financializer news A weblog highlighting financial topics making news in the international media.

emerging economies: Its stock price has fallen by a third since the start of 2016, according to Euro News. Thiam, who was hailed as a star strategist and Asia expert when he took over the bank in July, said he would stick with his plan to focus more on wealth management in emerging economies and cut costs in the investment bank, despite the turbulent start to markets this year. The shares fell more than 13 percent on Thursday to hit their lowest level since 1992 after Switzerland second-largest bank signalled a difficult start to the year. We have a clear strategy, clearly we are implementing it in difficult markets and our outlook for the first quarter remains very cautious, Thiam told an analyst call. very unique market conditions and they are challenging, but fundamentally we are maintaining the objectives and the targets we have presented . The bank aims to generate 9-10 billion Swiss francs in pretax profit by 2018, and Thiam said it could use extra cost cuts as well as revenue growth to hit the target. Four months on from when Thiam set out his strategy, many analysts are still unsure how Credit Suisse will hit growth targets, which include more than doubling Asia Pacific pretax income by 2018. Pretax profit at its core business shrank to just 88 million francs in 2015. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

potential partners: Gou has asked for Sharp directors and banks to also join the meeting, though it not clear who will attend, said the person, according to The Japan Times. Sharp Chief Executive Officer Kozo Takahashi told reporters Thursday that neither of the potential partners is preferred over the other at this point, contradicting several media reports. Gou asked for the session Thursday after Sharp told investors it planned to keep negotiating for another month with both Foxconn and rival bidder Innovation Network Corp. of Japan, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private. Sharp board had earlier planned to make a decision on the day on its favored bailout partner, people familiar with the matter had said. The battle has drawn attention as a test case of Japan willingness to open its economy, following Prime Minister Shinzo Abe appeal for market reforms and overseas investments to boost growth. Both parties are on the same footing, Takahashi said. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

Middle East Singapore: As offshore authorities seek to track money flows involving Malaysia troubled government investment fund, fresh questions are rising about doing business in the country, according to Bloomberg. Crisscrossing countries from Switzerland to the U.S., Middle East and Singapore, investigators are chasing a trail of transactions linked to 1Malaysia Development Bhd. Bankers quizzed. With the probes potentially running for years, investors and analysts say it may damage the perception that Malaysia is trying to become a more transparent place. Debt-ridden 1MDB, which is in the process of being broken up, was touted as the vehicle for the government to spur growth, investing mainly in property and power generation. The risk is political, economic and commercial. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

dollar index DXY: Intraday swings in equities over the past few days have frustrated some traders and market strategists, according to Market Watch. There is no rhyme or reason for recent price moves, it certainly feels like the market is run on pure emotion. Wall Street shares tracked fluctuations in crude-oil prices throughout much of the day, pushing stocks in and out of positive territory. It is a unique time of confusion, said Michael Antonelli, equity sales trader at R.W Baird & Co. The greenback on Thursday continued its charge lower, with the ICE dollar index DXY, +0.07% down 0.8% to 96.53. Antonelli said volatility in oil and currency markets might be driving rapid changes in strategies, causing wild swings in the S&P 500. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

opinion polls: Enda Kenny Fine Gael, whose lead is slipping in opinion polls that suggest an inconclusive outcome, said it would use 40 percent of the resources on spending, invest 10 percent in jobs and save the other 25 percent in a contingency fund, according to Euro News. The 10 billion euros of so-called fiscal space – a major focus of the campaign so far – is predicated on the economy growing by around 3.5 percent a year between 2017 and 2021, which Finance Minister Michael Noonan said was conservative. Ireland prime minister called elections for Feb. 26 on Wednesday, kicking off a campaign set to be dominated by a fractious debate over how the resources freed up by the country strong economic recovery should be spent. There is no money to fund anyone promises unless the recovery continues. We also know there are risks both internal and external, Noonan told a news conference. We’re modest in our assumptions. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

oil prices: In 2009, the last time that oil prices tanked and the government coffers became a bit sparse, the Kremlin talked openly about privatizing a number of state-owned companies, according to The Moscow Times. Impressive sounding plans were released, and officials mouthed the pieties about "attracting investment" and "improving efficiency." Nothing came of this campaign , but it established a precedent that is being repeated. This is particularly true of "privatization," a typically boring and technical term studiously avoided during periods of stability and then suddenly thrust back into the public consciousness during periods of crisis. As the economy experiences a nasty recession and pressure on the government budget mounts, the Kremlin is once again mulling the initiation of a large-scale program of privatization. It no secret that government-owned companies almost always lack the incentives needed for long-term profitability. Both in 2009 and in 2016, the official justification for privatization is familiar: privatization will both raise money to plug holes in the budget and, perhaps even more importantly, will make the economy as a whole more competitive. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

