The sell-off in emerging market currencies on Friday drove down shares of Vodafone (VOD), Telefonica (TEF), America Movil (AMX), VimpelCom (VIP), satellite TV broadcaster DirecTV Group (DTV) and Latin American e-commerce firm MercadoLibre (MELI), as well as local telecom companies. DirecTV stock was down more than 2% in morning trading in the stock market today. DirecTV has a big Latin American business. U.S. shares of U.K.-based Vodafone also
Europe’s big phone companies are fretting over the possibility of AT&T and other foreign companies pushing into the region’s already fierce wireless market, a development a Citigroup analyst calls “Barbarians at the Gate.” If new rivals enter in 2014, analysts say, some of Europe’s former state-run monopolies might respond by merging. An AT&T (T)acquisition of U.K.-based Vodafone (VOD), the world’s No. 1 wireless service provider by revenue, would
Apple (AAPL) signed a long-awaited iPhone deal with China Mobile (CHL), the world’s No. 1 wireless operator, the Wall Street Journal reported late Tuesday, citing a source. That continues a recent run of good news for the technology giant. The agreement would give Apple access to 700 million China Mobile customers — more than seven times the size of Verizon Wireless, jointly owned by Verizon Communications (VZ) andVodafone (VOD).