iBanker.jp

A surprisingly large number of companies in Japan are into Russia-focused M&A Recently I had some opportunities to talk to the bankers in the second-tier companies, and I was surprised by how strong and practical their interest to M&A deals between Japanese and Russian companies is. Although I am not at liberty to mention the company names, I am aware of one Japanese bank that has formed a partnership with a leading Russian brokerage/investment bank and is currently sourcing deals, of one Japanese diversified financial holding that is keen on Russian real estate, and one German bank that apparently has a dedicated team for this kind of deals. And I have a suspicion that this is only the tip of the iceberg. What is most surprising for me, is that the two Japanese financial behemoths, to one of which I belonged until very recently, apparently talk about Russia more than actually do anything. It is the second-tier companies that walk the talk. It is definitely a good news for me

The main drivers of the precious metal prices The prices of gold and platinum are closely correlated, but there are certain differences between their movement. As a lot of investors are apparently paying close attention to these metals as alternative investment, I tried to summarize the main drivers behind the rising prices. Gold: 1. Safe heaven for the US dollar holders 2. Increasing demand from Asian emerging middle class, particularly India (c. 20% of the world demand) 3. Decrease in annual production, to a large extent due to energy supply problems in South Africa Platinum: 1. Alternative asset for equity investors (also holds for gold) 2. Increased use in environmentally-friendly technologies, for instance hybrid cars 3. Decrease in annual production, to a large extent due to energy supply problems in South Africa, which produces up to 80% of the world output Seems like the high prices are going to be sustained for a while... For the reference, links to gold and platinum price quo