul before electric and driverless rigs cruise by.

Two rights at Uber in danger of making a wrong

2 Oct 2017

Travis Kalanick's newly appointed directors add useful expertise to a flawed board. And the effort by incumbents to limit the ousted founder's power as part of a deal to raise capital from SoftBank also makes sense. Both stand to lose if they dig in too firmly against each other.

Lyft IPO would amplify Uber’s troubles

28 Sep 2017

The ride-hailing firm is readying to go public as early as next year, Reuters reports. It would be an opportunistic way to capitalize on its larger rival’s self-inflicted damage. Additional capital for the No. 2 U.S. player would merely compound the frontrunner’s injuries.

Italy gets narrow lead in race for EU naval giant

28 Sep 2017

Shipbuilder Fincantieri has won conditional control over French rival STX, which Paris nationalised suddenly in July. The pact defuses a cross-border diplomatic row. But the real battle will be fought over the ownership of a European naval champion that is now in the making.

Alstom gains upper hand in Franco-German rail deal

27 Sep 2017

The French group’s shareholders will own nearly half the combination with Siemens’ train unit, despite contributing just a third of the operating profit. Alstom also keeps its CEO and head office. Hefty cost savings and the creation of a European champion justify the concessions.

Fortum price for Uniper implies another bite later

27 Sep 2017

The Finnish power group will offer 8.1 billion euros for its German target. E.ON, with 47 percent of Uniper, is on board, but other shareholders can reasonably expect a bigger premium. If Fortum wants full ownership, it may take more time – and more money.