International News

  London/ AFP With one month to go before Britain’s vital in-out EU referendum, London’s City finance district is busily planning ahead for a potential “Brexit”. Big City firms, many of which are housed in skyscrapers that dominate the London skyline, are seeking to protect themselves from market volatility should Britons vote “Leave”, experts say. Major players like HSBC and ...

  Bloomberg Chinese officials plan to ask their American counterparts in annual talks next month about the chance of a Federal Reserve interest-rate increase in June, according to people familiar with the matter. The Chinese delegation will try to deduce whether a June or a July rate rise is more likely, as their nation’s policy makers prepare for the potential ...

  Bloomberg Brazil recorded an unexpected current account surplus last month, the first since April 2009, as a prolonged economic recession curbed imports and companies sent less profits abroad. The surplus in the current account, the broadest measure of trade in goods and services, reached $412 million in April after a revised deficit of $857 million in the previous month, ...

  Bloomberg Oil extended its advance to near $50 a barrel as weekly U.S. industry data showed crude stockpiles declined, easing a glut. Futures rose as much as 1.7 percent in New York on Wednesday, marking a third day of gains. U.S. oil inventories, which are near the highest in 80 years, dropped by 5.14 million barrels last week, the ...

  Bloomberg The World Bank’s International Finance Corporation is more than tripling its investment in Argentina this year after President Mauricio Macri’s government began carrying out economic reforms and resolved a 15-year legal battle with holdout creditors. The IFC will lend about $1.8 billion to Argentina’s private sector this calendar year compared with $500 million in 2015, Liz Bronder, director ...

Bloomberg Climate activists seeking to pull investors into their camp are pushing Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp. to limit money spent on exploration in favor of higher dividends and more share buybacks. Shareholders will vote on proposals that would urge the two biggest U.S. oil producers to cut what they spend opening up new oil fields and instead hand ...

  Tokyo / Bloomberg Sony Corp. forecast annual profit that fell short of estimates, hurt by costs to repair a factory that was damaged in the Kyushu earthquake, lost sales and slowing demand for smartphone components. Net income will probably decline 46 percent to 80 billion yen ($732 million) in the 12 months ending March 2017, the Tokyo-based company said ...

  Tokyo / Bloomberg Southeast Asia’s Internet economy, spanning online shopping to games and advertising, will surge sixfold to about $200 billion in the next decade, according to joint research by Google Inc. and Temasek Holdings Pte. As more consumers get online and shop from smartphones, e-commerce in the region could jump to $88 billion by 2025, a 16-fold increase, ...

  Tokyo / AP Toyota said it will recall nearly 1.6 million more vehicles in the United States to correct possible defects in front passenger air bag inflators made by the Japanese company Takata. The decision, which was announced late on Monday, was made based on recent information from both Takata and the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), ...

  Moscow / The Diplomat Russia has inked a new deal with Laos for the repair of military equipment. According to media reports, Russian Helicopters, which is part of the state firm Rostec, signed the contract with the Laotian defense ministry. Under the four-year deal, experts from the firm will carry out helicopter repairs. Among the equipment to be serviced ...