Asian equities tumble on emerging market, China fears

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Asian equities kicked off the week with sharp losses as fears over emerging markets continued to spook investors. Markets in Australia were closed for a public holiday.

On Friday, all three major US indices closed down 2 percent as emerging-market currencies took a beating amid growing worries about slowing Chinese growth and U.S. monetary policy.

“The EM currency selloff is causing a contagion effect where Asian markets are opening lower. The question is whether the selloff in the EM countries, Turkey, Ukraine and Argentina will have a sweeping effect on the others such as EM Asian countries. There are groups within the EM space that has current account surplus and demand for their goods which will weather this storm better,” wrote Kelly Teoh, market strategist at IG in a note.

Meanwhile, a Forbes report that the People’s Bank of China has halted bank cash transfers ahead of the upcoming Lunar New Years holiday sparked fears of a nation-wide liquidity crunch.

Japan’s benchmark index fell to its weakest levels since November, extending Friday’s sharp 2 percent fall, after the yen briefly hit a new seven-week high at 101.77 per dollar in early trade. As global risk appetite fell, investors bought into safe havens like the Japanese currency.

Index heavyweights SoftBank and Fast Retailing fell over 2 percent each while blue-chip exporters like Sharp, Sony, Nikon and Komatsu skidded over 3 percent each.

Disappointing data also weighed on sentiment. The economy recorded a record trade deficit for 2013 due to a weaker currency and higher fuel import costs, which saw imports gain an annual 24.7 percent in December compared to a 15.3 percent annual gain in exports.

Emerging markets in focus

Malaysian shares fell over 1 percent while the ringgit hit a new four-year low against the dollar. In the Philippines, the benchmark index lost over 2 percent and the peso hovered near Friday’s four-year low against the greenback. Indonesian shares tumbled nearly 3 percent while the rupiah hit a new two-week low against the dollar.

Thai markets will be watched after anti-government protesters in Bangkok increased their efforts to disrupt advance-voting for next week’s election. Violence erupted on Sunday after a protest leader was shot and killed in a confrontation.

China shares tumble

Hong Kong shares tumbled over 2 percent while the benchmark Shanghai Composite eased 0.6 percent after Forbes reported that the People’s Bank halted bank cash transfers.

“It depends whether or not these halted cash transfers also apply to domestic banks. If it did, there’s a number of questions you’d have to to raise. Are there really enough liqudity issues or did somebody just forget to print enough money? If it doesn’t apply to domestic banks, it may be a marginal or isolated issue,” said Tony Nash, vice president of IHS.

Hong Kong-listed ICBC fell over 2 percent on reports that it may be close to buying a controlling stake in Standard Bank’s commodities and forex trading business in London.

Kospi falls 1.7%

South Korean shares opened at a six-month low while the Korean won fell to a five-month low. Blue-chips Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors and Samsung Electronics fell over 1 percent each while investors shrugged off data that showed consumer sentiment hit a three-year high in January.

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Russia’s Putin acting out of weakness: Soros

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The US and Russia need to better understand each other because Russian President Vladimir Putin is becoming “more regressive at home and more aggressive abroad,” billionaire investor and philanthropist George Soros told CNBC.

“Putin is acting out of weakness because he was quite popular, and then the switchover between him and [Dmitry] Medvedev really turned the Russian population against him,” Soros said in an interview that aired Friday from Davos, Switzerland. His pointed words come as Russia deals with terrorist threats in advance of the Sochi Winter Olympics, which opens in two weeks.

Also read: Indians not buying India story: Blackstone

Soros did say that Putin’s intervention in the Syrian chemical weapons crisis has “paid off, but he can’t really convert it into a real change in Russia’s standing in the world without dealing with the humanitarian issue [in Syria].”

Syria’s civil war has already killed at least 130,000 people, driven up to a third of the country’s 22 million people from their homes, and made half dependent on aid, including hundreds of thousands cut off by fighting. Talks to end the 3-year-old war were scheduled to start Friday in Geneva.

