Columns
Index-tracking funds are on track to buy a large chunk of the shares sold in SpaceX’s record $75 billion offering. With more than half the U.S. market now invested by hands-off managers, benchmarks are distorting markets. It’s a recipe for buying high and selling low.
Latest Columns
- The Big View
Index-tracking funds are on track to buy a large chunk of the shares sold in SpaceX’s record $75 billion offering. With more than half the U.S. market now invested by hands-off managers, benchmarks are distorting markets. It’s a recipe for buying high and selling low.
- The Big View
As pandemics, wars and trade standoffs shake the world, JW Mason and Arjun Jayadev argue in “Against Money” that a deeper belief is crumbling: that economies can be measured by adding up money. The change can reshape how countries manage inequality, pensions and supply chains.
- The Big View
Businesses may spend $680 bln on models, agents and more next year. Unlike predictable software subscriptions, pay-as-you-go AI bills are volatile. A correction looms for OpenAI and its peers. But cloud computing shows the market can still grow even as CFOs try to rein in costs.
- The Big View
Blackstone, Apollo and peers face an exodus from fast-growing funds that channel everyday investors into illiquid loans. Better matching assets with liabilities and clarifying iffy pricing could help the $232 bln market but could dent returns or growth. The trade-off is worth it.
The far-right proposal to cap Switzerland’s population at 10 mln, scheduled for a referendum in June, would damage the economy and likely struggle to translate into coherent measures. It still suggests that, above certain levels of migration, feelings may well trump economics.
Latest Columns
- Considered View
The European Commission is investigating the Chinese retailer’s $2.6 bln offer for fridge-to-TV seller Ceconomy. Intervention looks hard to square with a crowded consumer electronics sector. The odd target suggests the EU will cast a wide net in its attack on foreign subsidies.
- Considered View
CATL and Tencent may invest $2 bln to become the startup’s largest external backers. Both want to use AI to hone their products. DeepSeek could become a major customer. And Beijing will be happy for the support of domestic champions. That makes it a step up from past dud bets.
- Considered View
In nixing Kyndryl’s €100 mln plan to buy Solvinity, the government effectively likened Washington to Beijing when it comes to data protection. Transatlantic clashes over tech sovereignty made the timing tough. The decision also signals new hurdles for globetrotting American CEOs.
- Considered View
Headcount growth at the $190 bln energy-to-retail group is slowing sharply, partly as an investment binge for its energy business fades. But a chronic skills shortage will push India Inc toward faster AI adoption. That will turn the hiring squeeze into a deeper, structural slump.
The hedgie's five-year investment in the record label ended on a low note: his $64 bln takeover bid flopped and his returns look thin. As expected, top shareholder Vincent Bolloré got in the way. The saga shows even the loudest investor campaigns need someone willing to listen.
Latest Columns
- Breaking View
Freshly crowned as the world's top wealth hub with $2.9 trln of flows, that status is at risk from China’s fresh scrutiny of outbound money. AIA, Pru, StanChart and HSBC shares slipped. Long-tolerated grey zones are narrowing. Growth hinges on how much opacity Beijing permits.
- Breaking View
At two mega tech confabs this week leaders from Nvidia and Intel lavished praise on the island’s role in global supply chains. As AI moves from the cloud to local devices, Taiwan's importance will grow. And with GDP set to expand 10%, Taipei also can boost spending on defense.
- Breaking View
Wall Street seems a mere passenger on the rocket-maker’s flight to a $75 bln debut. Fixing the offer early at $135 a share skips price discovery. Index buying and Elon Musk’s aura serve as propulsion. The risk is that others copy the launch sequence but lack the hype to lift off.
- Breaking View
With 70% of Europe's cloud and AI market controlled by US hyperscalers, politicians worry that their access to vital tech could be severed by a 'kill switch'. New legislation aims to drive demand for sovereign alternatives. It’s a noble blueprint but needs funds to make it work.