Commentary: A 7-Eleven buyout would stretch Japan’s appetite for M&A

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A CRUCIAL LIFELINE

However, accepting a acquisition of Seven &amp, document, a deal which had dwarf earlier foreign takeovers of Chinese firms, feels like a extend. This is no private maker of parts, but a pretty close-to-hand and favorite product that exists in every district in the country and is inhabited daily&nbsp, by some 20 million people, or&nbsp, a fifth of the population.

7-Eleven has also been the greatest pioneer in the convenience store space: It pioneered the sale of onigiri rice balls in the 1970s and built out a great range&nbsp, of inexpensive, clean and amazingly nutritious food with its just-in-time inventory management. The monopoly of banks that ended at 3 p.m. and on weekends was broken by allowing customers to withdraw money at any time.

From the introduction of affordable, fresh coffee to its recent plans to compete with Domino’s Pizza in meal delivery, Seven continues to make its stores more essential. &nbsp, In times of disaster, the conbini is now seen by locals and authorities alike as a crucial lifeline. &nbsp,

But none of this impresses investors. Since its initial tussle with activist shareholders when Third Point founder Dan Loeb took a stake in the business in 2015, the company has undergone a number of changes. It has reduced its supermarket footprint, sold the Sogo-Seibu department store chain, and instituted share buybacks, as well as appointed Ryuichi Isaka, the current CEO and Loeb favorite.

But even so, the stock still&nbsp, trades&nbsp, around &nbsp, the same level as before Loeb announced his stake. Dissatisfaction with the recent market performance&nbsp, led to ValueAct Capital Management’s attempting to oust Isaka. &nbsp, &nbsp,

The most recent move by management has been an aggressive expansion of its US convenience store business, where it believes it can make money with the roll-out of Japanese-style food options. With the takeover bid, the concern will be the opposite in its home country- whose conbini still make up more than 40 per cent of Seven &amp, i’s operating profit- that&nbsp, a Couche-Tard purchase will instead bring a subpar&nbsp, experience. &nbsp,

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Commentary: Can China’s tech giants do without consumers?

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Japan: Earnings reports from Chinese technology companies next week should be a wake-up contact for Beijing.

Alibaba Group and JD.com pulled out all the stops to get customers to spend during their&nbsp, 618&nbsp, shopping celebration, a Black Friday-like feast that took place during the quarter ending in June. They offered&nbsp, steeper-than-ever deals on everything from iPhones to clothing, enlisted&nbsp, A-list celebrities like Rihanna to market products, and even experimented&nbsp, with a modern image of an administrative to bird goods over video.

But&nbsp, Alibaba ‘s&nbsp, revenue from its base e-commerce systems fell by some 1.4 per cent, and retail profits at JD.com, which offered some of the most cut-throat markdowns, ticked up by 1.5 per share.

It was n’t enough to persuade Chinese consumers to dig into their pockets despite lowering prices and launching some of their most aggressive campaigns. This may not arrive as a full surprise&nbsp, as the country is also dealing with a struggling financial environment&nbsp, marked by a persistent housing slump, and higher youth unemployment.

Google Holdings, however, reported solid profit development that beat analysts ‘ expectations. But this was driven by the release of its smash-hit activity Dungeons &amp, Fighter Mobile&nbsp, in May. Another red flag for the business is the fact that China’s most important technical company’s gaming unit helped boost its income.

Consumers will continue to spend on this yet as they cut back on bigger purchases because spending on online entertainment has generally been counter-cyclical. Additionally, unemployed people may spend more time entertainment. &nbsp, And it’s unclear if Tencent will be able to interpret the one-time discharge of DnF Mobile&nbsp, into sustainable business development.

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