by Tsai bought about $151 million in U.S.-traded Alibaba shares in the fourth quarter. through its family investment vehicle Blue Pool Management, a presentation of securities confirmed on Tuesday. Ma, who stepped down as the company’s chief executive in 2019 but remains a major shareholder, bought $50 million worth of Hong Kong-traded shares in the quarter, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. (Both men already own considerable amounts of Alibaba stock.)
The sizes of the purchases are not huge (Alibaba’s market capitalization is about $171 billion), but given who is buying, they are likely to be closely watched by investors and policymakers. Alibaba itself bought back $9.5 billion worth of shares last year, reducing its share count by more than 3 percent.
Alibaba has fallen on hard times in recent years. The company and Ant were among the first to be hit by a broader crackdown on the tech industry that wiped out approximately 1.1 trillion dollars in market capitalization of the sector. In 2020, Ant was forced to cancel its potentially record-breaking IPO, a surprising move that was widely interpreted as a reassertion by regulators of dominance over the private company. Chinese officials subsequently imposed a $2.8 billion antitrust fine on Alibaba.
Last year, Alibaba canceled its efforts to spin off its cloud business, a key part of the company’s ambitious plan to reform itself, prompting a sharp sell-off in its shares. Executives blamed U.S. efforts to restrict semiconductor sales to China, although analysts say the cloud business has also been losing market share to state-backed rivals.
Stock purchases will likely bring attention back to Ma, a former English teacher who helped start Alibaba as an e-commerce platform. He had been celebrated in China as an icon of entrepreneurship, but Beijing turned on him for criticizing official policy. Ma, who has not held a leadership position at Alibaba or Ant in years but remains a life partner in Alibaba Partnership, now focuses primarily on Bill Gates-style philanthropy.
Tsai, on the other hand, has maintained a high profile. A former corporate lawyer who also helped found Alibaba, he owns the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets and the WNBA’s New York Liberty.
For those who follow Ma, it was seen attending a Nets game in Paris this month and was seen sitting next to Tsai and Tsai’s wife, wearing…what else? – a Nets t-shirt and cap.
THIS IS WHAT’S HAPPENING
New Hampshire primary voters go to the polls. Nikki Haley scored a small victory shortly after midnight, capturing all six votes in the town of Dixville Notch, but she faces long odds of defeating a rising Donald Trump. Former president’s rise is converting some Wall Street CEOs question the wisdom of publicly opposing him.
Federal Reserve inspector general clears two former officials of improper trading. An internal watchdog report said Eric Rosengren, former president of the Boston Fed, and Robert Kaplan, former head of the Dallas Fed, did not violate any laws or rules with the operations they carried out in 2020, when the central bank took measures to shore up the markets during the coronavirus pandemic. But Kaplan and Rosengren, who resigned in 2021, failed to properly file disclosure forms and created the appearance of a conflict, according to the report.
Archer-Daniels-Midland shares plummet amid investigation into its accounting. Shares of the agricultural giant fell a record 24 percent on Monday after the company suspended its financial directorVikram Luthar, and cut its earnings forecast after receiving a document request from the SEC. The company is investigating accounting practices in its nutrition unit.
The president of Netflix’s film division is leaving. Scott Stuber, who helped make the streaming company a force in film by attracting directors such as Spike Lee, Martin Scorsese and Jane Campion, will resign, the company said on the eve of the Academy Award nominations. Stuber often clashed with Ted Sarandos, co-CEO of Netflix. The appointment of Bela Bajaria as chief content officer last year effectively put a layer of management between Stuber and Sarandos.
The disconnect between polls and the economy
Stocks are in record territory, interest rates are expected to fall, jobs appear plentiful, but none of that strong economic data is strengthening President Biden’s standing among voters. Many surveys find it by following the Republican favorite, Donald Trump, in key states.
Now, the White House is sending in its big guns to try to change the narrative.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to travel to the Midwest this week talk Biden’s economic achievements, including the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill. And she is expected to attack Trump’s economic record as president.
