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The Star
3 days ago
- Business
- The Star
Taco trade? US leader challenges claim that ‘Trump always chickens out' in talks
US President Donald Trump pushed back Wednesday on a new acronym making the Wall Street rounds to describe a way to profit from his fitful negotiating style, Taco, short for 'Trump always chickens out'. Trump, who was evidently not aware of the term when asked about it in the Oval Office by a reporter, responded with equal parts sarcasm and indignation. The Taco trade refers to an investment strategy that benefits from the rise in share prices after the US president relents. 'Oh, isn't that nice. I've never heard that,' he said, referring to the term first coined by a Financial Times columnist. 'You mean because I reduced China from the 145 per cent that I said, down to 100, and then down to another number, and I said you have to open up your whole country?' 'And because I gave the European Union a 50 per cent tax tariff and they called up and they said, 'Please let's meet right now, please let's meet right now,'' he added. 'You call that chickening out?' Trump then asked rhetorically whether it would be better if he instead maintained tariff levels 'at a ridiculous high' like 145 per cent tariff imposed on China. 'We were doing no business because of the tariff, because it was so high. I knew that,' he said. 'It's called negotiation!' The former real estate developer then offered evidence that his rapid-fire negotiating style – which has paralysed companies, stymied consumers and roiled global markets – was working. He pointed to trillions of dollars in investments that countries in the Middle East pledged on his recent visit to that region. As he has in the past, Trump slammed the reporter, Megan Casella of CNBC, who asked the question: 'Don't ever say what you said,' the former reality show host said. 'That's a nasty question. To me, that's the nastiest question.' Analysts said use of the acronym could backfire if the president, fearful of looking weak, maintains exorbitant tariffs with China and others without relenting, further destabilising the global economy. 'Because President Trump believes himself to be a singularly skilled deal maker, he is sensitive to any suggestion that foreign counterparts are outmanoeuvring, even manipulating him, especially when it comes from one of the constituencies to which he pays closest attention: analysts on Wall Street,' said Ali Wyne of the International Crisis Group, a Belgium-headquartered think tank. 'He does not want to be seen as bending to President Xi Jinping,' Wyne added. 'Nor, however, does he want to face the political and economic fallout of an indefinite trade escalation with a strategic competitor that is far more capable of retaliating than when he first assumed the presidency.' The publicity could also undercut Wall Street's ability to profit on the 'taco trade' as the stock-rebound pattern becomes more apparent. 'The first rule of the taco trade is that you don't tell Trump about the taco trade,' said Peter Berezin of BCA Research, a Canada-based market research company. Investors have pointed to a pattern behind the Taco reference. Trump imposed 'reciprocal' tariffs on dozens of countries of up to 50 per cent on April 2, which he dubbed 'Liberation Day', before announcing a 90-day reprieve a week later during which the tariffs would be lowered to 10 per cent. He hit Chinese imports with successive waves of tariffs in April that eventually reached 145 per cent – prompting Beijing to respond with " title="" target="_self">125 per cent levies of its own – before dropping them to 30 per cent Even before US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng sat down in Geneva to negotiate a tariff truce between their countries on May 10 and 11, Trump signalled he would accept a much lower level, indicating that 80 per cent 'seems right', leading analysts to suggest he was negotiating against himself. On Canadian goods, he threatened to impose 25 per cent tariffs, including on steel and aluminium, before announcing a one-month pause. And last week, he threatened to impose a 50 per cent tariff on the EU starting in June before announcing days later that he planned to delay the taxes until July 9, giving more time for the two sides to negotiate. 'These retreats are so frequent that investors should rationally expect them,' wrote Paul Donovan of UBS, a Switzerland-based bank, as stocks in Europe jumped on Monday. Tuesday, with US markets open again after a holiday, the S&P 500 saw its biggest increase in weeks, prompting Chris Beauchamp of IG Group, an online trading company, to observe: 'Taco trade triumphs once again.' Later on Wednesday after the Oval Office press conference, Trump reflected on the EU tariffs. 'They will say, 'Oh he was chicken, he was chicken, that's so unbelievable,'' the president said. 'I usually have the opposite problem. They say I am too tough.' Trump administration officials have framed his mercurial approach as a way to maximise leverage and force other countries to come to the negotiating table. But as the taco comment suggests, some investors have started to expect the president to back down on his more significant threats. Speaking later on CNBC, Casella said 'Wall Street loves an acronym', adding that 'the idea here is just that, yes, the markets will go down when he makes a threat, only to rebound, often even higher, once the threat is off the table'. As for Trump calling her question 'nasty', Casella said it was 'a badge of honour, I guess'. - South China Morning Post
