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Sunday, 18 June 2017

International news of note on 18 June 2017

Six Egyptians are reportedly among the estimated 76 people missing in the fire that engulfed London’s Grenfell Tower last week, according to UK Metro News. Rania Ibrahim and her two children are believed to still be missing after being trapped in the 23rd floor. She had posted to Facebook Live her ordeal and police had instructed her to remain inside. Thirty people have been confirmed dead in the fire that launched a wave of protests and anger at Prime Minister Theresa May.

Other international stories breaking on a busy news weekend:

Biggest international story of relevance to Egypt: Israel, Greece and Cyprus have agreed to build the world’s longest undersea pipeline to link Israeli offshore gas fields to Europe, Bloomberg reports. The business information service notes that the expense of the pipeline and current low energy prices “may require additional gas findings offshore Israel to make it commercially viable.” While the potential pipeline is years and bns of USD away, Israel already has a link to Europe through Egypt in the form of the Arish-Ashkelon pipeline, but it’s effectively blocked by a USD 1.76 bn international arbitration award won by Israel Electric against Egyptian state petroleum companies EGPC and EGAS and pipeline operator EMG. Israeli offshore giants Noble Energy (headquartered in the US) and Delek Group are looking to export gas to both Jordan and Egypt.

Biggest international story based on sheer “fun” factor: Amazon is making a bid for Whole Foods — the high-end food market dubbed “Whole Paycheck” by fans and detractors alike — in a USD 13.7 bn transaction that the Wall Street Journal says is in part a play on the idea that “many shoppers still want to buy groceries at physical stores.” The move is also being positioned as the next phase of Amazon’s war on retailer Walmart.

The WSJ’s coverage of the original transaction is great, but the piece you need to read to put it in context is by Christopher Mims, who writes for the newspaper: “Why does a phone maker get into banking transactions? Why does a social network build a virtual-reality headset? Why does an online retailer buy a grocery chain? Amazon’s bid to acquire Whole Foods is just the most extreme example of a larger, more consequential phenomenon: America’s biggest tech companies are spreading their tentacles, pushing into complementary businesses in a play to sustain growth as they saturate the market for their existing goods.” It’s also one heck of a logistics play. If you’re browsing from your iPad or at your desk, hit the rail running down the left-hand side for more than a dozen additional WSJ stories on the merger — the paper has owned coverage of this one.

Not a Journal subscriber? Check out coverage in the Financial Times (paywall). The NYT’s Farhad Manjoo has an interesting viewpoint, and both Bloomberg and Reuters have the story, with the former noting that grocery stocks in the US and Canada tanked on the announcement of Amazon’s foray — and that Amazon could push Whole Foods to cut prices to help it shed its “Whole Paycheck” image.

The specter of a tech giant buying into bricks and mortar has us dusting off our copy of David Sax’s very good The Revenge of Analog: Real Things and Why They Matter.

Tunisia is under pressure to fix its FX problem, but it’s not likely to follow Egypt’s example and fully float the dinar. That’s the take-home from a Bloomberg piece on currency liberalization measures contained in a draft bill now before the Tunisian cabinet.

Other headlines with a skim this morning if you have a few minutes:

Greece has been saved from default this summer after Eurozone ministers and the IMF announced on Thursday night an agreement that will allow Greece to make good on some USD 7 bn in debt repayments it owes in July. That said, they’ve essentially just kicked the ball down the road. The Financial Times explains why.

Investors are starting to freak about corporate bonds in the US and Europe. Quoth the FT: “The number of investors who think corporate bonds are overvalued has hit a new record high as the industry frets over the prospect of central bankers raising interest rates, as well as political uncertainty in the US and Europe.”

How bad is the quality of Uber coverage this morning? Lousy enough that either AriannaHuffington or three of millennials you’ve never heard of are going to save the ride-sharing app from the meltdown of Travis Kalanick and the company’s senior management. The New York Times serves up the Arianna angle, while Bloomberg looks at the three people who together account for almost all of the company’s revenues.

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