© 2020 Dow Jones & Company. All Rights Reserved. **** THE WALL STREET JOURNAL. Thursday, December 3, 2020 |B

Some investors are betting

that the Federal Reserve could

start buying more long-term

U.S. Treasurys as soon as its

next policy meeting, a trend

that has helped temper some

recent selling and kept yields

from rising higher.

One factor influencing such

bets: the outcome of the Nov. 3

election, which resulted in the

strong possibility of divided

government in Washington and

TECHNOLOGY: DOORDASH TO DELIVER SOFTBANK A WINNER B

S&P3669.01À0.18% S&PFINÀ1.05% S&PITg0.22% DJ TRANSÀ0.42% WSJ$IDXg0.15% LIBOR3M 0.231 NIKKEI(Midday)26806.37À0.02% See more at WSJ.com/Markets

BUSINESS & FINANCE

left investors thinking the Fed

might need to assume more re-

sponsibility to support an econ-

omy increasingly buffeted by a

surge in coronavirus cases.

Treasury Secretary Steven

Mnuchin’s decision to not ex-

tend several emergency Fed

lending programs beyond Dec.

31 also left the Fed with fewer

alternatives to Treasury pur-

chases for economic stimulus.

Buying bonds helps boost the

economy by reducing longer-

term Treasury yields, lowering

the cost of borrowing for indi-

viduals and businesses.

Minutes from the Fed’s Nov.

4-5 meeting released last week

offered few clues about pros-

pects for policy changes at the

central bank’s next meeting on

Dec. 15-16. Officials in early No-

vember didn’t think it was nec-

essary to make immediate ad-

justments to their bond-buying

program. But they “recognized

that circumstances could shift

to warrant such adjustments,”

Please turn to page B

BYSAMGOLDFARB

Treasury Yields Face Pressure

As Traders Expect Fed Buying

Indeed, hygiene is driving

the home-appliance industry’s

extreme makeover. For de-

cades, firms saw sales grow

sluggishly, especially in lucra-

tive markets in the U.S. and

Western Europe, churning out

a predictable cycle of dryers,

ovens and microwave ovens. A

push toward digitized “smart

homes” failed to captivate

consumers who saw little rea-

son to track their milk levels

through artificial intelligence

or get text alerts when the

laundry was done.

But now, virus-weary buy-

ers are perking up every-

where. Household appliances

are breaking down faster than

before with increased use as

people shelter at home, and

existing malfunctions have

now become more intolerable.

As travel remains limited be-

cause of the pandemic,

wealthier consumers flush

with cash are choosing to up-

grade household products or

splurge on new purchases.

“The Covid-19 situation is

not actually a crisis for us,”

said Song Dae-hyun, the de-

parting president of LG’s

home appliances and air solu-

tions division. “People now

think of home as the safest

area—and they’re using their

appliances more because

they’re at home.”

Even with pandemic fatigue

Please turn to page B

Growthinhome-appliancesalesforselectedproducts,betweenMayandAugust

Changeinsalesfrom

previousyear

Sources: GfK SE (home-appliance sales); the companies (change in sales)

*Home appliances and air solutions division

LGElectronics*

Whirlpool

Kitchenmachines 99%

Foodprocessors 53

Washingmachines 46

Espressomachines 39

Monitors 34

Laptops 31

Headsets 31

Airtreatment 23

Waterfilters 14

1Q

2019

1Q

’

2Q 3Q 4Q 2Q 3Q

20

• 
  


• 
  


• 
  

0

10

%

Electrolux

SEOUL—The roughly $

billion home-appliance indus-

try is making a hard pivot to-

ward hygiene as the coronavi-

rus pandemic shows no sign

of moderating.

LG ElectronicsInc.’s refrig-

erators have been retrofitted

with sterilizing ultraviolet

lights previously used in its

water purifiers, whileWhirl-

poolCorp. has touted washing

machines with built-in heating

that removes germs and aller-

gens from clothes.

