Global markets rallied overnight as investors were relieved that Greece finally scored a debt relief agreement with creditors. That will probably give Asian investors the confidence to buy up equities for a second day now that two of the biggest thorns hounding the financial markets — China’s stock rout and Greece’s debt woes — have been removed. At least for now.
Despite the recent bouts with a stock market downturn, which wiped out trillions of dollars in value, China is still flushed with cash. Firms like state-owned CIC just acquired shopping centers in Europe as mainland firms sail overseas to prop up revenues and profits amid a sluggish economy at home.
Here’s something interesting. The British have warmed up to the production of Shakespeare in Chinese. Read on…
Shakespeare in Chinese a hit among the British. Productions of Richard III and Macbeth will be staged this month and next with actors speaking in Cantonese and Putonghua. This would be the second time for these actors from Hong Kong and China to perform Shakespeare in Chinese on English soil. South China Morning Post (paywall)
China Investment Corp goes on a shopping spree in Europe. The state-owned investment fund acquired 10 shopping malls in France and Belgium valued at $1.44 billion from CBRE Global Investors. The latest investment is one of CIC’s largest acquisitions in Europe. The Wall Street Journal (paywall)
Dalian Wanda Group eyes financial services arm, acquisitions. The Chinese property-to-entertainment conglomerate is set to buy banking, securities and insurance firms alongside its plan to expand further into sports and electronic commerce. The Wall Street Journal (paywall)
Hillary Clinton comes down on Wall Street. Clinton outlined her plan for the economy Monday, including proposals for tighter controls on Wall Street. “Too big to fail is still too big a problem,” she said. Clinton called out the “shadow banking system” as risky and needing more oversight. Bloomberg
Did Hillary take economics 101? That’s what conservative columnist James Taranto is asking. In her speech the democratic candidate for president said the middle class is working harder than ever — productivity numbers are up 240.4% between 1948 and 2014, but hourly compensation grew by only 108.3%. It’s an apples and oranges comparison: Labor productivity is not a measure of hard work. “It is closer to — though not precisely — the opposite.” And that pay gain? It’s inflation-adjusted. so it measures real gains. Wall Street Journal (paywall)
Photo credit: Sam valadi via Flickr