June, 2018

• 6 June

  China smashes steel gangs’ $750mn export scam

  

  Bloomberg China has detained 245 people after a nationwide raid of gangs suspected of illegally selling more than 2.4 million metric tons of steel scrap to buyers across Southeast Asia. Chinese authorities carried out multiple raids starting after an investigation into unusual activity unearthed a network that was shipping scrap without fully paying the 40 percent export duty, the General ...

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• 6 June

  In bankruptcy case, golf memberships on sale in Hong Kong

  Bloomberg China Fishery Group Ltd.’s bankruptcy case enters its second anniversary this month with no resolution in sight as a key auction of its fishing assets in Peru stalls. It may have better luck selling its corporate memberships in the famed 129-year old Hong Kong Golf Club. Membership No. 1024 and 1031 are being put up for sale to maintain ...

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• 6 June

  Tencent’s Ma unveils WeChat travel plan for China, HK Bay area

  

  Bloomberg Tencent Holdings Ltd. is working with the Chinese government to create an electronic pass system that smooths travel between Hong Kong, Macau and the southern province of Guangdong. The unusual proposal would see multiple travel documents linked to Tencent’s WeChat app to streamline border crossings, the Shenzhen, Guangdong-based company said in a statement. With the ‘E-card’ ID system, users ...

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• 6 June

  Brexit trade threat triggers retail, pharma workaround strategy

  

  Bloomberg Companies facing the potential threat of tariffs and other trade barriers after Brexit are stepping up contingency planning, with some retailers creating new sites in continental Europe to avoid snags. US pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. is planning for the possibility of a temporary supply blackout when the UK leaves the European Union and may stockpile as much as ...

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• 6 June

  HP plans to cut 5000 jobs by end of 2019

  

  Bloomberg HP Inc., the world’s largest personal-computer maker, increased its planned job cuts to 4,500 to 5,000 employees by the end of fiscal 2019, or as many as 1,000 more than the company had estimated as part of a reorganisation unveiled almost two years ago. The company will incur pretax restructuring charges of about $700 million for the job cuts, ...

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• 6 June

  California, carmakers come to agreement on emissions standards

  

  Bloomberg California and the auto industry mostly agree that the state should maintain a role in setting vehicle emissions standards despite Trump admin- istration efforts to curb its authority, according to the head of the California Air Resources Board. “We are now, I think it is fair to say, in a confusing situation,” Mary Nichols said at the Edison Electric ...

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• 6 June

  Imerys unit settles Talc claims for $5mn

  

  Bloomberg A unit of Imerys SA agreed to settle claims by 22 women that talc it supplied to Johnson & Johnson for baby powder was tainted with asbestos and caused their cancers. The Paris-based minerals company’s unit didn’t acknowledge that the talc was tainted or dangerous. The terms of the settlement are closely guarded and won’t be made public. But ...

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• 6 June

  Breakneck pace of US job gains seen getting tougher to sustain

  

  Bloomberg US job growth in May vaulted payroll gains above 1 million in 2018, reaching the milestone a month earlier than in the past two years. Whether the labor market can maintain such a breakneck pace amid a diminishing pool of skilled workers is another question. Employers added 223,000 jobs last month, more than forecast and bringing payroll gains for ...

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• 6 June

  For Abe, Japan’s abductees top missiles in Trump-Kim talks

  

  Bloomberg Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has plenty to worry about ahead of Donald Trump’s meeting with Kim Jong-un next week, including the prospect of a deal that undermines Japan’s six-decade security alliance with the US and leaves the island nation vulnerable to attack. But it’s another issue that will top Abe’s agenda when he meets Trump at the White House ...

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• 6 June

  Nigerian lawmakers draw battle line for Buhari as vote looms

  Bloomberg Nigerian lawmakers drew a battle line with President Muhammadu Buhari ahead of February elections by issuing a list of demands that must be met or they will take unspecified legislative measures against him. Buhari is expected to end widespread insecurity and violence in the country, stop the “systematic harassment and humiliation” of political opponents and show sincerity in his ...

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