Samsung ElectronicsCo. is

scooping up scientists who

specialize in water and air

quality, andBeko Electrical

Appliances Co., a Turkish

manufacturer, recently rolled

out “HygieneShield,” a range

of appliances such as refriger-

ators and ovens equipped with

disinfection drawers. It is also

offering a cleaning cabinet, a

stand-alone appliance that re-

sembles a microwave oven but

is designed to disinfect every-

day items such as wallets and

mobile phones.

According to Mark Choe, a

senior vice president at Sam-

sung’s digital appliances busi-

ness division, “all of our prod-

uct development now is being

done through the lens of hy-

giene.”

BYELIZABETHKOH

Home Appliances Boost Hygiene

To Lift Sales During Pandemic

Amazon.com Inc.isinex-
clusive talks to purchase pod-
cast startup Wondery, accord-
ing to people familiar with the
matter, as the tech giant
pushes further into the grow-
ing audio sector.
The talks value Wondery at

BYBENJAMINMULLIN
ANDANNESTEELE

Major players in the tech

and media sectors have ac-

quired several other podcast

startups in recent years.Spo-

tify Technology SA bought

Gimlet Media, a maker of nar-

rative podcasts, in 2019 for

more than $200 million.New

York Times Co. in July said it

would acquire Serial Produc-

tions, maker of the hit podcast

“Serial,” in a deal that could be

worth as much as $50 million

depending on milestones and

performance metrics, the Jour-

nal reported.

Wondery, which is known

Please turn to page B

domain for super-niche fare,

true-crime content and pop-

culture dissections, the format

has exploded in recent years as

a destination for high-profile

entertainment and political

programming.

Podcasting as a whole is at-

tracting over 100 million

monthly active listeners, ac-

cording to Edison Research.

U.S. ad revenue from pod-

casts, meanwhile, rose an esti-

mated 48% to $708.1 million

last year, according to the In-

teractive Advertising Bureau,

and is projected to exceed $

billion by 2021.

ing and negotiations could still

fall apart, the people said.

Closely held Wondery is the

last large, independent pod-

caster on the market—and

could present the final oppor-

tunity for a major tech or me-

dia giant to buy its way into

the exploding field. Wondery’s

investors include venture-capi-

tal firms such as Waverley

Capital, Lerer Hippeau Ven-

tures, Greycroft Partners and

Advancit Capital.

Amazon’s foray coincides

with a growth spurt for the

small but rapidly expanding

podcasting industry. Once the

over $300 million, the people

said. Wondery’s last funding

round, in June 2019, valued the

company at $100 million, The

Wall Street Journal reported.

Wondery is on track to in-

crease revenue to more than

$40 million this year, accord-

ing one person familiar with

the matter, with about 75% of

that coming from advertising

and the rest from licensing to

TV, to subscription services

like Audible and Stitcher Pre-

mium and to Wondery’s own

premium subscription service,

which launched this summer.

The deal talks are continu-

Amazon in Talks to Buy Podcaster

Wondery, known for

true-crime stories,

would help tech giant

grow in audio sector

WASHINGTON—The House
unanimously approved legisla-
tion on Wednesday that threat-
ens a trading ban of shares of
Chinese companies, such asAli-
baba Group HoldingLtd., over
concerns that their audits
aren’t sufficiently regulated.
The bipartisan mea-
sure passed the Senate in May
and could quickly become law
with President Trump’s signa-
ture. The fight over China’s re-
sistance to allowing overseas
inspections of its companies’
audits has lasted for years but
reached a fever pitch during
the Trump administration.
Under the measure, Chinese
companies and their auditors
would have three years to com-
ply with the inspections before
a trading prohibition could take
effect. If a breakthrough looked
unlikely, the companies would
probably respond ahead of a
ban by either going private or
moving their listing to a non-
U.S. exchange.
U.S. regulators are working
on another proposal that could
allow Chinese auditors to com-
ply with the inspection require-
ment without violating their
home country’s laws, which
limit the sharing of informa-
tion. The Securities and Ex-
change Commission could issue
such a proposal this month, al-
though it wouldn’t immediately
take effect.
Chinese firms have raised
money from U.S. shareholders
for years, but their auditors vi-
olate a fundamental investor
protection: China typically
won’t allow American regula-
tors to check their work. Chi-
nese companies including
Luckin Coffee Inc. have im-
ploded in accounting scandals
over the past decade, raising
awareness of the audit-inspec-
tion gap.
“Without this bill, the Chi-
nese have been just stonewall-
ing us, and we certainly
shouldn’t make it easier for a
Chinese company to get Ameri-
can capital than an American
company,” Rep. Brad Sherman
(D., Calif.), a certified public ac-
countant who sponsored simi-
lar legislation this year, said.
The Senate legislation was
sponsored by Sens. John Ken-
nedy (R., La.) and Chris Van
Hollen (D., Md.).
Mr. Trump is likely to sign
the legislation, Mr. Sherman
added. He said on the House
floor Wednesday that hopes
China would now agree to a re-
gime to conduct inspections.
House lawmakers included a
statement that clarifies the
bill’s intent. The instructions
don’t have the force of law but
direct the SEC to implement
the measure without harming
American companies that do
business in China and thus use
Chinese accounting firms for
part of their annual audit.
Some critics of the legislation
have worried the bill could
wind up hurting U.S. companies
Please turn to page B

