FT : Uber challenges London mayor Boris Johnson over cap on minicabs


Uber will challenge plans by Boris Johnson to cap the number of minicabs operating across London, arguing that the move would mean “higher prices” for millions of travellers in the British capital.
The Mayor of London, who was elected as an MP this month, is pressing for new legislation that would limit the number of minicabs in the city.

The proposals, which are expected to feature in this month’s Queen’s Speech, are being seen as a direct attempt to curb the rise of the US taxi app group.
In a letter seen by the Financial Times, Jo Bertram, the head of Uber’s business in the UK, has requested the chance to debate the issue with the mayor directly.
She also complains that Uber is not yet represented on the board of Transport for London and has been shut out of other industry bodies from which it can better challenge the move.
“London is one of the great cities of the world and Londoners have embraced Uber’s technology; tens of thousands rely on us for their job and millions more use us to get where they need to go,” Ms Bertram said.
“Capping the industry’s ability to grow would mean higher prices and less availability for the millions of people who rely on Uber and services like ours to get around.”
Boris Johnson seeks to curb number of London minicabs
A London taxi is seen on a a taxi rank on the Aldwych in London, U.K., on Friday, May 4, 2012. Olympic tourists seeking to hire one of London's 9,000 black taxis during the events may struggle as drivers quit the streets in protest against travel restrictions. Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg
Boris Johnson wants to cap the number of minicabs operating across London, in an attempt to curb the rapid growth of Uber, the ride hailing app
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She added that new regulations should “protect people — their personal safety and their pockets — not hamper new innovations they value and that make their lives easier”.
Representatives for the Mayor of London’s office did not respond for requests for comment.
The letter is Uber’s first step in lobbying against the cap proposals revealed by Mr Johnson last week. “We must be able to take action against the threat posed by the massive increase we are seeing in the number of private hire vehicles,” he said.
Mr Johnson argues that the increase was to blame for greater congestion on London’s roads, more air pollution and the problem of illegally parked vehicles.
The number of minicabs in the capital has increased by nearly a fifth in the past year to more than 78,000. Uber has about 14,000 drivers in London, making it the largest provider of private hires in the city.
The rise has put pressure on TfL, caught between the popularity of Uber and incumbent taxi groups. The transport regulator is currently undertaking a review of the London taxi market.
London’s long-established black cab drivers have complained that a lack of regulation was skewing the market in Uber’s favour. The London Taxi Drivers Association has taken Uber to court alleging that the use of smartphones to log journey’s flags regulations.

(GS) Aerospace & Defense : impact of $55 brent for European Aerospace & Def.

Our Oil team now forecasts a long-term Brent price of $55
Our Oil team now expects a long-term (2020) $55 oil price (Brent). Nearer
term, they expect an average Brent price of $62-65 in 2016-18. We have
noted heightened concerns in our recent discussions with investors that a
‘lower for longer’ oil price environment could adversely affect the A&D
sector. In this note, we outline the likely impact from a lower oil price by
sub-sector.

Defence outlook unaffected in our view
Overall, we believe the defence outlook is likely to be unaffected by a lower
oil price. Tougher fiscal conditions in Saudi Arabia are offset by heightened
regional tensions and ongoing force modernisation plans. In Western
markets, we do not expect any significant change; we note that European
and US budgets are broadly improving and that cheaper fuel could
alleviate some fiscal pressure, but it is unlikely that fuel savings would flow
straight through into higher equipment spending

Civil aftermarket likely to benefit from healthier customers
The lower oil price will benefit airlines, and healthier airlines are less likely
to try to delay/reduce maintenance spend. The overall impact should
therefore be positive. However, this improvement will be less pronounced
on RPH contracts, which are less cyclical in nature than T&M contracts.

Civil OE ordering could slow, near-term cancellations unlikely
We think a lower oil price could slow aircraft ordering activity: we forecast
a book-to-bill of 1x at Airbus in 2015 vs. 2.3x last year (although oil is not
the sole factor here). We estimate that if the active life of aircraft were
stretched from 25 to 27 years, this could reduce wide-body replacements
between now and 2020 by c.100 aircraft, equal to 4% of our forecast
deliveries by 2020; for narrow-bodies, the impact is negligible. Overall, we
think broad cancellations or deferrals are unlikely given buoyant traffic
growth and improving airline financials.

