
Fair to say the US and China have reached some level of transactional stabilization, says AXA IM

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M&A News: China Crisis Eases for BlackRock as $22.8B Panama Ports Deal Moves Closer
Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison has bowed to political pressure from the Chinese government to keep its $22.8 billion Panama Ports deal with U.S. asset manager BlackRock (BLK) on track. Elevate Your Investing Strategy: Take advantage of TipRanks Premium at 50% off! Unlock powerful investing tools, advanced data, and expert analyst insights to help you invest with confidence. Major Investor CK Hutchison said today that it was considering inviting a Chinese 'major strategic investor' to join the BlackRock-led consortium negotiating the sale of its global ports business outside China, including operations at the Panama Canal. BlackRock stock rose 0.4% in pre-market trading in the hope that this could mean the deal finally gets done. Although as can be seen below its share price has performed well recently despite the uncertainty around the deal. The proposed sale in March to BlackRock and Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) includes two ports at either end of the Panama Canal and more than 40 others around the world. However, the Chinese government has repeatedly expressed concerns about the deal. This has included slamming CK for betraying the Chinese people and being 'spineless.' It was concerned, and presumably still is, that the deal could hit China's shipping and trade interests. CK did not say who the investor was, but it follows a report earlier this month that China wants state-owned shipping giant Cosco to be an equal partner and shareholder in the ports or else it would block the sale. Trump Barrier 'We remain in discussions with members of the consortium with a view to inviting a major strategic investor from China to join as a significant member of the consortium,' CK Hutchison said. It added that changes to the consortium's membership and deal structure will be needed for the deal 'to be capable of being approved by all relevant authorities'. It said the 'period for exclusive negotiations' mentioned in the March announcement with BlackRock and MSC had expired, but discussions will continue. Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Denise Wong said that 'ongoing negotiations and the reported inclusion of Cosco Shipping in the consortium have likely eased concerns over Chinese regulatory hurdles, strengthening investor confidence in the deal's viability.' However, President Trump may be one final barrier for the deal to get over. The sale was seen as a political victory for Trump, who had vowed to 'take back' the Panama Canal from alleged Chinese control. Bringing Cosco into the deal would not sit well with Trump, especially during the tariff trade war between the U.S. and China. Is BLK a Good Stock to Buy Now? On TipRanks, BLK has a Strong Buy consensus based on 13 Buy and 1 Hold ratings. Its highest price target is $1,224. BLK stock's consensus price target is $1,168.79, implying a 4.05% upside.


Business Insider
15 minutes ago
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Apple (AAPL) Finally Returns to Growth in China's Smartphone Market
Chinese tech firm Huawei regained the lead in China's smartphone market during the second quarter of the year, according to data from Canalys. In fact, the company shipped 12.2 million smartphones, which was up 15% from a year earlier and equated to an 18% market share. Interestingly, this is Huawei's first time in the top spot since early 2024. Meanwhile, tech giant Apple (AAPL) saw its shipments rise by 4% to 10.1 million units for a fifth-place finish. This was good news because it was Apple's first time seeing growth in China since the fourth quarter of 2023. Elevate Your Investing Strategy: Take advantage of TipRanks Premium at 50% off! Unlock powerful investing tools, advanced data, and expert analyst insights to help you invest with confidence. Apple's growth this quarter has been linked to strategic price adjustments for the iPhone 16 series, which included higher trade-in values and discounts offered by Chinese e-commerce platforms. These moves helped Apple regain momentum after months of declining market share. Nevertheless, it is worth noting that competition in China's smartphone market remains intense. Indeed, Huawei has been rolling out new models aggressively and expanding HarmonyOS 5, which is its self-developed operating system that competes with Google's (GOOGL) Android and Apple's iOS. At the same time, Apple is facing geopolitical challenges, such as President Trump's push for the company to manufacture iPhones in the United States. However, this seems unlikely to happen since it could push the price of iPhones to over $3,000, according to analysts. As a result, as Apple prepares to announce its earnings results on July 31, investors will be closely watching for any updates to its strategy in China. Is Apple a Buy or Sell Right Now? Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus rating on AAPL stock based on 13 Buys, 11 Holds, and one Sell assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. Furthermore, the average AAPL price target of $229.11 per share implies 6.8% upside potential.
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump says he is not seeking summit with Xi, but may visit China
(Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he was not seeking a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, but added that he may visit China at Xi's invitation, which Trump said had been extended. "I may go to China, but it would only be at the invitation of President Xi, which has been extended. Otherwise, no interest!," Trump said on Truth Social. Aides to Trump and Xi have discussed a potential meeting between the leaders during a trip by the U.S. president to Asia later this year, sources previously told Reuters. A trip would be the first face-to-face encounter between the men since Trump's second term in office, at a time when trade and security tensions between the two superpower rivals remain elevated. While plans for a meeting have not been finalized, discussions on both sides of the Pacific have included a possible Trump stopover around the time of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea or talks on the sidelines of the October 30-November 1 event, the people said. The third round of U.S.-China trade talks taking place in Stockholm this week may lay the groundwork ahead of a leaders' summit in the autumn, analysts say. A new flare-up of tariffs and export controls would likely impact any plans for a meeting with Xi. Solve the daily Crossword