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American Apparel and Footwear Association CEO on tariffs: We're feeling the impact

American Apparel and Footwear Association CEO Rick Helfenbein on mounting concerns over the impact of tariffs on U.S. businesses and consumers.

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  • Bitcoin Tumbles After Musk Implies Tesla May Sell Cryptocurrency

    (Bloomberg) -- Elon Musk continued to whipsaw the price of Bitcoin, briefly sending it to the lowest since February after implying in a Twitter exchange Sunday that Tesla Inc. may sell or has sold its cryptocurrency holdings.Bitcoin slid below $45,000 for the first time in almost three months after the billionaire owner of the electric-car maker seemed to agree with a Twitter post that said Tesla should divest what at one point was a $1.5 billion stake in the largest cryptocurrency. It traded at $45,270 as of 5:51 p.m. in New York, down about $4,000 from where it ended Friday.The online commentary was the latest from the mercurial billionaire in a week of public statements that have roiled digital tokens. He lopped nearly $10,000 off the price of Bitcoin in hours last Wednesday after saying Tesla wouldn’t take it for cars. A few days earlier, he hosted “Saturday Night Live” and joked that Dogecoin, a token he had previously promoted, was a “hustle,” denting its price. Days later he tweeted he was working with Doge developers to improve its transaction efficiency.Musk’s disclosure in early February that Tesla used $1.5 billion of its nearly $20 billion in corporate cash to buy Bitcoin sent the token’s price to record and lent legitimacy to electronic currencies, which have become more of a mainstream asset in recent years despite some skepticism.His latest dustup with Bitcoin started with a tweet from a person using the handle @CryptoWhale, which said, “Bitcoiners are going to slap themselves next quarter when they find out Tesla dumped the rest of their #Bitcoin holdings. With the amount of hate @elonmusk is getting, I wouldn’t blame him...”The Tesla chief executive officer responded, “Indeed.”The twitter account @CryptoWhale, which calls itself a “crypto analyst” in its bio, also publishes a Medium blog on market and crypto trends.Musk has spent hours Sunday hitting back at several different users on Twitter who criticized his change of stance on Bitcoin last week, a move he said was sparked by environmental concerns over the power demands to process Bitcoin transactions. He said at the time that the company wouldn’t be selling any Bitcoin it holds.An outspoken supporter of cryptocurrencies with cult-like following on social media, Musk holds immense sway with his market-moving tweets. He has been touting Dogecoin and significantly elevated the profile of the coin, which started as a joke and now ranks the 5th largest by market value.Dogecoin is down 9.6% in the last 24 hours, trading at 47 cents late Sunday afternoon, according to data from CoinMarketCap.com.Tesla didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment on Musk’s tweet on Sunday.Read More: Elon Musk Just Reopened an Old Wound in the Bitcoin WorldMusk’s Sunday social-media escapades were the latest chapter in one of the zaniest weeks in a crypto world famous for its wildness. For die hards, the renewed slumps in Bitcoin and other tokens have done nothing to deter crypto enthusiasts who say digital coins could many times their current value if they transform the financial system.“We’re looking at the long-term and so these blips, they don’t faze us,” Emilie Choi, president and chief operating officer of crypto exchange Coinbase Global Inc., said last week on Bloomberg TV about the wild swings prevalent in the market. “You’re looking for the long-term opportunity and you kind of buckle up and go for it.”Seat belts were needed by anyone watching the crypto world in the past eight days. Aside from Musk’s antics that sent Doge and Bitcoin on wild rides, a host of other developments pushed around prices.Tether, the world’s largest stablecoin, disclosed a reserves breakdown that showed a large portion in unspecified commercial paper. Steve Cohen’s Point72 Asset Management announced that it would begin trading cryptocurrencies. And a longstanding critique of the space reared its head again: illicit usage.It was reported that the owners of the Colonial Pipeline paid a $5 million ransom in untraceable digital currencies to hackers that attacked its infrastructure, while Bloomberg also reported that Binance Holdings Ltd., the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, was under investigation by the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service in relation to possible money-laundering and tax offenses.But, “for many crypto assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, the long-term story has not changed,” said Simon Peters, an analyst at multi-asset investment platform eToro. “This emerging asset class continues to revolutionize many aspects of financial services, and while nothing goes up in a straight line, the long-term fundamentals for crypto assets remain as solid as ever.”Bitcoin was already swinging wildly on the weekend before Musk tweeted. The two days tend to be particularly volatile for cryptocurrencies, which -- unlike most traditional assets -- trade around the clock every day of the week. Bitcoin’s average swing on Saturdays and Sundays so far this year comes in at 4.95%.That type of volatility is owing to a few factors: Bitcoin’s held by relatively few people, meaning that price swings can be magnified during low-volume periods. And, the market remains hugely fragmented with dozens of platforms operating under different standards. That means cryptocurrencies lack a centralized market structure akin to that of traditional assets.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

