Bloomberg Czech President Milos Zeman, an ardent supporter of Russian leader Vladimir Putin, won a second term in an election victory after warning voters that sheltering Muslim immigrants could lead to terrorist attacks. Zeman, 73, who was also an early fan of US President Donald Trump, took 51.4 percent of votes in a two-day ballot, according results published by the ...
Read More »Zimbabwe opposition says Mnangagwa rule is illegitimate
Bloomberg Zimbabwe’s opposition National People’s Party said the country’s new president, Emmerson Mnangagwa, lacks legitimacy and is overseeing military rule ahead of elections he says will take place before July. Mnangagwa should return Zimbabwe to legitimate civilian rule and introduce electoral reforms, Joice Mujuru, head of the NPP, said in an emailed statement. He must also undo “oppressive†legislation that ...
Read More »Europe approaches trade deal despite barriers
Bloomberg Europe is approaching the next stop in its global market-opening drive aimed at countering US President Donald Trump’s protectionist tilt. Top officials from the European Union will meet with the Mercosur group of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay on January 30 in Brussels to gauge the prospects for a free-trade deal that would follow groundbreaking commercial pacts with Japan ...
Read More »â€˜Fiat Chrysler-UAW contracts not tainted’
Bloomberg The president of the United Auto Workers denied that contracts with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV were tainted by a scheme in which top labour negotiators were enriching themselves from a union training fund. In a letter to UAW members, President Dennis Williams said Fiat Chrysler’s former top labour negotiator “by his own admission is a crook and a liar.†...
Read More »Alphabet launches new cybersecurity unit
Bloomberg Google has a new sister: Parent company Alphabet Inc. announced the formation of a new subsidiary company, called Chronicle, focussed on cybersecurity. Chronicle was formed in 2016 inside of X, Alphabet’s experimental lab that has produced its driverless car effort, Waymo, and projects on drones, internet connectivity and the Google Glass headset. In the announcement, the new company stressed ...
Read More »Trump says he’d be ‘tougher’ than May in Brexit talks
Bloomberg Donald Trump has criticised the way UK Prime Minister Theresa May is negotiating Brexit, saying he would take a “tougher†line with the European Union in the talks. Only three days after putting on a show of unity with May at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Trump risked reopening the wounds in the so-called “special relationship†between Britain ...
Read More »Dell mulls return to market four years after going private
Bloomberg Just over four years since Michael Dell took his namesake PC company private, the billionaire is considering taking Dell Technologies public again in a move to help it raise cash and reduce its substantial debt. An initial public offering would undo one of the biggest leveraged buyouts the tech industry has ever seen. The board is meeting later this ...
Read More »Aramco CEO: Post-IPO tax burden will link to oil prices
Bloomberg Saudi Aramco’s chief executive said the most important tax paid by the state-owned energy giant will fluctuate with the price of oil, a significant move ahead of the company’s initial public offering this year. Adjusting the 20 percent royalty on oil revenue Aramco currently pays would help the kingdom to raise extra money if prices climb. While not unusual ...
Read More »US gas gurus divided between warm spell bears and $4 bulls
Bloomberg US natural gas soothsayers are at a stalemate. Bulls say more arctic air may vault futures above $4 for the first time since 2014. Bears see the February contract expiration and a warm spell dragging them lower. Welcome to the suddenly uncertain world of fuel trading. Eight of 17 traders and analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News predicted prices that ...
Read More »â€˜European gas can cope with Groningen cuts’
BERLIN / Reuters European gas networks can cope with further production cuts at the Dutch Groningen field as the government seeks to limit earthquake risks, a leading pipeline company and gas industry official said in an interview. The Dutch government had said that output at the major European field, which used to provide 53 billion cubic metres (bcm) per year ...
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