News

Bloomberg The cost of California’s controversial high-speed rail project grew to $79 billion, a development likely to embolden opponents such as President Donald Trump, whose administration is already seeking to cancel and claw back federal grants. The segment already under construction in the state’s agricultural region known as the Central Valley is now expected to cost $12.4 billion, up from ...

Bloomberg Volkswagen AG’s first-quarter profit beat expectations and the German carmaker said it’ll meet goals on deliveries and earnings for the year, excluding special items such as legal risks. Excluding legal items of about 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion), VW’s operating profit rose to 4.8 billion euros after boosting sales of lucrative sport utility vehicles and favourable exchange rates. The ...

Bloomberg A Blackstone Group LP unit that buys stakes in alternative asset managers is considering a minority investment in BC Partners, according to people familiar with the matter. Discussions between Blac-kstone Strategic Capital Hol-dings and BC are at an early stage and no deal has been reached, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is ...

DUBAI / Emirates Business The UAE non-oil private sector recorded a sharp monthly improvement in business conditions — the greatest since December 2017, according to Emirates NBD Purchasing Managers’ Index. The composite indicator designed to give an accurate overview of operating conditions in the non-oil private sector economy rose for the second month running in April, hitting 57.6 from 55.7 ...

Bloomberg Cyclone Fani barrelled through the eastern parts of India, unleashing heavy rain and prompting authorities in the country and neighbouring Bangladesh to evacuate a total of more than 3.5 million people to shelters. At least eight people were killed as the windstorm swamped towns and villages, the Press Trust of India reported, citing government officials it didn’t name. Dhaka-based ...

DUBAI / Emirates Business Noor Bank, one of the leading Shari’ah-compliant banks in the UAE, has announced a net profit of AED217 million in Q1 2019, an increase of eight per cent over the same period last year and 220 per cent on last quarter. The Bank’s top-line revenue also rose by eight per cent during the period under review, ...

Bloomberg The Trump administration will renew several key waivers that allow Iran to keep operating a limited civilian nuclear program, a move that heads off a clash with European allies and Tehran over the fate of a 2015 deal that Trump abandoned last year. The US is extending five waivers the administration had previously granted allowing nations that remain in ...

Bloomberg Oil eked out a gain as a forecast-topping US jobs report signalled a strong domestic economy to go along with the supply disruptions squeezing global crude markets. Futures in New York rose 0.2 percent, after unemployment unexpectedly fell to a 49-year low in world’s biggest econ- omy, with cooler-than-projected wage gains. Crude nonetheless recorded a loss for the week ...

Bloomberg Singapore’s Hyflux Ltd, the water and power company battling for survival, said it is in talks with Middle Eastern utility Utico FZC about securing S$400 million ($294 million) of funds, disclosing the identity of the potential investor after receiving a non-binding letter of intent. Hyflux’s legal and financial advisers are in discussions with Utico on the details of the ...

Abu Dhabi / Emirates Business The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) announced on Saturday, that more than 300 young Emiratis have expressed interest in working for the company during Adnoc Technical Academy’s (ATA) 2nd annual ‘Open Day’, where the prospective students and their families learned how ATA’s training program is equipping its students with the skills and tools needed ...