Infosys&nbsp;Ltd&#39;s new chairman said his priorities were to find a CEO, reconstitute the board and shape future strategy, as he sought to calm investors frazzled by the recent shock exit of the firm&#39;s chief over a prolonged row with its founders.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/my-role-will-be-oversight-governance-help-with-ceo-search-nandan-nilekani-19481">Nandan Nilekani, one of&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/business-economy/reports-of-infosys-co-founder-nilekanis-board-return-trigger-stock-rebound-19453">Infosys&#39; seven founders and a former CEO</a>, was named chairman late Thursday in a victory for the founders, who led by Narayana Murthy have waged an increasingly acrimonious battle with the board for months over alleged corporate governance lapses.

Vishal Sikka, the first non-founder CEO of&nbsp;Infosys, resigned last week blaming Murthy for creating an &quot;untenable atmosphere&quot;, sparking a sell-off in&nbsp;Infosys&nbsp;shares and wiping billions of dollars off the company&#39;s market value.

&quot;I have come in to focus on the future of the company, I have come in to take the company forward and deal with its challenges,&quot; Nilekani told investors on a call on Friday, adding he would stay with the IT firm for as long as needed.

Earlier in the day, he tweeted: &quot;Joined @Infosys&nbsp;at 26, rejoined it at 62. Life does turn full circle!&quot;

Credited for increasing&nbsp;Infosys&#39; revenue to $2 billion from $500 million during his 2002-2007 stint as it chief, Nilekani said his key task would be to assist in the search for a new leader from within the company or outside, adding that&nbsp;Infosys&nbsp;alumni would also be considered for the role.

India&#39;s No. 2 software services exporter is looking for a CEO who will be able to manage a large global firm, accelerate strategy execution and oversee its transformation, he said.

Chief Operating Officer Pravin Rao has been named interim CEO and will remain in the post until a replacement is found.

The management reboot comes at a time when the firm, like the rest of India&#39;s over $150 billion IT sector, is bracing for a potential change in U.S. work visa rules that could restrict the movement of engineers and developers to its biggest market.

&quot;Any incremental news of stability is good, especially the fact that someone like a Nandan, who&#39;s one of the most successful CEOs in Indian corporate history, is back,&quot; said Vaibhav Dhasmana, IT analyst at Jefferies.

Nilekani, however, refrained from commenting on&nbsp;Infosys&#39; future strategy, apart from saying it would be aligned with global developments and that he saw tremendous opportunity in software, data and machine learning.

More businesses are trying to adopt automation and services such as big data, cloud, and analytics to become agile and prevent being disrupted by nimbler start-ups.

&quot;I have a very open mind. I will request our strategy team to take a complete inventory of all things that are going on,&quot; Nilekani said, adding the current strategy would be reviewed on the basis of market size, growth and other factors.

There will be no changes in the capital allocation policy and a $2 billion share buyback will also proceed as planned, Nilekani said.

Nilekani, who along with his family owns about 2.3 percent of&nbsp;Infosys&nbsp;and, according to Forbes, is worth $1.72 billion, would also need to tackle retention of senior level executives critical to rolling out strategy.

The architect of India&#39;s ambitious biometric identity program, Nilekani said he would engage with shareholders and customers, and resolve differences over corporate governance.

Disagreements between founders and the board centered around a rise in Sikka&#39;s pay, the acquisition of automation firm Panaya for $200 million and a severance package offered to a former finance chief.

Infosys&nbsp;shares plumbed a more than three-year low on Monday but they have risen since on expectations of Nilekani&#39;s return. Indian markets were closed for a public holiday on Friday.

Vishal Sikka, the first non-founder CEO of Infosys, resigned last week blaming Murthy

Infosys Ltd's new chairman said his priorities were to find a CEO, reconstitute the board and shape future strategy, as he sought to calm investors frazzled by the recent shock exit of the firm's chief over a prolonged row with its founders. Nandan Nilekani, one of Infosys' seven founders and a former CEO, was named chairman late Thursday in a victory for the founders, who led by Narayana Murthy have waged an increasingly acrimonious battle with the board for months over alleged corporate governance lapses. Vishal Sikka, the first non-founder CEO of Infosys, resigned last week blaming Murthy for creating an "untenable atmosphere", sparking a sell-off in Infosys shares and wiping billions of dollars off the company's market value. "I have come in to focus on the future of the company, I have come in to take the company forward and deal with its challenges," Nilekani told investors on a call on Friday, adding he would stay with the IT firm for as long as needed. Earlier in the day, he tweeted: "Joined @Infosys at 26, rejoined it at 62. Life does turn full circle!" Credited for increasing Infosys' revenue to $2 billion from $500 million during his 2002-2007 stint as it chief, Nilekani said his key task would be to assist in the search for a new leader from within the company or outside, adding that Infosys alumni would also be considered for the role. India's No. 2 software services exporter is looking for a CEO who will be able to manage a large global firm, accelerate strategy execution and oversee its transformation, he said. Chief Operating Officer Pravin Rao has been named interim CEO and will remain in the post until a replacement is found. The management reboot comes at a time when the firm, like the rest of India's over $150 billion IT sector, is bracing for a potential change in U.S. work visa rules that could restrict the movement of engineers and developers to its biggest market. "Any incremental news of stability is good, especially the fact that someone like a Nandan, who's one of the most successful CEOs in Indian corporate history, is back," said Vaibhav Dhasmana, IT analyst at Jefferies. Nilekani, however, refrained from commenting on Infosys' future strategy, apart from saying it would be aligned with global developments and that he saw tremendous opportunity in software, data and machine learning. More businesses are trying to adopt automation and services such as big data, cloud, and analytics to become agile and prevent being disrupted by nimbler start-ups. "I have a very open mind. I will request our strategy team to take a complete inventory of all things that are going on," Nilekani said, adding the current strategy would be reviewed on the basis of market size, growth and other factors. There will be no changes in the capital allocation policy and a $2 billion share buyback will also proceed as planned, Nilekani said. Nilekani, who along with his family owns about 2.3 percent of Infosys and, according to Forbes, is worth $1.72 billion, would also need to tackle retention of senior level executives critical to rolling out strategy. The architect of India's ambitious biometric identity program, Nilekani said he would engage with shareholders and customers, and resolve differences over corporate governance. Disagreements between founders and the board centered around a rise in Sikka's pay, the acquisition of automation firm Panaya for $200 million and a severance package offered to a former finance chief. Infosys shares plumbed a more than three-year low on Monday but they have risen since on expectations of Nilekani's return. Indian markets were closed for a public holiday on Friday.

Infosys chairman Nandan Nilekani's priorities: Focus on CEO search, new board

A knife attacker stabbed eight people on the street in Russia&#39;s far northern city of Surgut before being shot by police, investigators said Saturday.

The male attacker &quot;carried out attacks on passers-by, causing stab wounds to eight&quot; while &quot;moving along central streets of the city&quot; at around 11:20 am local time (0620 GMT) said Russia&#39;s Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes.

It said that armed police then arrived and used their weapons on the attacker and &quot;liquidated&quot; him.

The incident took place in a city some 2,100 kilometres (1,330 miles) northeast of Moscow in the oil-rich Khanty-Mansi region.

Two of those stabbed are in a serious condition while five more are in a stable condition, the government of the Khanty-Mansi region said in a statement, calling the attacker so far &quot;unidentified&quot;.

It called for calm over the incident, saying that &quot;in the interests of public calm and also of the investigation, citizens and media are recommended to use reliable information in assessing the situation until all the circumstances are established&quot;.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

Asian stocks advanced on Friday, once again shrugging off a sluggish day on Wall Street

A knife attacker stabbed eight people on the street in Russia's far northern city of Surgut before being shot by police, investigators said Saturday. The male attacker "carried out attacks on passers-by, causing stab wounds to eight" while "moving along central streets of the city" at around 11:20 am local time (0620 GMT) said Russia's Investigative Committee, which probes major crimes. It said that armed police then arrived and used their weapons on the attacker and "liquidated" him. The incident took place in a city some 2,100 kilometres (1,330 miles) northeast of Moscow in the oil-rich Khanty-Mansi region. Two of those stabbed are in a serious condition while five more are in a stable condition, the government of the Khanty-Mansi region said in a statement, calling the attacker so far "unidentified". It called for calm over the incident, saying that "in the interests of public calm and also of the investigation, citizens and media are recommended to use reliable information in assessing the situation until all the circumstances are established".

Asia stocks resilient, dollar up before Yellen, Draghi speeches

Mitsui&nbsp;Sumitomo&nbsp;Insurance Company (MSI) is buying Singapore&#39;s First Capital Insurance for $1.6 billion from Canada&#39;s Fairfax Financial Holdings, in the biggest takeover by a Japanese insurer in populous Southeast Asia.

Starved of growth in their aging home market, Japanese insurance firms have been aggressively expanding globally. In the last two years, the insurers have struck multibillion dollar deals, especially in the United States.

MSI, the core firm of MS&amp;AD Insurance Group Holdings, is paying 3.3 times book value for First Capital, the largest property and casualty insurer in Singapore. The deal will help MSI, which operates in all 10 markets of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, cement its position as the No. 1 in the region.

With the acquisition, &quot;we can expect new business opportunities in the local corporate and retail market in Singapore as well as other Asian countries&quot;, MSI said in a statement on Thursday.

The purchase is a pricey one, though, with property and casualty insurance companies globally listed under the Thomson Reuters classification trading at an average 1.65 times book. MS&amp;AD Insurance Group&#39;s shares fell 1 percent to a three-month closing low, underperforming Japan&#39;s main index which was down 0.4 percent.

Japan&#39;s cashed-up insurers have been paying top dollar as they seek to spur growth and overcome negative interest rates, fewer lucrative investment options and a fast-maturing market at home.

First Capital, which too has a regional presence, writes both personal and commercial lines of insurance across various classes such as property, fire, marine hull, motor and personal accident. It has maintained high profitability with a five-year average combined ratio of 76 percent, according to MSI.

One source familiar with the matter said that MSI was quick to pounce on the deal and get into advanced discussions with Fairfax after the Canadian group began to sound out parties keen to buy First Capital.

&quot;Japanese insurers are very keen to expand further in Southeast Asia but it&#39;s becoming tough to get quality and large business in these markets,&quot; said the person who was not authorised to speak to the media

In 2015, MS&amp;AD announced a $5.3 billion acquisition of Britain&#39;s Amlin PLC, an underwriter in the Lloyd&#39;s of London specialist insurance market.

MSI and Fairfax will also explore a broad global partnership in various areas, including reinsurance relationships, both companies said in separate statements on Thursday.

Fairfax said the all-cash purchase will result in a realized net investment&nbsp;gain of approximately $900 million after tax.

The deal is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to close in late 2017 or early next year.

Citigroup advised MSI on the deal while Bank of America Merrill Lynch was the financial adviser to Fairfax.

The deal will help MSI, which operates in all 10 markets of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, cement its position as the No. 1 in the region

Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Company (MSI) is buying Singapore's First Capital Insurance for $1.6 billion from Canada's Fairfax Financial Holdings, in the biggest takeover by a Japanese insurer in populous Southeast Asia. Starved of growth in their aging home market, Japanese insurance firms have been aggressively expanding globally. In the last two years, the insurers have struck multibillion dollar deals, especially in the United States. MSI, the core firm of MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings, is paying 3.3 times book value for First Capital, the largest property and casualty insurer in Singapore. The deal will help MSI, which operates in all 10 markets of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, cement its position as the No. 1 in the region. With the acquisition, "we can expect new business opportunities in the local corporate and retail market in Singapore as well as other Asian countries", MSI said in a statement on Thursday. The purchase is a pricey one, though, with property and casualty insurance companies globally listed under the Thomson Reuters classification trading at an average 1.65 times book. MS&AD Insurance Group's shares fell 1 percent to a three-month closing low, underperforming Japan's main index which was down 0.4 percent. Japan's cashed-up insurers have been paying top dollar as they seek to spur growth and overcome negative interest rates, fewer lucrative investment options and a fast-maturing market at home. First Capital, which too has a regional presence, writes both personal and commercial lines of insurance across various classes such as property, fire, marine hull, motor and personal accident. It has maintained high profitability with a five-year average combined ratio of 76 percent, according to MSI. One source familiar with the matter said that MSI was quick to pounce on the deal and get into advanced discussions with Fairfax after the Canadian group began to sound out parties keen to buy First Capital. "Japanese insurers are very keen to expand further in Southeast Asia but it's becoming tough to get quality and large business in these markets," said the person who was not authorised to speak to the media In 2015, MS&AD announced a $5.3 billion acquisition of Britain's Amlin PLC, an underwriter in the Lloyd's of London specialist insurance market. MSI and Fairfax will also explore a broad global partnership in various areas, including reinsurance relationships, both companies said in separate statements on Thursday. Fairfax said the all-cash purchase will result in a realized net investment gain of approximately $900 million after tax. The deal is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to close in late 2017 or early next year. Citigroup advised MSI on the deal while Bank of America Merrill Lynch was the financial adviser to Fairfax.

Japense insurer MSI to buy Singapore based First Capital Insurance for $1.6 billion

Oil&nbsp;prices steadied on Thursday, holding on to most of their recent gains after another fall in <a href="http://www.wionews.com/business-economy/oil-jumps-to-near-8-week-high-after-big-draw-in-us-crude-stocks-18831">US&nbsp;crude</a> inventories indicated a tighter market, and as a tropical storm headed towards&nbsp;oil&nbsp;producing facilities in the Gulf of Mexico.

Benchmark Brent crude was down 5 cents a barrel at $52.52 by 0925 GMT. US&nbsp;light, sweet crude was 10 cents lower at $48.31 a barrel.

Both contracts rose more than 1 percent on Wednesday, buoyed by potential output disruptions from the Gulf of Mexico storm Tropical Depression Harvey.

