Once upon a time, there was a lot of optimism that the blockchain — the technology underlying Bitcoin — would help the finance industry deal with a big headache: post-trade processing, the often long and arduous task of making sure money and securities change hands and everybody knows who owes what to whom. The problem might yet get solved, …

  Reuters Stock markets in the United Arab Emirates and Qatar jumped on Monday as crude oil prices shot to their highest since mid-2015, but the uptrend in Saudi Arabia lost steam as investors anticipated the state budget. Brent crude soared as high as $57.89 per barrel on Monday morning in response to the weekend deal between OPEC and non-OPEC …

  BEIJING / AP Stocks fell on Monday ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting that is expected to raise US interest rates, while oil prices jumped after several non-OPEC countries agreed to join the cartel in cutting output. KEEPING SCORE: Britain’s FTSE 100 was down 0.3 percent to 6,933 and Germany’s DAX shed 0.2 percent to 11,186. France’s CAC 40 …

  Bloomberg Demand for plane tickets at Southwest Airlines Co. has climbed since Election Day, the carrier’s chief executive said, adding that he’s encouraged by President-elect Donald Trump’s stated plans to unwind regulations, cut corporate taxes and build infrastructure. “There’s definitely a lift in spirit,” Gary Kelly said in an interview at Bloomberg’s headquarters in New York, citing the stock …

  Bloomberg The US Transportation Department proposed requiring airlines to tell consumers if passengers can use mobile phones for calls during their flight, and said it’s considering banning voice calls, rekindling a years-long debate centered on jabbering seatmates in close-quarter cabins. “Consumers deserve to have clear and accurate information about whether an airline permits voice calls before they purchase a …

  Bloomberg The aviation industry is set to post record net earnings this year and is expected to remain profitable in 2017, despite rising oil prices and global political turbulence, its trade association said. “Airlines continue to deliver strong results. This year we expect a record net profit of $35.6 billion” (33 billion euros), said Alexandre de Juniac, the new …

  Bloomberg Lululemon Athletica Inc. soared the most in more than eight years after third-quarter earnings blew past analysts’ estimates and sales showed signs of strengthening as the yogawear maker heads into the holiday season. Profit in the quarter was 47 cents a share, excluding some items, the Vancouver-based company said in a statement. Analysts estimated 43 cents on average. …

  Bloomberg WeChat lets users text friends, post selfies and pay a gas bill with a smartphone. From now, the blockbuster Chinese app, known as Weixin Pay in China, can also be used to buy a Java Chip Frappuccino. Starbucks Corp. said it will accept the payments system at about 2,500 of its cafes across China, enabling customers to complete …

  Bloomberg Deutsche Bank AG employees may have manipulated internal indexes as part of an allegedly fraudulent scheme to help Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA conceal losses, according to an audit commissioned by German regulators. The study, requested by watchdog Bafin and seen by Bloomberg, says an internal Deutsche Bank review described ‘abnormalities’ in the values of proprietary …

  Bloomberg Credit Suisse Group AG rose in Zurich trading, leading European bank shares higher, as Chief Executive Officer Tidjane Thiam pledged to cut an additional 1 billion Swiss francs ($1 billion) in expenses and lowe- red profit targets that were seen as too ambitious. Thiam, who was updating investors after cutting more than 6,000 jobs this year as part …