BLOOMBERG Brazil’s economic and political crises are proving to be a boon to one of the nation’s most embattled sectors: ethanol producers. Drivers, who used to switch between ethanol and gas depending on the price gap, are now just going for the cheaper, less-efficient ethanol as they try to cut short-term spending amid a battle with inflation as high as …

Bloomberg With liquidity in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region falling and economic growth cooling, companies want to maximise the efficiency of their cashflow and working capital finance. They are starting to look for more complex instruments, driving change in the banking sector. Traditionally, firms sourcing supplies from abroad simply used letters of credit (LCs). The LC then allowed the …

Frankfurt / AFP Deutsche Bank has announced further results of the bond buyback scheme aimed at boosting confidence in its financial solidity, insisting that the low take-up was proof of investors’ trust in Germany’s biggest lender. Earlier this month, Deutsche Bank had announced plans to repurchase up to $2.0 billion of dollar-denominated securities, as well as 3.0 billion euros of …

London / Bloomberg British bank Barclays on Tuesday said net losses more than doubled last year and announced plans to gradually reduce its majority stake in the group’s African unit. Barclays also said it would split the company overall into two units, Barclays UK and Barclays Corporate and International, as it undergoes major restructuring under new chief chief executive Jes …

Kuala Lumpur / Bloomberg Giles Ong, Malayan Banking Bhd.’s head of Asia investment banking, is leaving after building the advisory business beyond the lender’s home market during his four-year tenure. Ong, 46, tendered his resignation last week, according to an e-mail he sent to colleagues that was obtained by Bloomberg News. In a telephone interview Tuesday, he confirmed the contents …

London / Bloomberg The Bank of England (BOE) defied European Union regulators by retaining a bonus-cap exemption for smaller UK financial firms, as the bloc’s policy makers reassess remuneration rules that have been repeatedly blasted by British regulators. The BOE and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said that they will comply with all EU remuneration rules apart from applying the …

BEIJING / Bloomberg China’s political leaders identified aerospace as one of 10 key industries in the country’s quest to become an advanced industrialised nation. Ahead of this weekend’s annual legislative session, Western planemakers — their future competitors — are helping them toward that goal. Airbus Group SE will break ground on Wednesday on a finishing center for its wide-body A330 …

Frankfurt / AFP German retail sales, a closely watched measure of household confidence, rose in January, suggesting consumer sentiment in Europe’s top economy remains robust, official data showed on Monday. Retailers’ sales expanded by 0.7 percent in January compared with December, the federal statistics office Destatis said in a statement. The previous month, retail sales had risen by 0.6 percent. …

Auckland / Bloomberg A Boeing Co. 777-200LR will touch down in Auckland, New Zealand, on Wednesday after journeying 8,824 miles from Dubai, grabbing the title of world’s longest scheduled airline flight for Gulf carrier Emirates. Not to be outdone, Qatar Airways will this year offer services to Santiago in Chile, some 140 miles further again, as well as its own …

Bloomberg Amazon chose “leap day” to announce its tie-up with British supermarket chain Wm Morrison. Internet delivery specialist Ocado would no doubt prefer to wipe this particular date from the calendar. The arrival of Amazon on the scene isn’t great for British grocers Tesco, Sainsbury and Wal-Mart’s Asda, who are doing battle with German price-slashers Aldi and Lidl. For Ocado, …