February, 2019

• 19 February

  HSBC bracing for riskier times after Q4 profit miss

  

  Bloomberg HSBC Holdings Plc is bracing for riskier times after missing fourth-quarter earnings estimates, warning that political tensions in its key markets have made the prognosis for 2019 far less predictable. Chief Executive Officer John Flint has vowed to keep a keener eye on costs while avoiding additional payouts to shareholders, after a disappointing quarter capped his first year in ...

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• 19 February

  $76 billion fund gives contrarian call for Indonesia interest rate cuts

  Bloomberg Indonesia’s central bank should signal interest-rate cuts to draw more foreign money into the nation’s bonds, according to a top emerging markets asset manager. The current-account deficit will remain manageable and Bank Indonesia has room to reverse some of the rate hikes it implemented last year, Anil Kumar, who helps manage about $76 billion of funds at Ashmore Plc, ...

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• 19 February

  Japanese M&A spree a boon for foreign banks

  Bloomberg Japan Inc.’s record acquisition spree is proving to be better news for overseas investment banks than for their home-grown rivals. Foreign firms led by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grabbed the first three places in Japan’s merger advisory rankings last year, handling deals worth a combined 44.6 trillion yen ($403 billion), according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Nomura Holdings Inc, ...

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• 19 February

  US Air Force seeks new Boeing F-15 jets

  

  Bloomberg The US Air Force’s next budget will request funds for eight new F-15 fighter-bombers from Boeing Co., beefing up its inventory with an upgraded version of a plane it last bought in 2001, even as it pursues the more advanced F-35 from rival Lockheed Martin Corp. The F-15s will be proposed in the fiscal 2020 budget, expected around March ...

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• 19 February

  Norwegian dips to 7-year low after discounted share sale

  

  Bloomberg Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA slumped to an almost seven-year low after offering heavily discounted shares to raise about 3 billion kroner ($350 million) to shore up its balance sheet. The rights issue, underwritten by investors including John Fredriksen, Nor- way’s richest man, is intended to buy the Oslo-based airline time following the collapse of protracted talks with suitors including ...

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• 19 February

  South African Airways to create 3 separate units

  Bloomberg South African Airways will create three distinct business units focusing on domestic flights, pan-African travel and other international routes as the debt-laden airline battles to repair its balance sheet. The restructuring will not lead to a full breakup of the state-owned carrier, spokesman Tlali Tlali said by phone. Reuters had earlier reported the plan to separate into three divisions. ...

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• 19 February

  Delta, EasyJet mull $452mn Alitalia stake

  

  Bloomberg Delta Air Lines Inc. and UK discounter EasyJet Plc may invest as much as 400 million euros ($452 million) in the latest attempt to revamp struggling Italian airline Alitalia SpA, according to people familiar with an initial draft of the plan. Investors in a group led by rail operator Ferrovie dello Stato SpA are evaluating the financial needs of ...

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• 19 February

  UAE’s retail giant, SAP in digital transformation push

  

  Dubai / Emirates Business Majid Al Futtaim, one of the Middle East’s leading retailers, is spearheading the digital transformation of the region’s $313 billion retail market, both in taking a growing slice of e-commerce and enhancing Carrefour customer shopping experiences online and in-store. The Middle East retail sector is undergoing a sea-change. As more malls open, the GCC’s retail sector ...

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• 18 February

  UAE Armed Forces inks AED7bn deals at Idex

  

  ABU DHABi / WAM Speaking at a press conference on day two of the International Defence Exhibition and Conference (Idex 2019), and the Naval Defence and Maritime Security Exhibition (Navdex 2019), Brigadier Mohammed Al Hassani, Official Spokesperson of Idex 2019, and Commodore Fahad Nasser Saif Al Thehli, Official Spokesperson of Navdex 2019, announced 24 deals worth AED7,019,428,577. The total value ...

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• 18 February

  Tawazun invests AED460mn to buy stake in Russia’s Aurus

  ABU DHABI / WAM His Highness Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, met on Monday with Russian Industry and Trade Minister Denis Manturov, in presence of President Rustam Minnikhanov of Tatarstan, and later witnessed the signing of an agreement at at the International Defence Exhibition (Idex 2019). Sheikh Abdullah, Manturov and President Minnikhanov ...

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