Corbyn rallies
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn announced a range of proposals at the party’s annual conference in Liverpool, including offering free childcare to two-to-four year olds and plans to reduce the UK’s carbon emissions to zero by 2050. He also reiterated a pledge to impose a tax on second homes and allow workers at large UK companies to elect one-third of their boards. Speaking on Brexit, Mr Corbyn called for a general election should Theresa May be unable to win parliamentary approval for her deal with the EU later this year.
Cook plummets
Staycations rise
Shares in Thomas Cook (TCG) fell by a quarter on the day the holiday company announced full-year underlying cash profits were now expected to be £280m, around 12 per cent lower than consensus forecasts. Chief executive Peter Fankhauser said warm weather in Europe had discouraged travellers from booking last-minute holidays further afield, leading to “even tougher competition and higher than usual levels of discounting” during August and September. Chief financial officer Bill Scott will step down from his role after the company’s preliminary results at the end of November. Sten Daugaard will take over as CFO on an interim basis after he joins the board in October.
Kors for Versace
LVMH rival
Following its takeover of formerly-London-listed shoemaker Jimmy Choo last year, Michael Kors has agreed to buy Versace, in a deal valuing the fashion house at $2.1bn, including net debt. US fashion house Kors is aiming to boost online sales and revenue from high-margin accessories at the family-owned Italian fashion group, as part of plans to create a rival to French luxury conglomerates LVMH and Kering. Michael Kors will be renamed Capri Holdings following the completion of the deal, while Donatella Versace will remain as “leader and visionary of the company”, according to Michael Kors chief executive John Idol.
Added weight
China stocks eyed
MSCI has proposed an increase in the weighting of mainland-listed Chinese shares in its emerging market index, from 5 per cent of free float-adjusted market capitalisation to 20 per cent. The index provider reckons the move could attract inflows of at least $66bn over the next couple of years and comes just four months after it brought 235 A-shares into the emerging market index – which is tracked by $1.9 trillion in assets – for the first time. MSCI is consulting with the market, including sovereign wealth funds, asset managers and central banks.
Changing faces
Execs depart
Instagram’s two founders announced plans to leave the company – sold to Facebook six years ago – in the latest of a series of executive changes. The departure of Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger comes at a time when the photo-sharing app’s popularity has been soaring, particularly with younger users, in contrast to Facebook’s stagnant growth for the core app in its developed markets. Whatsapp founders Jan Koum and Brian Acton quit earlier this year after clashing with Facebook chief executive over data protection, while Facebook’s general counsel and head of communications and vice president of partnerships also announced their exits during the summer.
Argentinian woes
Outlook worsens
Confidence in Argentina’s efforts to stabilise the economy took a further knock after central bank head Luis Caputo resigned just three months into the job. A statement said Mr Caputo quit for personal reasons and will be replaced by deputy economics minister Guido Sandleris. The South American country – which is in the process of finalising a $50bn bailout from the International Monetary Fund – recorded a 4.2 per cent contraction in the economy during the second quarter, the sharpest quarterly reduction since 2014.
Great expectations
Astra’s trial success
AstraZeneca’s (AZN) investors are still awaiting positive results from the group’s combination cancer therapy. It has been 15 months since the company announced that Imfinzi and Tremelimumab had failed to halt symptoms of cancer sufferers, but the (arguably more important) test for overall survival is still ongoing. That’s why investors sent Astra’s share price up on the news that Imfinzi alone had successfully reduced the chance of death from lung cancer. Analysts insist that they’re not expecting good news from the Imfinzi/Tremelimumab combination trial, but the share price – which is up 37 per cent since the trial failure last year – tells a different story.
