Guest post: Why Shanghai isn’t challenging Hong Kong
By Shaun Rein of China Market Research Group
“Shanghai will become Asia’s finance center,” the Hong Konger said dejectedly. With “power tilting to the mainland,” he continued, “Hong Kong will become an afterthought.”
Is he right? Are the doomsday scenarios that have haunted Hong Kong since the handover in 1997 finally coming true? Continue reading »
Chileans pinched by rising fuel costs
Turbulent oil markets are terrible news for Chile, whose outward-looking and export-based economy, which is growing strongly, relies on imported energy.
Thus they are also bad for Sebastián Piñera, the president, whose celebrates his first anniversary in office this week with food for thought from the opinion polls. One, by Adimark, showed 49 per cent of Chileans disapprove of him, up from 46 per cent in January and outstripping the 42 per cent who do like him. Another, by Radio Cooperativa and the Universidad Federico Santa Maria, found 61 per cent believed his first year had been below expectations. Continue reading »
Americas markets wrap: Chinese data raises demand fears
Investors sold off risky assets on Thursday as violence in Libya and Chinese trade data raised fears over global growth, sending Latin American stocks lower. Continue reading »
Mapping Libya’s uprising
As the fighting in Libya continues between opposition fighters and Col Muammer Gaddafi’s regime, western nations are debating imposing a no-fly zone and launching targeted air strikes against Gaddafi. The FT’s map shows the latest news from key locations around the country.
BMW makes hay in China
Nobody thanks China, as one FT journalist found when he asked US shoppers whether they were grateful for cheap electrical goods. But BMW shareholders should make an exception. They will receive a record dividend this year, after the German carmaker’s profits benefited from – you guessed it – emerging Asian demand.
The number of BMWs sold in mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan rose a whopping 86 per cent last year to 183,000. That means, over the last five years, nearly half a million BMWs have been sold in those markets – two for every three high-net worth individuals (HNWIs) there. Continue reading »
CEE markets wrap: Turkey up on lower oil price
Equities in central and eastern Europe were mixed on Thursday. Romanian stocks made strong gains despite announcing higher-than-expected inflation, while shares of companies listed on Hungary’s main index fell despite strong bond auctions. Continue reading »
Protests called in gas-rich Azerbaijan
State television in Azerbaijan pumps out such a relentless diet of official propaganda that people here in the country’s capital, Baku, tend to watch foreign channels instead. Why does this fact have any relevance to energy policy?
Well, Azerbaijan is the site of one of the world’s biggest gas projects – the development of the second phase of the Shah Deniz field – and the European Union hopes that supplies from this country will eventually lessen dependence on Russia. Continue reading »
Brazil’s central bank releases the doves
Some central bank statements are like passages from the Bible, open to almost any interpretation. The latest minutes from Brazil’s monetary policy committee (Copom) are an example. The meeting took place last week and resulted in a 50-basis point rise in the bank’s benchmark Selic rate to 11.75 per cent, the second such increase this year.
In the minutes, released today, the committee recognises that the outlook for inflation is “not evolving favourably”, but then goes on to present an “alternative scenario” in which inflation will be above the central bank’s target of 4.5 per cent, plus or minus 2 per cent this year before falling below the target in 2012. Continue reading »
An Arab awakening for Saudi Arabia?
The recent Gulf stock market rout ended this week, with all regional bourses chalking up significant gains. Saudi Arabia, the largest and most liquid Arab equity market, soared 15 per cent thanks to the intervention of government pension funds. But fund managers now say the “relief rally” has been too strong, given the still-uncertain political outlook for the region.
Saudi Arabia is a particular concern, as officials prepare to face protests scheduled to take place on Friday. Continue reading »
Egypt: suspended trading hits brokers
After more than five weeks, it’s still unclear when Egypt’s stock exchange (pictured) will reopen. Trading was suspended on January 27, two days after the start of the protests which brought down the regime of Hosni Mubarak. Several reopening dates were set by officials, then missed.
The main reason, analysts speculate, is that the government expects the market to plummet as soon as it reopens. In the meantime, there’s frustration. Continue reading »
Russia billionaires: resource rich
Russia may have been at the bottom of the Bric league as a direct investment destination last year, but it topped the bill for most number billionaires in the group on the most recent Forbes rich list.
Russia accounts for 15 of the world’s 100 richest people, more than Brazil, India and China combined, according to Forbes latest annual rich list published today. Continue reading »
Asia markets wrap: Chinese carmakers lead falls
By Stephen Smith
Asian stocks fell the most in a fortnight, following surprisingly weak trade data from Beijing and rising Libyan turmoil. Chinese carmarkers were particularly hit after figures revealed that vehicles sales in the country grew at the slowest pace in more than two years. Continue reading »
Deal of day: Woori shuffles forward
By Hyongki Park of mergermarket
Woori isn’t sated yet. South Korea’s second-biggest financial group by assets, this week it sealed the purchase of ailing Samhwa Mutual Savings for $90m, having beaten competition from domestic heavyweights Shinhan Financial Group and Hana Financial Group. Yet that alone doesn’t offer Woori the diversification it seeks. The group has previously stated its ambition of becoming one of the biggest ten financial companies in Asia and the biggest 50 globally.
London headlines
* China reports unexpected trade deficit
* BofA-ML cuts India’s FY12 growth target to 8.2 pct
* Brics becoming billionaire factory
* Dalai Lama to step down as Tibetan political leader
* Bank of Korea raises interest rates, more to come Continue reading »
Barbie in India: a girl’s best friend
Seeking Barbie devotees in the booming markets of Asia, Mattel shifted its focus to India and China two years ago to offset dwindling sales in the US. But it now seems that Chinese girls aren’t so keen on Barbie, after the company shut its flagship Barbie store in Shanghai this week.
So how popular is the American doll in India? Continue reading »
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