June, 2020

• 28 June

  Nigeria’s NNPC opens to scrutiny

  

  Bloomberg Nigeria’s powerful state oil company, whose finances and operations have been shrouded in secrecy for decades, is opening itself up to greater public scrutiny. The Nigerian National Petroleum Corp (NNPC) published its 2018 annual report, which contained an audited account of all its 20 units for the first time in its 43-year history. The 2019 figures are set to ...

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• 28 June

  Occidental sells $2b in debut junk bond deal

  

  Bloomberg Occidental Petroleum Corp sold $2 billion of high-yield bonds to help push out its steep maturity wall. The company issued unsecured bonds in three parts, including a $500 million five-year bond with a yield of 8%. It also priced a $500 million seven-year note at a yield of 8.5%, and a $1 billion 10-year bond with a yield of ...

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• 28 June

  India refiners halt Venezuela oil imports

  

  Bloomberg India’s largest private refinery halted purchases of Venezuelan oil, putting additional pressure on the Latin American country’s beleaguered oil industry. Reliance Industries Ltd, which runs the biggest refinery in the world in Jamnagar and accounted for 25% of Venezuela’s exports last year, has no plans at the moment to make future purchases, according to people with knowledge of the ...

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• 28 June

  A Biden presidency may be what markets need

  

  Joe Biden’s growing lead in the presidential polls combined with recent stock-market turbulence has some Wall Street observers wondering if markets are getting nervous about the odds of Democratic victories in November. This anxiety among investors may very well be misplaced, reflecting old and off-base stereotypes of what the two political parties are trying to accomplish. Just as investors were ...

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• 28 June

  PE loves Virgin Australia for its loyalty

  

  What could possibly attract Bain Capital about an airline that hardly ever generates cash? Loyalty is almost certain to be the answer. Administrators for Virgin Australia Holdings Ltd at Deloitte agreed to sell the second-ranked Australian airline to the private equity firm after it collapsed in April owing A$6.8 billion ($4.7 billion). In a sign of what a difficult path ...

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• 28 June

  Microsoft stores never made sense anyway!

  Microsoft Corp was never going to rival Apple Inc in retail, or gain much from it. The coronavirus pandemic provided a good opportunity to face that fact and throw in the towel. The software giant announced it will permanently close all of its Microsoft Store brick-and-mortar locations. The company’s stores, which were primarily based inside malls, were temporarily shuttered in ...

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• 28 June

  China should join trade deal US abandoned

  The Covid-19 pandemic is intensifying the most destructive trends in global trade. Support for free trade has given way to talk of decoupling and de-globalisation. Tensions between the US and China are rising, as are calls for protectionism and re-shoring of far-flung supply chains. It is no longer seen as desirable, or even possible, to integrate countries that possess different ...

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• 28 June

  Boeing’s Max poised for key test over plans to train pilots

  

  Bloomberg Boeing Co and federal regulators are preparing to hold a critical set of test flights on the 737 Max early next week, and laying plans for other milestones toward ending the jetliner’s 15-month grounding including convening a panel of pilots to go over a proposed training course. Aviation industry officials briefed on the plans, which still haven’t been finalised, ...

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• 28 June

  British Airways offers pay cut for attendants

  

  Bloomberg British Airways proposed a pay deal for its flight attendants that would guarantee 80% of current basic salaries while limiting the need for mass job cuts amid the Covid-19 pandemic. The carrier would also reduce expenses by targeting the variable allowance component of cabin-crew pay, according to a letter to staff seen by Bloomberg News. The company said the ...

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• 28 June

  Gap soars most on record following Kanye West deal

  

  Bloomberg Kanye West is going to make Gap cool again. At least, that’s what investors hope. The struggling apparel company’s shares soared the most in at least 40 years after it revealed a partnership agreement with the head-turning rapper and designer. West, whose sneaker line with Adidas AG routinely sells out, will work with Gap Inc on a new line ...

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