News

Bloomberg Jack Dorsey’s latest bet is positively old-school. Square Inc., the mobile payments processor run by Dorsey, unveiled its first physical store to offer hands-on support for merchants using its technology and showcase some of their wares. To most passersby, the cozy space looks like any other boutique store in Manhattan’s Nolita neighbourhood, with eclectic merchandise for sale like handmade ...

Bloomberg Hudson’s Bay Co., the owner of the Saks Fifth Avenue and Lord & Taylor chains, spiked as much as 14 percent after Reuters reported the company is reviewing its strategic options. The department-store company, which has already hired an investment bank as it responds to pressure from activist shareholder Land & Buildings Investment Management LLC, plans to hire an ...

Bloomberg German automakers must invest more in electric vehicles and take on Elon Musk’s Tesla Inc., Chancellor Angela Merkel’s chief of staff said Saturday. Peter Altmaier said he was thoroughly disappointed by German auto executives following the diesel-emissions scandal and that he was also thinking about the future of the 600,000 employees in the industry. “When is our automobile industry, ...

Bloomberg Jeff Bezos is about to one-up your grocery store loyalty program. Today, millions of consumers get lower prices and other perks in exchange for favouring one store chain over another. Starting Monday, Amazon.com Inc. will lavish its most loyal customers with similar benefits and more when they shop at Whole Foods Market Inc., the high-end grocery chain it’s buying ...

KHOBAR / Reuters­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­ Saudi Arabia and China are to cooperate on nuclear energy projects following discussions between the two countries on ways to support the kingdom’s nuclear energy programme, state news agency SPA reported. Saudi Arabia has been for years trying to diversify its energy mix so that it can export more of its oil, rather than burning it at ...

SINGAPORE / DUBAI / Reuters Iraq’s proposal to change the way it prices crude oil in Asia faces resistance from refiners who fear that longer lead times between pricing and deliveries will expose them to more risk. Iraq’s state oil marketer SOMO surprised traders this week by seeking feedback on plans to switch its Basra crude benchmark in Asia to ...

Bloomberg PetroChina Co. took a page from the playbook of global peers known for generous dividends by deciding to pay shareholders its entire half-year net income. China’s biggest oil producer passed on to investors the benefits of higher global prices with almost 12.7 billion yuan ($1.9 billion) in dividends, the Beijing-based company said as it reported earnings that beat estimates. ...

CAIRO / Reuters Egypt’s Carbon Holdings aims to finalise funding and start building its massive Tahrir petrochemicals project by June, producing raw materials desperately needed to boost the country’s industrial sector, its chief executive told Reuters. The $10.6 billion scheme in the Suez Canal Economic Zone will be the largest petrochemicals project in Egypt. Carbon Holdings CEO Basil El-Baz sees ...

Bloomberg Grab, Southeast Asia’s biggest ride-hailing app, plans to invest $100 million in Myanmar as it extends its battle with Uber Technologies Inc. to capture exploding use of smartphones. Grab will invest the money over the next three years and work with local governments to expand ride-hailing to more cities and roll out services such as its in-app digital payment ...

Bloomberg Singapore’s electronics output surged almost 50 percent in July from a year earlier, underpinning overall manufacturing in the city state and signaling a global trade recovery is holding up. Industrial production rose 21 percent, the fastest pace in seven months, beating all 17 forecasts in a Bloomberg survey of economists. The electronics cluster, which includes products such as semiconductors, ...