“I think in many ways [Syrian President Bashar] Assad himself and the regime has committed such violations against humanitarian law that they can’t really remain in power,” Soros said.

—By CNBC’s Matthew J. Belvedere. Follow him on Twitter @Matt_SquawkCNBC. Reuters contributed to this report.

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Argentine peso suffers steepest daily fall since 2002

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Argentina’s exchange rate on Thursday suffered its steepest daily decline since the country’s devastating 2002 financial crisis, extending the previous day’s losses as the central bank gave up its battle against the peso’s decline.

Having shed more than 30 percent of its reserves last year, the central bank this week abandoned its policy of supporting the peso by intervening in the foreign exchange market.

The new policy set the stage for Thursday’s loss in the value of the currency and increased worries about what is already one of the world’s highest inflation rates.

(Read more: Investing in Argentina? Get ready to cry)

The peso-dollar interbank exchange rate hit the 8 mark, down 11 percent on the day following a 3 percent decline on Wednesday. Argentina’s black market peso fell 7.25 percent on Thursday to close at 13.1 per dollar.

“Yesterday the central bank neither bought nor sold dollars, which tells you what its position is with respect to the exchange rate,” cabinet chief Jorge Capitanich told reporters on Thursday.

Central bank reserves stood at USD 29.44 billion.

On Thursday the bank intervened but by an inconsequential USD 100 million, according to local foreign exchange traders.

(Read more: Goldman: Cut your emerging markets exposure by a third)

Due to local currency controls, the black market is the only way for many Argentines to get their hands on dollars as confidence in Latin America’s No. 3 economy falls and inflation soars. Given the country’s history of repeated financial crises, Argentines like to save in dollars.

According to private analysts, consumer prices rose more than 25 percent in 2013, although discredited official data clocks inflation at less than half that.

Unorthodox policies, from currency controls meant to stop capital flight to heavy stimulus spending unencumbered by inflation targeting, have made Argentina a no-go zone for all but the most risk-hungry investors.

Argentina’s key grains sector has cut exports as farmers hoard their crops rather then expose themselves to the swooning local currency. This has contributed to the scarcity of dollars that is debilitating the peso.

(Read more: Next emerging market sell-off may be time to pounce)

Every time President Cristina Fernandez tightens capital controls in a bid to shore up the country’s wobbly balance of payments, it increases the scramble for dollars. This in turn contributes to the fall in the value of the black market peso and higher inflation.

The new year has begun with analysts expecting a 30 percent rise in consumer prices in 2014. That would be the highest rate since 2002, when millions of middle class Argentines were pushed into poverty by a crisis punctuated by a sovereign bond default and 41 percent inflation.

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Could this be the currency to short in 2014?

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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While shorting the Japanese yen  was the hottest trade of 2013, betting against the Canadian dollar could be an equally profitable trade this year, according to a foreign exchange strategist.

The Canadian dollar, or the loonie as the currency is commonly called, has lost over 4.5 percent against the US dollar in the past three weeks alone, to trade at its weakest level in more than four years.

“The currency either goes absolutely nowhere, which has been the case since 2011, or it starts to move like in 2007-2009. Right now, there`s not much in the way of positives for the loonie,” Rodriguez, told CNBC on Thursday.

“When you have that kind of momentum, it`s a thing that feeds onto itself – given the intensity of declines, the Canadian dollar looks like a great trade,” he added.

Rodriguez forecasts the Canadian dollar will weaken to CUSD1.17 per US dollar – levels not seen since May 2009 – as early as April. This represents further downside of 5 percent for the currency, which was last quoted at CUSD1.11.

Factors weighing on the currency`s outlook include declining commodity prices and a deep divergence between US and Canadian monetary policies.

While the US economy stages a recovery, Canadian economic growth has slowed markedly with employment seeing a surprisingly large drop last month.

Bleak economic conditions forced the Bank of Canada to maintain its highly accommodative stance, keeping its benchmark rate steady at 1 percent at its monetary policy meeting on Wednesday.