Business Times
12-05-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Expect more investment flows between Europe and Asia amid US uncertainty: Euroclear CEO Valerie Urbain
[SINGAPORE] There will likely be more investment flows between Europe and Asia as volatility and uncertainty persist in the US, said Valerie Urbain, chief executive of financial market infrastructure services provider Euroclear. In Europe, there is a growing willingness to look for opportunities outside the US, which can potentially lead to increased collaboration with Asia. Meanwhile, Europe could also see a growing interest from Asian investors. 'At least in Europe, we are trying to defend the legal certainty, and to respect the rules,' Urbain said in an interview with The Business Times. Euroclear offers settlement and asset servicing worldwide on securities transactions. These include domestic and international bonds, equities, derivatives and investment funds. Its assets under custody amounted to 40.7 trillion euros (S$59.1 trillion) as at end-2024. Urbain noted that the company has seen 'tremendous' volumes of transactions in all directions since the US administration announced global tariffs. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up While many investors are maintaining a wait-and-see attitude during the 90-day pause, she expects there will be underlying structural changes, regardless of the outcome of negotiations. 'I believe that every country has started to realise that they were too dependent on too few countries, so there is this willingness for every country to reduce this dependency on very few partners,' she said. Urbain was speaking on the sidelines of the launch of Euroclear's Singapore branch, which will replace its representative office in the Republic. The branch – which was set up after Euroclear bagged a wholesale banking licence in Singapore in February 2025 – is part of the Belgium-headquartered company's strategy to expand in Asia, as it continues to see rising demand from the region. 'In the last three years, we're starting to see a lot more investment flows within Asian countries, and not necessarily with Europe in the middle,' she said. 'We also started seeing more investment flows between Asian markets and the Middle East.' In 2024, Euroclear made various moves to strengthen its footprint in the region. It acquired a strategic stake in Singapore-based digital market infrastructure operator Marketnode. It also took part in an initiative by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority to create a tokenisation framework. Urbain noted that the link between Europe and Asia goes both ways. For example, some 50 per cent of Euro bonds are issued in euros, with one-third bought by non-European investors, including those in Asia. Meanwhile, Euroclear's links with domestic central securities depositories in Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore has also channelled Western investors into domestic securities. On collateral services, Urbain said she has seen a lot of demand from institutional investors to use Asian securities as collateral to support their financing activity. With its new wholesale banking licence in Singapore, the CEO said Euroclear will be able to expand its existing activities, such as in operations – a role that used to be handled out of its Hong Kong office. The company is also looking to develop product management roles in Singapore so that it can create products which respond to local needs. Urbain noted that the Republic is unique for its position as a regional hub for asset management and wealth. While Euroclear continues to mainly service the banks, that often involves working with the wealth or asset management divisions of these lenders, particularly for the company's growing funds business. Even among international banks, their activities in Singapore are focused on wealth and asset management, Urbain said. Meanwhile, there is also the unique Singapore Inc branding. She said: 'You do see a full ecosystem that is very intertwined and geared towards developing Singapore as a financial centre.' Looking ahead, Euroclear will continue to develop links with local markets, including those in Indonesia, India and China, Urbain said. The CEO is also looking to further expand its funds business and develop Euroclear's Asian offices as a competent centre for mutual funds and the alternative funds. Urbain also said the company's collateral management service, which is prominent in Europe, is not yet fully leveraged in Asia. Meanwhile, she wants to support local players through partnership, which includes sharing its best practices and know-how to promote interoperability between Europe and Asia. 'Continuing to do what we do is fine, but I want to do more, because I want to make sure that we also service the flows which are within Asia,' Urbain said. 'But for that to be successful, we need to collaborate with local players.'