&quot;For the next few days, the US&nbsp;market is going to be focused on Texas as Tropical Depression Harvey is expected to strengthen into a Category I hurricane by Friday,&quot; said Sukrit Vijayakar, director of energy consultancy Trifecta.

&quot;Operators in the area are already closing down platforms and evacuating workers as a precaution,&quot; he added.

Harvey strengthened into a tropical storm late on Wednesday night with winds of about 40 miles per hour (65 km per hour) and was located about 440 miles (705 km) southeast of Port Mansfield, Texas, the U.S. National Hurricane Center reported.

Royal Dutch Shell, Anadarko Petroleum and Exxon Mobil have all taken steps to curb some&nbsp;oiland gas output at platforms in the Gulf.

Beyond the weather, traders said declines in US&nbsp;commercial crude storage levels were a sign of a gradually tightening market, although another rise in output held the market back.

US&nbsp;crude&nbsp;oil&nbsp;production hit 9.53 million barrels per day (bpd) last week, its highest since July 2015 and up over 13 percent from their most recent low in mid-2016.

Despite this, U.S. crude stocks fell last week and gasoline stocks were down as well, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.

Crude inventories fell by 3.3 million barrels in the week ending Aug. 18 to 463.17 million barrels, down 13.5 percent from record levels last March.

US crude oil production hit 9.53 million barrels per day (bpd) last week, its highest since July 2015 and up over 13 percent from their most recent low in mid-2016

Oil prices steadied on Thursday, holding on to most of their recent gains after another fall in US crude inventories indicated a tighter market, and as a tropical storm headed towards oil producing facilities in the Gulf of Mexico. Benchmark Brent crude was down 5 cents a barrel at $52.52 by 0925 GMT. US light, sweet crude was 10 cents lower at $48.31 a barrel. Both contracts rose more than 1 percent on Wednesday, buoyed by potential output disruptions from the Gulf of Mexico storm Tropical Depression Harvey. "For the next few days, the US market is going to be focused on Texas as Tropical Depression Harvey is expected to strengthen into a Category I hurricane by Friday," said Sukrit Vijayakar, director of energy consultancy Trifecta. "Operators in the area are already closing down platforms and evacuating workers as a precaution," he added. Harvey strengthened into a tropical storm late on Wednesday night with winds of about 40 miles per hour (65 km per hour) and was located about 440 miles (705 km) southeast of Port Mansfield, Texas, the U.S. National Hurricane Center reported. Royal Dutch Shell, Anadarko Petroleum and Exxon Mobil have all taken steps to curb some oiland gas output at platforms in the Gulf. Beyond the weather, traders said declines in US commercial crude storage levels were a sign of a gradually tightening market, although another rise in output held the market back. US crude oil production hit 9.53 million barrels per day (bpd) last week, its highest since July 2015 and up over 13 percent from their most recent low in mid-2016. Despite this, U.S. crude stocks fell last week and gasoline stocks were down as well, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday. Crude inventories fell by 3.3 million barrels in the week ending Aug. 18 to 463.17 million barrels, down 13.5 percent from record levels last March.

Oil prices steady as US crude inventories indicate tighter market

Oil prices fell on Wednesday, weighed down by concerns about rising production from Libya feeding into an oversupplied market and a surprise increase in U.S. gasoline inventories.

Benchmark Brent crude futures were down 27 cents at $51.60 a barrel at 0950 GMT.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were trading at $47.67, down 16 cents.

Production from Libya&#39;s Sharara oilfield, the conflict-riven country&#39;s largest, has been seesawing. The field remained shut on Wednesday, two Libyan oil sources told Reuters. The field had restarted at least once on Tuesday amid conflicting reports about whether it had reopened.

&quot;(The) flood of news reports makes it clear that the situation in Libya is still chaotic and that conditions in the country are still far from normal,&quot; Commerzbank analysts wrote.

Sharara recently reached output of 280,000 barrels per day (bpd), but closed this week due to a pipeline blockade. Its production is key to Libya&#39;s oil output, which surged above 1 million bpd in late June, about four times its level last summer.

Libya&#39;s rising output is a headache for the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, which together with non-OPEC producers including Russia has pledged to cut around 1.8 million bpd of supplies between January this year and March 2018 in an attempt to remove a global glut.

Additionally, industry data released by the American Petroleum Institute showed on Tuesday that U.S. gasoline stocks rose by 1.4 million barrels in the week to Aug. 18, compared with analysts&#39; expectations of a 3.5-million-barrel drop. [API/S]

Jeffrey Halley, senior market analyst at futures brokerage OANDA, said rising U.S. gasoline inventories were &quot;not a good sign during the U.S. summer driving season&quot;.

Official inventory data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration is due later on Wednesday.

Production from Libya's Sharara oilfield, the conflict-riven country's largest, has been seesawing. The field remained shut on Wednesday

Oil prices fell on Wednesday, weighed down by concerns about rising production from Libya feeding into an oversupplied market and a surprise increase in U.S. gasoline inventories. Benchmark Brent crude futures were down 27 cents at $51.60 a barrel at 0950 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were trading at $47.67, down 16 cents. Production from Libya's Sharara oilfield, the conflict-riven country's largest, has been seesawing. The field remained shut on Wednesday, two Libyan oil sources told Reuters. The field had restarted at least once on Tuesday amid conflicting reports about whether it had reopened. "(The) flood of news reports makes it clear that the situation in Libya is still chaotic and that conditions in the country are still far from normal," Commerzbank analysts wrote. Sharara recently reached output of 280,000 barrels per day (bpd), but closed this week due to a pipeline blockade. Its production is key to Libya's oil output, which surged above 1 million bpd in late June, about four times its level last summer. Libya's rising output is a headache for the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, which together with non-OPEC producers including Russia has pledged to cut around 1.8 million bpd of supplies between January this year and March 2018 in an attempt to remove a global glut. Additionally, industry data released by the American Petroleum Institute showed on Tuesday that U.S. gasoline stocks rose by 1.4 million barrels in the week to Aug. 18, compared with analysts' expectations of a 3.5-million-barrel drop. [API/S] Jeffrey Halley, senior market analyst at futures brokerage OANDA, said rising U.S. gasoline inventories were "not a good sign during the U.S. summer driving season". Official inventory data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration is due later on Wednesday.

Increase in production from Libya, Oil prices fell on Wednesday

Oil prices edged up on Tuesday, lifted by statements that Saudi Arabia was making significant supply cuts, although rising U S output meant that markets remain well supplied.

Brent crude futures LCOc1 were at $48.52 per barrel at 0510 GMT, up 23 cents, or 0.5 percent, from their last close.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 were at $46.27 per barrel, up 19 cents, or 0.4 percent.

Saudi Arabia, the world&#39;s top oil exporter, is leading an effort by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to cut production by almost 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) until the end of the first quarter of 2018 in order to prop up prices. Other countries, including top producer Russia, are also participating.

During the first half of the year, there were doubts over OPEC&#39;s compliance with its own pledges, as supplies remained high.

Saudi officials now say they are making real cuts, including 300,000 bpd to Asia for July, although several Asian refiners said they were still receiving their full allocations.

&quot;Oil attempted to rally... as Saudi Arabia announced cuts to shipments to the United States and Asia,&quot; said Jeffrey Halley, senior market analyst at futures brokerage OANDA in Singapore.

OPEC&#39;s exports have been falling since the start of the cuts in January, although some members such as Libya and Nigeria are exempt from the cuts and there have been doubts over the compliance of others, including Iraq.

Trade data shows that OPEC shipments to customers averaged around 26 million bpd in the last six months of 2016, while they are set to average around 25.3 million bpd in the first half of this year.

Threatening to undermine OPEC&#39;s efforts is rising U.S. drilling activity RIG-OL-USA-BHI, which has driven up output C-OUT-T-EIA in the United States by more than 10 percent since mid-2016, to over 9.3 million bpd.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration says production will rise above 10 million next year, challenging top exporter Saudi Arabia. 
&nbsp; 
Overall, oil markets remain well supplied.

Reflecting the perception that global oil supplies are ample, the Brent forward curve &lt;0#LCO:&gt; remains in a shape known as contango, with crude for delivery in half a year&#39;s time about $1.50 per barrel more expensive than that for immediate delivery, making it attractive for traders to store oil for a later sale.

&quot;Where oil prices go will be determined by the flow of inventory data,&quot; said Greg McKenna, chief market strategist at Australian futures brokerage AxiTrader.

While prices were up on Tuesday, crude has lost 10 percent of its value since late May when OPEC announced it would extend its production cuts.

(Reuters)

Oil attempted to rally... as Saudi Arabia announced cuts to shipments to the United States and Asia,"

Oil prices edged up on Tuesday, lifted by statements that Saudi Arabia was making significant supply cuts, although rising U S output meant that markets remain well supplied. Brent crude futures LCOc1 were at $48.52 per barrel at 0510 GMT, up 23 cents, or 0.5 percent, from their last close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 were at $46.27 per barrel, up 19 cents, or 0.4 percent. Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter, is leading an effort by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to cut production by almost 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) until the end of the first quarter of 2018 in order to prop up prices. Other countries, including top producer Russia, are also participating. During the first half of the year, there were doubts over OPEC's compliance with its own pledges, as supplies remained high. Saudi officials now say they are making real cuts, including 300,000 bpd to Asia for July, although several Asian refiners said they were still receiving their full allocations. "Oil attempted to rally... as Saudi Arabia announced cuts to shipments to the United States and Asia," said Jeffrey Halley, senior market analyst at futures brokerage OANDA in Singapore. OPEC's exports have been falling since the start of the cuts in January, although some members such as Libya and Nigeria are exempt from the cuts and there have been doubts over the compliance of others, including Iraq. Trade data shows that OPEC shipments to customers averaged around 26 million bpd in the last six months of 2016, while they are set to average around 25.3 million bpd in the first half of this year. Threatening to undermine OPEC's efforts is rising U.S. drilling activity RIG-OL-USA-BHI, which has driven up output C-OUT-T-EIA in the United States by more than 10 percent since mid-2016, to over 9.3 million bpd. The U.S. Energy Information Administration says production will rise above 10 million next year, challenging top exporter Saudi Arabia. Overall, oil markets remain well supplied. Reflecting the perception that global oil supplies are ample, the Brent forward curve <0#LCO:> remains in a shape known as contango, with crude for delivery in half a year's time about $1.50 per barrel more expensive than that for immediate delivery, making it attractive for traders to store oil for a later sale. "Where oil prices go will be determined by the flow of inventory data," said Greg McKenna, chief market strategist at Australian futures brokerage AxiTrader. While prices were up on Tuesday, crude has lost 10 percent of its value since late May when OPEC announced it would extend its production cuts. (Reuters)

Oil prices edged up, Saudi Arabia to cut supplies from Asia and United States

A bomb in a crowded in market in the north Afghanistan city of Mazar-i-Sharif on Tuesday killed at least two people and wounded 15, police officials said. 
 
Mazar-i-Sharif, an important commercial centre near the border with Uzbekistan, has generally been spared the violence unleashed by insurgent groups battling the NATO-backed government in Kabul. 
 
The attack on Tuesday was carried out by a suicide bomber, said police commander Baba Jan. 
 
&quot;The bomber detonated his explosives in the main market and all the victims are civilians,&quot; he said. 
 
The Ministry of Interior, however, reported that a bomb had been hidden in a cart. 
 
In February, three people were killed in an attack on a bus carrying military personnel not far from Mazar-i-Sharif, and in January, militants attacked the Indian consulate in the city. 
 
(Reuters)

Mazar-i-Sharif has generally been spared the violence unleashed by insurgent groups battling the NATO-backed government in Kabul

A bomb in a crowded in market in the north Afghanistan city of Mazar-i-Sharif on Tuesday killed at least two people and wounded 15, police officials said. Mazar-i-Sharif, an important commercial centre near the border with Uzbekistan, has generally been spared the violence unleashed by insurgent groups battling the NATO-backed government in Kabul. The attack on Tuesday was carried out by a suicide bomber, said police commander Baba Jan. "The bomber detonated his explosives in the main market and all the victims are civilians," he said. The Ministry of Interior, however, reported that a bomb had been hidden in a cart. In February, three people were killed in an attack on a bus carrying military personnel not far from Mazar-i-Sharif, and in January, militants attacked the Indian consulate in the city. (Reuters)

Bomb goes off in crowded city market in Afghanistan, two killed, 15 injured

Royal Bank of Scotland reported wider first-half losses, 1.3 billion Pounds of new litigation charges and axed plans to turn its Williams &amp; Glyn business into a stand-alone bank today as it braces for post-Brexit shocks to the UK economy. 
 
RBS, which has not made an annual profit since 2007, booked 2.05 billion Pounds ($2.69 billion) of losses for the first half of 2016, against a 179 million Pound loss a year ago. 
 
Chief Executive Ross McEwan is battling to complete a restructuring of the taxpayer-backed bank, which includes asset sales, job cuts and multi-billion dollar charges to settle litigation and pay regulatory fines for past misconduct. 
 
Those issues have complicated RBS&#39;s task of finding profitable business in a low interest rate economy with feeble credit demand, which now faces pressures from Britain&#39;s vote to leave the European Union and a possible new referendum on Scottish independence. 
 
&quot;There is more work to be done but we are making progress,&quot; McEwan said, adding that RBS is preparing to detail a new cost-cutting plan at its full-year results in early 2017 that will involve an unspecified number of job cuts and branch closures. 
 
The CEO said RBS had not yet decided whether to pass on the Bank of England&#39;s 25 basis point base rate cut to standard variable rate borrowers, a key part of the central bank&#39;s plans unveiled on Thursday to cushion the economy against Brexit. 
 
McEwan said RBS would look at the BoE&#39;s new Term Funding Scheme aimed at helping banks to boost lending to households and businesses. 
 