The central bank also left the door open to a rate cut, saying that it has become more concerned about weak inflation, and that a “strong currency” is still hampering the country`s exports. The dovish comments sent the loonie toward its weakest level since September 2009 overnight.

Additionally, unlike the yen, the loonie is not a crowded trade, which makes it a safer bet, Rodriguez said. “If everyone`s short, people will take profits at the first sign of danger, and when you see a high level of leverage, that move can happen very rapidly,” he said, referring to the yen.

In its top trade recommendations for 2014, Goldman Sachs also advised investors to go short the Canadian dollar against the greenback.

The key to understanding the Canadian Dollar weakness is the large current account deficit that has been at about 4 percent of gross domestic product since the global financial crisis, Thomas Stolper, chief currency strategist at Goldman Sachs wrote in a note on Wednesday.

“Initially it was easily funded by record capital inflows into Canada, much of this in the form of fixed income investments by global reserve managers who tried to diversify out of US dollar and into commodity currencies,” Stolper said.

“However, the period of record inflows into Canadian fixed income is clearly over. The current account deficit remains large and the BBoP [Broad Basic Balance of Payments] has slipped further into negative territory,” he said, noting that the balance of payments generally determines the pace of appreciation or depreciation.

-By CNBC`s Ansuya Harjani. Follow her on Twitter @Ansuya_H

Copyright 2011 cnbc.com

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

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Mohamed El-Erian resigns from Pimco, to stay on at Allianz

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Allianz late on Tuesday said Mohamed El-Erian, chief executive officer and co-chief investment officer at its asset management unit Pacific Investment Management Company (Pimco), has resigned, but would stay on the Allianz International Executive Committee.

El-Erian will leave Pimco in mid-March as part of a leadership overhaul, Allianz said. He will also advise the Board of Management of Allianz SE on global economic and policy issues, the German insurer said.

(Read more: Ex-TARP chief Kashkari to run for Calif. governor)

The firm has named Douglas Hodge, managing director and currently chief operating officer of the firm, as its next chief executive. The firm also named managing directors Andrew Balls and Daniel Ivascyn as deputy chief investment officers, Allianz said.

(Read more: World in 2014 is better…but not good enough: El-Erian)

El-Erian, along with co-founder and co-chief investment officer Bill Gross, oversaw the Pimco Total Return Fund, the world’s largest bond fund with USD 237 billion in assets. The fund is the flagship of the Newport Beach, California-based firm.

(Read more: This new Fed is a ‘dream team’: El-Erian)

Pimco had USD 1.97 trillion in assets as of September 30, according to the firm’s website.

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India to grow at 4.6%, world at 3.4% in 2014: IMF

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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India is likely to clock an economic growth rate of 4.6 percent this financial year and the expansion may improve to 5.4 percent in 2014-15, the International Monetary Fund said.

Additionally, the IMF expects the world economy to grow by more than previously expected this year.

In an update to its “World Economic Outlook”, the IMF predicted global economic growth of 3.7 percent in 2014, an upgrade on the 3.6 percent growth it forecast last October.

The IMF — which monitors the global economy and lends to its 188 member countries if they are in financial difficulty — attributed the raise to improving conditions in advanced economies.

“Financial conditions in advanced economies have eased since the release of the October 2013 WEO (World Economic Outlook) — with little change since the announcement by the US Federal Reserve on December 18 that it will begin tapering its quantitative easing measures this month. This includes further declines in risk premiums on government debt of crisis-hit euro area economies,” the IMF said on Tuesday.

Japan and Spain saw their outlooks upgraded by the IMF on Tuesday, and are now seen growing by 0.6 percent and 1.7 percent respectively in 2014.

The UK’s growth forecast was also increased, a move widely anticipated by the country’s media.

“Activity in the United Kingdom has been buoyed by easier credit conditions and increased confidence. Growth is expected to average 2.25 percent in 2014–15, but economic slack will remain high,” the IMF said.

