Many European motoring manufacturers are in retreat with plants to off–load – while China’s industry is on the march Chinese carmaker Xpeng is on the hunt for a factory in Europe. Volkswagen is aiming to reduce the number of its factories. It seems like it should have been the perfect set-up for a deal. Yet there was one problem with the plant on offer, according to Elvis Cheng, Xpeng’s managing d...
Many European motoring manufacturers are in retreat with plants to off–load – while China’s industry is on the march Chinese carmaker Xpeng is on the hunt for a factory in Europe. Volkswagen is aiming to reduce the number of its factories. It seems like it should have been the perfect set-up for a deal. Yet there was one problem with the plant on offer, according to Elvis Cheng, Xpeng’s managing director of north-eastern Europe: “It’s a little bit, I would say, old.” Continue reading...
It’s been 12 years since Claire time-travelled through a magic stone into the arms of hot Scot Jamie and left fans light-headed. As Outlander comes to a close, we look back at TV’s steamiest journey – scandalous resurrections and all It all started with a vase. “I’d never lived anywhere long enough to justify having such a simple thing,” said the second world war nurse Claire Randall in the narrat...
It’s been 12 years since Claire time-travelled through a magic stone into the arms of hot Scot Jamie and left fans light-headed. As Outlander comes to a close, we look back at TV’s steamiest journey – scandalous resurrections and all It all started with a vase. “I’d never lived anywhere long enough to justify having such a simple thing,” said the second world war nurse Claire Randall in the narration, as she eyed one through a shop window on her honeymoon in Inverness. “At that moment, I wanted nothing so much in all the world as to have a vase of my very own.” Did she buy it and live happily ever after with lovely professor husband, Frank? Did she heck! Instead, Claire found a magic stone circle, fell through time to the 18th century, fell in love with flaming hot Scot Jamie Fraser and embarked on TV’s wildest journey. Twelve years have passed since the adaptation of Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander books gave us the time-travel bonkbuster we didn’t know we needed. You can’t help but breathe a sigh of relief for its stars, Caitríona Balfe and Sam Heughan, whose chemistry has sizzled admirably across eight long seasons (it took 17 months to film the first one after Covid). As it limps towards its finale this week, the end is long overdue – but it is a bittersweet farewell to a wonderfully ludicrous show. Continue reading...
It was just a creepy picture on the internet. Now it’s the year’s freakiest film. Its 20-year-old auteur Kane Parsons and stars Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsve take us through the terrifying labyrinth Chiwetel Ejiofor has been on a lot of movie sets, but Backrooms was something different: a 30,000 sq ft labyrinth of apparently random corridors and chambers, all carpeted, fluorescent lit and de...
It was just a creepy picture on the internet. Now it’s the year’s freakiest film. Its 20-year-old auteur Kane Parsons and stars Chiwetel Ejiofor and Renate Reinsve take us through the terrifying labyrinth Chiwetel Ejiofor has been on a lot of movie sets, but Backrooms was something different: a 30,000 sq ft labyrinth of apparently random corridors and chambers, all carpeted, fluorescent lit and decorated in the same sickly yellow wallpaper. It was so big that people were getting lost in it, says Ejiofor: “Especially on those first days. As you try to navigate your way around and you’re like: ‘I’m sure it’s this door, I’m sure that’s the way.’” He’s laughing at the recollection. “And you find yourself just back in the wrong corner of the whole studio and you’re like: ‘Get me some help!’” This is kind of the point of Backrooms – the movie and the online phenomenon that spawned it. It’s a concept that takes some unpacking, but as the premise for a buzzy A24 horror freakout, you could summarise it as something like “The Blair Witch Project meets Severance” or “The Shining set in an infinite Travelodge”or maybe “the exact opposite of a Wes Anderson movie”. Comparisons fall short, partly because the Backrooms concept feels as if it’s come from another world – a parallel dimension, even. Ejiofor concurs: “There was stuff that we were doing by the end of the film that I was just like: ‘This is among the most bizarre things I have ever been involved in.’” Continue reading...
