Detroit’s auto giants are on the cusp of what looks like a major victory. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is considering making drastic cuts to fuel-efficiency targets for future vehicles that were set under President Barack Obama in 2012. US automakers would like easier mileage standards because improvements from here will raise the cost of vehicles and require selling ...
Read More »Draghi looks on as Europe horse trading sends Guindos to ECB
Bloomberg If Mario Draghi had to design the way his colleagues get picked, it would probably be a bit different from how it is now. The European Central Bank president twice stopped short of praising the process for board appo- intments — aside from a mention of safeguards to independence — when asked this week about how his future vice ...
Read More »$2 billion bank fraud is Barings redux for biggest Indian lender
Bloomberg The chief of India’s biggest bank called for an industry-wide review of risk controls in day-to-day operations, comparing a $2 billion fraud at one of his rivals to the 1995 Barings Plc rogue trading debacle that ended the 233-year-old British merchant bank’s independence. “The Punjab National Bank fiasco is something similar to the fall of Barings Bank, where one ...
Read More »Powell opens door for four rate hikes
Bloomberg Jerome Powell opened the door to the Federal Reserve raising US interest rates four times this year as he acknowledged stronger economic growth may prompt policy makers to rethink their plan for three hikes. “My personal outlook for the economy has strengthened since December,†the Fed chairman said in response to a question about what would cause the central ...
Read More »JPMorgan eyes record profit with help from Trump, Fed
Bloomberg JPMorgan Chase & Co is the most profitable bank in US history. It expects to keep that title with help from the Fed and Donald Trump. Higher US interest rates engineered by the Federal Reserve and lower corporate taxes spearheaded by the Trump administration translate into about $7 billion more in pretax profit in coming years, JPMorgan said in ...
Read More »Scotiabank looks abroad for growth as profit tops estimates
Bloomberg Bank of Nova Scotia’s focus on international banking is paying off. The Canadian lender, which has operations in about 50 countries, earned a record C$725 million ($571 million) from overseas businesses in the fiscal first quarter, up 14 percent from a year earlier. Those contributions, along with gains in Canadian banking, helped it post total profit that beat analysts ...
Read More »Bank of Montreal US results a bright spot in noisy Q1
Bloomberg Bank of Montreal has made efforts over the years to expand in US banking. It’s a good thing it did. The Canadian lender’s US business was one of the few bright spots in its fiscal first quarter, deliv- ering higher earnings growth as divisions including capital markets and wealth management saw profits fall. Earnings from US personal and commercial ...
Read More »Trump, Boeing reach $3.9 billion deal for new Air Force One plan
Bloomberg President Donald Trump reached an informal deal with Boeing Co. on a fixed-price contract for the new Air Force One programme that will cost $3.9 billion. White House spokesman Hogan Gidley said the agreement will save taxpayers $1.4 billion from the original estimate for buying and outfitting two presidential jets. But public estimates suggest the savings would be far ...
Read More »Amazon to pay $1bn for security firm Ring
Bloomberg Amazon.com Inc. has agreed to buy connected-doorbell startup Ring Inc. for about $1 billion, a person familiar with the matter said. The move helps Amazon expand further into the consumer market, including providing security for package deliveries. JPMorgan Chase & Co. advised Ring on the sale, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the matter is ...
Read More »HNA-backed Virgin Australia ditches privatisation after years of speculation
Bloomberg Virgin Australia Holdings Ltd., the airline part-owned by HNA Group Co., ditched the idea of a privatisation to end years of speculation that major shareholders would attempt a buyout. After discussions with the airline’s largest investors, Virgin Australia’s board said it had decided against a privatisation. The carrier, which has a market value of A$2.2 billion ($1.7 billion), raised ...
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