Emerging Markets Daily - January 26
The Top 5 EM Stories of the Day
The Top 5 Emerging Markets Stories - January 26
Huawei Denies Reports That It Will Sell Off Smartphone Brands - Shanghai Daily
“Chinese telecommunications company Huawei Technologies yesterday dismissed the ‘unsubstantiated rumors’ regarding the possible sale of its flagship smartphone brands, claiming that Huawei has no such plan.”
“‘We remain fully committed to our smartphone business, and will continue to deliver world-leading products and experiences for consumers around the world,’ read the statement.”
“Reuters reported earlier that talks between the world’s largest telecommunications equipment maker and a consortium led by Shanghai government-backed investment firms have been going on for months,” Shanghai Daily reports.
Calls to Merge Shanghai Exchanges Grow - South China Morning Post
“A score of Shanghai’s legislative advisors have called for the merger of the local stock and futures exchanges to attract global companies and investors raising funds, as the city marked 30 years of explosive growth to become the elder sibling of the world’s second-largest capital market.”
“The merger was proposed by 20 delegates of the Shanghai People’s Political Consultative Conference (SPPCC), including the Shanghai Gold Exchange chairman Jiao Jinpu, the Shanghai chief of the Export-Import Bank of China (ExIm), and the Agricultural Bank of China’s city president Chen Qichang, according to a bill obtained by the South China Morning Post.”
“The delegates proposed the establishment of a holding group, under which the Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE), the China Financial Futures Exchange, various securities depository and clearing companies as well as an options exchange can be built, according to the plan. Shares of the new holding company can either be listed in Shanghai, or in Hong Kong, according to their proposal,” South China Morning Post reports.
Vietnam Conglomerate To Raise $300 Million in Bonds - VNExpress
“Vietnam’s largest private conglomerate Vingroup hopes to raise nearly VND6.98 trillion ($302.45 million) through bonds to invest in subsidiaries VinFast and VinSmart.”
“The non-convertible, unsecured 3-year bonds worth VND100,000 each will be accompanied by warrants. They will be offered to the public in three rounds in the first half of this year, Vingroup said in a filing with the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange late last week…”
“Vingroup, originally a real estate and retail heavyweight, has grown to become Vietnam’s largest private diversified conglomerate, and now sells cars, scooters, television sets and smartphones. It is also looking to enter the artificial intelligence sector,” VNExpress reports.
Saudi Aramco, ADNOC top Middle East Brand Value Rankings - Arab News
“Saudi Aramco has maintained its position as the Middle East’s most valuable brand, with the Brand Finance Global 500 2021 report valuing the Kingdom’s oil giant at $37.5 billion.”
“‘Aramco is the hidden giant of the oil industry whose brand has finally emerged into the light of public attention. It has always been known as a b2b (business to business) brand but has aspirations to become a well-known consumer brand,’ said David Haigh, CEO of Brand Finance…”
“The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) was the second-most valuable brand in the region, confirming the dominance of the oil sector, despite governments’ ambitions to diversify GCC economies away from a reliance on hydrocarbons.”
“While Aramco retained its number one spot — despite a 20 percent drop in brand value — according to the study, ADNOC has managed to successfully maintain its brand value during a challenging year, with only a 6 percent decline to $10.8 billion, making it the most resilient of all national oil companies in the rankings,” Arab News reports.
How High Can Jumia Fly? - Benzinga
“We surveyed a group of over 500 investors on whether shares of Jumia Technologies AG ADR (NASDAQ: JMIA) will reach $100 by 2022.”
“Jumia Technologies is a pan-African e-commerce platform that connects sellers with consumers. It includes a logistics service for shipping and delivering packages from sellers to consumers. The company also has a payment service for transactions among participants in selected markets…”
“In a case for future growth, research by Jumia suggests less than 1% e-commerce penetration in Africa versus 12% in the U.S. and 20% in China.”
“Jumia's stock was trading as low as $2.15 in early 2020 and was valued at a few hundred million dollars. After an explosion of growth amid the pandemic, Jumia now trades at around $59 with a market cap of $4.62 billion dollars.”
“It can be said Jumia seeks to become the Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ: AMZN) of Africa, as the firm attempts to achieve market penetration within Africa similar to that of the FAANG giant,” Benzinga reports via Yahoo Finance.