Why investors in China houses shouldn’t throw stones; Lack of accountability and transparency is growing in the west

Why investors in China houses shouldn’t throw stones

By Paul J Davies in Hong Kong

In dealing with China, companies and politicians have often overlooked its shortcomings in human and democratic rights and problems with corruption. Financiers and investors in Asia, in fact, even admire the way in which the dominant one-party regime “gets stuff done” in contrast to India’s chaotic democracy – it is one of the biggest arguments against a hard landing, or policy paralysis for the economy. Read more of this post

iShares chief scorns global listing plan for Chinese equities; “Not until you have capital account liberalisation does it make any sense for our clients”

April 13, 2014 5:08 pm

iShares chief scorns global listing plan for Chinese equities

By Josh Noble in Hong Kong

The head of iShares – the world’s top provider of exchange traded funds – has poured cold water on plans from MSCI and FTSE to include mainland Chinese equities on their global indices, which are tracked by trillions of dollars of assets. Read more of this post

Slowdown puts 1bn middle class at risk

April 13, 2014 7:07 pm

Slowdown puts 1bn middle class at risk

By Shawn Donnan and John Burn-Murdoch in London

Almost a billion people in the developing world are at risk of slipping out of the ranks of a nascent middle class, according to FT analysis, raising questions about the durability of the past 30 years’ remarkable march out of poverty. Read more of this post

Africa must invest borrowings wisely; Corruption and mismanagement remain major problems

April 13, 2014 7:33 pm

Africa must invest borrowings wisely

Corruption and mismanagement remain major problems

South of the Sahara desert economic growth has flourished over the past decade. It is a remarkable transformation. Back in the 1980s and 1990s, sub-Saharan Africa was mired in seemingly endless rounds of painful defaults and debt relief negotiations. Today it is a magnet for international investors. Read more of this post

Jokowi embarks on ‘political safari’ to seek Indonesia coalition

April 13, 2014 10:37 am

Jokowi embarks on ‘political safari’ to seek Indonesia coalition

By Ben Bland in Jakarta

Indonesian presidential favourite Joko Widodo embarked on a scramble to find coalition partners over the weekend after his Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle (PDI-P) failed to secure a decisive victory in Wednesday’s legislative elections. Read more of this post

Beware the market’s tendency to kill its darlings; Investors are by nature fickle and easily disappointed, writes Ruchir Sharma

April 13, 2014 6:03 pm

Beware the market’s tendency to kill its darlings

By Ruchir Sharma

Investors are by nature fickle and easily disappointed, writes Ruchir Sharma Read more of this post

Fidelity star manager Anthony Bolton: ‘I was wrong about the market in China’

April 13, 2014 3:06 am

Anthony Bolton: ‘I was wrong about the market in China’

By Bradley Gerrard

Star manager Anthony Bolton has admitted he was wrong about the Chinese stock market, as he hung up his fund management hat after 35 years.

Mr Bolton, who is best known for his stellar performance while managing Fidelity’s flagship Special Situations fund for 28 years, will now become a member of the board but will no longer run any money. Read more of this post

Analysis: A slippery ladder; The first of a series on the precarious rise from poverty of millions in the emerging world

April 13, 2014 6:43 pm

Analysis: A slippery ladder

By Shawn Donnan, Ben Bland and John Burn-Murdoch

The first of a series on the precarious rise from poverty of millions in the emerging world

Muljoko, a 27-year-old cleaner who works in one of Jakarta’s gleaming office towers, has all the trappings of a newly minted member of the middle class. He owns a motorcycle, slings a Sony smartphone and has a futuristic-looking phone-watch strapped to his wrist that he uses to text friends during working hours. Read more of this post

China’s shadow banks at risk of a property crash; Capital outflows and falling property values could create cascading losses; “Everyone focuses on the government’s ability, not its willingness, for bailouts. We are all too complacent.”