(Read more: UK manufacturers upbeat for 2014)

The report warned however that advanced economies, particularly those in the euro zone, were at risk from very low inflation, which the IMF said increased real debt burdens and could result in premature real interest rate increases.

With that in mind, the IMF said it was vital that advanced economies avoided halting ultra-loose monetary policies too early.

“It will be critical to avoid a premature withdrawal of monetary policy accommodation, including in the United States, as output gaps are still large while inflation is low and fiscal consolidation continues. Stronger growth is needed to complete balance sheet repair after the crisis and to lower related legacy risks,” it said.

(Slideshow: The biggest global risks in 2014)

—By CNBC’s Katy Barnato. Follow her on Twitter:
@KatyBarnato

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Don’t trust the government? You’re not alone

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The world’s leaders are struggling to win public trust, a new survey reveals, with governments the least-trusted institutions for a third consecutive year.

The 2014 Edelman Trust Barometer – released Tuesday to coincide with the beginning of the 2014 World Economic Forum in Davos – surveyed 27,000 people from 27 countries using 20 minute online interviews. The results of the annual survey revealed the largest ever gap between trust in government and business.

 Trust in government was below 50 percent in 22 of the 27 countries surveyed, the report said, with strikingly low levels in western Europe, particularly in Spain (14 percent), Italy (18 percent) and France (20 percent). In total, trust in government dropped from 48 percent in 2013 to 44 percent this year, whilst trust in business leaders stabilized at 58 percent.

(Read more: Is France heading for a new recession?)

The findings come at a time of political turmoil in several countries. The popularity of Francois Hollande, president of France, has dropped to the lowest levels since the country started taking opinion polls, according to a survey by research firm BVA in October, with only 26 percent of French people having a positive opinion of the Socialist leader.

Italy was paralyzed by deadlock last year, with Prime Minister Enrico Letta invited to form a government in April following inconclusive elections in February. He has since ruled in an awkward coalition with Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia party, before the latter’s withdrawal of support from Letta and Berlusconi’s recent ejection from politics.

(Read more: A ‘Happy New Year’for Italy? Don’t bet on it)

The U.S. hasn’t covered itself in glory either. A budget row last year saw economists warn of dire global economic consequences unless an agreement to raise the borrowing limit was reached. In October, disputes over funding of “Obamacare” health insurance reforms prompted a 16-day partial shutdown for many agencies, leaving thousands of federal workers without a job.

America’s confidence in intelligence practices also took a hit in 2013. Damaging disclosures appeared in newspaper reports based on revelations made by former U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden. They detailed the surveillance tactics from the National Security Agency program.

Businesses setting policy?

 In contrast to the diminishing trust held in politicians, confidence in businesses remains stable. Global public relations firm Edelman said this was buoyed by the perception that businesses have made demonstrable change in the form of better products and new leadership.

“This is a profound evolution in the landscape of trust from 2009 where business had to partner with government to regain trust, to today, where business must lead the debate for change, “Richard Edelman, the president and CEO of Edelman said in a press release.

The report – published annually for the last 14 years – showed that 79 percent of respondents believe governments should not be working alone when setting policy.

“A majority of respondents believe that business can pursue its self-interest while doing good work for society. And 74 percent believe that business should be involved in formulating regulation in the energy and food industries,” the report said.

(Read more: World in 2014 is better…but not good enough: El-Erian)

Edelman added that typically it was government that had been called upon to create the context for change but, in the eyes of respondents, it was either incapable or unwilling to do so.

“People trust business to innovate, unite and deliver across borders in a way that government can’t. That trust comes with the expectation and responsibility to maintain it. Therefore, CEOs must become chief engagement officers in order to educate the public about the economic, societal, political and environmental context in which their business operates,” he said.

However, he warned that businesses shouldn’t commit a huge error in judgment and interpret these shifts as a chance to push for deregulation. The survey notes that people want more regulation in several industries including financial services,energy and food and beverage.

