Original link: https://www.latepost.com/news/dj_detail?id=1266
SoftBank pledges half of Alibaba shares, unlikely to redeem
SoftBank Chairman Masayoshi Son may be selling Alibaba shares in a very rare way. According to SoftBank’s newly released financial report on August 8, Sun Zhengyi has mortgaged 54% of Alibaba’s shares.
- As of the end of June 2022, SoftBank held about 9.84 trillion yen (about 492.1 billion yuan) in Alibaba stock market value.
- SoftBank pledged 5.36 trillion yen worth of Alibaba stock (about 268 billion yuan).
- SoftBank once pledged some of its shares when Alibaba’s stock price exceeded $300.
Instead of selling shares directly like Tencent’s major shareholder Prosus, Son has raised financing by selling prepaid forward contracts based on Alibaba shares. Analysts at Forsyth Barr Asia said there would be no immediate impact on share prices in the short term, but the nature of the derivatives trade was “still underweight”.
- SoftBank emphasized that it reserves the right to buy back Alibaba shares. Now Alibaba’s share price is less than 1/3 of the high point. In theory, Masayoshi Son can buy back the high-priced Alibaba shares with less money. Softbank’s derivatives trading strategy is very complex, if you follow the simplest mortgage/redemption example:
- Sun Zhengyi first mortgaged 1 million shares of Ali at $300 per share, and received $300 million in cash.
- On August 9, Ali’s stock price was $90, and Sun Zhengyi only used $90 million to release the mortgage and get back the stock.
- He could also opt out of the stock and lose $900 million at mark-to-market.
- But Masayoshi Son also said, “We have been financing with Alibaba’s stock, and such transactions give us good cash reserves.”
- Shell stocks have also become a source of liquidity for SoftBank, and Sun Zhengyi sold out the shell stocks in his hand. According to the market value on May 11, it is worth $2.5 billion. (Gong Fangyi)
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Three ways for Huawei to build cars
In the past three months, Huawei has endorsed three cars in a row: the BAIC Polar Fox Alpha S HI version in May, the AITO M7 in July, and the Avita 11 released this Monday (August 8).
They are all models that Huawei is deeply involved in, and the software and hardware are labeled with Huawei everywhere – except for the front of the car. Huawei is also constantly adjusting the extent of its involvement in car building in the process.
In 2019, Huawei established an auto BU to enter this big market with a yearly sales volume of three or four trillion yuan. The car market is huge. The industrial chain is complicated and long. OEMs have the largest output value, followed by Tier 1 suppliers (Tier 1) who directly supply them with parts or solutions, and then Tier 1 suppliers (Tier 2, 3, 4…).
In the era of fuel vehicles, top Tier 1 suppliers have the right to speak as much as OEMs, such as Continental, Bosch or ZF. These suppliers still remain competitive in the electric vehicle era, but the entire market is concentrated and there are more markets that cannot be eaten by some big suppliers. Huawei first entered the market as a component supplier, providing Internet of Vehicles, autonomous driving and in-vehicle services. Software and system solutions.
In 2020, Huawei launched the automotive solution brand HI (Huawei Inside), providing a complete solution including intelligent driving software, computing platform and sensors. A year later, GAC, Changan, and BAIC Blue Valley chose to jointly develop new sub-brand new cars with Huawei, while Great Wall Motors, Geely Automobile, and SAIC Group have strategically cooperated with Huawei.
Chen Hang, chief electronics analyst at Founder Securities, said that Huawei under this model is similar to a Tier 0.5 supplier and an integrator of the core components of the vehicle. Representative works include the aforementioned Avita 11 and the Alpha S HI version.
