Merger and Acquisition took a break when the Federal Reserve and EU began aggressively raising interest rates from their zero and negative levels back in March and July 2022 respectively. Now, with The Street betting that the Fed will lower interest rates, the equation is simple: The lower interest rates go, the higher the M&A activity will rise.
Category: TRENDS ON THE GLOBAL ECONOMIC FRONT – May 7 2024
SPOTLIGHT: CHINA’S ECONOMIC STRUGGLE
At a 30 April meeting, China’s Politburo—the small group that sets government policies—signaled that mortgage interest rates will be lowered again and that aid would be offered to floundering real estate developers.
SPOTLIGHT: JAPAN’S ECONOMY IN FLUX
Japan’s central bank intervened in markets last week for a second time, buying $23 billion worth of yen to prop up the country’s sinking currency, Bloomberg reported after analyzing the bank’s current account figures.
TOP TREND 2023, OFFICE BUILDING BUST: NEAR-RECORD NUMBER OF U.S. OFFICE LOANS TEETERING ON DEFAULT
More than $38 billion worth of loans against U.S. office properties are delinquent in their payments or facing foreclosure or default, according to data service MSCI.
TOP TREND 2024, EV GO FU: WHITE HOUSE EXTENDS EV TAX CREDIT
The Biden administration has made a one-year extension to 2026 for $7,500 in federal tax credits for consumers buying electric vehicles (EVs) containing Chinese graphite.
CANADA CENTRAL BANK RATE CUTS LIMITED BY FED, BANK CHIEF SAYS
The Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) is planning to cut its interest rates in the near future to energize the country’s economy.
BUSINESS BANKRUPTCIES SOAR IN CANADA
In this year’s first quarter, Canada’s business bankruptcies shot up 87.2 percent, year on year, to 1,599, according to data from the government’s Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy. Household bankruptcies rose 14 percent.
BRITISH OFFICIALS AT ODDS OVER PRIVATE EQUITY’S RISK TO THE ECONOMY
The Bank of England (BoE) has escalated its warnings that private equity firms pose a systemic risk to the U.K. economy through their leverage, valuations, and lack of public disclosure of their data.
HUGO BOSS PROFIT UP AS COST CUTTING RISES
German luxury clothier Hugo Boss reported a first-quarter net profit of €38 million, beating analysts’ expectation of €36 million. Gross profit rose 5 percent and operating profit by 6 percent, year on year.
MAERSK POSTS LOWER PROFITS
Shipping giant AP Moeller-Maersk reported a sharp drop in first-quarter profits due to continued attacks on freighters in and near the Red Sea by Yemen’s Houthi militants in support of terror group Hamas in its war with Israel.