December, 2018

• 30 December

  Finally, a GMO to tempt crowd at Whole Foods

  

  These days everything from cookies to orange juice carry labels boasting that they’re GMO free – a marketing ploy that assumes consumers still hate, fear or at least disapprove of genetically modified organisms (GMO) despite reassurances from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine. While science journalists have bemoaned this as irrational fear, people might be making a reasonable ...

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• 30 December

  Big tech’s European nemesis can take one last swipe

  

  When Margrethe Vestager’s five-year term as European competition commissioner ends, the world’s biggest tech companies will breathe a sigh of relief. The Danish politician has been a thorn in the side of the Silicon Valley giants, imposing back taxes on Apple and Amazon.com and fines on Facebook and Google parent Alphabet Inc. “I suspect that, assuming as we all do ...

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• 30 December

  Monetary policy remains prudent, say PBOC officials

  

  Bloomberg Senior People’s Bank of China (PBOC) officials pushed back against interpretations of its recent moves as signalling significantly looser policy, emphas- ising that monetary policy remains prudent — though it will be more targeted and flexible. “The stance on prudent monetary policy hasn’t changed,” Sun Guofeng, director of the monetary policy department, told reporters in Beijing. “But it’ll be ...

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• 30 December

  China targets smaller lenders in shadow banking crackdown

  

  Bloomberg China announced plans to rein in the expansion of lending by the nation’s regional banks to areas beyond their home bases, the latest step policy makers have taken to defend against financial risk in the world’s second-biggest economy. Those lenders, which include rural cooperatives, must have the proper licenses to provide financing beyond the region where they’re based, or ...

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• 30 December

  Regulators seek consolidation of a fractured financial system in Taiwan

  

  Bloomberg Regulators in Taiwan are taking another shot at consolidating a fractured financial system that’s scaring off foreign investors. The island’s authorities last month made it easier for lenders to merge, part of a long-running campaign to whittle down an industry where assets are so thinly spread that banks struggle to compete with regional rivals. Government policy in the 1990s ...

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• 30 December

  Fubon Life buys ECB’s first home in Frankfurt

  Bloomberg The European Central Bank’s first home in Frankfurt — the iconic Eurotower — has been acquired by Fubon Life Insurance Co. It’s the Taiwanese company’s first deal in Germany. The office building, one of the most recognisable towers in the city’s financial district, served as the ECB’s headquarters until 2015 and is regarded as the birthplace of the euro. ...

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• 30 December

  Nomura CEO signals more job cuts in Europe

  

  Bloomberg Next year is shaping up to be another tough one for Nomura Holdings Inc’s employees in Europe, with more job losses likely as the Japanese securities firm shifts business away from the region to more profitable centers in Asia and the US. Japan’s biggest investment bank needs to cut staff while finding ways to spur revenue in the region, ...

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• 30 December

  India rule on e-comm giants may hurt shoppers

  

  Bloomberg India’s new rules for foreign e-commerce platforms may be designed to protect local companies from Amazon.com Inc. and Walmart Inc., but consumers are likely to suffer the collateral damage. Online marketplaces must treat all vendors equally by providing the same terms, India’s trade ministry said. In practice, this means barring e-commerce companies from forcing a seller to feature products ...

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• 30 December

  Booming budget travel helps Gatwick value soar in deal

  

  Bloomberg Vinci SA is doubling down on budget travel with the $3.7 billion purchase of a controlling stake in Gatwick Airport. London’s second-busiest hub has more than tripled in value since it was bought by Global Infrastructure Partners for about 1.5 billion pounds ($1.9 billion) in 2009, mainly because of the surge in low-cost tourism. The skies looked very different ...

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• 30 December

  Sears may stay alive with rescue bid cobbled by Lampert

  

  Bloomberg Sears Holdings Corp. got another chance at survival after Chairman Eddie Lampert put together a last-minute, last-ditch bid to buy the retailer out of bankruptcy. Lampert persuaded three lenders to finance the $4.4 billion offer, according to a statement from ESL Investments. The plan includes keeping 425 stores open and a $1.3 billion financing commitment, the statement said. Bank ...

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