EUROPEAN MIDDAY BRIEFING: Fall in stocks in China -2-

The Universal Music Group spin-off by Vivendi SE, expected on Tuesday, will leave the French conglomerate deprived of its most lucrative business and test the market’s appetite for music as an asset class.
The world’s largest music company, behind stars such as Taylor Swift, Drake and The Beatles, will debut on Amsterdam’s Euronext stock exchange with shares that will be distributed to Vivendi investors. The move comes amid growing interest in the resurgent music industry as an investment and following a recent boom in the value of music catalogs, music streaming companies and technology to creators.
Shell to start manufacturing low-carbon jet fuel as regulations loom
Royal Dutch Shell PLC is the first major oil company to announce low-emission jet fuel production and sales targets as airlines seek to purchase more fuel to meet climate change targets and get ahead of proposed EU regulations European.
The Anglo-Dutch energy giant, a major supplier of jet fuel, said it plans to produce 2 million metric tonnes of so-called sustainable aviation fuel per year by 2025, up from zero today. hui. He wants SAF to represent at least 10% of the jet fuel it sells by 2030, including the fuel it sources from outside suppliers. A Shell spokesperson declined to say how many SAFs it sells now.
Nigeria’s state-owned oil company incorporated under new petroleum law
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corp., which has been managed as a state-owned enterprise since 1977, is to be incorporated with a board of directors.
An official statement released on Sunday said Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, who is also the country’s petroleum minister, ordered the incorporation as stipulated in the 2021 Petroleum Industry Law.
OVHcloud in Europe prepares $ 4.7 billion IPO
European cloud service provider OVHcloud plans to launch a possible IPO, the company said on Monday, a deal that could value the company at more than $ 4.7 billion.
Based in Roubaix, France, OVHcloud rents compute, storage and networking capacity to users, overseeing a network of dozens of data centers across North America, Europe, Singapore and Australia. It also operates its own fiber optic network globally which the company says gives it a competitive advantage.
Investment firms Tiedemann and Alvarium Near Deal to merge and go public via SPAC
The investment companies Tiedemann Group and Alvarium Investments Ltd. are on the verge of entering into a merger and IPO deal through a specialist acquisition company, people familiar with the matter said.
The combined investment firm would be called Alvarium Tiedemann Holdings and would be valued at around $ 1.4 billion under the deal with SPAC Cartesian Growth Corp., the people said. The merger could be announced as early as this week.
Dispute between US and France shows challenge of keeping allies unified
France has stepped up its opposition to a US security deal with Australia and the UK, criticizing the Biden administration’s failure to keep its allies informed of sweeping foreign policy initiatives after the pact led to the loss of a lucrative deal on French submarines.
On Sunday, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian spoke of “the strategic consequences of the current crisis” with his ambassadors from the United States and Australia recalled for consultations. French President Emmanuel Macron is also expected to meet with President Biden in the coming days, according to officials from both countries, a sign of France’s deep frustration with the security pact. Mr. Le Drian compared French anger over the security pact to the backlash of the American allies over the brutal and disorderly withdrawal of the Biden administration from Afghanistan.
Russia’s ruling party leads election as Putin seeks to tighten grip
Preliminary results showed that Russia’s ruling party appeared on track to maintain its majority in parliament, which would strengthen President Vladimir Putin’s control over his country’s main levers of power.
The initial tally showed that the United pro-Kremlin Russia won 50% of the votes cast, followed by the Communist Party of the Russian Federation with 20% and the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia with around 8%, according to early results from the Russian Federation. Russian electoral commission on the basis of 85% of the ballots were counted.
Tighter Russia-Belarus ties choke West-backed Ukraine
BRUSSELS-Russia’s growing integration with Belarus presents a new military threat to Ukraine backed by the West, which Moscow is trying to bring back into orbit.
Russia has conducted major joint military exercises with Belarus, whose authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko, weakened by mass protests and Western sanctions, ceded much of his country’s political and economic control to Moscow. The exercises, which Russia says are defensive in nature and involve some 200,000 troops, have highlighted closer military ties on Ukraine’s northern flank.
