Latest articles by Damian Wood
For the very first, the share price of oil giant Saudi Aramco Oil Compay (Tadawul: 2222) has slumped below the initial public offering (IPO) price since its December mega listing. The drop that occurred on Sunday caused a 7.4% slash of the company’s value, even as OPEC’s pact with Russia to cut supplies crumbled on Friday.Aramco’s IPO was one of the most controversial, marred with alleged overvaluation by the Saudi Crown Prince...
As the Coronavirus rapidly balloons into a pandemic, the EU markets are reeling from the risk aversion storm. Investors are fast eliminating any risky assets from their portfolio and are instead falling back on state bonds. The Germany bond, is especially a target for European Union investors, for safety purposes, while anticipating a boost by the European Central Bank. Earlier this week, the peripheral euro-area bond yields plummeted with Italy...
Despite numerous efforts by President Donald Trump’s administration, the US farmers continue being hit by the escalating panic over Coronavirus. The killer virus has to date claimed thousands of lives globally, while interrupting business operations in one of the world’s largest economy, China. But the Asian nation isn’t the only severely affected country; the US, which has of today reported eleven deaths resulting from COVID-19...
If by any chance, WeWork wanted to cement the perception that it is no longer a tech company but a giant space-leasing firm, it would probably install real estate business leaders to be at the centre of its core operations.Well, that’s exactly what the space-renting startup seems to be doing. According to a publication by the WSJ, WeWork, which has been hitting the headlines for its famously failed Initial Public Offering, has appointed San...
Weeks after the Coronavirus outbreak, markets are still gripped with fears, triggered by stalled business operations in China, even as the government fights to contain a virus that has so far claimed more than 500 lives. The dwindling oil demand from China, the second-largest importer of the commodity, has exposed the level of reliance on the market by The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). JBC Energy, a research company, t...
Last year’s election triggered a jump in the property market in central London, resulting from newfound certainty in the region’s real estate, Knight Frank said on Monday. By the second week of last month, real estate activities with the estate agency and property consultants in London hit a 15-year high. A report by Knight Frank said that the surge in potential buyers was 92% higher than the same week in 2018, and averagely 95% above...
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has kept the Indian government debt in line with the budgeted estimates, easing the country’s market after enduring months of declines. In the financial year starting April 1. 2020, Modi’s administration will borrow about $109 billion, in line with estimates verified by Bloomberg. Government bond sales this year would be maintained at $99.45 billion, putting to end fears of the state taking on as much as $...
Chinese investors on Monday returned to a market gripped by fear on the first trading day after the Lunar New Year break. The Coronavirus death toll has risen to at least 361 in China alone as of this morning, Aljazeera confirmed.China, the world’s biggest consumer of raw materials is the most hit, after the virus emanated from one of its industrial cities, Wuhan. As China’s markets reopened today at 9 am local time, the country&rsquo...
American retail giant’s investment in Casper could be slashed significantly after the mattress company reworked its initial valuation downwards. Casper, which brands itself as a market leader in the “sleep economy”, deals not just in mattresses but also sheets, pillows, lamps, plus several other bedroom necessities. The company announced it would be settling for a lower valuation in a move that will see the retailer operate belo...
After WeWork’s failed listing, everyone seems to be talking about revenues. But is there a possibility of sailing through without having impressive numbers? This is a question investors were bickering with before One Medical went public last week.But less than a week in the public market, shareholders of One Medical are already counting billions in gains after the firm’s shares (ONEM) closed the week at $22.07, denoting a 47.13% gain....
Most of us are obsessed with property speculation. The UK real estate has over the years grown to become more like a casino where anyone with money can “play”. And even those who don’t have the cash gamble passively by looking up their dream homes on Zoopla and checking current market prices.Real estate players believe if a British Dream exists, it has got to be owning your own home, styling it up with a few tweaks here and ther...
Happy Sunday Invezztors. ‘Uncertainty’ has become a common word in a market characterised by constant swings of global commodity prices. As of Friday, Europe started decently before dropping, Asia was mixed, while the US futures were down.Brexit went down, and the UK is officially on its own, with some expressing concerns over the move. But while the Brexit was a success, it doesn’t end at that. Markets movements are set t...
Online marketplace for arranging or offering lodging, primarily homestays, or tourism experiences Airbnb has appointed a new head of “Experiences” ahead of its Initial Public Offering later this year. The new team member, Catherine Powell, brings with her more than a decade of experience in the media space having worked at Disney for 15 years. Most recently, she served in the position of president of Disney Parks, a unit of the Americ...
