Chinese shares were mixed on Monday as the central bank injected liquidity and cut its 14-day reverse repo rate, while U.S. President Joe Biden's latest comments on Taiwan spooked investors.
Hong Kong stocks declined, with the tech sector falling the most, following a big sell-off in U.S. markets on Friday as investors weighed the risk of another big interest rate increase from the Federal Reserve.
** China's blue-chip CSI 300 Index rose 0.14%, while the Shanghai Composite Index was down 0.16%.
** Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 0.96% and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index dropped 1.35%.
A Landmark Going-Private Transaction Has Occurred For This Premier Net-Lease Trust
STORE Capital announced in a press release on Thursday that it has entered into a definitive agreement with institutional investor GIC, which will acquire the real estate investment trust in a transaction valued at $14 billion in collaboration with Oak Street. The transaction will be all-cash, which means that investors will receive the full deal value of $32.25 per share in cash.
The transaction price is a 20% premium to the stock price of STORE Capital on September 14, 2022, and an 18% premium to the 90-day volume weighted average stock price.
GIC and Oak Street will take STORE Capital private, which means the trust will no longer be available for trading on a public exchange. Because of the transaction's going-private nature, I advise investors to sell the deal and reinvest the proceeds in another equally impressive real estate investment trust.
** Other Asian markets were subdued on Monday as investors braced for a busy week with 13 central bank meetings that are certain to see borrowing costs rise across the globe and some risk of a 100-basis-point hike in the United States.
** Joe Biden said on Sunday in CBS News's 60 Minutes that U.S. forces would defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion.
** China's central bank lowered the borrowing cost of 14-day reverse repos by 10 basis points on Monday and injected 2 billion yuan ($286.54 million) through 7-day reverse repos and another 10 billion yuan through the 14-day tenor.
Choosing the right time to retire is a daunting task, especially as it often depends on factors outside our control, such as our health, inflation or even the direction of stock markets. For Matthew Jones, who spoke using a pseudonym, moving his company pension into a Sipp just weeks before the Covid market crash in March 2020 was a painful experience.
“Everything went through the floor,” he said. “It was a massive dent to my confidence.”
Mr Jones, who is 61 and lives in Somerset with his wife and two adult children, decided that he would wait for some signs of a recovery before he retired. “I ended up retiring quite soon after that, in March 2021. One of the main drivers was that my father has dementia and I wanted to spend some quality time with him while he is still fit to do so, like playing golf together.”
The value of Mr Jones’s pensions, which are spread across two Sipp accounts, one managed by Scottish Widows and one with M&G, currently stands at £1.2m. Almost £200,000 of it is in cash. He also has around £40,000 spread across a cash savings account and Premium Bonds.
“I have been relying on this cash as our income,” he said. “I’m conscious that I have exceeded the lifetime allowance on my pension, so I am leaving it alone in the probably vain hope that the Government will increase the limit.”
Mr Jones is currently withdrawing between £4,000 and £5,000 from his cash savings each month. “I'd like to maintain this level of income,” he said. “We do not live a lavish lifestyle. We’d like a few holidays here and there, but nothing extravagant.
“My main question is whether my pension is enough to support myself and my wife for the rest of our lives. If not I would be open to going back to work.” Mr Jones owns his home, which he estimates to be worth £625,000, and he has no debts. He and his wife also have more than £140,000 invested in various accounts.
Daniel Hough, Financial planner at Brewin Dolphin
We think Mr Jones has sufficient funds for retirement. He already has a large pension and, instead of returning to work, he should focus on streamlining and making the best use of his existing assets.
On paper he has breached the lifetime allowance. But because he has not taken any money from his pension, it hasn’t yet been “crystallised”. The lifetime allowance of £1,073,100 is frozen until at least April 2026.