Safran and Thales still our top two picks in European A&D
Safran and Thales remain our two top picks in European A&D (both CL
Buys). Safran should benefit from an improving aftermarket, and our
forecasts are ahead of the company’s aftermarket guidance for this year.
For Thales, we expect margin improvement as organic growth returns,
partly driven by a better French defence outlook.

(CS) Nokia - NDRS - tone confident and realistic

■ Management meeting. We recently hosted Nokia management in New York
with investors. Overall, the tone was confident, yet realistic, with the
company's key message around capital returns reassuring and further
elaborating how the ALU deal will bring more scale and scope.
■ Capital structure will be monitored, scope for returns. Management
articulated that if the HERE business is sold, they would still retain the
flexibility for capital distribution, even if the ALU transaction has not or does
not close. We believe this distribution could be high as €3bn, equating to as
much as 13% of the market cap, but the timing remains uncertain. Longer
term, while there are several hurdles for the ALU deal to close (regulatory,
etc.), as well as financial aspects to consider (converts/ squeeze out),
management concede that the combined entity would have potentially
excessive levels of cash (as of Q115 gross cash of €13bn/net cash of €5bn)
and would seek to return this to shareholders. The company also highlights
that the new entity's potential profitability and lower level of volatility should
help them attain an investment grade rating over time.
■ Why, and why now? Management argued that the strategic rationale is
based upon fixed mobile convergence, the industry being in transition
between 4G and 5G, and both entities having gone through a large part of
the restructuring process.
■ Synergies €900mn a net and gross number…the hassle factor. Nokia
target a gross synergy and net synergy estimate of €900mn long term. This
is a function of several factors. First, there is scope for revenue synergies as
the routing business from ALU is sold through a broader channel. Second,
there are dis-synergies in wireless within China and possibly at Sprint.
Finally, management have allowed for the hassle factor, which seems to
include industry competitive reactions. This final factor we believe is possibly
the hardest to estimate. We assume gross savings of €1.35bn, but estimate
Nokia only retain 50% of that, driving LT OMs to 15% in 2019, up from 8.7%,
which we believe is fair.

(CS) European Utilities Strategy : Something has to be wrong

European Utilities Strategy: YTD the sector has performed well in abs terms (+5%), but underperformed the MSCI Euro (-10%). We see contradictory signals: Lack of inflation, Earnings cut ,
Commodities vs. Earnings stabilization?, QE?, Weaker €. Question remains if the discount rate or are the earnings wrong? Using spot WACC in our long-term valuations points at c.40% upside
on average for the sector Key stocks: Outperform: Iberdrola (TP € 6.8); Centrica (TP 290p); Shanks (TP 115p) Underperform: Gas Natural Fenosa (TP €18); National Grid (TP 780p), Verbund
(TP €10.5) Stocks to watch: Enel (Neutral, TP €4.3), Engie (Neutral, TP €19.25) , Terna (U/P, TP €3.5, as an alternative to National Grid)

