Bloomberg Thailand’s Minor International Pcl said it would bid to acquire all of NH Hotel Group SA after agreeing to buy HNA Group Co.’s stake in the Spanish hospitality chain. Minor’s shares climbed the most since 2016. The Bangkok-based company will make a tender offer worth as much as 1.64 billion euros ($1.92 billion) for the 65 percent of NH ...
Read More »China smashes steel gangs’ $750mn export scam
Bloomberg China has detained 245 people after a nationwide raid of gangs suspected of illegally selling more than 2.4 million metric tons of steel scrap to buyers across Southeast Asia. Chinese authorities carried out multiple raids starting after an investigation into unusual activity unearthed a network that was shipping scrap without fully paying the 40 percent export duty, the General ...
Read More »In bankruptcy case, golf memberships on sale in Hong Kong
Bloomberg China Fishery Group Ltd.’s bankruptcy case enters its second anniversary this month with no resolution in sight as a key auction of its fishing assets in Peru stalls. It may have better luck selling its corporate memberships in the famed 129-year old Hong Kong Golf Club. Membership No. 1024 and 1031 are being put up for sale to maintain ...
Read More »Tencent’s Ma unveils WeChat travel plan for China, HK Bay area
Bloomberg Tencent Holdings Ltd. is working with the Chinese government to create an electronic pass system that smooths travel between Hong Kong, Macau and the southern province of Guangdong. The unusual proposal would see multiple travel documents linked to Tencent’s WeChat app to streamline border crossings, the Shenzhen, Guangdong-based company said in a statement. With the ‘E-card’ ID system, users ...
Read More »Brexit trade threat triggers retail, pharma workaround strategy
Bloomberg Companies facing the potential threat of tariffs and other trade barriers after Brexit are stepping up contingency planning, with some retailers creating new sites in continental Europe to avoid snags. US pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. is planning for the possibility of a temporary supply blackout when the UK leaves the European Union and may stockpile as much as ...
Read More »HP plans to cut 5000 jobs by end of 2019
Bloomberg HP Inc., the world’s largest personal-computer maker, increased its planned job cuts to 4,500 to 5,000 employees by the end of fiscal 2019, or as many as 1,000 more than the company had estimated as part of a reorganisation unveiled almost two years ago. The company will incur pretax restructuring charges of about $700 million for the job cuts, ...
Read More »California, carmakers come to agreement on emissions standards
Bloomberg California and the auto industry mostly agree that the state should maintain a role in setting vehicle emissions standards despite Trump admin- istration efforts to curb its authority, according to the head of the California Air Resources Board. “We are now, I think it is fair to say, in a confusing situation,†Mary Nichols said at the Edison Electric ...
Read More »Imerys unit settles Talc claims for $5mn
Bloomberg A unit of Imerys SA agreed to settle claims by 22 women that talc it supplied to Johnson & Johnson for baby powder was tainted with asbestos and caused their cancers. The Paris-based minerals company’s unit didn’t acknowledge that the talc was tainted or dangerous. The terms of the settlement are closely guarded and won’t be made public. But ...
Read More »Breakneck pace of US job gains seen getting tougher to sustain
Bloomberg US job growth in May vaulted payroll gains above 1 million in 2018, reaching the milestone a month earlier than in the past two years. Whether the labor market can maintain such a breakneck pace amid a diminishing pool of skilled workers is another question. Employers added 223,000 jobs last month, more than forecast and bringing payroll gains for ...
Read More »For Abe, Japan’s abductees top missiles in Trump-Kim talks
Bloomberg Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has plenty to worry about ahead of Donald Trump’s meeting with Kim Jong-un next week, including the prospect of a deal that undermines Japan’s six-decade security alliance with the US and leaves the island nation vulnerable to attack. But it’s another issue that will top Abe’s agenda when he meets Trump at the White House ...
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