Ray S. Eñano, Editor business@manilastandardtoday.com extrastory2000@gmail.com
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WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 24, 2016
Business
A handout picture released by Bundesregierung, the Cabinet of Germany shows (from left) Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande arriving aboard the Garibaldi navy on the harbour of Italian island of Ventotene, on August 22, 2016, ahead of a meeting on the island, where the leaders of Italy, France and Germany meet to discuss the post-Brexit EU. AFP
Pfizer beats out Sanofi in $14-b deal
PFIZER Inc. claimed the pharmaceutical industry’s latest big prize Monday, beating out a group of rivals after months of jockeying to buy Medivation Inc. and its blockbuster cancer drug for $14 billion. Left behind was French drugmaker Sanofi, whose aggressive and at one point hostile pursuit of Medivation helped open up the process to Pfizer, Gilead Sciences Inc. and others that were said to be involved. Pfizer will pay $81.50 a share in cash, the companies said in a statement on Monday, well above Sanofi’s initial $52.50 a share offer. By acquiring Medivation, Pfizer gets Xtandi, a cancer drug that’s already approved for sale in the US and elsewhere, and that analysts project will generate $1.33 billion in annual sales for Medivation by 2020. Pfizer chief executive officer Ian Read said in May that he was more interested in acquiring late-stage assets because the company already had plenty of early-stage drugs in the works. Pfizer, which walked away from an about $160-billion merger with Allergan Plc in April, is open to other deals, the CEO said on a conference call Monday. Shares of Medivation, which closed at $67.16 on Friday, climbed 20 percent to $80.42 at 1:24 p.m. Pfizer declined 0.5 percent at $34.80, while Sanofi was down 0.2 percent to 69.56 euros in Paris. Bloomberg
‘EU not finished after Brexit’
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BOARD THE GIUSEPPE GARIBALDI AIRCRAFT CARRIER, Italy―The leaders of Italy, France and Germany insisted Monday that Britain’s shock decision to quit the European Union would not kill the bloc.
Speaking aboard an aircraft carrier anchored off the Italian island of Ventotene, one of the cradles of the dream of a united and integrated Europe, the leaders vowed to strengthen the European project following the Brexit vote.
“Many thought the EU was finished after Brexit but that is not how it is,” Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said. Calling out the continent’s eurosceptics, he said it was “easy to complain and find scapegoats.” The EU “is the answer” to Eu-
rope’s problems, for it cemented “peace, prosperity and freedom,” he said. German Chancellor Angela Merkel recalled that the EU had been born from some of the “darkest moments” of European history, a reference to World War II. Echoing Renzi, she said the time had come to “write a better page” in European history. French President Francois Hollande warned that Europe was faced with a risk of “fragmentation and division.” It needed a “new impulse” on three fronts, Hollande said:
the economy; defense and security; and ensuring jobs and education opportunities for young people. The three leaders were speaking ahead of a working dinner aboard the Italian aircraft carrier Giuseppi Garibaldi as the sun set over the Naples coast. In a symbolic move, the Italian PM earlier took his guests to the grave of Altiero Spinelli, a founding father of the ideal of European integration. Renzi called the meeting in a bid to forge a common position on the EU’s future ahead of a sum-
mit of the 27 remaining states in Bratislava on September 16. Europe’s economic outlook, jihadist attacks, the refugee and migrant drama, the Syrian conflict, and relations with Russia and Turkey were also expected to be covered. The Brexit vote has raised fears of similar referendums in other countries, particularly the Netherlands, which opposes changes to the EU to achieve closer integration. But coming up with a road map acceptable to all will not be easy. The Czech Republic, Hungary,
Japan hires foreigners as farmers start to age
Microsoft apps to be installed on Lenovo
JAPAN is struggling to keep its farms running as farmers age and young people shun the work. This has opened the door for more foreign workers―including a growing number found to be working illegally. The number of Japanese farmers has dropped by about half since 2000, to below 2 million this year, according to the agriculture ministry. About two-thirds of those who remain are 65 years old or older. This could slow Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s push for a renewal of the sector. Abe sees agriculture as an important driver of economic growth, and has urged farmers to target overseas markets with premium products. Japan’s agricultural exports hit a record in 2015, according to the agriculture ministry, thanks partly to a weaker currency. Abe’s government has been looking to the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal to expose Japanese farmers to more competition and improve productivity. The pact, which brings together 12 nations including Japan, may be in doubt with the US presidential election campaign fueling protectionist sentiment. A shortage of farm workers means the rise in exports isn’t sustainable, said Takeshi Minami, chief economist at Norinchukin Research Institute, which specializes in agriculture. Younger Japanese simply aren’t interested, he said. “It’s easier to be a salaryman,” Minami said. “You can’t be a farmer unless that’s your passion.” One result is the rapid rise in productive farmland being abandoned. Some farms are tapping cheap foreign labor. Japan generally doesn’t accept migrant workers, but many companies use a so-called internshiptraining program as a back door. About 7,000 foreign workers entered the agriculture sector through this program in 2013 after passing exams at the end of their first year, according to the Ministry of Justice. That is more than double the number in 2007. Bloomberg
