Year: 2019

Oil prices hovered around three-month highs on Monday following a higher-than-expected crude inventory drawdown and optimism over an expected U.S-China trade deal, while traders kept a close eye on Middle East unrest. Markets showed little immediate reaction to news of U.S. air strikes in Iraq and Syria against an Iran-backed militia group, even as U.S. officials warned “additional actions” may be taken. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures edged up 1 cent to $61.73 a barrel by 0210 GMT. …read more […]

Oil prices hovered around three-month highs on Monday following a higher-than-expected crude inventory drawdown and optimism over an expected U.S-China trade deal, while traders kept a close eye on Middle East unrest. Markets showed little immediate reaction to news of U.S. air strikes in Iraq and Syria against an Iran-backed militia group, even as U.S. officials warned “additional actions” may be taken. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures edged up 1 cent to $61.73 a barrel by 0210 GMT. …read more […]

A broad gauge of Asian share markets fell on Monday as investors consolidated gains after scaling 18-month highs last week, while oil was steady after the U.S. carried out air strikes on an Iranian-backed Shi’ite Muslim militia group in Iraq and Syria. “Shale can really ramp up more volumes to accommodate any shortfall that could possibly be triggered by escalation in Syria,” he said, adding that an upsurge in populism in Iraq posed a larger risk to markets. …read more […]

Dec.29 — The head of NIO Inc. pledged an improvement in the struggling Chinese electric-car maker’s finances as demand picks up and the company’s cost-cutting efforts start to bear fruit. Meanwhile, its rival Tesla Inc. will start delivering China-built cars on Monday, a major milestone for Elon Musk’s company as it expands in the world’s largest electric-vehicle market. Selina Wang reports on “Bloomberg Daybreak: Asia.” …read more […]

(Bloomberg) — Asian stocks drifted lower on Monday from the highest level in a year and a half, with few financial-market catalysts going into the year-end.Equities in Tokyo opened weaker, while they fell in Sydney and were little changed in Seoul. U.S. futures edged up after stocks ended Friday mixed as traders assessed a rally that’s added more than $5 trillion to equities this year. The S&P 500 Index notched a fifth straight weekly advance. Treasuries were steady after rising on Friday, when the dollar logged its biggest drop since October.Trading may continue to be thin ahead of New Year …read more […]

Dec.29 — Homin Lee, Asia macro strategist at Lombard Odier, discusses the opportunities he sees in regional markets. He speaks with Paul Allen and Shery Ahn on “Bloomberg Daybreak: Asia.” …read more […]

(Bloomberg Opinion) — A young labor force, a real estate boom, a politically stable Communist-led country that can reap riches through exports and a friendly relationship with the U.S. — many have compared Vietnam to what China was more than two decades ago. Add one more trait to this mix as we enter the 2020s: profitless prosperity.With Vietnam quickly moving up the global supply chain, the Southeast Asian nation has been hailed as the biggest winner out of the current U.S.-China trade spat. High-profile relocations underscore the point. Alphabet Inc.’s Google is shifting production of Pixel smartphones, while Samsung Electronics …read more […]

Despite the shale slowdown and OPEC’s efforts to cut back global oil supply, producers outside of the cartel are ramping up output at a surprising rate …read more […]

(Bloomberg) — Grab Holdings Inc. is partnering with Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. to apply for a full digital banking license, jumping aboard a Singapore government initiative to attract technology firms into its financial sector.Grab will own a 60% stake in the consortium that will apply for the bank license in Singapore, while the telco known as Singtel will hold the rest, according to a joint statement. The consortium plans to set up a digital bank targeting so-called digital-first consumers, as well as small and medium enterprises that lack access to credit.The move teams one of Southeast Asia’s largest operators of online …read more […]

(Bloomberg Opinion) — Negative-yielding government bonds have been a significant force for a superb year of investment returns for both stocks and bonds, and many are welcoming their recent decline as an indicator of what will support the next leg up in valuations. Yet the evidence remains mixed, suggesting a more nuanced approach to longer-term investing. The growth and persistence of negative-yielding debt in 2019 has done more than deliver attractive price appreciation on government bonds. It has pushed investors to take on more risk, pushing up the price of assets from investment-grade and high-yield corporate bonds to emerging markets …read more […]

Dec.29 — President Donald Trump faces criticism from political opponents for naming the alleged whistle-blower whose complaint triggered the congressional inquiry that resulted in his impeachment. Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin called Trump to thank him for intelligence that helped prevent terrorist acts in Russia, the Kremlin said in a statement. Ros Krasny reports on “Bloomberg Daybreak: Australia.” …read more […]

The 5G drive comes as the joint venture is caught in a legal appeal process against an antitrust regulator’s move to block its proposed A$15 billion mega-merger with TPG Telecom Ltd . In a joint statement, the companies said Vodafone Hutchison Australia, the 50-50 joint venture, would kick off its 5G rollout in the first half of 2020 with Nokia as the network vendor. …read more […]

(Bloomberg Opinion) — So is China readying its own Bitcoin? Banish the thought.It’s far bigger than that. Yes, just like any other cryptocurrency — or for that matter, cigarettes in prisoners-of-war camps — the upcoming digital yuan will be “tokenized” money. But the similarity ends there. The crypto yuan, which may be on offer as soon as 2020, will be fully backed by the central bank of the world’s second-largest economy, drawing its value from the Chinese state’s ability to impose taxes in perpetuity. Other national authorities are bound to embrace this powerful idea. Little is …read more […]

(Bloomberg) — Emerging markets are about to embark on another year of wealth creation after adding $14 trillion to investor portfolios in the past decade.Developing-nation assets will outperform their developed peers, with Asia having the best prospects, according to Bloomberg’s survey of 57 global investors, strategists and traders on their outlook for next year. Total wealth in emerging-market stocks and bonds now exceeds $27 trillion, bigger than the economies of the U.S. and Germany combined.The U.S.-China trade dispute that dictated market moves throughout 2019 will remain the biggest driving force, while China’s growth outlook eclipsed Federal Reserve monetary policy to …read more […]