February, 2019

• 3 February

  Natixis seeks sale of Korean derivatives

  

  Bloomberg Natixis SA, the French bank that had sought growth in risky trading businesses, is looking to sell the portfolio of complex Korean derivatives that blew up in the fourth quarter, losing almost $300 million, according to people familiar with the matter. The firm has approached potential buyers including JPMorgan Chase & Co. and BNP Paribas SA to gauge their ...

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• 3 February

  Powell marks one year as Federal Reserve chairman

  

  Bloomberg Jerome Powell this week marks his first year as chairman as the Federal Reserve under pressure to deliver on the commitment of his opening day to explain “what we are doing and why we are doing it.” Powell hosts a town hall meeting with educators in Washington on Wednesday, a day after he celebrates his anniversary. He does so ...

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• 3 February

  Australian banks set for biggest upheaval from probe

  

  Bloomberg Australia’s scandal-plagued banks are set for their biggest upheaval in decades as a wide-ranging inquiry into misconduct recommends how the nation’s financial industry should atone for wrongdoings. In its final report to be released in Canberra, the government-appointed Royal Commi- ssion could propose financial firms be broken up to avoid conflicts of interest, push for changes to pay and ...

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• 3 February

  Retail industry’s distress far from over in US

  

  Bloomberg The US retail apocalypse is far from over. While the collapse of storied merchants like Sears Holdings Corp. and Toys “R” Us Inc. has left stores shuttered across America, retailers still make up about a fifth of the universe of distressed borrowers. Consumer confidence is slumping. The head of the biggest mall owner in the US cautioned that more ...

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• 3 February

  McDonald’s climbs as faster global growth offsets US miss

  

  Bloomberg McDonald’s Corp. climbed after reporting an acceleration in global sales in the fourth quarter, offsetting US growth that was shy of estimates. The company’s overall same-store sales rose 4.4 percent, topping the 4 percent average of analysts’ estimates, according to Consensus Metrix. In the US, the increase of 2.3 percent was just short of projections. Sara Senatore, an analyst ...

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• 3 February

  Avon to cut 10% of global workforce

  Bloomberg Avon Products Inc. will cut 10 percent of its global headcount as it looks for new ways to save money and simplify its structure. Most of the job cuts will take place this year, saving the makeup company about $97 million by the end of 2019. These aren’t Avon’s first round of recent layoffs. The staffing cuts come on ...

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• 3 February

  British Airways puts one-year limit on pay deal

  

  Bloomberg British Airways is refusing to offer pilots and other staff a new three-year salary package, citing an uncertain post-Brexit outlook in proposing a 12-month agreement instead. “We can agree a one-year pay deal,” the IAG SA-owned airline said in a letter to unions obtained by Bloomberg News. “This gives certainty over pay for colleagues in what is anticipated to ...

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• 2 February

  Adnoc, Occidental sign $244m exploration deal

  

  ABU DHABI / WAM The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) announced, on Saturday, the signing of an agreement, awarding an onshore block — known as Onshore Block 3 — to US based international oil and gas exploration and production company Occidental Petroleum. The award has been endorsed by Abu Dhabi’s Supreme Petroleum Council (SPC). Onshore Block 3 covers an ...

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• 2 February

  Venezuelan crude output to fall 18% on US sanctions

  Bloomberg Venezuela’s oil production will likely fall 18 percent to around 900,000 barrels per day due to pressure from US sanctions and lack of materials for workers, compared to a current output estimate of 1.1 million barrels per day, according to Ann-Louise Hittle, an oil analyst at Wood Mackenzie.

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• 2 February

  WGS 2019 forum set to explore governance in age of disruption

  

  DUBAI / Emirates Business In the disruptive age of Uber, Amazon and Airbnb, today’s consumers are accustomed to easy-access, high-quality services tailored to meet their needs. It is this experience with private sector technologies that is shaping their expectation for government service delivery. In turn, the transforming government and citizen relationship has necessitated a radical rethink of government services. The ...

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