December, 2017

• 13 December

  Aramco signs $10.4bn deals with local, foreign companies

  

  DAMMAM / AGENCIES Saudi Aramco signed on Wednesday agreements with foreign and local companies worth at least 39 billion riyals ($10.4 billion). The bulk of the memorandum of understanding agreements were part of a drive to promote local manufacturing, the company said. One agreement was also signed with drilling and oil service company Schlumberger worth 6 billion riyals. Meanwhile, the ...

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• 13 December

  Saudi set to establish $8 billion export bank for industry, mining

  

  DAMMAM / Reuters Saudi Arabia will establish an export bank with capital of $8 billion to support overseas sales by its industrial and mining projects, energy, industry and mineral resources minister Khalid al-Falih said on Wednesday. “A bank for exports with a capital of 30 billion (riyals) will be established to encourage and support exports, and 5 billion riyals have ...

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• 13 December

  Europe’s gas supplies resume after Austria explosion rattled market

  

  Bloomberg Natural gas flows resumed overnight in Europe after an explosion at an Austrian hub threatened supplies already pinched by a closed pipeline in the North Sea and a cold snap across the continent. Oil company OMV AG, which controls the Baumgarten gas hub, managed to divert international transit flows and restored supplies to Italy, Germany and Hungary before midnight, ...

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• 13 December

  OPEC sees balanced market by late ’18 as cuts erode glut

  

  Reuters OPEC expects the world oil market to be balanced by late 2018 as its deal with other producers to cut output reduces excess oil in storage, even as US and other producers outside the group pump more crude. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, in a monthly report, cut its estimate of global demand for its crude in ...

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• 13 December

  US fuels world as shale boom powers record oil exports

  

  Bloomberg The world’s largest oil consumer exported more hydrocarbons than ever before in 2017 and shows no signs of slowing down. You name it — crude oil, gasoline, diesel, propane and even liquefied natural gas — all were shipped abroad at a record pace. While the surge comes many years after the shale boom started, it can be traced straight ...

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• 13 December

  Toyota deepens Panasonic battery ties for EVs

  

  Bloomberg Toyota Motor Corp. deepened a partnership with battery producer Panasonic Corp. as Asia’s biggest carmaker, which initially bet big on hydrogen for clean technology, accelerates efforts to make its presence felt in electric cars. The largest supplier of electric-car batteries and Toyota together are exploring the development of prismatic cells, and the collaboration will include solid-state batteries, the two ...

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• 13 December

  Uber embraces Asian taxi foes to win riders

  Bloomberg Uber Technologies Inc. is embracing the taxi industry in Asia, turning some of its former enemies into allies as it tries to win over customers from Bangkok to Tokyo. Uber said it will bring Howa’s fleet of 4,000 taxis onto its app so customers in the Thai capital can get a quicker and more convenient ride. It’s the latest ...

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• 13 December

  Europe sets pace for global M&A as politics hurt US deals

  

  Bloomberg Europe, often a laggard compared to the US in mergers and acquisitions, has turned out to be the hot spot for deals this year. A more stable economic outlook and growing confidence in Europe has boosted dealmaking activity in the region, while in the US, the unresolved battle to lower US corporate tax rates as well as fewer blockbuster ...

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• 13 December

  ‘Britain loses most jobs since two years’

  

  Bloomberg Britain shed jobs at the fastest pace in almost 2 1/2 years between August and October in a sign that the labour market is slowing. The number of people in work fell by 56,000, the most since the period through May 2015, the Office for National Statistics said. The decline exceeded the median forecast of economists. Pay growth accelerated, ...

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• 13 December

  Dixons carphone rises on plan to revamp troubled mobile unit

  

  Bloomberg Dixons Carphone Plc surged the most in more than three years as the company’s plans to revamp its struggling mobile-phone unit won over investors. The UK electronics retailer’s shares rose as much as 8.7 percent in London after the company said it planned to reduce the capital intensity of the division, a move that suggests store closures or that ...

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