Bloomberg The North Sea’s Forties Pipeline System — one of the world’s most important crude oil conduits — is fully back in business after being shut earlier this month due to the discovery of a hairline crack. “Ineos confirms the Forties Pipeline System is fully operational,” operator Ineos AG said in a statement. “All restrictions on the flow of oil …

ALGIERS / Reuters Algeria needs to exploit its shale gas resources to offset a surge in local energy consumption that is eating into vital exports, but developing the industry will take time and require far-reaching reforms at the state energy firm. The North African country is a key gas supplier to Europe, but exports have suffered from delays to several …

Bloomberg A provision in the new tax law, intended to prevent American companies from shifting profits abroad to benefit from a lower overseas rate, might also hit the largest foreign banks with significant US operations. Under the Base Erosion and Anti-Abuse Tax, commonly called BEAT, payments made by US businesses to related companies abroad must be counted when calculating global …

Bloomberg The last day of a bitter year for China’s non-bank borrowers proved to be especially painful: they’re now paying a record premium for short-term funds. As interbank lending rates climbed due to banks hoar-ding cash for year-end regulatory checks, the increase was especially significant for non-bank financial institutions, such as securities and insurance companies. A measure of what they’re …

Bloomberg Egypt selected five banks to manage a Eurobond sale of about $4 billion, the finance minister said, as the nation taps cheaper funding sources to bridge its budget gap. The government selected HSBC Holdings Plc, Citigroup Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Morgan Stanley and the National Bank of Abu Dhabi for the sale scheduled around January, Amr El-Garhy said …

Bloomberg Punjab National Bank, India’s second-largest state-run lender, will be able to avoid massive losses after the government forced delinquent borrowers to repay loans or face liquidation proceedings under a new law. The interest and bids received so far for assets put up for sale by India’s new bankruptcy court indicates that the bank may not have to take “huge …

Bloomberg German inflation slowed, underscoring the challenge the European Central Bank will face in 2018 as it gradually removes its stimulus program. Consumer prices rose an annual 1.6 percent, the Federal Statistics Office said. Inflation has remained tepid in Germany even as record-low unemployment bolsters private consumption and a recovery in global trade fuels exports and investment. The Bundesbank this …

Bloomberg Citigroup Inc. is withdrawing from an industry pact designed to allow financial advisers to change companies without being sued by for- mer employers, further unrav- eling the accord after Morgan Stanley and UBS Group AG said they would pull out. “Similar to others in the industry, Citi has decided to exit the protocol,” company spokesman Drew Benson said in …

Bloomberg Nordea Bank AB’s Swedish mortgage loan book continued to shrink in November after the biggest Nordic lender saw the first decline in at least 15 years the previous month. The mortgage book fell to 443.5 billion kronor ($54 billion) in November from 444.7 billion kronor in October, according to Statistics Sweden data. The decline acceler- ated to more than …

Bloomberg Airbus SE completed the year gone by doing what it does best: selling its bread-and-butter narrow-body aircraft. The European manufacturer firmed up its biggest-ever order from Indigo Partners for 430 A320 aircraft—a contract that was previously announced— while also unveiling a new deal for 50 re-engined versions of the same jet. All told, the flurry of activity during the …