The remaining Wenjie M7 and the Wenjie M5 released in December last year adopt the “Huawei Smart Selection” mode. According to Chen Hang’s classification, it is the Tier 0 mode. The vehicle integrates Huawei’s software and hardware, and the model is defined by Huawei. . Although there is no Huawei logo on the front of the car, it is sold in Huawei’s retail channels, “sharing” Huawei’s brand value, and infinitely close to building a car. (Gong Fangyi)
Shang Tang accompanies you to play chess, starting from 1999 yuan
If you want to learn to play chess, the most convenient way now is to open your mobile phone, tablet or computer, download a chess software, and follow along. If it is more complicated, just buy a pair of chess, and parents can be their own teachers or ask teachers to teach them. As an artificial intelligence company, SenseTime believes that there is another method that can reflect technology and humanistic care at the same time: a chess-playing robot.
On August 9, SenseTime held its first new product launch conference after its launch. There was only one protagonist—the aforementioned chess robot. SenseTime CEO Xu Li said that the release of the chess-playing robot is “to bring industrial-grade AI technology into thousands of households and bring more fun to the whole family.”
- The main part of the robot is composed of two rectangular parallelepipeds, and the front is a 10-inch screen, which can display the winning ratio of both sides in real time when playing chess.
- The cuboid below has a camera on the front to identify the opponent in front of it, and a robotic arm with two joints that can move horizontally.
- Behind the robot, a slender strip extends forward, and a camera is installed on the downward part to scan the situation on the chessboard, and hand it over to the algorithm to determine the next move. As part of the robot, the chessboard and pieces are matched.
- The level of robot algorithm can be understood as “chess power”, which can reach the highest level of human beings. The robot also has a teaching function.
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Shang Tang said that this robot with traditional chess culture and artificial intelligence technology “can accompany children to learn and play chess, and can also exercise their thinking and protect their eyesight.” They also cooperated with the Chinese Chess Association, which can evaluate children’s chess skill level on the robot.
- There are two versions of the robot, the standard version sells for 1999 yuan, and the Pro version sells for 2499 yuan. The former’s tutorial is 16-15 levels, and the positioning is “enlightenment and interest stimulation”, and a 130 yuan worth of test registration fee will be given. The latter is more For some, the course is grade 16-13, the orientation is “school team level”, and the registration fee is 260 yuan.
- SenseTime posted a net loss of 3.6 billion yuan last year. Selling 1.8 million standard chess robots could fill that gap.
SenseTime was established in 2014 and listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange at the end of last year. June 30 this year ushered in the first day of the lifting of the stock ban, and the stock price fell 46.7% in a single day. SenseTime previously emphasized that it is an “artificial intelligence algorithm platform company”. But security is its main source of income, accounting for 90% of Shangtang’s total revenue of 4.7 billion yuan in 2021. (He Qianming)
Gap China shrinks
Recently, Gap China has closed its stores on a large scale. According to incomplete statistics, the cities involved include more than ten cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, and Nanjing. In response, Gap China headquarters responded that closing stores is a regular adjustment made in response to changes in the industry.
- In fact, as early as 2020, Gap closed many stores in Beijing one after another. In 2021, its fast fashion brand Old Navy announced its withdrawal from the Chinese market due to poor performance.
- According to Tianyancha, Gap China’s main operator, Gap (Shanghai) Commercial Co., Ltd., has more than 190 branches, of which more than 60 have been cancelled, and the number of cancellations accounts for nearly 1/3 of the total.
- Gap disclosed in its financial report that sales in the first quarter of this year fell by 13% year-on-year to $3.5 billion, with a net loss of $162 million. Both online and offline sales fell by more than 10% year-on-year. Among them, stores in the two major markets of Europe and Asia are both shrinking year-on-year.
Gap is not the first fast fashion brand to shrink in the Chinese market. This year, many fast fashion brands have withdrawn from China. Zara’s three sister brands, Bershka, Pull&Bear and Stradivarus , have closed their online stores in China from July 31. The stores have already been closed early last year. In addition, fast fashion brands Top Shop, A&F, and Monki have also withdrawn one after another.
Even if they did not exit completely, most fast fashion brands have begun to shrink their business and streamline their stores.
- H&M closed 60 stores in 2021, and will close about 240 this year; it also closed its first store in China on Huaihai Middle Road in Shanghai not long ago. H&M’s second quarterly report showed that its sales in the Chinese market fell by 28%.
