September, 2018

• 5 September

  Assad readies last major showdown of Syria war

  

  Bloomberg Syrian troops are readying an offensive against the last remaining opposition bastion, an assault that could draw in the US, displace hundreds of thousands of civilians and cement President Bashar al-Assad’s hold over the country if his forces prevail. The attack on the northwest province of Idlib is expected soon, weeks after government troops—whose march from possible defeat to ...

  Read More »
• 5 September

  South Koreans meet Kim in bid to revive talks

  

  Bloomberg South Korean envoys met with Kim Jong-un in Pyongyang, as they sought to revive nuclear talks that have stalled since US President Donald Trump’s summit with the North Korean leader. A five-member delegation sent by South Korean President Moon Jae-in were expected to return to Seoul late on Wednesday and brief the media on the talks on Thursday, his ...

  Read More »
• 5 September

  Farmers’ group blasts S African ‘land seizure’

  Bloomberg South African farmers’ lobby group Agri SA slammed the ruling party’s plans to change the constitution to make it easier to expropriate land without compensation and accused the government of failing to implement existing policies to address racially skewed ownership patterns. Government data shows more than two-thirds of farmland is owned by whites, who constitute 7.8 percent of the ...

  Read More »
• 5 September

  Merkel ally seeks top EU job to counter ‘revolt’

  

  Bloomberg An ally of German Chancellor Angela Merkel will run for the leadership of the European Commission as the continent’s biggest party seeks to counter a populist revolt. Manfred Weber, German head of the Christian Democrats in the European Parliament, said on Wednesday he would seek to succeed Luxembourg’s Jean-Claude Juncker as president of the Brussels-based commission. Juncker’s term atop ...

  Read More »
• 5 September

  Congo’s top court bars oppn leader Bemba from election

  Bloomberg The Democratic Republic of Congo’s top court disqualified opposition leader Jean-Pierre Bemba from presidential election because of his International Criminal Court conviction for witness-tampering. The decision confirms the removal of a second key opponent from the race against President Joseph Kabila’s anointed successor and increases the risk of protests by Bemba’s supporters. It also raises questions about the credibility ...

  Read More »
• 5 September

  US tech shares tumble; emerging currencies dip

  

  Bloomberg US stocks fell, with FANG shares tumbling as executives of the tech heavyweights face scrutiny on Capitol Hill. The selloff in emerging market currencies deepened, adding to the risk-off tone on global financial markets. Twitter, Facebook and Alphabet sent the Nasdaq Composite Index down by more than 1 percent during Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on social media and foreign ...

  Read More »
• 5 September

  Ether tumbles in crypto selloff

  

  Bloomberg A fresh sign that the financial industry’s love affair with cryptocurrencies is cooling pummeled the largest tokens. Ether sank as much as 15 percent and Bitcoin fell almost 7 percent to a three-week low amid a report that Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is pulling back on near-term plans to set up a crypto trading desk. Litecoin and Ripple followed ...

  Read More »
• 5 September

  Oil hunt returns as majors seek to unlock vast reserves in Africa

  

  Bloomberg Africa is entering the oil-hunt spotlight as drillers, flush with cash after crude’s recovery, are turning their attention back to the continent’s potentially vast resources. The world’s biggest companies from Exxon Mobil Corp. to Royal Dutch Shell Plc and BP Plc are setting up camp across Africa. Armed with stronger balance sheets and higher crude prices the industry is ...

  Read More »
• 5 September

  Rupiah’s slump puts $25bn power projects on hold

  

  Bloomberg Indonesia plans to delay $25 billion worth of power projects as it seeks to rein in a widening current-account deficit and a selloff in the nation’s currency. The government will delay almost half of the planned 35 gigawatts of electricity projects as it wants to ease pressure on imports, Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Ignasius Jonan told reporters in ...

  Read More »
• 5 September

  Transocean may reactivate 3 rigs a year

  

  Bloomberg The world’s biggest offshore oil driller may reactivate two to three mothballed rigs a year as the industry embarks on a full-fledged recovery for deepwater exploration. In announcing a $2.7 billion deal for a rival operator, Transocean Ltd. cited a forecast by energy consultant Wood Mackenzie Ltd. that day-rates in waters more than two miles deep will more than ...

  Read More »