Miscellany 24Jul2016

Morocco asks to rejoin African Union after 32 years

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-36822240

Wells Fargo’s Response to Brexit? Buying in London’s Financial District

http://www.wsj.com/articles/wells-fargos-response-to-brexit-its-buying-in-londons-finance-district-1468843224

(subscription required)

Oh dear, looks like the wheels have just fallen off Project Fear.  That’ll upset Remainiacs.

Why Softbank Is Buying ARM for $32B

http://www.foxbusiness.com/features/2016/07/22/why-softbank-is-buying-arm-for-32b.html

Remainiacs have further cause for gloom as a Japanese tech company Softbank buys UK tech company ARM Holdings, ostensibly for the acquisition of ARM’s intellectual property.  It is unlikely that ARM would ever have had financial capacity to deploy its intellectual property (i.e. it couldn’t have been another Intel).  For Brexit, there’s nothing here relevant to the European Union whatsoever.  Therefore, in matters of trade, business and economics, the deal underlines how much Europe really matters: i.e. not that much.  For Remainiacs, the news must be infuriating: the sky hasn’t fallen on our heads yet.

UK gives up planned presidency of European Council to focus on Brexit

http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-eu-council-idUKKCN1000T1

Daily Mail publisher reports signs of ad market recovery after Brexit vote

http://www.cityam.com/245885/daily-mail-publisher-acknowledges-brexit-advertising

It must had suddenly occurred to advertisers that attempting to lobby 17m Brexit voters means doing deals with a pro-Brexit newspaper: the Daily Mail.  Then again, this was probably going to happen anyway: advertising strategies can be quickly formed and quickly deployed, but there’s something awry about the timing of this ‘news’.

Premier Foods delivers growth ahead of noodle-tie up

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/07/21/premier-foods-delivers-growth-ahead-of-noodle-tie-up/

Another corporate deal resulting in UK firm gaining access to non-European markets.  Again, this deal was almost certainly planned months ago, and it might even have been suspended pending the conclusion of the referendum (irrespective of outcome); deals like this just don’t happen as quickly as journalists type crap in the blogosfear.

Note that Premier Foods is said to have a base in St Albans, whose residents voted overwhelmingly (66%) for EurIn.  I wonder if Premier Foods sell a brand of irony thick enough to spread on toast?