Bloomberg The Bank of England (BOE) plans to increase capital requirements for UK lenders by 11.4 billion pounds ($14.5 billion) to tackle risks posed by consumer credit growth and prepare for the uncertain outcome of Brexit talks. The BOE set the countercyclical capital buffer at 0.5 percent of risk-weighted assets for UK loans effective in June 2018. “Absent a material ...

Bloomberg Bankia SA agreed to acquire Banco Mare Nostrum SA (BMN) in an all-stock deal, part of a plan by Spain to recoup the costs of bailing out lenders following the country’s property bust. Bankia, the country’s fourth-biggest bank by market capitalization, will issue new stock amounting to 6.7 percent of its post-merger capital to the shareholders of Banco Mare ...

Bloomberg Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. (ANZ) told a US court that its commodities trading arm suffered ‘substantial losses’ after it discovered that receipts for metal held in Glencore Plc’s Access World warehouses are probably fake. When ANZ looked into selling the nickel, it discovered 83 out of 84 receipts it held were likely forgeries, the Australian lender ...

Bloomberg As Italian taxpayers contemplate the $19 billion bill to clean up two failed Veneto banks, Intesa Sanpaolo SpA shareholders cheered. The nation’s second-largest bank is taking over the good assets of Banca Popolare di Vicenza SpA and Veneto Banca SpA for 1 euro and will also receive 5.2 billion euros ($5.83 billion) from the state to maintain its capital ...

Bloomberg Mozambique’s smaller banks should combine in an effort to overcome the blow dealt by government debt defaults after four lenders failed over nine months. The country’s debt crisis threatens to unravel efforts by the central bank to strengthen the nation’s financial system through the introduction of new capital and liquidity rules. Central bank Governor Rogerio Zandamela said last week ...

Bloomberg Two and a half years after SpiceJet Ltd was forced to ground its entire fleet on its inability to pay a mere US$2.2 million in fuel bills, the budget airline has become the world’s best-performing airline stock — with US$26 billion in plane orders to boot. The company’s co-founder and Chairman Ajay Singh has played the white knight, injecting ...

Bloomberg Thai Airways International Pcl said it plans to modernize its fleet by replacing almost 30 older aircraft over the next five years, adding to the climbing demand for planes in Asia. The state-run airline is seeking new generation aircraft offering greater comfort and fuel efficiency, and is talking with both Airbus SE and Boeing Co., Chairman Areepong Bhoocha-Oom said ...

Bloomberg American Airlines Group Inc. will find a new supplier to make uniforms for 70,000 employees, following thousands of complaints by flight attendants who said the current outfits were making them ill. The carrier is selecting a new provider and won’t renew its contract with Twin Hill, a unit of Tailored Brands Inc., American said in a letter to employees. ...

PARIS / Reuters The new chief executive of Italy’s defence and aerospace group Leonardo will target the Gulf and Far East as part of an aggressive expansion drive to boost its international presence, according to company and government insiders. After years of cuts to defence budgets that have curbed demand for military equipment, including in Italy, Alessandro Profumo is looking ...

SINGAPORE / Reuters Fuel oil profit margins have surged to their highest in more than five years on lower supplies and rising demand from electric power generators, which may push some refiners to increase their runs. Fuel oil, the residue left over after initial crude refining, has become scarce in Asia as refiners make their plants more complex by upgrading ...