Rising market expectations for growth and inflation were not the only things behind the selling pressure on US Treasuries after the US election. One gauge of long-term Treasury market risk known as the term premium has also climbed. The day after the election of Donald Trump as the next US president, the 10-year term premium made its biggest single-day jump since 2011. The move was within the […]
17 November 2016 Ashurst has advised Saudi Arabian client Delta Marketing Company on the agreement to dispose of its bottled water division, to Abu Dhabi-based Agthia Group. Corporate counsel Chris Young led the transaction for Delta, with Saudi law advice provided by Jeddah-based partner Dr. Faisal Baassiri. Dr. Faisal Baassiri said: ‘We are delighted to have supported our long-time and valued client Delta Marketing on this transaction. […]
Federal prosecutors have charged a former Valeant manager and the former chief executive of Philidor, a defunct pharmacy chain, alleging the pair operated an illegal kickback scheme to personally enrich themselves to the tune of tens of millions of dollars. New York prosecutors alleged that Gary Tanner of Valeant and Andrew Davenport of Philidor secretly worked together to promote a deal under which the Canadian drugmaker purchased […]
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), its main sovereign wealth fund, said on Thursday it had filled key posts as part of plans to expand investment capacity and help reduce the kingdom’s dependence on oil income. Under economic reform plans announced early this year, the government has said it aims eventually to expand the PIF, founded in 1971 to finance development projects in the country, from $160 […]
JPMorgan has agreed to pay $264m to settle a US probe into its employment of well-connected Chinese “princelings” to win business. The settlement, expected to be announced on Thursday, would be the first to arise from a Securities and Exchange Commission inquiry launched in 2013 to determine whether bank hiring practices breached the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The 1977 law bans companies from paying bribes to […]
Janet Yellen, the Fed chair, is signalling that the US central bank is reluctant to delay its next increase in short-term interest rates “for too long”. Ms Yellen is due to say on Thursday morning that as the Fed sees the case for a rise in rates continuing to strengthen, it “must remain forward-looking in setting monetary policy”. “Were the [monetary policy committee] to delay increases in […]
Cambridge, November 17, 2016 The 2nd Islamic Retail Banking Awards (IRBA) ceremony is scheduled to be held in Dubai on November 28, 2016. Organised by Cambridge IF Analytica, a UK-based financial think tank, IRBA was first launched in 2015 to recognise, reward, and honour the achievements of leading Islamic retail banks and individuals across the globe. This year’s Awards Ceremony will be attended by CEOs of Islamic […]
“When the economic crisis hits the elite, it means the suffering is all over the place,” said Malak Rostom, the vice president of the student union. “If we can’t afford it, we can tell how much other people are suffering.” Continue reading the main story Some Egyptians may sneer at the problems of the children of middle- and upper-class families, worried about tuition increases that dwarf the […]
UK retail sales grew rapidly in October as consumers — yet to experience the impact of the weaker currency — continued to spend and colder weather boosted clothing sales. The seasonally adjusted volume of sales was 1.9 per cent higher in October than in September, the Office for National Statistics said on Thursday. Sales were boosted by strong growth in clothing and footwear as the end of […]
Despite an economic slowdown and rising inflation, Bahrain’s property market has witnessed stability across most real estate sectors in the second half, which is expected to continue into 2017, according to international real estate consultancy Cluttons. While the Gulf state’s residential markets have outperformed expectations due to resilient rental budgets, its office and retail markets have largely seen no change in rents in the first nine months […]
BANGKOK Thailand’s Charoen Pokphand Foods Pcl (CPF) (CPF.BK) said it will acquire U.S. frozen-food producer Bellisio Parent LLC for $1.075 billion, paving the way for an entry into the world’s largest food market. The acquisition is in line with CPF’s strategy to expand into high-potential markets, CEO Adirek Sripratak said in a statement. CPF, controlled by Thailand’s richest man Dhanin Chearavanont, signed a purchase agreement on Thursday […]
The British Virgin Islands has hit law firm Mossack Fonseca with the biggest fine in the territory’s history following an investigation into Panama Papers revelations. The Financial Services Commission (FSC) imposed the $440,000 administrative penalty against Mossack Fonseca’s BVI operation on Friday, citing eight breaches of BVI’s Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing codes and its Regulatory Code including failures in risk assessment, due diligence and identification procedures […]