BYDAVEMICHAELS
ANDALEXANDEROSIPOVICH

House

Passes

Delisting

Of China

Firms

A Whirlpool worker attaches a cover to a washing machine. Companies see more demand from stay-at-home customers.

DANIEL CARSON/THE NEWS-MESSENGER/REUTERS

INSIDE

Dyal Capital Partnersis in

talks to merge withOwl Rock

Capital PartnersLP, part of a

complicated deal with a spe-

cial-purpose acquisition com-

pany that would take them

public, the firms said Wednes-

day.

Dyal and Owl Rock said they

have been discussing a deal

with a special-purpose acquisi-

tion company calledAltimar

AcquisitionCorp.

The transaction would value

the combined asset managers

at about $13 billion, according

to people familiar with the

matter.

As part of the deal, the

firms could also raise addi-

tional capital, as is often the

case in mergers with blank-

check companies like Altimar.

There are no guarantees the

various parties will reach a

deal, especially given the addi-

tional complexities posed by

effectively pulling off two

transactions at once.

Should it come together, it

would be the latest in a series

of asset-management deals and

combine one of the biggest

owners of private-equity- firm

stakes with an upstart credit

investor that has posted rapid

growth financing deals for

many of the same private-eq-

uity firms.

It would also fit into an-

other major theme in the world

of deals in 2020: SPACs, which

have exploded in popularity

and offer an alternative to an

initial public offering. They es-

sentially go public without a

business and then hunt for one

to combine with.

Altimar, sponsored by an af-

filiate of investment firmHPS

Investment Partners LLC,

went public in October.

Dyal for its entire existence

has been a unit ofNeuberger

Berman GroupLLC, a privately

held investment firm with $

billion of assets under manage-

ment, including $103 billion in

alternative assets.

Neuberger would retain a

meaningful stake in the com-

bined company as part of the

transaction being discussed

and intends to remain a long-

term holder, the people said.

Founded in 2011 by Lehman

Brothers veterans Michael Rees

and Sean Ward, Dyal is the

largest player in the market for

minority stakes in private in-

vestment firms, including pri-

vate-equity firms, credit shops

and hedge funds.

It owns nonvoting stakes,

typically between 10% and

20%, in more than 40 firms in-

cluding Silver Lake, Vista Eq-

uity Partners, Providence Eq-

uity, Platinum Equity and Sixth

Street Partners.

Last year, it paid about $

million for a 20% stake in Owl

Rock. And in 2018, it took a

stake in HPS.

Dyal, which manages $21.

billion in aggregate capital

commitments, has done deals

at a torrid pace. Last year, it

finished raising a $9 billion

fund—its fourth such vehicle—

Please turn to page B

BYMIRIAMGOTTFRIED

ANDCARALOMBARDO

Big Asset

Managers

Discuss

Merger

EDUCATION

Business schools are

becoming more

selective about their

admissions policies.B

HEARD ON STREET

Driverless cars are

coming but they won’t

take over the taxi

industry.B

JUSTIN COOK FOR WSJ