This month we’ve experienced rallies by several commodities following the phase trade deal between China and the US, boosting investor risk appetite and the equity markets. But since the Coronavirus Outbreak, precious metals have been taking the lead as investors scamper for haven assets such as gold, Iron-ore, Palladium, and Silver.According to Oxford Economics, analytics and forecasting firm: “Iron-ore and gold prices are currently...
With last year’s recession out of the way, it seems the bond market is at it again. Experts say the market is sending another downturn signal.Just like in 2019, the spread between different bonds or the yield curves is starting to get tight anew, after yesterday’s five basis points difference between the three-month and the 10-year Treasury bonds.Whenever the three-month Treasuries top the 10-year benchmark, that is described as an in...
If you thought last year’s IPO market was one of the slowest, you might want to reconsider that after a recent surprising statistic that suggested IPOs beat the market last year.You heard it right, 2019 was among the best IPO years despite being dominated by failed IPOs and disappointing listings such as Uber and Peloton.The Renaissance IPO Index rose 35% last year, elbowing the S&P 500’s impressive 30% gain.JP Morgan’s chai...
Following last year’s election, the UK annual house price growth rose to a 14-month high as investors’ confidence returns in the region’s markets. One the leading mortgage lenders in the UK, Nationwide Building Society, reported property prices had risen by 1.4% from December to January, and about 1.9% higher than a year ago, marking the fastest annual growth since November 2018. On average, a house in the UK now costs £21...
Gold is among the few commodities whose prices were soaring as concerns over the Coronavirus Outbreak swept through the markets. As of this morning, the yellow metal was up about 20% higher than last year, as it trades close to $1,600 an ounce. A couple of other precious metals have rallied too, including silver and platinum. Meanwhile, Dow Jones is up 0.66% or 187 points. Investors have been playing around with the idea of gold touching the $2,0...
Casper, a US-based e-commerce company that manufactures and sells sleep products, has been marked down, according to new paperwork filed yesterday. The company’s latest submission to a US regulator reveals the e-commerce entity settled for a lower valuation of not more than $768 million. The figure is based on a maximum per-sharing price of $19, but the valuation could still fall below that if the opening trade starts at the lower end of th...
This week’s Fed meeting will be one of the most anticipated and the stakes are undoubtedly high, amid a slump in the Chinese economy occasioned by an outbreak of the Coronavirus. Reports this morning indicate the death toll has risen to 106 and the number of infected people is estimated at slightly over 2,000. US government bond prices were low earlier this morning with concerns over the virus triggering demand for fixed income assets. At a...
After a 2% dip on Monday, oil fell on Tuesday morning for the sixth session, extending losses as China continues to battle the Coronavirus that has sent panic through commodities markets. Oil-producing nations have raised the alarm over dwindling demand on crude as most industries in one of the largest consumers of the commodity, China, remain closed.After reaching a three-month low yesterday, Brent crude further fell 0.3% or by 15 cents to settl...
Nasdaq has just confirmed that this week brings with it a total of six new listings: One of the companies will be going public through a SPAC while the other five will be issuing IPOs. The US regulator has also said that the week will see one of the biggest Initial Public Offerings hit the market, with a potential of raising about $1.25 billion. Reynolds Consumer Products, a leading manufacturer of household goods, will be leading the pack with i...
Fiera Real Estate, a leading property creator and manager, wholly owned by Fiera Capital Group, is merging with its UK subsidiary Palmer Capital Partners, as it seeks to align its UK operations. The group has rebranded its UK acquisition after assuming an 80% stake in the investment firm late last year. Fiera Capital is a multi-product investment firm boasting more than $124 billion worth of assets under management. The group owns Fiera Real Esta...
Oil prices on Monday morning shed a further 2% off the already trimmed prices after it emerged that Coronavirus can spread without showing symptoms, casting doubts on the containment efforts by the affected countries. The drop marks a multi-month low in the wake of a promising start earlier this year following the signing of the China-US trade deal. Reports during the weekend indicated that the virus had claimed over 56 lives and infected at leas...
Some have said even in this new decade, IPOs are still so 2019. Correct as that may be, lessons learnt last year from the IPO markets seem to have carved a new path for companies planning to go public.2019 was one of the most challenging in the history of Initial Public Offerings: A modest number of companies successfully went public and managed to meet investors expectations. On the other hand, we saw big unicorns flop on the first or after days...