Despite President Donald Trump criticisms that the Federal Reserve has raised interest rates too far, too fast, thereby penalizing the economy, the flatness of the bond market’s yield curve suggests policy rates are just about at a level that neither stimulates nor restrains growth. But in order for the Fed to engineer a soft landing from last year’s heady growth ...
Read More »UK’s nuclear future fades as Hitachi exit follows Toshiba
Bloomberg Britain’s plan for a nuclear revival was thrown into disarray after the second Japanese company in as many months seemed to pull the plug on a new plant. The UK government has put atomic energy at the heart of its effort to attract 100 billion pounds ($130 billion) of investment to upgrade its aging reactors it needs to keep ...
Read More »India oil demand growth rebounds from 4-year low
Bloomberg India’s oil demand growth in 2018 rebounded from the slowest pace in four years as the country recovered from the shock of a cash ban and the roll out of a national sales tax. The nation’s consumption of petroleum products rose 4.1 percent to about 210 million tonnes, the Oil Ministry’s Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell said. Growth improved ...
Read More »China plans subsidy-free solar, wind pilot projects
Bloomberg China will start building pilot wind and solar power projects that won’t receive national government payments as it pushes to improve the competitiveness of renewable energy and rein in subsidy bills. Shares of solar manufacturers surged in New York and Hong Kong. Power prices from these pilot projects will be the same or lower than from coal-fired plants, the ...
Read More »Infosys raises sales forecast over ‘healthy pipeline’ of deals
Bloomberg Infosys Ltd, Asia’s second-largest software exporter by value, raised its sales forecast for the year ending March citing a “healthy pipeline†of orders. Bangalore, India-based Infosys predicts revenue will expand as much as 9 percent from an earlier target of 8 percent. Chief Executive Officer Salil Parekh expects a revival in the company’s financial services business, and its ability ...
Read More »Wanda sales drop on asset disposals
Bloomberg Dalian Wanda Group Co.’s sales declined for a third year as Chinese billionaire Wang Jianlin’s conglomerate continues to divest assets under government scrutiny. Revenue fell 5.7 percent to 214.3 billion yuan ($31.7 billion) in 2018, the once-acquisitive group said in an emailed statement. The statement didn’t say if the company was profitable or loss-making last year. Total assets dropped ...
Read More »Ghosn deputy Munoz resigns from Nissan
Bloomberg One of Nissan Motor Co’s most senior executives and a close confidant to its jailed chairman, Carlos Ghosn, has resigned from the company one week after taking a leave of absence. Jose Munoz, Nissan’s chief performance officer, resigned effective immediately, according to a post on his LinkedIn page and a company spokesman. Munoz, 53, had reported directly to Chief ...
Read More »Geely denies report it cut Daimler stake
Bloomberg Zhejiang Geely Holding Group denied selling any of its 9.7 percent stake in Daimler AG, following a Bloomberg report that the holding had been cut in half. Geely, in a statement on its website, said that as a long-term investor in Daimler and its largest single shareholder, it has no plans to cut its holding in Daimler and that ...
Read More »TCS misses estimates on rupee and employee costs
Bloomberg Tata Consultancy Services Ltd narrowly missed analyst estimates as quarterly profit was hit by a volatile currency and unexpected rise in employee costs. Asia’s largest software outsourcing provider reported a 24 percent increase in net income to 81.1 billion rupees ($1.2 billion) in the three months ended in December, compared with the 81.9 billion-rupee average of estimates. Sales came ...
Read More »Japan Olympic chief charged in French corruption probe
Bloomberg Japanese Olympic Committee President Tsunekazu Takeda was charged as part of a French corruption probe into the awarding of the 2020 Olympic Games to Tokyo, a person familiar with the matter said. Takeda, however, insisted that he hadn’t been indicted. The charges against Takeda, who led Tokyo’s successful bid, were filed on December 10, said the person, asking not ...
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