Bloomberg Spain warned Catalonia it risks economic chaos should the rebel region continue with its pursuit of independence, with the government in Madrid saying it stood ready to intervene and reassert control. As the standoff heads into a critical few days, Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaría said ministers were ready to stop Catalan President Carles Puigdemont. Spanish Energy ...

Bloomberg Oil producers are succeeding in re-balancing an oversupplied market, though they may need to take further steps to sustain the recovery into 2018, OPEC Secretary-General Mohammad Barkindo said. Saudi Arabia and Russia are currently leading consultations between the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other major suppliers about the future of their agreement to cut oil output, Barkindo ...

Reuters Oman Telecommunications (Omantel) plans to buy a 12 percent stake in Kuwaiti telecoms company Zain in a deal that would more than double its stake as part of its expansion strategy. Having purchased a 9.8 percent stake in August to diversify its investment and market position in the region, Omantel said on Monday that it had signed a non-binding ...

Riyadh / Reuters Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) said on Monday it is creating a 4 billion riyal ($1.07 billion) ‘fund of funds’ to support the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The special fund will aim to boost SMEs’ access to capital by investing in venture capital and private equity funds, according to a PIF statement. The ...

Bloomberg Sasol Ltd., the world’s largest maker of fuel from coal, abandoned a plan to sell about 13 billion rand ($950 million ) of shares to meet its obligation to repay debt owed by a black investor group. A decline in the company’s stock since the mid-2014 slump in crude prices precluded payouts to more than 250,000 black South Africans ...

Bloomberg For years, investors have played Popeye to the energy industry’s Wimpy, the cartoon character famous for his “I’ll gladly pay you for a hamburger today” motto. In return for the promise of future profits, they’ve funded loss-making energy producers and explorers through a generous mix of loans, bonds and equity. That may be changing, according to a chorus of ...

Bloomberg The Democratic Republic of Congo ordered Sinohydro Corp. and China Railway Construction Corp.’s local mining venture to stop exporting unprocessed copper and cobalt and refine all its metals within the country. Sicomines must ship “only high-value products” as the government looks to “ensure the prompt repayment” of the country’s continuing $6 billion minerals-for-infrastructure deal with China, Mines Minister Martin ...

Bloomberg Vertex Ventures, the venture capital arm of Temasek Holdings Pte, has completed its biggest fundraising for Southeast Asian and Indian technology deals. The Singapore-based firm closed its third Southeast Asian fund at $210 million, a record in the region that exceeded its target of $150 million. The money will be used for early stage investments, aiming to repeat its ...

Bloomberg Almost 4 million new jobs, rising wages and eight interest-rate cuts in Indonesia should have been enough to spur consumers into action in the world’s fourth most populous nation. Instead, an increasing number of people are keeping a tight grip on their purse strings and putting their money in the bank, leaving policy makers and economists perplexed. “All the ...

Bloomberg Shares of jewellers climbed in India after the government withdrew an order that brought the industry under anti money-laundering legislation, a move that comes just as gold buying improves before the Hindu festival of Diwali, the peak season for demand. Jewellers were included in the Prevention of Money-Laundering Act in August, increasing compliance requirements. Buyers have been shying away ...