October, 2018

• 7 October

  On-and-off wind, solar power pushes coal plants to the brink

  

  Bloomberg The Gentleman coal plant was once the linchpin of Nebraska’s electricity grid, its twin smokestacks visible for miles across the prairie. Now, the state’s biggest power source is routinely pushed aside to make room for more wind and solar energy. Operators ramp it down and then bring it back up again, often on a daily basis. That’s not how ...

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• 7 October

  After $600 million hit, India oil refiners may face further pain

  

  Bloomberg The worst may not be over for India’s state-run oil refiners. The request by the central government that they absorb a portion of sweeping fuel price cuts is raising speculation by analysts at Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Citigroup Inc. and Jefferies Group LLC that price controls may be reintroduced or further reductions will be demanded. The move comes amid ...

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• 7 October

  Less wind in Europe to bring back dirty plants

  

  Bloomberg Europe will likely need more coal and natural gas this month as the region is spared the usual autumn storms. A high pressure weather system is likely to reroute and block stormy weather that normally travels in easterly paths across northern Europe to boost the output from thousands of wind mills. That will leave the region relying on alternative ...

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• 7 October

  Singapore companies on global acquisition spree

  

  Bloomberg Singapore Inc. is stirring, with companies from real estate to engineering becoming bolder in their hunt for acquisitions abroad. Companies in the city-state announced around $91 billion of overseas deals this year through September, more than double the $41.9 billion of transactions for the same period of 2017, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Temasek Holdings Pte and GIC Pte ...

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• 7 October

  Malaysia cuts cost of ‘mass-transit’ project

  

  Bloomberg Malaysia intensified its efforts to rein in spending by reducing the cost of an almost $14-billion mass-rapid transit project, as Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad reviews programs he says his predecessor kicked off under unfair terms. The Finance Ministry shaved 5.22 billion ringgit ($1.3 billion) from the above-ground portion of the nation’s MRT2 project, accepting a new construction tender by ...

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• 7 October

  China’s foreign-currency reserves drop to $3trn

  

  Bloomberg China’s foreign-currency holdings fell in September, as heightened trade tensions with the US fueled concerns of capital outflow and further yuan depreciation. Reserves declined by $22.69 billion to $3.087 trillion in September, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) said on Sunday. That compares with $3.110 trillion the previous month and the median estimate of $3.105 trillion in a Bloomberg ...

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• 7 October

  Indonesia pledges more action as currency continues to slide

  

  Bloomberg Indonesia stands ready to respond to global risks brought about by an intensifying trade war and rising US interest rates that have driven the nation’s currency to a two-decade low, officials said. The government will coordinate its policy response with the central bank and the financial services authority, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati told reporters in Jakarta. Bank Indonesia ...

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• 7 October

  Toyota recalls 2 million Prius citing crash risk

  

  Bloomberg Toyota Motor Corp. is recalling more than 2 million of its iconic Prius hybrids globally on the risk that a software malfunction could end in a crash. Of a total of about 2.43 million vehicles affected, 94 percent are the Prius and its derivatives, with the hybrid version of the Auris compact hatchback making up the remainder, Toyota spokesman ...

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• 7 October

  India’s IL&FS misses debt payments

  

  Bloomberg Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services Ltd. (IL&FS) is missing more debt obligations, even as the Indian government pledged to prevent further defaults, underscoring the challenges its new board faces in fixing the firm’s mounting debt problems. IL&FS failed to service principal and interest on loans from banks, inter-corporate deposit and commercial papers totaling Rs 33.9 crore due for the ...

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• 7 October

  Automakers lose policy clout in EU as more emission caps loom

  

  Bloomberg Carmakers are discovering there are limits when it comes to influencing European Union climate policy. A decade after the EU crafted its first caps on carbon dioxide from autos by heeding manufacturers’ calls to go easy, the bloc will likely ignore similar pleas regarding the next set of proposed reduction targets. Slated for 2025 and 2030, these limits will ...

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