Mr Jones would like a retirement income of around £4,000 a month – or £48,000 a year after tax. I would suggest taking £12,570 a year as income from the pension, which would fall under the tax-free personal allowance. This can be supplemented by using the 25pc tax-free cash from his pension, to the tune of £35,430 a year, which he could do for at least the first eight years.
When Mr Jones begins to receive his state pension, in around five years’ time, we can reduce the pressure on his investments. A full state pension from 35 qualifying years of National Insurance contributions will be around £10,000 a year. We can then swap out around £10,000 of cash annually being taken from the tax-free lump sum and, once this cash is used up, he can take money out as taxable income from his pension.
Mr Jones has two Sipps: the M&G one has around £900,000 of assets, more than a third of which is in a bond fund, which is lower risk but has still dropped in value, while the majority of the money in the Scottish Widows Sipp is in cash. Having two Sipps involves unnecessary duplication, so it would make sense to consolidate them with one provider.
** China's August economic data overall is slightly better than expected, although the real estate market is weak, CICC said in a note, adding that the valuation of A-shares is relatively low and the market liquidity is abundant, so the medium-term outlook should not be too pessimistic.
** The country's tourism stocks, up 2%, and Food & Beverage stocks, up 1.4%, led gains ahead of a 7-day national holiday starting from Oct. 1.
** In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng tech index dipped 2.04%.
** Alibaba Group tumbled 3.4% and Meituan declined 1.1%. (Reporting by Summer Zhen; Editing by Devika Syamnath)
The entire island of Puerto Rico lost power just before Hurricane Fiona made landfall on Sunday afternoon, according to officials.
More than 1.5 million customers are without electricity as the Category 1 storm, with sustained winds at 85 mph and torrential rain, bear down on the island, Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi announced on Facebook Sunday afternoon.
Fiona strengthened to a hurricane from a tropical storm Sunday morning. Emergency response teams for the utility companies will deploy once the conditions allow, Pierluisi said. It will likely day takes to restore the power, utility company LUMA Energy said in a statement.
The National Hurricane Center said Fiona made landfall in southwestern Puerto Rico at 3:20 p.m. ET. Widespread torrential rain has been hitting much of the island and is expected to continue for several hours. Flash flood effects are in place across the eastern half of the island, and the worst of the wind continues to slam the western half of the island.
In its 11 p.m. ET update, the NHC said heavy rainfall and "catastrophic" flooding continue across much of the country.
A bridge near Utuado, a town in the central mountainous region of the island, has collapsed, cutting off the communities of Salto Arriba and Guaonico, local newspaper El Vocero de Puerto Rico reported.
The portion of the bridge that collapsed is on Highway 123, a branch of Highway 10, which serves as a link between both roads and is one of the accesses to the University of Puerto Rico at Utuado campus, according to El Vocero.
The bridge, installed by the National Guard following Hurricane Maria, cost about $3 million to construct, the newspaper reported.
Pierluisi believes Puerto Rico is prepared as it can be, with enough resources and manpower in place to respond, he told ABC News earlier in the day -- adding that the island learned its lessons from the devastating effects of Hurricane Maria in September 2017.
"We're much in a much better position than we were five years ago," he said.
Hurricane warnings remain in place for Puerto Rico and the easternmost points of the Dominican Republic, as well as Turks and Caicos, throughout Sunday. Tremendous rainfall is forecast, with much of Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic expected to receive up to 10 inches. Some localized regions in Puerto Rico could get up to 20 inches.
While still a tropical storm, the system battered the Caribbean islands. One person died in the French territory of Guadeloupe, according to The Associated Press. More than 20 others were rescued amid heavy wind and rain according to the AP.
The island's emergency management office in Puerto Rico even had a blackout during its Saturday morning press conference. Pierluisi reiterated during that press briefing Saturday evening that the fear is that heavy rains will produce mudslides.
Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed that the country will get a bank holiday to mourn the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
Queen Elizabeth II died on Thursday (8 September) at the age of 96 in Balmoral Castle, after 70 years on the throne.
