Source: Sina Hong Kong stocks

Bridge Water Fund, the world's largest hedge fund, has taken a short position of $14 billion, betting that shares of European companies will continue to plummet as the COVID-19 epidemic worsens. However, the bets are not enough to protect Qiaoshui's main fund from huge losses. The flagship fund has lost about 20% this year, which people familiar with the matter say is mainly due to long positions in the stock market and short positions in government bonds. Risky assets have plummeted in the past month because of the accelerated spread of the COVID-19 epidemic around the world. The online bridge exploded in water this afternoon. The news triggered a huge shock in the market, with A shares up 3 per cent closing down 1.6 per cent, Hong Kong stocks up 1 per cent down 4 per cent in the afternoon, BABA falling below the offering price and Tencent plummeting 5 per cent.

The bridge burst into the warehouse? Now bet 14 billion dollars on shorting European stock markets.

Bridgewater, the world's largest hedge fund owned by billionaire Dario, has taken a short position of $14 billion, betting that shares of European companies will continue to plummet as the novel coronavirus epidemic worsens.

According to regulatory data compiled by Bloomberg from March 9 to 12, Bridgewater made a series of short bets on stocks in European countries from Germany to Italy, including a $1 billion short position in German software giant SAP and a $715 million short position in ASML, a British semiconductor equipment maker.

But these bets are not enough to protect the company's main hedge fund from huge losses. Qiaoshui's Pure Alpha Fund II fell by about 13% from the beginning of this month to the 12th, and has fallen by about 20% this year. According to people familiar with the matter, Qiaoshui's big loss this month is mainly due to long positions in the stock market and short positions in government bonds. The online bridge exploded in water this afternoon.

It is unclear whether the bet is a direct bet on a fall in the share price or part of a broader hedging strategy for the company, which manages about $160 billion in assets.

Bridgewater made similar bets on European companies in 2018. Short sellers sell borrowed securities, buy them back at a lower price and use the difference as a profit.

A spokesman for the company said: "while we will not comment on our specific positions, Qiaoshui trades in more than 150 markets around the world, so there are a lot of interrelated positions, usually hedging other positions. And these often change. Therefore, it is incorrect to consider any position at any time and try to determine an overall strategy.

The explosion of the bridge caused a huge shock in the global stock market, and Hong Kong stocks tumbled 4%.

With the news of the explosion of the Bridge Water Fund, A shares and Hong Kong stocks rose to fall, Hong Kong stocks tumbled 4 per cent, FTSE China A50 index futures fell to 2 per cent, European stock futures fell further, the UK FTSE 100 index fell 5.8 per cent, Germany's DAX and Europe Stoxx 50 index fell about 5 per cent.

By the close of A shares, the Prev fell 1.83%, closing down 2728 points, and 2700 points was in jeopardy. Hong Kong stocks tumbled 4 per cent, another 1000 points, 22,000 points in jeopardy, the lowest since 2017, and red chips tumbled 5 per cent.

Heavyweight blue chips tumbled collectively, with Tencent falling 5 per cent to quote HK $332.4, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and China Construction Bank Corporation down more than 2 per cent, Bank of China Ltd. more than 3 per cent, China Mobile Limited nearly 6 per cent and AIA Group Limited more than 5 per cent.

Among them, Tencent plummeted 5% and announced his results after trading today. Since its peak in February, Tencent's share price has fallen by about Rmb100, and its market capitalization has shrunk by HK $840.3 billion to below HK $3.2 trillion. Nearly two pieces of Meituan have been lost, and Meituan now has a market capitalization of HK $450 billion.

In addition, BABA tumbled 5% to quote HK $174.1, which lost more than a trillion yuan in market value since its peak, almost the size of Maotai.

Subsequently, gold trembled, with spot gold falling below $1500 an ounce, with a daily decline of nearly 2 per cent.

2020 Boeing Co = 2008 Lehman Brothers?

On September 15, 2008, the 158-year-old Lehman Brothers declared bankruptcy, marking the full spread of the financial crisis. If this year's virus crisis spread, which company would it be if a landmark event was needed to be remembered?

Standard & Poor's downgraded Boeing Co's credit rating by two notches from "A -" to "BBB" on March 17th, with the lowest rating being "BBB-". Boeing Co is only one step away from junk rating. S & P expects Boeing Co's free cash flow to be minus 11 billion to minus $12 billion in 2020.

Moody's Corporation downgraded Boeing Co's senior unsecured debt rating from AAA to Baa1 in January, three levels short of junk.

Since then, Boeing Co has begun his own waterfall. The stock hit an all-time high of $435 in March last year, down nearly 80% in a year, and its latest closing price was $124, with a market capitalization of less than 500 billion yuan, less than half of Maotai's market capitalization.

Boeing Co executives said at a White House hearing on Monday that Boeing Co would soon fall if the government did not lend a helping hand, which would have a huge negative impact on the overall US economy. However, due to the house leakage and the overnight rain, Boeing Co is now facing difficulties and other airlines affected by COVID-19 are not allowed.

With the rapid spread of the epidemic around the world, many European countries began to "close their cities." the United States declared a state of emergency and suspended entry into the United States from Europe. The aviation industry has suffered a devastating blow. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) estimates that the global passenger Transport Division could lose as much as $113 billion this year. For airlines, it is no less than a "plane crash".

Not only Boeing Co, but all major airlines have been adversely affected by the epidemic. Virgin Airlines announced that 75% of its aircraft were grounded, Lufthansa was forced to cancel about 2% of its flights in the next few weeks, Air France will cut its flight capacity by 70% to 90% in the next two months, Austrian Airlines will suspend all flights from March 19, and Finnish Airways will cut its flight capacity by 90%.

Us Treasury Secretary Mnuchin warned on the 17th that the novel coronavirus pandemic may have a greater impact on the aviation industry than the "9 / 11" incident.