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Bloomberg The three largest automakers in US suspended some operations on the coldest day of the year after a fire at a Southeast Michigan natural gas facility drastically reduced their supply of the heating fuel. Energy prices soared as freezing weather spread into the Northeast and closed a nuclear reactor in New Jersey. CMS Energy Corp.’s Consumers Energy utility sends ...

Bloomberg India’s power retailers may need to start paying in advance for their electricity purchase in a bid to ease financial stress at generators. Concerned over delayed payments to generators, the federal power ministry has formed a panel to examine if distribution companies should pay generators in advance for electricity purchases, according to a power ministry document reviewed by Bloomberg. ...

Bloomberg Activity in India’s dominant services sector cooled in January, adding to the urgency for the central bank to do more to support the economy as it meets on interest rates. The seasonally adjusted Nikkei India Services Business Activity Index fell for the second straight month in January to 52.2 from 53.2 in December, indicating a softer expansion in output. ...

Bloomberg With Samsung Electronics Co. set to report its first drop in quarterly profit in two years, investors are counting on the world’s biggest chipmaker to cut capital spending to keep profits flowing during a supply glut. Samsung will probably report a 15 percent decline in net income to about 10.2 trillion won ($9.1 billion) for the last three months ...

Bloomberg Kirin Holdings Co. agreed to acquire most of the biochemicals business from its Kyowa Hakko Kirin Co. unit in a transaction valued at 128 billion yen as it seeks to strengthen its budding consumer health-care segment. Kirin is purchasing a 95 percent stake in Kyowa Hakko Bio Co., which produces specialty chemicals and vitamins for the health and wellness ...

Bloomberg In a twist to the tale of two rival billionaire brothers in India, a bankruptcy filing by Anil Ambani’s wireless carrier could have one clear winner — his elder sibling’s disruptive mobile phone unit. The process initiated in Mumbai, once admitted by the court, would leave Ambani’s Reliance Communications Ltd., or RCom, 270 days to repay debt or liquidate. ...

Bloomberg Amazon.com and Walmart Inc.’s plans to dominate India’s online retail landscape have been ambushed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s political priorities heading into a tightening election. The vote, which must be held by May, has increased the influence of local retailers that lobbied for growth-crimping curbs on the US giants. On cue, India this month rolled out constraints on ...

Bloomberg Australian retail sales suffered the biggest drop in 12 months and imports slumped by the most in almost seven years, raising doubts about the resilience of household spending. Sales fell 0.4 percent in December, compared with estimates for an unchanged reading, statistics bureau data showed on Tuesday. Imports dropped 6 percent in the month, the worst result since February ...

Bloomberg Ocado Group Plc said it is talking to retailers about potential deals, renewing speculation about a possible partnership with Marks & Spencer Group Plc. The UK online grocer signed a number of technology licensing agreements in 2018, including a mammoth partnership with Kroger Co. in which the US supermarket chain agreed to buy a stake. Talk that Ocado might ...

Dubai / Emirates Business dnata, one of the world’s largest air services providers, continues to drive innovation in the Middle East aviation industry by launching a new resource management system in Dubai. The new system, which includes a leading-edge software platform and advanced analytic tools, will help the company optimise operations and efficiently manage its 20,000 employees and resources at ...