RBS shares, which have fallen almost 40 per cent so far this year, were 6.8 per cent lower by 1250 GMT.&nbsp;RBS said it no longer planned to build an independent technology platform for its Williams &amp; Glyn business, citing complexity and the lower interest rate environment. 
 
The bank had originally wanted to turn the small business lender into a &#39;bank within a bank&#39; so it could achieve a clean break when the business was sold under the terms of its 45.5 billion-Pound state bailout in the global financial crisis. 
 
But RBS said the risks and costs inherent in its plan were no longer &quot;prudent&quot; and it would look at other ways to achieve the carve out, which has already cost it 1.5 billion Pounds. 
 
Spain&#39;s Banco Santander has made a formal offer to take over Royal Bank of Scotland&#39;s Williams &amp; Glyn business, two sources familiar with the matter said earlier this week. 
 
Restructuring 
 
Edinburgh-based RBS&#39;s total income fell by almost a fifth to 6.06 billion Pounds in the first half, while the bigger losses were partly driven by a 630 million Pound charge for corporate restructuring, some 345 million Pounds of which related to Williams &amp; Glyn. 
 
&quot;These results show how much work RBS still has on its plate, progress has been made, but it has been slow,&quot; Laith Khalaf, a senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown told Reuters. 
 
&quot;If you went back to the financial crisis very few people would have predicted that it would have taken so long to heal the wounds. Whilst RBS is relatively well capitalised, the issue is profitability rather than solvency,&quot; he said. 
 
Impairments rose by more than a quarter to 409 million Pounds and the bank warned a target to reduce its cost to income ratio below 55 per cent by 2019 would be &quot;more challenging&quot;. 
 
RBS said restructuring costs were expected to remain high in 2016, totalling more than 1 billion Pounds. 
 
The bank also set aside an additional 450 million Pounds to compensate customers mis-sold payment protection insurance and made a 180 million Euros ($201 million) provision for redress in its Irish tracker mortgages business. 
 
These came on top of 707 million Pounds of new litigation charges, which analysts at Bernstein said were largely down to a long-running dispute with investors over its 2008 rights issue.&nbsp;Despite the provision, McEwan said RBS had yet to make any deal with claimants, and he still expected the matter to go to court in 2017. 
 
Meanwhile, the bank continues to wait for what analysts broadly expect to be the biggest regulatory penalty in its history for its role in mis-selling US mortgage bonds in the run up to the financial crisis. 
 
(Reuters)

RBS, which has not made an annual profit since 2007, booked 2.05 billion Pounds ($2.69 billion) of losses for the first half of 2016

Royal Bank of Scotland reported wider first-half losses, 1.3 billion Pounds of new litigation charges and axed plans to turn its Williams & Glyn business into a stand-alone bank today as it braces for post-Brexit shocks to the UK economy. RBS, which has not made an annual profit since 2007, booked 2.05 billion Pounds ($2.69 billion) of losses for the first half of 2016, against a 179 million Pound loss a year ago. Chief Executive Ross McEwan is battling to complete a restructuring of the taxpayer-backed bank, which includes asset sales, job cuts and multi-billion dollar charges to settle litigation and pay regulatory fines for past misconduct. Those issues have complicated RBS's task of finding profitable business in a low interest rate economy with feeble credit demand, which now faces pressures from Britain's vote to leave the European Union and a possible new referendum on Scottish independence. "There is more work to be done but we are making progress," McEwan said, adding that RBS is preparing to detail a new cost-cutting plan at its full-year results in early 2017 that will involve an unspecified number of job cuts and branch closures. The CEO said RBS had not yet decided whether to pass on the Bank of England's 25 basis point base rate cut to standard variable rate borrowers, a key part of the central bank's plans unveiled on Thursday to cushion the economy against Brexit. McEwan said RBS would look at the BoE's new Term Funding Scheme aimed at helping banks to boost lending to households and businesses. RBS shares, which have fallen almost 40 per cent so far this year, were 6.8 per cent lower by 1250 GMT. RBS said it no longer planned to build an independent technology platform for its Williams & Glyn business, citing complexity and the lower interest rate environment. The bank had originally wanted to turn the small business lender into a 'bank within a bank' so it could achieve a clean break when the business was sold under the terms of its 45.5 billion-Pound state bailout in the global financial crisis. But RBS said the risks and costs inherent in its plan were no longer "prudent" and it would look at other ways to achieve the carve out, which has already cost it 1.5 billion Pounds. Spain's Banco Santander has made a formal offer to take over Royal Bank of Scotland's Williams & Glyn business, two sources familiar with the matter said earlier this week. Restructuring Edinburgh-based RBS's total income fell by almost a fifth to 6.06 billion Pounds in the first half, while the bigger losses were partly driven by a 630 million Pound charge for corporate restructuring, some 345 million Pounds of which related to Williams & Glyn. "These results show how much work RBS still has on its plate, progress has been made, but it has been slow," Laith Khalaf, a senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown told Reuters. "If you went back to the financial crisis very few people would have predicted that it would have taken so long to heal the wounds. Whilst RBS is relatively well capitalised, the issue is profitability rather than solvency," he said. Impairments rose by more than a quarter to 409 million Pounds and the bank warned a target to reduce its cost to income ratio below 55 per cent by 2019 would be "more challenging". RBS said restructuring costs were expected to remain high in 2016, totalling more than 1 billion Pounds. The bank also set aside an additional 450 million Pounds to compensate customers mis-sold payment protection insurance and made a 180 million Euros ($201 million) provision for redress in its Irish tracker mortgages business. These came on top of 707 million Pounds of new litigation charges, which analysts at Bernstein said were largely down to a long-running dispute with investors over its 2008 rights issue. Despite the provision, McEwan said RBS had yet to make any deal with claimants, and he still expected the matter to go to court in 2017. Meanwhile, the bank continues to wait for what analysts broadly expect to be the biggest regulatory penalty in its history for its role in mis-selling US mortgage bonds in the run up to the financial crisis. (Reuters)

Royal Banks of Scotland losses and costs mount as Brexit fallout looms large

Indian manufacturers of finished steel goods are urging New Delhi to end tariffs on cheap imports of the alloy from China, Japan and South Korea, worried the protectionist measures may cost them billions in lost overseas sales.&nbsp; 
 
India put the tariffs in place in February to ensure a minimum import price (MIP) for 173 steel products, mainly to guard against cheap Chinese exports of around 10 million tonnes a month of items such as hot-rolled and cold-rolled steel that have undercut US European and Asian producers.&nbsp; 
 
The gambit to protect India&#39;s domestic steelmakers is threatening export revenues earned by engineering and manufacturing companies as artificially high prices for a primary raw material for everything from home appliances to ships make their products uncompetitive in foreign markets.&nbsp; 
 
The MIP policy has hit engineering firms especially hard. These mostly small- to mid-sized companies together export goods worth $56 billion a year, a fifth of India&#39;s shipped merchandise, made at least partly with steel now priced 15 per cent higher on average than at end-2015 and up to 30 per cent more than Chinese imports.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;My input cost is 40 per cent higher than other nations. How will my finished product compete?&quot; Pankaj Chaddha, CEO of Jyoti Steel Industries, said of the MIP tariffs.&nbsp; 
 
Jyoti Steel, a Mumbai manufacturer of stainless steel wire and carbon steel bright bars, cut 50 of its 300 jobs after MIP was introduced, and its output slumped by 22 per cent in the April-June quarter.&nbsp; 
 
Chaddha said he would have to lay off another 50 contract workers if the policy was extended past its August 5 expiry date. 
 
Also hanging over India&#39;s steel sector is a separate recommendation that the government enact anti-dumping duties on imports of hot-rolled steel products from China, Japan, South Korea, Russia, Brazil and Indonesia. 
 
 
Cold-roll steel mills shut down 
 
Indian prices of hot-rolled steel, used to make pipes, rods, cars, ships and industrial machinery, rose by more than 15 per cent to 37,000 rupees ($554) a tonne between December and early May, according to the latest data available. 
 
Chinese prices moved from $270 a tonne in December to $420 a tonne in April, before softening again.&nbsp; 
 
Trade body EEPC India said engineering goods exports would drop 10 per cent this year if MIP is extended. The group has gone before the trade ministry several times to ask that the import policy be allowed to lapse, and members have also met with the steel ministry on the issue.&nbsp; 
 
India&#39;s indebted steel sector, though, struggling with low profit amid a global supply glut, has lobbied hard for it to be kept in place.&nbsp;By making foreign steel too expensive, domestic steelmakers such as Steel Authority of India, Tata Steel and JSW Steel have been able to raise prices.&nbsp; 
 
But higher prices, besides hampering exporters, have pushed steel processing firms such as Adhunik Metaliks, Jayaswal Neco and Sujana Metal Products into losses.&nbsp; 
 
About 20 of 60 mills on his membership list have shut, said SC Mathur, executive director of Cold Rolled Steel Manufacturers Association of India. 
 
&quot;Others are operating at 40-50 per cent of capacity and incurring losses.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
 
Not just India vs China 
 
China, the world&#39;s largest steel manufacturer and consumer, produced 804 million tonnes last year, about half of global supply, using just 70 per cent of its capacity.&nbsp; 
 
India, along with the United States, Europe and others, has said that even as Beijing works to downsize its overblown sector, Chinese mills are exporting their excess supply. 
 
India, the world&#39;s third-largest producer with an estimated output of 90 million tonnes, consumed about 80 million tonnes of finished steel in the year through March 2016.&nbsp;It imported about 11 million tonnes that year, according to the steel ministry&#39;s Joint Plant Committee (JPC), with China supplying around 47 per cent.&nbsp; 
 
(Reuters)

A price policy to protect Indian markets from cheap imports are affecting cold-roll steel mills

Indian manufacturers of finished steel goods are urging New Delhi to end tariffs on cheap imports of the alloy from China, Japan and South Korea, worried the protectionist measures may cost them billions in lost overseas sales. India put the tariffs in place in February to ensure a minimum import price (MIP) for 173 steel products, mainly to guard against cheap Chinese exports of around 10 million tonnes a month of items such as hot-rolled and cold-rolled steel that have undercut US European and Asian producers. The gambit to protect India's domestic steelmakers is threatening export revenues earned by engineering and manufacturing companies as artificially high prices for a primary raw material for everything from home appliances to ships make their products uncompetitive in foreign markets. The MIP policy has hit engineering firms especially hard. These mostly small- to mid-sized companies together export goods worth $56 billion a year, a fifth of India's shipped merchandise, made at least partly with steel now priced 15 per cent higher on average than at end-2015 and up to 30 per cent more than Chinese imports. "My input cost is 40 per cent higher than other nations. How will my finished product compete?" Pankaj Chaddha, CEO of Jyoti Steel Industries, said of the MIP tariffs. Jyoti Steel, a Mumbai manufacturer of stainless steel wire and carbon steel bright bars, cut 50 of its 300 jobs after MIP was introduced, and its output slumped by 22 per cent in the April-June quarter. Chaddha said he would have to lay off another 50 contract workers if the policy was extended past its August 5 expiry date. Also hanging over India's steel sector is a separate recommendation that the government enact anti-dumping duties on imports of hot-rolled steel products from China, Japan, South Korea, Russia, Brazil and Indonesia. Cold-roll steel mills shut down Indian prices of hot-rolled steel, used to make pipes, rods, cars, ships and industrial machinery, rose by more than 15 per cent to 37,000 rupees ($554) a tonne between December and early May, according to the latest data available. Chinese prices moved from $270 a tonne in December to $420 a tonne in April, before softening again. Trade body EEPC India said engineering goods exports would drop 10 per cent this year if MIP is extended. The group has gone before the trade ministry several times to ask that the import policy be allowed to lapse, and members have also met with the steel ministry on the issue. India's indebted steel sector, though, struggling with low profit amid a global supply glut, has lobbied hard for it to be kept in place. By making foreign steel too expensive, domestic steelmakers such as Steel Authority of India, Tata Steel and JSW Steel have been able to raise prices. But higher prices, besides hampering exporters, have pushed steel processing firms such as Adhunik Metaliks, Jayaswal Neco and Sujana Metal Products into losses. About 20 of 60 mills on his membership list have shut, said SC Mathur, executive director of Cold Rolled Steel Manufacturers Association of India. "Others are operating at 40-50 per cent of capacity and incurring losses." Not just India vs China China, the world's largest steel manufacturer and consumer, produced 804 million tonnes last year, about half of global supply, using just 70 per cent of its capacity. India, along with the United States, Europe and others, has said that even as Beijing works to downsize its overblown sector, Chinese mills are exporting their excess supply. India, the world's third-largest producer with an estimated output of 90 million tonnes, consumed about 80 million tonnes of finished steel in the year through March 2016. It imported about 11 million tonnes that year, according to the steel ministry's Joint Plant Committee (JPC), with China supplying around 47 per cent. (Reuters)

India's anti-China steel tariffs harm engineering, manufacturing firms

Ride-hailing firm Didi Chuxing said on Monday that it will buy Uber&#39;s China operations, in a deal that will give Uber a stake in the company and end bruising competition between the two. 
 
The deal is valued at $35 billion, according to a source familiar with the matter who didn&#39;t want to be named before the deal was made public, combining Didi&#39;s $28 billion worth and Uber China&#39;s $7 billion valuation. Didi confirmed the agreement on its official microblog, but gave no valuation. 
 
San Francisco-based Uber Technologies will receive a 5.89 per cent stake in Didi, but will have disproportionate &quot;economic interests&quot; of 17.7 per cent with another 2.3 per cent interest going to Uber China shareholders. 
 
Uber will continue to operate independently, the Didi posting said. &quot;Cooperating with Uber will give the entire mobile travel industry a healthier order and a period of a higher level of development,&quot; it said. 
 
Uber CEO Travis Kalanick will join Didi&#39;s board, while Didi Chuxing chief Cheng Wei is joining the Uber board. 
 
