Uniquely Nelson

Regulators have fired warning shots over frenzied share dealing in GameStop and other firms, fuelled by social media chat on sites like Reddit and Facebook. A GameStop store in New York. Photo: CC BY-SA 4/ Tdorante 10 Watchdogs in the US and UK said they were monitoring activity and potential lawbreaking, and warned traders they risked facing huge losses. Traders should ensure they are familiar with all rules, "including market abuse", the UK's regulator said. GameStop is the focus of a trading war between amateurs and Wall Street pros. A screen shows the graph of the Dow industrial average after closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange, on 18 March, 2020. Photo: AFP Shares in the US bricks and mortar video games retailer surged again on Friday, rising 74 percent at the start of trading in New York. Another stock in the traders' sights, AMC Entertainment, jumped 60 percent. That bucked broader market trends, which saw all three main US indexes fall roughly 2 percent in early afternoon trade in New York. Some share trading firms temporarily halted dealings on Thursday amid extreme volatility in GameStop, which has soared as much as 700 percent in the past week. AMC Entertainment and Blackberry, which have also seen huge trading activity, were among the other companies also hit by the restrictions. UK traders have also been sharing their thoughts and tips on trading chat forums amid mounting concerns about misinformation and share ramping. London-listed companies have also been the focus of social media attention, including publisher Pearson and cinema operator Cineworld, although the share price movements were minimal compared with the GameStop surge. In a statement on Friday, the UK's Financial Conduct Authority said: "The FCA is aware of the situation and continues to closely monitor trading in UK markets. UK investors should take care when trading shares in highly volatile market conditions that they fully understand the risks they are taking. This applies to UK investors trading both US and UK stocks. "Firms and individuals should also ensure they are familiar with, and abiding by, all regulations, including the market abuse and short selling regimes in the jurisdiction they are trading in." AMC Entertainment stock has also been caught up in the trader battle. Photo: CCBY-4/ JAH2k In the US, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) warned against illegal "manipulative trading activity". The regulator added: "Our core market infrastructure has proven resilient under the weight of this week's extraordinary trading volumes. "Nevertheless, extreme stock price volatility has the potential to expose investors to rapid and severe losses and undermine market confidence." The SEC also said it would review actions that could "unduly inhibit" and "disadvantage investors". 'This is unacceptable' The war between amateur private investors and heavyweight firms like hedge funds centres on so-called short selling. Over recent months, hedge funds had made big bets that shares in loss-making GameStop would fall. But an army of private investors, swapping tips on social media, spotted a chance for a buying frenzy that would push up the price and "squeeze" the hedge fund short sellers. Many private traders made profits - and losses - along the way, but their actions also dealt a big financial blow to hedge funds that spent billions of dollars gambling GameStop's shares would tumble. The decision on Thursday by several brokerages to halt purchases of shares in GamesStop and some other firms sparked outrage among investors, who accused the companies of working on behalf of traditional Wall Street investors who were losing out to the army of amateurs. Some disgruntled investors said they were preparing legal action. Investor anger over their temporary ban from trading spread beyond the investment community, with rappers and US politicians on both sides of the Washington divide joining the backlash against Wall Street. This is unacceptable.We now need to know more about @RobinhoodApp’s decision to block retail investors from purchasing stock while hedge funds are freely able to trade the stock as they see fit.As a member of the Financial Services Cmte, I’d support a hearing if necessary. https://t.co/4Qyrolgzyt — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 28, 2021 'Years of distortion' "This is unacceptable," tweeted Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat. "We now need to know more about @RobinhoodApp's decision to block retail investors from purchasing stock while hedge funds are freely able to trade the stock as they see fit." Her tweet was shared by Republican Senator Ted Cruz who commented "fully agree." Tesla founder Elon Musk, whose shares have also been a retail favourite, also commented on Ocasio-Cortez's tweet, saying "Absolutely". Much of the anger was directed at Robinhood, a new breed of broker popular among a new generation of younger, tech-savvy investor, but which has been accused of "gamifying" share trading. On Friday, a Robinhood chat forum on Facebook was also removed for breaking its Community Standards rules, although the social media giant did not expand on the reasons. After the backlash, Robinhood