BUSINESS
India overtakes Hong Kong as world’s fourth-largest stock market
The combined value of shares listed on Indian exchanges reached $4.33 trillion as of Monday’s close, versus $4.29 trillion for Hong Kong, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
WORLD
Where investment chiefs are putting their cash in unstable 2024
Against this backdrop, Bloomberg News asked executives at major investment firms with almost $2 trillion in combined assets under management about where they plan to put their money in 2024.
TECHNOLOGY
Google layoffs saga continues as Alphabet's Moonshot X Lab cuts dozens of jobs, seeks funds
As part of the restructuring, X is laying off dozens of employees, according to one of the people with knowledge of the matter.
WORLD
UAE oil producer Adnoc plans 50% boost in low-carbon spending
Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. will spend $23 billion on low-carbon projects, the company said in a statement. That’s an increase from the previous budget of $15 billion that Adnoc pledged for such investments through 2030 when it first announced the plan a year ago.
BUSINESS
Sony confirms terminating $10 billion India merger with Zee
The Japanese entertainment giant sent a termination letter to Zee early on Monday and is expected to disclose it to the exchange later, said people familiar with the plan, who asked not to be identified as the announcement is not yet public.
WORLD
Australia halts ‘Golden Visa’ under broad migration overhaul
All applications for the Significant Investor or “Golden Visa” program have been halted. Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil said the visa was one of “many aspects” of Australia’s migration system that the government plans to change in order “to create a system which delivers for our country.”
BUSINESS
Wild week for Spirit shares ends with rally on antitrust appeal
Spirit shares jumped as much as 17% in late trading Friday after news of the court filing landed, adding to a 17% advance in the cash session. Overall, the stock plunged 55% in the holiday-shortened week
WORLD
Vietnam sentences 100 people in terrorism trial, VnExpress says
Nine people including four police officers were killed in the attacks in June that took place in the coffee-growing province of Dak Lak, and others were seriously injured.
BUSINESS
Fed to begin rate cut discussions but avoid teeing first one up
The Federal Open Market Committee is widely expected to hold interest rates steady for the fourth straight meeting when it gathers in Washington on Jan. 30 and 31. The real focus though will be on what lies ahead, at the FOMC’s March meeting and beyond.
BUSINESS
A $21 billion Indian banks stock rout signals heyday may be over
A gauge of the country’s top 12 largest banks recorded its worst week since January, erasing over $21 billion in market value. Two thirds of that bruising loss came from HDFC Bank, whose quarterly numbers showed falling net interest margins and weaker deposit growth.
WORLD
China’s $6.3 trillion stock selloff is getting uglier by the day
Grim milestones have kept piling up in recent days: Tokyo has overtaken Shanghai as Asia’s biggest equity market, while India’s valuation premium over China has hit a record.
BUSINESS
Altman seeks to raise billions for network of AI chip factories
Altman has had conversations with several large potential investors in the hopes of raising the vast sums needed for chip fabrication plants, or fabs, as they’re known colloquially
WORLD
China’s biggest brokerage restricts short sales after stock rout
State-owned Citic Securities Co. has stopped lending stocks to individual investors and raised the requirements for institutional clients earlier this week after so-called window guidance from regulators, said the people, asking not be identified discussing a private matter.
WORLD
Red Sea unrest is bad news for the world’s fragile food supply
Vessels loaded with foodstuffs are among those avoiding Houthi attacks in the key waterway by sailing around Africa, a longer and costlier route. But unlike gas, oil and consumer goods cargoes that have also been affected, lengthier shipping times risk making perishable foods unsellable.
WORLD
Bitcoin retreats to one-month low as ETF-led enthusiasm wanes
The largest digital asset briefly flirted with a drop below $40,000 before trading at $41,160 as of 6:30 a.m. Friday in Singapore, a decline of 3% in the past 24 hours. Smaller tokens like Ether, Solana and Polkadot also struggled.
TECHNOLOGY
Microsoft’s Bing market share barely budged with ChatGPT add-on
“The entire search category is now going through a sea change,” Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella said at the time. “That opportunity comes very few times.”
BUSINESS
Tata unit Agratas in India is in talks for green loan of up to $500 million
The wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Sons Pvt Ltd develops battery cells, with factories in India and the U.K. Its facilities are designed to be powered by clean energy, according to the company’s website.
WORLD
Blinken stranded after Boeing plane breaks down on Davos trip
After flying from Davos on helicopters and boarding the modified Boeing 737, Blinken and his party were informed that the aircraft had been deemed unsafe to fly. An oxygen leak detected previously could not be remedied.
WORLD
Have No Fear of the Fed’s $7 Trillion Stash: Bill Dudley
Since April 2022, the Fed has been in tightening mode, with its holdings of Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities currently running off at a rate of about $75 billion to $80 billion a month.
WORLD
China brings back youth jobless rate, with rosier number
The jobless rate was 14.9% last month for those between 16 and 24 years old, the statistics department said in a statement Wednesday. That figure excluded students, and compared to 21.3% in June before the body suspended releasing such data.
WORLD
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Time owner Marc Benioff disagree on AI’s use of copyrighted content
“All the training data has been stolen,” Benioff said Tuesday in an interview at Bloomberg House at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Content from media outlets including Time and the New York Times Co. surfaces in results from AI companies, he said.
WORLD
Apple passed Samsung as world’s top phone maker in 2023
The iPhone accounted for a fifth of the global market with close to 235 million shipments last year, research firm IDC estimates.
WORLD
BP names Murray Auchincloss as new CEO after predecessor’s scandal
BP was thrown into turmoil after Looney resigned on Sept. 12 for failing to disclose relationships with employees and leaving no clear succession plan in place.
BUSINESS
Russian crude flows defy Red Sea chaos to exceed OPEC+ target
About 3.43 million barrels a day of crude were shipped from Russian ports in the four weeks to Jan. 14, tanker-tracking data monitored by Bloomberg show.
