Reuters The five US regional banks most exposed to the energy sector set aside millions of dollars more in the first quarter to cover potential losses from bad loans to the struggling oil industry. Overall, provisions for bad loans at Comerica Inc, Regions Financial Corp, KeyCorp, SunTrust Banks Inc and Fifth Third Bancorp more than doubled to $570 million ...

  Dubai / Reuters Oman’s Bank Dhofar, in talks with Bank Sohar on a possible merger, said on Sunday that it communicated the terms for a deal to its smaller rival after completing due diligence. Bank Dhofar, the sultanate’s second-largest lender by assets, said the financial and legal due diligence concluded on April 23, it said in a bourse statement. ...

  Bloomberg Citigroup Inc., Bank of America Corp. and Comerica Inc. should move faster to restructure, including selling more assets, to catch up with competitors that are generating better returns, CLSA Ltd.’s Mike Mayo said. “All three of those banks have failed to create value for every year for the last eight years,” the analyst said. “So our question for ...

  Vienna / Reuters The euro zone needs negative interest rates to avoid sliding into deflation, European Central Bank (ECB) Governing Council member Ewald Nowotny said in an Austrian newspaper interview, defending the policy against widespread criticism in Germany. The ECB kept the cost of borrowing for banks at zero on Thursday and will continue to charge them 0.4 percent ...

  Bloomberg Family Bank Ltd., a closely-held Kenyan lender, plans to raise 4 billion shillings ($40 million) in a share sale to existing investors by June that will be used to fund an East African expansion. The company wants to make a “cautious entry” into markets in the region over the next year, outgoing Managing Director Peter Munyiri told reporters ...

  WASHINGTON / AP U.S. homebuilders’ confidence held steady in April, reflecting an overall optimistic outlook in the market for new homes even as a gauge of current sales fell slightly. The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo builder sentiment index released was unchanged at 58. It hasn’t budged in three months. Readings above 50 indicate more builders view sales ...

  WASHINGTON / AP A rising number of Americans are preparing to renovate their homes this year, a potential boost for the economy, according to projections released by Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies. The report estimates that spending on remodeling and repairs will climb 8.6 percent this year to $310 billion. The gains would bring renovations close to ...

  LOS ANGELES / AP Robert Leviton’s loudest neighbour is a 12-lane freeway. The busy stretch of highway that runs alongside his townhouse complex is visible from his north-facing windows. The drone of passing motorists is audible throughout. He can even hear a muffled version of it when his windows are shut. “I was a little bit worried about how ...

  Dallas / Bloomberg Southwest Airlines Co. reported first-quarter profit that beat analysts’ estimates and said it would speed retirement of its oldest Boeing 737s to better manage pilot training for a new model of the plane. Earnings excluding some items climbed 88 cents a share, beating the 84-cent average of analyst estimates that were recently compiled. Sales rose 9.3 ...

  Bloomberg AutoNation Inc., the largest auto retailer in the US, reversed early-morning losses to reach a five-week high after convincing investors it can weather a plateau in new-vehicle sales and rebound from a quarter that missed analyst expectations. Shares in the dealership group rose 3 percent to $49.49 after touching $50.24, the highest intraday price since March 14. The ...