January, 2019

• 16 January

  Facebook’s privacy problems get real

  

  Germany is about to remind Facebook Inc. that the tribulations of 2018 are far from over. In fact, they’re about to get even more real. The country’s Federal Cartel Office intends to ban Facebook from collecting user data from third parties, the newspaper Bild am Sonntag reported. This will also prohibit data sharing between WhatsApp and Instagram, which Facebook owns. ...

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• 16 January

  The Australian dream died alone in an apartment

  

  For people in the US, the American Dream is a vision of broadly shared prosperity, freedom and opportunity. Xi Jinping’s Chinese Dream focuses on rising incomes and national renewal. Australians once had a simpler aspiration: owning a detached suburban home on a quarter-acre of land. That vision died a while ago. Back in the 1980s, single-family detached homes comprised about ...

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• 16 January

  China’s small banks face tough 2019 after orders to shrink

  

  Bloomberg China’s smaller banks, among the hardest hit by President Xi Jinping’s crackdown on risky financing, are set for a tougher 2019 as authorities force them to shut business lines that once powered profit growth. Authorities have ordered the nation’s provincial lenders to limit business to the region they’re based in, or wind down by the end of this year, ...

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• 16 January

  No recession ahead for euro area: Draghi

  

  Bloomberg The euro-area economy isn’t headed for a recession, even though softening momentum underscores the need for European Central Bank stimulus, according to President Mario Draghi. “The question we should ask is: Is this a sag or heading towards a recession?” Draghi told members of the European Parliament in Strasbourg. “The answer we give is: No, it’s a slowdown, which ...

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• 16 January

  Orcel’s rise to Santander CEO ruined by UBS pay dispute

  

  Bloomberg Banco Santander SA reversed course on installing Andrea Orcel as its next chief executive officer after a standoff over tens of millions of dollars in deferred pay. UBS Group AG held a hard line that Orcel, who led its investment bank until a few months ago, was defecting to a rival and wouldn’t receive bonuses he was owed from ...

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• 16 January

  Danske row: Deutsche Bank starts new probe

  

  Bloomberg Deutsche Bank AG Chief Executive Officer Christian Sewing launched a further internal investigation into the lender’s role as correspondent bank for scandal-ridden Danske Bank’s Estonian unit, even though he hasn’t seen any evidence of wrongdoing. The bank had previously probed its role in the case as well as any involvement in a tax evasion scheme “long before the cases ...

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• 16 January

  Bank Indonesia says key interest rate near peak

  Bloomberg Bank Indonesia Governor Perry Warjiyo signalled central bank may hold the key rate, saying the benchmark interest rate has “almost reached its peak” after an aggressive hiking cycle helped stabilise the nation’s currency. While the bank’s monetary policy stance remains “pre-emptive and ahead of the curve,” a more favorable outlook for US interest rate will allow Indonesia to rely ...

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• 16 January

  BOJ likely to cut inflation forecast on cheaper crude

  

  Bloomberg The Bank of Japan (BOJ) is almost certain to cut its inflation forecast for the fiscal year starting in April given the sharp fall in oil prices, according to people familiar with the matter. The government’s decision to make pre-school education free adds to the case for the downgrade, which will be delivered at the end of the next ...

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• 16 January

  Delta warns weaker pricing power amid US shutdown

  

  Bloomberg Delta Air Lines Inc. said its ability to raise ticket prices is weakening and warned that the US government shutdown is eroding sales. Less travel by federal employees and contractors is costing Delta about $25 million a month even as corporate and leisure travel remain strong, Chief Executive Officer Ed Bastian said. Revenue from each seat flown a mile, ...

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• 16 January

  Vietnam’s skies may have another airline

  

  Bloomberg Vietnam is on course to have its sixth domestic airline after tour operator Vietravel said it plans to start a carrier as potential rival Bamboo Airways began its first flights in one of the world’s fastest-growing aviation markets. Vietravel Airlines would be based in the central province of Thua Thien Hue and compete in a market already served by ...

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