Bloomberg The Japanese stock market got an extra lift around 10:30 am on July 12 in Tokyo. China had started trading, and it had opened higher. But that was a rare lucky day for investors who got used to losses this year, with the Topix index becoming one of the worst performers among developed-market gauges. As the US-China trade conflict …

Bloomberg It was supposed to be the best of times for the biggest US banks: Rising interest rates and corporate tax cuts would boost profitability and spur lending, while deregulation lowered costs. The optimism didn’t last. Loan books probably expanded only slightly last quarter while revenue failed to match the acceleration posted in the first three months of the year, …

Bloomberg Pakistan’s central bank increased its key rate for a second straight meeting as economic pressures build ahead of a tense national vote. The target policy rate was raised to 7.5 percent from 6.5 percent, State Bank of Pakistan Governor Tariq Bajwa said in a Karachi briefing. The increase by 100 basis points was predicted by nine economists in a …

Bloomberg Blackstone Group LP plans to start raising its next global private equity fund three years after gathering about $18 billion from investors for its last pool. The firm is expected to seek more than $20 billion when it starts marketing its eighth buyout fund later this year, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be …

Bloomberg Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. (MUFG) is considering job cuts at its securities operations overseas to keep them profitable. The brokerage arm of Japan’s biggest bank may reduce headcount in the UK and the US, reflecting market conditions, Mitsubishi UFJ Securities Holdings Co. Chief Executive Officer Saburo Araki said, without giving details. The firm had 605 employees in Europe and …

Bloomberg When an indebted infant health-care company in Atlanta wanted to borrow hundreds of millions of dollars to buy a rival in Pasadena, it turned to a lender thousands of miles away in London. Barclays Plc is helping Aveanna Healthcare LLC get a $221 million loan for its purchase of Premier Healthcare Services LLC, adding to a $900 million debt …

Bloomberg Airbus SE is closing in on a blockbuster agreement to sell $23 billion worth of aircraft, based on list prices, to AirAsia Group Bhd., according to people familiar with the matter. The Malaysian airline, already the second-biggest customer for Airbus’s re-engined A320 narrowbody, is weighing an order for as many as 100 A321neo aircraft, according to people familiar with …

Bloomberg Walmart Inc. said it’s committed to building its Japanese business, downplaying media reports that the retailing giant will sell its Seiyu chain. “Walmart has not made a decision to sell Seiyu, we are not in any discussions with prospective buyers,” the company said in an emailed statement. “We continue to build our Japan business towards the future to meet …

Bloomberg JetBlue Airways Corp. got a great deal on its latest aircraft purchase from Airbus SE, according to Moody’s Investors Service. The carrier will probably pay $1.4 billion to $1.7 billion for 60 Airbus A220-300 jets, or between $23 million and $28 million per plane, Moody’s analyst Jonathan Root said in a report, citing estimates by appraisers and price breaks …

Bloomberg Burberry Group Plc is still waiting for new leadership to revive the brand, as it trails rival luxury-goods makers in the all-important Chinese market. The shares fell as investors were disappointed by the British fashion brand’s latest quarterly sales in Asia, which MainFirst analyst John Guy called “actually pretty poor” in light of surging demand for luxury products in …