In an internal message to staff viewed by Reuters, Kalanick wrote: &quot;Sustainably serving China&#39;s cities, and the riders and drivers who live in them, is only possible with profitability. This merger paves the way for our team and Didi&#39;s to partner on an enormous mission, and it frees up substantial resources for bold initiatives focused on the future of cities - from self-driving technology to the future of food and logistics.&quot; 
 
He said Uber was operating in more than 60 cities in China and serving more than 40 million rides a week. 
 
Challenging China 
 
China has been a challenging market for Uber, which has been burning through more than $1 billion a year in a price war with Didi. Uber is profitable in the United States, Canada and about 100 other cities. 
 
&quot;It makes huge sense. Uber faces an uphill task in China especially since Didi is multiple times larger by transaction value and city coverage,&quot; said Hong Kong-based Richard Ji, co-founder of All-Stars Investment Ltd, which manages about $900 million and owns Didi stock. 
 
&quot;This will lead to favourable outcomes for both companies. The biggest benefit is cost savings, they no longer have to give out subsidies to drivers and passengers. It will give pricing power as the new entity will become the dominant player. That means profitability will come sooner than later,&quot; he added. 
 
Under the deal, Didi will also invest $1 billion in Uber, which operates globally outside China, the source said, adding to a series of deals and joint ventures Didi has struck in recent years. 
 
International Ambition 
 
Analysts said Didi&#39;s latest move is a signal of its readiness to step beyond its home market. 
 
&quot;This clearly shows Didi&#39;s global ambitions and its desire to work together with Uber to tap Chinese travelers, who are going out in big numbers. There&#39;s a possibility the two could work together in other markets,&quot; All-Stars Investment&#39;s Ji said. 
 
Didi said in its posting it will look to expand its international business and enter markets like Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau, Japan, South Korea, Europe and Russia. 
 
Didi, itself created last year from a merger of two firms backed respectively by e-commerce giant Alibaba Group and social network firm Tencent, has invested $100 million in Lyft, Uber&#39;s main rival in the United States. 
 
It has also formed an alliance with Lyft, India&#39;s ride service Ola and Southeast Asia&#39;s ride-hailing startup Grab in an effort to compete with Uber&#39;s global dominance. 
 
The deal is the latest sign of a global Internet or technology company struggling to break into China&#39;s cut-throat market, where local entrepreneurs have built formidable businesses, partly helped by a supportive government. 
 
All of China&#39;s technology heavyweights will be stakeholders in Didi, as Uber shareholder Baidu will gain a stake. Apple Inc recently made a rare $1 billion investment in Didi. 
 
China last week issued guidelines that establish a long-awaited framework for the booming ride-hailing industry and remove uncertainty for firms such as Didi and Uber. 
 
(Reuters)

China has been a challenging market for Uber, which has been burning through more than $1 billion a year in a price war with Didi

Ride-hailing firm Didi Chuxing said on Monday that it will buy Uber's China operations, in a deal that will give Uber a stake in the company and end bruising competition between the two. The deal is valued at $35 billion, according to a source familiar with the matter who didn't want to be named before the deal was made public, combining Didi's $28 billion worth and Uber China's $7 billion valuation. Didi confirmed the agreement on its official microblog, but gave no valuation. San Francisco-based Uber Technologies will receive a 5.89 per cent stake in Didi, but will have disproportionate "economic interests" of 17.7 per cent with another 2.3 per cent interest going to Uber China shareholders. Uber will continue to operate independently, the Didi posting said. "Cooperating with Uber will give the entire mobile travel industry a healthier order and a period of a higher level of development," it said. Uber CEO Travis Kalanick will join Didi's board, while Didi Chuxing chief Cheng Wei is joining the Uber board. In an internal message to staff viewed by Reuters, Kalanick wrote: "Sustainably serving China's cities, and the riders and drivers who live in them, is only possible with profitability. This merger paves the way for our team and Didi's to partner on an enormous mission, and it frees up substantial resources for bold initiatives focused on the future of cities - from self-driving technology to the future of food and logistics." He said Uber was operating in more than 60 cities in China and serving more than 40 million rides a week. Challenging China China has been a challenging market for Uber, which has been burning through more than $1 billion a year in a price war with Didi. Uber is profitable in the United States, Canada and about 100 other cities. "It makes huge sense. Uber faces an uphill task in China especially since Didi is multiple times larger by transaction value and city coverage," said Hong Kong-based Richard Ji, co-founder of All-Stars Investment Ltd, which manages about $900 million and owns Didi stock. "This will lead to favourable outcomes for both companies. The biggest benefit is cost savings, they no longer have to give out subsidies to drivers and passengers. It will give pricing power as the new entity will become the dominant player. That means profitability will come sooner than later," he added. Under the deal, Didi will also invest $1 billion in Uber, which operates globally outside China, the source said, adding to a series of deals and joint ventures Didi has struck in recent years. International Ambition Analysts said Didi's latest move is a signal of its readiness to step beyond its home market. "This clearly shows Didi's global ambitions and its desire to work together with Uber to tap Chinese travelers, who are going out in big numbers. There's a possibility the two could work together in other markets," All-Stars Investment's Ji said. Didi said in its posting it will look to expand its international business and enter markets like Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau, Japan, South Korea, Europe and Russia. Didi, itself created last year from a merger of two firms backed respectively by e-commerce giant Alibaba Group and social network firm Tencent, has invested $100 million in Lyft, Uber's main rival in the United States. It has also formed an alliance with Lyft, India's ride service Ola and Southeast Asia's ride-hailing startup Grab in an effort to compete with Uber's global dominance. The deal is the latest sign of a global Internet or technology company struggling to break into China's cut-throat market, where local entrepreneurs have built formidable businesses, partly helped by a supportive government. All of China's technology heavyweights will be stakeholders in Didi, as Uber shareholder Baidu will gain a stake. Apple Inc recently made a rare $1 billion investment in Didi. China last week issued guidelines that establish a long-awaited framework for the booming ride-hailing industry and remove uncertainty for firms such as Didi and Uber. (Reuters)

Didi Chuxing to buy Uber's China business for $35 billion deal

Shares of Japan&#39;s Nintendo Co soared another 14 per cent on Tuesday, more than doubling the firm&#39;s market capitalisation to 4.5 trillion Yen ($42.5 billion) in just seven sessions since the mobile game Pokemon GO was launched in the United States.&nbsp; 
 
The phenomenal success of Pokemon GO - now available in 35 countries, the majority in Europe, and most recently in Canada - has triggered massive buying in Nintendo shares, surprising even some seasoned market players. 
 
&quot;I&#39;ve never seen the trend of such a big company&#39;s shares changing so quickly in such a short period of time,&quot; said Takashi Oba, senior strategist at Okasan Securities. 
 
Nintendo shares ended up by 14.4 per cent at 31,770 Yen on Tuesday, bringing its gains to more than 100 per cent since the launch of the game on July 6. 
 
Turnover in Nintendo shares hit 703.6 billion Yen, surpassing the record for trading turnover in individual shares it set on Friday, of 476 billion Yen. 
 
Trading in Nintendo shares roughly accounted for a quarter of the entire trading on the Tokyo Stock Exchange&#39;s main board. 
 
The success of Pokemon GO, unforeseen even by its creators, has boosted hopes that Nintendo could capitalise on a line-up of popular characters ranging from Zelda to Super Mario to strengthen its new foray into augmented reality. 
 
&quot;Virtual reality and augmented reality have been a focus of the market but hardly anyone was expecting Nintendo in this area. Suddenly Nintendo has become an AR-related stock,&quot; said a fund manager at a Japanese asset management firm, who declined to be named as he is not allowed to discuss individual shares. 
 
The fund manager said the big gains were justifiable considering the likely boost to Nintendo&#39;s bottom line. 
 
&quot;Under my rough estimate, the sales from Pokemon GO and upcoming related gadgets will boost net profits by 50 billion Yen. Based on that assumption, Nintendo is traded at 30 times profits, which is not unreasonable,&quot; he said. 
 
The popularity of Pokemon GO is producing an unexpected boom in some shares that have a scant link to the game. 
 
Shares in First Baking Co, a bakery firm with annual sales of 25 billion Yen, saw its shares rise 18 per cent on Tuesday as the firm sells &quot;Pokemon Bread&quot; among other breads wrapped with character-decorated bags. 
 
(Reuters)

Shares ended up by 14.4 per cent on Tuesday, bringing its gains to more than 100 per cent since the launch of the game

Shares of Japan's Nintendo Co soared another 14 per cent on Tuesday, more than doubling the firm's market capitalisation to 4.5 trillion Yen ($42.5 billion) in just seven sessions since the mobile game Pokemon GO was launched in the United States. The phenomenal success of Pokemon GO - now available in 35 countries, the majority in Europe, and most recently in Canada - has triggered massive buying in Nintendo shares, surprising even some seasoned market players. "I've never seen the trend of such a big company's shares changing so quickly in such a short period of time," said Takashi Oba, senior strategist at Okasan Securities. Nintendo shares ended up by 14.4 per cent at 31,770 Yen on Tuesday, bringing its gains to more than 100 per cent since the launch of the game on July 6. Turnover in Nintendo shares hit 703.6 billion Yen, surpassing the record for trading turnover in individual shares it set on Friday, of 476 billion Yen. Trading in Nintendo shares roughly accounted for a quarter of the entire trading on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's main board. The success of Pokemon GO, unforeseen even by its creators, has boosted hopes that Nintendo could capitalise on a line-up of popular characters ranging from Zelda to Super Mario to strengthen its new foray into augmented reality. "Virtual reality and augmented reality have been a focus of the market but hardly anyone was expecting Nintendo in this area. Suddenly Nintendo has become an AR-related stock," said a fund manager at a Japanese asset management firm, who declined to be named as he is not allowed to discuss individual shares. The fund manager said the big gains were justifiable considering the likely boost to Nintendo's bottom line. "Under my rough estimate, the sales from Pokemon GO and upcoming related gadgets will boost net profits by 50 billion Yen. Based on that assumption, Nintendo is traded at 30 times profits, which is not unreasonable," he said. The popularity of Pokemon GO is producing an unexpected boom in some shares that have a scant link to the game. Shares in First Baking Co, a bakery firm with annual sales of 25 billion Yen, saw its shares rise 18 per cent on Tuesday as the firm sells "Pokemon Bread" among other breads wrapped with character-decorated bags. (Reuters)

Nintendo's market capital doubles since Pokemon GO launch

Mobile telecom gear maker Ericsson forecast a third consecutive year of comparable sales declines on Tuesday, saying it would step up cost cuts in the face of deteriorating market conditions after its results fell short of market expectations. 
 
With demand stagnating in developed markets where the newest networks have mostly already been built, Ericsson is now feeling an additional pinch from lower spending in countries such as Russia, Brazil, the Middle East and Nigeria, hit by weaker currencies and low oil prices. 
 
&quot;This has become even more pronounced during the second quarter, so it has impacted the investment levels at the operators, and that hits the mobile broadband market,&quot; stated Ericsson Chief Financial Officer Jan Frykhammar. 
 
&quot;So that is the most important trend.&quot; 
 
For the past couple of years, Ericsson has been forced to cut its outlook for market growth, weighed down by sluggish demand for its core mobile network base stations. It also has a weaker position than rivals Nokia and Huawei in faster growing areas such IP-based communication. 
 
To offset the shrinking market for mobile infrastructure, Ericsson is investing in new areas to grow sales, such as IP- and cloud-based communication, but so far these are not growing fast enough to compensate. 
 
Like-for-like sales dropped by 7 percent in the quarter, the seventh in a row of declining underlying sales, though CEO Hans Vestberg told a conference call it didn&#39;t appear that Ericsson was losing market share. In 2015, group sales fell 5 percent on a comparable basis after declining 2 percent in 2014. 
 
&quot;The current sales trends and business mix are expected to prevail for the second half of the year,&quot; Ericsson said in a statement. 
 
Cost reduction plan could have far-reaching affects 
 
Operating profit was 2.8 billion Swedish crowns ($327 million) compared with 3.6 billion a year-ago, weighed down by its networks divisions and below a mean forecast of 3.0 billion crowns. 
 
Ericsson said it would roughly double cuts in operating expenses to adapt to a weaker market, meaning annual savings of some 10 billion Swedish crowns from the second half of 2017 compared to 2014, adding that a previously announced cost savings programme was going according to plan. 
 
Ericsson&#39;s beaten-down shares, which dropped 15 percent in a single day in April after weak results, slipped 1 percent to 63.70 crowns. 
 
&quot;While Ericsson seems to be more serious now about its cost reduction efforts, it seems to be chasing a bit of a moving target,&quot; Liberum said in a note to clients. 
 
&quot;The cost reduction plan is expected to show some results which should lead to higher operating margins, though the extent is difficult to predict.&quot; 
 
Ericsson did not say how planned cost cuts would affect jobs but said almost 4,000 employees had left during the quarter though an acquisition had contributed to a net increase in staff. Ericsson employed 116,507 people by June 30, versus 115,300 by the end of the first quarter. 
 
