A handful of companies on Friday filed to go public, bolstering expectations of a strong second quarter for the US listings market after the float of Snap, the owner of the messaging app. The market for initial public offerings is heating up after a slow period. With 111 deals, last year was the weakest one for US IPOs since the aftermath of the financial crisis in 2009, […]
Those risks have been amplified by President Trump, whose administration has said it is “putting Iran on notice.” The tough talk from Washington has given early movers like Total pause, raising concerns as to whether long-awaited opportunities will materialize, or if the Trump administration will take a harder line and tighten already-complex rules on doing business with Tehran. Continue reading the main story Some major global companies […]
By Girish Gupta and Andrew Cawthorne | CARACAS CARACAS Venezuelan authorities called on the Supreme Court on Saturday to review its decision this week to annul the opposition-led congress, which critics have decried as a “coup” and a lurch into dictatorship. President Nicolas Maduro said in an address on state television in the early hours of the morning that the conflict between the Supreme Court and National […]
Investors are flocking back to European equities and propelling a rally across continental stock markets as money managers downplay fears around the upcoming French elections and fallout from Brexit. The shift — which follows a torrid 2016 when investors pulled roughly $100bn from the asset class — has been driven by hopes of a synchronised global economic expansion accelerating. European stock fund managers received $1.5bn in the […]
Latin American dictators once sent in tanks and soldiers. This week, Venezuela’s socialist president Nicolás Maduro dispatched judges. The motivation, in part, is money. The result, however, is the same: a coup. Opposition leaders branded Mr Maduro “a dictator” and foreign governments decried the power grab after Venezuela’s government-controlled Supreme Court effectively annulled the National Assembly on Thursday, where the opposition won a majority in 2015 amid […]
US farmers have signalled plans to sow soyabeans across an area the size of Germany this year, an expanse that reflects the relentless rise of meat demand in China and other emerging economies. The record 89.5m acres (36.2m hectares) of soyabean fields would follow all-time high plantings in South America, the other leading grower of the oilseed. The harvest under way in Brazil is set to surpass […]
In a low-income area of Ecuador’s capital, followers of Lenín Boltaire Moreno sang along at his final rally to a quintessential Latin American revolutionary song, composed in 1973 by Chile’s Quilapayún: “The people united will never be defeated”. “I am here to celebrate in advance the triumph of Lenín Moreno, because he is the continuation of a project that started 10 years ago,” said Mónica Ortíz, a […]
The titans of the commodities industry are daring to believe the worst is over but are braced for an increasingly uncertain outlook as “me-first” protectionist policies threaten to destabilise global trade. Those were two of the key themes to emerge from the sixth Financial Times Commodities Global Summit in Lausanne last week. The head of Cargill, the world’s biggest agricultural commodities merchant, called on the commodities industry […]
March 31, 2017 by: Nicholas Megaw in London South African president Jacob Zuma’s dismissal of his well-regarded finance minister Pravin Gordhan has left the country’s currency on course for its worst week since 2015 and hit prices in the country’s government bonds and its banking stocks. It has also left analysts expecting imminent downgrades to the country’s credit ratings. The firing of Mr Gordhan — which was […]
Friday 05.10 BST Overview Asian stocks were mostly positive on Friday as investors prepared to end a solid first quarter of 2017 and Wall Street closed in on record highs. Hot topic 1 South Africa’s rand was 1.2 per cent weaker in Asian trading in the wake of the nation’s finance minister, Pravin Gordhan, being dismissed on Thursday by President Jacob Zuma. The currency has shed a […]
By Nichola Saminather | SINGAPORE SINGAPORE The dollar extended its overnight gains in early Asian trade on Friday on signs of strong U.S. economic growth, while the euro inched up after sliding overnight on data suggesting slowing growth in Europe. Stock markets in Asia were off a bit despite solid gains on Wall Street as investors awaited China’s official manufacturing purchasing managers index data for March. The […]
Your daily guide to community and cultural activities across the Emirates for March 31, 2017, including performances, festivals, art exhibitions, film screenings, health and fitness events, talks, classes, workshops and family fun. Ellen Fortini rounds up 10 things to do today in the UAE. newslide Dubai Family fun Visit RiseDCH and enjoy a variety of activities, including Wakefit fitness today and Metallize CrossFit tomorrow, screenings of Harry […]