Gustav Magnar Witze (born 1993) is a Norwegian billionaire, tech investor, and model, known as one of the world's youngest billionaires. He owns roughly 4750% of SalMar ASA, a major global salmon farming company founded by his father, Gustav Witze senior, in 1991. Father and son in the family old house.
Gustav Magnar Witze (born 1993) is a Norwegian billionaire, tech investor, and model, known as one of the world's youngest billionaires. He owns roughly 4750% of SalMar ASA, a major global salmon farming company founded by his father, Gustav Witze senior, in 1991. Father and son in the family old house.
8:30 AM Empire State Manufacturing Index The New York Fed conducts this monthly survey of manufacturers in New York State. Participants from across the state represent various industries. The consensus sees the index at 7.8 for May versus 11.0 in April. 9:15 AM Industrial Production The Federal Reserve's monthly index of industrial production and the related capacity indexes and capacity utilizati...
8:30 AM Empire State Manufacturing Index The New York Fed conducts this monthly survey of manufacturers in New York State. Participants from across the state represent various industries. The consensus sees the index at 7.8 for May versus 11.0 in April. 9:15 AM Industrial Production The Federal Reserve's monthly index of industrial production and the related capacity indexes and capacity utilization rates cover manufacturing, mining, and electric and gas utilities. A modest increase in industrial output is expected at 0.2 percent in April after 0.5% decline in March. 1:00 PM Baker Hughes Rig Count The Baker Hughes North American rig count tracks weekly changes in the number of active operating oil & gas rigs. More on U.S. Markets Kevin Warsh Gets Confirmed For Fed Chairman - Reactions For Dow Jones, Nasdaq And S&P 500 Making Sense Of The Market Rally Headline Inflation Cooled In April, But Core Pressures Picked Up 3 things to look out for on Thursday Wall Street ended mostly higher despite a hotter-than-forecasted PPI inflation print
33-year-old Gustav Magnar Witzoe is a fashion influencer, model, investor and a Norwegian billionaire. He’s also betting his fortune on creating the “world’s best fish farm.” (Source: Bloomberg)
33-year-old Gustav Magnar Witzoe is a fashion influencer, model, investor and a Norwegian billionaire. He’s also betting his fortune on creating the “world’s best fish farm.” (Source: Bloomberg)
Malaysia’s economy grew faster than initially estimated in the first quarter despite a sharp slowdown in March, supported by resilient household spending and the artificial-intelligence boom. Gross domestic product rose 5.4% from the year before, according to Bank Negara Malaysia and the Department of Statistics Malaysia on Friday, beating an advance estimate of 5.3% released last month. The media...
Malaysia’s economy grew faster than initially estimated in the first quarter despite a sharp slowdown in March, supported by resilient household spending and the artificial-intelligence boom. Gross domestic product rose 5.4% from the year before, according to Bank Negara Malaysia and the Department of Statistics Malaysia on Friday, beating an advance estimate of 5.3% released last month. The median forecast of economists was for no revision. “Higher energy prices, supply chain disruptions, and heightened uncertainty are expected to weigh on the external environment,” Governor Abdul Rasheed Ghaffour said in a briefing. “Nevertheless, the Malaysian economy is expected to remain resilient in 2026, with growth expected to come in within the range of 4% to 5%, supported by steady domestic demand and continued expansion in our export performance.” Still, the economy’s pace of expansion softened progressively across the quarter, with monthly growth easing from 6.8 per cent in January to 5.2 per cent in February and 4.1 per cent in March 2026, according to Friday’s data. Rasheed said the current benchmark interest rate is appropriate, adding the central bank will continue to be vigilant as events evolve. “We are facing a supply shock — monetary policy is a demand management tool,” Rasheed said. That does not warrant a policy response and hence the current overnight policy rate is “adequate for the situation.” BNM held the key rate at 2.75% last week, saying Malaysia’s fundamentals should underpin its resilience to the Iran war, while the impact on inflation should be contained. Malaysian consumers have continued spending in 2026, and the country is among a handful of Asian economies, including Singapore and Taiwan , which have been lifted by the sustained global frenzy for AI-related electronics and services. That has given the nation a crucial buffer in the face of the US war on Iran, while neighbors like the Philippines contend with high prices and slowing activity due to...
