BUSINESS
The titans of the metaverse have a bandwidth problem
The speculative poetry of what might be possible online is jumping far ahead of a more prosaic reality
BUSINESS
The EV revolution needs an energy surge
Car design may be glamorous, but complementary tech such as charging and mapping software are vital to mass adoption
BUSINESS
The ‘S’ word — synergies — is back
Deep in the heart of Germany’s industrial Ruhr Valley, the “S” word is making a comeback, even if few are ready to say it out loud
BUSINESS
Lex | Microsoft/Activision: Titan pays up to seize bigger chunk of metaverse
With this deal, Microsoft would not only leapfrog ahead in gaming, but also steal a march in the metaverse land grab
BUSINESS
Sustainable funds face threat from tech sector turmoil
While tech shares have notched up big gains during the pandemic, they have taken a hit since the turn of the year
BUSINESS
Lex | GSK: £50bn-plus takeover would leave Unilever omnileveraged
Unilever shareholders who feared the company lacked ambition may now worry it has too much fire in its belly
BUSINESS
Tech’s shaky start to the year need not signify deeper issues
It is too early to say if this is anything more than a short-term adjustment that sets a floor for another stock bounce
BUSINESS
Surging real yields blow hole in ‘everything rally’
The yield on 10-year inflation-linked US government bonds has surged 0.24 percentage points since the end of December
BUSINESS
Companies raise $100bn on global debt market in brisk start to 2022
The rush of new deals offers an early glimpse at the barrage of issuance expected early this year, as companies look to tap debt markets
BUSINESS
Is there an end in sight to supply chain disruption?
The prospect of a rerun of 2021’s supply chain problems fills companies with dread.
BUSINESS
Growth equity booms as investors embrace private markets
Many blue-chip private equity and venture capital firms have limited capacity and have amassed big war chests of committed but still-undeployed money
BUSINESS
China economy: the fallout from the Evergrande crisis
The crackdown on real estate ordered by Xi Jinping is putting growing pressure on local governments and many companies
TECHNOLOGY
Investors gear up for ‘gold rush’ in metaverse hardware
Boom expected in ‘picks and shovels’ underpinning technologies such as headsets, sensors and chips
BUSINESS
The key to 2022 will be how inflation is brought down
In misjudging the risk of rising prices, the Fed gave markets a profitable 2021 but more difficult year ahead
BUSINESS
Lex | Apple: $3tn market value could rise further with new products
Cash creation also remains prodigious, but threat of regulation could be the one thing that halts the charge
BUSINESS
As the ETF world booms, so do the risks
The ETF industry has gone well beyond cloning triceratops, and has for some time now manufactured tyrannosaurs
BUSINESS
Dealmaking surges past $5.8 trillion to highest levels on record
The value of deals was 54 per cent higher than in 2019 before the pandemic
BUSINESS
Electric vehicles: The carmakers wary of going ‘all in’ on batteries
Companies such as BMW and Stellantis are resisting the rush into EVs, believing that the green revolution will be gradual
BUSINESS
Bull market heads into New Year on a shaky foundation
The key is how market conditions can change for the better to justify rising prices
BUSINESS
Lex | 2022 forecasts: and they all lived happily ever after
JPMorgan is hardly the only bull in town. UBS takes investors to task for underestimating “the runway for above-trend economic growth”
BUSINESS
US financial conditions remain easy even as Fed pulls back on stimulus
Despite the hawkish pivot, US stocks have stayed buoyant around record-high levels, while yields on US Treasuries remain stubbornly low
BUSINESS
The old lessons from gold’s new existential crisis
A combination of crypto and climate means the industry is left trying to justify its own existence
BUSINESS
Supply chains: Companies shift from ‘just in time’ to ‘just in case’
Businesses exposed by pandemic shortages and shipping bottlenecks are being forced to rethink their operations
BUSINESS
Retail investors riding the bull market could spur a populist backlash
The fear is one of the dips may turn into another bear market
