Dubai / Reuters Gulf stock markets moved little in early trade on Wednesday with few positive factors to spur buying, although Saudi Arabian petrochemical shares were firm. The Saudi Arabian index was flat. Petrochemical heavyweight Saudi Basic Industries added 0.6 percent and Al Sagr Cooperative Insurance rose 2.2 percent in unusually heavy trade. Dubai’s index edged down 0.2 percent. ...

  London / AFP Oil prices fell on Wednesday, with Brent stuck below $50, after data showed an increase in US crude stockpiles, adding to supply glut concerns. Data from the American Petroleum Institute (API) Tuesday showed US crude inventories rose by 4.5 million barrels last week. Rising stocks indicate weaker demand in the world’s top oil consuming nation and ...

  Bloomberg Qantas Airways Ltd. announced its first dividend since 2009 and handed bonuses to 25,000 workers as Chief Executive Officer Alan Joyce’s turnaround program delivered a record annual profit. Australia’s biggest carrier will pay a final dividend of 7 Australian cents a share and buy back as much as A$366 million ($279 million) of stock, according to a filing ...

  Doha / AFP Qatar Airways, sponsors of FC Barcelona, have branched into a new sport signing a deal with Australian Football League team Sydney Swans, the airline announced on Tuesday. The three-year deal will allow Qatar Airways to receive “prominent branding” at Sydney’s home games and at the club’s training grounds, the airline said in a statement. “We strongly ...

  Bloomberg Elon Musk and his cousins Lyndon Rive and Peter Rive are buying $100 million of solar bonds from their rooftop solar company, SolarCity Corp. Musk is personally buying $65 million of bonds, San Mateo, California-based SolarCity said in a filing. Lyndon Rive, SolarCity’s chief executive officer, and Peter Rive, its chief technology officer, are each buying $17.5 million. ...

  Bloomberg Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd., Asia’s biggest international carrier, applied to raise $2 billion in debt over the next 12 months. The medium term note program, arranged by HSBC Holdings Plc, is expected to take effect on Wednesday, Cathay Pacific said in a statement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange late Tuesday. Such debt programs are offered to institutional ...

  Bloomberg Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is reviewing Welspun India Ltd.’s cotton certification records after Target Corp. raised concerns that the supplier is passing off cheaper bed sheets as premium Egyptian cotton. Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, plans to hold further discussions with Welspun and “handle it appropriately” if any issues are discovered, according to spokeswoman Marilee McInnis. The chain is ...

  Bloomberg Shoprite Holdings Ltd. would consider expanding outside Africa as the continent’s largest food retailer seeks additional fast-growing markets, Chief Executive Officer Whitey Basson said. “There are countries that have great potential,” Basson said in a phone interview on Tuesday, without giving a timeframe. The company would be wary of overpaying for acquisitions if it decided to use that ...

  Bloomberg Spain’s Nazca Capital is weighing a sale of its private-jet operator Gestair after merging the business with a competitor last year, people familiar with the matter said. Gestair, which manages executive aircraft and runs chartered flights, could attract interest from aviation companies and other buyout firms in a sale, the people said, asking not to be identified because ...

  Bloomberg China’s central bank injected cash into the financial system using 14-day reverse-repurchase agreements for the first time since February amid speculation policy makers are looking to increase the use of more expensive, longer-term funding to cool a bond rally. The People’s Bank of China auctioned 50 billion yuan ($7.5 billion) of the contracts in open-market operations at 2.4 ...