Hungary ’s ambition to join the euro is changing the hierarchy of eastern European bond markets in a way that hasn’t been seen in years. For the first time since in 2020, Hungary’s borrowing costs are lower than Poland and gap over Czech Republic bonds has fallen by two percentage points since March. It’s a shift that underscores how investors have changed their mind on some of the region’s bigges...
Hungary ’s ambition to join the euro is changing the hierarchy of eastern European bond markets in a way that hasn’t been seen in years. For the first time since in 2020, Hungary’s borrowing costs are lower than Poland and gap over Czech Republic bonds has fallen by two percentage points since March. It’s a shift that underscores how investors have changed their mind on some of the region’s biggest economies as new Prime Minister Peter Magyar embarks on a mission to bring Hungary into the European mainstream. Before last month’s election, Hungary was viewed as the riskiest of the group with a legacy of entrenched corruption and unpredictable policies under Viktor Orban . But with Magyar pledging to meet criteria for euro adoption in the next four years, investors are throwing their support behind his administration. Foreigners have piled into Hungarian bonds and the forint currency is near a four-year high against the euro. “We’re probably as long Hungary as we’ve ever been,” said James Novotny , an investment manager at Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. “Because of the structural problems that Hungary had for over a decade — low growth, productivity and so forth — we feel this is just the start.” Read More: Hungary’s New Finance Chief Pledges Euro Path, Policy U-Turn That kind of optimism is making Hungary has one of the hottest trades in emerging markets. An index of the local-currency bonds has returned 9.6% in dollars since the April 12 ballot, by far the best EM performance over that period. For comparison, Polish, Czech and Romanian bonds are all in the red since then. Novotny has sold Polish debt and expects 10-year Hungarian yields to fall another half a percentage point relative to core euro-region debt within a year. The forint is also about 10% too cheap compared with the zloty, he estimated. Hungary’s benchmark bond now carries a yield of 5.55%, 30 basis points less than on Poland’s 10-year note and 65 basis points more than similar Czech debt. Foreigners ow...
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This is the forum for daily political discussion on Seeking Alpha. A new version is published every market day. Please don't leave political comments on other articles or posts on the site. The comments below are not regulated with the same rigor as the rest of the site, and this is an 'enter at your own risk' area as discussion can get very heated. If you can't stand the heat... you know what they say... More on Today's Markets: Moderation Guidelines: We remove comments under the following categories: Personal attacks on another user account Anti-Vaxxer or covid related misinformation Stereotyping, prejudiced or racist language about individuals or the topic under discussion. Inciting violence messages, encouraging hate groups and political violence. Regardless of which side of the political divide you find yourself, please be courteous and don't direct abuse at other users. For any issue with regards to comments please email us at : moderation@seekingalpha.com. Seeking Alpha's Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.
Czech billionaire Michal Strnad , the richest person in the European Union’s east, is starting an investment firm with potential firepower of €10 billion ($11.7 billion) to target acquisitions in Europe and the US. Some of the money comes from selling shares in his military equipment company CSG NV earlier this year, the biggest ever initial public offering for a pure-play defense firm. The new en...
Czech billionaire Michal Strnad , the richest person in the European Union’s east, is starting an investment firm with potential firepower of €10 billion ($11.7 billion) to target acquisitions in Europe and the US. Some of the money comes from selling shares in his military equipment company CSG NV earlier this year, the biggest ever initial public offering for a pure-play defense firm. The new entity will be separate and aim to invest in industries other than defense, Strnad said in an interview this week. “I want it to be diversified,” he said at his office in Prague, adding he’s open to deals in the public and private sectors or real estate. “I want it to be in promising, growing sectors.” The plan reflects the growing wealth concentrated in the the Czech Republic, home to the four richest East Europeans in Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index, including Daniel Kretinsky and Karel Komarek . The four have a combined net worth of $62 billion. Prime Minister Andrej Babis , who returned to power after winning elections last year, is also a billionaire. The 33-year-old Strnad, who took over CSG from his father, is the youngest. He’s already moved some assets to his new investment firm: a stake in the Four Seasons hotel in Prague, a fertility clinic and local dealerships for Ferrari and Maserati he acquired as well as football club Viktoria Plzen . Companies he counts as potentially interesting include local assets of waste management company Marius Pedersen that are reportedly up for sale. He also said his interest in acquiring media companies remains high. “I am not the type of investor who has to come in, buy something, make money in five years, and then get out,” he said. “I want to hold things that make sense for the long term.” Strnad has about €3 billion in equity at his disposal from the IPO, which he could leverage to gain what he called “firepower” of as much as €10 billion. He is in touch with Renata Kellnerova , the second richest person in the country, and “talk...
