Bloomberg Sinopec Corp. aims to raise spending to the highest since 2014, joining state-owned peers in their mission to churn out more domestic oil and gas to ease China’s reliance on imports. Refining profit tumbled in the fourth quarter. Capital expenditure is budgeted at 136.3 billion yuan ($20.3 billion) this year, the world’s largest refiner said in a statement to …

Bloomberg The Brexit-inspired decline in London’s property values has yet to cause any serious ripples in other areas of the UK. While price-growth and activity may be slowing amid the uncertainty, almost every other major urban area in the country is still experiencing a rising market, according to Acadata. It’s a national divide that’s all too apparent to real estate …

Bloomberg Direct lenders are gearing up for more business in the UK as they see banks shrinking their sterling corporate loan books in the wake of Brexit-linked volatility and slower economic growth. Private credit fund managers say they are already witnessing an increase in deal flow as traditional lenders turn more cautious in the run up to Britain leaving the …

Bloomberg The Bank of England (BOE) said more companies are triggering plans for a no-deal Brexit as it kept policy in a holding pattern while the government takes withdrawal talks to the brink. Around two-thirds of firms surveyed by the central bank said they had started implementing contingencies for a disorderly departure from the European Union. About 80 percent judged …

Bloomberg Federal Reserve nominee Stephen Moore called the Fed’s December interest-rate hike “a very substantial mistake” while adding that he looks forward to working with Chairman Jerome Powell to help ensure the US economy continues to expand. “Everyone would now acknowledge that what they did in December with the rate increase — it was a very substantial mistake,” Moore said …

Bloomberg The US imposed sanctions against Venezuela’s national development bank and four financial institutions it controls, alleging it helped prop up the government of the country’s president, Nicolas Maduro. The penalties were imposed on Banco de Desarrollo Economico y Social de Venezuela, or Bandes, the Treasury Department said. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin cited the arrest of opposition leader Juan Guaido’s …

Bloomberg The Philippine central bank left its benchmark interest rate unchanged in Governor Benjamin Diokno’s first policy meeting, as officials remained cautious even as inflation eases. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas held the overnight reverse repurchase rate at 4.75 percent, it said in a statement in Manila, in line with the forecasts of all 21 economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The ratio …

Bloomberg Boeing Co has spent decades spreading big money around Washington. Now the aerospace giant will need to lean on its network of lawmakers and lobbyists as it grapples with one of the worst crises in its history. The company has almost tripled its spending on US politicians and political committees in the past decade. It’s also shelled out $15 …

Bloomberg Sycamore Partners is looking to take most of its cash out of Staples Inc through a recapitalisation that will saddle the company with roughly $1 billion of additional debt, according to people with knowledge of the plan. If successful, the debt sale will allow the private equity firm to recoup roughly two-thirds of the $1.6 billion it put up …

Bloomberg India is mulling options to save jobs at Jet Airways India Ltd including asking low-cost carrier SpiceJet Ltd to consider taking over some of the debt-laden company’s aircraft, people with knowledge of the matter said. The proposal involves SpiceJet, led by Chairman Ajay Singh, acquiring as many as 40 of Jet Airways’ grounded planes that are owned by lessors, …