(Reuters) 
&nbsp;

Ericsson feels the pinch of weakening currencies and low oil prices, cost reduction plan could affect more jobs

Mobile telecom gear maker Ericsson forecast a third consecutive year of comparable sales declines on Tuesday, saying it would step up cost cuts in the face of deteriorating market conditions after its results fell short of market expectations. With demand stagnating in developed markets where the newest networks have mostly already been built, Ericsson is now feeling an additional pinch from lower spending in countries such as Russia, Brazil, the Middle East and Nigeria, hit by weaker currencies and low oil prices. "This has become even more pronounced during the second quarter, so it has impacted the investment levels at the operators, and that hits the mobile broadband market," stated Ericsson Chief Financial Officer Jan Frykhammar. "So that is the most important trend." For the past couple of years, Ericsson has been forced to cut its outlook for market growth, weighed down by sluggish demand for its core mobile network base stations. It also has a weaker position than rivals Nokia and Huawei in faster growing areas such IP-based communication. To offset the shrinking market for mobile infrastructure, Ericsson is investing in new areas to grow sales, such as IP- and cloud-based communication, but so far these are not growing fast enough to compensate. Like-for-like sales dropped by 7 percent in the quarter, the seventh in a row of declining underlying sales, though CEO Hans Vestberg told a conference call it didn't appear that Ericsson was losing market share. In 2015, group sales fell 5 percent on a comparable basis after declining 2 percent in 2014. "The current sales trends and business mix are expected to prevail for the second half of the year," Ericsson said in a statement. Cost reduction plan could have far-reaching affects Operating profit was 2.8 billion Swedish crowns ($327 million) compared with 3.6 billion a year-ago, weighed down by its networks divisions and below a mean forecast of 3.0 billion crowns. Ericsson said it would roughly double cuts in operating expenses to adapt to a weaker market, meaning annual savings of some 10 billion Swedish crowns from the second half of 2017 compared to 2014, adding that a previously announced cost savings programme was going according to plan. Ericsson's beaten-down shares, which dropped 15 percent in a single day in April after weak results, slipped 1 percent to 63.70 crowns. "While Ericsson seems to be more serious now about its cost reduction efforts, it seems to be chasing a bit of a moving target," Liberum said in a note to clients. "The cost reduction plan is expected to show some results which should lead to higher operating margins, though the extent is difficult to predict." Ericsson did not say how planned cost cuts would affect jobs but said almost 4,000 employees had left during the quarter though an acquisition had contributed to a net increase in staff. Ericsson employed 116,507 people by June 30, versus 115,300 by the end of the first quarter. (Reuters)

Stagnating sales forces Ericsson to cut costs further

China&#39;s policymakers and leading economists today voiced concerns about Britain&#39;s vote to leave the European Union, with the finance minister saying it has heightened market uncertainty, though some expect a limited impact on the Chinese economy. 
 
The &quot;Brexit&quot; decision &quot;will cast a shadow over the global economy ... The repercussions and fallout will emerge in the next five to 10 years,&quot; said Lou Jiwei, China&#39;s minister of finance, at the first annual meeting of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank in Beijing. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s difficult to predict now,&quot; he said. &quot;The knee-jerk reaction from the market is probably a bit excessive and needs to calm down and take an objective view.&quot; 
 
Stock markets around the world plunged in the wake of the referendum. Sterling&#39;s value also plummeted. 
 
Lou&#39;s views were echoed by the head of China&#39;s top economic planning authority and other economists at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in the northern city of Tianjin. 
 
&quot;For Chinese firms that are going to invest or carry out mergers, entrepreneurs are smarter than me, and they will definitely wait and see,&quot; Xu Shaoshi, chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission, said at WEF today. 
 
&quot;The Brexit incident wil affect China&#39;s economy via investment, trade and capital,&quot; he said. &quot;But I believe the impact will not be big and relevant government departments have made contingency plans.&quot; 
 
Huang Yiping, a professor at Peking University and a member of the central bank&#39;s monetary policy committee, said it is hard to judge the direct impact of the British referendum on China&#39;s economy. 
 
&quot;If (Brexit) is an important landmark in terms of a reversal of globalisation, I think that&#39;s very bad for the world, it&#39;s very bad for China,&quot; Huang said. 
 
Li Daokui, a professor at Tsinghua University and a former adviser to China&#39;s central bank, was more optimistic on the referendum&#39;s effects on the world&#39;s second-largest economy. 
 
&quot;China is perhaps one of the least impacted economies in the world by the event of Brexit,&quot; he told an audience at WEF. 
 
&quot;The only short-term impact I can think about is the exchange rate of the Renminbi ... But I do think within a few trading sessions that situation will very quickly be subdued,&quot; Li said. 
 
Also speaking at WEF was economist Nouriel Roubini, famed for predicting the global financial crisis, who said the decision to leave the European Union &quot;creates a whole bunch of financial, economic, political and geopolitical uncertainties.&quot; 
 
It could be the &quot;beginning of the disintegration&quot; of the bloc of countries, the euro zone or the United Kingdom, said Roubini. 
 
&quot;I don&#39;t expect a global recession or another global financial crisis,&quot; he added. &quot;I think the impact of Brexit is significant but not of the same size and magnitude of the one we had 2007 to 2009.&quot; 
 
Michael Falcon, CEO of Global Investment Management Asia Pacific at JP Morgan, said he expects more market volatility but doubts the vote will derail a global recovery. 
 
&quot;It is a shock, not a crisis, and so far markets seem to be handling this pretty well,&quot; Falcon said at the WEF conference. 
 
(Reuters)

The repercussions and fallout will emerge in the next five to 10 years, said Lou Jiwei, China's finance minister

China's policymakers and leading economists today voiced concerns about Britain's vote to leave the European Union, with the finance minister saying it has heightened market uncertainty, though some expect a limited impact on the Chinese economy. The "Brexit" decision "will cast a shadow over the global economy ... The repercussions and fallout will emerge in the next five to 10 years," said Lou Jiwei, China's minister of finance, at the first annual meeting of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank in Beijing. "It's difficult to predict now," he said. "The knee-jerk reaction from the market is probably a bit excessive and needs to calm down and take an objective view." Stock markets around the world plunged in the wake of the referendum. Sterling's value also plummeted. Lou's views were echoed by the head of China's top economic planning authority and other economists at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in the northern city of Tianjin. "For Chinese firms that are going to invest or carry out mergers, entrepreneurs are smarter than me, and they will definitely wait and see," Xu Shaoshi, chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission, said at WEF today. "The Brexit incident wil affect China's economy via investment, trade and capital," he said. "But I believe the impact will not be big and relevant government departments have made contingency plans." Huang Yiping, a professor at Peking University and a member of the central bank's monetary policy committee, said it is hard to judge the direct impact of the British referendum on China's economy. "If (Brexit) is an important landmark in terms of a reversal of globalisation, I think that's very bad for the world, it's very bad for China," Huang said. Li Daokui, a professor at Tsinghua University and a former adviser to China's central bank, was more optimistic on the referendum's effects on the world's second-largest economy. "China is perhaps one of the least impacted economies in the world by the event of Brexit," he told an audience at WEF. "The only short-term impact I can think about is the exchange rate of the Renminbi ... But I do think within a few trading sessions that situation will very quickly be subdued," Li said. Also speaking at WEF was economist Nouriel Roubini, famed for predicting the global financial crisis, who said the decision to leave the European Union "creates a whole bunch of financial, economic, political and geopolitical uncertainties." It could be the "beginning of the disintegration" of the bloc of countries, the euro zone or the United Kingdom, said Roubini. "I don't expect a global recession or another global financial crisis," he added. "I think the impact of Brexit is significant but not of the same size and magnitude of the one we had 2007 to 2009." Michael Falcon, CEO of Global Investment Management Asia Pacific at JP Morgan, said he expects more market volatility but doubts the vote will derail a global recovery. "It is a shock, not a crisis, and so far markets seem to be handling this pretty well," Falcon said at the WEF conference. (Reuters)

China's finance minister sees 'Brexit' heightening uncertainty for markets

Turmoil unleashed by Britain&#39;s vote to leave the EU engulfed the opposition Labour Party, while policymakers as far away as China, Japan and South Korea fretted today over the threat to global financial stability, hours before markets reopen. 
 
In the oldest parliamentary democracy, three million Britons have signed a petition calling for a re-run of Thursday&#39;s referendum that split the nation, and one opinion poll showed a strong majority of Scots now want to break with the United Kingdom rather than with the European Union. 
 
Labour&#39;s left-wing leader Jeremy Corbyn sacked his foreign policy chief as the party plunged into open conflict. 
 
His health chief responded by resigning, calling for a new leader and reflecting accusations among pro-EU lawmakers that Corbyn&#39;s failure to win over traditional Labour voters had played a major role in the referendum result. 
 
Sacked foreign affairs spokesman Hilary Benn also called for Corbyn, who was elected last year largely by Left-wing party members and supporters, to go. &quot;He is a good and decent man but he is not a leader,&quot; Benn told BBC television. 
 
The 52-48 per cent referendum vote marked the biggest blow since World War II to the European project of forging greater unity across the continent. 
 
Sterling fell as much as 10 per cent against the Dollar on Friday to levels last seen in 1985, while world stocks saw more than $2 trillion wiped off their value. The weekend gave some respite from the turmoil, but with markets opening shortly in Asia, anxiety is growing. 
 
Prime Minister David Cameron resigned on Friday after Britons ignored his passionate appeals to stay in the EU, but left formally notifying Brussels of Britain&#39;s exit to his successor, who is unlikely to be in office for about three months. That signals a long period of limbo. 
 
Chinese Finance Minister Lou Jiwei said the vote &quot;will cast a shadow over the global economy&quot;. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s difficult to predict now,&quot; he said at the first annual meeting of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank in Beijing. &quot;The knee-jerk reaction from the market is probably a bit excessive and needs to calm down and take an objective view.&quot; 
 
Japan likewise fretted over the effect on the global currency market and contemplated official action. &quot;Speculative, violent moves have extremely negative effects,&quot; said Tomomi Inada, policy chief of the ruling LDP party. &quot;If necessary, the government should not hesitate to respond, including currency intervention,&quot; Nikkei daily quoted him as saying. 
 
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has tried to engineer a weaker Yen to encourage exports to help revive the Japanese economy. But after initial success, investors have sought safety in the Yen this year due to stock market turmoil and now the Brexit vote, pushing the currency back up. 
 
No respite 
 
South Korea&#39;s finance minister also said he feared international markets will remain volatile throughout negotiations on the British exit. 
 
The United States, which during campaigning made clear it wanted Britain to stay in the EU, also showed signs of unease. 
 
Secretary of state John Kerry will meet EU foreign policy chief Frederica Mogherini in Brussels and British Foreign Minister Philip Hammond in London on Monday. 
 
The visit is largely meant to offer symbolic reassurance at a critical juncture for Europe, but a senior US official said Kerry would also stress the importance of other members not following Britain&#39;s lead and further weakening the EU. 
 
Despite the international expressions of concern, respite from the uncertainty is unlikely for months, at the very least. 
 
Cameron has offered to stay on as a caretaker, but he has refused to invoke Article 50 of the EU&#39;s Lisbon Treaty, which allows for two years of exit negotiations. Instead he left that job to his successor, who is due to be elected by his Conservative Party sometime before its annual conference in October. 
 
Only after the new leader has invoked can work on thrashing out Britain&#39;s new relationship with the bloc begin. The man widely tipped as the next prime minister is former London mayor Boris Johnson, the most prominent member of the campaign to leave the EU. 
 
No lying down 
 
Signs are growing that not all the 16 million Britons who voted to stay in the EU are willing to take the result lying down. Many flocked to back an online petition demanding a second vote, with signatures exceeding three million today morning, more than double the figure the previous afternoon. 
 
The petition, posted on Parliament&#39;s website before the referendum, said there should be another vote if the outcome was close on a turnout of less than 75 per cent - three points above Thursday&#39;s figure. 
 
It will have to be considered for debate by lawmakers, but has no legal force and its backers compare with the 17.4 million who voted &quot;leave&quot;. 
 
The referendum has also re-energised support for Scotland, which voted overwhelmingly to remain in the EU, to break away from the United Kingdom instead. 
 
An opinion poll in The Sunday Post said 59 per cent of respondents backed independence, rocketing from 45 per cent of votes cast in a referendum in 2014. 
 
Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon has said a fresh independence referendum is possible 
 
&quot;My challenge now as first minister is to work out how I best protect Scotland&#39;s interests, how I try to prevent us being taken out of the EU against our will with all of the deeply damaging and painful consequences that that will entail,&quot; she told the BBC&#39;s Andrew Marr show.&nbsp; 
 
(Reuters)

The 52-48% referendum vote marked the biggest blow since World War II to the European project forging unity across the continent

