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Good morning and welcome back to the final edition of FirstFT this week. On today’s agenda we have:
We start though with a look at the US corporate bond market, which has seen a rush of companies taking advantage of the buoyant market conditions following Donald Trump’s election victory to raise billions of dollars.
Caterpillar, Gilead Sciences and Goldman Sachs are among the companies to raise more than $50bn this week by issuing new bonds, according to LSEG data.
That total is far above bankers’ expectations and marks the busiest week since a burst of activity in September, when companies typically return to the market after a summer lull.
Borrowing costs for investment-grade companies relative to US Treasuries have fallen to their lowest levels since 1998 while spreads on “junk” bonds are at their narrowest point since mid-2007, according to Ice BofA data.
“Spreads are at these eye-poppingly tight levels,” said one senior debt banker, adding that low borrowing premiums were spurring many companies to “pull forward” bond issuance they had planned for early next year. Read more on the post-election rush by companies to tap capital markets.
Here’s what else we’re keeping tabs on today and over the weekend:
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Company results: Chinese ecommerce group Alibaba is expected to report a rise in quarterly revenue.
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Economic data: US October retail sales and industrial production figures are released while Peru’s state statistics agency, Inei, publishes monthly economic growth data.
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Monetary policy: Federal Reserve Bank of Boston president Susan Collins gives opening remarks at an event in Boston, Massachusetts.
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Sport: Former boxing world champion Mike Tyson takes on social media influencer-turned-boxer Jake Paul tonight in their highly anticipated bout at the AT&T Stadium in Dallas, Texas.
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G20 summit: World leaders, including Xi Jinping of China, arrive in Brazil on Sunday for this year’s G20 summit, which starts in Rio de Janeiro on Monday.
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African votes: Gabon holds a referendum tomorrow on a new constitution that could see an end to military rule. Senegal holds parliamentary elections on Sunday.
How well did you keep up with the news this week? Take our quiz.
Five more top stories
1. Donald Trump has nominated Robert F Kennedy Jr as head of the US Department of Health and Human Services, putting a vaccine sceptic and pharmaceutical industry critic in charge of a $1.8tn budget with wide-ranging influence over drug regulation and public health. Read more on Trump’s latest controversial appointment.
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More appointments: Donald Trump will nominate Jay Clayton, the former head of the Securities and Exchange Commission, as US attorney for the Southern District of New York, one of the most prestigious prosecutorial posts, with oversight of Wall Street.
2. The Federal Trade Commission is preparing to launch an investigation into anti-competitive practices at Microsoft’s cloud computing business, as the US regulator continues to pursue Big Tech in the final weeks of Joe Biden’s presidency. Here’s more on the FTC’s allegations against Microsoft.
3. Argentina said yesterday it would “re-evaluate” its role in global climate talks after walking out of the COP29 summit, fuelling concerns that the South American country could become the first to follow Donald Trump’s threatened exit from the landmark Paris accord. You can still sign up to the FT Sessions at COP29 that run until tomorrow. Register for free: ftcop.live.ft.com.
4. Sales of Chinese cars in Russia have hit new records in the wake of sanctions that forced western automakers to cut ties with Moscow. The surge, which has made Russia the largest export market for Chinese automakers, comes at a time when Beijing faces higher US and EU tariffs on electric vehicle exports.
5. Wall Street trading firm Jane Street has quietly invested in Micro Connect, a Hong Kong start-up that generates a wealth of unfiltered data on China’s economy using a new and complex form of financing. It bought a minority stake as part of Micro Connect’s most recent funding round last year, three people with knowledge of the matter said.
The Big Read
Activist short sellers that target corporate malfeasance and the hedge funds that quietly fund their trades are coming under increasing regulatory scrutiny. Funds such as Kingdon Capital Management, which profited from a short position on India’s Hindani Group after a report from Hindenburg Research was published, have cast a spotlight on the world of activist short selling.
We’re also reading . . .
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Trade troubles: As Donald Trump prepares to return to the White House, Soumaya Keynes writes a short guide on how to dodge a tariff.
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Klarna: Meet Seb Siemiatkowski, the Swedish entrepreneur seeking to list the “buy now, pay later” fintech in New York.
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Ukraine deal: Donald Trump can demand concessions. If they are cleverly crafted, they won’t be impossible for Vladimir Putin to give, writes Rose Gottemoeller, former Nato deputy secretary-general.
Chart of the day
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The UK became the biggest recipient of migrants after the US last year, according to a report from the OECD group of wealthy nations. Net immigration rose to 750,000 in the UK in 2023, driven by recruitment to the care sector. Overall, the number of legal migration to OECD countries last year reached a record high, triggering a voter backlash against incumbent governments.
Take a break from the news
How does one spend winter in New York? Eric Ripert, chef-patron of the three-star Le Bernardin, likes to keep it local on the Upper East Side, with sorties into SoHo and Nolita. Here are his favourite places to dine this season.