>>> What to look at today - 20th of May 2015

Dow+0.07% S&P-0.07% Nasdaq-0.17% Russell-0.14% VIX 12.85
US MArket closed almost unchanged,For the second day in a row, heavily-weighted health care (+0.5%) and financials (+0.7%) outperformed throughout the day and kept the benchmark index from dipping too far below its flat line. Executive member Benoit Coeure who said the ECB plans to frontload its asset purchases in hopes of avoiding thin liquidity conditions in July and August. The remarks boosted global bonds and weighed on the euro, sending the single currency lower by 1.5% against the dollar to 1.1150 .the timing of the comments from Mr. Coeure was viewed as controversial because the original speech was delivered on Monday evening, London time, when the ECB member appeared before a private group of hedge fund investors; however, the speech was not released to the public until tuesday morning. In response, the European Central Bank blamed the delay on an "internal procedural error." energy—lost 1.2%, and settled behind the remaining nine groups as crude oil weighed. WTI crude ended lower by 3.6% at $58.08 and surrendered its May gain. Volume were in line with average @ 720mil shares. US After hours DY +14.9%, CSC +4.8%, QIHU +1.7%, ETSY -17.1%, CISG -8.5%, DL -4.4% following earnings/guidance, CSC +8% on news of split in 2 entity +spec. dvd ($10,5)...After emerging out of recession in Q4, Japan's Q1 GDP report was even more impressive, growing by its highest rate in a year on an annualized basis at 2.4% - well above consensus. Exports growth slowed to 2.4% from 3.2% and imports increased to 2.9% from 1.4% despite softer Yen and lower energy bill, but the rise in residential and corporate investment more than made up for those headwinds. Shanghai Composite remained bid with another 1% rise headed into the break. Investors were again enthused by more reform announcemens, as the govt unveiled a "Made in China 2025" manufacturing blueprint with a focus on robotics, aerospace, new-energy and advanced transport. Also of note, Chinese press report noted Shanghai and Shenzhen new trading accounts were down 2.8% on the week, but actively traded accounts were up 4.5%.

Nikkei +0.97% Hang Seng -0.20% Shanghai +1.96%

Eur$1.1134 GBP 1.5505 EURCHF 1.0427 JPY 120.93 CHF 0.9364 WTI $58.44 (+0.78%)

S&P +0.01% EuroStoxx -0.16% Dax -0.31% SMI -0.09%


Macro :
- ECB Mulls Accepting More Greek Assets as Collateral: Kathimerini
- Oil M&A Activity to Pick Up in 2016
- Rokos Hires Former Brevan Howard Colleague Ahead of Fund Startup


Keep an eye on :
- AIR FP : Boeing, Airbus, Lockheed Considering Bids for Sikorsky: WSJ
- AREVA FP : Engie Said to Mull Bid for Areva Nuclear Services Outside France
- ATC NA : Time Warner Cable Said to Receive Takeover Approach From Altice (see WSJ, Reuters & FT Article on ur bbg)
- AZM IM : Timone Fiduciaria Selling 7.54m (5,26%) Azimut Holding Shrs, sold at E27,90
- BDT GY : Bertrandt 2Q Net Income EU15.2m vs EU15.8m; Confirms Outlook
- DSY FP : Autodesk 2Q Rev. View Below Est; Falls 3.3% Post-Mkt --> ADSK -1% in afte hours, could weight on DSY
- DEXB BB : Dexia 1Q Net Loss EU125m; 1Q Recurring Loss EU212m
- DPW GY : Deutsche Post DHL Group Divests 4.16% Stake in Sinotrans
- ENG SM : Oman Oil Selling 5% of Enagas(Citi & DBK) worth €314.4m, shares placed @ €26.34
- FCC SM : Slim Asks Banks to Renegotiate FCC’s EU4.5b Debt: Confidencial
- FCA IM : Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Says ‘Fully Aligned’ With NHTSA
- HLE GY : Hella Shareholders Selling Up to 13.9m Shrs in Bookbuilding
- HOLN VX : Holcim to Reorganize Group Functions, Sees 120 Swiss Job Cuts
- ING FP : Bpifrance Buys 5.5% Stake in Ingenico From Safran
- KPN NA : America Movil Offers EU2.25b of Bonds Exchangeable Into KPN Shrs
- LG FP : Lafarge to Cut 380 Jobs, Including 166 in France: Les Echos
- EGL PL : Mota-Engil 1Q EU3.4m vs EU7.34m Y/y
- PLUS LN : Plus500 Aims to Unlock Core Accounts Within Days: City A.M.
- SALM NO : Salmar 1Q Operational Ebit Declines; Harvest Volumes Increase
- GLE FP : France May Reconsider SocGen Tax Breaks for Kerviel Loss: Echos
- UBSN VX : UBS Pays $342m to Fed Over Practices Linked to FX Business
- VOD LN : Malone Says Liberty, Vodafone Make ‘Great Fit’ in W. Europe
- ZO1 GY : Zooplus 1Q Pretax Rises 25%, Confirms 2015 Forecast