Turmoil unleashed by Britain's vote to leave the EU engulfed the opposition Labour Party, while policymakers as far away as China, Japan and South Korea fretted today over the threat to global financial stability, hours before markets reopen. In the oldest parliamentary democracy, three million Britons have signed a petition calling for a re-run of Thursday's referendum that split the nation, and one opinion poll showed a strong majority of Scots now want to break with the United Kingdom rather than with the European Union. Labour's left-wing leader Jeremy Corbyn sacked his foreign policy chief as the party plunged into open conflict. His health chief responded by resigning, calling for a new leader and reflecting accusations among pro-EU lawmakers that Corbyn's failure to win over traditional Labour voters had played a major role in the referendum result. Sacked foreign affairs spokesman Hilary Benn also called for Corbyn, who was elected last year largely by Left-wing party members and supporters, to go. "He is a good and decent man but he is not a leader," Benn told BBC television. The 52-48 per cent referendum vote marked the biggest blow since World War II to the European project of forging greater unity across the continent. Sterling fell as much as 10 per cent against the Dollar on Friday to levels last seen in 1985, while world stocks saw more than $2 trillion wiped off their value. The weekend gave some respite from the turmoil, but with markets opening shortly in Asia, anxiety is growing. Prime Minister David Cameron resigned on Friday after Britons ignored his passionate appeals to stay in the EU, but left formally notifying Brussels of Britain's exit to his successor, who is unlikely to be in office for about three months. That signals a long period of limbo. Chinese Finance Minister Lou Jiwei said the vote "will cast a shadow over the global economy". "It's difficult to predict now," he said at the first annual meeting of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank in Beijing. "The knee-jerk reaction from the market is probably a bit excessive and needs to calm down and take an objective view." Japan likewise fretted over the effect on the global currency market and contemplated official action. "Speculative, violent moves have extremely negative effects," said Tomomi Inada, policy chief of the ruling LDP party. "If necessary, the government should not hesitate to respond, including currency intervention," Nikkei daily quoted him as saying. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has tried to engineer a weaker Yen to encourage exports to help revive the Japanese economy. But after initial success, investors have sought safety in the Yen this year due to stock market turmoil and now the Brexit vote, pushing the currency back up. No respite South Korea's finance minister also said he feared international markets will remain volatile throughout negotiations on the British exit. The United States, which during campaigning made clear it wanted Britain to stay in the EU, also showed signs of unease. Secretary of state John Kerry will meet EU foreign policy chief Frederica Mogherini in Brussels and British Foreign Minister Philip Hammond in London on Monday. The visit is largely meant to offer symbolic reassurance at a critical juncture for Europe, but a senior US official said Kerry would also stress the importance of other members not following Britain's lead and further weakening the EU. Despite the international expressions of concern, respite from the uncertainty is unlikely for months, at the very least. Cameron has offered to stay on as a caretaker, but he has refused to invoke Article 50 of the EU's Lisbon Treaty, which allows for two years of exit negotiations. Instead he left that job to his successor, who is due to be elected by his Conservative Party sometime before its annual conference in October. Only after the new leader has invoked can work on thrashing out Britain's new relationship with the bloc begin. The man widely tipped as the next prime minister is former London mayor Boris Johnson, the most prominent member of the campaign to leave the EU. No lying down Signs are growing that not all the 16 million Britons who voted to stay in the EU are willing to take the result lying down. Many flocked to back an online petition demanding a second vote, with signatures exceeding three million today morning, more than double the figure the previous afternoon. The petition, posted on Parliament's website before the referendum, said there should be another vote if the outcome was close on a turnout of less than 75 per cent - three points above Thursday's figure. It will have to be considered for debate by lawmakers, but has no legal force and its backers compare with the 17.4 million who voted "leave". The referendum has also re-energised support for Scotland, which voted overwhelmingly to remain in the EU, to break away from the United Kingdom instead. An opinion poll in The Sunday Post said 59 per cent of respondents backed independence, rocketing from 45 per cent of votes cast in a referendum in 2014. Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon has said a fresh independence referendum is possible "My challenge now as first minister is to work out how I best protect Scotland's interests, how I try to prevent us being taken out of the EU against our will with all of the deeply damaging and painful consequences that that will entail," she told the BBC's Andrew Marr show. (Reuters)

British EU exit turmoil alarms Asia, rocks Labour opposition

Talks on Britain leaving the European Union must be carried out quickly to limit uncertainty, ECB Governing Council member Francois Villeroy de Galhau said today, adding London&#39;s financial centre was at risk of losing its prized &quot;EU passport&quot;. 
 
Banks based in London rely on a so-called EU passport to operate across the bloc&#39;s capital market unhindered. Some banks have said they would shift operations to the euro zone if Britain left the EU. 
 
The City of London will not be able to keep that passport if Britain leaves the EU&#39;s single market of trade in goods and services, Villeroy told France Inter radio. 
 
&quot;There is a precedent, it is the Norwegian model of European Economic Area, that would allow Britain to keep access to the single market but by committing to implement all EU rules,&quot; he said. 
 
&quot;It would be a bit paradoxical to leave the EU and apply all EU rules, but that is one solution if Britain wants to keep access to the single market.&quot; 
 
Central banks are efficiently dealing with the fallout of Thursday&#39;s UK vote to leave the EU, said Villeroy, who is also governor of the French central bank, adding: &quot;The euro is a solid currency.&quot; 
 
&quot;What happened on Thursday is bad news, first of all for Britain,&quot; he said. &quot;Of course there will be negative consequences for the European economy but there will be much more limited than the negative consequences all experts forecast for the UK economy.&quot; 
 
Brexit does not put the French economy at any risk of contracting in the next quarters, he said, confirming past growth forecasts of at least 1.4 per cent for 2016. 
 
(Reuters)

Some London-based banks have said they would shift operations to the euro zone if Britain left the EU

Talks on Britain leaving the European Union must be carried out quickly to limit uncertainty, ECB Governing Council member Francois Villeroy de Galhau said today, adding London's financial centre was at risk of losing its prized "EU passport". Banks based in London rely on a so-called EU passport to operate across the bloc's capital market unhindered. Some banks have said they would shift operations to the euro zone if Britain left the EU. The City of London will not be able to keep that passport if Britain leaves the EU's single market of trade in goods and services, Villeroy told France Inter radio. "There is a precedent, it is the Norwegian model of European Economic Area, that would allow Britain to keep access to the single market but by committing to implement all EU rules," he said. "It would be a bit paradoxical to leave the EU and apply all EU rules, but that is one solution if Britain wants to keep access to the single market." Central banks are efficiently dealing with the fallout of Thursday's UK vote to leave the EU, said Villeroy, who is also governor of the French central bank, adding: "The euro is a solid currency." "What happened on Thursday is bad news, first of all for Britain," he said. "Of course there will be negative consequences for the European economy but there will be much more limited than the negative consequences all experts forecast for the UK economy." Brexit does not put the French economy at any risk of contracting in the next quarters, he said, confirming past growth forecasts of at least 1.4 per cent for 2016. (Reuters)

ECB's Villeroy: Brexit talks must be quick, City of London at risk of losing 'EU passport'

India, the world&#39;s biggest cotton producer, has contracted to import 20,000 bales from Pakistan for shipment this month after Indian prices jumped because of limited supply, industry officials told Reuters. 
 
The move is a role reversal from earlier this year when Pakistan was buying cotton from India after its output had been hit by bad weather. 
 
&quot;About 20,000 bales have been imported from Pakistan. Landed cost of imported cotton is lower than local prices,&quot; Dhiren Sheth, president of the Cotton Association of India (CAI), told Reuters. 
 
Indian cotton prices have risen by 28 per cent since the start of 2015-16 season on October 1 to 40,800 rupees per 356 kg candy (77.4 cents per lb) as two years of drought took its toll on output. 
 
Pakistani supplies are available at about 70 cents per lb on a free-on-board basis, said one Mumbai-based dealer with a global trading firm. 
 
&quot;Supplies are dwindling in both countries. The sharp rally in Indian prices is making imports viable from Pakistan, but it has limited quantity for exports,&quot; the dealer said. 
 
India has so far imported about 1.2 million bales in 2015-16 and needs another 400,000 bales before the new crop starts arriving from the end of September, Sheth said. 
 
The country has exported about 6.5 million bales of cotton this season, with Pakistan accounting for nearly 2 million bales. 
 
Purchases from India have been pushing up prices in Pakistan, said Shahzad Ali Khan, chairman of Pakistan Cotton Ginner&#39;s Association. 
 
The All Pakistan Textile Mills Association has urged the Pakistan government to restrict cotton exports to India in an attempt to provide raw material for domestic textiles production. 
 
Indian industry officials, including Sheth of the CAI, said that Pakistan should not restrict exports since it imported cotton when it was in need. 
 
Global cotton prices could rally sharply in the coming months as stocks become further depleted in key producing countries, one Karachi-based dealer said. 
 
(1 bale = 170 kg) 
 
(Reuters)

Landed cost of imported cotton is lower than local prices, says chief of Cotton Association of India

India, the world's biggest cotton producer, has contracted to import 20,000 bales from Pakistan for shipment this month after Indian prices jumped because of limited supply, industry officials told Reuters. The move is a role reversal from earlier this year when Pakistan was buying cotton from India after its output had been hit by bad weather. "About 20,000 bales have been imported from Pakistan. Landed cost of imported cotton is lower than local prices," Dhiren Sheth, president of the Cotton Association of India (CAI), told Reuters. Indian cotton prices have risen by 28 per cent since the start of 2015-16 season on October 1 to 40,800 rupees per 356 kg candy (77.4 cents per lb) as two years of drought took its toll on output. Pakistani supplies are available at about 70 cents per lb on a free-on-board basis, said one Mumbai-based dealer with a global trading firm. "Supplies are dwindling in both countries. The sharp rally in Indian prices is making imports viable from Pakistan, but it has limited quantity for exports," the dealer said. India has so far imported about 1.2 million bales in 2015-16 and needs another 400,000 bales before the new crop starts arriving from the end of September, Sheth said. The country has exported about 6.5 million bales of cotton this season, with Pakistan accounting for nearly 2 million bales. Purchases from India have been pushing up prices in Pakistan, said Shahzad Ali Khan, chairman of Pakistan Cotton Ginner's Association. The All Pakistan Textile Mills Association has urged the Pakistan government to restrict cotton exports to India in an attempt to provide raw material for domestic textiles production. Indian industry officials, including Sheth of the CAI, said that Pakistan should not restrict exports since it imported cotton when it was in need. Global cotton prices could rally sharply in the coming months as stocks become further depleted in key producing countries, one Karachi-based dealer said. (1 bale = 170 kg) (Reuters)

India imports cotton from Pakistan as domestic prices climb

<div style="text-align: justify;">If Britons vote to take their country out of the European Union on June 23, no corner of the global financial market complex will emerge unscathed. 
The invisible thread that links assets as diverse as gold, bank stocks, the Japanese Yen and government bonds would be yanked sharply by Brexit, an event the Bank of England said on Thursday risks &quot;adverse spill-overs to the global economy&quot;. 
With global interest rates and bond yields the lowest on record, central banks running low on crisis-fighting tools and the post-2008 economic recovery flagging, that thread could quickly unravel, with serious consequences for all markets.&nbsp; 
So why will the will of one country&#39;s people in one referendum have such a profound impact on global markets? 
The answer is partly how inter-connected global markets are, and partly timing - the world economic cycle is already very long in the tooth and central banks have far fewer options open to them after nearly a decade of extraordinary policy support. 
Interest rates, yields 
 
Global interest rates are their lowest for 5,000 years, according to Bank of America, but central banks could still cut them further. That could mean the US&nbsp;Federal Reserve reversing its slow-starting tightening cycle, and European Central Bank and Bank of Japan rates going deeper into negative territory. 
Lower rates would also depress bond yields even further, tightening the screw on central and commercial banks. 
 
Over $8 trillion worth of sovereign bonds already carry a negative yield, according to JP Morgan. This means holders of Japanese, German and Swiss debt are paying these governments for the privilege of lending to them, in some cases out to 20 years. 
 
They are willing to accept they will not get all their money back. Even deeper negative yields would increase these losses, raising further doubt that these are truly &quot;safe haven&quot; assets. 
 
But the immediate economic and political uncertainty after a Brexit vote would likely be so great that demand for these bonds would rise anyway, pulling yields even lower. Yield curves, the difference between short- and longer-dated bond borrowing costs, would flatten further. 
 
They are already their flattest for years around the developed world, meaning the premium investors expect for holding longer-dated bonds is shrinking. This is often an ominous signal of low inflation or deflation, and slowing economic growth or possibly recession. 
 
If &quot;core&quot; bond yields would likely fall, yields on lower-rated and riskier bonds would likely rise, widening the spread between the two. This would increase the financing pressure on a wide range of companies around the world and governments in euro zone &quot;periphery&quot; countries like Greece, Italy and Spain. 
 
Banks - Central and Commercial 
 
Flat yield curves are bad news for banks, who make money from borrowing short-term at low rates and lending longer-term at higher rates. Financial stocks have been hit hard this year as the curve flattening has accelerated. 
 
Euro zone banks are down 30 per cent this year, Japanese banks 35 per cent, UK banks 20 per cent, and US banks 10 per cent. 
 
Banks are also being squeezed by negative deposit rates. The ECB, Bank of Japan and Swiss National Bank all charge banks for depositing cash. 
 
It may even become cheaper for banks to put billions of yen, Euros or Francs of their customers&#39; cash in vaults- a possibility German lender Commerzbank is examining. 
 
As for central banks, any move deeper into the uncharted world of negative interest rates would be taken reluctantly. 
 
In the case of the ECB, declining yields would further cut the amount of bonds eligible for purchase as part of its quantitative easing stimulus programme. That would make its inflation target of just under 2 per cent much harder to achieve, in turn putting its credibility under even greater scrutiny. 
 
Financial Planning 
 
Just as the 2007-08 financial crisis was caused by unprecedented stress in the banking system, analysts fear Brexit fallout could again threaten to block the global financial system&#39;s plumbing. 
 
Banks have recovered from 2007-08, but stresses are already appearing in more obscure pockets of dollar-based FX and rates markets that are hitting levels more associated with periods of crisis. The premium for Dollars over Yen in the cross currency basis market is its highest in years. 
 
Spreads between Libor rates and overnight index swap (OIS) rates, broadly a measure of investors&#39; perception of credit risk in the banking system, are also widening. In normal conditions, Libor/OIS spreads should be virtually zero. 
 
Stocks 
 
World stocks are in their longest bull run in history that began on March 9, 2009. But Wall Street&#39;s peak was reached over a year ago, profit growth has slumped, and companies are reluctant to reinvest their record cash piles. 
 
European stocks are down 13 per cent this year, Japan down 20 per cent, and Wall Street is flat. Would they be able to withstand the political, economic and investment shock a Brexit would likely deliver, especially with risk appetite so fragile? 
 
Currencies 
 
Like 2008, a vote for Brexit would almost certainly increase demand for the pre-eminent currency in global trade, banking and financial market trading: the Dollar. 
 
Dollar credit to non-US banks stands at almost $10 trillion, according to the Bank for International Settlements, of which $3.3 trillion is in emerging markets. A stronger Dollar will increase the overall debt burden for these companies, and many emerging market countries, who would be forced to draw down their FX reserves to counter the expected capital outflow and downward pressure on their currencies. 
 
Japan&#39;s Yen, another safe-haven currency, would probably rise too, perhaps as much as 14 per cent, according to Goldman Sachs. This would not be welcome in Tokyo, where policymakers are struggling to kill off deflation once and for all, stoke inflation, reflate the economy and heal the banking system. A higher exchange rate would be damaging on all those fronts. 
 