- Fast Retailing Group, the parent company of Uniqlo, also stated in the latest financial report that Uniqlo’s revenue and profits in Greater China have declined significantly, and 133 stores have been temporarily closed. (Intern Zeng Xing)
What adjustments will Ali make for its return to Hong Kong listing?
On the evening of August 8, Alibaba announced that its dual main listing application has been confirmed by the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and the expected effective time remains unchanged before the end of 2022.
- Regarding the significance of dual main listing, please refer to our previous report “Ali’s Time for Dual Listing, and Other Changes” .
The biggest incremental information in the new announcement is what adjustments Ali needs to make in order to meet the audit requirements of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and which terms can be followed:
- Amendments to some of the company’s articles of association to comply with the Hong Kong Listing Rules
- However, Alibaba’s structure regulations on WVR will not be revised;
- Revise the new equity incentive plan to make it comply with the Hong Kong listing rules. Currently, Alibaba’s current equity incentive plan was issued after its listing in 2014. After the dual main listing application takes effect, no more equity incentives will be issued according to the 2014 plan;
- Revise the composition of corporate nomination and corporate governance committees;
- Alibaba needs to appoint a second corporate authorized representative after the dual primary listing application becomes effective;
- Revise some internal corporate policies, such as updating the code of conduct on securities transactions by directors.
After Alibaba returns to Hong Kong to list, it will still use US GAAP when disclosing financial reports, because companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange need to comply with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), Hong Kong Financial Reporting Standards or Chinese corporate accounting Guidelines, Alibaba needs to make the following adjustments in accordance with the regulations of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange:
- Fully describe the differences between the use of IFRS and US GAAP in the annual report and provide a reconciliation statement for the differences between the two standards in the audited financial statements;
- Provide a reconciliation statement in the interim report, reported by an external auditor to a standard at least equivalent to International Standard on Assurance Engagements 3000 or Hong Kong Standard on Assurance Engagements 3000;
- If Alibaba is delisted from the New York Stock Exchange, it will use IFRS to prepare its financial reports. (intern Xue Yujie)
OTHER NEWS
Japanese designer Issey Miyake has died of liver cancer at the age of 84.
Issey Miyake died of illness in Tokyo on August 5. A designer who combines technology and art, he is known for his use of innovative fabrics and abstract silhouettes, typically draped in drapes and draped, layered designs. In his opinion, folds can make the fabric move with the shape of the fabric, which has the aesthetic feeling of “blank” in Eastern philosophy. He doesn’t consider himself a fashion designer because anything “fashionable” goes out of fashion quickly. Issey Miyake was born in Hiroshima, Japan in 1938. He was affected by the atomic bombing of Hiroshima in his childhood and limped on foot. But he rarely talks about that history or other unpleasant things, “preferring to think about things that can be created rather than destroyed, which bring beauty and joy.”
In July, the domestic retail penetration rate of new energy vehicles decreased by 0.7 percentage points from the previous month.
According to the data of the China Passenger Transport Association, the retail penetration rate of domestic new energy vehicles was 26.7% in July, a month-on-month decrease from June. Retail sales in July were 486,000 units, a month-on-month decrease of 8.5%. The China Passenger Transport Association raised the expected retail sales of new energy vehicles in 2022 to 6 million units.
No fund company has responded to recent rumors of illegal over-the-counter options trading.
Regarding the rumors that many fund managers were investigated for OTC options trading, no fund company has publicly responded to the matter. Over-the-counter options refer to purchasing over-the-counter option contracts from brokerages to indirectly obtain profits from the secondary market. According to the announcement of the China Securities Association, currently only 8 securities firms in the securities industry are primary dealers in the over-the-counter options business.
Mainland residents going to Hong Kong to buy a house still have to pay double stamp duty for the time being.
