Weekly News Wrap: Retail spending lags in parts of Asia; Bukalapak's $1.1b IPO covered on launch day

And the top shareholder of department store chain Myer kicks off board reshuffle talks.

From CNBC:

As consumer spending in China continues to lag in its economic recovery from the pandemic, a similar weakness in retail sales is being witnessed elsewhere in Asia.

Chan said the “bumpy and rather uneven” recovery in consumer spending in the region can be largely attributed to the ongoing pandemic, as sporadic outbreaks continue in multiple Asian countries.

Meanwhile, waves of resurgence elsewhere in Asia likely had a negative impact on consumer sentiment as well as mobility, said Taimur Baig, chief economist at Singapore’s DBS Bank.

“As we’ve seen in the last year, mobility is a very strong prerequisite toward consumption because sitting at home, you order a lot of things through the e-commerce route — but you still don’t spend the kind of money that you would if you were able to go out on a regular basis,” Baig said.

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From Reuters:

Indonesia's biggest IPO in more than a decade, the billion-dollar offering from e-commerce firm Bukalapak, received enough investor orders to cover the sale on its launch day, two sources said, reflecting a strong appetite for tech stocks.

The listing comes at a time when the pandemic has boosted demand in Indonesia's $40b e-commerce market. Bukalapak has sought to focus on smaller clients as it competes with bigger rivals Tokopedia, Sea Limited's Shopee, and Alibaba's Lazada.

Two sources familiar with the deal said a spate of orders from large investors meant the books for Bukalapak's IPO were covered across its indicative price range.

Until a few months ago, Bukalapak, the No. 4 e-commerce company, was looking to raise just $300m.

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From Reuters:

Myer Holdings' top shareholder Premier Investments has begun talks with fellow shareholders to revamp the company's board, after raising its stake in the high-street retailer, the investor said.

Premier reaffirmed its demand that the Myer's entire board should resign immediately, sparing the chief executive John King. "Any other action would be futile, and costly for Myer shareholders who have endured enough," Premier said in a statement.

Including King, Myer's board currently has four members – acting chairman JoAnne Stephenson and two non-executive directors.

The top investor said it has also hired a proxy solicitation firm and is trying to procure a copy of Myer's shareholder register ahead of calling an extraordinary general meeting.

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