“Events of the past 12 months, including the USD 13 billion fine for JPMorgan and the largest-ever bankruptcy in Latin America with the failure of Eike Batista’s EBX deep water oil drilling firm, coupled with the memory of the recession of 2008, have renewed concerns about business’ ability to self-regulate,” Edelman said.

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Is Sri Lanka the new investment darling?

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Should Sri Lanka`s market be on your radar after its strong start to the year bucked the downtrend in most emerging markets?

The Colombo market`s All-Share Index has tacked on around 4 percent so far in January after gaining nearly 5 percent in 2013, even as many of its regional counterparts have lost ground.

Additionally, while many regional markets experienced outflows of foreign funds last year amid concerns over tighter liquidity after the US Federal Reserve first broached the idea it would begin to taper its asset purchases, the Colombo market saw net foreign inflows of almost 22.9 billion Sri Lankan rupees in 2013.

Some regional markets have raised interest rates to try to prevent fund outflows, but Sri Lanka has been lowering its rates.

“We have seen inflation at the lower levels. We have been seeing the growth at the right levels. We have seen the external sector coming back to fairly robust level. So all those gave us the confidence that we were on track to having inflation at lower levels in the future,” Ajit Nivard Cabraal, the governor of Sri Lanka`s central bank told CNBC.

He expects the economy will grow around 8 percent in 2014, citing two major developments: the end of the civil war in 2009 and the repositioning of the economy toward services.

“We have developed our infrastructure, particularly the ports and airports, which means our services have now improved quite dramatically. And we are seeing the services sector, particularly the hubs we are looking at — maritime, aviation, knowledge, activities as well as the commercial and energy — all now contributing a lot more to our economy than they did in the past,” he said.

The stock market itself is working to attract more foreign investors, embarking on development initiatives including requiring listed companies to keep more of their shares available for trading, as well as improving broker infrastructure, strengthening regulation and developing the corporate bond market, Rajeeva Bankaranaike, the CEO of the Colombo Stock Exchange, told CNBC.

He believes his market offers a lot of value for investors.

“It`s the growth story,” he said. “Some of these sectors are trading at deep discounts. Particularly in the Sri Lankan economy, we have some of the growth sectors very well represented and these are trading at deep discounts to the market P/E (price-to-earnings ratio),” he said, citing the construction, energy, property and manufacturing sectors.

Investors are responding to the lure.

“We are positive on the outlook for equities in the current year,” said John Keells Stock Brokers and CIMB in a note, citing an improved earnings outlook and expectations lower rates will spur more funds toward the stock market. They expect the All Share Index will rise at least 15 percent this year, with scope for earnings multiples to rise along with earnings growth, which it estimates at around 15 percent for the year.

“As Sri Lanka comes out of its tightening cycle there is also an extremely strong pipeline of private investment into leisure and property megaprojects over the next five years, unprecedented in their scale and scope in Sri Lanka which should significantly improve sentiment.”

To be sure, the view on the market isn`t universally positive. HSBC only rates the market at “neutral” in its frontier market coverage.

“Macro developments have yet to translate into improved business prospects,” it said in a note.

“Sri Lanka has failed to attract much-needed FDI (foreign direct investment), and consumer spending remains sluggish. The problem appears to be delays in infrastructure projects, which are having a knock-on effect on the broader economy,” it said, adding the country has a high current account deficit and overdependence on imported fuel.

While valuations look attractive, the equity market lacks liquidity, HSBC said, noting the one-month daily turnover averages only USD 5.2 million, the lowest among Asia`s frontier markets.

-By CNBC.Com`s Leslie Shaffer; Follow her on Twitter @LeslieShaffer1
Copyright 2011 cnbc.com

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

‘Severely unaffordable’ housing markets of 2014

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Hong Kong and Vancouver are two of the most unaffordable cities to buy property, according to the Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey published Tuesday.

In the 2014 survey, Hong Kong was branded the most unaffordable, followed by Vancouver and San Francisco. Australia`s Sydney and Melbourne followed in the fourth and fifth positions.