On August 9, the Financial Secretary of the Special Administrative Region stated that “in response to reports that the government is considering relaxing the property stamp duty, the government clarified that there was no relevant discussion, and made it clear that there were no relevant plans.” Pay 30% stamp duty on the property price, including 15% buyer’s stamp duty and 15% ad valorem stamp duty. Earlier media reports said that Hong Kong is considering abolishing the double stamp duty, which will greatly reduce the cost of buying a house.
Meituan responded to the increase in the price of shared bicycles, saying that the price of a single ride will remain unchanged.
Recently, Meituan Bicycle announced that due to the increase in hardware and operation and maintenance costs, starting from 23:00 on August 10, the prices of 7-day and 30-day Changqi card packages will increase by 5 yuan and 10 yuan respectively. The customer service of Meituan Bicycle responded that the price of the riding card package has been adjusted, but the price of a single ride will remain unchanged. Since January this year, Hello Bike has also raised the price of riding packages, and the starting price in many places has been increased from 1.5 yuan per half hour to 2 yuan per half hour.
The local epidemic strain in Xinjiang was initially identified as imported from abroad.
- On August 8, 350 new cases were confirmed in the mainland, 300 in Hainan, and 25 in Guangdong; 478 new asymptomatic infections were reported in the mainland, including 171 in Hainan, 146 in Xinjiang, and 67 in Zhejiang.
- Hainan added “300+171”, and a total of 1,899 positive infections have been reported in this round of epidemics.
- The first batch of passengers stranded in Sanya took a flight back to Xi’an on the afternoon of the 9th;
- Eligible stranded passengers will be arranged to return in batches.
- 22 new cases of new crown positive infection were added in Tibet, and the infection strain was Omicron BA.2.76.
- Starting from the 8th, Lhasa City will implement static management of medium and high risk areas, tentatively implemented for 5 days;
- Cross-city movement of people in low-risk areas must hold a negative nucleic acid test certificate within 48 hours.
- Xinjiang recorded 146 new asymptomatic infections and no new confirmed cases.
- The infection virus belongs to the BA5.2 evolutionary branch of the Omicron variant strain, and it is preliminarily determined that the virus is imported from abroad.
- From the 9th, Dongyang City, Jinhua, Zhejiang has implemented temporary control measures for epidemic prevention and control throughout the city.
In the first half of the year, the transaction volume of second-hand housing in Shenzhen fell by more than 60% year-on-year.
In the first half of this year, the transaction volume of second-hand housing in Shenzhen was less than 10,000 units, down 65% year-on-year and 52% less than during the 2008 financial crisis. The market believes that it is mainly related to the second-hand housing reference price policy. The intermediary opens a low house and the seller waits and sees; if the asking price is high and the transaction is completed, the down payment becomes a problem again, because the bank will lend according to the reference price, which will substantially increase the down payment ratio. At present, except Shanghai and Shenzhen, 13 cities have cancelled or relaxed the reference price policy for second-hand housing.
Carlsberg raised its full-year profit growth forecast.
On August 8, Carlsberg released its performance guidance, saying that because the group’s business performance was better than expected, especially the strong performance in the European market and most of the Asian markets, it was enough to offset the cost pressure caused by rising raw materials and energy. And three breweries in Ukraine have resumed operations. As a result, the full-year operating profit growth rate is revised upwards to high single digits.
Novavax’s second-quarter vaccine sales fell sharply to $55 million.
The US pharmaceutical company Novavax’s second-quarter financial report showed that due to the decline in demand for new crown vaccines, the company’s second-quarter results fell 38% year-on-year to $185.9 million, lower than expected. 3 million doses of the vaccine were sold in the second quarter, with sales of $55 million, well below the $586 million in the first quarter. Affected by the decline in sales of new crown vaccine products and the fact that the development of new vaccines has lagged behind competitors and failed to achieve expected results, Novavax’s full-year revenue forecast has been halved.
Airbus deliveries fell to 46 in July.
On August 8, Airbus said in its monthly report that it delivered 46 jets in July, the same as the same period last year, but down from 60 the previous month, and that 343 jets were actually delivered this year, just short of the full-year delivery target. About half way off. In addition, the report also officially registered a large order for nearly 300 jets by Chinese airlines.
Lyft forms media division to expand advertising business.
Lyft has formed a new business unit, Lyft Media, at the center of the digital advertising company Halo Cars it acquired two years ago. The company plans to offer more ads inside its cars, apps and bike-share stations, hoping it will generate more revenue to compete with Uber.
Buffett once again increased his position in Occidental Oil, holding more than 20% of the shares.
Berkshire Hathaway bought about 6.68 million additional Occidental shares between Aug. 4 and Aug. 8, spending about $391 million. The company currently holds a total of 188.4 million Occidental shares, valued at about $11.3 billion, or 20.2%, exceeding the threshold required for “consolidation.”
Apple’s new phone system may show the battery percentage in the status bar.
Apple pushes iOS / iPadOS 16 Developer Preview Beta 5 update to iPhone and iPad users, updates include: Notch status bar will show exact battery percentage, new “find” sound effect, audio playback Real-time mini-visualization of graphics, removal of perspective zoom capabilities, and more.
Amazon to acquire majority stake in Indian logistics company Ecom Express.
According to media reports, Amazon is considering acquiring a 51% stake in Indian logistics company Ecom Express for up to $600 million. However, people familiar with the matter said talks between the two sides are at an early stage. On August 5, Amazon announced that it had acquired robotics company iRobot for $1.7 billion.
The gaming business was sluggish, and Nvidia’s revenue in the second quarter fell 19% from the previous quarter.
Nvidia’s April-June revenue fell to $6.7 billion, with the gaming business the biggest drag. In the second quarter of this year, overall U.S. consumer spending on games fell by 13% year-on-year, and game companies Electronic Arts and Activision Blizzard both experienced sharp declines in revenue in the second quarter.
South Korean shipbuilding companies ranked first in the world in terms of orders received in July, and second in China.
Global new ship orders in July totaled 2.1 million CGT, of which South Korea received 1.16 million CGT, accounting for 55%, ranking first in the world, and China received 620,000 CGT, accounting for 30%. than ranked second. Earlier, Korea Shipbuilding & Marine announced its second-quarter results, with an operating profit of US$77.74 million, a year-on-year increase of over 60%.
Cox Enterprises bought US new media Axios for $525 million.
The acquirer, Cox Enterprises, is a US-based media company with a focus on cable television and automotive businesses, and holds a number of local US news outlets. Founded in 2017, Axios focuses on political and business news, providing local news coverage in several cities across the US in recent years. Axios, which has been profitable for the past three years, is raising money to expand local coverage to more cities, which is why they chose to sell, according to people familiar with the matter.
- “We’re looking for an acquirer with two qualities, one that is truly committed to serious journalism, and one that is willing to let us take the long-term control of the company,” said Axios co-founder Van der Hey. “It’s not because we’re arrogant, it’s because we Know exactly what a good news outlet looks like.”
Chip giant GlobalFoundries’ second-quarter revenue and net profit both hit record highs.
On August 9, GlobalFoundries released a financial report saying that in the second quarter, revenue increased by 23% year-on-year to US$1.99 billion, and net profit was US$264 million, both setting records. Its CEO Dr. Thomas Caulfield said the company will continue to expand despite challenges in the global supply chain. In addition, GlobalFoundries has extended its chip delivery agreement with Qualcomm until 2028, with orders totaling more than $7 billion.
Tesla’s July production fell sharply as it upgraded its Shanghai plant.
According to public data from the China Passenger Car Association, Tesla delivered 28,217 Chinese-made vehicles in July, down 64.2% from the previous month. The sharp drop in deliveries was due to the internal upgrade and adjustment of the production line at the Shanghai factory, which suspended production for about two weeks. The upgraded plant can increase production to about 22,000 units per week.
Text | Gong Fangyi Intern Zeng Xing Intern Xue Yujie He Ganming
Editor | Gong Fangyi
The title picture comes from the TV series “Stranger Things”
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