>>> Europe : Brokers Upgrades & Downgrades - 20th of May 2015

>>> Up
*AVEVA RAISED TO NEUTRAL VS UNDERWEIGHT AT JPMORGAN
*ENGIE RAISED TO BUY VS NEUTRAL AT CITI
*E.ON RAISED TO NEUTRAL AT CITI
*GAM HOLDING RAISED TO BUY VS NEUTRAL AT GOLDMAN
*IGD RAISED TO BUY VS HOLD AT SOCGEN
*TALKTALK RAISED TO BUY VS NEUTRAL AT CITI

>>> Down
*ABERDEEN ASSET MANAGEMENT CUT TO NEUTRAL VS BUY AT GOLDMAN
*ITALCEMENTI CUT TO MARKET PERFORM VS OUTPERFORM AT BERNSTEIN
*MAGNIT CUT TO NEUTRAL VS OUTPERFORM AT CREDIT SUISSE
*OLD MUTUAL CUT TO NEUTRAL VS OVERWEIGHT AT JPMORGAN
*TATE & LYLE CUT TO UNDERPERFORM VS NEUTRAL AT EXANE, PT 550P
*UNICREDIT CUT TO UNDERPERFORM VS SECTOR PERFORM AT RBC

>>> PT Change


>>> Intitiation
*ELEMENTIS RATED NEW UNDERPERFORM AT CREDIT SUISSE; PT 264P
*SOUTH32 RATED NEW HOLD AT HSBC, PT 125P

>>> Call

(BFW) ECB Mulls Accepting More Greek Assets as Collateral: Kathimerini

BFW 05/20 05:36 *ECB MULLS ACCEPTING MORE GREEK ASSETS AS COLLATERAL:KATHIMERINI
BFW 05/20 05:36 *ECB MULLS RAISING HAIRCUT ON GREEK COLLATERAL: KATHIMERINI
ECB Mulls Accepting More Greek Assets as Collateral: Kathimerini
2015-05-20 05:41:54.796 GMT


By Nikos Chrysoloras
(Bloomberg) -- European Central Bank may “imminently”
raise discount it applies to collateral Greek banks pledge in
exchange for Emergency Liquidity Assistance, Kathimerini
newspaper reports, without citing anyone.
* ECB will, at the same time, expand pool of assets it accepts
as collateral from Greek banks
* Net effect of two simultaneous decisions on maximum
potential ELA for Greek banks will be neutral
* ECB riled by Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis’s talk
of country not meeting debt payments
* NOTE May 18: Greek Endgame Nears for Tsipras as Bank
Collateral Runs Dry Link


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Link to Company News:{EUROB GA <Equity> CN <GO>}
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To contact the reporter on this story:
Nikos Chrysoloras in Athens at +30-210-7419022 or
nchrysoloras@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story:
Vassilis Karamanis at +30-210-741-9028 or
vkaramanis1@bloomberg.net

>>> Asian Update

Asian Mid-session Update: Japan Q1 GDP tops estimates; PBY, TWC, UTX's Sikorsky rumored as takeover targets


***Economic Data***
- (JP) JAPAN Q1 PRELIMINARY GDP Q/Q: 0.6% V 0.4%E; ANNUALIZED GDP: 2.4% (1-year high) V 1.6%E
- (AU) AUSTRALIA MAY WESTPAC CONSUMER CONFIDENCE INDEX: M/M: +6.4% V -3.2% PRIOR; First rise in 3 months

***Index Snapshot (as of 02:30 GMT)***
- Nikkei225 +0.7%, S&P/ASX flat, Kospi +0.5%, Shanghai Composite +0.9%, Hang Seng -0.5%, Jun S&P500 flat at 2,123

***Commodities/Fixed Income***
- Jun gold +0.2% at $1,209/oz, Jul crude oil +0.9% at $58.50/brl, Jul copper flat at $2.84/lb
- (US) API Petroleum Inventories: Crude -5.2M (3rd straight draw) v -1.1Me; Gasoline -1.2M v +0.25Me
- (AU) Australia MoF (AOFM) sells A$700M 2026 Bonds; avg yield: 3.0561; bid-to-cover: 2.94x
- (JP) BOJ offers to buy ¥375B in 1-3yr JGBs, ¥375B in 3-5yr JGBs, ¥240B in 10-25yr JGBs, and ¥140B in JGBs with maturity over 25-yr

