Hong Kong sells car park to developer for record $3bn

Bloomberg Henderson Land Development Co. outbid eight other developers and will pay a record HK$23.3 billion ($3 billion) for the first commercial land to be sold by Hong Kong’s government in the Central district since 1996. The Hong Kong company’s shares fell the most in the Hang Seng Properties Index on Wednesday, sliding as much as 2.9 percent. Henderson Land ...

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UK cyber cops face biggest test over ransomware

Bloomberg The malware campaign affected more than 200,000 computers in at least 150 countries, locking users out of systems at Chinese government agencies, Deutsche Bahn, automakers Nissan Motor Co. and Renault, logistics giant FedEx Corp., and hospitals around the world. As security experts gain the upper hand in containing the infection, police have begun the hunt for its creators. “The ...

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Britain trade strategy needs radical rethink for post-Brexit deals

Bloomberg The UK must “radically” overhaul its approach to trade policy if it is to land post-Brexit deals with other countries, the Institute for Government said. After decades of access to the European Union’s single market, the UK is facing a renegotiation of its trading relationship with the bloc and the need to strike deals with the rest of the ...

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Qualcomm sues Apple’s contract manufacturers

Bloomberg Qualcomm Inc.’s battle with Apple Inc. is heating up as the chip company hauls assemblers of the iPhone into a US court on claims they are failing to pay patent royalties. Four Asian contract manufacturers, including Foxconn Technology Group and Pegatron Corp., aren’t complying with obligations to pay for the use of patented technology, according to a complaint Qualcomm ...

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London office vacancies increase as company moves leave holes

Bloomberg Modern office buildings are all the rage in central London, with a swath of companies including UBS Group AG moving into new premises in the last 12 months. The problem for landlords is finding someone to replace them. A growing number of unoccupied older properties caused the overall office vacancy rate to climb to 5.8 percent at the end ...

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Caution reigns as US politics turmoil takes center stage

Bloomberg Growing concerns over the turmoil engulfing President Donald Trump’s administration weighed on risk appetite, boosting the yen and gold and sending stocks lower. Oil gained as more producers backed the extension of supply cuts. S&P 500 Index futures declined with European and Asian equities on reports that Trump asked FBI Director James Comey to drop an investigation into former ...

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Real estate sector lifts Egypt stock markets

DUBAI / Reuters Egypt’s stock market outperformed its Gulf peers on Wednesday on the back of strong first-quarter earnings and positive news from a real estate developer, while Saudi Arabia saw increased activity as traders took positions ahead of Ramadan. Egypt’s index rose 1.0 percent as real estate firm Sixth of October Development (SODIC) jumped 4.2 percent to a four-month ...

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Lloyds Bank bailout nets UK $1.2bn as government exits

Bloomberg The UK government sold its last remaining shares in Lloyds Banking Group Plc, bringing Britain’s biggest mortgage lender back into full private ownership almost a decade after it was bailed out in the depths of the financial crisis. The Treasury made a profit of 894 million pounds ($1.2 billion) on its original 20.3 billion-pound investment after disposing of its ...

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RBI targets rupee forwards as cash hinders spot intervention

Bloomberg Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is increasingly turning to the forwards market for currency intervention, as a banking system already flooded with cash limits its ability to act in the spot market. RBI bought $8 billion of foreign currency in the forwards market in March, latest official data released this month showed, as the rupee capped its best first-quarter ...

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ECB sticks to lowest gears as Euro area trundles towards QE exit

Bloomberg The European Central Bank (ECB) is trying to work out a key question about the road to policy normalization: what’s the speed limit? Three weeks before their next policy decision, the terms of debate between the ECB’s 25 Governing Council members over announcing and implementing an exit from unconventional stimulus have coalesced around the pace. In one camp are ...

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