February, 2018

• 14 February

  Samsung SDI recycling can’t skirt cobalt’s crunch

  

  Can recycling save the world from a looming shortage of cobalt? The idea has sound precedent. Lead — an essential ingredient in traditional car batteries, just as cobalt will be for the coming generation of lithium-ion cells — is probably the most extensively recycled industrial raw material on earth. With cobalt demand from cars, electric buses and utility-scale batteries set ...

  Read More »
• 14 February

  Lessons from a slow-motion robot takeover

  

  From the cab of Rodney Terry’s state-of-the-art John Deere cotton stripper, harvesting cotton seems like the easiest job in the world. We chug along at 4 or 5 miles an hour, watching the giant machine’s bright yellow fingers gobble up eight rows of bolls at a time. White rows magically turn brown as we pass over them. Then comes the ...

  Read More »
• 14 February

  Jeweller to stars ‘accused’ of massive India bank fraud

  

  Bloomberg One of India’s biggest banks has accused jeweller Nirav Modi — who’s dressed stars including Kate Winslet and Priyanka Chopra — of involvement in a multi-billion dollar fraud that could extend to other lenders, said people familiar with the matter. Punjab National Bank filed a complaint with the Central Bureau of Investigation, the federal investigation agency, alleging that Modi ...

  Read More »
• 14 February

  Singapore’s big banks see rise in Q4 profit

  

  Bloomberg Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. and United Overseas Bank Ltd. reported higher fourth-quarter profit even as they added bad-loan provisions in an effort to put the pain of soured credit to energy-services companies behind them. OCBC’s specific net allowances for loans quadrupled year-on-year to S$1.06 billion ($802 million) in the three months ended December, the bank said on Wednesday. Risks from ...

  Read More »
• 14 February

  Bonus-pool rise smaller in 2017: Credit Suisse

  Bloomberg Credit Suisse AG’s bonus pool increased at a slower pace in 2017 than a year before, showing that the bank remains cautious about spending as its restructuring continues. Total bonuses for 2017 will rise 3 percent, Adam Gishen, head of investor relations, said in a phone interview with Bloomberg. That’s lower than the 6 percent gain seen the year ...

  Read More »
• 14 February

  Latvian bank faces US ban over ‘money-laundering’

  

  Bloomberg The US Treasury Department took the severe step of proposing to ban Latvia’s third-biggest bank from the American financial system, saying it helped process illicit transactions, including for entities with alleged ties to North Korea’s ballistic missile program. Financial institutions in the US would be barred from maintaining correspondent accounts for ABLV Bank AS, effectively ending its ability to ...

  Read More »
• 14 February

  Credit Agricole bucks trend as lender sees resilient trading

  Bloomberg Credit Agricole SA finished 2017 with an unexpected increase in trading revenue as demand for buying and selling fixed-income securities defied the weak trend seen at most of its rivals. France’s second-largest bank posted a 1 percent revenue gain at its trading business in the fourth quarter, according to a statement on Wednesday. Three analysts surveyed by Bloomberg estimated ...

  Read More »
• 14 February

  As Boeing weighs new 797, Delta wants to fly the jet first

  

  Bloomberg Delta Air Lines Inc is showing no hard feelings after its recent trade spat with Boeing Co. The No. 2 US carrier wants to be one of the first to fly a potential new mid-sized jetliner from Boeing, said Delta Chief Executive Officer Ed Bastian. That’s a vote of confidence from one of the most influential aircraft buyers as ...

  Read More »
• 14 February

  Singapore Air profit surges to 7-year high on web shoppers

  

  Bloomberg Singapore Airlines Ltd., the carrier that is spending $850 million to refit its A380 jets and attract premium passengers, got a boost to its third quarter earnings. That didn’t come from passengers, but from cargo. Southeast Asia’s biggest carrier reported its best quarterly profit in seven years for the quarter through December as a jump in cargo demand from ...

  Read More »
• 14 February

  H&M writes off hopes of 2018 recovery as markdowns mount

  

  Bloomberg Hennes & Mauritz AB executives, addressing a gathering of investors for the first time since reporting an earnings slump, failed to convince shareholders that the apparel retailer’s turnaround plan is on track. The Swedish company said it expected sales in comparable brick-and-mortar stores to recover in 2019 but said they’d continue to slide this year. The shares fell as ...

  Read More »