***Market Focal Points/FX***
- After emerging out of recession in Q4, Japan's Q1 GDP report was even more impressive, growing by its highest rate in a year on an annualized basis at 2.4% - well above consensus. Exports growth slowed to 2.4% from 3.2% and imports increased to 2.9% from 1.4% despite softer Yen and lower energy bill, but the rise in residential and corporate investment more than made up for those headwinds. The former increased by 1.8% after a 0.6% contraction in Q4, while the latter was up 0.4%, up from a flat print last quarter. Despite the strong results, Econ Min Amari warned to maintain vigilance against external risks and also prepare for Japan's recovery to be gradual. Nikkei rose nearly 1% into the morning break, while USD/JPY was up some 30 pips toward the ¥121 handle on risk-on flows.

- Shanghai Composite remained bid with another 1% rise headed into the break. Investors were again enthused by more reform announcemens, as the govt unveiled a "Made in China 2025" manufacturing blueprint with a focus on robotics, aerospace, new-energy and advanced transport. Also of note, Chinese press report noted Shanghai and Shenzhen new trading accounts were down 2.8% on the week, but actively traded accounts were up 4.5%.

- Ahead of the budget release later this week, NZD traded more subdued - NZD/USD consolidated some of the USD rally with a 30pip rise above 0.7370. Likewise, AUD/USD traded in a narrow 30pip range above 0.79 despite the strong rise in Westpac consumer confidence index. Resident economist said this rise was particularly notable since May release normally sees a fall due to the timing of the budget announcement. Westpac's Evans added "The surge in the Index this year represents the first time we have had a strong result in May since 2007... Whilst undoubtedly positive, the impact of the rate cut is likely to have been dominated by the response to the budget."

***Equities***
US equities / ADRs:
- PBY: Said to have received takeover proposals from private equity name Golden Gate Capital and other suitors - financial press; +17.3% afterhours
- CSC: CSC: Reports Q4 $1.26 v $1.20e, R$2.91B v $2.98Be ;*CONFIRMS PLAN TO SEPARATE INTO TWO INDEPENDENT, PUBLICLY TRADED COMPANIES; WILL PAY $10.50 SPECIAL DIVIDEND; +6.2% afterhours
- ADI: Reports Q2 $0.73 v $0.72e, R$821M v $818Me; +1.5% afterhours
- TWC: Altice said to be considering acquiring a US cable operator; Looking and held talks with TWC - financial press; +1.3% afterhours
- YHOO: IRS has not made any decision on spinoff rules; Still considering potential changes - financial press; +1.2% afterhours
- UTX: Boeing, Airbus, and Lockheed said to be considering bids for Sikorsky unit or a minority stake; Unit may be sold for about $10B - financial press; +0.8% afterhours
- QIHU: Reports Q1 $0.57 adjusted v $0.51e, R$384M v $394Me; -0.4% afterhours
- ADSK: Reports Q1 $0.30 v $0.28e, R$647M v $624Me; -1.8% afterhours

Notable movers by sector:
- Financials: WesFarmers WES.AU -0.9% (FY15 capex guidance)
- Technology: Kingsoft 3888.HK -2.8% (Q1 result)
- Energy: Santos Ltd STO.AU -4.2%, Beach Energy BPT.AU -3.6% (Oil price decline)
- Industrials: Cardno CDD.AU -26.7% (FY15 guidance); UGL Ltd UGL.AU +9.4% (be approached by private equity buyer); Shanghai Zhixin Electric 600517.CN +4.9% (new contract); Takata Corp 7312.JP -9.0% (settlement with airbag recall); AviChina Industry & Technology Co 2357.HK +9.5% (China manufacturing plan)
- Materials: Iluka Resources ILU.AU -1.1% (guidance);BHP Billiton BHP.AU -3.2%, Rio Tinto RIO.AU -2.9%, Fortescue Metals Group FMG.AU -7.0%
- Telecom: China Mobile 941.HK -1.1% (set up jv, April operational data)