Bloomberg Saudi Arabia’s crude exports jumped in the first half of June, before the world’s largest oil exporter meets with other producer states to thrash out a collective production policy. Observed shipments from the country’s Persian Gulf and Red Sea ports averaged 7.388 million barrels a day during the first 15 days of June, compared with 7.145 million barrels a …

Bloomberg For the first time ever, Moody’s Investors Service cut its outlook for US utilities to negative, warning that the sector’s debt levels have reached their highest since the financial crisis and may remain there for months. The sector’s consolidated debt-to-equity ratio has hit the highest level since 2008 as companies finance mergers, acquisitions and other investments in renewable energy …

Bloomberg The Democratic Republic of Congo plans to start work this year on the frequently delayed Inga 3 hydropower project, after receiving a joint bid from two previously competing consortia of investors. One group led by China Three Gorges Corp and another including Actividades de Construccion y Servicios SA of Spain submitted a joint bid on June 6 for the …

Bloomberg Shale oil hasn’t always been Royal Dutch Shell Plc’s best friend, but they’re working on the relationship. Shell is said to have bid, with partner Blackstone Group LP, on a portfolio of US shale assets BHP Billiton Ltd. wants to sell for about $10 billion. If it wins, the Anglo-Dutch oil major could exceed its goal of doubling its …

Bloomberg Investors dumped riskier assets as a trade dispute between the world’s two largest economies showed signs of deepening and accelerating. Stocks dropped, Treasuries rallied and the dollar climbed with the yen. The S&P 500 sank the most in three weeks with industrial companies getting hit hardest after President Donald Trump threatened tariffs on another $200 billion of Chinese goods, …

Bloomberg A rout in commodities deepened as the threat of a trade war between the world’s two biggest economies intensified, hitting markets from steelmakers to soybeans. As the tit-for-tat trade dispute between the US and China stepped up, a Bloomberg gauge of commodities fell to the lowest since early April, with agriculture being the worst hit. Almost all raw materials …

Bloomberg Harsher Federal Reserve stress tests this year won’t stop US banks from increasing their payouts to shareholders. As the annual review gets underway this week, the 25 largest lenders are gearing up to announce dividends and buybacks totaling roughly $30 billion more than last year, representing a 25 percent increase, according to analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg. JPMorgan Chase …

Bloomberg Economists are increasingly questioning whether the Bank of England will raise interest rates in the coming months. Less than 55 percent of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg expect a hike in August, down from 60 percent in a similar poll in May. BOE officials are gathering this week for their June policy meeting, the minutes of which have the potential …

Bloomberg Chanda Kochhar, chief executive officer of ICICI Bank Ltd. will be going on leave as a panel appointed by the lender probes allegations against her. The bank’s board, which met in Mumbai, has decided to accept her request for going on leave, according to exchange filings. Sandeep Bakhshi, CEO of ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Co., will be chief operating …

Bloomberg The People’s Bank of China is using both money and words to try to ease market concerns about escalating trade tensions and the weakening economy. The central bank injected another 200 billion yuan ($31 billion) into the economy via its medium-term lending facility on Tuesday. Combined with the funds it added earlier this month, that’s a net injection of …