WORLD NEWS
More CFOs Add Sustainability Goals to Business Lending
A growing number of companies are tying the interest rates on their business loans to environmental and other sustainability goals as they come under pressure from investors and regulators to go green.
Sustainability loans carry interest rates that adjust depending on whether a company achieves a predetermined environmental, social or governance goal, such as reducing carbon emissions. U.S. companies took out $ 83.8 billion in such loans until Sept. 16, up from $ 2.5 billion during the same period in 2020, according to Dealogic, a data provider. US business lending volume, including sustainability-related loans, stood at $ 1.7 trillion as of Sept. 16, Dealogic said.
Chinese real estate sector liquidation continues as Evergrande grows worried
Shares of Chinese real estate developers continued to fall on Monday as concerns mounted that China Evergrande Group moved closer to a default, signaling the potential for wider contagion in the sector.
The Hang Seng Mainland Properties index plunged more than 6.0% on Monday morning, bringing year-to-date losses to 33%. Evergrande fell 17% to HK $ 2.11, while Sunac China Holdings Ltd. slipped 10% and Guangzhou R&F Properties Co. fell 7.3%. Property management companies were also down, with Country Garden Services Holdings Co. dropping 12%.
RBA’s dovish convictions could be undermined by soaring shipping costs
The Reserve Bank of Australia’s confidence that interest rates will not be raised over the next two years should be tested as soaring shipping costs and a weaker exchange rate bring the economy back. core inflation targeting 2-3% in 2022.
Marcel Thieliant, senior economist at Capital Economics, said on Monday that shipping costs from China to Australia are now about 250% higher than before the pandemic.
Upcoming economy week: central banks, door-to-door sales, purchasing managers
The Federal Reserve’s policy statement and President Jerome Powell’s press conference on Wednesday highlight this week’s list of economic news.
Democrats move forward with debt limitation vote amid stalemate with GOP
WASHINGTON – A partisan fight to raise the government’s borrowing limit is set to rise this week, with Democrats pushing forward with a vote against strident GOP opposition, raising doubts whether Congress will take action before the federal government runs out of cash.
The deadlock has alarmed Wall Street analysts and business leaders, who in recent weeks have issued warnings of a growing risk of technical default, in which the government may not be able to make all of its regular payments. in full and on time. The threat of such a default could derail the markets and hurt US economic growth.
Bad debt sales soar to record year
The $ 3 trillion market for low-rated corporate debt is in its best year ever, fueled by a recovering economy and investor demand for any additional returns.
U.S. companies including Crocs Inc. and SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. have sold more than $ 786 billion in bad rated bonds and loans so far in 2021, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence’s S&P. This exceeds the previous record for a full year in data going back to 2008.
Covid-19 Vaccines Boost Global Economy, But Cannot Cure It Alone
The global recovery is slowing with the resurgence of Covid-19, prompting governments to try to increase vaccination rates in hopes of fueling stronger economic growth.
The idea is, first, that vaccinations will alleviate consumers’ worries about infection, causing them to spend more on travel, dining out, concerts, and other activities involving proximity to other people. Second, reducing the number of Covid-19 cases would mean fewer government closures of ports, factories and other operations critical to global supply chains.
Natural gas prices are rising and winter is still months away
Natural gas prices have risen, raising concerns over winter shortages and forecasts for the most expensive fuel since frackers flooded the market more than a decade ago.
US natural gas futures closed Friday at $ 5.105 per million British thermal units. They were around half six months ago and have jumped 17% this month.
As Congress Debates Trillions In Spending, Voters’ Minds Elsewhere
FORT WAYNE, Ind.-Sen. Todd Young warned the few dozen conservatives gathered this month in the basement of a sushi restaurant that their activism could be the only thing stopping Congress from spending billions of dollars in taxes.
“Flooding the area with your concerns will amplify for the membership how serious they are,” said the Republican of Indiana.
Afghan Valley Legendary for having resisted the Soviets, the Taliban are emptying
BAZARAK, Afghanistan-What is missing these days in the capital of Panjshir, the only Afghan province that resisted the Taliban after the fall of Kabul last month, are the Panjshiris.
Health Experts Call For Patience For Wider Use Of Covid-19 Booster Injections
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September 20, 2021 06:25 ET (10:25 GMT)
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