(Reuters)</div>

World stocks are in their longest bull run in history that began on 9 March, 2009

If Britons vote to take their country out of the European Union on June 23, no corner of the global financial market complex will emerge unscathed. The invisible thread that links assets as diverse as gold, bank stocks, the Japanese Yen and government bonds would be yanked sharply by Brexit, an event the Bank of England said on Thursday risks "adverse spill-overs to the global economy". With global interest rates and bond yields the lowest on record, central banks running low on crisis-fighting tools and the post-2008 economic recovery flagging, that thread could quickly unravel, with serious consequences for all markets. So why will the will of one country's people in one referendum have such a profound impact on global markets? The answer is partly how inter-connected global markets are, and partly timing - the world economic cycle is already very long in the tooth and central banks have far fewer options open to them after nearly a decade of extraordinary policy support. Interest rates, yields Global interest rates are their lowest for 5,000 years, according to Bank of America, but central banks could still cut them further. That could mean the US Federal Reserve reversing its slow-starting tightening cycle, and European Central Bank and Bank of Japan rates going deeper into negative territory. Lower rates would also depress bond yields even further, tightening the screw on central and commercial banks. Over $8 trillion worth of sovereign bonds already carry a negative yield, according to JP Morgan. This means holders of Japanese, German and Swiss debt are paying these governments for the privilege of lending to them, in some cases out to 20 years. They are willing to accept they will not get all their money back. Even deeper negative yields would increase these losses, raising further doubt that these are truly "safe haven" assets. But the immediate economic and political uncertainty after a Brexit vote would likely be so great that demand for these bonds would rise anyway, pulling yields even lower. Yield curves, the difference between short- and longer-dated bond borrowing costs, would flatten further. They are already their flattest for years around the developed world, meaning the premium investors expect for holding longer-dated bonds is shrinking. This is often an ominous signal of low inflation or deflation, and slowing economic growth or possibly recession. If "core" bond yields would likely fall, yields on lower-rated and riskier bonds would likely rise, widening the spread between the two. This would increase the financing pressure on a wide range of companies around the world and governments in euro zone "periphery" countries like Greece, Italy and Spain. Banks - Central and Commercial Flat yield curves are bad news for banks, who make money from borrowing short-term at low rates and lending longer-term at higher rates. Financial stocks have been hit hard this year as the curve flattening has accelerated. Euro zone banks are down 30 per cent this year, Japanese banks 35 per cent, UK banks 20 per cent, and US banks 10 per cent. Banks are also being squeezed by negative deposit rates. The ECB, Bank of Japan and Swiss National Bank all charge banks for depositing cash. It may even become cheaper for banks to put billions of yen, Euros or Francs of their customers' cash in vaults- a possibility German lender Commerzbank is examining. As for central banks, any move deeper into the uncharted world of negative interest rates would be taken reluctantly. In the case of the ECB, declining yields would further cut the amount of bonds eligible for purchase as part of its quantitative easing stimulus programme. That would make its inflation target of just under 2 per cent much harder to achieve, in turn putting its credibility under even greater scrutiny. Financial Planning Just as the 2007-08 financial crisis was caused by unprecedented stress in the banking system, analysts fear Brexit fallout could again threaten to block the global financial system's plumbing. Banks have recovered from 2007-08, but stresses are already appearing in more obscure pockets of dollar-based FX and rates markets that are hitting levels more associated with periods of crisis. The premium for Dollars over Yen in the cross currency basis market is its highest in years. Spreads between Libor rates and overnight index swap (OIS) rates, broadly a measure of investors' perception of credit risk in the banking system, are also widening. In normal conditions, Libor/OIS spreads should be virtually zero. Stocks World stocks are in their longest bull run in history that began on March 9, 2009. But Wall Street's peak was reached over a year ago, profit growth has slumped, and companies are reluctant to reinvest their record cash piles. European stocks are down 13 per cent this year, Japan down 20 per cent, and Wall Street is flat. Would they be able to withstand the political, economic and investment shock a Brexit would likely deliver, especially with risk appetite so fragile? Currencies Like 2008, a vote for Brexit would almost certainly increase demand for the pre-eminent currency in global trade, banking and financial market trading: the Dollar. Dollar credit to non-US banks stands at almost $10 trillion, according to the Bank for International Settlements, of which $3.3 trillion is in emerging markets. A stronger Dollar will increase the overall debt burden for these companies, and many emerging market countries, who would be forced to draw down their FX reserves to counter the expected capital outflow and downward pressure on their currencies. Japan's Yen, another safe-haven currency, would probably rise too, perhaps as much as 14 per cent, according to Goldman Sachs. This would not be welcome in Tokyo, where policymakers are struggling to kill off deflation once and for all, stoke inflation, reflate the economy and heal the banking system. A higher exchange rate would be damaging on all those fronts. (Reuters)

Tracing global market thread that could be unraveled by Brexit

Shanghai jumped on Wednesday as traders brushed off a decision by MSCI to deny its inclusion in an influential list of global benchmarks, while Hong Kong joined a broad Asian rebound after recent heavy losses. 
 
The Shanghai Composite Index jumped 1.53 pe rcent, or 43.59 points, to 2,885.78 while the Shenzhen Composite Index, which tracks stocks on China`s second exchange, advanced 2.98 per cent, or 54.59 points, to 1,887.22. 
And Hong Kong rose 0.46 percent, or 92.83 points, to 20,480.36. 
(AFP)

The Shenzhen Composite Index, which tracks stocks on China's second exchange, advanced 2.98 per cent, or 54.59 points, to 1,887.22

Shanghai jumped on Wednesday as traders brushed off a decision by MSCI to deny its inclusion in an influential list of global benchmarks, while Hong Kong joined a broad Asian rebound after recent heavy losses. The Shanghai Composite Index jumped 1.53 pe rcent, or 43.59 points, to 2,885.78 while the Shenzhen Composite Index, which tracks stocks on China`s second exchange, advanced 2.98 per cent, or 54.59 points, to 1,887.22. And Hong Kong rose 0.46 percent, or 92.83 points, to 20,480.36. (AFP)

Shanghai rallies, investors ignore MSCI disappointment

Asian stocks slipped on Tuesday ahead of the US Federal Reserve&#39;s two-day meeting that begins later in the day&nbsp;amid growing worries that this month&#39;s referendum in Britain could see it exit the European Union. 
 
The Pound and Euro have suffered in recent sessions as economists fear a so-called Brexit would tip Europe back into recession. Voters appear divided ahead of the June 23-referendum, with the &quot;Out&quot; campaign widening its lead over the &quot;In&quot; camp, according to two opinion polls published by ICM on Monday. 
 
MSCI&#39;s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.6 per cent&nbsp;after Wall Street lost ground for the third straight session. 
 
Japan&#39;s Nikkei stock index skidded 1.5 per cent after tumbling 3.5 per cent on Monday. 
 
&quot;Short-term hedge funds have started betting on Brexit&nbsp;and futures players will likely dominate the market&#39;s move today,&quot; said Norihiro Fujito, senior investment strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities. 
 
The benchmark 10-year Japanese government bond yield fell to as low as minus 0.175 per cent, a fresh record, before edging back to minus 0.170 per cent. 
 
Uncertainty over this week&#39;s Federal Reserve policy meeting has weighed on markets, even while the US central bank is widely expected to leave rates unchanged after the much weaker-than-expected May non-farm payrolls report. 
 
&quot;The committee was actively preparing markets for a June-July rate hike until the release of the May employment report and is unlikely to give up its tightening bias absent additional information that labour markets are weakening,&quot; analysts at Barclays wrote. 
 
&quot;Nevertheless, the abrupt slowing in employment and falling long-run inflation expectations should raise alarm bells, and risk management concerns suggest delaying action until after the outcome of the UK referendum,&quot; they said. 
 
The Bank of England, Swiss National Bank and the Bank of Japan will also meet this week, and are similarly expected to stand pat on policy with the Brexit vote looming. 
 
The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six rival currencies, edged up slightly to 94.395, moving back toward the overnight high of 94.750. That was its highest since the downbeat US jobs report toppled the dollar on June 3. 
 
The perceived safe-haven Yen has benefited from investors&#39; risk aversion. The dollar was down 0.2 per cent at 105.99 Yen, moving back toward Monday&#39;s low of 105.735, its weakest level since early May. 
 
Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso issued a fresh warning against renewed strength in the Yen, saying that he would &quot;firmly respond&quot; if rapid and speculative moves persisted in the foreign exchange market. 
 
The Euro was slightly lower at $1.1290. Against the Yen, it skidded 0.3 per cent to 119.69, moving back toward a more than three-year low plumbed in the previous session. 
 
Sterling also notched a three-year low against the Yen on Monday, and was last down 0.8 per cent at 150.35 Yen. Against the Dollar, the Pound dropped 0.6 per cent to $1.4180. 
 
Crude oil prices continued to slip, pressured by the strong US dollar and worrying economic prospects in Europe and Asia, though losses were contained by ongoing supply outages in Nigeria. 
 
Brent was down 1 per cent at $49.84 per barrel, while US crude shed 1.1 per cent to $48.34.

The Pound and Euro have both suffered over fears that UK leaving the EU will cause another European recession

Asian stocks slipped on Tuesday ahead of the US Federal Reserve's two-day meeting that begins later in the day amid growing worries that this month's referendum in Britain could see it exit the European Union. The Pound and Euro have suffered in recent sessions as economists fear a so-called Brexit would tip Europe back into recession. Voters appear divided ahead of the June 23-referendum, with the "Out" campaign widening its lead over the "In" camp, according to two opinion polls published by ICM on Monday. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.6 per cent after Wall Street lost ground for the third straight session. Japan's Nikkei stock index skidded 1.5 per cent after tumbling 3.5 per cent on Monday. "Short-term hedge funds have started betting on Brexit and futures players will likely dominate the market's move today," said Norihiro Fujito, senior investment strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities. The benchmark 10-year Japanese government bond yield fell to as low as minus 0.175 per cent, a fresh record, before edging back to minus 0.170 per cent. Uncertainty over this week's Federal Reserve policy meeting has weighed on markets, even while the US central bank is widely expected to leave rates unchanged after the much weaker-than-expected May non-farm payrolls report. "The committee was actively preparing markets for a June-July rate hike until the release of the May employment report and is unlikely to give up its tightening bias absent additional information that labour markets are weakening," analysts at Barclays wrote. "Nevertheless, the abrupt slowing in employment and falling long-run inflation expectations should raise alarm bells, and risk management concerns suggest delaying action until after the outcome of the UK referendum," they said. The Bank of England, Swiss National Bank and the Bank of Japan will also meet this week, and are similarly expected to stand pat on policy with the Brexit vote looming. The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six rival currencies, edged up slightly to 94.395, moving back toward the overnight high of 94.750. That was its highest since the downbeat US jobs report toppled the dollar on June 3. The perceived safe-haven Yen has benefited from investors' risk aversion. The dollar was down 0.2 per cent at 105.99 Yen, moving back toward Monday's low of 105.735, its weakest level since early May. Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso issued a fresh warning against renewed strength in the Yen, saying that he would "firmly respond" if rapid and speculative moves persisted in the foreign exchange market. The Euro was slightly lower at $1.1290. Against the Yen, it skidded 0.3 per cent to 119.69, moving back toward a more than three-year low plumbed in the previous session. Sterling also notched a three-year low against the Yen on Monday, and was last down 0.8 per cent at 150.35 Yen. Against the Dollar, the Pound dropped 0.6 per cent to $1.4180. Crude oil prices continued to slip, pressured by the strong US dollar and worrying economic prospects in Europe and Asia, though losses were contained by ongoing supply outages in Nigeria. Brent was down 1 per cent at $49.84 per barrel, while US crude shed 1.1 per cent to $48.34.

Asian shares slip as Brexit vote looms

Gold inched down on Tuesday as investors waited for cues from a two-day US Federal Reserve meeting beginning later in the day and a June 23-referendum that will decide whether Britain will exit the European Union. 
 
Spot gold was down 0.4 per cent at $1,279.16 an ounce as of 0648 GMT, but has gained more than 5 per cent this month, hitting a peak of $1,287 on Monday, its highest since May 16. 
 
US gold fell 0.4 per cent to $1,282.30. 
 
&quot;I think investors have decided to take profits and some of them are staying on the sidelines before taking a decision on what to do next until the Fed makes an announcement,&quot; said Brian Lan, managing director at Singapore-based gold dealer GoldSilver Central. 
 
Bullion, which is often perceived as a hedge against economic and financial uncertainty, has been driven by rising investor risk aversion before key central bank meetings this week. 
 
Apart from the Fed, the Bank of England, Swiss National Bank and the Bank of Japan will meet this week, and are expected to hold monetary policies steady against a backdrop of caution about the global economic outlook. 
 
The safe-haven appeal of gold, which is near a four-week high hit in the previous session, could get a further boost if a vote by Britain to leave the 28-member group, dubbed &quot;Brexit&quot;, pushes Europe back into a recession. 
 
The British pound remained fragile near a two-month low against the dollar, while Asian stocks slipped on Tuesday on concerns ahead of the referendum. 
 
Britain&#39;s &quot;Out&quot; campaign widened its lead over the &quot;In&quot; camp ahead of the referendum according to two opinion polls published by ICM on Monday. 
 
&quot;We think that the risk of Britain leaving has now increased substantially and the Fed will therefore signal its willingness in no uncertain terms to &#39;stay the course&#39; in light of this potential &#39;Black Swan&#39; event,&quot; INTL FCStone analyst Edward Meir said in a note. 
 
&quot;This will likely enable gold to push even higher over the next few days, at least until the polls start to swing the other way.&quot; 
 
Meanwhile, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd is aiming to launch its planned physically-delivered gold futures contract in September, said&nbsp;its head on Tuesday. 
 
Holdings in SPDR Gold Trust, the world&#39;s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, rose 0.27 per cent to 896.30 tonnes on Monday, the highest since October 2013. 
 