China’s shadow banks at risk of a property crash

By Henny Sender

Capital outflows and falling property values could create cascading losses Read more of this post

Paradox awaits a Prime Minister Modi; Success with the economy demands a readiness to wield power

The paradox that awaits a Prime Minister Modi

By Arvind Subramanian

Success with the economy demands a readiness to wield power, writes Arvind Subramanian Read more of this post

Debt troubles within the Great Wall; Credit cannot outgrow GDP forever, even in China. The question is how it will stop

Last updated: April 1, 2014 6:58 pm

Debt troubles within the Great Wall

By Martin Wolf

Credit cannot outgrow GDP forever, even in China. The question is how it will stop Read more of this post

Factoring in China’s Machinery Maker Blues; Chinese heavy equipment maker Zoomlion is suffering as customers delay making good on what they’ve bought. Now the banks want a piece too

Factoring in China’s Machinery Maker Blues

ABHEEK BHATTACHARYA

Updated April 1, 2014 5:40 a.m. ET

At the foundation of China’s investment-driven economy lies concrete. So it doesn’t bode well that the makers of concrete and other construction equipment continue to suffer. Read more of this post

Dubai Rides Boom With an Eye on Bubble; Some Voice Concern About a Repeat of 2009

Dubai Rides Boom With an Eye on Bubble

Some Voice Concern About a Repeat of 2009

NICOLAS PARASIE

April 1, 2014 7:23 p.m. ET

Last year, when Emaar Properties put a new Dubai residential project on the market, demand was so intense that police eventually had to intervene to control the chaos outside the company’s offices. Read more of this post

U.S. regulators will resume a year long quest to get audit firms to tell investors more about the companies they examine

Improving Audit Reports Is Focus of Hearing

MICHAEL RAPOPORT

April 1, 2014 8:28 p.m. ET

U.S. regulators this week will resume a yearslong quest to get audit firms to tell investors more about the companies they examine. It won’t be easy. Read more of this post

Manufacturers Scale Back Australia Operations

29 MINS AGOBUSINESS

Manufacturers Scale Back Australia Operations

Just two months after Toyota Motor Corp.–the last major carmaker in Australia–announced plans to pack up, oil giant BP PLC and cigarette-maker Philip Morris International Inc. said they were also scaling back their Australian operations. Read more of this post

IMF Introduces ‘Spillbacks’ Into Lexicon of Global Finance Officials

Apr 12, 2014

IMF Introduces ‘Spillbacks’ Into Lexicon of Global Finance Officials

IAN TALLEY

The world’s premier financial counselor is trying to coin a new word for finance ministers and central bankers: “spillbacks.” Read more of this post

Vietnam’s FPT Aims to Fill IT Skills Gap; FPT Chairman Truong Gia Binh Talks About the Demand for Outsourcing, Plan to Form Ties With Top Tech Firms

Vietnam’s FPT Aims to Fill IT Skills Gap

FPT Chairman Truong Gia Binh Talks About the Demand for Outsourcing, Plan to Form Ties With Top Tech Firms

NGUYEN PHAM MUOI

April 13, 2014 2:36 p.m. ET

HANOI—As businesses across the world seek to reduce technology costs by outsourcing, FPT Corp. Chairman Truong Gia Binh believes his company, and Vietnam, are perfectly placed to meet demand for computer scientists. Read more of this post

Splintered Indonesia Election Results Could Block Economic Reform

Splintered Indonesia Election Results Could Block Economic Reform

National Democratic Party Pledges Support for Democratic Party of Struggle

I MADE SENTANABen Otto and

April 13, 2014 5:52 a.m. ET

JAKARTA, Indonesia—The splintered parliament and the coalition government likely to result from Indonesia’s legislative elections this week dim chances for quick and sweeping reforms of Southeast Asia’s largest economy. Read more of this post

Superannuation: Retirees poorly served by system, says Centre of Excellence in Population Ageing Research

Superannuation: Retirees poorly served by system, says Centre of Excellence in Population Ageing Research

April 13, 2014 – 11:57PM

Peter Martin

So poorly are retirees served by the super system that Australia’s leading longevity research organisation is suggesting the government step in and offer policies of its own through Australia Post. Read more of this post

Hong Kong’s Family-Owned Banks on Different Paths for Now

Hong Kong’s Family-Owned Banks on Different Paths for Now

ENDA CURRAN

April 1, 2014 7:12 a.m. ET

Two of Hong Kong’s three remaining family-owned banks are taking divergent paths. As one banking dynasty sells out, another is raising capital to grow its bank, signaling that it has no intention to sell for now. Read more of this post