  • Bitcoin Tumbles After Musk Implies Tesla May Sell Cryptocurrency

    (Bloomberg) -- Elon Musk continued to whipsaw the price of Bitcoin, briefly sending it to the lowest since February after implying in a Twitter exchange Sunday that Tesla Inc. may sell or has sold its cryptocurrency holdings.Bitcoin slid below $45,000 for the first time in almost three months after the billionaire owner of the electric-car maker seemed to agree with a Twitter post that said Tesla should divest what at one point was a $1.5 billion stake in the largest cryptocurrency. It traded at $45,270 as of 5:51 p.m. in New York, down about $4,000 from where it ended Friday.The online commentary was the latest from the mercurial billionaire in a week of public statements that have roiled digital tokens. He lopped nearly $10,000 off the price of Bitcoin in hours last Wednesday after saying Tesla wouldn’t take it for cars. A few days earlier, he hosted “Saturday Night Live” and joked that Dogecoin, a token he had previously promoted, was a “hustle,” denting its price. Days later he tweeted he was working with Doge developers to improve its transaction efficiency.Musk’s disclosure in early February that Tesla used $1.5 billion of its nearly $20 billion in corporate cash to buy Bitcoin sent the token’s price to record and lent legitimacy to electronic currencies, which have become more of a mainstream asset in recent years despite some skepticism.His latest dustup with Bitcoin started with a tweet from a person using the handle @CryptoWhale, which said, “Bitcoiners are going to slap themselves next quarter when they find out Tesla dumped the rest of their #Bitcoin holdings. With the amount of hate @elonmusk is getting, I wouldn’t blame him...”The Tesla chief executive officer responded, “Indeed.”The twitter account @CryptoWhale, which calls itself a “crypto analyst” in its bio, also publishes a Medium blog on market and crypto trends.Musk has spent hours Sunday hitting back at several different users on Twitter who criticized his change of stance on Bitcoin last week, a move he said was sparked by environmental concerns over the power demands to process Bitcoin transactions. He said at the time that the company wouldn’t be selling any Bitcoin it holds.An outspoken supporter of cryptocurrencies with cult-like following on social media, Musk holds immense sway with his market-moving tweets. He has been touting Dogecoin and significantly elevated the profile of the coin, which started as a joke and now ranks the 5th largest by market value.Dogecoin is down 9.6% in the last 24 hours, trading at 47 cents late Sunday afternoon, according to data from CoinMarketCap.com.Tesla didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment on Musk’s tweet on Sunday.Read More: Elon Musk Just Reopened an Old Wound in the Bitcoin WorldMusk’s Sunday social-media escapades were the latest chapter in one of the zaniest weeks in a crypto world famous for its wildness. For die hards, the renewed slumps in Bitcoin and other tokens have done nothing to deter crypto enthusiasts who say digital coins could many times their current value if they transform the financial system.“We’re looking at the long-term and so these blips, they don’t faze us,” Emilie Choi, president and chief operating officer of crypto exchange Coinbase Global Inc., said last week on Bloomberg TV about the wild swings prevalent in the market. “You’re looking for the long-term opportunity and you kind of buckle up and go for it.”Seat belts were needed by anyone watching the crypto world in the past eight days. Aside from Musk’s antics that sent Doge and Bitcoin on wild rides, a host of other developments pushed around prices.Tether, the world’s largest stablecoin, disclosed a reserves breakdown that showed a large portion in unspecified commercial paper. Steve Cohen’s Point72 Asset Management announced that it would begin trading cryptocurrencies. And a longstanding critique of the space reared its head again: illicit usage.It was reported that the owners of the Colonial Pipeline paid a $5 million ransom in untraceable digital currencies to hackers that attacked its infrastructure, while Bloomberg also reported that Binance Holdings Ltd., the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange, was under investigation by the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service in relation to possible money-laundering and tax offenses.But, “for many crypto assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, the long-term story has not changed,” said Simon Peters, an analyst at multi-asset investment platform eToro. “This emerging asset class continues to revolutionize many aspects of financial services, and while nothing goes up in a straight line, the long-term fundamentals for crypto assets remain as solid as ever.”Bitcoin was already swinging wildly on the weekend before Musk tweeted. The two days tend to be particularly volatile for cryptocurrencies, which -- unlike most traditional assets -- trade around the clock every day of the week. Bitcoin’s average swing on Saturdays and Sundays so far this year comes in at 4.95%.That type of volatility is owing to a few factors: Bitcoin’s held by relatively few people, meaning that price swings can be magnified during low-volume periods. And, the market remains hugely fragmented with dozens of platforms operating under different standards. That means cryptocurrencies lack a centralized market structure akin to that of traditional assets.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

  • Next Digital's future clouded after Hong Kong govt freezes owner Jimmy Lai's assets

    Trading in shares of Hong Kong's Next Digital Ltd was suspended on Monday and worries grew over the pro-democracy media group's future, after authorities froze assets of its jailed owner Jimmy Lai under a new national security law. The shares will remain on a trading halt ahead of a company announcement regarding the freeze in Lai's assets, including his majority stake in the firm, Next Digital said. The move against Lai's assets raises worries about the future of Next Digital, which he has been keeping afloat with loans, although the company's CEO has said that the frozen assets have no link with its bank accounts.