While United Parcel Service has considerably underperformed the broader market over the past 52 weeks, Wall Street analysts maintain a moderately optimistic outlook about the stock’s prospects.
While United Parcel Service has considerably underperformed the broader market over the past 52 weeks, Wall Street analysts maintain a moderately optimistic outlook about the stock’s prospects.
Cerebras Systems (NASDAQ: CBRS) just pulled off the biggest U.S. tech initial public offering (IPO) since Snowflake made its debut in 2020. The artificial intelligence (AI) chipmaker priced its shares at $185 on Wednesday evening, above its already-raised range of $150 to $160. The deal raised $5.55 billion and valued the company at about $56.4 billion on a fully diluted basis. Shares opened at $3...
Cerebras Systems (NASDAQ: CBRS) just pulled off the biggest U.S. tech initial public offering (IPO) since Snowflake made its debut in 2020. The artificial intelligence (AI) chipmaker priced its shares at $185 on Wednesday evening, above its already-raised range of $150 to $160. The deal raised $5.55 billion and valued the company at about $56.4 billion on a fully diluted basis. Shares opened at $350 on the Nasdaq Thursday morning -- nearly double the IPO price. And sure enough, shares soared, reaching highs of $385 before closing at about $311 on its first day of trading. By any measure, it was a blockbuster debut. So what happens next? It's tempting to extrapolate from an IPO like this. But history offers some sobering lessons for investors hoping to ride that early enthusiasm higher. Continue reading
Shenzhen Adtek Technology Co. has filed for an initial public offering in Hong Kong, adding to a wave of listings by Chinese companies related to data centers and artificial intelligence. The provider of optical connectivity products for data centers, networks and telecommunications operators submitted documents to the Hong Kong stock exchange, according to a filing Friday, which confirmed an earl...
Shenzhen Adtek Technology Co. has filed for an initial public offering in Hong Kong, adding to a wave of listings by Chinese companies related to data centers and artificial intelligence. The provider of optical connectivity products for data centers, networks and telecommunications operators submitted documents to the Hong Kong stock exchange, according to a filing Friday, which confirmed an earlier report by Bloomberg News. Citic Securities Co. and Jefferies Financial Group Inc. are joint sponsors on the potential share sale. Adtek may seek to raise $500 million or more and a valuation of $3 billion to $4 billion, people familiar with the matter have said. Considerations are ongoing and details such as value, size and timing haven’t been finalized, they said. Chinese optical stocks have rallied recently on expectations that AI-driven demand will fuel the industry’s next leg of gains. Lightelligence jumped 384% in its trading debut last month after an IPO that raised $323 million. Prior to that, Semight Instruments Co. soared 876% in its Shanghai trading debut . Hong Kong’s market for first-time share sales has powered on this year, with more than $20 billion raised so far this year, on track to surpass the four-year high of about $37 billion in 2025. Adtek was founded in 2007 and nine years later was named a National High-Tech Enterprise, its website shows . The company also has a factory in Vietnam.
President Donald Trump's visit to Beijing has dominated Chinese state media, with news stories and commentary mostly striking a positive tone. Despite the grand ceremonies and glowing coverage, however, a comparison of summit readouts from the US and China suggests differences remain on key issues. (Source: Bloomberg)
President Donald Trump's visit to Beijing has dominated Chinese state media, with news stories and commentary mostly striking a positive tone. Despite the grand ceremonies and glowing coverage, however, a comparison of summit readouts from the US and China suggests differences remain on key issues. (Source: Bloomberg)