The Demographia survey looked at 360 cities in nine countries: Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, the UK and the US Using a median multiple – a World Bank and United Nations evaluation method – it determined whether they fell into one of four categories: severely unaffordable, seriously unaffordable, moderately unaffordable and affordable.

Hong Kong`s average home price rose to 14.9 times gross annual median household income from 13.5 times in 2013, the highest ever level recorded by the survey in its ten-year history.

Many analysts have warned that a bubble is forming in Hong Kong`s red hot property market, where home prices have more than doubled since 2009, as strong demand from mainland China and record-low mortgage rates have driven growth.

Warnings have also been sounded about Canada and Australia, where low interest rate environments and strong demand from Asia has also fueled record demand there as well. Canadian home prices are up nearly 100 percent since 2000.

According to the survey, homes in Vancouver rose to 10.3 times income, and San Francisco`s median multiple was clocked at 9.2, a sharp deterioration from last year`s 7.8.

Demographia said they were concerned about the sharp deterioration in home price affordability in California, where 11 of the most unaffordable markets in the U.S. are located.

“There are indications of a substantial worsening housing affordability situation in California, which was the core of the US housing bust of the last decade that precipitated the Great Financial Crisis. House prices in the six major markets of California have risen nearly 40 percent relative to incomes since bottoming out in 2009,” read the report on the survey findings.

The survey also looked at the affordability of countries` overall property markets, as well as focusing in on major cities.

Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong were classified as “severely unaffordable.” While at the other end of the scale, the most affordable geographies were Ireland, the U.S. and Japan, each of which had a `moderately unaffordable` rating between 3.1 and 4.0.

The survey measured housing affordability using the “median multiple” – a World Bank and United Nations evaluation method, except in Japan, where data for estimating medians is not readily available, and instead average multiple data was used (average house price divided by average household income).

– By CNBC`s Katie Holliday: Follow her on Twitter @hollidaykatie

Copyright 2011 cnbc.com

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

The Chinese are coming – to Davos

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Even the briefest scan of the list of delegates to this year’s World Economic Forum shows one prominent group which is out in force this year: Chinese business people, economists and policymakers.

Representation from the world’s second-largest economy after the US had been proportionately thin on the ground at previous meetings — often because it coincided with the Chinese New Year celebrations, which are usually in late January/early February.

 This year, high-profile Chinese attendees include Gao Xiqing, chief investment officer of the China Investment Corporation. However, there are no attendees from the Politburo, the Communist Party of China’s governing body. The evolution of China and its relationship with the global economy is also likely to be one of the key themes.

Read more: Apple-China deal ‘watershed moment’: Tim Cook

Japan, China’s big rival in its region, has long been well-represented at Davos. Shinzo Abe, Prime Minister of Japan, is one of the event’s keynote speakers, and his discussion of how Japan is trying to reverse its economic stagnation is expected to be one of the biggest themes of the conference.

“Historically, the Chinese have not played a prominent role,” John Studzinski, senior managing director of The Blackstone Group and another Davos veteran, told CNBC.

 “The presence of China at Davos has been negligible so far… the Chinese are not used to this type of networking convention.”

In the past decade, as it has emerged as an economic powerhouse, China has been more focused on the Boao Forum for Asia, a Beijing-based rival to WEF. Davos has been viewed as a more Western-centric gathering, conducted mostly in English – although there is translation available.

There is also an annual event organized by WEF, known as the Annual Meeting of the New Champions, held in Tianjin, China in the summer.

“Until we can find a way to have the Chinese play a more active role, such as Mandarin-speaking panels, we are going to have problems with transparency,” Studzinski said.

Read more: China will never be a democracy: Futurist

There are also concerns that China is not open enough about its economic issues, including slowing economic growth, to fully contribute to the forum.

“The problem with China is what we don’t know,” Lord Malloch-Brown, former Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, told CNBC.

– By CNBC’s Catherine Boyle. Twitter:@cboylecnbc

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow