Bloomberg (February 19)
China’s Communist Party appears poised to “play a bigger role in steering its vast technology industry, the latest sign that Beijing intends to exert more influence over swathes of the world’s No. 2 economy.” In response, shares in the nation’s listed chipmakers “slid more than 2% as investors pondered the ramifications of greater state control, which has yielded mixed results so far.”
Tags: Beijing, China, Chipmakers, Communist party, Influence, Investors, Mixed results, No. 2 economy, Ramifications, Shares, State control, Steering. Technology industry
Bloomberg (January 19)
“Chinese stocks just capped another dismal week…. Grim milestones have kept piling up in recent days: Tokyo has overtaken Shanghai as Asia’s biggest equity market, while India’s valuation premium over China has hit a record. Locally, a meltdown in Chinese shares is wreaking havoc on the nation’s asset management industry, pushing mutual fund closures to a five-year high.”
Tags: Asset management, China, Closures, Dismal, Equity market, Grim, Havoc, India, Meltdown, Milestones, Mutual fund, Premium, Record, Shanghai, Shares, Stocks, Tokyo, Valuation
Reuters (November 16)
“Restructuring a restructuring isn’t good news. Alibaba scrapped the spinoff of its prized cloud computing business, blaming U.S. curbs on advanced chips,” causing its shares over 10% lower. “The U-turn dashes market expectations of stability among technology companies after the end of Beijing’s years-long regulatory crackdown. The country’s weak economy and bad geopolitics mean the sector hasn’t yet hit a bottom.”
Tags: Alibaba, Beijing, China, Chips, Cloud computing, Economy, Geopolitics, Market expectations, Regulatory crackdown, Restructuring, Shares, Spinoff, Stability, Technology, U.S.
New York Times (September 7)
“Shares in Apple, the world’s most valuable public company, continued to tumble on Thursday” amid reports of a China “ban on iPhones for government workers.” Apple looks poised “to lose $200 billion of market value, with shares falling about 6 percent over two days to roughly $175.” Ultimately, however, “the ripples will be felt more broadly: If one of the most successful operators in the world’s second-largest economy is at risk, can any Western company thrive there?”
Tags: $200 billion, Apple, Ban, China, Economy, Government workers, iPhones, Market value, Ripples, Risk, Shares, Successful, Thrive, Tumble, Valuable, Western company
Wall Street Journal (August 8)
“July’s gains left hedge funds closing out so-called short positions and cutting risk at the fastest pace in years.” As they race to cover their shorts, they are “providing yet another tailwind for stocks, which have rallied this summer on optimism that a strong economy can withstand higher interest rates.” The rally caught many “short sellers off guard,” and as they “buy the shares back at a high price to limit further losses,” additional demand can drive “prices go even higher.”
Tags: Cutting risk, Gains, Hedge funds, Interest rates, July, Losses, Optimism, Rally, Shares, Short positions, Stocks, Tailwind
Reuters (July 19)
“The TOPIX is up 20% this year and trading near a multi-decade high. Some of the drivers are profound. The Tokyo Stock Exchange is asking companies whose shares trade below book value to disclose plans to enhance their market worth, spurring hopes of share buybacks. And the welcome return of inflation could prompt Japanese companies to invest more and pay higher wages, which would in turn prop up consumer spending.”
Tags: Book value, Buybacks, Drivers, Enhance, High, Inflation, Invest, Japanese companies, Market worth, Shares, Topix, TSE, Wages
South China Morning Post (May 25)
Several factors help explain “the outperformance of Japanese shares.” Improved corporate governance and the end of deflation are important, but “the explanation with the most resonance for investors is Japan’s role as a safe haven in an increasingly risky world. This has taken on added significance because of concerns about the deepening geopolitical rift between the US and China, as well as economic and regulatory risks in China itself.” Japan boasts “the only market in Asia big and liquid enough to offer an alternative to China while still providing exposure to the reopening of its economy.”
Tags: Big, China, Corporate governance, Deflation, Economic, Exposure, Factors, Geopolitical rift, Investors, Japan, Liquid, Outperformance, Regulatory risks, Reopening, Risky world, Safe haven, Shares, US
BBC (November 15)
“Britain’s stock market has lost its position as Europe’s most-valued,” marking “the first time Paris has overtaken London since records began…. The combined value of British shares is now around $2.821 trillion (£2.3 trillion), while France’s are worth around $2.823 trillion.” Factors behind the shift include “a weak pound, fears of recession in the UK and surging sales at French luxury goods makers.”
Tags: $2.823 trillion, Britain, Europe, Fears, First, France, London, Most-valued, Overtaken, Paris, Recession, Records, Shares, Stock market, Surging sales, UK, Weak pound
Sydney Morning Herald (August 10)
“There are 68 trusts in China with about $4.3 trillion of assets – property loans, shares, bonds and commodities – under management, with property accounting for at least $500 billion of the total.” The National Audit Office has been instructed “to inspect the books of the country’s biggest trust firms.” This shows “the increasing concern of the Chinese authorities that the implosion of their property development sector could ignite a wider financial crisis.”
Tags: $4.3 trillion, 68 trusts, Assets, Authorities, Bonds, China, Commodities, Concern, Implosion, Loans, National Audit Office, Property, Shares
New York Times (November 17)
“Pandemic stocks have become passé: Peloton, Zoom and others” are making way “for the shares of ‘reopening’ companies.” The shift in market sentiment “reflects a broader reshuffling of the economy, as Americans return to gyms, concerts and other in-person activities.”
Tags: Concerts, Economy, Gyms, In-person, Market, Pandemic stocks, Peloton, Reopening, Reshuffling, Sentiment, Shares, Shift, U.S., Zoom