late Thursday said it would ease the restrictions. The firm also said it had raised more than $1bn from existing investors to bolster its finances, amid questions about strains caused by the buying frenzy. But Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat known as a supporter of tougher financial rules, said the chaos was another sign of "years of distortion in securities markets that have allowed the wealthy few to artificially inflate and deflate share prices and reap short-term profits, while exacerbating wealth inequality". She said regulators must review the trades and make changes to ensure that markets "reflect real value, rather than the highly leveraged bets of wealthy traders, or those who seek to inflict financial damage on those traders". u can’t sell houses u don’t ownu can’t sell cars u don’t ownbutu *can* sell stock u don’t own!?this is bs – shorting is a scamlegal only for vestigial reasons — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 28, 2021 Why have GameStop shares surged? Key to what's going on is "short selling" or "shorting", where a big investment firm such as a hedge fund tries to make money by betting that a company's share price will fall. The hedge fund borrows shares in a company from other investors (for a fee) and sells the shares on the markets at, for example, $10 each, waits until they fall to $5, and buys them back. The borrowed shares are returned to the original owner, and the hedge fund pockets a profit. GameStop - which saw heavy losses last year and was described as "failing" by one big investor - is the most shorted stock on Wall Street. But in the last week, amateur investors who follow the Wall Street Bets forum on Reddit have poured money into buying the company's stock with the aim of pushing up the price. If the price rises dramatically, short sellers face big losses and they need to buy back the shares they have borrowed quickly to prevent bigger losses - a process known as covering. However, buying the shares back only adds to demand for the stock and pushes its price higher still. -BBC

The EU's drugs regulator has approved the use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid vaccine for all adults. Photo: Verwendung weltweit/ AFP The European Medicines Agency (EMA) said the AstraZeneca vaccine was about 60 percent effective in the trials on which it based its decision. The move comes amid a dispute over whether AstraZeneca is breaking its vaccine delivery commitments to the EU. The European Commission has published its contract with the Anglo-Swedish drug-maker, hoping to show a breach. The bloc agreed to buy up to 400 million doses of the Astra-Zeneca vaccine last year. In a press conference later on Friday, the drug giant's chief executive Pascal Soriot said that while "of course there will be glitches" in manufacturing, the important thing was that the world had developed several vaccines within a year. Soriot said AstraZeneca had millions of doses ready to ship to the EU, and was working 24/7 to increase capacity. What is the supply row about? Last week AstraZeneca said vaccine supplies would be reduced because of problems in one of its EU factories. The shortfall is expected to be about 60 percent in the first quarter of 2021. The EU has also received fewer than expected doses of the two other vaccines it has approved - from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. The EU has said AstraZeneca must honour its commitments and deliver the jabs it ordered by diverting doses manufactured in the UK. The company said its contract for UK supplies prevented this. But an EU source familiar with the matter told the BBC that AstraZeneca's UK facilities were legally obliged to do so, saying: "This is not an option, it is a contractual obligation." The UK plants are not back-up facilities; they are part of the main network, the source added. The company's chief executive, Soriot, said earlier this week that the contract obliged AstraZeneca to make its "best effort" to meet EU demand, without compelling it to stick to a specific timetable - an assertion disputed by the EU. "There are binding orders and the contract is crystal clear," European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said in an interview with German radio on Friday morning. "'Best effort' was valid while it was still unclear whether they could develop a vaccine. That time is behind us. The vaccine is there. "AstraZeneca has also explicitly assured us in this contract that no other obligations would prevent the contract from being fulfilled," she said. What is the EU doing about shortages? The European Commission said on Friday it had agreed a plan to introduce export controls on coronavirus vaccines. This means individual member states will decide whether to allow the export of vaccines produced in the territory. It will be in place until the end of March. EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides told a news conference the controls were being introduced to ensure all EU citizens had access to vaccines, and to make sure all parties played by the rules. "This approach is built on trust, transparency and responsibility," she said. "Commitments need to be kept, and agreements are binding. Advance purchase