LG Chem says it will transfer its water solutions business for $1.03 billion
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
8 minutes ago
- Reuters
UnitedHealth surges after Warren Buffett bets on recovery
Aug 15 (Reuters) - Shares of UnitedHealth Group (UNH.N), opens new tab surged more than 13% on Friday after billionaire Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N), opens new tab bought 5 million shares of the company, providing a shot in the arm for investors who think the health conglomerate will turn around under its new CEO. The shares have lost nearly half their value in the last year as the company struggled to adapt to rising healthcare costs and changes to government reimbursement plans that affected its health insurance and Optum patient care businesses. News of Buffett's stake, along with purchases by other large hedge fund managers, suggests investors believe the stock currently does not reflect its long-term outlook. However, the turnaround may be slow, as UnitedHealth reckons with billions of additional medical costs expected to hit in the coming quarters. The "vote of confidence" from Buffett validates UnitedHealth's long-term value, but "(the) management needs to regain trust and credibility with investors, and get back to its beat-and-raise reputation of the past," said James Harlow, senior vice president at Novare Capital Management. UnitedHealth missed Wall Street's earnings target for two straight quarters this year and was forced to pull back its 2025 outlook in May, rare moves for a company that had long been favored for its regular earnings growth. It reinstated the annual outlook last month, but the profit forecast was well short of analysts' already lowered estimate. The company's shares currently trade at about 15.8 times forward earnings estimates, below their five-year average of 19. The stock has dropped nearly 40% in 2025, making it the worst-performing stock on the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI), opens new tab this year. Friday's gains helped the Dow hit an all-time intraday high, while shares of rivals Humana (HUM.N), opens new tab, Elevance Health (ELV.N), opens new tab and CVS Health (CVS.N), opens new tab rose more modestly. "I'm a bit surprised at the magnitude of the stock move today but that shows how beaten up and out of favor the stock and entire health insurance sector is," Jeff Jonas, portfolio manager at Gabelli Funds said. In the last two years, the company has dealt with fallout from a cyberattack at its technology unit that served as a major backbone in the U.S. healthcare system, the murder of its insurance unit chief in December, and a federal investigation into its government-backed health plans. In May, CEO Andrew Witty abruptly resigned in the face of the worsening operational issues, and Stephen Hemsley, who had run the company from 2006 to 2017, took over. Buffett is known as a patient and opportunistic investor, swooping in with big investments in companies during periods of struggle when he sees a long-term strategic value. He invested heavily in Occidental Petroleum (OXY.N), opens new tab in 2019 as it tried to finance a merger with Anadarko Petroleum and has kept adding to his stake despite the company's weak stock performance. He famously took a stake in investment bank Goldman Sachs (GS.N), opens new tab at the height of the global financial crisis in 2008. "Buffett's purchase is a psychological reassurance to many investors that saw UnitedHealth as 'untouchable,' given the massive turbulence in the stock over the past few months," said Kevin Gade, chief operating officer at UnitedHealth investor Bahl & Gaynor. Berkshire said in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing on Thursday that it owned 5.04 million UnitedHealth shares, worth about $1.57 billion, as of June 30. Buffett owned about 1.18 million shares in UnitedHealth between 2006 and 2009, before selling his entire stake in 2010. Several other prominent hedge funds, including David Tepper's Appaloosa Management, Lone Pine Capital and Two Sigma Investments, also bought UnitedHealth's shares, regulatory filings showed on Thursday. "While UnitedHealth still faces elevated uncertainty, it is good to see that this renowned investment firm also believes the market is discounting assumptions that are too pessimistic for the long term," said Morningstar analyst Julie Utterback.