profit growth: While its sales slumped by 40 percent each year in 2013 and 2014, the company achieved an annual profit growth of 10 percent, according to Xinhua China. The firm relocated its low-end, labor-intensive production lines to Vietnam, but made Suzhou a base for research and development on new high-end products due to the mature investment environment and complete industrial chain, Han Jiang, an official at the park, said. "That move is quite typical," Han told Xinhua. "The land in the park is being used up. The change is best summed up by two seemingly inconsistent figures from a computer company invested in by electronics multinational Samsung in the industrial park of the eastern city of Suzhou. The workers are no longer cheap. Foreign investment in manufacturing in China barely increased last year, but that in hi-tech manufacturing rose 9.5 percent year on year, accounting for 23.8 percent of the total, official data showed. Our focus in introducing foreign investment should be different in the future." While some foreign investors in China feel the pinch of slowing GDP growth, rising wages and more expensive resources, others find success in adapting to the economy pivot by turning their business towards higher-end products and services. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

winter weather: Officials have said that winter weather was the driving force behind the decline, according to Nine News Australia. Germany, which has some 80 million inhabitants, has seen more migrants arrive than any other European country. The Interior Ministry said 91,671 people were registered as asylum seekers in January, compared to 127,320 who arrived in December. Nearly 1.1 million came last year and officials are keen to ensure that the figures are lower this year. However, the government has moved to toughen asylum policies and has gradually toughened its tone. Chancellor Angela Merkel insists that diplomacy is the key to a solution, and has resisted pressure for unilateral measures such as a cap on refugee numbers. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

public private property: On January 22, officials implemented the nationwide curfew to counter large-scale demonstrations over a lack of jobs and abundance of poverty, according to CNN. The Interior Ministry explained then that the move, prohibiting people from being out between 8 p.m. and 5 a.m., was to to protect public and private property from attack. The decision affects "the whole territory," according to the ministry Facebook page. Protests about scarce jobs and an ineffective government also drove similar unrest five years ago and spurred authoritarian President Zine el Abedine Ben Ali to flee in January 2011 -- making Tunisia the first of what would become several nations in the Arabic-speaking region in North Africa and the Middle East where popular uprisings led to the ouster of longtime leaders. Read More Tunisia, though, had long been hailed as the exception. Turmoil followed in other countries such as Libya and Egypt that were also caught up in what was called the Arab Spring, while protests in Syria spiraled into a bloody civil war that still rages today. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

Memphis office: Since then, everything has felt exciting but uncertain, according to CNN. Today, in this Memphis office, they hope to learn what happens next. A large sign surrounded by red, white and blue bunting says "Welcome." A poster proclaims "Hope for a Better Life" above a quote from former U.S. President Jimmy Carter that describes America as "a nation of immigrants." It a warm day in September, 10 weeks after Jesús and his mother got off a Greyhound bus in Tupelo, Mississippi, and reunited with his father after 13 years apart. An insurance ad flashes across a TV screen on the other side of the room, showing sparkling blue water and the Statue of Liberty. Throughout the exhausting maze of Greyhound bus rides that took him across the southern United States in the summer of 2014, Jesús had one goal in mind: meeting his father. Read More Jesús tells his mom he wants to visit the landmark someday."I want to climb inside," he says, "and see what in her head."The long road to reunion One thought occupied Jesús' mind in the summer of 2014: "Voy a conocer a mi papá." I am going to meet my father. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

illegal fund-raising: Related agencies and local governments should pay high attention and strengthen their efforts to crack down on illegal fund-raising in a bid to protect people interests and fend off systemic risks, according to the document, according to Xinhua China. A long-term prevention mechanism should be established, the document said. It is an important guarantee for economic stability and social harmony to prevent the happening of such cases and properly deal with the aftermath, said the document released by the State Council, China cabinet, on Thursday. The document was released to the public after police found online P2P broker Ezubao cheated about 900,000 investors out of more than 50 billion yuan by fake investment projects. Ezubao is not an isolated case in China. An executive from the parent company has admitted it was nothing but a Ponzi scheme. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

