Good morning! For many, buying a home is a major milestone. But for South Koreans, the journey to that milestone is paved with intense competition. As per Bloomberg, more than a million people have applied for the sale of three apartment units in Seoul’s posh Gangnam district. The reason for this mad competition is that these apartments are being sold at pre-sale prices from four years ago rather than the market rate, thanks to the law that prioritises large families and new buyers over others. What a world! 

Dinesh Narayanan, Soumya Gupta, and Venkat Ananth also contributed to today’s edition.

The Market Signal* 

Stocks & Economy: The big action is moving to Asia. With Japan slipping out of its two-decades-long slump, its stock market has found new life. That has fired up Korea, which unveiled a set of corporate reforms that have investors’ interest at its heart. The reforms aim to reward companies that have shareholder value creation as their central objective. Some investors are already trimming their India—although it remains the long-term bet—exposure to buy Korean stocks.

US equities were a mixed bag as consumer confidence fell and investors awaited inflation data that will be released on Thursday. Second-guessing the Federal Reserve’s next move remains the only game in town. 

Asian markets opened Wednesday mixed, with Japan taking a pause while the others remained flat or in the green zone. The GIFT Nifty indicates a positive opening for Indian shares.

BANKING

Branches Go Where Apps Don’t Reach

At the beginning of the millennium, a foreign bank operating in India did something unthinkable—it imposed a fee on customers who visited its branches for transactions. Although many customers were incredulous, it being a bank for the well-heeled, the outrage was limited to plush drawing rooms.

Full circle: At many locations, ATMs occupied the place of branches, whose growth slowed significantly. Now, alarmed by dwindling savings deposits, banks are once again expanding their brick-and-mortar branch network to lure savers back by showering them with staff attention. The country’s top four banks have added 3,500 branches in the past two years. 

No tech shortcuts: It’s not a trend limited to India. US banking giants such as JPMorgan and Bank of America have been expanding their branch network to entice customers with the feel of a community bank and personalised attention.

POLICY

Ministry Vs. Ministry

The Centre’s choice to capitalise on the global shift to de-risk from China and in the process, hike import duties to encourage companies to make in India, doesn’t have many fans. It now turns out that the NDA government is facing opposition to its policy of progressively hiking tariffs on Chinese components from within its own ranks.

The Indian Express reports that some government officials have concerns about India’s steep duties impeding its potential to compete with other ‘China Plus One’ hubs like Vietnam, Thailand, and Mexico—all of which impose lower tariffs. The health ministry, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, and Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology had pushed for withdrawals of duty hikes on capital and intermediate inputs from China that are critical for ramping up domestic manufacturing.

High duties push domestic producers to hike their prices too, in turn hurting local consumers and affecting export competitiveness.

SOCIAL MEDIA

Existential Crisis

Socialising online isn’t what it was. Two major developments in the US and India could upend things further.

Home…: Once-promising platforms Sharechat and Koo (not to mention the numerous TikTok copycats) have lost their mojo. The shtick about taking social media to ‘Bharat’, or internet users in small-town India, fell flat as this demographic instead flocked to YouTube and Instagram. What will it take for a homegrown platform to be successful?

…and away: The birthplace of social media may become its graveyard if its highest court rules in favour of states that passed laws restricting online moderation.

The US Supreme Court (SC) is hearing arguments against the 2021 laws passed by Florida and Texas. While the former made it illegal for platforms to ban candidates for office irrespective of content violations, Texas prohibited platforms from moderating “viewpoints”. That’s a wide berth for hate speech.

The Signal

The US SC will give its verdict in June. Whether it rules in favour of Florida and Texas or not, the effect will percolate to users in the rest of the world.

Worsening social media experiences and the resultant fatigue have a role to play in declining engagement. Perhaps that’s why workplace-based networks, especially LinkedIn, are faring better. In India too, upstarts such as Grapevine and Leap.Club are attracting high-profile investors, which answers the “what will it take” question above. In essence, work has become the new play. Head over to The Impression at 3 pm today for more. Better still, subscribe for an inbox drop.

AVIATION

Aches On A Plane

Your airline tickets are about to get dearer. With the supply of new aircraft still in limbo, airlines are looking at leasing options to fulfil demand in the near term. The average market rate for older Airbus and Boeing aircraft has increased by 14% and 13%, respectively.

Making matters worse: In the wake of several door panel incidents, the US Federal Aviation Administration has flagged Boeing’s safety culture for endangering passenger safety.