The Independent
37 minutes ago
- The Independent
India's Modi pushes for self-reliance in Independence Day speech amid threat of US tariffs
Prime minister Narendra Modi marked India 's 78 years of Independence on Friday by urging the nation to move towards more self-reliance amid the looming threat of additional US tariffs. Addressing the country from New Delhi's 17th-century, Mughal-era Red Fort, he said everything from fertilisers to jet engines and EV batteries should be manufactured in India. "Farmers, fishermen, cattle rearers are our top priorities," Mr Modi said in his customary annual address. "Modi will stand like a wall against any policy that threatens their interests. India will never compromise when it comes to protecting the interests of our farmers," he said. Mr Modi did not mention the tariffs or the US in his speech that lasted nearly two hours. Last week, US president Donald Trump imposed an additional 25 per cent tariff on Indian goods, citing New Delhi's continued imports of Russian oil in a move that sharply escalated tensions between the two nations. Although local manufacturing and self-reliance have been Mr Modi's key focus areas for years now, the push is seen to have gained urgency amid ongoing global trade tensions and supply chain disruptions. "The need of the hour is to take a resolve for building a strong India ... I want our traders, shopkeepers to display boards for Swadeshi [Made in India] products," he said. He said made-in-India semiconductor chips would hit the market by the end of this year and that India was pushing for self-reliance in producing critical minerals with exploration underway at more than 1,200 locations. Mr Trump's tariffs threaten to disrupt India's access to its largest export market, where shipments totalled nearly $87bn (£ bn) in 2024, hitting sectors like textiles, footwear, shrimp, gems and jewellery. Trade talks between New Delhi and Washington collapsed after five rounds of negotiations over disagreement on opening India's vast farm and dairy sectors and stopping Russian oil purchases. The prime minister announced India would set up a new defence system called 'Sudarshan Chakra' in the aftermath of India's four-day military conflict with Pakistan in May. "India has decided that it will not tolerate nuclear threats. For a long time, nuclear blackmail had been going on but this blackmail will not be tolerated now," Mr Modi said. Pakistani prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday announced the creation of a new "Army Rocket Force Command" to bolster the country's defense capabilities. Sharif made this announcement during a speech marking Independence Day celebrations, but gave no further details. India celebrates its Independence Day one day after Pakistan. The two states came into existence as a result of the bloody partition of British India in 1947. The process sparked some of the worst communal violence the world has seen and left hundreds of thousands dead. It triggered one of the largest human migrations in history and some 12 million people fled their homes.
Reuters
2 hours ago
- Reuters
Companies and products covered by India's consumption tax regime
NEW DELHI, Aug 15 (Reuters) - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government on Friday announced a plan to lower rates and simplify its goods and services taxes (GST) by October, a move to boost domestic demand amid U.S. tariff headwinds. Modi's announcement comes as India moves to simplify its GST structure, with a group of ministers preparing a report that will consider merging tax categories and lowering rates on some products. The country currently levies GST at 5%, 12%, 18% and 28% on most goods and services, excluding gold and silver, and applies an additional levy on so-called demerit items such as cigarettes and high-end cars. Below are current tax rates of the different categories, and products and companies that could be affected: * Cars made by likes of Maruti Suzuki ( opens new tab, Hyundai ( opens new tab and Tata Motors ( opens new tab are currently subject to a tax rate of 28%. Big and luxury cars have to pay higher additional levies than smaller cars. * Consumer durables such as air conditioners and refrigerators fall in this tax category and any move could benefit sales of Samsung ( opens new tab and LG Electronics ( opens new tab * Cigarettes, along with aerated drinks, attract additional levies. Horse racing clubs and gambling services, 5-star hotel accommodation also fall under this category. * Personal care items like hair oil, toothpaste, ice cream, shampoos and deodorants. * Mobile phones and industrial chemicals are also subject to this tax rate. Tax changes here could affect Apple (AAPL.O), opens new tab and Xiaomi ( opens new tab * Health and life insurance products THE 12% CATEGORY Most products in this category are likely to become cheaper, a government source has said. Consumer majors like Nestle (NESN.S), opens new tab to Hindustan Unilever ( opens new tab to Procter & Gamble (PG.N), opens new tab retail many products at this tax rate, which covers: * Processed & packaged foods - butter, processed foods * Dry fruits such as almonds * Fruit juices, packed coconut water * Ready-to-eat vegetable/fruit preparations, pickles, jam, jelly THE 5% GST CATEGORY * Household essentials like sugar, tea, edible oils, milk * Footwear and clothes priced below $10 * Certain life-saving drugs
