Bloomberg South Africa’s government wants to start accessing part of the $8.5 billion in climate financing pledged by some of the world’s richest nations in early 2023, the head of its negotiating team said. “That’s what we are aiming for and working towards,†Daniel Mminele, a former central banker governor who was appointed to head the talks for South ...
Read More »Lithium refining is a ‘license to print money’: Musk
Bloomberg Elon Musk has called for more investment in global lithium refining to ease shortages in battery materials — and promised those who seize the opportunity it’s as lucrative as “basically minting money.†“I’d like to once again urge entrepreneurs to enter the lithium refining business. The mining is relatively easy, the refining is much harder,†Tesla Inc.’s Chief ...
Read More »Macron, Scholz need a grand bargain on energy
The smell of natural gas rarely gets thought of as a recession risk in Europe. Yet International Monetary Fund (IMF) researchers listed exactly that as one of several potential bottlenecks that could aggravate the pain of a major European Union gas supply crisis, as seemingly small differences in the practice of gas odorisation for safety reasons would slow the flow ...
Read More »Property crisis traps China in paradox
Here’s a scenario. You buy a pre-construction apartment and start paying the mortgage before it’s complete. The developer halts the project, has defaulted on its debt and it looks like the property may never get built. You hear of buyers elsewhere who have stopped making their loan payments; the government has stepped in to ensure the builders have money and ...
Read More »Mobile phone is Asia’s hedge against dollar
Currency values fluctuate all the time, but some changes leave a lasting impression on the banking industry. In the Bretton Woods-era of fixed exchange rates, the 1967 devaluation of the British pound was one such seminal event. It made demand for dollars explode in Asia. Out of that craze, Dick van Oenen, an enterprising Dutch currency trader at Bank ...
Read More »ECB has more at play and risk than the Fed
Thursday was expected to bring the spotlight to Europe, and what could be a historically consequential meeting on monetary policy by the European Central Bank (ECB). It’s going to raise rates. But there is now some question over how much — 25 or 50 basis points? And the constraints have never looked tighter. We all know that the world ...
Read More »SAS faces tough weeks ahead to woo investors due to pilot strike
Bloomberg After emerging from a debilitating pilot strike, SAS AB now faces its next battle: convincing investors that it’s worth backing the Scandinavian airline’s $3 billion rescue plan. The carrier has just weeks to secure as much as $700 million in bridge loans to finance ongoing operations while it undergoes US Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, said Jacob Pedersen, an analyst ...
Read More »Embraer reviews engines for new turboprop model
Bloomberg Embraer said the choice of engine provider for a proposed propeller-driven model has been whittled down to US-based Pratt & Whitney and its UK rival Rolls-Royce Holdings. The Brazilian planemaker is evaluating the proposals and will make a final decision on the supplier by the fourth quarter, Arjan Meijer, chief executive officer at its commercial aviation business, said ...
Read More »Qantas’s flight cancellations spiral, piling pressure on CEO
Bloomberg Qantas Airways Ltd cancelled one in 12 flights in Australia last month, even more than in May, increasing the pressure on CEO  Alan Joyce as the airline struggles to cope with a demand rebound. Australia’s national airline scrapped 8.1% of scheduled domestic services in June, making it the country’s least reliable carrier, according to a government report. Virgin Australia ...
Read More »Blow to Marks & Spencer as top executive joins AB Foods
Bloomberg A top management executive from Marks & Spencer Group Plc is leaving to take a finance role at Associated British Foods Plc, the owner of clothing chain Primark. Eoin Tonge, currently chief financial and strategy officer at M&S, will replace John Bason who will be retiring as finance director, AB Foods said in a statement. Bason, who has ...
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