agreements need to be respected. "Today, we have developed a system which will allow us to know whether vaccines are being exported from the EU. This increased transparency will also come with a responsibility for the EU to authorise, with our members states, these vaccine exports." The World Health Organization's Mariangela Simao, assistant director for access to medicines and health products, described the export ban as a worrying trend. How effective is the AstraZeneca vaccine? Germany's vaccine commission has said it cannot recommend the use of the jab in people aged over 65, citing a lack of data on how it affected this age group. Individual EU countries are free to decide who vaccines should be given to, once they have been approved. However, the UK has been using the AstraZeneca vaccine in its mass immunisation programme for weeks now, and public health officials say it is safe and provides "high levels of protection". Research has shown it is highly effective. No-one who received the Oxford vaccine in trials was hospitalised or became seriously ill due to Covid. The vaccine is given via two injections to the arm, the second between 4 and 12 weeks after the first. Confirming it had approved the AstraZeneca vaccine, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) said that most participants in the test studies were between 18 and 55 years old. It said that while there were not yet enough results to show how the vaccine will work in older people, "protection is expected, given that an immune response is seen in this age group and based on experience with other vaccines." AstraZeneca has said a US study will shortly provide additional data on the vaccine's efficacy in older adults. - BBC

China has warned that attempts by Taiwan to seek independence "means war". This handout photo taken and released on February 10, 2020 by Taiwan's Defence Ministry shows a Taiwanese F-16 fighter jet flying next to a Chinese H-6 bomber (top) in Taiwan's airspace. Photo: AFP / Taiwan Defence Ministry The warning comes days after China stepped up its military activities and flew warplanes near the island. It also comes as new US president Joe Biden reaffirmed his commitment to Taiwan, and set out his stance in Asia. Responding on Thursday, the US called China's statements "unfortunate" adding that "tensions over Taiwan did not need to lead to confrontation". China sees democratic Taiwan as a breakaway province, but Taiwan sees itself as a sovereign state. "We are seriously telling those Taiwan independence forces: those who play with fire will burn themselves, and Taiwan independence means war," Chinese defence ministry spokesman Wu Qian said at a press conference on Thursday. He also defended China's recent military activities saying they were "necessary actions to address the current security situation in the Taiwan Strait and to safeguard national sovereignty and security". The US responded later on Thursday. "We find that comment unfortunate and certainly not commensurate with our intentions to meet our obligations under the Taiwan Relations Act," Pentagon press secretary John Kirby told reporters, in the first statement by the new administration on China-Taiwan relations. Kirby added that the Pentagon "sees no reason why tensions over Taiwan need to lead to anything like confrontation". The new US administration is expected to maintain pressure on China over a wide range of issues including human rights, trade disputes, Hong Kong and Taiwan, amid the deteriorating relationship between the two powers. China and Taiwan have had separate governments since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949. Beijing has long tried to limit Taiwan's international activities and both have vied for influence in the Pacific region. Tensions have increased in recent years and Beijing has not ruled out the use of force to take the island back. Although Taiwan is officially recognised by only a handful of nations, its democratically elected government has strong commercial and informal links with many countries. Like most nations, the US has no official diplomatic ties with Taipei. But its Taiwan Relations Act promises that the US will supply Taiwan with defensive weapons, and stresses that any attack on Taiwan would be considered a matter of "grave concern" to the US. - BBC

A controversial near-total ban on abortion in Poland has taken effect, the government announced, with enforcement from midnight on Wednesday. A demonstrator gestures as people take part in a pro-choice protest in the centre of Warsaw. Photo: AFP A court ruling allowing the prohibition prompted huge protests when it was issued in October. Abortion is now allowed only in cases of rape or incest or when the pregnancy threatens the life of the mother. The majority of Poles oppose a stricter ban and demonstrations took place in Polish cities on Wednesday evening. Activists have called for large street protests on Thursday and Friday (Polish time) in the capital, Warsaw. Demonstrations about the new law have taken place in several Polish cities. Photo: AFP The October ruling by the Constitutional Court found that a 1993 law allowing abortion in cases of severe and irreversible foetal abnormalities was unconstitutional. In 