Global markets rally as Fed taper fears ease August 24, 2021 Global markets rallied today, driven by expectations that the US Federal Reserve will outline its plan to rein in the wave of monetary stimulus unleashed in response to the Covid crisis at Jackson Hole this week receding. The blue-chip S&P 500 rose 0.29 per cent to 4,492.46 points in early afternoon trading, while the Dow [...]
Exclusive: The City’s IPO women on ‘the male-dominated, testosterone-driven culture’ August 24, 2021 When an investor attending a presentation at the RAF club asked Cath O’Neill if she could take his coat, she was bemused. A short while later the same investor apologised profusely, having realized he had mistaken the only female CEO for a member of the waiting staff. O’Neil, who was by then accustomed to being [...]
ESG: full speed ahead, sat-nav still required August 24, 2021 | City Talk Sustainable investing based on environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors has become central to how we invest. Investors are demanding more from their asset managers: they want to invest based on their values and they are demanding more accountability from companies about addressing changing societal issues. Indeed, the Index Industry Association (IIA)’s most current latest [...]
Roger Federer-backed shoemaker files IPO in US August 24, 2021 On, a shoemaking company backed by tennis star Roger Federer, has filed for an initial public offering in New York, according to widespread reports. The Swiss shoemaker was, according to reports, valued at around $2bn after its last funding round. According to Reuters, On could pursue a valuation between $4bn to $6bn in its IPO. [...]
SEC issues new disclosure rules for Chinese companies to list in New York August 24, 2021 The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued new disclosure requirements to Chinese companies seeking to list in New York amid Beijing’s regulatory crackdown. The SEC has started to give some Chinese companies detailed instructions about greater disclosure of their use of offshore vehicles, known as variable interest entities for IPOs, implications for investors, [...]
US stocks open higher to cancel out last week’s rout August 23, 2021 US stocks rose sharply today to help claw back sharp losses registered in last week’s deeply volatile trading environment. The blue-chip S&P 500 jumped 0.95 per cent to 4,483.95 points, while the Dow Jones climbed 0.72 per cent to 35,372.11 points. The tech-heavy Nasdaq was on track for another record high, surging 1.59 per cent [...]
Chinese EV maker BYD’s shares rise despite chip-making unit’s IPO plan pausing August 23, 2021 Chinese electric car manufacturer BYD has been forced to suspend the proposed listing of its computer chip-making unit amid a regulatory probe into the law firm advising the company. BYD Semiconductor applied to list on Shenzen’s Nasdaq style market ChiNext in May and sought to raise at least $421m from the sale of shares. The [...]
Oil prices jump to pare back worst weekly losses for nine months August 23, 2021 Oil prices jumped today to partly reverse losses registered last week that saw the main international benchmarks swing to their worst seven day performance in nine months. International benchmarks WTI and Brent Crude rose 3.22 per cent and 3.27 per cent to $64.14 and $67.31 respectively. Both benchmarks marked their biggest week of losses in [...]
Workers of the world unite! How the post-pandemic recovery is increasing the bargaining power of labour August 23, 2021 | City Talk More than 114 million people lost their jobs over 2020, according to the International Labor Organization. Even more saw their working hours and wages cut. The worst affected industries were accommodation and food services where global employment declined by over 20%, followed by retail. These sectors were particularly hard hit by lockdowns, forced closures and plummeting tourism. Women and younger workers were badly affected. You could be [...]
China tightens scrutiny over accounting firms in fight against forgery August 23, 2021 China’s leadership has set new rules to strengthen supervision of accounting firms in a fight against financial forgery, vowing “zero tolerance” toward misconduct. China’ State Council said accounting firms have not fully played their role as “gatekeepers” of capital markets, which have often witnessed cases of financial forgery and inaccurate accounting information. The authorities will [...]