Wed, Nov 28, 2018 page10

• World Business Quick Take

  • Agencies
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  FRANCE

  Confidence dips three points

  Consumer confidence this month fell further below its long-term average to its lowest level in more than three-and-a-half years, data from statistics agency INSEE showed. The monthly reading dropped to 92 from 95, while economists were expecting only a one-point decline. Consumption is already facing disruption from protests against President Emmanuel Macron’s gasoline taxes. Minister of Finance Bruno Le Maire on Monday said that sales for large retailers have fallen by as much as 35 percent on days when protesters have blocked roads, fuel depots and warehouses. With household spending and investment making up about 60 percent of GDP, consumer weakness could dent growth at the end of the year and derail the government’s deficit reduction plans.

  INTERNET

  Facebook behind Alibaba

  Facebook Inc crises this year have weighed heavily on the social media giant, dragging shares more than 37 percent from their July peak and erasing nearly US$240 billion in value. The fall has allowed Chinese Internet behemoth Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (阿里巴巴) to once again overtake Facebook in market capitalization. It is the second time this year Alibaba has topped its US rival, the first coming in March following revelations surrounding Cambridge Analytica.

  UNITED KINGDOM

  One-quarter of pubs lost

  The nation has lost almost one-quarter of its pubs since the financial crisis a decade ago, but the decline has not been uniform, with big chains gaining at the expense of small independent hostelries, which have struggled with rising costs, shifting consumer habits and a challenging economic environment. Wiltshire and Birmingham have been the worst-hit areas since 2008; Hackney in east London, the center of a craft-beer boom, has seen the largest number of pub openings, Office for National Statistics figures showed.

  GAMING

  ‘Fortnite’ draws over 200m

  Hit e-sport title Fortnite has now hooked more than 200 million players, up from Epic Games Inc’s estimate of 125 million registered users in June. The game’s player count is also five times the company’s tally in January. The game is free to play and available on multiple devices, from mobile phones to traditional video game consoles, with Epic making money by charging players for decorative items such as costumes and props. Those purchases add up. Last month, Epic raised US$1.25 billion from an investor group that included KKR & Co, Vulcan Capital and Kleiner Perkins in a deal that valued the closely held company at US$15 billion.

  HONG KONG

  Housing suggests correction

  The housing market is suffering its worst declines since 2016 — by multiple measures. New-home sales this month are on track to be the lowest by volume since January or February, Midland Realty (美聯集團) data showed. Used-home prices have fallen for eight weeks, the longest losing streak since 2016, according to the Centa-City Leading Index (中原城市領先指數). In addition, used-home prices have this month recorded the biggest single-week decline since March 2016, falling 1.3 percent week-on-week, the data showed. Anecdotal evidence, such as reports of slow sales at a Country Garden Holdings Co (碧桂園) project, is also fueling speculation that the world’s least-affordable housing market is heading for a correction. So far, secondary home prices have dipped 5 percent from an August high.

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