February, 2019

• 5 February

  Total weighs bid for Eneco Group in challenge to Shell

  

  Bloomberg French oil giant Total SA is working with advisers as it weighs an offer for Eneco Groep NV, joining a number of financial and industry bidders for the Dutch utility, including rival Royal Dutch Shell Plc, people familiar with the matter said. The firm, which is owned by dozens of Dutch municipalities and is due to be auctioned this …

  Read More »
• 5 February

  Gas shortage idles US auto factories

  Bloomberg The three largest automakers in US suspended some operations on the coldest day of the year after a fire at a Southeast Michigan natural gas facility drastically reduced their supply of the heating fuel. Energy prices soared as freezing weather spread into the Northeast and closed a nuclear reactor in New Jersey. CMS Energy Corp.’s Consumers Energy utility sends …

  Read More »
• 5 February

  Bezos loses out to billionaire Ambani in India e-retail battle

  

  Bloomberg Amazon.com and Walmart Inc.’s plans to dominate India’s online retail landscape have been ambushed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s political priorities heading into a tightening election. The vote, which must be held by May, has increased the influence of local retailers that lobbied for growth-crimping curbs on the US giants. On cue, India this month rolled out constraints on …

  Read More »
• 5 February

  Australian retail sales see biggest slump in a year

  

  Bloomberg Australian retail sales suffered the biggest drop in 12 months and imports slumped by the most in almost seven years, raising doubts about the resilience of household spending. Sales fell 0.4 percent in December, compared with estimates for an unchanged reading, statistics bureau data showed on Tuesday. Imports dropped 6 percent in the month, the worst result since February …

  Read More »
• 5 February

  Ocado in talks with retailers on potential deals

  

  Bloomberg Ocado Group Plc said it is talking to retailers about potential deals, renewing speculation about a possible partnership with Marks & Spencer Group Plc. The UK online grocer signed a number of technology licensing agreements in 2018, including a mammoth partnership with Kroger Co. in which the US supermarket chain agreed to buy a stake. Talk that Ocado might …

  Read More »
• 5 February

  dnata launches new resource management system in Dubai

  

  Dubai / Emirates Business dnata, one of the world’s largest air services providers, continues to drive innovation in the Middle East aviation industry by launching a new resource management system in Dubai. The new system, which includes a leading-edge software platform and advanced analytic tools, will help the company optimise operations and efficiently manage its 20,000 employees and resources at …

  Read More »
• 5 February

  European airline crews ditch Venezuela layovers

  Bloomberg The mounting political crisis in Venezuela has prompted European airlines to add a stop in the Caribbean so that pilots and flight attendants don’t have to spend the night in the strife-torn country. Spanish airline Iberia has begun using Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic as a staging post for its three weekly services from Madrid to Caracas, while …

  Read More »
• 5 February

  US futures rise as Europe stocks jump on results

  

  Bloomberg US equity futures advanced on Tuesday, taking their cue from a rally in Europe after strong earnings from oil giant BP. The euro edged lower and the pound weakened. Contracts on the S&P 500, Nasdaq and Dow Jones indexes all gained ground through the European morning after a lackluster start, though Google-parent Alphabet Inc. slipped in early trading after …

  Read More »
• 5 February

  Goldman Sachs says don’t hold your breath for big stock returns

  

  Bloomberg Investors that didn’t profit from the equity rally in January, missed out on most of the returns for the year, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc. strategists. “The dislocation at the outset of the year — when markets had overpriced the slowdown — has almost disappeared,” said the strategists led by Sharon Bell. “The rally we expected has happened …

  Read More »
• 5 February

  Deutsche Bank options shrink as revenue extends declines

  

  Bloomberg Christian Sewing’s options for turning around Deutsche Bank AG are shrinking. After an eighth straight quarter of declining revenue, reaction from investors and analysts suggested that the cost cutting at the heart of the chief executive’s strategy won’t be enough to keep markets at bay. “I can hardly see a future for Deutsche Bank as long as there’s no …

  Read More »