India’s Supreme Court ordered Samsung Group’s chairman Lee Kun-hee to come to India to face criminal charges

India’s Top Court Orders Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee to Surrender

Mr. Lee Given Six Weeks to Appear Before Court in Uttar Pradesh

R. JAI KRISHNA

April 2, 2014 5:04 a.m. ET Read more of this post

Huawei Founder: Company Is Like BMW

Apr 1, 2014

Huawei Founder: Company Is Like BMW

JURO OSAWA

When people hear about China’s Huawei Technologies, German car maker BMWBMW.XE +1.38% probably never comes to mind. Read more of this post

Southwest Airlines, Once a Brassy Upstart, Is Showing Its Age

Southwest Airlines, Once a Brassy Upstart, Is Showing Its Age

Carrier Copes With Labor Strife, High Costs; Some Pine for Days of Co-Founder Herb Kelleher

JACK NICAS and SUSAN CAREY

April 1, 2014 10:38 p.m. ET

CHICAGO—At Midway Airport here on Jan. 2, Southwest Airlines Co. LUV +1.40%canceled a third of its flights, lost 7,500 bags and, at one point, had 66 aircraft on the ground—about twice as many as the carrier has gates. Passengers were stuck on the tarmac late into the night. Read more of this post

Chinese Investors Change Face of Dubai

Chinese Investors Change Face of Dubai

Investment by Individual Chinese Investors Nearly Tripled Last Year

RORY JONES

Updated April 1, 2014 7:06 p.m. ET

About 15 miles from the Burj Khalifa on the edge of the Arabian desert is a growing housing and retail community that would look more at home in Beijing than Dubai: Stores and restaurants have Chinese signs and a huge dragon sculpture adorns the Dragon Mart shopping mall. Read more of this post

Home-grown nuts firm Tai Sun has an annual turnover of over $40m

Business built from nuts

Wednesday, Apr 02, 2014

Rebecca Lynne Tan

The Straits Times

An unassuming woman with short salon-set hair, whose only accessories are a pair of simple but classic pearl earrings, greets you with a smile as you enter the office of nuts and snacks specialist Tai Sun (Lim Kee) Food Industries in Pandan Loop. Read more of this post

Beijing vs. Banking Innovation; State banks and regulators take on Internet finance

Beijing vs. Banking Innovation

State banks and regulators take on Internet finance.

April 1, 2014 11:57 a.m. ET

China’s state-owned banks are ramping up their assault against Alipay, the online payment service launched by e-commerce giant Alibaba. The fuss centers on its money-management fund that since last June has been offering consumers higher returns than traditional deposits. It turns out the old banking order and its cronies in Beijing won’t allow financial liberalization to happen without a fight. Read more of this post

Second Chinese Bond Company Defaults, First High Yield Bond Issuer

Second Chinese Bond Company Defaults, First High Yield Bond Issuer

Tyler Durden on 04/01/2014 08:01 -0400

In the middle of 2012, to much yield chasing fanfare, China launched a private-placement market for high-yield bonds focusing on China’s small and medium companies, that in a liquidity glutted world promptly found a bevy of willing buyers, mostly using other people’s money. Less than two years later, the first of many pipers has come demanding payment, when overnight Xuzhou Zhongsen Tonghao New Board Co., a privately held Chinese building materials company, failed to pay interest on high-yield bonds, according to the 21st Century Business Herald. Read more of this post

Asia’s manufacturing powers stutter, stir talk of policy support

Asia’s manufacturing powers stutter, stir talk of policy support

6:35am EDT

By Adam Rose and Leika Kihara

BEIJING/TOKYO (Reuters) – Asia’s major economies finished the first quarter on a weak note with manufacturing surveys in China and Japan fueling expectations that policymakers will be forced to act in coming months to prop up faltering growth. Read more of this post

Why banks, hedge funds and Silicon Valley all want their own stock exchanges

Why banks, hedge funds and Silicon Valley all want their own stock exchanges

By Tim Fernholz @timfernholz

Because market makers are profit takers.

The new book from financial scribe Michael Lewis tracks the battle over high-frequency trading, computer-augmented strategies traders use to exploit small differences in time and price. Lewis argues that such strategies ”very likely generated more billions of dollars a year than the other strategies combined.” Read more of this post