In this week’s wrapup we cover trade wars, anonymous letters, negative interest rates and of course WeWork. So let’s get right to it.
Is the trade war finally coming to an end?
On Monday, we talked about the partial trade deal between US and China. While details about the deal are still sketchy, it seems that both countries are now looking for a compromise. Long story short, the trade war has gone on for far too long without benefiting anyone really. Trump is looking to get reelected and China is reeling from an economic slowdown. Both parties could do without dealing with this nonsensical trade dispute. So they are looking to arrive at a mutually acceptable solution. Anyway, you can find more details here.
Did Infosys screw up?
On Tuesday, we talked about the anonymous letter that rocked Infosys. So the story goes that a group of employees found discrepancies in how the CEO and CFO were disclosing important financial details. They decided to deal with this problem by writing to the Infosys Board of Directors pleading them to take cognisance of the matter. And when this news hit the public domain Infosys shares toppled. In fact, there are also reports that Infosys might be looking at a class action lawsuit (in the US) for misleading investors. Yikes, anyway if you want the full scoop you can read the story here.
What's up with negative interest rates?
On Wednesday, we talked about the crazy world of negative interest rates. It wasn’t a breaking story. It was just something that we wanted to talk about for a long time. Especially considering very few people understand why anybody would get paid to borrow money. So, if you’re looking for an explainer on why interest rates are quickly approaching zero in developed economies, here’s what you’re looking for.
A Rescue package?
On Thursday, we talked about the BSNL-MTNL merger and the revival package to turnaround the loss-making behemoths. Despite the large amount of cash that’s on offer here, we are not sure if there is going to be a turnaround. The cutthroat competition in the telecom space is honestly insane. Forget BSNL, even highly efficient private sector companies have had to bite the dust. So how exactly does BSNL plan to rise from the ashes? We don’t know. But the government is having a stab at it anyway.
Then there was another rescue attempt. Softbank finally decided to bail out WeWork by pumping in close to $9.5 Billion dollars. This was by far our most popular story this week. So if you haven't read it already, do so right now. I am not going to give away a lot here.
The Final Verdict on the Infamous AGR
On Friday, we talked about why the Supreme Court asked 15 Telecom companies to pay a whopping 92,000 crores to the government. The issue harks back to a contentious topic — AGR or Adjusted Gross Revenue and the total amount of money telecom companies are expected to pay based off this number. Not following fully?Don’t worry. This one needs a full explainer and we’ve got you covered right here.
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Anyway, that's it from us this week. Thank you for subscribing and we will see you on Tuesday. We are taking the day off on Monday. Because....
Happy Diwali :)
