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Alphabet Markets Massive Europe Bond Sales in AI Funding Push

Source: Bloomberg Business

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Alphabet sold billions of dollars in sterling and Swiss franc-denominated bonds today, widening its funding avenues as the Google parent plans as much as $185 billion in capital expenditures this year.

For the £5.5 billion ($7.5 billion) sterling portion, the company offered several tenors including an ultra-rare issue of a 100-year note. The Swiss offering raised 3.1 billion Swiss francs ($4.1 billion) across various maturities. Both sales set records for corporate bonds in the respective markets.

Alphabet's sterling and franc bond offerings follow a $20 billion dollar debt sale yesterday that drew the strongest-ever orders for a corporate bond offering. The company plans to double its capital expenditures this year as the artificial-intelligence race heats up among tech giants.

Alphabet isn't alone in relying on bond sales to help fund its AI ambitions. Morgan Stanley expects borrowing by the massive cloud-computing companies known as hyperscalers to reach $400 billion this year, up from $165 billion in 2025.

What You Need to Know Today

Vladimir Putin is likely buying time in Ukraine peace talks and has no intention to end the war, according to assessments from Poland and Estonia. Estonia's foreign intelligence said Russia is using negotiations as a "tool for manipulation," while a Polish official said the Kremlin is "playing games." The assessments cast a shadow over US President Donald Trump's efforts to end the four-year war.

There's a potential candidate emerging to replace Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan -- his younger son, Bilal. The state-run news service now features regular reports on Bilal, and he's joined his father on more foreign trips during this presidential term. Bilal's entry into politics are under considerations with a few towards him potentially becoming leader, we're told. The subject succession has long been taboo but the transition of power has become a frequent discussion topic behind closed doors among the governing AK Party's ranks, we're told.

Ferrari reassured investors that demand for its supercars is alive and well, saying earnings this year will surpass estimates. The company's focus on pricing power, product mix and personalization is helping to sustain profit margins during a major model transition. Ferrari shares surged today after Ferrari's results beat expectations and its upbeat forecast.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer thanked his cabinet members for keeping him in his job, a day after Labour's Scottish leader Anas Sarwar called for him to go. A Downing Street operation ensured members lined up behind Starmer, after the premier teetered on the brink yesterday. A readout from his office today offered words of support for Sarwar, a friend of Starmer. He brushed aside divisions within his party, saying his main battle is with Nigel Farage's poll-leading Reform UK.

Stock investing, Vatican style: The Vatican Bank has launched two equity indexes that choose stocks on the basis of Catholic principles. The Morningstar IOR Eurozone Catholic Principles Index and the Morningstar IOR US Catholic Principles Index, each of which comprise 50 stocks, including Big Tech and financial shares. They come as funds with ESG investment goals suffer massive outflows.

Barclays lifted its bonus pool 15% to the highest in five years, with beneficiaries ranging from junior staff to Chief Executive CS Venkatakrishnan. The bonus numbers were published as the bank announced annual earnings that beat expectations, with traders having the best fourth quarter since a reporting change in 2016.

Employees at French bank Societe Generale, meanwhile, aren't in a celebratory mood. Staffers indicated in a recent poll that their faith in decisions taken by CEO Slawomir Krupa and his lieutenants is shrinking.

French exports of wine and spirits plummeted to at least a 20-year low as measured by volume, hit by a mix of trade tensions and weak demand. Shipments to China and the US fell by a fifth as Beijing imposed anti-dumping measures on European Union brandy, while the Trump administration imposed import tariffs. By value, sales have been falling since 2022.

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Alphabet Markets Massive Europe Bond Sales in AI Funding Push

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