Breakingviews – Calpa Calona: KKR / music, IMF

NEW YORK / HONG KONG / LONDON (Reuters Breakingviews) – Corona Capital is an up-to-date column by Breakingviews columnists around the world with short, sharp scenes linked to pandemic.

HYMN

– Ryan Tedder

– IMF credit matters

PLAYS MUSIC, KKR DANCES. Private equity firm Henry Kravis is getting into the hip music buying business. KKR buys a bulk installment in a catalog of tunes written by OneRepublic star Ryan Tedder including songs written for Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, and Cardi B. The deal, worth $ 200 million a according to Reuters, as one of a number of people recently involved in the purchase of Universal Music de The entire work of Bob Dylan and the Hipgnosis Songs Fund is shedding $ 323 million on a set of songs -into beats by Fleetwood Mac and Mariah Carey.

Musicians may be trying to monetize their attractive backgrounds as the pandemic has taken over the concert industry. Old images like Dylan may have chosen to cash out completely. Tedder, aged 41, will keep an interest with KKR. That’s a helpful example for younger musicians, who have plenty of time to squeeze more value out of their balloons. (By Lauren Silva Laughlin)

MARGIN SAFETY. The International Monetary Fund is raising the target for their squishy version of a capital lump that includes a loss following the rise of a Covid-19-related loan. Ironically, however, it does not change anything to help reach the new goal. The multilateral lender said Friday it will increase its target precautionary balance by 25%, a buffer that protects member countries’ reserves, equivalent to about $ 36 billion. It continues to jump in unpaid IMF credit. Loans through the fund’s quick financing instrument, a kind of emergency option for members, were raised to more than $ 22 billion through October, 25 times the previous year’s rate.

The fund said the directors agreed that it was not necessary to take additional steps to increase the collection of sources, although they noticed some disagreement about this point. It is therefore unclear how the new target buffer will be achieved. With the pace of transmission of the coronavirus vaccine uncertain, especially in developing countries, the IMF may be called upon for much further assistance. He may want to raise his issues, not just talk about it. (By Anna Szymanski)

ANNUAL YEAR. One year after China confirmed its first death from Covid-19, there is a sense of déjà vu. Daily affairs on mainland China went over 100 for the first time in five months on Sunday. The capital of Hebei province is under lock and key: people have been barred from leaving the city and residents have been told to stay at home. Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen have urged people to avoid travel for the upcoming Lunar New Year.

The crack comes just weeks ahead of the week-long holiday, typically the world’s largest human migration and a $ 150 billion spending increase. The economic impacts are therefore grim. Wuhan went into lockout the night before last year’s breakup. Prevention, mass testing and detection, and the roll-out of the vaccine are likely to prevent nationwide. But retail spending has slowed wider industry in China and the ongoing struggle will be closely monitored. (Le Yawen Chen)

RED CARDED. French football star Paul Pogba had built his game better: cup players have not been immune from the pandemic. Despite games resuming last summer, KPMG estimates the total value of Europe’s top 500 players, including Manchester United midfielder and Lionel Messi from Barcelona, ​​has gone down 2 billion euros to 18.7 billion euros since February 2020. The fall reflects the reduced purchasing power of clubs. . As matchday sales grew, even historic outlets like Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City kept an eye on pavilion signs: CIES predicts business value fell during the summer transfer window last year in the top five European leagues 43% to 3.3 billion euros.

The rest of the season looks just as gloomy. The European Club Association estimates that leagues are facing a 3.1 billion euro two-pronged attack to their main lines this year as stadiums remain largely empty, pushing player salaries up to 80% of sales. That could lead to pay cuts for Pogba and his rivals. (By Christopher Thompson)

ONLY. The pandemic is dealing a heavy blow to the industry repairing creaky bumps and knees. Just take a look at Smith & Nephew, the 14 billion pound manufacturer, which said Monday that it expects revenue to decline by around 7% in the fourth quarter. The rise in Covid-19 cases in hospitals has prompted customers to delay hip and ligament surgeries. The news hit about 3% off the company’s share price and drew about 2% off rivals Fresenius and Straumann.

There seems to be more pain. Covid-19 infections are rising rapidly in the United States and Europe, Smith & Nephew’s two main markets. This means that private hospitals, which are often the setting for selected treatment centers, are being used to deal with more urgent cases. Despite a very strong injury management industry, Smith & Nephew’s new CEO, Roland Diggelmann, estimates that full-year revenue will decline by about 12%. To make hospitals less heavy, there will be little relief for these aches and pains. (By Aimee Donnellan)