Mint
08-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
Bain Capital-backed Indian chemicals firm eyes US expansion after key acquisition
Novopor Advanced Science Pvt. Ltd, a Bain Capital portfolio company manufacturing specialty chemicals, is looking to expand its footprint in the US after chalking up its first acquisition in the country. Hyderabad-headquartered Novopor wants to establish itself as a leading global contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) in the performance or specialty chemicals and material sciences space, chief executive Radhesh Welling said. 'Now, to be able to do that, we have identified certain unique and relevant capabilities that we need to develop or acquire," Welling said, adding that there was a huge addressable global market for performance chemicals that the company aims to tap. 'We have a huge potential upside here… Unlike agrochem or pharma, it's not a space that is overcrowded." A CDMO provides various services to pharmaceutical companies for drug development and manufacturing. The global specialty chemicals market was valued at $640.8 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow to $939.7 billion by 2031, according to Statista. India's overall chemical industry was valued at $250 billion, according to a EY report in December. On Wednesday, Novopor announced the acquisition of US-based Pressure Chemical Co., an affiliate of the Belgium-headquartered Minafin Group and a leading provider of high-pressure and specialty chemistry services, for an undisclosed amount. Also read | Why Trump's trade war with China is bad news for Indian chemical exporters '(Pressure Chemical) has some very unique capabilities with respect to specialized high-end polymerization, organic synthesis, etc… A lot of these capabilities are just completely absent in India," Welling said. 'The main reason was to acquire some of these unique and relevant capabilities. By doing that we can actually strengthen our overall value proposition to the customers we are looking to target in the performance chemical and electronic chemical space," he added. Novopor does not directly export to the US, although a large number of its clients are based in the US, Welling said. The Pressure Chemical acquisition will help build trust in the US market as Novopor looks to target other global customers, he added. Pressure Chemical has a mid-sized manufacturing presence in the US, which the company might evaluate for scaling up later, Welling said. Novopor is also evaluating other strategic acquisitions. 'There are a few in Europe, few in India, but most of them are in the US… There are things in the pipeline in various stages," Welling said. In 2023, US-based Bain Capital Private Equity acquired a majority stake in Novopor, previously known as Porus Labs, for an undisclosed amount. Also read | GIC-backed Asia Healthcare Holdings to acquire Dr Dangs Labs Building partnerships Some of the challenges to global expansion in the specialty chemicals space include the capabilities companies can offer, Welling said, adding that intellectual properties (IP) are closely held by customers. A majority of performance chemical companies are focused on specific markets. A majority of performance chemical companies are focused on specific markets, and as a result there is a gap in the capabilities companies can offer, Welling said, adding that intellectual properties (IP) are closely held by customers. 'They are very reluctant to actually give this IP out. They have partnerships with some of the local companies in the US, like the one that we acquired, but typically, they don't like to work with companies outside of the Western hemisphere," Welling said. 'We have identified certain customers who potentially we would like to partner with, and we have identified certain sets of capabilities which are very relevant for these customers," he added. Novopor aims to grow profitably at an annual growth rate of about 20% over the next few years, Welling said. Crisil Ratings expects Novopor's revenue to have grown to ₹1,100-1,200 crore in 2024-25 from ₹763 crore in 2023-24. 'Operating margins also witnessed an uptick to above 20% backed by scaling up and higher contribution from high margin products," Crisil Ratings said in a February 28 note. Novopor hasn't yet filed its financial statements for 2024-25. Some of the largest Indian companies in the specialty chemicals industry include SRF Ltd, which posted a revenue of ₹13,149.7 crore for FY24 (of which 48% came from its chemicals business), Aarti Industries Ltd ( ₹7,012 crore revenue in FY24), and PI Industries Ltd ( ₹7,665.8 crore revenue in FY24). Welling expects the Indian specialty chemicals industry to see an increase in demand in about a year or two because of the ongoing trade war between the US and China. 'Companies would look at reliable Indian partners as part of a long-term strategy," he said. 'If you also have an Indian company that has a footprint in the US, it's going to be an additional benefit." Also read | Demand for weight loss drugs is growing. Can wellness companies keep up?
