The Heat Moves to the Mediterranean

July 26, 2023

Good Morning,

Deadly hot weather makes its way to the Mediterranean, with wildfires killing dozens in Algeria and Sicily. More globally, people try to stock up on rice before the effects of the shortage grow. Christchurch real estate agent Yanfei Bao is still missing, despite police having charged a man with kidnapping. Pak’nSave deletes promotion on Facebook after being called out for misleading advertising.

Let's jump in.

Before The Bell

Markets

  • The benchmark S&P/NZX 50 Index fell 0.7%, or 84.367 points, to 11,933.86 on Tuesday, following a 0.7% gain on Monday. On the broader market 46 stocks rose and 79 fell with $68 million shares traded. (Stuff)

  • HSBC has reduced its expectations of house price falls through the rest of this year, and says they will be increasing at an annual rate of 5% by the end of 2024. (Stuff)

  • The crypto market’s once-handsome 2023 lead over the equity market is cracking as bitcoin holds a retreat below $US30,000. (AFR)

  • The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.5 per cent, or 33.3 points to 7339.7 at market close, buoyed by the materials and energy sectors. (AFR)

  • Some investors are giving the shares of dividend-rich companies a second look as expectations grow that the Federal Reserve is nearing the end of a rate-hiking cycle that has lifted bond yields to their highest level in nearly two decades. (RT)

  • Britain is sticking to its plan to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars from 2030 but some measures to reduce the carbon footprint of residential homes will be relaxed, senior government minister Michael Gove said on Tuesday. (RT)

  • India’s move to ban certain rice exports has sparked some panic buying in various countries, with videos on social media showing bags of the staple food flying off the shelves and long lines outside grocery stores. (BBG)

Earnings and Data

  • Global trade software company Trade Window was the biggest gainer on the sharemarket, jumping 23% to 37c after announcing a deal that will see UK tech company nChain pay $11.1m for a 19.99% stake. (Stuff)

  • Shares of L’Occitane have fallen 20% over the past 12 months, giving the company a market value of about HK$30.9 billion ($4 billion). (BBG)

News Summary

  • The Commerce Commission has defended its decision not to name or seek to punish three grocery suppliers that instructed defunct retailer The Honest Grocer not to sell their goods below a certain price. (Stuff)

  • The costs flowing from the Auckland floods in early 2023 could reach $4 billion, according to ongoing calculations being done by Auckland Council. (Stuff)

  • A Kapiti Coast supermarket has deleted a Facebook photo advertising a “super birthday deal” on tomatoes after a customer pointed out the promotional price was higher than the previous day. (Stuff)

  • Audi New Zealand is hoping for “satisfactory outcomes” as it settles a snag with affected customers and dealerships involving more than 100 Q3 SUVs with incorrect engine and fuel consumption information. (NBR)

  • Police investigating the disappearance of Christchurch real estate agent Yanfei Bao have searched farmland near Lake Ellesmere. (Stuff)

  • Wildfires killed 34 people in Algeria and forced the evacuation of thousands of tourists from the Greek island of Rhodes as an intense summer heatwave scorched large areas of the Mediterranean. (RT)

  • The U.S. Virgin Islands unveiled new accusations against JPMorgan Chase over the bank's ties to former client Jeffrey Epstein, including executives discussing how the disgraced late financier surrounded himself with "nymphettes." (RT)

  • With the Federal Reserve steaming toward another interest rate hike this week, policymakers face a choice over how much weight to put on recent economic data that has made hoped-for outcomes on inflation and unemployment seem more likely while also posing a risk the economy is too strong to keep prices in line. (RT)

  • The U.S. economy may ultimately skirt a recession, but it's felt like one for months at Jon Ferrando's 103 RV dealerships. (RT)

  • Cheaper versions of one of the most costly and widely used arthritis treatments in the U.S. are likely to fuel further scrutiny of the middlemen that negotiate drug prices for most insured Americans from lawmakers and the federal government, according to healthcare experts. (RT)

  • Two women were killed and a 16-year-old boy seriously injured as severe storms battered northern Italy overnight, while a wild fire in Sicily forced the temporary closure of Palermo airport. (RT)

  • China named Pan Gongsheng as governor of the central bank, strengthening his position as head of the institution tasked with boosting the world’s second-largest economy. (BBG)

  • Heat searing enough to knock out mobile phones. Wildfire smoke that turns the skies an apocalyptic orange. Flash floods submerging towns in upstate New York and Vermont. (BBG)

  • China removed Qin Gang as foreign minister just seven months into the job, marking the shortest-ever tenure for the role after the diplomat mysteriously disappeared from public view in June. (BBG)

  • Eleven people died in China after the roof of a middle school gymnasium collapsed in the northeastern city of Qiqihar on Sunday, sparking outrage on social media demanding government accountability. (BBG)

Deal Flow

Investments / M&A

  • From two years ago when it was about to close, Whakatāne Mill (WML) under new owners is now a thriving export business and three weeks into an upgrade that will see it potentially double its output of folding boxboard, or the material used in tough cardboard cartons and packaging. (NBR)

  • L’Occitane International SA’s controlling shareholder is considering a move to take the skin-care company private, people with knowledge of the matter said. (BBG)

  • IFM Investors’ growth private equity team has found a new target it likes in the utilities-focused software business Tally Group. (AFR)

VC & Fundraising

  • Investor pressure at Talon Energy is reaching fever pitch. It is understood shareholders representing nearly 30 per cent of Talon Energy’s register have sat down with the ASX-listed oil and gas explorer’s chief executive, Colby Hauser, to force the board to engage with Strike Energy’s bid. (AFR)

Equity Raises

  • Waste management company Smart Environmental is on the hunt for fresh capital, hiring investment bank UBS to assess its future options. (NBR)

  • Indoor strawberry company 26 Seasons has re-launched its capital raise campaign on Snowball Effect ahead of offering shares to retail investors later this month. (NBR)

  • Canadian lithium explorer Critical Resources and carbon capture technologies business Dotz Nano were drumming up interest in equity raisings on Tuesday morning. (AFR)

Daily Picks

  • Frustrated after countless failed diet and exercise attempts, 41 year-old Jessica Lenth from Hamburg has started putting money aside for a drug that she sees as a possible door to a life without obesity. Read more here.

  • All over Singapore, bright yellow containers have started popping up in unassuming places – at the airport, in a park and in front of a shopping mall. Inside them, people are breaking a sweat. Read more about Singapore’s ‘micro-gyms’ here.

Job Board

New Zealand

  • ASB rural banking graduate - Apply here

  • Waterman Capital investment analyst - Apply here

Australia

  • Citadel Securities graduate and intern roles - Apply here

  • Goldman Sachs Investment Banking Intern - Apply here

  • IMC graduate and intern roles - Apply here

  • Jarden

    • Graduate role - Apply here

    • Summer internships - Apply here

  • Macquarie graduate roles - Apply here

  • Optiver

    • Graduate role - Apply here

    • Internships - Apply here

The Daily Deck is sponsored by Industrial Equity, LLC

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