The late monarch will be laid to rest on Monday 19 September, in Westminster Abbey, London.
Her coffin was flown to London from Edinburgh on Tuesday (13 September) and will be carried in a ceremonial procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall on Wednesday (14 September) to begin her lying in state.
Here’s everything you need to know about Australia’s bank holiday to mourn the Queen.
A bus carrying infected people to a Covid-19 quarantine facility in China has crashed, killing 27 of those on board.
The coach overturned on a motorway in the south-western province of Guizhou. Another 20 people were injured.
Only two people have died from Covid in Guizhou province since the pandemic struck almost three years ago.
The accident sparked anger online from those critical of Beijing's "zero-Covid" policy.
The strict policy involves mass testing and tracking. Those who test positive and their close contacts have to isolate at home or in a quarantine facility.
Just a handful of cases can spark a city-wide lockdown.
There is no word on the cause of the crash which occurred early on Sunday morning.
According to Chinese regulations, passenger buses are not allowed to drive on the highway between the hours of 02:00 and 05:00. However, the accident occurred at 02:40 local time Monday (18:40 GMT Sunday) after the bus departed shortly after midnight, indicating the bus had violated regulation.
A woman who claimed she was the daughter of one of the victims took to social media, where she wrote a note saying she could "not accept" her mother's death.
"My mom stayed at home for half a month. She didn't go anywhere apart from going out for PCR tests... but she suddenly got taken to quarantine and died."
Online, some described their own unpleasant experiences of being bussed to quarantine facilities.
One said that dozens of passengers were squeezed into one bus for 12 hours at a stretch without being allowed to eat, go to the bathroom, open the windows or turn on the air-conditioning until their arrival at the quarantine hotel.
Another comment asked, "When will all of this stop?"
While the rest of the world is trying to live with Covid, China is the only major economy still prioritising the fight against the virus above almost everything else.
Guizhou is currently experiencing a spike in infections. The province recorded 712 new cases on Saturday - about 70% of the total for China.
The incident comes in the run-up to the Communist Party's five-yearly congress in October, with discussion around the country's Covid policy expected to be on the agenda.
In the capital Beijing, more than 21 million residents are required to queue for PCR tests every three days to access public buildings and even corner shops.
When is Australia’s bank holiday to mourn the Queen?
Australians will be given a bank holiday on Thursday 22 September, after the Queen’s funeral.
It will officially be called the National Day of Mourning for Her Majesty the Queen.
Why is Australia getting a bank holiday to mourn Queen Elizabeth II?
Until her death, the Queen was Australia’s head of state. The new head of state is King Charles III.
The surprise public holiday was first announced by Albanese on Sunday (11 September).
He said at the time: “Over the coming weeks, Australia will continue to commemorate our late Queen.
“I encourage all Australians, wherever you may be, to take time to pause and reflect on Her Majesty’s extraordinary life of service.”
Why is Australia’s bank holiday taking place after the Queen’s funeral?
According to Australian broadcaster Nine News, the bank holiday is timed for when Albanese and governor-general David Hurley return to Australia from the UK, after attending the Queen’s funeral.
Albanese and Hurley will travel to London on Thursday 15 September and return on Wednesday 21 September.
How have Australians reacted to the news?
Albanese has faced a backlash from retail and business groups for announcing the bank holiday at such short notice, with many worried about staffing costs and losing trade on the day.
But the prime minister defended the decision as “appropriate” and said: “This is the first time we have had a change of a head of state.
“Australia needs to, it wants to mourn the contribution of Queen Elizabeth II. A one-off public holiday is an appropriate response.”
Will Australia have the bank holiday again next year?
No, the bank holiday to mourn the Queen is a one-off event and will not reoccur after this year.
What other countries have declared a bank holiday to mourn the Queen?
A handful of other countries where the Queen was head of state have also announced public holidays to mourn her death.