  • Microsoft Conducted Probe on Gates’s Involvement With Employee

    (Bloomberg) -- Microsoft Corp. conducted an investigation into co-founder Bill Gates’s involvement with an employee almost two decades ago after it was informed in 2019 of his attempt to start a romantic relationship with that person.The board reviewed the matter and held a “thorough investigation” with the help of an external law firm, the software giant said. It didn’t reach a conclusion to the probe because Gates had stepped down before it was completed, Microsoft said.“Microsoft received a concern in the latter half of 2019 that Bill Gates sought to initiate an intimate relationship with a company employee in the year 2000,” Microsoft said in a statement. “A committee of the Board reviewed the concern, aided by an outside law firm, to conduct a thorough investigation. Throughout the investigation, Microsoft provided extensive support to the employee who raised the concern.”Dow Jones earlier reported that Microsoft’s directors found Gates’ involvement with the female employee to be inappropriate and decided last year that he had to step down from the board, citing people familiar with the matter who weren’t identified.Microsoft didn’t provide further details on the investigation.The billionaire said in March last year that he was stepping down from the board to devote more time to philanthropy. Gates hasn’t been active in a day-to-day role since 2008, Microsoft said at that time. Gates co-founded the software company in 1975 and served as its CEO until 2000, the same year his foundation was started, and was chairman until February 2014.‘An Affair’A spokeswoman for Gates said his decision to leave the board has nothing to do with the romantic involvement with an employee.“There was an affair almost 20 years ago which ended amicably,” she said, adding that his “decision to transition off the board was in no way related to this matter.”The belated investigation into the affair came at a time that was marked by a groundswell of discussion at Microsoft about the treatment of women and Me-Too conversations in the broader industry. Since 2000, Microsoft had also put in place processes for investigating allegations and overhauled them with the goal of making them stronger, the company said.Intel Corp. Chief Executive Officer Brian Krzanich resigned after the board was informed that he had had a consensual relationship with a subordinate, even though that relationship had ended years before and predated his appointment to the top job at the company. The board conducted investigations internally and via external counsel to confirm the violation of the company’s policies and made the announcement June 2018.Gates and Melinda French Gates announced their divorce earlier this month after 27 years of marriage. Several reports, including those that emerged over the weekend, said she had raised concerns over his dealings with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.The New York Times had reported in 2019 that Gates had met with Epstein several times, and once stayed late at his New York townhouse. Epstein had died in jail two months prior while awaiting trial on federal charges related to sex trafficking.Gates’s spokeswoman denied the reports. The “characterization of his meetings with Epstein and others about philanthropy is inaccurate,” she said. “The rumors and speculation surrounding Gates’ divorce are becoming increasingly absurd.”While Gates’ dealings with Epstein weren’t a part of the scope of the Microsoft investigation, it was discussed by some board members, according to a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified because the information isn’t public.Stock TransfersThe split also put a spotlight on the Gates fortune, valued at about $144 billion by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, as well as their foundation.The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is the largest of its kind on the planet. With more than 1,600 employees and offices around the world, it has already distributed more than $50 billion since its inception to causes like vaccine development and women’s empowerment.Last week, Cascade Investment, the investment company created by Gates, transferred stock in Deere & Co. to his wife, bringing the total amount she’s received since they announced their divorce to more than $3 billion.The investment vehicle transferred about 2.25 million shares worth about $851 million, according to a regulatory filing. That followed similar disclosures tied to Mexican companies Coca-Cola Femsa and Grupo Televisa and about $1.8 billion of stock in Canadian National Railway Co. and AutoNation Inc.Read More: Gates Divorce Roils World’s Biggest Family Philanthropy EngineFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

  • China Offers Banks Nearly $16 Billion to Maintain Liquidity

    (Bloomberg) -- China’s central bank injected medium-term cash into the financial system, in a push to keep borrowing costs stable as China’s economy continues its recovery from the virus pandemic.The People’s Bank of China added 100 billion yuan ($15.5 billion) of one-year funds with its medium-term lending facility on Monday, matching the amount coming due in a move that was expected by analysts. The authorities kept the interest rate unchanged at 2.95%.By keeping liquidity ample, the operation is seen to be supportive of the nation’s liquidity-sensitive stocks and also bonds. The cost on China’s 10-year note was little changed Monday. In the money market, the seven-day repurchase rate rose 19 basis points to 2.18%, near its daily average level over the past year. It recently hit a four-month low.The benchmark CSI 300 Index rose as much as 1.8%. Data showed China’s economic activity moderated in April from its record expansion in the first quarter. That eased concerns about further tightening of fiscal and monetary policies, according to Zhang Gang, a strategist with Central China Securities Co. The nation’s top leaders recently described the recovery as “unbalanced and unstable,” pledging further efforts to drive a rebound in domestic demand.China’s sovereign notes gained for three weeks in a row as of Friday, the longest run since January. That’s even as Treasury yields have climbed and a surprisingly quick jump in the nation’s factory-gate prices were seen to pose a challenge to current monetary policy. Factors behind the resilience include ample liquidity and capital inflows, which accelerated in April. While the loose conditions could be tested by a rise in debt sales in May, the PBOC’s vow to keep cash supply ample has boosted confidence.“The PBOC will stay supportive of liquidity to ensure the supply of local government bonds can be readily absorbed, when inflation does not appear to be a major concern for the central bank,” said Frances Cheung, a rates strategist at Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. Beijing will step up injecting short-term cash soon, she added. “With the expected pick-up in issuance of bonds, chance is for some net injections as and when are needed.”The PBOC has done the minimum in its daily operations to manage short-term liquidity over the past two months. It has been injecting 10 billion yuan of cash daily-- no matter the size of funds coming due -- since the start of March. That’s a sign the central bank is so far pleased with the subdued volatility in the money market.(Updates with market moves in par 3)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

