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GC Asia
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The coronavirus graphic to watch: Italy, Germany stable; US, Spain and France worsen
UPDATED 1 April 2am GMT The encouraging trend in Italy continued on Tuesday, with 4,053 new confirmed cases, almost identical to Monday's figure, which was the lowest for 13 days. Sadly, Spain's figure of 9,222 and France's of 7,578 were new records.
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Corona crisis shows AT1s are not fit for purpose
If regulators won’t turn off additional tier one coupons during the coronavirus crisis, they will never find reason to.
31 Mar 2020 -
Oil price war confirms what investors feared about Saudi Aramco
Saudi Aramco’s IPO last year was a historic event for the company and its owner, Saudi Arabia, but despite a record $29.4bn being raised at IPO, international investors stayed away. They had demanded that the shares offered a discount to other listed oil majors, in part because of the political risk associated with the company. The fact it is now a tool in Saudi Arabia’s oil price war with Russia will have vindicated many in their decision to sit out the deal.
31 Mar 2020 -
Strong banks also need central bank support
Canadian banks are among the largest, most profitable and best rated in the world, but that does not grant them immunity from liquidity bottlenecks. A recent spree of deals, although in some ways was a show of might, also illustrated even the most fortified of lenders can appear vulnerable.
31 Mar 2020 -
Never miss an opportunity for good PR
Standard Chartered’s announcement that it was allocating $1bn to help companies deal with coronavirus, or transition towards making essential medical kit, makes a virtue of doing what most banks are up to anyway. There’s nothing wrong with a bit of good news in these troubled times, but Stan Chart’s competition might feel they’ve missed a trick.
31 Mar 2020 -
A note from GlobalCapital's managing editor
Dear reader, These are extraordinary times for global capital markets as the world reels from the spread of Covid-19.
26 Mar 2020 -
You can't separate the dollar from the US government
US president Donald Trump looks unable to lead a global response to the health and economic crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic, but the dollar is unchallenged as the global safe haven in times of crisis. This contradiction is destabilising.
24 Mar 2020 -
Closing stock markets is not the answer
Short selling bans in several European countries have led to fears that regulators may move to shut down stock markets altogether if the turbulence caused by the spread of Covid-19 worsens further, but this would be a serious mistake.
24 Mar 2020 -
Republican bailout package is finance's Patriot Act
There is a plan to rescue the US economy with a $500bn corporate bailout. At the time of writing, that plan is held up in the US Senate. While the country's president Donald Trump is griping about the delay, it’s a fight worth having. The Republican Party's proposal is woefully short on oversight.
24 Mar 2020 -
Leveraged companies need help too
Extraordinary support measures from central banks across the world include an element of corporate lending, but all the schemes announced so far target SMEs, and companies rated BBB- and above. That leaves a gaping hole in the rescue net, which the authorities must fill.
24 Mar 2020
