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OPEC deal extension isn’t enough to rope in crude oil bulls

Bloomberg The good news from OPEC wasn’t good enough. Hedge funds trimmed bets on rising crude prices to the lowest level since November as oil futures dipped below $50 a barrel amid skepticism an OPEC-led campaign to cut output will soon curb a worldwide supply glut. Speculators fled bearish positions for a second week. During the reporting period, the Organization ...

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S Korea drafts $10 billion extra budget to boost jobs

Bloomberg South Korea’s finance ministry has drawn up an 11.2 trillion won ($10 billion) supplementary budget to help meet President Moon Jae-in’s effort to increase jobs and incomes. If passed by the parliament, the finance ministry plans to use 4.2 trillion won of the spending package to create 86,000 new jobs, 71,000 of them in the public sector, including positions ...

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Jewellers rally as India sets gold tax lower than expected

Bloomberg Shares of jewellers climbed in India after the government set the rate for gold under the uniform goods and services tax below expectations, signaling a potential recovery in demand in the world’s second-largest market. Titan Co. advanced as much as 15 percent to a record 542.50 rupees ($8.4) in Mumbai, while Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri Ltd. increased as much as ...

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Cement makers see China-led bonanza as Pak spends billions

Bloomberg In his air-conditioned office protected from the scorching heat and dust outside, S.M. Imran points at a white lined map pinned on his wall showing Power Cement Ltd.’s planned expansion at its plant in Pakistan’s arid southern Sindh province. Power Cement is aiming to triple capacity, riding a wave of Chinese-financed infrastructure projects across Pakistan valued at more than ...

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MobiKwik sees India cash ban ‘opportunity’ delaying profit goal

Bloomberg One MobiKwik Systems Pvt., one of India’s largest digital-payment providers, is pushing back its target for profitability by a year as it invests more in its business to capitalize on the government’s shock ban on high-value rupee notes. The demonetization drive announced late last year created a digital-payments market at least 30 times bigger than what the company had ...

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Canada trade disappoints with April deficit, March markdown

Bloomberg Canada’s trade deficit was wider than forecast in April, and there was further disappointment in revised figures showing larger gaps in the prior two months. Imports exceeded exports by C$370 million ($274 million) in April, Statistics Canada said in Ottawa. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists was for shortfall of C$20 million. In addition to the ...

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Germany, France keep euro-area growth pace at 6-year high

Bloomberg Euro-area manufacturing and services continued to expand at the fastest pace in six years, powered by growth in the region’s two biggest economies — Germany and France. A composite Purchasing Managers’ Index held at 56.8 in May, unchanged from the previous month, IHS Markit said on Monday, confirming a May 23 estimate. A gauge for services slipped slightly, while ...

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UK domestic demand boosts manufacturing sector

Bloomberg UK manufacturing activity maintained its momentum in May and confidence rose as strong domestic demand buoyed orders. IHS Markit’s Purchasing Managers Index was at 56.7 in May after reaching 57.3 the previous month, which was the highest in three years. The reading was better than economists had forecast and keeps the index comfortably above the 50 level dividing expansion ...

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PwC probe over Tesco scandal dropped by accounting regulator

Bloomberg A regulatory probe into PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP related to Tesco Plc’s accounting scandal was dropped as the Financial Reporting Council said there was little chance of an adverse finding in the case. The FRC said in a statement on Monday, however, that it would continue investigating other Tesco auditors. The decision is the latest twist in a nearly three-year-old saga ...

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Arab nations cut ties with Qatar as Gulf rift deepens

Bloomberg Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain severed their ties with Qatar on Monday, accusing it of supporting terrorism and opening up the worst rift in years among some of the most powerful states in the Arab world. Iran—long at odds with Saudi Arabia and a behind-the-scenes target of the move—immediately blamed US President Donald Trump for ...

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