2019, 98 percent of abortions were carried out on those grounds, meaning that the ruling effectively banned the vast majority of pregnancy terminations. The ruling provoked outrage from supporters of the right to abortion. But Poland's conservative government, which has strong ties to the country's powerful Catholic Church, supports the ruling. The court justified its ruling on the grounds that "an unborn child is a human being" and therefore it deserves protection under Poland's constitution which ensures the right to life. Following the announcement that the ruling would now be enforced, groups defied coronavirus restrictions to protest in Warsaw. Waving red flares and LGBT flags, some carried placards reading "Free Choice, Not Terror". "I want us to have our basic rights, the right to decide about our bodies, the right to decide what we want to do and if we want to bear children and in what circumstances to have children," one protester, Gabriela Stepniak, told Reuters news agency. The mayor of Warsaw Rafał Trzaskowski tweeted his opposition to the move, calling on women to reject the decision on the streets. Leaders of the nationwide Women's Strike movement that opposed the ban wore green headscarves, in a nod to Argentina's women's movement that successfully campaigned to legalise abortion. Some support the new law Groups who support the ban say it is about the human rights of the child. "We are very happy that this judgement has been published. It is a great step towards the realisation of human rights of all human beings," Karolina Pawlowska from the Ordo Iuris international law centre told the BBC. "This also means there will no longer be discrimination against children who are sick or disabled," she said, adding that the court's ruling was in line with the Polish constitution and UN treaties on the rights of the child. Poland already had some of Europe's most restrictive abortion laws, and around 1000 legal terminations are performed each year. An estimated 200,000 women have abortions illegally or travel abroad for the procedure. - BBC

The clash between retail traders and Wall Street professionals that sparked roller coaster rides in the shares of GameStop Corp may pose a risk to dozens of other stocks and potentially create a headache for the broader market, analysts said. A GameStop store in Alhambra, California. Photo: AFP Market watchers identified dozens of stocks potentially vulnerable to extreme volatility after a buying spree from an army of retail traders in recent days prompted hedge funds to unwind their bets against GameStop and other companies, fuelling surges in their share prices in a phenomenon known as a "short squeeze." "Unfortunately, it's definitely not a one-off thing," said Randy Frederick, vice president of trading and derivatives at the Schwab Centre for Financial Research. "The type of activity that drove that higher, I believe, has caused people to try to duplicate that in other names." J P Morgan earlier this week named 45 stocks that may be susceptible to short squeezes and similar "fragility events," including real estate company Macerich, restaurant chain Cheesecake Factory and clothing subscription service Stitch Fix. Like GameStop, American Airlines Group, AMC Entertainment Holdings and others that have become targets of retail traders in recent days, all the stocks have high short interest ratios. American Airlines Group, AMC Entertainment Holdings and others have become targets of retail traders in recent days. (file pic) Photo: 123RF Warning of 'dangerous precedent' That means a large percentage of investors have borrowed the stock to sell it in anticipation that they will be able to buy it back at a lower price and profit on the trade. But if the stock rises sharply, those investors may be forced to buy back the stock at a loss. "The unfortunate events in GameStop this week may be building a dangerous precedent for markets whereby retail investors act en masse to leverage their buying powers to spark fragility events," analysts at JP Morgan said in a note. Using derivatives and coordinating buying on websites such as the Reddit forum wallstreetbets, retail investors have had an outsize impact on markets in recent months. Hedge funds Melvin Capital Management and Citron Capital closed out short positions in GameStop earlier this week after buying pressure pushed up the company's shares. GameStop shares were recently down 25 percent on Thursday (US time) as retail brokerages Robinhood Markets and Interactive Brokers restricted purchases of the stock, along with several others that have catapulted in recent days, including AMC Entertainment Group and BlackBerry. Even so, the video game retailer's shares have gained more than 500 percent since last Thursday. Barring wider trading restrictions, similar patterns could play out over several weeks as short sellers unwind their bets, chief executive of Tallbacken Capital Advisors Michael Purves said. Some firms run strategies that involve holding both long and short positions on a stock, he said, and as a result, certain stocks could see a surge and then a sharp drop as those firms adjust their positions. That process could put pressure on stocks more broadly and contribute to market volatility. "I do think the contagion risk is real," Purves said. "Any stock that is heavily shorted is exposed to getting GameStopped." - Reuters