According to RBC’s cross-asset strategist, Charlie McElligott, two things are behind today’s (painfully volumeless) market rally: i) a return of “policy divergence”, following yesterday’s hawkish announcements by the Fed (“up to 4 hikes”) offset by dovish hints by the ECB, which in turn is powering the dollar higher, and ii) OPEC “deal extension speculation” pushing oil prices higher. The result: the general reflation trade is back on. […]
Speed was once a ticket to riches in financial markets. Now it’s the bare minimum. Electronic trading groups that made fortunes by being first to pounce on favourable prices are finding it tougher to stay ahead in markets where transactions unfold in billionths of a second. Their costs have risen at the same time that volatility and volumes — essential elements for profitable trading — have ebbed. As a […]
Elevate, one of the biggest subprime lenders in the US, is reviving plans to go public, seeking to cash in on a big lift in sentiment since the election victory of Donald Trump. Financial stocks have rallied hard since November 8, with big banks such as Bank of America rising as much as 50 per cent on hopes of fatter lending margins, lower taxes and lighter regulation. […]
Friday is inflation day. A quiet week for economic data springs into life with reports on Japanese jobs and industrial production; French consumer spending; German unemployment; UK GDP; and US personal income and consumer sentiment. Prices will be a constant theme, with various inflation iterations presented by Japan, France and the US — the latter in the form of the PCE deflator. But arguably the most intriguing […]
By Eveline Danubrata and Agustinus Beo Da Costa | JAKARTA JAKARTA Indonesia’s government has proposed issuing a decree to govern the domestic tobacco industry, a move that could sharply raise cigarette output in the world’s fourth-most populous nation, after a bill outlining the changes was opposed by the health ministry and anti-smoking groups. The latest proposal was mooted at a meeting 10 days ago between the trade […]
For a US$2,000-a-night (Dh7,345) trip to the land of happiness, I’m a little surprised by the “assumption of risk and limitation of liability” statement my tour operator, Amanresorts, insists I sign before proceeding with my Bhutan itinerary. “I understand that I am undertaking travel to a remote geographical area in an undeveloped country where, among other things, a sense of urgency, attention to detail, standards of quality, […]
Thursday 08:35 BST What you need to know ● Stock markets mixed after Wall Street’s steady display● Shanghai Composite hits 6-week low amid liquidity concerns● Sterling holds above $1.24 as traders ponder Brexit implications● Dollar index above 100 as euro softens on ECB report● Oil prices add to Wednesday’s 2.1 per cent gain and gold dips——————- Hot topic Traders are keeping a wary eye on the action […]
The Tasman Global Access (TGA) submarine cable has been switched on, connecting New Zealand with Australia, thanks to a partnership between telecommunications carriers Telstra, Spark, and Vodafone. The $100 million 2,288km submarine cable, which extends from Ngarunui Beach in Raglan to Narrabeen Beach in Sydney, is made up of two fibre pairs with a total capacity of 20Tbps. Following construction, the cable was laid by Alcatel-Lucent Submarine […]
Filthy rich and already boast enough glass slippers to win a dozen princes? Italian shoemaker Antonio Vietri has the thing for you: 24-carat gold shoes. Vietri, from Turin in northern Italy, hopes to attract shoppers from wealthy Gulf countries with his blue or black suede moccasins with stitched gold-plated uppers. “These are the first shoes in the world in 24-carat gold,” he told AFP. “The particularity of […]
By Tom Westbrook and Benjamin Weir | SYDNEY SYDNEY Australia began evacuating thousands of people stranded on resort islands in the tropical northeast on Thursday, as water supplies began to run low two days after Cyclone Debbie tore through the region. Tens of thousands more people were still without power on the mainland of Queensland state, where officials issued new evacuation warnings ahead of more heavy rainfall […]
TOKYO Asian shares edged up to near their highest in two years on Thursday, while the dollar benefited from waning expectations that the European Central Bank was poised to end its easy policy. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS was 0.2 percent higher in early trade, pushing against its loftiest levels since June 2015. Japan’s Nikkei stock index .N225 was down 0.2 percent, while […]
Oman is most likely to face a “forced currency devaluation” in coming years due weak oil prices and low financial buffers, according to a new report. In its report issued on Wednesday, BMI Research, a Fitch Group Company, said that the “probability of such a move is rising.” Oman’s crude oil price have declined to $45.9 per barrel driven by weakness in global energy markets since early-2017, […]
