January, 2019

• 6 January

  Renewables surpass coal in Germany

  Bloomberg Renewable energy muscled out coal to become Germany’s biggest source of electricity for the first time last year, helped by a surge in solar panel installations and coal-plant closures. Wind, solar, hydro and biomass produced just over 40 percent of Germany’s electricity in 2018, overtaking coal’s 39 percent share, according to the Fraunhofer Institute. An almost 20 percent increase ...

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• 6 January

  China sets up biggest ultra-high voltage line

  Bloomberg State Grid Corp of China has started up the world’s longest and most-powerful ultra-high voltage power line from its far northwest to the heavily populated east. The 1,100-kilovolt direct-current Changji-to-Guquan project stretches 3,293 kilometers (2,046 miles), the nation’s biggest electricity distributor said in a statement. That’s roughly the distance between Los Angeles and Cleveland. The 40.7 billion yuan ($5.9 ...

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• 6 January

  India panel seeks cheaper loans for hydel projects

  Bloomberg India should provide long-term finance at lower interest rate to all hydro power projects for their viability and to keep tariff competitive with other generation sources, a lawmakers’ panel said in a report. The report recommended promotion of hydro power on the lines of solar energy by making its purchase mandatory in overall consumption. India should categorise hydro power ...

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• 6 January

  India’s path to become world’s 5th-biggest economy is shaky

  

  Bloomberg India’s economy grew at a faster pace than most major nations in 2018, and this year, it’s poised to overtake the UK to become the world’s fifth-biggest. But that journey won’t be smooth. The outcome of a general election due by May is a potential pitfall for a nation already battered by emerging market turmoil and a currency rout ...

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• 6 January

  Ghosn set to mount ‘defense’ at hearing

  

  Bloomberg Nissan Motor Co.’s former chairman Carlos Ghosn, indicted on suspicion of violating Japan’s financial reporting laws, will mount a “vigorous defense” at his first hearing on Monday, his son, Anthony, told France’s Journal Du Dimanche in an interview. Carlos Ghosn will attend a hearing of the Tokyo district court on Monday after his legal team requested an explanation of ...

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• 6 January

  Hong Kong govt not to ease property cooling

  

  Bloomberg The Hong Kong government has no plan to ease property-cooling measures, including the stamp duty on second homes or for overseas buyers, as many residents still can’t afford to purchase homes in the city, Financial Secretary Paul Chan said in a blog. The government also doesn’t plan to lift the special stamp duty, which levies home owners who sell ...

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• 6 January

  Xiaomi buys 0.5 percent stake in TCL

  Bloomberg Xiaomi Corp. bought a stake in Chinese home-appliance maker TCL Corp as the two companies agreed to cooperate on the development of smart products and electronic devices. Xiaomi bought 65.2 million shares, or 0.48 percent, of TCL from the secondary market as of January 4, Guangdong-based TCL said in a statement to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange on Sunday. TCL ...

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• 6 January

  Japan mulls avoiding ‘steel seizure’ in S Korea

  Bloomberg Japan will consider countermeasures to protect Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp. assets from seizure in South Korea sought in response to a wartime forced-labour complaint, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said. It’s “very regrettable that former workers from the Korean Peninsula are taking action for seizing the assets,” Abe told national broadcaster NHK’s “Sunday Debate” programme, adding that he ...

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• 6 January

  India panel seeks gas subsidy to revive power plants

  

  Bloomberg India needs to resume subsidies on imported natural gas to help revive power plants that have been stranded for want of fuel and could turn into bad assets for banks, according to a lawmakers’ report. The federal government should supply the gas at lower than market rates by utilising funds from the so-called Power System Development Fund or from ...

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• 6 January

  Big US companies borrow less as risk premiums soar

  

  Bloomberg Big US companies are paying higher risk premiums when they borrow and finding less demand for their bonds, a sign that investors are worried about rising wages and slow- ing economic growth hitting corporate profit growth. Companies are responding by borrowing less: they sold around $8 billion of US investment-grade debt last month, about a seventh of the average ...

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