December, 2018

• 9 December

  King Salman opens 39th GCC summit in Riyadh

  

  RIYADH / WAM The 39th session of the GCC Summit was held on Sunday in Riyadh under the chairmanship of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud with the participation of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, who headed the …

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• 9 December

  Eskom’s looming ‘death spiral’ menaces South African economy

  

  Bloomberg Bloated by debt, bled by corruption and battered by structurally declining sales, South African power utility Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd is facing what’s known in the industry as a “death spiral.” And the Johannesburg-based company poses the biggest credit risk to Africa’s most industrialised nation, according to S&P Global Ratings. More than a decade of unreliable supply and surging …

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• 9 December

  India emulating China in LNG use to fight pollution

  

  Bloomberg China’s dramatic increase in liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports ov-er past two years may have hogged the headlines, but India may well emulate its neighbour in switching to the cleanest, fastest-growing fossil fuel. As China’s shift to natural gas from dirtier burning fuels such as coal and fuel oil helps improve air quality, Indian cities are rising in pollution …

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• 9 December

  Canadian Natural cuts capital budget for 2019

  Bloomberg The pipeline shortage that has been strangling the Canadian oil industry is weighing on spending plans for next year, with one major producer slashing its capital budget for 2019 by C$1 billion ($750 million). Canadian Natural Resources Ltd, citing a lack of shipping options, said that it’s targeting a base capital plan of C$3.7 billion for next year, about …

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• 9 December

  Japan coal stalwart adds renewables

  Bloomberg Marubeni Corp, the Japanese trading house for whom coal makes up about a quarter of its power generation, never expected renewable energy prices to plunge as much as they have. Seizing those falling costs, the company plans to add 1 gigawatt of clean energy over the next five years as it halves its coal-fired generation by 2030, according to …

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• 9 December

  Treasuries rally must clear $78bn hurdle, inflation report

  

  Bloomberg After the longest advance in Treasuries since April, bond traders banking on even lower yields have some hurdles to clear as the market prepares to absorb $78 billion in new coupon-bearing debt and some key readings on the economy. A five-week rally has brought benchmark 10-year yields to the brink of the lowest levels in the past six months, …

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• 9 December

  Cryptocurrencies crash sends Bitcoin to another 2018 low

  

  Bloomberg Cryptocurrencies continued their epic slide with a fresh bout of losses after the SEC dashed hopes that a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund would appear before the end of this year. Bitcoin, the largest digital token, slumped as much as 10 percent, taking it down past $3,250 to the lowest level since September 2017, according to consolidated pricing compiled by Bloomberg. …

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• 9 December

  Gradual rate increases apt in near term, says Fed’s Brainard

  

  Bloomberg Federal Reserve Governor Lael Brainard said US economic momentum is strong and a gradual approach to interest-rate increases remains appropriate for now. “The gradual path of increases in the federal funds rate has served us well by giving us time to assess the effects of policy as we have proceeded,’’ Brainard said at a conference at the Peterson Institute …

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• 9 December

  Merkel’s party snubs government stake in Deutsche Bank

  

  Bloomberg German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s ruling party wouldn’t back the government taking a stake in Deutsche Bank AG to strengthen the nation’s financial industry, senior members said. “The argument for a ‘big bank’ can be discussed as a matter of economic policy, but it doesn’t justify the use of taxpayers’ money,” Michael Meister, a member of the Christian Democratic Union’s …

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• 9 December

  Danske Bank shareholders look to brighter future after purge of board

  

  Bloomberg Danske Bank A/S shareholders, who’ve lost more than 40 percent on their investment this year, are looking to a brighter future after the lender took another step to purge its leadership. Denmark’s largest bank replaced its chairman, following October’s ouster of its chief executive officer, as it seeks to atone for its role in one of Europe’s biggest money …

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