It didn’t take long for Malaysia to retaliate against North Korea for barring its citizens from leaving the country on Tuesday. Within hours, a security cordon had surrounded North Korea’s Malaysian embassy to prevent diplomatic staff from leaving. The response may not be legal under international law, but it’s certainly understandable. North Korea is not only accused of sponsoring ...
Read More »Retail bankruptcies don’t always help rivals
A competitor’s loss doesn’t always translate into a win. Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. said that sales at established stores rose 5 percent in the most recent quarter from the year before as it picked up retail locations from now-defunct sporting goods competitors such as Sports Authority and Golfsmith. But the company also warned sales and earnings growth would slow ...
Read More »Note to Snap: Being profitable at IPO matters
Snap, the parent company of Snapchat, has had its oversubscribed initial public offering and a big first-day pop. But if recent tech IPO history is any indication, longer-term investors are headed for a big disappointment. I’ve written before why I think Snap’s not worth its valuation ($23.8 billion at the IPO price of $17, $28.3 billion at the time ...
Read More »Saudi, Russia offer united front on crude supply cuts
Bloomberg Saudi Arabia and Russia, the architects of an oil production cut that has stabilized prices, presented a united front on compliance just as rising US inventories have sparked doubts about the OPEC and non-OPEC deal. Khalid Al-Falih, the Saudi energy minister, acknowledged that global crude inventories aren’t draining as quickly as he expected, opening the door for an ...
Read More »ADM, Almarai among firms eyeing Saudi grains agency asset sale
Reuters A partnership of US agribusiness giant Archer Daniels Midland Co and Saudi foods group Almarai is among potential bidders for Saudi Grains Organisation’s milling operations, the kingdom’s sole supplier, sources aware of the matter said. Italian wheat supplier Casillo Group and a partnership of Turkey’s TAV Group, a construction and airports conglomerate, and Saudi Arabia’s Al Rajhi Holding ...
Read More »Cairo eyes return to pre-uprising tourist numbers
Reuters The number of tourists visiting Egypt this year could come close to levels seen before its 2011 uprising, encouraged by investments in airport security and a cheaper Egyptian pound, the country’s tourism minister said. Egypt’s tourism industry, a crucial source of hard currency, has suffered in the years of turmoil that followed the mass protests, as well as ...
Read More »Egyptians protest over concerns of bread subsidy cuts
Reuters Hundreds of Egyptians protested around the country, blocking roads and surrounding government offices, after a change to the way bread rations are managed raised fears that the government was cutting food subsidies by the back door. Bread subsidies are an explosive issue in Egypt, where more than 70 million people receive state rations. Core inflation in the country ...
Read More »Modi litmus test in state vote key to top Asia stocks, rupee
Bloomberg Indian stocks are leading gains in Asia this year, the rupee has recouped almost all its losses since Donald Trump’s US election win and foreigners have pumped $2.4 billion into the country’s bonds and equities. As investors wait for the results of one of Narendra Modi’s biggest electoral tests since he came to power in 2014, there’s a ...
Read More »Pricey Pak stocks have room to run
Bloomberg Pakistani tycoon Arif Habib said Asia’s best stock market rally in the past year may extend a further 20 percent led by banks, fertilizer and energy compa- nies, rejecting concerns that the market has been supported by speculators. As industries and the economy grow, Habib, the Karachi-born financier who has seen his fortune swell after his start as ...
Read More »China ‘shipping news’ good for iron miners, mills
Bloomberg Record cargoes of iron ore coming into China and fewer boatloads of steel going out signal a boon for miners including BHP Billiton Ltd., Rio Tinto Group and Vale SA, as well as welcome news for rival metal producers like Europe’s ArcelorMittal. Purchases of ore rose 13 percent to 83.5 million metric tons in February, an all-time high ...
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