Mr Tehan: Five tax brackets exist now: zero, 19 cents, 32.5 cents, 37 cents and 45 cents in the dollar, according to Nine News Australia. Mr Tehan pointed to the Henry Review which identified potential gains in shifting to three brackets with most income earners in a single bracket of 35 per cent, a higher tax bracket for those earning over $180,000 and a tax-free bracket for those earning under $25,000."Only tax reform that includes all options allows us to address the major flaws in our tax system, particularly bracket creep," the MP said. Liberal MP Dan Tehan said Australia faces a choice between the status quo or continuing economic reform to reduce marginal rates impacting on average weekly earnings by reducing direct taxation in favour of indirect taxation."The problem is that for average and lower income workers they are already slowly bleeding," he writes in Fairfax Media on Friday. Unless people were earning more than $180,000, bracket creep would mean inflation and wage rises would slowly push Australians into higher tax brackets. Shadow Treasurer Chris Bowen said Mr Tehan was one of a "cacophony" of ideas being floated by Liberal MPs."Liberal MPs are all over the shop when it comes to tax," he told ABC radio. Workers earning the average annual wage of $80,000 would see every dollar earned over that amount taxed at 37 cents."With no changes, in seven years these average earners might be earning 30 per cent more in wages but end up paying 50 per cent more in tax," he said. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

: One by one, some of the Wall Street richest and most powerful folks slide out of the back seats and, glancing around them to ensure they aren’t being observed, quickly enter a mansion to attend a secret meeting, according to The Guardian. It may sound like a scene from a movie, and eerily like the events from the 1957 high-level mafia get-together at a sleepy upstate New York hamlet that finally confirmed the existence of organized crime. A fleet of shining chauffeured limousines pulls up. But it really happened, first last August, and again last December, in New York City. The Wall Street representatives participating in what one newspaper has described as secret summit meetings included Jamie Dimon, CEO of JP Morgan Chase, Warren Buffett and the heads of three of the world four largest asset management firms. Whether you believe it or not, the point of the hush-hush gathering wasn’t to corner the gold market or any such silliness, but to protect us all from the more toxic elements in the financial world, and their short-term thinking. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

Anglo American: What happened The short answer is that the market suspects the US Federal Reserve is having second thoughts about increases in interest rates, according to The Guardian. Nor is the idea wildly speculative. Anglo American up 20%, Glencore 16% higher, BHP Billiton 11% dearer, even the Shell colossus advanced 6%. These are huge moves. William Dudley, a top Fed official, said on Wednesday that monetary conditions had tightened since December quarter-point rise and rate setters would have to take note. Translation: the Fed probably won’t raise in March. Further strengthening in the dollar, added Dudley, could have significant consequences for the health of the US economy. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

economic minister: Two deputy ministers and Ukraine trade representative have also resigned, according to The Guardian. The parliament has reportedly begun debating whether to accept the resignations. The economic minister, Aivaras Abromavičius, resigned on Wednesday, and was followed on Thursday by his first deputy, Yulia Kovaliv, and the rest of his team. Related:The missing: what have they done with our sons Lily Hyde Parliamentary speaker Volodymyr Groysman on Thursday warned that Ukraine was entering a serious political crisis , calling for the government coalition agreement to be rewritten with a new plan for economic growth and the reform of the judicial and electoral systems. His resignation letter on Wednesday marked a major blow to the president, Petro Poroshenko, and the coalition government, who have come under increasing fire for the slow pace of reforms. A former fund manager born in Lithuania, Abromavičius was one of a group of reform-minded foreign officials hired for their international experience and lack of local corruption networks after a pro-western government took power in 2014. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs: Chllr #Merkel: GER pledges €2.3bn until 2018 for internat org helping victims in #Syria &the region. #Support Syrians https://t.co/yc6mFdZaYq— German Foreign Office February 4, 2016 The UN and the charities are hopeful that funding goals will be reached and pledges actually delivered upon after several years in a row of funding shortfalls, as an unending wave of refugees fleeing more than five years of conflict in Syria literally wash up on Europe shores. "We hope and expect to raise significant new funding," said Jens Laerke, spokesman of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, which assembled the UN-led appeal, according to Deutsche Welle. The United Kingdom pledged $1.75 billion in new aid by 2020, while the United States pledged $900 million , bringing its total contribution to $5.1 billion in five years. The pledge was made at the opening of an international donors conference in London, where a UN-coordinated appeal by dozens of agencies is calling for $7.7 billion to respond to the humanitarian disaster in Syria, while regional governments are asking for $1.2 billion. Europe caught off guard Donor countries in Europe were caught off guard by the influx of refugees and are struggling to keep them in the region. German Development Minister Gerd Müller told DW in an interview the London conference must send a strong signal from the international community that the refugee crisis needs to be solved locally. Motives to increase funding are both humanitarian and out of self-interest, but there is now a sense of urgency to keep refugees close to their homes. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