About 300,000 people are expected to leave Hong Kong for Britain using a new visa route which opens on Sunday. A British National Overseas passport and a Hong Kong Special Administrative Region passport. Photo: 123RF Hong Kong's British National (Overseas) passport holders and their immediate dependants will be able to apply for the visa using a smartphone app. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the move honoured the UK's "profound ties of history and friendship" with the ex-British colony. The visa was announced in July after China imposed a new security law in Hong Kong. Beijing has previously warned the UK not to meddle in domestic issues. Those who apply and secure the visa will be able to apply for settlement after five years and then British citizenship after a further 12 months. Although there are 2.9 million citizens eligible to move to the UK, with a further estimated 2.3 million dependants, the government expects about 300,000 people to take up the offer. The prime minister said: "I am immensely proud that we have brought in this new route for Hong Kong BNOs to live, work and make their home in our country. "In doing so we have honoured our profound ties of history and friendship with the people of Hong Kong, and we have stood up for freedom and autonomy - values both the UK and Hong Kong hold dear." The visa fee to stay for five years will be £250 ($NZ478) per person - or £180 for a 30-month stay - and there is an immigration health surcharge of up to £624-a-year. From 23 February BNO status holders who hold an eligible biometric passport will be able to use an app to complete their application from home. Home Secretary Priti Patel said this was to give applicants greater security amid fears they could be identified and targeted by the authorities. "Safeguarding individuals' freedoms, liberty and security is absolutely vital for those individuals that go through this process," she said. Britain's Prime minister Boris Johnson and Home Secretary Priti Patel are both supporting the creation of the special visa for Hong Kong residents. Photo: AFP The BNO status was created before the UK handed responsibility for Hong Kong back to China in 1997. Before Hong Kong was returned, the UK and China made an agreement to introduce "one country, two systems", which meant, among other things, rights such as freedom of assembly, free speech and freedom of the press would be protected. The agreement signed in 1984 was set to last until 2047. But the UK has said this agreement - known as the Joint Declaration - is under threat because the territory passed a new law in June that gives China sweeping new controls over the people of Hong Kong. China has said the law is necessary to prevent the type of protests seen in Hong Kong during much of 2019. However, the law has caused alarm both in Hong Kong and abroad, with opponents saying it erodes the territory's freedoms as a semi-autonomous region of China. - BBC

A prominent Mexican bishop called for an investigation into the recent discovery of 19 burned bodies, suspected to be Guatemalan migrants, in northern Mexico. People remain outside the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Guatemala City on January 25, 2021, after giving details of their relatives who might be in the group among people found burned to death on a rural road in the state of Tamaulipas, Mexico. Photo: AFP Mexico's federal government should guarantee the rights of migrants in Mexican territory and establish humane policies, Bishop Jose Torres, the Mexican Catholic Church's spokesman for migration, added in a letter seen by Reuters and addressed to President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and other officials. Mexican authorities recovered the bodies in the border state of Tamaulipas over the weekend. Many had gunshot wounds and were badly charred. Guatemalan families, who believe relatives migrating northwards are among the victims, have provided DNA samples to confirm their identities. "In the name of the highest values of humanity, we ask the federal government for an exhaustive investigation," said Torres, who oversees 120 shelters for migrants. He said a lack of legal options pushes migrants towards dangerous, clandestine networks. Immigration from Central America and Mexico has returned to the forefront of regional policy since US President Joe Biden took office earlier this month vowing to unwind some restrictions imposed by predecessor Donald Trump. US President Joe Biden. Photo: AFP / Getty Images "One of the contributing factors to this type of tragedy is the implementation of immigration policies and persecution of migrants who only seek better living conditions for themselves and their families," Torres said. Authorities have not established the identity of the victims or the perpetrators. Tamaulipas Governor Francisco Garcia said today the killings were an "outrage." Every year thousands of Central Americans and Mexicans flee poverty and violence for the safety and economic stability of the United States. Along the dangerous journey, which includes the vast Mexican territory, many fall victim to crime. Tamaulipas is a major migration route and site of cartel conflict. "It is a priority that the federal government establishes fair, safe and orderly immigration policies," Torres said. Mexico's Interior Minister Olga Sanchez this week vowed that the case would not go unpunished. -Reuters

