January, 2018

• 13 January

  VW, Uber to use Nvidia AI for self-driving

  

  Bloomberg Nvidia Corp., trying to spread its industry-leading graphics chip technology into new areas, said Uber Technologies Inc. and Volkswagen AG will use its artificial intelligence expertise to help bring self-driving cars to the roads. Uber, the largest ride-hailing company, will use Nvidia processors and software for its forthcoming fleet of self-driving vehicles, the chipmaker’s Chief Executive Officer Jen-Hsun Huang …

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• 13 January

  Fitbit’s smartwatch for children can track sugar level, too

  

  Bloomberg Fitbit Inc. is considering developing a wearable device for children, according to people familiar with the matter, as the company struggles to revive demand for its fitness products by pushing into new hardware categories. The product was focussed around health, a sector Fitbit has been increasingly focussed on, according to one of the people. The line of gadgets for …

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• 13 January

  Warning lights flash up in Asia as oil price hits $70

  

  SINGAPORE / Reuters Oil prices have risen above $70 per barrel for the first time since 2014 as investors bet supply cuts led by OPEC will dominate the market this year. But some traders are sounding a warning — the world’s biggest crude consuming region, Asia, is showing signs of an impending downward correction. Prices for Brent crude oil futures, …

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• 13 January

  Kazakhstan overtakes Iraq as OPEC pact’s biggest over-producer

  

  Bloomberg Kazakhstan has overtaken Iraq to become the biggest over-producer in the pact between OPEC and its allies to curb oil output. The Caspian Sea nation’s output has been rising over the past year as the giant Kashagan field ramps up production. That’s in spite of Kazakhstan’s pledge to pump 20,000 barrels a day less under the landmark deal agreed …

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• 13 January

  India’s oil consumption slows to 4-year low

  

  NEW DELHI / Reuters Indian oil consumption in 2017 grew at its slowest in four years, according to government statistics, hit by the government’s demonetisation move and a tax increase that knocked the gain in fuel use back to a modest 2.3 percent. The low growth also coincided with another year of weak, albeit improving, new vehicle sales. Last year’s …

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• 13 January

  2018 shaping up to be ‘year of oil frackers’

  Bloomberg Less than two weeks in, 2018 is shaping up to be the year of the fracker. The world’s two biggest oilfield service providers, Schlumberger Ltd. and Baker Hughes, are the best performers in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Energy Index this year. Even smaller rivals are cashing in on investor enthusiasm over a 50 percent rise in oil prices …

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• 13 January

  Shell braces for change by expanding foothold in electricity

  

  Bloomberg Royal Dutch Shell Plc is taking small steps towards a future dominated by electric cars, renewable energy and carbon constraints, demonstrating its intent not to remain solely an oil and gas company. The energy giant agreed last month to purchase First Utility Ltd., the UK’s seventh-largest power provider. Its offshore-wind partnership with Eneco may expand further, with newspaper Telegraaf …

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• 13 January

  Draghi unheeded as ECB minutes prompt new bets on 2018 hike

  

  Bloomberg The European Central Bank is again struggling to get the message across to markets that any unwinding of stimulus will be slow and steady. The euro soared, bonds slid and investors this week stepped up bets that interest rates will rise before the end of 2018, disregarding President Mario Draghi’s assurances that no such thing will happen until well …

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• 13 January

  HSBC hires from Goldman, JPMorgan for Asia equities

  Bloomberg HSBC Holdings Plc made a slew of hires from rivals including Goldman Sachs Group Inc. as the bank revamps its equities business in the Asia-Pacific region and expands a nascent majority-owned securities venture in China, people familiar with the matter said. Among the recent additions are Michael Parry, who joined from Goldman Sachs as a director focused on Asian …

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• 13 January

  Investors to central banks: Monetary policy planning could roil markets

  

  Bloomberg Global central banks are being served a sharp reminder by investors that their monetary policy planning carries the potential to roil the financial markets in 2018. A minor tweak in the Bank of Japan’s bond-purchase operation saw the yen strengthen more than 1 percent in two days. A change in the way China’s central bank manages the yuan sparked …

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