August, 2017

• 8 August

  Saudi Kayan secures $1.2bn loan

  DUBAI / Reuters Saudi Kayan Petrochemical Co said on Tuesday it had secured a $1.2 billion Islamic loan from National Commercial Bank (NCB) to help repay a previous facility with the lender that matures next week. The company, an affiliate of Saudi Basic Industries Corp , said the new loan was for five years, replacing the seven-year loan of same ...

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• 8 August

  Sunshine flummoxing gas traders in EU’s cloudiest corner

  

  Bloomberg Five years ago, commodities trader Wayne Bryan hardly considered Britain’s famously overcast skies when buying and selling UK natural gas. Now he can’t afford to ignore them. Within the last year, the sun has taken on new-found importance across the cloudy island nation with photovoltaic cells providing as much as a quarter of the UK’s daily power supply on ...

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• 8 August

  China may spend $1.5 tn on outbound deals in a decade

  

  Bloomberg Chinese acquirers will spend $1.5 trillion buying companies and investing overseas in the next decade, 70 percent more than the previous 10 years, even as regulators at home and abroad block deals, Linklaters LLP said in a report on Tuesday. Government policies encouraging Chinese companies to invest in manufacturing capabilities, particularly for advanced technology, and international trade will help ...

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• 8 August

  Work visa benefits US, India, says study

  

  Bloomberg The controversial H-1B visa programme, widely criticised for costing American workers their jobs, has actually provided economic benefits for both the US and India, according to a new study from researchers at the Center for Global Development and the University of Michigan. The combined incomes for the two countries as a result of the US visa programme rose by ...

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• 8 August

  Hong Kong startup nears $500 million valuation

  

  Bloomberg TNG FinTech Group Inc., a Hong Kong-based digital wallet operator founded in 2013, is poised to close a funding round and is targeting a valuation of about $500 million, according to a person familiar with the matter. The firm has attracted almost $60 million in the series. A round from investors including a Beijing-based private equity fund, said the ...

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• 8 August

  India Exim sells dollar bond in Taiwan

  Bloomberg State-owned Export-Import Bank of India sold its first dollar bond in Taiwan’s Formosa debt market, joining Korea’s Kookmin Bank and Europe’s ABN Amro Bank NV so far this year to tap local investors demand for floating-rate debt that offers protection to buyers. Overseas issuers have been able to obtain “some pricing advantages from Formosa floaters compared to the global ...

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• 8 August

  Zuma survives ouster bid to maintain grip on power

  

  Bloomberg South African President Jacob Zuma survived a no-confidence motion in parliament, ensu- ring that he’ll maintain his grip on power until at least the end of the year. The motion was defeated by 198 votes to 177, Baleka Mbete, the speaker of the National Assembly, announced at a sitting in Cape Town. Nine of the 384 lawmakers present in ...

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• 8 August

  US envoys seek to shift focus away from 13 Qatar demands

  Bloomberg Two US envoys shuttling between Middle East capitals to resolve the Qatar crisis want to shift the focus away from the 13 conditions demanded by the Saudi-led alliance, according to a Gulf official with knowledge of the matter. General Anthony Zinni, a retired former head of US Central Command, and senior State Department official Timothy Lenderking will promote a ...

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• 8 August

  Rouhani keeps allies in key posts as US tensions grow

  Bloomberg Iranian President Hassan Rouhani kept top allies in key posts as he presented his proposed cabinet to parliament, unveiling the team he’ll depend on to pursue an agenda being buffeted by escalating tensions with the US and opposition at home. Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh were reappointed, as was Abbas Akhoundi, the minister for ...

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• 8 August

  Macedonia eyes NATO to ward off Russian meddling

  

  Bloomberg The Republic of Macedonia’s new government is stepping up its efforts to join NATO, arguing that membership in the military alliance will protect the Balkan nation from Russia “interfering” in its affairs, the country’s defense minister said. “Influences interfering in this strategic goal aren’t helpful, and they’re not friendly,” Defense Minister Radmila Sekerinska said in an interview in Skopje ...

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