Germany's vaccine committee has said AstraZeneca's Covid jab should only be given to people aged under 65. German vaccine officials say there is not enough data about the efficacy of AstraZeneca's Covid jab for older people. Photo: Verwendung weltweit/ AFP The committee cited "insufficient data" over its efficacy for older people. The European Medicines Agency is to decide on Friday whether to approve the vaccine for use across the EU. The UK has been using the AstraZeneca vaccine in its mass immunisation programme for weeks now, and public health officials say it is safe and provides "high levels of protection". The German announcement comes as the EU is in dispute with leading manufacturers over a shortage of vaccines on the continent. UK-based AstraZeneca has said production issues at its Europe-based plants mean it will be unable to deliver the promised number of doses to the bloc. But the EU says the firm must honour its commitments and deliver the jabs by diverting stock from the UK. It is calling for "robust action" to secure the supply. Pfizer-BioNTech has also cut the number of doses it is delivering to the 27-member bloc. UK confident 'safe' vaccine has 'substantial benefits' The independent vaccine commission advising the German government said on Thursday that there were "currently insufficient data available to assess the vaccine efficacy from 65 years of age" and recommended "the AstraZeneca vaccine... should only be offered to people aged 18-64 years at each stage". But Dr Mary Ramsay, Head of Immunisations at Public Health England, said both the AstraZeneca and Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines are "safe and provide high levels of protection against Covid-19, particularly against severe disease. "There were too few cases in older people in the AstraZeneca trials to observe precise levels of protection in this group, but data on immune responses were very reassuring." UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was not worried by the German recommendation. "Our own authorities have made it very clear that they think the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine is very good and efficacious, gives a high degree of protection after just one dose (...) and the evidence that they've supplied is that they think it is effective across all age groups," he said. Meanwhile, Paul Hunter, professor of Medicine at the University of East Anglia, told BBC News that the elderly should not worry about receiving the jab: "We do know that it is safe in people over 65. They have much fewer side effects than younger people and it almost certainly provides substantial benefits in terms of preventing severe disease and reduce the chances of going into hospital." What's happening with the rollout in the EU? The pace of the EU's vaccination programme has been criticised in recent weeks, with Germany and other members failing to hit their own targets. Officials have blamed a combination of logistical and supply issues. In Spain, authorities in the capital Madrid have suspended all first doses of the vaccination for at least two weeks. Other regions, including Catalonia, are having similar problems with stock. There are similar shortages due to delays in shipments of both the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines, which are the only ones currently approved for use in the EU. European Council President Charles Michel said in a letter to four EU leaders: "If no satisfactory solution can be found, I believe we should explore all options and make use of all legal means and enforcement measures at our disposal." Portugal is recording a high number of new infections and reports suggest hospitals in Lisbon are struggling to cope with the influx of patients. In France, health authorities are delaying vaccination appointments. Cases have increased and President Emmanuel Macron is reportedly considering a stricter lockdown. What's behind the supply problems? The EU signed a deal with AstraZeneca in August for 300 million doses, with an option for 100 million more, but the UK-Swedish company has reported production delays at plants in the Netherlands and Belgium. AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot said production was "basically two months behind where we wanted to be". The EU had hoped that as soon as approval was given delivery would start straight away, with some 80 million doses arriving in the 27 nations by March. But the production issues have dented this hope. Reports said last week the EU would get 60 percent fewer vaccine doses - about 50 million jabs - than promised in the first quarter of the year. The bloc is also facing delays with supplies of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, and it has a much bigger deal with the US-German vaccine maker. Both the EU and AstraZeneca have vowed to work together to resolve the problems, and crisis talks were held on Wednesday.