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Shein preparing investor roadshow to gauge London IPO interest, reports Reuters
Chinese fast-fashion giant Shein is preparing to hold an investor roadshow in preparation for a potential initial public offering in London, according to sources cited by Reuters.
Shein has reportedly been meeting with advisers to discuss its listing plans, although no final decisions have been made regarding the timing or size of the IPO.
The company is expected to use the roadshows to gauge investor interest and provide more details about its financials.
Shein is reportedly seeking a $64 billion valuation in a public listing, which would make it among the largest London IPOs of all time.
It comes amid a torrid time for the London Stock Exchange, with few to no blockbuster IPOs in recent years and numerous high-profile exits.
But the prospect of Shein floating in London has proved highly controversial because of the group’s reported links to forced labour in its supply line
The retailer, known for its strong online presence, was valued at $66 billion earlier this year in a funding round. While Shein has not officially commented on the potential listing, insiders suggest that preparations are well underway.
In June, UK charity Stop Uyghur Genocide, with support from human rights lawfirm Leigh Day, called on the Financial Conduct Authority to block any listing of Shein shares on the London capital markets.
Shein disclosed multiple instances of child labour in its supply line in August.
Barratt's £2.5bn takeover of Redrow gets final green light
Barratt Developments PLC (LON:BDEV)’s £2.5 billion tie-up with Redrow PLC (LON:RDW) has been given the final go-ahead by regulators in the UK.
Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) confirmed on Friday that a phase two investigation of the merger would not be launched and the deal could finally go ahead.
An initial enforcement order had been placed on the proposal, delaying full integration of the two companies as the CMA consulted on undertakings to quell competition concerns.
This came after the CMA said the duo only had a high combined market share in one area of the country, in Whitchurch, Shropshire.
“Today is a significant milestone for Barratt Redrow, as we come together as one organisation,” Barratt chief executive David Thomas said... Read more
Royal Mail delivers 16,000 jobs for Christmas
Royal Mail (LON:IDSI) has unveiled plans to recruit 16,000 temporary workers as it braces for the busier Christmas period.
New roles will be added at 37 mail centres, alongside two parcel and five seasonal sorting hubs, alongside stretching to delivery and collection offices.
International Distributions Services PLC-owned Royal Mail is anticipating 1.7 million packages will pass through each of the parcel hubs in Daventry and Warrington daily over the festive period.
Additional space equating to the size of 20 football pitches has also been created across the five seasonal sites to cope with the uptick in demand.
The new roles are set to be added from late October and run until January, also covering busier shopping events such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
“It's our busiest time of year and we plan all year round to help ensure we deliver the best possible service for UK consumers and businesses,” chief operating officer Alistair Cochrane commented.
“We are continuing to make a substantial commitment in additional resources including the recruitment of thousands of temporary workers to handle the festive mailbag and the growing market of online Christmas shopping.”
Wall Street seen higher ahead of jobs data-heavy Friday
Wall Street was in line for a positive start on Friday ahead of a heavy day of job market data, inducing non-farm payroll and unemployment figures.
Futures had the Nasdaq adding 0.3% at the open, while the Dow Jones and S&P 500 also looked to gain.
Both unemployment and non-farm payroll figures on Friday come as traders eye further reassurance over the health of the economy while the Federal Reserve looks to bring down interest rates.
“Traders [are] looking out for a degree of stability after recent speculation that a surge in unemployment could form the basis of an impending US recession,” Scope Markets analyst Joshua Mahony commented.
He noted expectations were for unemployment to have remained at 4.2% last month, with the non-farm payroll figure showing 147,000 jobs being added to the economy.
Worse-than-expected non-farm payroll figures in August had sent stock markets globally into freefall as fears of a US recession built, with data more recently appearing to have calmed nerves.
VW warns EU China EV tariffs ‘wrong approach’
Volkswagen (ETR:VOWG_p) has warned the European Union’s move to impose tariffs of up to 35.3% on Chinese electric vehicles is the “wrong approach”.
Members had reportedly been split in a vote over introducing the new rules on Friday, with Germany among those said to have rejected new tariffs.
This left the European Commission with the final say, with its approval set to see these introduced from November following concerns subsidies from Beijing have allowed Chinese manufacturers to undercut carmakers on the continent.
“We stand by our position that the planned tariffs are the wrong approach and would not improve the competitiveness of the European automotive industry,” the German carmaker said.
It urged the European Union to hold more talks with Beijing, adding these could “prevent any countervailing duties and thus a trade conflict”.
FTSE 100 in cautious mood after BoE chief comments
London’s blue chips traded lower throughout Friday morning, as cautious comments from the Bank of England’s chief economist appeared to weigh on sentiment.
The FTSE 100 was down 38 points by late morning, with JD Sports Fashion PLC (LON:JD) leading stocks lower on a 2.5% decline.
RELX PLC (LON:REL), Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC (LON:RR.) and AstraZeneca PLC (LON:AZN) were also among those in the red, as gains from Schroders PLC (LON:SDR), easyJet (LON:EZJ) and NatWest Group PLC (LON:NWG) failed to buoy the index.
BoE chief economist Huw Pill had struck a cautious tone earlier in the day when discussing future rate cuts, contradicting comments from governor Andrew Bailey on Thursday... Read more
“While markets remain optimistic that we will see cuts in both November and December, Pill’s preference to remain restrictive in a bid to drive down underlying inflation does highlight the lack of a central dovish narrative,” Scope Markets analyst Joshua Mahony said.
Pill’s comments helped to lift the pound from its three-year low against the dollar though, coinciding with news construction sector activity grew at the fastest pace in two-and-a-half years last month... Read more
Sterling climbed 0.36% to US$1.3172 on Friday, recouping around a third of that lost during Thursday’s selloff.
European Commission brings in Chinese EV tariffs
Tariffs of up to 35.3% will be imposed on Chinese electric vehicles entering the European Union, despite members being split in a vote on the move on Friday.
The European Commission said on Friday that the new rules would be introduced after “necessary support” was obtained during the vote.
Reports had emerged earlier in the day that a split vote among member states meant it would ultimately be up to the commission to decide on the rules.
France and The Netherlands were said to be among 10 countries to vote in favour of the rules, as 12 abstained and five, including Germany, rejected the move, Euronews reported.