: On Wednesday, it dived 559.43 points, according to The Japan Times. The Topix ended down 17.46 points, or 1.24 percent, at 1,388.81, after losing 45.77 points the previous day. The Nikkei average fell 146.26 points, or 0.85 percent, to close at 17,044.99. Selling took the upper hand from the outset of Thursday trading, briefly pushing down the Nikkei average below 17,000 early in the morning session. The dollar fall was caused by weaker-than-expected U.S. economic data and dovish remarks by U.S. Federal Reserve Bank of New York President William Dudley, brokers said. Worries about deteriorated earnings at export-oriented companies weighed down the market due to the higher yen. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

Super Bowls: Overall, this now has happened after 40 of the 49 Super Bowls, for an 82% completion rate, according to Market Watch. Up or down, it is a phenomenon known as the Super Bowl Predictor, and some say its longtime guardian, who is nearly 90 years old , should be in the Hall of Fame by now, either of investing or football. As illogical as it sounds, for seven years in a row the outcome of the game has foretold the stock market direction for the year. Wall Street analyst Robert H. Stovall actually is the first to admit that the Predictor has no scientific basis. And Wall Street has a tradition of quirky indicators, perhaps because serious indicators fail so often. Still, academics have studied it. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

Dow Industrials DJIA: Russ Koesterich, chief investment strategist at Black Rock, referenced the chart below in his weekly outlook Wednesday: Caption outside of wrapper for normal article images While Democratic presidents are often credited with presiding over better stock-market returns than their Republican counterparts, Koesterich argued that the difference isn’t statistically significant, according to Market Watch. We start with 114 years of Dow Industrials DJIA, +0.49% annual price returns. Just don’t trade on them. While U.S. stocks have done modestly better when a Democrat has occupied the White House, the effect is dwarfed by the normal variation in annual equity market returns, he wrote. But this, too, withers under scrutiny, Koesterich says: This concept seems to have its genesis in the extraordinary equity market performance of the late 1990s, a period when U.S. equities regularly produced annual double-digit returns. Koesterich also trains his sights on the widely held market belief that a divided government—a Democratic president and a Republican Congress, or vice versa—is better for stocks. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

shekels: Nestle offered 3.3 billion shekels or 82.5 shekels per share for the Osem shares it does not own, Osem said in a filing to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, adding that the deal would value the company at 9.13 billion shekels, according to Euro News. That well above Wednesday closing price of 65.71 shekels and higher than an offer of 80 shekels it made to the company in November that led to an agreement in principle to sell. Nestle has invested in Osem for over 20 years and already owns 63.7 percent of the company, Israel third-largest food maker by sales, competing with market leader Tnuva and Strauss Group . China Bright Food bought control of Tnuva last year for $1.1 billion to gain access to new products and technology. Upon completion of the deal … the company will become a private company that is fully owned by Nestle, Osem said. Osem shares surged on the news and were trading up 22 percent at 80.23 shekels at 1514 GMT. Nestle was down 1.5 percent to 74.05 euros. Following the buyout, Osem shares would be delisted from the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

Tagged under shekels, China Bright Food topics.

privatization plan: Alrosa, Rosneft and Bashneft were included in an existing privatization plan and are already traded on stock markets, making them easiest to sell, Ulyukayev said, according to the TASS news agency, according to The Moscow Times. The government shares in Basheft and Alrosa are together worth around 600 billion rubles at current market prices, and a 19.5 percent share in Rosneft proposed for sale could raise a further 500 billion rubles . Other companies mooted for sale include shipping company Sovkomflot and a stake in banking group VTB, together worth a further 100 billion rubles. Officials have touted a major sale of state companies as a way to fill a gaping hole in budget revenues due to the low price of oil. President Vladimir Putin at a meeting with officials and heads of state companies on Monday said companies should not be sold at giveaway prices, and added that the government should maintain control over strategic firms and buyers should be registered in Russia. It is also unclear who would buy the shares amid a Russian recession and financial sanctions imposed during the Ukraine crisis in 2014. With share prices — and therefore government revenues from their sale — low, analysts have questioned whether major privatization will go ahead. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