The Boeing and Pratt & Whitney engine issues have affected order fulfilment for new aircraft, which explains the growing demand for leased aircraft and ensuing steep rates. India, one of the fastest-growing aviation markets, also has a shortage of experienced pilots. A mandate by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation limiting duty hours for pilots is complicating matters for airlines, which believe the directive will lead to cancelling 20% of all flights. All factors that inevitably increase airfares.

🎧 Fewer planes in the skies this summer. Also in today’s episode: BSNL is gearing up to make a comeback. Tune in to The Signal Daily on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

GEOPOLITICS

Anti-Putin Allies Open Front Against One Another

Europe bolstered its northernmost frontier against Russia with the final vote of Viktor Orban-led Hungary to induct Sweden into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (Nato). Soon after Russia invaded Ukraine, Sweden and neighbour Finland, which shares a 1,300-km border with Russia, rushed to become Nato members. 

Reluctant cooperation: While Finland was allowed into the US-led security alliance last year, Sweden remained out, exposing the fragile spectrum of freedom of expression, democracy, and raw nerves of intra-European relations. Turkey vehemently opposed Sweden’s entry, accusing it of harbouring its dissidents and allowing burning of the Quran. 

Disagreement between France and others over sending troops to help Ukraine is out in the open even as Denmark wants a prolonged arms buildup at the cost of welfare spending to deter Russia.  

Trans-Atlantic worries: Europe is also wary of the possibility of the avowedly anti-Nato Donald Trump’s return to the White House. 

FYI

Welcome back: American automobile major Ford is reportedly eyeing a comeback to the Indian market with a focus on hybrids and electric vehicles, per Hindu Business Line. The company, the report added, is in talks with the Tata Group for a possible joint venture. 

Enough: India’s Supreme Court has restrained FMCG major Patanjali Ayurved from advertising and marketing its products meant to cure ailments and disorders until further notice. The court also accused the central government of “sitting with its eyes closed.”

💰💰💰: Debt-addled telco Vodafone Idea’s board of directors has cleared a ₹45,000 crore (~$5.4 billion) fundraise in a mix of equity and debt. The company’s promoters will also participate, an exchange filing (pdf) said.

Dream’s over: After toiling over it for a decade and spending billions of dollars, iPhone maker Apple has canned its electric car ambition, internally called Project Titan.  

👨🏽‍🚀👨🏽‍🚀👨🏽‍🚀👨🏽‍🚀: Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a four-member crew for Gaganyaan, India’s first shot at sending a manned mission to space next year. The crew includes Prashant Balakrishnan Nair, Ajit Krishnan, Angad Pratap, and Shubhanshu Shukla.

Fresh dough: Third-party logistics company Shadowfax bagged $100 million in a Series E funding round led by TPG NewQuest, with participation from existing investors. SaaS company Capillary Technologies has raised $95 million as part of its extended Series D round via secondary transactions.

Under the lens: The European Union will examine Microsoft’s €15 million ($16.2 million) investment in French artificial intelligence startup Mistral AI as part of its ongoing probe into big technology’s deals with AI startups.

THE DAILY DIGIT

32 (and counting)

The number of multinational companies, across industries, that have announced job cuts in 2024—less than three months into the year. (The Wall Street Journal)

FWIW

Never say die: Japan’s moon lander, named “Moon Sniper”, is testament to the country’s technological prowess. After experiencing some initial hiccups, the rover began working smoothly. However, it wasn’t meant to last the ‘long lunar night’, a fortnight-long period when the moon gets no sunlight, leading to temperatures of -133 degrees Celsius. Miraculously, the sniper survived that night and is now communicating again with the team back home. Way to go, Japan!

Window management: Helping the elders out with tech support is the moral duty of almost every youngling. But what if that elder is a tech visionary, responsible for some of the most crucial advancements in the world? That’d be embarrassing but that’s exactly what happened with Elon Musk. The eccentric billionaire decided to air his grievances on X about setting up a Windows PC without creating a Microsoft account. He even tagged Satya Nadella online, only to be mocked by his own Community Notes feature. Eventually, Musk did manage to solve the problem with lots of online help, but let’s just say it wasn’t a great day at the office.

Uber-Burger: If you’re in the US and planning a takeout, it’s time to start planning your lunch. Wendy’s is introducing surge pricing to its restaurants across the country. Yes, you read that right. The company believes doing so will allow its restaurants to manage staff burden during peak hours and help its bottom line by boosting efficiency. Wendy’s is looking to spend $30 million to get this idea going by the end of 2025, so we technically have some time to start phasing out their burgers from our lives.