India has already raised more than $500 million from investors for a new fund that will invest in the stocks of state-controlled companies

India Raises $513 Million for State Company Stock Fund
Foreign Institutional Investors Accounted for About $120 Million
KENAN MACHADO
March 21, 2014 8:50 a.m. ET
MUMBAI—India has already raised more than $500 million from investors for a new fund that will invest in the stocks of state-controlled companies, a person familiar with the deal said Friday.
The exchange-traded fund—which was created to buy shares of state companies directly from the Indian government—has raised close to $513 million, out of which foreign institutional investors accounted for around $120 million, the person said.
The fund accepted investments from retail investors until 6 p.m. India time Friday. It is likely to buy the government shares and list before April 4, the person said. It will be managed by Goldman Sachs Asset Management (India) Pvt. Read more of this post

M&A pickup among U.S. conglomerates may be undercut by prices

M&A pickup among U.S. conglomerates may be undercut by prices
Fri, Mar 21 2014
By Lewis Krauskopf
NEW YORK (Reuters) – When United Technologies Corp (UTX.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) paid more than $16 billion to buy plane parts-maker Goodrich Corp about two years ago, the U.S. conglomerate’s biggest-ever takeover raised some eyebrows for its rich valuation. Read more of this post

China unveils pilot rules, paves way for firms to issue preferred shares for first time

China unveils pilot rules, paves way for firms to issue preferred shares for first time
Fri, Mar 21 2014
By Lu Jianxin and Kevin Yao
SHANGHAI/BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s securities regulator on Friday issued rules for a pilot programme allowing listed companies to issue preferred shares, paving the way for the long-awaited scheme to be launched soon in what the regulator called a major capital market reform. Read more of this post

James Montier: “The Market Is Overvalued By 50%-70%” And “Nothing At All” Is Attractively Valued

James Montier: “The Market Is Overvalued By 50%-70%” And “Nothing At All” Is Attractively Valued
Tyler Durden on 03/21/2014 15:15 -0400
A month ago we presented a must read interview by Swiss Finanz und Wirtschaft with respected value investor Howard Marks, in which, when explaining the motives driving rational investing he summarized simply, “in the end, the devil always wins.” Today, we are happy to bring our readers the following interview with one of our favorite strategists, GMO’s James Montier, in which true to form, Montier packs no punches, and says that the market is now overvalued by 50% to 70%, adding that there is “nothing at all” that has an attractive valuation, and that he sees a “hideous opportunity set.” Read more of this post

Fighting the flab: Corporate headquarters have put on weight, and need to slim down again

Fighting the flab: Corporate headquarters have put on weight, and need to slim down again
Mar 22nd 2014 | From the print edition

“ONE of the most extraordinary corporate centres in America.” This is how Trian Partners, a disgruntled shareholder of PepsiCo, described the headquarters of the snacks-to-soft-drinks company in a recent letter to its board. Set amid lakes and fountains in 100 acres of wealthy Westchester County, New York, PepsiCo’s HQ features seven interconnected three-storey office buildings designed in the 1960s by Edward Durell Stone, a pioneering American modernist architect. Its crown jewel is the Donald M. Kendall Sculpture Gardens, named after a former chief executive, which has works by artists such as Alexander Calder, Henry Moore and Auguste Rodin. Mr Kendall reportedly intended the garden to reflect his vision for the company by creating an atmosphere of “stability, creativity and experimentation”. Read more of this post

Chinese internet firms: Migrating finches; China’s online firms are flying to American stockmarkets

Chinese internet firms: Migrating finches; China’s online firms are flying to American stockmarkets
Mar 22nd 2014 | SHANGHAI | From the print edition

DICK COSTOLO, the boss of Twitter, was in Shanghai this week to see first-hand what the Galapagos islands of the internet look like. He follows in the footsteps of Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s founder, who also came for a study tour. Thanks to censorship and hostility to foreign internet firms, otherwise global giants such as Facebook, Twitter, Google and eBay are banned or irrelevant. Weird and wonderful local variations have, like Darwin’s finches, evolved in this isolated market instead. Read more of this post