medical data: The man, 48, went to the nearest clinic after the incident, and was diagnosed with four fractured ribs and multiple bruises, the report said, adding the medical data was forwarded to police, according to The Moscow Times. The alleged victim said he lived near the Avoska store, frequently shopped there, had no intention of stealing anything, and picked up the skillet to show it to his wife who accompanied him to the supermarket, Life News reported. Video footage that Life News said was captured by closed circuit cameras at an Avoska supermarket in southern Moscow showed security guards grabbing a man, pushing him past the cash registers and outside the retail space — even as the man tried to hold on to a railing — and throwing him of the floor. Shoplifting in Russia has reportedly been on the rise amid the nosedive of the ruble and an economic decline that followed Western sanctions against Moscow for its meddling in Ukraine. Last summer, police detained a security guard from a Pyatyorochka supermarket in southeastern Moscow for allegedly hitting a 7-year-old boy with a electroshock weapon and injuring him, after accusing the child of trying to steal ice cream, NTV television reported at that time, citing Interior Ministry spokesman Andrei Galiakberov. The response by store security guards — usually low-paid employees pressured by their bosses to curtail shoplifting — seems to have been growing increasingly severe, according to accounts on Russia social networks and media reports. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

: Apollo market value has fallen to a level that "to us is kind of an absurdity" but offers "an opportunity, clearly, in terms of repurchasing shares," co-founder Leon Black said on an earnings call with analysts, according to Market Watch. Apollo reported a steep drop in fourth-quarter profit, partly due to fewer sales of its older investments. The New York private-equity firm said Wednesday it plans to purchase up to $250 million of its stock, which has fallen more than 60% from an all-time high in January 2014 on investor concerns that volatile markets will hinder the firm ability to continue delivering big payouts to shareholders. Apollo planned buyback follows KKR & Co. KKR also overhauled how it distributes profits to shareholders in a bid to boost its stock, which is down about 46% over the past year. October announcement that it would purchase up to $500 million of its own shares. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

European Central Bank: The ICE U.S. Dollar index DXY, -0.51% a measure of the dollar strength against a basket of six currencies, fell to a session low of 96.8900, its weakest level since early November and what amounted to a daily drop of more than 2% before paring its decline to 97.9500, a drop of 1.7% on the day, according to Market Watch. The euro EURUSD, +0.5043% traded at $1.1108 late Wednesday in New York, compared with $1.0925 late Tuesday in New York. The buck had trimmed a chunk of its decline by late afternoon in New York as U.S. stocks turned positive heading into the close. It was the euro largest daily gain versus the buck since the European Central Bank unveiled a smaller-than-expected expansion of its stimulus measures on Dec. 3. The pound GBPUSD, +0.3355% traded at $1.4603, compared with $1.4403 late Tuesday. The dollar USDJPY, -0.23% weakened to ¥117.78 Wednesday, compared with ¥119.80 Tuesday. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

Fine Gael: If they fail to close that gap, a less stable outcome beckons, with a minority government, a larger coalition including independent deputies or fresh elections all possible, according to Euro News. Announcing a ballot he hopes will make him his party first two-time prime minister, Kenny appealed to voters to give his government the credit for the turnaround it has overseen. Kenny conservative Fine Gael party is ahead in the polls but short of a majority, even with the support of current junior coalition partner Labour. Five years ago Ireland economy was close to collapse. our public finances are back on track, our economy is growing again… and there is no more bailout, he said in a video on Twitter. Ireland exited its international bailout mid-way through Kenny five-year term, when a quicker and stronger recovery than elsewhere in Europe took hold. This election is about who will keep this recovery going. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.

real estate market: Key pointsNAB predicts house price growth of 1 per cent nationally this year Unit prices expected to fall 1.2 per cent this year Foreign buyers and local investors make up a falling share of the market National Australia Bank latest residential property survey, taken in late 2015, shows sentiment and expectations amongst real estate market participants at +1, according to Australian Broadcasting Corporation. That is down from +10 in the third quarter of 2015, and well below the long-term average of +13. Related Story: Building approvals soar, led by apartment rebound Map: Australia A decline in property investment and foreign buyer activity is expected to reduce house price growth to just 1 per cent over the next two years. NAB said sentiment weakened most noticeably in New South Wales and Queensland, but was lower across the country. Despite Victoria leading sentiment, survey respondents predicted that Queensland would have the largest home price gains over the next two years . The possibility of a more severe correction in the Australian housing market is still remote, although the risks have escalated.NAB economics team Victorian prices were expected to creep 0.7 and then 1 per cent higher over 2016 and 2017, with New South Wales forecast to see no growth and South Australia/the Northern Territory and Western Australia expected to continue seeing modest price falls. "Weakening fundamentals have already seen the market starting to cool, suggesting the best of the price gains are probably behind us," commented NAB chief economist Alan Oster. Victoria now has the nation strongest market sentiment and is the only state tracking above its long-term average, a finding that concurs with recent home price data from Core Logic RP Data. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.