Colorado supreme court declares Donald Trump ineligible

Good Morning,

A farm equipment salesman who ripped off 25 clients to the tune of $360,000 has been sent to jail, Nicola Willis’ mini-Budget and Treasury’s Hyefu show something’s going to have to give, Greater Wellington Regional Council has issued thousands of dollars worth of fines, CEO Eddie Wu is taking over the top role at the company’s Taobao and Tmall e-commerce business & the Colorado supreme court on Tuesday declared Donald Trump ineligible to hold office again.

Let's jump in.

Before The Bell

Markets

• The New Zealand sharemarket had a late fall, unable to be inspired by the half-year economic update and mini-Budget, which lacked Christmas cheer. (Herald)

• The Australian sharemarket inched closer to a record high on Wednesday, tracking Wall Street’s rally as investors further position for the US Federal Reserve to start cutting interest rates next year. (AFR).

• U.K. inflation fell by more than expected in to hit 3.9% in November, in the lowest annual reading since September 2021. (CNBC)

• European stocks gained and bond yields across the euro region fell on Wednesday as worsening economic data and slowing inflation underscored expectations for interest-rate cuts next year. (BBG)

Earnings and Data

• Investors ready to hold their nose over environmental concerns can pocket strong dividends from coal stocks in 2024, as the miners shunned by the mainstream investment community boost production and buy assets from their rivals. (AFR)

News Summary

• A farm equipment salesman who ripped off 25 clients to the tune of $360,000 has been sent to jail after the home detention sentence he initially received “simply didn’t work”. (Herald)

• Nicola Willis’ mini-Budget and Treasury’s Hyefu show something’s going to have to give to get books back in shape. (Herald)

• A 50-year-old Kiwi man who died in a “deceivingly dangerous” Rarotonga lagoon, had entered the water unaccompanied when he got into trouble. (Stuff)

• Greater Wellington Regional Council has issued thousands of dollars worth of fines over illegal odours coming from a Lower Hutt wastewater treatment plant. (RNZ)

• A passenger has been charged after he allegedly vaped, exposed himself and urinated on board a Jetstar flight departing the Gold Coast for Melbourne. (9 News)

• The Colorado supreme court on Tuesday declared Donald Trump ineligible to hold office again under the US constitution’s insurrection clause. (Guardian)

• Cash rules in India despite digital payment boom. (BBC)

• CEO Eddie Wu is taking over the top role at the company’s Taobao and Tmall e-commerce business, replacing Trudy Dai in the Chinese internet tech giant’s latest management shakeup this year. (CNBC)

• Tennessee is filing a silly lawsuit in the culture wars, but BlackRock and other ESG providers have themselves largely to blame. (BBG)

Deal Flow

Investments / M&A

• Sony Group Corp is looking to hear Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd.’s proposals for rescuing the merger plan with its Indian unit that sought to create a $10 billion media behemoth. (BBG)

• Investment bankers ordered back to the office in 2023 could just as easily have twiddled their thumbs at home. In 2024, however, they should be able to start accumulating frequent-flyer miles again, as a growing list of deals sketched on paper finally get put into action. (RT)

  
  

VC & Fundraising

• The pre-Christmas deals keep rolling in. Street Talk understands Ofload, a digital road freight provider, has ruled off a $27 million financing round to accelerate its push to digitalise Australia’s logistics industry. (AFR)

• Hopes of policy stability in India after victories for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling party in key state polls this month should extend a boom in initial public offerings (IPO) into 2024 as companies rush to tap investor demand, bankers say. (RT)

Equity Raises

• A chunk of Gentrack Group shares was on offer on Tuesday, after Shaw and Partners launched a $61 million block trade in the dual-listed software maker. (AFR)

• As the private equity industry soldiers through one of its toughest ever fundraising environments, some big-name firms are tapping outsiders to help them to dig out and access new pools of capital. (BBG)

Debt

• A $1.3 Trillion Debt-Fueled Boom in Deals Faces a Grim New Reality. (BBG)

• In an ominous sign for Sweden’s battered real estate sector, Stockholm-based landlord Oscar Properties Holding AB had assets seized by a creditor, showing how patience is running thin as a financial crunch intensifies. (BBG)

• Ratings agency S&P on Wednesday placed its 'BBB+' long-term issuer credit rating on Nippon Steel Corp (5401.T) on negative credit watch after it clinched a deal to buy U.S. Steel (X.N) for $14.9 billion in cash. (RT)

Daily Picks

• Nicola Willis does it again: Finance Minister makes lewd gaffe during Question Time in Parliament. (Herald)

The Daily Deck is sponsored by Industrial Equity, LLC