TheChek News Flow

>>> Europe : Brokers Upgrades & Downgrades - 6th of December 201

>>> Up

* Bovis Homes Upgraded to Buy at Liberum; PT 9.10 Pounds

* Clas Ohlson Upgraded to Buy at SEB Equities; PT 87.50 Kronor

* Fabege Upgraded to Buy at Handelsbanken; PT 140 Kronor

* Faroe Petroleum Raised to Equal-weight at Barclays

* Genus Upgraded to Buy at Kepler Cheuvreux; PT 26.30 Pounds

* Takeaway Raised to Sector Perform at RBC; Price Target 50 Euros

>>> Down

* Autoliv Cut to Equal-weight at Morgan Stanley; Price Target $100

* BioMerieux Downgraded to Hold at Kepler Cheuvreux; PT 66 Euros

* Capgemini Downgraded to Equal-weight at Barclays; PT 106 Euros

* DiaSorin Downgraded to Hold at Kepler Cheuvreux; PT 76 Euros

* Hexagon Downgraded to Underweight at Barclays; PT 430 Kronor

* Klovern Downgraded to Reduce at Handelsbanken; PT 10.80 Kronor

* Sage Downgraded to Add at AlphaValue

* Zurich Ins. Downgraded to Neutral at JPMorgan; PT 359 Francs

>>> Initiation

* Aeroports de Paris Reinstated Outperform at Macquarie

* Neoen Rated New Buy at SocGen; PT 21.70 Euros

* Petra Diamonds Downgraded to Hold at Panmure Gordon; PT 45 Pence

>>> Call

>>> Beige Book Summary- Economies expanded at a modest or moderate pace.

Beige Book Summary- Economies expanded at a modest or moderate pace; Dallas and Philadelphi regions noted slower growth from prior period

Overall Economic Activity

Most of the twelve Federal Reserve Districts reported that their economies expanded at a modest or moderate pace from mid-October through late November, though both Dallas and Philadelphia noted slower growth compared with the prior Beige Book period.

On balance, consumer spending held steady --

District reports on growth of nonauto retail sales appeared somewhat weaker while auto sales tended to improve, particularly for used cars.

Tariffs remained a concern for manufacturers, but a majority of Districts continued to report moderate growth in the sector.

All Districts reported growth in nonfinancial services -- ranging from slight to strong.

New home construction and existing home sales tended to decline or hold steady, while construction and leasing of nonresidential structures tended to rise or remain flat.

Overall, lending volumes grew modestly, although a few Districts noted some slowing.

Agricultural conditions and farm incomes were mixed; some Districts noted impacts from excessive rainfall and from tariffs, which have constrained demand.

Most energy sectors saw little change or modest growth.

Most Districts reported that firms remained positive; however, optimism has waned in some as contacts cited increased uncertainty from impacts of tariffs, rising interest rates, and labor market constraints.

Employment and Wages

Labor markets tightened further across a broad range of occupations. Over half of the Districts cited firms for which employment, production, and sometimes capacity expansion had been constrained by an inability to attract and retain qualified workers. In fact, several Chicago firms reported that some employees have simply quit -- with no notice nor means of contact.

Partly as a consequence of labor shortages, most Districts reported that employment growth leaned to the slower side of a modest to moderate pace. Conversely, most Districts reported that wage growth tended to the higher side of a modest to moderate pace.

Prices

On balance, prices rose at a modest pace in most Districts, although a few noted moderate increases. Nearly all reported that input costs rose faster than final goods prices. Reports of tariff-induced cost increases have spread more broadly from manufacturers and contractors to retailers and restaurants.

(BN) Marshall Wace Best Paid Hedge Fund Partner Hits a Rough Patch

>>> Italy to send revised budget proposal to Brussels by next week - press

Italy to send revised budget proposal to Brussels by next week - press

Reminder earlier (IT) Reportedly Italian govt considering reducing citizen's income costs to save up to €2B -

>>> 7 Southern EU Nations Unite to Take Lead on Blockchain Adoption

7 Southern EU Nations Unite to Take Lead on Blockchain Adoption

Seven EU member nations have come together to promote the use of blockchain tech to boost government services and economic well-being.

The southern European states – France, Italy, Spain, Malta, Cyprus, Portugal and Spain – signed a joint declaration on Tuesday to promote the adoption of blockchain in the region in order to “transform” their economies. They further committed to collaborating on development of the technology in order to become “a leading region in this sector.”

The declaration was signed in Brussels, Belgium, on Dec. 4.

Blockchain can be a “game changer” in increasing the efficiency and transparency of government services, from education and healthcare to transport and customs, the group said in the document. It can further enhance services for citizens, bringing ” accountability and privacy for the end-users.”

“This can result not only in the enhancement of e-government services but also increased transparency and reduced administrative burdens, better customs collection and better access to public information” the declaration states.

It further addresses future regulation in the economic bloc, saying:

“We believe that any legislation on Distributed Ledger Technologies should take into account the decentralized nature of such technology and should be based on European fundamental principles and technological neutrality. It should also allow innovation and experimentations in order for the public and private sector to better understand the Distributed Ledger Technologies and to develop usecases”

Silvio Schembri, Malta’s parliamentary secretary for digital economy, financial services and innovation, tweeted on Tuesday, stating he is “proud” to see Malta, the smallest nation in the EU, taking a “leading role” on blockchain cooperation.