Yellen’s trip comes after a high-profile speech on Monday by Lael Brainard, the president’s top economic adviser, who expressed an optimistic view of how the administration’s policies have created jobs in disadvantaged communities.
American people are feel better about the economy. But those improved vibes have risen from a low in the summer of 2022, when inflation spiked to a 40-year high. Prices have fallen in recent months, but economists warn they could rise again. TO main concern: Houthi militia attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea are driving up shipping prices, potentially making goods and fuel more expensive.
Stronger data does not translate into greater support for Biden. Voters may overlook job growth and pay little attention to developments in the U.S. economy. growth in relation to its largest trading partners. Instead, they are likely to focus on what they see in the shopping aisles. “The fact that the price level is higher than when Biden took office is what voters are seeing,” Ray Fair, an economist at Yale, told The Times.
Fair has been tracking how economic data influences voter behavior for years. Despite the recent uptick in consumer confidence, her latest modeling suggested Democrats had a 50-50 chance of retaking the White House, and a similar chance of taking back the House. (Those odds are slightly better than the polls say.)
“In a way, it’s a barometer of how you’re doing in your career.”
— Kristi Marvin, founder of research firm SPACInsider, on the stock price increase of Digital World Acquisition Corporation, the cash-rich shell company that plans to merge with Donald Trump’s social media platform. Digital World shares have more than doubled since Trump won the Iowa caucuses on January 15.
Companies are silent on reproductive rights
Abortion is expected to be a hot topic this year, the 51st anniversary of Roe v. Wade, and both Democrats and Republicans plan to use the issue to generate support during the election campaign.
But despite the noise, or perhaps because of it, don’t expect companies to talk about the issue as they have before, experts say.
Companies addressed abortion as an issue in 2022, After the Supreme Court overturned Roe in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. As several states began introducing abortion restrictions after the decision, hundreds of companies came out in favor of continued access, and many promising additional benefits for workers facing new restrictions.
Behind such measures was the belief that abortion restrictions are bad for business. That position received support from a recent analysis by the Women’s Policy Research Institute, which found that such limitations cost the United States an average of $173 billion per year in reduced labor force participation and earnings for women in the private sector , as well as an increase in turnover and free time at work. That’s up from $146 billion in 2020.
Companies became quieter and quieter on the topic last yearand many rejected shareholder proposals on abortion.
One exception: About 50 companies joined a court filing in a dispute in Texas in November, arguing that restrictions on reproductive rights were “bad for business” harming efforts to recruit top talent and protect employee health.
It’s part of a broader retreat by companies from public pronouncements, according to Judy Samuelson, founder and executive director of the Aspen Institute’s Business and Society Program.
Speaking out has become increasingly risky, as conservative politicians target companies for their stances on environmental, social and other cultural issues. (See Disney and his fight with Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida, for example).
But Samuelson maintained that the companies are working on the issue internally. Although much of the work is less hectic, they continue to support measures including better access to reproductive services health care.
FAST READING
Offers
american sportsowner of sports brands such as Wilson and Arc’teryx, hopes to raise up to $1.8 billion and reach a valuation of up to $8.7 billion in its IPO (Reuters)
Fossil fuel distributor Sunoco agreed buy NuStar energy for about $7.3 billion in shares to expand into storage and pipeline operations. (WSJ)
Banks like Citigroup and Goldman Sachs are said to be trying recover loan clients from private credit rivals. (Bloomberg)
Policy
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Two minor children of Bernard ArnaultLVMH boss Will Reportedly Be Appointed to the Luxury Conglomerate’s Board of Directors, Reviving Questions About Who Will Succeed Him as CEO (Bloomberg)
“The dubious climate benefits of soil transformation in a carbon sink” (FOOT)
After visiting Auschwitz, Elon Musk said he had been “naïve” about the dangers posed by anti-Jewish sentiment, but added that he had so many Jewish friends that he was “Jew by association.” (NY)
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