Posts by Yurie Miyazawa
Canada’s Manulife signs C$5.4 billion reinsurance deal to lower risk
CANADA’S Manulife Financial will reinsure C$5.4 billion (S$5.2 billion) of its reserves as it looks to transfer some risk from its portfolio and free up capital for stock buybacks. The agreement with Reinsurance Group of America covers C$2.4 billion of long-term care reserves, Manulife said on Wednesday (Nov 20). Long-term care insurance is considered a…
Read MoreHSBC shelves plans for trading, financing carbon credits
HSBC Holdings has abandoned plans to build a carbon credits desk, according to sources familiar with the matter, as Europe’s biggest bank cools to a market rocked by repeated allegations of greenwashing. The decision means the bank is no longer working to build a dedicated unit focused on trading credits in the voluntary carbon market…
Read MoreMcDonald’s readies new US value lineup to entice diners back
MCDONALD’S is launching a new US value platform in an attempt to woo budget-conscious diners. The new lineup, called McValue, includes an offer to buy one item and get one for US$1, according to sources familiar with the matter. McDonald’s will also extend a US$5 meal bundle, launched in June, until at least mid-2025. The…
Read MoreUS: Wall Street opens subdued as Nvidia earnings awaited
WALL Street’s main indexes were little changed on Wednesday (Nov 20), as investors awaited AI giant Nvidia’s quarterly results, while also eyeing rising geopolitical tensions between Russia and Ukraine. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 27.1 points, or 0.06 per cent, at the open to 43,296.05. The S&P 500 fell 2.6 points, or 0.04…
Read MoreHSBC relaunches ‘Premier’ brand in UK in pursuit of wealthy clients
HSBC is relaunching its ‘Premier’ wealth banking brand in Britain, targeting so-called mass affluent customers who have between £100,000 (S$170,082) and £2 million to invest. Jose Carvalho, HSBC UK’s head of wealth and personal banking, told Reuters that its fee-free Premier product will offer 24-hour-a-day customer service, financial planning tools, as well as travel, international…
Read MoreChina funds slash ETF fees, escalating price war in booming market
MAJOR Chinese fund companies announced a big reduction in fees for a batch of equity exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on Wednesday (Nov 20), intensifying price competition in the rapidly expanding US$400 billion sector of the market. The move to cut management and custodian fees by as much as 70 per cent came a day after Wu…
Read MoreChina smartphone sales drop 9% y/y over Singles’ Day shopping festival
APPLE sold fewer smartphones during China’s Singles’ Day shopping festival this year as it faced pressure from an “abnormally high” number of rival handsets launched around the event, Counterpoint Research said on Wednesday (Nov 20). The iPhone manufacturer saw its sales decline year-on-year by “double digit percentages” from Oct 18 to Nov 10, the research…
Read MoreADIA, GIC in talks to acquire Pye-Barker Fire & Safety minority stake: sources
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) and Singapore’s GIC are in advanced talks to acquire a minority stake in Pye-Barker Fire & Safety in a deal that would value the company at more than US$6 billion including debt, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The two sovereign wealth funds are discussing purchasing the…
Read MoreBrokers’ take: RHB upgrades UOB to ‘buy’, lifts price target to S$40.20 on positive 2025 outlook
RHB has upgraded its call for UOB to “buy” from “neutral”, while raising its price target for the lender to S$40.20 from S$35.60 previously. The new price target is 10.3 per cent above UOB’s latest closing price of S$36.43 and 12.9 per cent above its previous target price on Nov 11. On Wednesday (Nov 20),…
Read MoreHot stock: Keppel DC Reit rises 2.3% as investors weigh S$1.4 billion data centre deal, equity fundraising
UNITS of Keppel DC Real Estate Investment Trust (Reit) gained some ground in the morning trading session on Wednesday (Nov 20). As at 9.55 am, the counter jumped 2.3 per cent or S$0.05 to S$2.24, with 14.4 million units changing hands. Keppel DC Reit was the top-traded counter in terms of value on Wednesday morning.…
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