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The Star
5 hours ago
- The Star
Brazil-US meeting canceled amid tariff dispute, says finance minister
FILE PHOTO: Brazil's Finance Minister Fernando Haddad looks on during a meeting in Brasilia, Brazil, June 3, 2025. REUTERS/Adriano Machado/File Photo SAO PAULO (Reuters) -Brazil Finance Minister Fernando Haddad said on Monday that his virtual meeting with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had been canceled after initially being scheduled for Wednesday. That was a setback for the Brazilian government, which had hoped to use the meeting to negotiate tariffs after U.S. President Donald Trump's administration imposed 50% duties on several Brazilian goods. Speaking to GloboNews TV, Haddad said no new date had been set for the call, despite Brazil's request to reschedule it following the cancellation notice. The minister lamented that Brazil was not even able to sit at the table to negotiate tariffs with the United States and criticized what he called "pseudo-Brazilians" in Washington lobbying against their own country. The tariff hike was linked by the Trump administration to the trial of his right-wing ally, former President Jair Bolsonaro, who is facing charges over an alleged coup attempt following his 2022 electoral defeat. Congressman Eduardo Bolsonaro, Bolsonaro's son, has been in the U.S. since March, campaigning for sanctions against those responsible for the judicial proceedings. Haddad said Brazil will need to explore other markets more aggressively, highlighting Southeast Asia as a promising region and calling for urgent progress on a trade deal between South American bloc Mercosur and the European Union. The minister also said the government will soon issue an executive order to address the impact of higher U.S. tariffs. The package will include structural reforms to Brazil's export guarantee mechanisms through the Export Guarantee Fund (FGE). According to Haddad, the order will also support certain government purchases and credit measures, forming a multi-pronged response as there is no single solution for the roughly 10,000 companies affected. (Reporting by Gabriel Araujo in Sao Paulo and Marcela Ayres in Brasilia, editing by Ed Osmond)
The Star
6 hours ago
- The Star
Debt market jitters signal caution for high-flying stocks
A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., on Wednesday, July 28, 2021. - Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg LONDON: Investors are backing out of or taking active bets against high-priced corporate credit, where they anticipate a correction in response to signs of slowing economic growth that could eventually impact stocks. In interviews and client research, global asset managers and some of the world's biggest banks cautioned that credit pricing had reached levels consistent with a much stronger economic outlook than official forecasters anticipate for this year. 'We've turned very defensive in terms of developed-market credit,' said Mike Riddell, lead portfolio manager for strategic bond strategies at Fidelity International. 'We have zero exposure in terms of cash bonds and are short high-yield,' he added, referring to the use of derivatives products to bet an asset class will perform badly. The spread that measures the premium corporate bonds pay in interest over government debt, the main valuation metric for credit, dropped to just one basis point above its 1998 low on Jul 29, Reuters analysis showed. Markets are rallying worldwide, with European stocks hitting their biggest weekly gain since late April and Wall Street indices close to record highs, but investors and analysts said credit was the strongest example of exuberance. As US economic data softens, investors said corporate credit was most vulnerable to a sustained slowdown in the world's largest economy that could hit global growth, with equities likely to fall in turn. Before 2018's US-China trade war slump, 2022's rate rise rout and a similar shake-up in late 2023, a popular exchange-traded fund tracking high-grade corporate credit fell some time before world stocks. Stuart Kaiser, head of US options strategy at Citi, said the bank's derivatives desks had in the last few weeks begun seeing significant demand from asset-manager clients for products that bet against the performance of that iShares index or gauges of junk bonds. 'It is probably macro investors taking a directional view or putting on a hedge against the rally we've seen in risk assets,' he said. 'The fact people are now hedging credit risk tells you they see reasonable downside to equity markets over the next three months.' Florian Ielpo, Lombard Odier Investment Managers' head of multi-asset, said credit was 'leading the market' already, based on shifts he had spotted under the surface of headline pricing. According to his own analysis of global credit indices, he said, the proportion of business bonds where spreads were still narrowing had fallen abruptly from 80% to 60% in the five days to Aug 4. 'This is a significant move in the data and one you cannot ignore,' Ielpo said, because it was not usual. — Reuters
The Star
7 hours ago
- The Star
Software firm MeridianLink to go private in $2 billion deal with Centerbridge
U.S. Dollar banknotes are seen in this illustration taken July 17, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration (Reuters) -U.S. financial software provider MeridianLink said on Monday it would be acquired by investment firm Centerbridge Partners in a $2 billion deal, taking it private roughly four years after its New York debut. Optimism around potential rate cuts and easing economic uncertainty amid progress on trade deals have laid the groundwork for a pickup in private-equity buyouts. Dealmaking appetite for software businesses has also remained robust this year. MeridianLink shareholders will receive $20 apiece in cash for each share held, implying a 26% premium to the stock's last close. Shares of the Irvine, California-based company, which powers digital lending and account opening for financial institutions, jumped 24% in afternoon trading. "Industry consolidation has been a key theme in fintech and we view the multiple as reasonable," said William Blair analyst Cristopher Kennedy. "We have long held the belief that MerdianLink would represent an attractive asset as the company generates strong EBITDA margins at around 40%." The deal also highlights the growing trend of money managers seeking strategic control of technology companies driving digital transformation in financial services. Centerbridge is also not new to the fintech space, having acquired bank tech firm CSI in a $1.6 billion deal in 2022. "As the pace of change across the finance and tech sectors continues to accelerate, MeridianLink is uniquely positioned to help financial institutions enhance their digital lending and credit reporting capabilities," said Centerbridge's Jared Hendricks and Ben Jaffe. Founded in 1998, MeridianLink caters to nearly 2,000 community financial institutions and reporting agencies. Its revenue rose 8% to $84.6 million during the three months ended June 30, while net loss narrowed to $3 million. Centerview Partners and J.P. Morgan are advisers to MeridianLink on the deal, which is expected to close in the second half of 2025. Goldman Sachs is advising Centerbridge. (Reporting by Arasu Kannagi Basil in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)