Gold and gems pile up in Singapore vault amid uncertainty THE stash of gold, silver and gems stored in the vaults and safe deposit boxes of Malca-Amit in Singapore has jumped almost 90 percent in the past year as wealthy investors seek a refuge in a world of negative interest rates, stagnating economies and political uncertainty. The company’s facilities in the city-state are about 70 percent full and more than 90 percent of the hoard comprises precious metals, according to Ariel Kohelet, managing director of Malca-Amit Singapore Pte, a logistics and storage provider, without giving specific figures. Revenue has grown at least 45 percent in 2016
from a year earlier, he said in an interview last week. Gold has rallied 26 percent this year and silver’s up 37 percent as negative interest rates, the UK vote to leave the European Union and the US presidential race spur investors to protect their wealth. Billionaire bond-fund manager Bill Gross has said there’s little choice but gold and real estate given current bond yields, while hedge fund manager Eric Mindich almost tripled his options bet on a bullion-backed exchangetraded fund in the second quarter. “We’re seeing a trend where high net-worth individuals are looking to diversify their
Poland and Slovakia vowed after Britain’s vote to draw up their own plans for a less centralized EU. The Ventotene trip was the start of an intensive tour for Merkel as she attempts to coordinate a response to one of the EU’s biggest crises in decades and quell fears Berlin wants to monopolise the debate. Renzi, who is campaigning for greater flexibility on EU deficit rules to help his flagging economy, said “we need strong measures to relaunch growth and fight youth unemployment”. AFP
portfolio into tangible assets like precious metals, precious stones,” said 41-year-old Kohelet, who’s been with the company for 12 years. “This is mostly to preserve and protect their wealth. They’re looking into places like Hong Kong and Singapore as places they deem to be safe.” A raft of investors have underscored the attraction of gold in a world where central banks are trying to revive growth by buying bonds and keeping their economies flush with cash. While billionaire George Soros cut his holding in Barrick Gold Corp. in the second quarter, he bought
shares in the SPDR Gold Trust. Paul Singer, David Einhorn and Stan Druckenmiller have all expounded reasons this year for owning gold. Some are not sure prices will keep rising, seeing more increases in US borrowing costs, which will lift the dollar and tarnish a metal that pays no interest. The probability of three rate hikes through end-2017 means there’s little room for rallies, according to Luc Luyet, a currencies strategist at Pictet Wealth Management. While Goldman Sachs Group Inc. likes gold as a strategic hedge, its base case is $1,300 an ounce, less than $1,337.50 traded Tuesday.
In Asia, where more than half the world’s bullion is consumed, people have always invested in gold, according to Kohelet. “If you take China and India, it’s part of the culture and tradition to put some aside,” he said. Malca-Amit has 1,000 square feet of space at the Singapore FreePort, a free trade zone, capable of storing 700 metric tons, while another warehouse at Changi airport’s airfreight center has a capacity of 200 tons, Kohelet said. In May, the company started a safe depository service called UltraVault and opened new facilities located in the central business district, he said. Bloomberg
SAN FRANCISCO―Microsoft apps such as Office and Skype will be installed on Lenovo mobile devices powered by Android software under the terms of a collaboration announced late Monday. The US technology giant and the Chinese computer titan said they were “deepening their strategic relationship” with a move that could add to the ranks of people using Microsoft programs as services hosted in the internet cloud. “The marriage of Microsoft’s apps and Lenovo’s Android-based devices will enable customers around the world to be more productive, more connected and achieve even more,” Microsoft corporate vice president Nick Parker said in a statement. Lenovo is expected to ship millions of Android-powered devices in the next several years. The deal includes cross-licensing that will allow patented Microsoft technology to be used in Lenovo and Motorola devices, according to the companies. “Our collaboration with Microsoft will create new opportunities for our customers to take advantage of some of Microsoft’s most popular apps,” said Lenovo leader of corporate alliances Christian Eigen. Microsoft and leading Android smartphone maker Samsung announced a deal last year to bring the US company’s software to smartphone and tablets made by the South Korean firm. AFP