  • Mortgage rates sink deeper below 3%, but experts say the dip won't last

    An improving economy and rising inflation are likely to pull rates higher before long.

  • Is This One Of The Best Ways To Play The Electric Vehicle Boom?

    In the not-so-distant future, a majority of drivers probably won’t even own the cars they drive in, instead they may join the rising phenomenon of car subscription services

  • Getting a tax refund? Warren Buffett would say to spend it on these things

    If you're owed money this year, the investing icon has some advice on how to use it.

  • UK firms seek staff after lockdown but foreign workers missing: survey

    British businesses ramped up their search for new staff as pubs, restaurants and other hospitality and travel firms got ready for Monday's lifting of coronavirus restrictions in England, a survey showed. But an exodus of foreign workers is aggravating a shortage of candidates, with more than 10 jobs on offer for every job-seeker in some cities, according to the survey by job search website Adzuna. Job adverts on Adzuna jumped to 987,800 in the first week of May, up by 18% from the end of March, which was before the reopening of non-essential retailers and hospitality firms for outdoor service on April 12.

  • Vaccine Costs to Strain India’s Already Creaking State Budgets

    (Bloomberg) -- The world’s worst coronavirus outbreak is set to stretch the already strained budgets of Indian states, making it more costly to borrow just when they need the money to cushion their economies.India’s 28 states will have to foot about $5 billion or more in vaccination costs after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s federal government suddenly made them responsible for inoculating most adults from May 1. Since they hadn’t budgeted for the jabs or steps to tackle a second wave, their options to meet the additional expense are limited to cutting capital expenditures, selling public assets and boosting borrowing.A simple calculation shows it will cost states 354 billion rupees ($4.8 billion) to give two vaccine shots to about 590 million Indians in the 18-to-44 age group, at a combined cost of 600 rupees per person. If vaccinations are extended to those under 18 years old, the expense could rise to 0.25% of gross domestic product, or about $7 billion, according to Emkay Global Financial Services Ltd. economist Madhavi Arora.The additional burden couldn’t have come at a worse time for states, which are facing higher yields on market borrowings this year amid the threat of widening fiscal deficits.Failure by India’s provinces to raise and spend enough money risks holding back the recovery from a rare recession last year. That’s because states account for 60% of total government spending on asset creation and infrastructure building, which drive jobs creation and consumption.In addition, provinces are having difficulty attracting foreign investors despite paying yields that are typically higher than those on federal government debt. Global funds have used only 1.2% of the 676-billion rupee investment limit available to them in notes issued by states as of May 10, down from 4.8% two years ago, data from the Clearing Corp. of India Ltd. show.Sell Assets“Finances are bound to be affected,” said T. S. Singh Deo, health and commercial tax minister of the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh. “The axe will certainly fall on capital expenditure.”Modi’s government has encouraged states to sell assets to fund spending plans in the current year. That’s one way to bring down the debt burden, said Palanivel Thiaga Rajan, an ex-Wall Street banker and newly appointed finance minister of the southern state of Tamil Nadu.“Everything is on the table,” he said. “We will cut back on a bunch of spending that we don’t think is essential during this time. We will try to raise new sources of funds. We will try to do some restructuring of the debt. We will look at asset sales.”The pandemic has changed states’ budgets significantly, according to the central bank. The average gross deficit for states that presented their budgets before Covid was 2.4% of output, while after the lockdown it stood at 4.6% in the year ended in March, the Reserve Bank of India said.Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state, saw the gap widen to 4.17% of the state’s GDP in the year ended March 31, compared to the prescribed limit of 3%. Bihar, among the nation’s most impoverished provinces, estimated the gap at almost 7%.They may miss their goal of narrowing the budget gap this year. Although there’s no national lockdown this time to stem the deadly second wave of the pandemic, several states have imposed local movement curbs that are hurting economic activity and revenue collection. That’s nudging many economists to cut their double-digit growth forecasts for the current fiscal year.What Bloomberg Economics Says...“Daily activity index for India has steadily declined since the last week of March, which broadly coincides with the rise in the country’s lockdown stringency levels.”-- Abhishek Gupta, India economistFor the full research, click hereThere’s “renewed uncertainty regarding the near-term economic outlook,” said economists led by Aditi Nayar at ICRA Ltd, the local rating arm of Moody’s Investors Service. That “may modestly constrain the indirect tax collections of those particular states.”To bridge the gap, the western Indian state of Rajasthan is planning to sell or lease out unused properties. Telangana, a southern state, is planning to sell land parcels to raise about 145 billion rupees, according to local media reports.Still, there’s no guarantee these deals will come through. Even the federal government has failed to achieve divestment targets for the past two years after failing to sell flag carrier Air India Ltd. and Bharat Petroleum Corp., a state-owned oil refiner. Those sales have been carried forward to the current year.The northern Indian state of Punjab plans to cut capital spending and instead boost health care expenditure, its Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal said.“States have to fend for themselves,” he said. “Even though we increased our health budget by 18% this year, I see my health budget going up further on account of this emergency. There is no other way.”For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

  • Crypto Long & Short: Why Tesla’s Reversal Is Good for Bitcoin

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  • Soros Bought Up Stocks Linked to Bill Hwang’s Archegos Implosion

    (Bloomberg) -- Billionaire George Soros’s investment firm snapped up shares of ViacomCBS, Discovery and Baidu as they were being sold off in massive blocks during the collapse of Bill Hwang’s Archegos Capital Management.Soros Fund Management bought $194 million of ViacomCBS Inc., Baidu Inc. stock valued at $77 million, as well $46 million of Vipshop Holdings Ltd. and $34 million of Tencent Music Entertainment Group during the first quarter, according to a regulatory filing released Friday. A person familiar with the fund’s trading said the company didn’t hold the shares prior to Archegos’s implosion.Archegos, the family office of former hedge fund manager Hwang, fell apart during the last week of March after amassing large leveraged positions in a concentrated portfolio of U.S. and Chinese companies. At its peak, the family office had more than $20 billion of capital and total bets exceeding $100 billion.Hwang was wiped out in just days after investments including ViacomCBS and Discovery tumbled, triggering margin calls from global banks, who then sold the stocks in the big block trades. The fiasco is expected to cost the finance industry about $10 billion, has prompted an investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and caused heads to roll at Credit Suisse Group AG, where the hit exceeds $5 billion.The 13F filing provides one of the first examples of how a hedge fund attempted to capitalize on the distressed remains of Archegos. It also offers an insight into Soros’s investment firm, which is run by Chief Investment Officer Dawn Fitzpatrick.She told Bloomberg in March that she was willing to jump on dislocations in the market, investing $4 billion during the pandemic-induced swoon a year ago, including buying residential mortgages on the cheap. Soros returned almost 30% in the 12 months through February and manages $27 billion across a range of strategies.“When there’s a dislocation, we’re prepared to not just double down but triple down when the facts and circumstances support that,” Fitzpatrick, 51, said in a “Front Row” interview on Bloomberg TV.Soros also increased its bet on Amazon.com Inc. and homebuilder DR Horton Inc., which is now its second-largest public equity position.The 13F, which money managers overseeing more than $100 million in U.S. equities must file quarterly, revealed that Soros held $4.5 billion of U.S. equities, down $77 million from the prior quarter.The biggest exit in the quarter was Palantir Technologies Inc. Soros sold 18.5 million shares valued at about $435 million. The firm originally revealed it owned a stake in the controversial data-mining company controlled by Peter Thiel in November, but rapidly issued a statement saying the original investment was made in 2012 and it regretted the decision.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

  • A fourth stimulus check from Biden is looking doubtful — ask your state instead

    The relief bill the president signed in March is giving states money for direct payments.

  • Swiss parliament to look into Credit Suisse fiasco - paper

    A Swiss parliamentary committee will discuss the fallout from billions of dollars worth of losses at Credit Suisse amid risk-management failures, bringing political scrutiny to bear on the financial sector, a Sunday paper reported. "It's the politicians' turn on the Credit Suisse issue," the SonntagsZeitung quoted Prisca Birrer-Heimo, a Social Democrat member of the lower house's economic affairs committee, as saying ahead of committee hearings set for Monday and Tuesday. Credit Suisse declined to comment on the report.

  • Gold Gains to Three-Month High on Drop in Yields, Retail Sales

    (Bloomberg) -- Gold climbed to the highest in more than three months as bond yields dropped and U.S. retail stalled, while parts of Asia grappled with a spike in coronavirus cases.The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined following a report Friday that showed retail sales were essentially unchanged in April, missing expectations for a 1% gain. Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President Loretta Mester played down signals from data that she warned will be volatile as the economy reopens and stated that the U.S. central bank’s policy is in a good place right now.After slumping in the first quarter, gold has been on the mend amid uncertainty over the pace of the global recovery from the pandemic, rising inflation expectations and assurances from the Fed that monetary policy will remain accommodative. Investors may be warming up to the precious metal again, with hedge fund managers increasing their net bullish gold bets to the highest in three months, while data compiled by Bloomberg show holdings in bullion-backed exchange traded funds climbed for a sixth straight day.“Poorer economic readings alleviated investors’ concerns about tapering Fed stimulus,” said Margaret Yang, a strategist at DailyFX.Spot gold rose as much as 0.5% to $1,853.14 an ounce, the highest since Feb. 10, and was at $1,852 by 12:04 p.m. in Singapore. Silver, platinum and palladium all gained. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was up 0.1%.On the virus front, Singapore and Taiwan, success stories in containing Covid-19, are both rapidly imposing aggressive restrictions at home and tightening travel between each other. China is facing a flare up, and Thailand is having its worst wave of cases.“Rising demand for safety and inflation-hedges may have provided good support for bullion prices, as several Asia-Pacific economies are facing a new wave of Covid-19 outbreaks,” Yang said.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

  • World’s Worst Stock Rout Deepens as Taiwan Tightens Virus Curbs

    (Bloomberg) -- Taiwan stocks slumped, extending their biggest rout in more than a year, as the government tightened restrictions on people and businesses to control its worst outbreak of the coronavirus.The Taiwan Stock Exchange Weighted Index slid as much as 4.2% in Taipei as authorities urged companies to allow staff to work from home or split locations after reporting a record 206 new local cases Sunday. The benchmark gauge sank 8.4% last week on concern about the impact on growth, the most since March 2020, turning Taiwan stocks into the world’s worst performers so far this month.Taipei City to Close Schools After Surge in Local CasesForced selling may add volatility to Monday’s trading, with the level of margin debt falling by a net NT$5.8 billion ($207 million) on Friday, according to exchange data compiled by Bloomberg. That took the four-day drop in leverage to NT$39.4 billion, showing traders faced margin calls by brokers to cover losses in their stock accounts.The sharp reversal in Taiwan stocks is a warning to highly leveraged investors around the world. The Taiex was the world’s best performing equity gauge in the three years through April, surging almost 80% in U.S. dollar terms, as a seemingly never-ending rally in tech shares pulled in retail investors.“In light of rising concerns over the pandemic, we expect more volatility ahead, and advise to stick to defensive names with low P/E and high dividend yield,” said Patrick Chen, CLSA’s Head of Taiwan Research. His team’s top picks include Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and Hon Hai Precision Industry Co.Travel and consumption-linked names were among the big losers in the market on Monday. Restaurant operators Gourmet Master Co. and Wowprime Corp. plunged almost 10% each, while shares of Formosa International Hotels Corp. and The Ambassador Hotel slumped at least 5% each.Taiwan and Singapore are among the Asian regions that have seen a fresh wave of Covid-19 cases in recent days, and both have tightened virus-related restrictions. Singapore’s stock benchmark slid as much as 0.9% on Monday before erasing the loss.Taiwan’s stock exchange urged investors not to overreact. The latest development in Covid fighting is relatively controllable, and the fall in stock market last week should be already priced in the situation, the bourse said in a statement issued late Sunday night, adding that stabilizing measures will be adopted if the market becomes irrational.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

  • China’s Recovery Remains Unbalanced as Consumer Spending Lags

    (Bloomberg) -- China’s recovery was a mixed bag in April, with industrial output and investment buoyed by strong exports and a hot property market, while retail sales missed forecasts.Industrial output rose 9.8% in April from a year earlier versus the median estimate for a 10% increase. Retail sales expanded 17.7% in the period, far slower than a projected 25% rise. Fixed-asset investment grew 19.9% in the first four months of the year, in line with forecasts. The unemployment rate was lower at 5.1%.The data underline that while China remains on course to meet its target of above 6% economic growth for the year, making it a global driver of demand for commodities, the pace of expansion may have already peaked as policy makers seek to scale back stimulus and consumers remain cautious about spending.“Economic growth likely peaked in the first quarter” on a quarter-on-quarter basis, said Zhiwei Zhang, chief economist of Pinpoint Asset Management. “We expect growth to gradually slow in the coming months.” An increase in new Covid cases in China will likely caution policy makers, with monetary policy tightening probably on hold for now, he said.The data was heavily impacted by base effects from April 2020 when China’s industrial economy reopened when the coronavirus was brought under control. On a two-year average basis, which corrects for that distortion, industrial production growth was constant from the first quarter at 6.8%, while fixed-asset investment accelerated slightly to 3.9% from 2.9%.However, retail sales growth softened to 4.3% in April on an average two-year basis from 6.3% in March, with the consumption of goods and catering services both turning weaker, denting expectations that consumer demand was beginning to replace investment as a driver of growth.Households in China have yet to “resume their usual swagger” due to weak income growth, said Frederic Neumann, head of Asian economics at HSBC Holdings Plc. “If households fail to step up their spending in the coming months, the authorities may be forced to loosen the reins on liquidity and investment spending to prevent a sharper deceleration in growth,” he added.While China’s economy has stabilized at a firmer footing in April, it’s still challenged by the pandemic and an uneven recovery globally as well as a fragile basis for recovery at home, the NBS said in a statement. A separate report from the NBS suggests the property market remains strong, with home prices rising at the fastest pace in eight months in April.The nation’s top leaders recently described the recovery as “unbalanced and unstable,” pledging further efforts to drive a rebound in domestic demand. Sheng Laiyun, a vice head of the National Bureau of Statistics, said earlier this month there’s still a gap between actual and potential growth, suggesting the recovery has still some way to go.What Bloomberg Economics Says...The recovery is expected to continue at least into 3Q, but domestic weakness remains a drag on the overall economy. External demand should remain a support, with rival exporters facing disruptions from virus resurgences. Domestically, China’s recovery is broadening, with demand and small private firms on the mend. Even so, the recovery in consumption is still not on solid ground, and remains vulnerable to another setback caused by sporadic virus outbreaks.Chang Shu, chief Asia economistFor the full report, click here.China’s stock benchmark CSI 300 Index extended gains to as much as 1.8%, with consumer discretionary and information technology sub-gauges leading the rally.Industrial production remained robust on the back of a recovery in global demand, with fiscal stimulus and faster vaccine rollouts in many places helping to keep export growth strong. Rising raw material prices was likely a constraint in some areas, as is the push to cut output in sectors like steel and coal to lower pollution.Authorities have pledged a gradual scaling back of the monetary and fiscal stimulus pumped into the economy last year, with no sharp turn in policy. Recent data shows a notable slowdown in credit in April, suggesting the exit might be materializing at a faster-than-expected pace. The central bank injected medium-term cash into the financial system Monday to match the amount falling due, a move largely expected by analysts.In March, the People’s Bank of China told banks to curtail loan growth in the coming months and keep it at roughly the same level as last year. The pace of local governments’ debt sales to finance infrastructure projects also slowed sharply in January to April compared to the same period in previous years, according to Bloomberg calculations.(Updates with additional details)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

  • Gupta Loan Effort Ongoing Despite SFO Probe, White Oak Says

    (Bloomberg) -- Sanjeev Gupta’s plans to save his sprawling metals empire were mired in confusion on Saturday as a key financial backer sent mixed messages about its support in the wake of a U.K. fraud probe.On Friday, the Serious Fraud Office launched an investigation into possible fraud and money laundering at Gupta’s GFG Alliance That initially prompted White Oak Global Advisors LLC -- which had recently offered loans to his U.K. steel businesses and one of his Australian units -- to say it wasn’t in a position to continue discussions with a company facing a probe.Hours later, a spokesperson for the San Francisco-based lender said it was continuing efforts to refinance Liberty Primary Metals of Australia, “subject to financial due diligence and acceptable governance.” Last week it had agreed terms with Gupta to refinance the unit.The apparent reversal throws the fate of Gupta’s businesses into further confusion. It’s unclear whether the loan to the Australian unit, which includes the Whyalla steelworks, will still go ahead as planned or depends on the SFO investigation.White Oak declined to comment Saturday on the status of a reported 200 million pounds ($282 million) of lending to Gupta’s U.K. businesses, The company also wouldn’t comment on a report in the Financial Times saying White Oak may be reluctant to walk away because it has a financial exposure to Gupta’s businesses after buying up debt from the steel tycoon.GFG said Friday it will co-operate fully with the SFO investigation. It declined to comment on White Oak’s decision.Gupta has been scrambling to find new financing after Greensill, his biggest lender, fell into insolvency. His group employs 35,000 people across 30 countries, all which may be in danger of losing their jobs if the tycoon can’t secure replacement loans. He faces an uphill battle, with the SFO probe likely to deter many potential financiers.The exact scope of the SFO investigation isn’t yet clear. Four banks stopped working with Gupta’s Liberty House Group trading business, starting in 2016, amid concerns about what they perceived to be problems in paperwork provided by Liberty, Bloomberg News has reported. In one example, the company had presented a bank with what seemed to be duplicate shipping receipts. A spokesman for Gupta has denied any wrongdoing.The two-month period from when it started looking into GFG and its financing by Greensill to announcing the formal probe is a quick turn-around for the SFO, which often takes years to publicly confirm it’s taking action against a company.It will now start to gather evidence, including securing devices and documents. However, it’ll likely take years for the office to make any tangible updates to the investigation, including whether it decides to charge individuals as part of the probe.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

  • Stocks Waver on Virus; U.S. Futures Dip; Dollar Up: Markets Wrap

    (Bloomberg) -- Stocks in Asia fluctuated Monday with U.S. futures as spikes in virus cases in parts the region and lingering inflation concerns weighed on investor sentiment.Shares gained modestly in Australia and Hong Kong but slipped in Japan and South Korea as markets responded to the latest curbs on activity to halt the spread of Covid-19. U.S. stocks ended in the green Friday after gathering price pressures pushed equity markets globally to their worst weekly loss since February.China’s stocks climbed, shrugging off some below-forecast readings on retail sales, industrial output and fixed-asset investment.The spread of the virus is front and center again as Singapore plans to close public schools this week and move to home-based learning. Taiwan is racing to contain its worst outbreak and avert a full lockdown.Treasury yields were steady after dropping Friday on a report that showed the recent surge in U.S. retail sales stalled in April. The dollar edged up against its major peers.Concerns that policy makers will have to pull back support sooner than expected to quell rising inflation have weighed on global equities. Investors this week will parse the minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee’s latest meeting for any discussion about accelerating price pressures, and hints of a timeline for reducing asset purchases.“The global economic recovery is well under way; that’s what’s fueling the inflation fears,” Olivier d’Assier, Qontigo head of APAC applied research, said on Bloomberg TV. It’s not surprising to see some profit taking after the rally in equity prices, d’Assier said.The Federal Reserve’s policy is in a good place right now, said Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester, while playing down data that she warns will be volatile as the economy reopens. Fed Vice Chair Richard Clarida and Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic are due to speak this week.The momentum in commodity markets seems to have flagged after breakneck gains, with copper and iron ore coming off record highs amid efforts by China to clamp down on surging prices. Oil edged higher.Meanwhile, Bitcoin fell to the lowest since February. The digital coin extended losses after trading below $45,000 Sunday, as Tesla Inc. founder Elon Musk continued to spar with Bitcoin proponents on Twitter and implied Tesla might sell its holdings.Click here for MLIV’s Question of the Day: How Far Can East-West Stocks Divergence Go?Here are some key events this week:Reserve Bank of Australia publishes minutes of its latest meeting TuesdayFed Vice Chair Richard Clarida and Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic are among policy makers speaking this weekThe Fed publishes minutes from its April meeting Wednesday, which may provide clues to officials’ views on the recovery and how they define “transitory” when it comes to inflationAustralia releases employment data for April on ThursdayThese are some of the main moves in markets:StocksS&P 500 futures dipped 0.2% as of 12:55 p.m. in Tokyo. The S&P 500 rose 1.5%Nasdaq 100 contracts edged down 0.3%. The Nasdaq 100 rose 2.2%Japan’s Topix Index fell 0.4%Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index added 0.3%South Korea’s Kospi index fell 0.9%Hang Seng Index rose 0.4%Shanghai Composite Index gained 1%Euro Stoxx 50 futures rose 0.2%CurrenciesThe yen traded at 109.35 per dollarThe offshore yuan was at 6.4413 per dollarThe Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.1%The euro edged down to $1.2133BondsThe yield on 10-year Treasuries was around 1.62%Australia’s 10-year bond yield fell three basis points to 1.76%CommoditiesWest Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.2% to $65.47 a barrelGold advanced 0.5% to $1,851.75For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

  • JD Logistics Seeks Up to $3.4 Billion in Hong Kong IPO

    (Bloomberg) -- JD Logistics Inc., the delivery arm of e-commerce giant JD.com Inc., is seeking to raise as much as HK$26.4 billion ($3.4 billion) in its Hong Kong initial public offering, seizing on China’s online shopping boom sparked by the coronavirus pandemic.The warehousing and shipping company is selling 609.2 million shares at HK$39.36 to HK$43.36 each, according to a statement published in the South China Morning Post. The company will start taking investor orders from Monday and is set to begin trading on May 28 in Hong Kong. The deal is expected to be priced on May 21, according to the terms of the IPO obtained by Bloomberg News.At $3.4 billion, JD Logistics would be the second-largest IPO in the city this year, after Kuaishou Technology’s $6.2 billion listing in February. Hong Kong has seen two other blockbuster JD.com-related offerings in the past 12 months, including online health-care unit JD Health International Inc.’s $4 billion IPO in December, as well as its own second listing in June, which raised $4.6 billion.JD Logistics’ first-time share sale comes as Hong Kong’s market shrugs off concerns over inflation. The city has hosted $20.5 billion worth of IPOs so far this year, nearly seven times the $3 billion raised in the same period in 2020, data compiled by Bloomberg show.Created in 2007 and set up as a standalone unit under JD.com a decade later, JD Logistics’ networks include both so-called last mile and longer distance lines, as well as cold chain and bulky item networks, according to its prospectus. It operated more than 900 warehouses across China as of the end of 2020.The logistics firm’s revenue climbed 47% in 2020 to 73.4 billion yuan, the prospectus shows. The company reported a net loss of 4.1 billion yuan last year, compared to 2.2 billion yuan in 2019. It plans to use the proceeds from the IPO to upgrade and expand its logistics networks, develop advanced technologies and to expand its customer base.JD Logistics has attracted seven cornerstone investors to its offering, who agreed to subscribe for about $1.53 billion of stock, according to the terms.The cornerstone investors are:SoftBank Vision Fund $600 millionTemasek Holdings Pte about $220 millionBlackstone Group Inc. $150 millionTiger Global $200 millionChina Chengtong Holdings Group Ltd. $160 millionMatthews Asia $100 millionOaktree Capital $100 millionBofA Securities Inc., Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Haitong International Securities Group Ltd. are joint sponsors for the listing.(Updates with details of cornerstone investors from term sheet.)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.