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Malta has already taken several initiatives toward becoming a self-titled “Blockchain Island.” Back in June, the nation’s parliament passed three cryptocurrency and blockchain related bills, and have since been attracting notable crypto businesses to set up shop.

While the EU has not yet moved to regulate blockchain technology across the region, it has launched initiatives aimed to investigate and trial the tech.

Most recently, in late November, the European Commission announced the launch of a new blockchain association with five major banks on board, including Spain’s BBVA. That initiative is aimed to develop guidelines and protocols for the blockchain industry, as well as to promote the EU’s blockchain standards internationally.

>>> Former PBOC Head Zhou: China is shifting to a new growth drive, needs to mor

Former PBOC Head Zhou: China is shifting to a new growth drive, needs to more to service sectors; structural changes require time - TV interview

- China need to rely on multilateral system for WTO issues

- China must speed up its development of financial markets

>>> Covestro -Concludes share buyback prorgam of €1.5B; Around 10% of capital st

Covestro - Concludes share buyback prorgam of €1.5B; Around 10% of capital stock bought back; aims to lay foundations for further buybacks

Covestro AG has successfully completed its share buyback program announced in fall 2017. The program comprised the repurchase of shares worth up to EUR 1.5 billion, or up to 10% of the capital stock. The company has acquired shares totaling more than 9.8% of the capital stock equaling close to EUR 1.5 billion in three tranches since November 2017. The maximum limit of 10% allowed by law has thus almost been achieved around half a year earlier than planned. The difference to the maximum limit is mainly attributable to employee stock purchase plans from the years 2016 and 2017, as part of which the company had already acquired treasury shares.

The Board of Management plans to propose a new authorization to acquire treasury shares at an amount of up to 10% of the capital stock to the coming Annual General Meeting. The German Stock Corporation Act (AktG) requires such an authorization so that a decision can be taken on potential further share buybacks in the future. Renewal of this authorization to repurchase shares up to the amount permissible under the law will cancel the existing authorization, which was the foundation for the now concluded share buyback program.

Following the conclusion of the current program, the Board of Management has also decided to retire the acquired 19.5 million treasury shares and thus reduce the capital stock by EUR 19.5 million. In future, Covestro AG’s capital stock will be EUR 183 million, divided into 183 million bearer shares.

(BN) Citadel, Point72 Hammered by Monthly Losses in November Comedown

>>> Balyasny Hedge Fund Clips One-Fifth of Staff

Balyasny Hedge Fund Clips One-Fifth of Staff

After $4 billion in losses and withdrawals, it reverses its ambitious hiring program.

After suffering a $4 billion asset axe from losses and client withdrawals, Dimitry Balyasny is being forced to chop heads at his hedge fund.

The Chicago-based firm, Balyasny Asset Management, which opened the year with $11.3 billion in assets, thinks it will begin 2019 with $7.3 billion. So it has let go 13 equity teams (about 40 investment professionals) from its roster, but the cuts didn’t end there. At least 125 employees, one-fifth of the total staff, are expected to be exiting to help stop the bleeding, with more to go before the year’s end, reports Bloomberg.

While performance-based cuts and the occasional batch of sudden layoffs are the norm at hedge funds, this case is unusual.

In 2016 and 2017, the firm was aggressively hiring, plucking staff from investment banks. Last year, it nearly doubled the size of its London division, and the average salary received a 24% raise. Times were good, then the markets shook.

First, London-based workers exited, some by choice, most not. Now it seems recent equity market shocks, which Bloomberg says generated the most losses in 2018, have created further departures.

Pre-layoff, the hedge fund employed about 272 people, who ran roughly 80 internal divisions. It featured a swath of strategies from credit and global macro to quantitative systematic and equity trading.

In November, Balyasny’s Atlas Global fund dropped 3.9%, and a leveraged variant slipped 5.7%. Atlas’ year-to-date losses are at 5.3%, while the leveraged version’s losses are down 7.9% for the year.

Balyasny, the fund’s chief and founder, nevertheless expresses optimism about the situation. The business has hired several investment professionals due to start next year, and Bloomberg reports that Balyasny is expecting to improve performance despite the loss of capital.

>>> Recordati - Receives orphan drug designation for its investigational treatme

Receives orphan drug designation for its investigational treatment for Neurotrophic Keratitis Announced that the FDA has granted Orphan Drug Designation to Recordati Rare Disease’s investigational product REC 0559 for the treatment of neurotrophic keratitis.

REC 0559 is a low molecular weight non-peptidic human nerve growth factor (NGF) mimetic currently under global development by Recordati. REC 0559 was licensed in 2017 from MimeTech, an Italian-based company focused on the development of pharmaceutical applications for synthetic neurotrophin mimetics.

Neurotrophic keratitis is a rare degenerative corneal disease, which in its more severe forms affects less than one person out of 10,000 worldwide, and it results from deficiency of the trigeminal nerve or its branches, usually caused by surgery, neoplasia, aneurysm or facial trauma. Impairment or loss of corneal sensory innervation is responsible for corneal epithelial defects, ulcer and perforation, with progression of the disease leading to dramatic impairment to patients’ sight.Orphan drug designation applies to drugs that seek to treat rare diseases or conditions affecting fewerthan 200,000 patients in the U.S. while providing significant therapeutic advantage over existing therapies. The designation can provide development and commercial incentives for designated compounds and medicines, including eligibility for a seven-year period of market exclusivity in the U.S. after product approval, FDA assistance in clinical trial design and an exemption from FDA user fees.