On Tuesday (13 September), New Zealand’s prime minister Jacinda Ardern announced that the country will get a one-off public holiday on Monday (26 September), called “Queen Elizabeth II Memorial Day”.
She said a state memorial service for the late monarch will be held in the Wellington Cathedral of St Paul, in the city of Wellington, on the same day.
Canada has also announced a national day of mourning that will take place on Monday (19 September), which will be a bank holiday.
Prime minister Justin Trudeau said that while the Canadian government is still working out “a few details” with provinces and territories, “declaring an opportunity for Canadians to mourn on Monday is going to be important”.
Some Caribbean nations, such as Jamaica, announced a period of mourning to mark the death of the Queen. However, only the Cayman Islands has declared that Monday (19 September), the day of Her Majesty’s funeral, will be a public holiday.
According to local reports, the government of the Turks and Caicos Islands will decide whether a bank holiday will be given to residents in the coming days. Antigua is also said to be considering a public holiday to mark the Queen’s passing.
Biden, who rarely does interviews, spoke to CBS’ “60 Minutes” in a segment that aired Sunday. He said that when he heard about classified documents taken from the White House, he wondered how “anyone could be that irresponsible.”
Biden added: “And I thought, what data was in there that may compromise sources and methods?”
The president said he did not get a heads-up before the Trump estate was searched, and he has not asked for any specifics “because I don’t want to get myself in the middle of whether or not the Justice Department should move or not move on certain actions they could take.”
The FBI says it took about 11,000 documents, including roughly 100 with classification markings found in a storage room and an office, while serving a court-authorized search warrant at the home on Aug. 8. Weeks after the search, Trump lawyers asked a judge to appoint a special master to conduct an independent review of the records.
The warrant says federal agents were investigating potential violations of three different federal laws, including one that governs gathering, transmitting or losing defense information under the Espionage Act.
Biden told “60 Minutes” that when he heard about classified documents being taken from the White House, he wondered how “anyone could be that irresponsible."
"And I thought what data was in there that may compromise sources and methods?”
In the wide-ranging interview, the president wouldn’t commit to running for reelection in 2024, though he’s said in the past that he planned to.
“My intention, as I said to begin with, is that I would run again," he said. "But it’s just an intention. But is it a firm decision that I run again? That remains to be seen.”
Biden was asked about growing concerns that Russia's efforts to seize Ukraine could inspire China's leader Xi Jinping to attack Taiwan. The island has been recognized by the U.S. as part of China but has its own democratic government. Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin met last week.
Biden again said the U.S. forces would respond “if in fact there was an unprecedented attack.”
White House officials later said the official U.S. policy had not changed, and would not say whether American forces would be called to defend Taiwan. Biden has made the claim before, but the statements come at an increasingly tense time for U.S.-China relations, particularly after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's trip there last month.
Beijing sees official American contact with Taiwan as encouragement to make the island’s decades-old de facto independence permanent, a step Biden and other U.S. leaders say they don’t support.
The president said the U.S. commitment to Ukraine was “ironclad” and would remain so “as long as it takes.” Ukrainian troops are engaged in a counteroffensive that has reclaimed towns and cities from Russian troops. But the toll the war has taken is vast, and fresh atrocities are being revealed, including torture chambers and mass graves. Since January 2021, the U.S. has given more than $13.5 billion in security assistance to Ukraine.
In the same hour, “60 Minutes” also aired an interview with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, who will be speaking to the U.N. General Assembly in New York this coming week. Raisi echoed standard Iranian lines about the status of currently stalled nuclear talks with world powers. He said the United States is not trustworthy and demanded guarantees that the U.S. would not withdraw from a deal as President Donald Trump did in 2018.
Raisi said he had no plans to meet with Biden on the sidelines of the U.N. event as it would serve no purpose, although he reiterated that Iran is willing to discuss prisoner exchanges with the United States. He also defended his country’s anti-Israel stance and said Tehran was committed to pursuing “justice” for the Trump administration’s assassination of a top Iranian military commander.