Time of India
25-04-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
GreenLine flags off LNG truck fleet for Bekaert to drive sustainable logistics
Essar venture GreenLine Mobility Solutions on Thursday said it has joined hands with tire reinforcement technology company Bekaert to decarbonise road logistics . The partnership was flagged off with the deployment of GreenLine's LNG-powered trucks at Bekaert's Ranjangaon plant in Maharashtra, marking the beginning of a pilot phase, the company said in a statement. The pilot phase aims to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of Bekaert's logistics operations. The partnership will support India's vision of a gas-based economy, the statement said. Each GreenLine LNG truck is expected to reduce up to 24 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually, contributing to Bekaert's ambition of becoming carbon net-zero by 2050 and achieving 65 per cent of sales from sustainable solutions. "At GreenLine, we are proud to integrated ecosystem - from LNG refuelling to real-time telematics - that empowers our partners to make meaningful progress on their net-zero goals," Anand Mimani, CEO of GreenLine Mobility Solutions, said. Dinesh Mukhedkar, Procurement Operations Lead - South Asia and Procurement Global Shared Service Centre Lead, Bekaert, said, "As part of our purpose 'Establishing the new possible', and our ambition to lead in safe, smart, and sustainable solutions, decarbonising logistics is an essential step. This directly supports our commitment to ESG principles and long-term sustainability goals." GreenLine's expanding fleet of LNG-powered trucks has already clocked more than 40 million kilometres, avoiding over 10,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions. The company's ongoing expansion includes plans to deploy over 10,000 LNG and EV trucks, supported by a nationwide network of 100 LNG refuelling stations, EV charging hubs, and battery swapping facilities, targeting a reduction of 1 million tonnes of carbon emissions annually. GreenLine Mobility Solutions is India's largest operator of LNG and electric-powered heavy commercial trucks. It operates LNG-powered trucks for long-haul transportation and electric vehicles (EVs) for short-haul operations. Founded in 1880, Belgium-headquartered Bekaert (Euronext Brussels, BEKB) is a global leader in tire reinforcement technology whose 21,000 employees worldwide together generated 4 billion euros in consolidated sales in 2024.
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Business Standard
24-04-2025
- Automotive
- Business Standard
GreenLine, Bekaert partner to drive sustainable logistics with LNG trucks
Essar venture GreenLine Mobility Solutions on Thursday said it has joined hands with tire reinforcement technology company Bekaert to decarbonise road logistics. The partnership was flagged off with the deployment of GreenLine's LNG-powered trucks at Bekaert's Ranjangaon plant in Maharashtra, marking the beginning of a pilot phase, the company said in a statement. The pilot phase aims to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of Bekaert's logistics operations. The partnership will support India's vision of a gas-based economy, the statement said. Each GreenLine LNG truck is expected to reduce up to 24 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually, contributing to Bekaert's ambition of becoming carbon net-zero by 2050 and achieving 65 per cent of sales from sustainable solutions. "At GreenLine, we are proud to offeran integrated ecosystem - from LNG refuelling to real-time telematics - that empowers our partners to make meaningful progress on their net-zero goals," Anand Mimani, CEO of GreenLine Mobility Solutions, said. Dinesh Mukhedkar, Procurement Operations Lead - South Asia and Procurement Global Shared Service Centre Lead, Bekaert, said, "As part of our purpose 'Establishing the new possible', and our ambition to lead in safe, smart, and sustainable solutions, decarbonising logistics is an essential step. This directly supports our commitment to ESG principles and long-term sustainability goals." GreenLine's expanding fleet of LNG-powered trucks has already clocked more than 40 million kilometres, avoiding over 10,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions. The company's ongoing expansion includes plans to deploy over 10,000 LNG and EV trucks, supported by a nationwide network of 100 LNG refuelling stations, EV charging hubs, and battery swapping facilities, targeting a reduction of 1 million tonnes of carbon emissions annually. GreenLine Mobility Solutions is India's largest operator of LNG and electric-powered heavy commercial trucks. It operates LNG-powered trucks for long-haul transportation and electric vehicles (EVs) for short-haul operations. Founded in 1880, Belgium-headquartered Bekaert (Euronext Brussels, BEKB) is a global leader in tire reinforcement technology whose 21,000 employees worldwide together generated 4 billion euros in consolidated sales in 2024.