The Bahraini government is contemplating ways of increasing government service fees, but said citizens, particularly those with lower incomes, would not be affected. Cabinet Affairs Minister Mohammed Al Mutawa said the government was forced to raise fees due to financial constraints and in order to ensure services provided are in line with approved standards, reported Gulf Daily News. “Bahrainis will not shoulder the financial burden and that’s […]
Since last week’s US elections, emerging market assets have been spooked by the possibility of higher US interest rates and greater trade protectionism. That this should result in sudden and broad-based losses for holders of all types of EM investments — including equities, local debt, external bonds and currencies — should not come as a great surprise. What is unusual, however, is for such large losses to […]
Rio Tinto has fired Alan Davies, chief executive of its energy and minerals division, and Debra Valentine, the head of legal affairs, after reviewing a $10.5m payment made for advisory services on a giant iron project in Guinea. Last week, the FTSE 100 mining company suspended Mr Davies and announced the resignation of Ms Valentine after contacting regulators about the payment of $10.5m to François Polge de […]
Amid his display cases of gold coins and jewellery, Suresh Jain was in bullish spirits as he considered Indian households’ traditionally strong demand for the precious metal. “There is no change,” said the 55-year-old owner of BJ Jain Jewellers, in Mumbai’s Zaveri gold bazaar. “Gold is a need of the people. It is not a luxury item; it is essential.” Indian prime minister Narendra Modi is putting […]
In June this year, a video titled The DNA Journey went viral. In it, 67 people from all over the world took a closer look at their ancestry. After a quick spit into a jar, their DNA was sent away and the participants were asked to return two weeks later. Many of the results were, to say the least, surprising. Those who expressed a strong sense of […]
Global investor expectations of inflation have surged to their highest level in more than a decade, according to a survey of money managers that underlines how Donald Trump’s election as US president has electrified financial markets. More than 80 per cent of those surveyed this month by Bank of America Merrill Lynch believe that the global level of prices will rise over the next 12 months. Although […]
Wednesday 17:00 GMT. US and European stocks were softer as the dollar hit a 13-year high and bond yields eased off multi-month peaks, as investors reined in bets that US president-elect Donald Trump’s pledge of infrastructure spending and tax cuts would accelerate inflation. In Europe, Germany’s Dax fell 0.7 per cent as shares in Bayer fell 4.2 per cent after the drugmaker raised €4bn to pay for […]
NEW YORK If newly elected U.S. officials were to reduce federal corporate taxes by 20 percent, Citigroup Inc (C.N) could have to take a $4 billion charge to profits to reflect lower values for its deferred tax assets, Citi’s chief financial officer said on Wednesday. However a charge of that size and nature would not hurt the amount of capital that Citigroup reports to regulators under rules […]
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the Suez Crisis that shocked the western world with its tangles of politics and nationalism, greed and opportunism, imperial manoeuvring and Cold War brinkmanship. Michael Doran, former White House Middle East adviser and a deputy assistant secretary in the department of defence under President George W Bush, in his new book Ike’s Gamble: America’s Rise to Dominance in the Middle […]
Russia launched its long-awaited offensive across Syria on Tuesday just hours after Vladimir Putin discussed the conflict with Donald Trump amid growing questions about how the incoming American president will deal with his Russian counterpart. Sergei Shoigu, Russia’s defence minister, said the air strikes were targeting Isis and Syrian jihadis, their ammunition depots and training camps, in the provinces of Idlib and Homs. Opposition activists said the […]
Wednesday 09:20 GMT. European stocks are tracking a mostly positive showing in Asia as Wall Street eyes record highs on hopes the Trump administration’s pledge of infrastructure spending and tax cuts will boost the US economy. The dollar and government bond yields are a touch firmer, keeping gold and industrial commodity prices in check. After the FTSE Asia-Pacific equity index rose 0.6 per cent, the pan-European Stoxx […]
Center for Public Integrity veteran John Dunbar has taken over as the organization’s new chief executive officer. Dunbar, 52, has worked at the Center for more than 12 years covering three separate stints. He first worked for the Center from 1999-2006, and during that time created the “Well Connected” project, an investigation of the political ties of the media and broadband industries. He came back briefly in […]
