M&A Dries up in Mexico as Politics Get in the Way Of Dealmaking
Mergers and acquisitions in Mexico fell 36% in the first half of the year from the same period the year before, according to a July report carried out by insurance broker Aon Plc, TTR Data and Datasite. The value of deals, too, fell by 23%, making the nation an outlier among Latin American countries, where transactions dropped 6% but their value rose 7%.
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I Asked ChatGPT About Tariffs — And Here's Who It Said Is Impacted Most
You can't scroll through your phone without seeing the word tariffs. It appears in every other headline. Everyone from TV pundits to social media stars are duking it out over whether they're good for the country and for consumers' wallets. At this point, you're sort of embarrassed to admit that you don't know what a tariff is, how it works or who it's going to really hit. Find Out: Read Next: Instead of asking your one know-it-all friend, who will give you an unnecessarily complex explanation, there's another route you can take: ChatGPT. While you don't want to use ChatGPT as the end-all, be-all of your investigation, it can provide a baseline of information that will help guide you in deeper research. To get a foundation into tariffs, your friendly neighborhood GOBankingRates writer (that would be me) asked ChatGPT to explain tariffs to me in very rudimentary terms — along with who should expect to be impacted the most. A Definition in a Nutshell ChatGPT's basic definition of a tariff is very simple, which is exactly what I wanted: 'A tariff is a kind of tax a government puts on products that come from other countries. It makes those foreign products more expensive so that people might buy stuff from their own country instead.' Just to double-check this information before moving on, I visited the Tax Foundation website. Its definition aligns with what ChatGPT gave me: 'Tariffs are taxes imposed by one country on goods imported from another country.' The Tax Foundation website concurred with ChatGPT's definition but offered greater specifics about the function of tariffs in trade: 'Tariffs are trade barriers that raise prices, reduce available quantities of goods and services for US businesses and consumers, and create an economic burden on foreign exporters.' Learn More: Tariffs in Action To give me an idea of how tariffs work in practice, ChatGPT gave me a real-world example — one that feels like it could come to a news broadcast near you sooner than you'd think. So, the U.S. imports steel from China, let's say for $100 per ton. Without tariffs, U.S. businesses buy Chinese steel at that set price. Pretty easy, right? Now, here's a wrinkle in that situation (or should we say, a dent in the steel): The U.S. government puts a 25% tariff on that Chinese steel. At $100 plus a $25 tariff, that same steel now costs $125 per ton. If the same American businesses balk at the new expense, they might go to U.S.-made steel that costs $110 — because it's now cheaper than imported steel. Why Are Tariffs Imposed? Ostensibly, tariffs are imposed to protect local businesses. As ChatGPT put it, 'tariffs make imported goods more expensive, so local products seem cheaper in comparison.' 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More From GOBankingRates 5 Ways Trump Signing the GENIUS Act Could Impact Retirees4 Affordable Car Brands You Won't Regret Buying in 2025 This article originally appeared on I Asked ChatGPT About Tariffs — And Here's Who It Said Is Impacted Most Solve the daily Crossword
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Delta Sends Warning to All Customers After Disappointing Decision
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Credicorp Ltd (BAP) Q2 2025 Earnings Call Highlights: Strong ROE and Digital Growth Amid Legal ...
ROE: 20.7% for Q2, with a full-year expectation of approximately 19%. Risk-Adjusted NIM: Record 5.4% for the quarter. Efficiency Ratio: 44.2% for the quarter. Loan Growth: Underlying growth of 2.6% for the quarter, excluding currency effects. NPL Ratio: 5% for the quarter. Cost of Risk: 1.6% for the quarter. Net Interest Income: Increased by 4.2% year-over-year. Fee Income: Increased by 8.2% year-over-year. Insurance Underwriting Results: Grew by 11.2% year-over-year. Yape Users: Nearly 15 million monthly active users. Yape Revenue Contribution: 5.5% of Credicorp's risk-adjusted revenue. Grupo Pacifico ROE: 21.1% for the quarter. Investment Management ROE: 15.5% for the quarter. GDP Growth Expectation: Around 3% for the year. Loan Book Growth Expectation: Around 6.5% year-over-year. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 4 Warning Signs with SDOT. Release Date: August 15, 2025 For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript. Positive Points Credicorp Ltd (NYSE:BAP) reported a strong ROE of 20.7% for Q2 2025, reflecting solid operating performance and disciplined risk management. The company is benefiting from Peru's favorable macroeconomic environment, with GDP expected to grow by 3.2% and domestic demand by 4.5% this year. Credicorp Ltd (NYSE:BAP) has successfully diversified its business model, with fee-based and transactional income growing, reinforcing its platform. The digital platform Yape continues to scale, now serving nearly 15 million monthly active users, contributing significantly to fee income. Asset quality trends remain favorable, with improved credit dynamics and a record risk-adjusted NIM of 5.4%. Negative Points Credicorp Ltd (NYSE:BAP) is facing a legal challenge with SUNAT, requiring a payment of approximately PEN1.6 billion in alleged unpaid income tax, impacting cash flow. The efficiency ratio reflects upfront investments in scaling digital capabilities, which may pressure short-term profitability. Loan growth was impacted by the revaluation of Bolivia's balance sheet and currency fluctuations, with a reported 4.1% drop in quarter-end balances. The cost of risk is expected to rise in the second half of the year due to stronger retail origination, potentially affecting profitability. Despite strong results, the company will not issue extraordinary dividends this year due to the cash impact of the SUNAT payment. Q & A Highlights Q: Can you elaborate on the improvement in cost of risk and the strategy for retail acceleration in the second half? A: The improvement in cost of risk is due to measures taken last year to ensure portfolios are within risk appetite, resulting in a very low cost of risk in the first half of the year. We are now originating higher-yielding, higher-risk portfolios successfully. The strategy is to continue this trend, which should reflect in the second half and continue in the following years. We manage our portfolio based on risk-adjusted NIM, not just cost of risk. Q: What is your long-term vision for the physical branch network given the digital transformation? A: We have reduced our branch network from 450 to 300 over the past few years, shifting the role of branches from transactional to more educational and commercial. While the bulk of the reduction is done, we will continue to adapt as the world changes. Q: How do you see the cost of risk trending long-term, and what are your expectations for loan growth this year? A: We expect the cost of risk to increase as we originate higher-risk portfolios, but this will also increase profitability. For loan growth, we expect a 6.5% increase year-over-year, driven by retail segments, particularly in Mibanco and BCP with mortgages and consumer credit. Q: Can you provide insights into Yape's contribution to Credicorp's revenue and its future potential? A: Yape is expected to become the second-largest line of business for Credicorp in the next 3 to 5 years, primarily due to its lending business in retail and SME segments. Currently, Yape's lending is small but growing, with a focus on learning to lend effectively. Q: What impact does the SUNAT payment have on dividends, and what is the outlook for extraordinary dividends? A: The PEN1.6 billion payment to SUNAT affects our cash position, so we won't issue an extraordinary dividend this year. However, this does not change our expectations for next year's ordinary and extraordinary dividends. For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Sign in to access your portfolio
