What we’re reading (2/8)
“SPAC Market Hums Again Following Multiyear Downturn” (Law360). “Special purpose acquisition companies are once again asserting their presence in the capital markets and M&A landscape, forming new vehicles at the highest pace in three years — albeit in leaner form than in the last cycle, when many deals ended in busts. Some 23 SPACs went public in the fourth quarter of 2024 and raised $3.8 billion, according to advisory firm ICR Inc., marking the strongest three-month clip since the first quarter of 2022. And the renewed momentum has carried over into the new year.”
“Europe’s Unloved Stocks Are Suddenly On Top Of The World” (Wall Street Journal). “Europe’s economy is stuck in the doldrums and President Trump’s threat to hit the trade-dependent region next with tariffs risks making things worse. Yet European stocks are on a hot streak. The German DAX has climbed more than 9% this year in dollar terms, and France’s CAC 40 is up about 8%. That is well above the 2.45% gain in the S&P 500. European indexes haven’t outpaced U.S. counterparts by such a wide mark at the start of a year since 2015, according to Dow Jones Market Data.”
“Activist Elliott Builds Stake In Oil Major BP, Source Says” (Reuters). “Activist investor Elliott Investment Management has built a stake in oil major BP, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Saturday. The source did not provide the size of the stake. U.S.-based Elliott is seeking to boost shareholder value by urging BP to consider transformative measures, Bloomberg News reported earlier on Saturday, calling Elliott's stake in the company ‘significant.’”
“Debt Derivatives Are So Tight Even Trump’s Tariff Talk Can’t Shift Them” (Bloomberg). “Prices on credit default swaps barely moved on Monday amid the prospect of levies being introduced on Mexican and Canadian goods, even as trading volume in the derivatives more than doubled from the previous week’s daily average. By Tuesday, activity had returned to more typical levels.”
“Fannie Mae Underpins The Mortgage Market. Should The Government Sell It?” (New York Times). “Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, two giant mortgage finance firms, have been controlled by the federal government for nearly 17 years, but a long-dormant idea of making them private businesses is starting to make the rounds in Washington again.”
