TheChek News Flow

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Blackstone CEO Sees ‘Remarkable’ Opportunities in Slumping Oil 2015-03-28 09:25:39.344 GMT

By Bloomberg News (Bloomberg) -- Blackstone Group LP’s Chairman Stephen Schwarzman is seeing “remarkable” opportunities in debt and equity that are emerging out of the slump in crude oil. Most of the New York-based private equity firm’s energy investments aren’t in oil, meaning its exposure to lower oil prices is limited, Schwarzman said in an interview on the sidelines of the Boao Forum for Asia with Bloomberg Television on Saturday. Schwarzman, who is also chief executive officer of Blackstone, didn’t elaborate on specific energy investments. Crude prices tumbled more than 50 percent after the U.S. shale boom boosted output to a three-decade high and as OPEC, led by Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, relinquished its traditional role adjusting production to moderate price swings in an effort to maintain market share. Brent crude, the global benchmark, fell from last year’s high of $115.71 a barrel to a six-year low of $45.19 on Jan. 13. Blackstone, the world’s largest private-equity investor, is also actively looking at European property, Schwarzman said. His firm agreed this month to buy an office building in London for 268.4 million pounds ($400 million) from Land Securities Group Plc. Blackstone may have $100 billion of low- risk real estate under management in a decade, Schwarzman said in July.

For Related News and Information: Oil’s Sudden Plunge Leaves Analysts Most Divided in Eight Years Blackstone’s Spanish Investment Caught in Political Crossfire Blackstone to Market First Multiborrower Rental-Home Bonds Top Private Equity Stories: TOP PE <GO> Top Oil Stories: OTOP<GO> Commodity Price Forecasts: CPF<GO>

--With assistance from Stephen Engle in Beijing.

To contact Bloomberg News staff for this story: Feifei Shen in Beijing at +86-10-6649-7528 or fshen11@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Marcus Wright at +65-6499-2613 or mwright115@bloomberg.net Darren Boey, Jim McDonald

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Oligarchs to Leave Russia Over New Tax Laws: Sunday Telegraph 2015-03-29 09:43:59.985 GMT

By Laura Hurst (Bloomberg) -- Poll of 30 oligarchs shows more than 1 in 4 will leave Russia over next 5 yrs to avoid new tax laws and economic crisis, Sunday Telegraph reports. * Polled Russian nationals have joint personal wealth of $2.5b and businesses with $6.5b turnover last yr * Survey conducted by Campden Wealth, in partnership w/ UBS * Click here for story link

For Related News and Information: First Word scrolling panel: FIRST<GO> First Word newswire: NH BFW<GO>

To contact the reporter on this story: Laura Hurst in London at +44-20-3525-8927 or lhurst3@bloomberg.net To contact the editors responsible for this story: Raj Rajendran at +44-20-3525-4083 or rrajendran4@bloomberg.net Patricia Lui

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Italy’s Yoox in Talks to Buy Richemont’s Net-A-Porter: Times 2015-03-29 09:48:38.187 GMT

By Lyubov Pronina (Bloomberg) -- Deal may value London-based online luxury fashion store at >GBP1.3b ($1.9b), Sunday Times reports w/out saying where it got info. * Richemont expected to take payment in Yoox shares, not cash

For Related News and Information: First Word scrolling panel: FIRST<GO> First Word newswire: NH BFW<GO>

To contact the reporter on this story: Lyubov Pronina in London at +44-20-3525-8784 or lpronina@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Daliah Merzaban at +44-20-3525-3630 or dmerzaban@bloomberg.net

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Qatar, Singapore Funds to Finance Dufry’s WDF Purchase: Corriere 2015-03-29 10:59:05.858 GMT

By Marco Bertacche (Bloomberg) -- Qatar Investment Authority, Singapore’s GIC and Temasek ready to contribute CHF450m each as Dufry prepares capital increase of at least CHF1.3b for WDF purchase, Corriere della Sera reports, without saying where it got info. * Dufry said yday it will finance acquisition through mix of debt, equity raised through rights issue underwritten by group of banks, well-known investors * NOTE yday: Dufry Agrees to Buy Control of World Duty Free for $1.4 Billion

For Related News and Information: First Word scrolling panel: FIRST<GO> First Word newswire: NH BFW<GO>

--With assistance from Manuel Baigorri and Matthew Campbell in London.

To contact the reporter on this story: Marco Bertacche in Milan at +39-02-8064-4233 or mbertacche@bloomberg.net To contact the editors responsible for this story: Jerrold Colten at +39-02-8064-4261 or jcolten@bloomberg.net

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Pimco Says Euro Zone Can’t Survive in Current Form: Telegraph 2015-03-29 12:11:26.670 GMT

By Lyubov Pronina (Bloomberg) -- Co. says single currency can’t survive unless countries move closer together, the Sunday Telegraph reports, citing Managing Director Andrew Bosomworth. * “The lesson from history is that the status quo we have now is not a tenable structure,” Bosomworth says. “There’s no historical precedent that this sort of structure, which is centralized monetary policy, decentralized fiscal policy, can last over multiple decades” * “While there might not be one government, one passport and one army, we could be moving closer toward that -- but not yet” * Bosomworth, head of portfolio management in Germany, says there is too much at stake for euro zone to force Greece out * “It’s a bit like nuclear warfare. Actually doing it is so disastrous that you don’t”

For Related News and Information: First Word scrolling panel: FIRST<GO> First Word newswire: NH BFW<GO>

To contact the reporter on this story: Lyubov Pronina in London at +44-20-3525-8784 or lpronina@bloomberg.net To contact the editors responsible for this story: Daliah Merzaban at +44-20-3525-3630 or dmerzaban@bloomberg.net Steve Bailey