April, 2018

• 1 April

  India’s flag carrier has a chance to lose the baggage

  

  Privatisation of India’s state-run economy has been hobbled by an extreme reluctance to cede control over companies that ultimately are vehicles of power and patronage. Except for a brief period in the early 2000s, when a minister dedicated to such disposals tried to drop “the baggage of 50 years of socialist discourse”, the preferred strategy has been to sell a ...

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• 1 April

  Apple’s iPad needs schools more than they need it

  

  Here’s what Apple won’t say when it talks about its technology in schools: The company lost, and it will be tough to turn around its fortunes. Apple Inc. last week pitched a refreshed version of Apple’s basic iPad and software tailored for schools. (The price of the device remains $329 for most buyers and $299 for schools.) Apple has a ...

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• 1 April

  Fast-fashion fades as second-hand market grows

  

  There are two textile-obsessed columnists at Bloomberg View. One, based in Kuala Lumpur, is writing a book about used goods, including the global trade in secondhand clothes. The other, based in Los Angeles, is also writing a book – about textiles, technology and trade. So we asked them if they’d want to discuss how they see global trends playing out ...

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• 1 April

  Boeing, Airbus gird for new duel in small jet market

  

  Bloomberg Embraer SA’s first new narrow-body jet is set to fly into commercial service this week to take on Bombardier Inc. But that’s just a prelude to the bigger battle emerging between heavyweights Boeing Co. and Airbus SE. At stake: possible orders from Air France-KLM, United Continental Holdings Inc., and JetBlue Airways Corp. The sales campaigns are a key test ...

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• 1 April

  Babies ‘R’ Us demise sets off scramble for baby registries

  

  Bloomberg The liquidation of Toys ‘R’ Us Inc. has stoked fears about how the US toy industry will absorb the blow. But the shutdown of the company’s sister chain, Babies “R” Us, is setting off its own wave of disruption in the market for infant products. One of the biggest questions: What happens to all the customers who had baby ...

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• 1 April

  Congo airport warns to halt operations over debt

  Bloomberg Aeroports du Congo, a unit of Groupe Egis of France, threatened to halt operations at three airports it manages because of debts owed by the government. The state owes the company 5 billion CFA francs ($9 million), including value-added tax refunds and landing fees, Director-General Jean-Michel Ratron said in a statement emailed from the capital, Brazzaville. The company is ...

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• 1 April

  Amazon takes fresh stab at $16bn housekeeping industry

  

  Bloomberg Three years ago, Amazon.com Inc. launched a marketplace to connect its customers with handymen, landscapers and housekeepers in their neighbourhoods, a direct challenge to the likes of Angie’s List Inc. and Yelp Inc. The offering embraced the independent contractor model, using Amazon’s web store to create a new service from scratch without hiring a single person or buying any ...

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• 1 April

  Lebanon plans $5bn debt swap to cut servicing costs

  

  BEIRUT / Reuters Lebanon’s government plans to swap $5 billion of new foreign currency bonds for Lebanese pound debt with the central bank, in an operation its finance minister suggested would slash the cost of servicing its huge debt pile by as much as $1.5 billion. Ali Hassan Khalil, speaking in parliament, said 218 billion pounds ($145 million) of the ...

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• 1 April

  ‘Japanese banks must move forward with consolidation’

  

  Bloomberg Japanese banks must move forward with consolidation by using everything from mergers to informal tie-ups to tackle declining profitability, according to the new chief of the industry’s main lobby group. “Consolidation has to advance from here, and the formats for doing this are going to get more diverse,” Koji Fujiwara, who starts as chairman of the Japanese Bankers Association ...

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• 1 April

  Pakistan holds key rate after currency devaluation

  

  Bloomberg Pakistan’s central bank unexpectedly left its benchmark interest rate unchanged after a second currency devaluation in four months. The target policy rate will stay at 6 percent, the State Bank of Pakistan said in a statement. The move was predicted by only three of 22 economists in a Bloomberg survey with rest expecting a hike. The central bank unexpectedly ...

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