advertisement advertisement advertisement advertisement News that real-estate giant Evergrande Group—once China’s top property developer, now Earth’s most heavily indebted—has reached the brink of collapse is causing what you might call “market jitters” today. Evergrande reportedly told banks that it won’t be able to meet the interest payments due today on its loans, and the Dow has responded by tanking more than 700 points so far , the Nasdaq by sinking by 2% , and the S&P 500 by dropping more than 1.5%, that index’s greatest volatility since May . advertisement Why does a single property developer in China have traders sweating bullets? Because the total debt that Evergrande has amassed ($305 billion, literally 2% of China’s GDP) suggests it may be too big to fail, and could have a ripple effect on the global economy if it did. That’s crippling nervous analysts with PTSD; some are calling this “ China’s Lehman Brothers …
China asking state-backed firms to pick up Evergrande assets: Report
Source: AFP Beijing is prodding government-owned firms and state-backed property developers such as China Vanke Co Ltd to purchase some of embattled China Evergrande Group's assets, people with knowledge of the matter said. Evergrande, saddled with $305 billion in liabilities, is teetering on the brink of collapse. But the central government is unlikely to intervene directly to resolve Evergrande's crisis in the form of a bailout, according to six people, including four in government and regulatory bodies. Authorities are hoping, however, that asset purchases will ward off or at least mitigate any social unrest that could occur if Evergrande were to suffer a messy collapse, they said, declining to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter. Close A handful of government-owned enterprises have already done due diligence on assets in the southern Chinese city Guangzhou, said one person. In one emblematic example, Guangzhou City Construction …
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China energy crunch triggers shutdowns, pleas for more coal
- A + A SHANGHAI (Sept 28): China faces mounting pressure to ramp up coal imports and ensure supplies to keep lights on, factories open and water flowing as a severe power crunch roils the northeastern industrial heartland. With electricity shortages sparked by coal shortages crippling large sections of industry, the governor of Jilin province, one of the hardest hit in the world's no.2 economy, called for a surge in coal imports, while a power company association said supply was being expanded "at any cost". News organisations and social media carried reports and posts saying the lack of power in the northeast had shut down traffic lights, residential elevators and 3G mobile phone coverage as well as triggering factory shutdowns. A utility in Jilin even warned power shortages could disrupt water supplies at any time, before apologising for causing alarm. For the second straight day, the main state grid operator sought to reassure customers, saying it would work …
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Foreign attempts to besiege China will fail, Chinese envoy to UK says
Zheng Zeguang - A + A LONDON (Sept 28): Foreign attempts to contain or besiege China will always fail so major powers should avoid colonial thinking that could lead to a confrontation with the world's second largest economy, China's ambassador to London said on Tuesday. China has repeatedly denounced a new Indo-Pacific security alliance among the United States, Britain, and Australia that will provide Canberra with the technology and capability to deploy nuclear-powered submarines. Ambassador Zheng Zeguang, speaking at a ceremony to celebrate the 72th anniversary of the People's Republic, said the Communist Party had thrown off foreign oppressors and rebuilt China by lifting over 770 million people out of poverty over half a century. "Attempts to contain or besiege China have never succeeded in the past and will always be an empty dream in the future," Zheng said. "No one can stop the Chinese people from making further progress." He suggested big powers …
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Bitcoin Falls On China’s Crypto Crackdown. Are These Crypto Stocks Better Picks?
Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Bitcoin prices have declined by almost 7% since Friday, to levels of around $42,000 a unit although it recovered a bit over the weekend. The cryptocurrency also remains down by about 11% over the past month. The recent volatility comes as China’s central bank announced that all cryptocurrency transactions in the country were illegal. While a ban on crypto trading came into effect in China in 2019, it apparently continued via offshore exchanges. With the latest developments, crypto trading of all forms is likely to be shut down in China, and this likely caused liquidation of cryptos, putting pressure on prices. While China’s crypto crackdown is a setback, it probably doesn’t change the course for the broader adoption of cryptocurrencies, which have the potential to be one of the most disruptive technologies of our time. Investors who want to play the long-term upside in cryptocurrency adoption, without exposing themselves to …
How The Shutdown Is A Win For Trump’s Authoritarian Agenda
Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Normally, all leaders, even authoritarians, try to make sure that the trains run on time , or at least that the trains keep running . If government doesn’t function, or workers aren’t paid for doing their jobs, then even the leaders’ most faithful followers risk awakening from their complacency and examining their leaders’ aberrant behavior with brutal scrutiny. President Trump is now testing the outer limits of that leadership playbook by shutting down a quarter of the government—already the longest shut-down in American history—and threatening to continue it “ for months, even a year ,” if he doesn’t get $5.7 billion funding his 2000-mile wall along the Southern border. U.S. President Donald Trump Photographer: Carlos Barria/© 2018 Bloomberg Finance LP © 2018 Bloomberg Finance LP The shutdown is disrupting the lives of millions of citizens, including the mortgage industry, (which had enough political …
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UK to start talks on joining Trans-Pacific trade pact
- A + A LONDON (Sept 28): Britain will begin talks on Tuesday with the 11 members of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) to join the pact it regards as important part of its future post-Brexit trade plans. The CPTPP trade pact removes 95% of tariffs between its members: Japan, Canada, Australia, Vietnam, New Zealand, Singapore, Mexico, Peru, Brunei, Chile and Malaysia. Britain hopes to carve out a niche for itself in world trade as an exporter of premium consumer goods and professional services. Accession to the pact would supplement trade deals London is seeking, or has already agreed, with larger members. Other members of the pact have already met to discuss Britain's application, but Tuesday's virtual meeting will see British attendance at the CPTPP’s UK Accession Working Group, chaired by Japan, for the first time. "This is a big milestone on our path to joining CPTPP, which will allow us to forge stronger links …
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GM’s commercial EV unit to expand vehicle line-up, add Verizon as customer
- A + A DETROIT (Sept 28): General Motors Co (GM) said on Tuesday its BrightDrop commercial electric vehicle (EV) business will add a second delivery van to its line-up in 2023 and has agreed to supply that vehicle to Verizon Communications Inc. GM said the medium-sized EV410, aimed at a segment that includes grocery, telecommunications, and other service providers that require smaller vehicles, will be built starting in the second half of 2023 at the company's CAMI assembly plant in Canada. The Ingersoll, Ontario plant will start building the larger EV600 van in November 2022. "We're seeing incredible demand for these things," BrightDrop chief executive Travis Katz said in an interview. "There's right now a supply shortage, frankly, in the market." Katz, who joined GM from venture capital firm Redpoint Ventures, said EVs now make more sense financially for commercial customers that are focused on the total cost of vehicle ownership. GM claims the EV600 will save …
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Ahmad Zahid not transparent when extending Ultra Kirana’s contract for Foreign Visa System project, court told
Photo by Mohd Suhaimi Mohamed Yusuf/The Edge - A + A Former deputy secretary-general (policy and control) of Home Ministry Datuk Suriani Ahmad said Ahmad Zahid, who was the then home minister, approved the contract extension in a short time without evaluating the performance of Ultra Kirana. SHAH ALAM (Sept 28): The High Court was told on Tuesday that former deputy prime minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi was not transparent and did not follow procedures when extending the contract of Ultra Kirana Sdn Bhd (UKSB) for the Foreign Visa System (VLN) project. Former deputy secretary-general (policy and control) of Home Ministry (KDN) Datuk Suriani Ahmad said Ahmad Zahid, 68, who was the then home minister, approved the contract extension in a short time without evaluating the performance of UKSB. Suriani said the evaluation of a company's performance was important because the company would carry the country's image and it was the government's …
Universal Music Group’s smash-hit IPO is another victory for streaming
advertisement advertisement advertisement advertisement Universal Music Group, the world’s biggest music company, went public in Amsterdam on Tuesday. Shares of the record label—which represents artists like Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, the Rolling Stones, and Drake— jumped by nearly 40% on their first day of trading. (They were down about 4% on Wednesday following the jump.) That was Europe’s largest IPO listing of 2021, giving Universal a market value of over $55 billion and perhaps anyone who wrote off the music industry as doomed something to ponder. advertisement The top 10 bestselling artists from last year were all signed to Universal, so its perceived value isn’t a complete surprise. But it also isn’t difficult to remember the 2000s, when young music fans were tossing their CD storage cases and downloading legally questionable Napster and KaZaA MP3 files to their iPods. That decade, music sales plummeted by half , seemingly a …
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