Spot silver fell 0.8 percent to $17.29 per ounce, after touching a one-month high of $17.45 on Monday.

Gold is likely to get a further boost if a vote by Britain to leave the 28-member group dubbed "Brexit," pushes Europe back into a recession

Gold inched down on Tuesday as investors waited for cues from a two-day US Federal Reserve meeting beginning later in the day and a June 23-referendum that will decide whether Britain will exit the European Union. Spot gold was down 0.4 per cent at $1,279.16 an ounce as of 0648 GMT, but has gained more than 5 per cent this month, hitting a peak of $1,287 on Monday, its highest since May 16. US gold fell 0.4 per cent to $1,282.30. "I think investors have decided to take profits and some of them are staying on the sidelines before taking a decision on what to do next until the Fed makes an announcement," said Brian Lan, managing director at Singapore-based gold dealer GoldSilver Central. Bullion, which is often perceived as a hedge against economic and financial uncertainty, has been driven by rising investor risk aversion before key central bank meetings this week. Apart from the Fed, the Bank of England, Swiss National Bank and the Bank of Japan will meet this week, and are expected to hold monetary policies steady against a backdrop of caution about the global economic outlook. The safe-haven appeal of gold, which is near a four-week high hit in the previous session, could get a further boost if a vote by Britain to leave the 28-member group, dubbed "Brexit", pushes Europe back into a recession. The British pound remained fragile near a two-month low against the dollar, while Asian stocks slipped on Tuesday on concerns ahead of the referendum. Britain's "Out" campaign widened its lead over the "In" camp ahead of the referendum according to two opinion polls published by ICM on Monday. "We think that the risk of Britain leaving has now increased substantially and the Fed will therefore signal its willingness in no uncertain terms to 'stay the course' in light of this potential 'Black Swan' event," INTL FCStone analyst Edward Meir said in a note. "This will likely enable gold to push even higher over the next few days, at least until the polls start to swing the other way." Meanwhile, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd is aiming to launch its planned physically-delivered gold futures contract in September, said its head on Tuesday. Holdings in SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, rose 0.27 per cent to 896.30 tonnes on Monday, the highest since October 2013. Spot silver fell 0.8 percent to $17.29 per ounce, after touching a one-month high of $17.45 on Monday.

Gold dips, but lingers near four-week high ahead of Fed meeting

The oil market is now in balance thanks to unplanned outages and robust demand, particularly from emerging economies, but this equilibrium will tilt into surplus again early next year, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said today. 
 
The agency said in its monthly report that demand growth in 2017 is likely to reach 1.3 million barrels per day (bpd), the same level at which it estimates growth for this year, having revised up its May 2016 forecast of 1.2 million bpd. 
 
&quot;Again, on the planning assumption that OPEC oil production grows modestly in 2017, we expect to see global oil stocks build slightly in the first half of 2017 before falling slightly more in the second half of 2017. For the year as a whole, there will be a very small stock draw of 0.1 million bpd,&quot; &nbsp; said&nbsp;the IEA. 
 
&quot;At halfway in 2016, the oil market looks to be balancing; but we must not forget that there are large volumes of shut-in production, mainly in Nigeria and Libya, that could return to the market, and the strong start for oil demand growth seen this year might not be maintained,&quot; said&nbsp;the Paris-based agency . 
 
Most of the anticipated demand growth this year and in 2017 is expected to come from nations that are not part of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the agency said. 
 
&quot;We must stress that this is our first look at 2017 and the huge number of moving parts will see us amend our numbers accordingly. However ... the direction of travel seems to be clear,&quot; said&nbsp;the IEA. 
 
The IEA&#39;s latest demand estimate for the first three months of this year shows global oil deliveries rising by 1.6 million bpd to 95.2 million bpd, with nine out of every 10 extra barrels going to a non-OECD economy. 
 
On the supply side, the IEA said output fell by 590,000 bpd year-on-year to 95.4 million bpd in May, the first major decline since the start of 2013, as spending cuts and outages reduced non-OPEC production by 1.3 million bpd from a year earlier. 
 
Having fallen by 900,000 bpd in 2016, non-OPEC supply growth is expected to rise by 200,000 bpd in 2017, lifting output to 57 million bpd, the IEA said. 
 
Crude output from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries fell by 100,000 bpd in May to 32.61 million bpd, after a spate of attacks on oil infrastructure in Nigeria offset higher output from the Middle East. Production was still 500,000 bpd higher than in May last year. 
 
&quot;Iran has clearly emerged as OPEC&#39;s fastest source of supply growth this year, with an anticipated annual gain of nearly 700,000 bpd,&quot; the IEA said. 
 
The only other substantial increase from OPEC in 2017 could be from Nigeria, should security issues in the Niger Delta be resolved. 
(Reuters)

Large volumes of shut-in production from Nigeria and Libya can return to the market and that may change oil demand growth

The oil market is now in balance thanks to unplanned outages and robust demand, particularly from emerging economies, but this equilibrium will tilt into surplus again early next year, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said today. The agency said in its monthly report that demand growth in 2017 is likely to reach 1.3 million barrels per day (bpd), the same level at which it estimates growth for this year, having revised up its May 2016 forecast of 1.2 million bpd. "Again, on the planning assumption that OPEC oil production grows modestly in 2017, we expect to see global oil stocks build slightly in the first half of 2017 before falling slightly more in the second half of 2017. For the year as a whole, there will be a very small stock draw of 0.1 million bpd," said the IEA. "At halfway in 2016, the oil market looks to be balancing; but we must not forget that there are large volumes of shut-in production, mainly in Nigeria and Libya, that could return to the market, and the strong start for oil demand growth seen this year might not be maintained," said the Paris-based agency . Most of the anticipated demand growth this year and in 2017 is expected to come from nations that are not part of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the agency said. "We must stress that this is our first look at 2017 and the huge number of moving parts will see us amend our numbers accordingly. However ... the direction of travel seems to be clear," said the IEA. The IEA's latest demand estimate for the first three months of this year shows global oil deliveries rising by 1.6 million bpd to 95.2 million bpd, with nine out of every 10 extra barrels going to a non-OECD economy. On the supply side, the IEA said output fell by 590,000 bpd year-on-year to 95.4 million bpd in May, the first major decline since the start of 2013, as spending cuts and outages reduced non-OPEC production by 1.3 million bpd from a year earlier. Having fallen by 900,000 bpd in 2016, non-OPEC supply growth is expected to rise by 200,000 bpd in 2017, lifting output to 57 million bpd, the IEA said. Crude output from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries fell by 100,000 bpd in May to 32.61 million bpd, after a spate of attacks on oil infrastructure in Nigeria offset higher output from the Middle East. Production was still 500,000 bpd higher than in May last year. "Iran has clearly emerged as OPEC's fastest source of supply growth this year, with an anticipated annual gain of nearly 700,000 bpd," the IEA said. The only other substantial increase from OPEC in 2017 could be from Nigeria, should security issues in the Niger Delta be resolved. (Reuters)

IEA sees oil market balance in 2016, surplus to re-emerge next year

Mergers and acquisitions in the global consumer and retail sectors in 2016 are likely to be characterised by lower valuations for small firms and reasonable values for riskier assets, after a string of mega deals in 2015, a report shows.

Last year ended with $365 billion in transactions, the highest dollar value of deals in these sectors since 2008, said the report by consulting firm AT Kearney.

The report, titled &#39;Has the consumer-retail merger market lost its froth&#39;, was based on interviews with thirty six company executives globally and analysed historical data from over 1,000 transactions.

Among other&nbsp;trends, the report found renewed investment interest in the United States and other weste nrn markets by companies in China and Japan keen to expand outside their home markets.

The need for deals will be spurred by tighter margins and slowing growth but that will be offset by a drop in demand for high yield debt from private equity players. Higher interest rates for such debt will increase the cost of capital and hurt deal appetite, the report said.

Consolidation, however, will continue and is likely in the most mature categories like soda beverages, processed foods such as cereals and frozen foods.

Large Chinese companies with limited growth prospects domestically still have access to vast amounts of capital from state-owned banks and are interested in buying valuable assets, brands, and capabilities rather than building them.

Chinese investment in offshore M&amp;A was already at $106 billion by the end of the first quarter of 2016, just short of the total for all of 2015, the report said.

Buyers also remained bullish on India with sixty eight per cent of respondents expecting deal activity in the market to remain at current levels or increase, driven by lower oil prices and a broad push towards deregulation led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The report, titled 'Has the consumer-retail merger market lost its froth' found renewed investment interest in the United States and other western markets by companies in China and Japan

Mergers and acquisitions in the global consumer and retail sectors in 2016 are likely to be characterised by lower valuations for small firms and reasonable values for riskier assets, after a string of mega deals in 2015, a report shows. Last year ended with $365 billion in transactions, the highest dollar value of deals in these sectors since 2008, said the report by consulting firm AT Kearney. The report, titled 'Has the consumer-retail merger market lost its froth', was based on interviews with thirty six company executives globally and analysed historical data from over 1,000 transactions. Among other trends, the report found renewed investment interest in the United States and other weste nrn markets by companies in China and Japan keen to expand outside their home markets. The need for deals will be spurred by tighter margins and slowing growth but that will be offset by a drop in demand for high yield debt from private equity players. Higher interest rates for such debt will increase the cost of capital and hurt deal appetite, the report said. Consolidation, however, will continue and is likely in the most mature categories like soda beverages, processed foods such as cereals and frozen foods. Large Chinese companies with limited growth prospects domestically still have access to vast amounts of capital from state-owned banks and are interested in buying valuable assets, brands, and capabilities rather than building them. Chinese investment in offshore M&A was already at $106 billion by the end of the first quarter of 2016, just short of the total for all of 2015, the report said. Buyers also remained bullish on India with sixty eight per cent of respondents expecting deal activity in the market to remain at current levels or increase, driven by lower oil prices and a broad push towards deregulation led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Global retail and consumer sector deals less pricey in 2016: report

Nestle, the world&#39;s biggest food company, is stepping up its push into medicine with a global deal worth up to 100 million euros ($111 million) to develop and market an experimental milk allergy test for infants.

The Swiss group will pay DBV Technologies 10 million euros upfront for rights to its skin patch test for cow&rsquo;s milk protein allergy (CMPA), with the balance depending on successful development, the two companies said on Tuesday.

Shares in the French biotech company rose 5 percent on the news.

The deal underscores Nestle&#39;s ambitions for its&nbsp;Health&nbsp;Science division, which it believes could eventually generate more than 10 billion Swiss francs ($10 billion) in annual sales.

It also complements the company&#39;s market-leading infant formula business and could help lift sales of products designed for babies with food intolerance.

Nestle has signed a series of similar deals with other small companies in its bid to create a new kind business that is midway between food and pharmaceuticals. The goal is to find new ways to treat, diagnose and prevent a range of diseases, from gastrointestinal problems to Alzheimer&#39;s.

CMPA affects up to 2 or 3 percent of infants and toddlers, according to the companies. Many others, however, have symptoms suggestive of the condition, creating a need for a simple diagnostic test.

Under the terms of the agreement, DBV will be eligible to receive up to 90 million euros in development, regulatory and commercial milestones - on top of the upfront payment - and will also collect royalties on eventual product sales.

&ldquo;This innovation can become the breakthrough diagnostic for CMPA,&quot; said Greg Behar, chief executive of Nestl?&nbsp;Health&nbsp;Science.

The new test will need to go through extensive clinical trials before it is cleared for sale and DBV expects it to be submitted for approval to regulators worldwide by 2021.

Behar&#39;s division, which employs around 3,000 people, is an expanding part of Nestle&#39;s operations.

Given ageing populations around the world and spiralling cases of lifestyle diseases, the Swiss group sees big opportunities in&nbsp;health&nbsp;- but the initiative also poses new challenges by taking it into the highly regulated medical field.

Strategically the shift towards&nbsp;health&nbsp;offers Nestle a hedge against slowing growth in packaged foods and may also offset crackdowns on unhealthy foods blamed for obesity and other lifestyle problems.

The milk allergy test dovetails with Nestle&#39;s presence in infant formula, where it had 22 percent of the market in 2015, according Euromonitor International. It already has a range of products called Althera, Alfare and Alfamino that are designed for infants allergic to cow&rsquo;s milk.

For DBV, the deal is a vindication of its Viaskin patch technology. The company also has a patch to treat peanut allergy in clinical trials, as well as an earlier-stage programme for egg allergy.

Nestle, the world's biggest food company, is stepping up its push into medicine with a global deal worth up to 100 million euros ($111 million) to develop and market an experimental milk allergy test for infants

Nestle, the world's biggest food company, is stepping up its push into medicine with a global deal worth up to 100 million euros ($111 million) to develop and market an experimental milk allergy test for infants. The Swiss group will pay DBV Technologies 10 million euros upfront for rights to its skin patch test for cow’s milk protein allergy (CMPA), with the balance depending on successful development, the two companies said on Tuesday. Shares in the French biotech company rose 5 percent on the news. The deal underscores Nestle's ambitions for its Health Science division, which it believes could eventually generate more than 10 billion Swiss francs ($10 billion) in annual sales. It also complements the company's market-leading infant formula business and could help lift sales of products designed for babies with food intolerance. Nestle has signed a series of similar deals with other small companies in its bid to create a new kind business that is midway between food and pharmaceuticals. The goal is to find new ways to treat, diagnose and prevent a range of diseases, from gastrointestinal problems to Alzheimer's. CMPA affects up to 2 or 3 percent of infants and toddlers, according to the companies. Many others, however, have symptoms suggestive of the condition, creating a need for a simple diagnostic test. Under the terms of the agreement, DBV will be eligible to receive up to 90 million euros in development, regulatory and commercial milestones - on top of the upfront payment - and will also collect royalties on eventual product sales. “This innovation can become the breakthrough diagnostic for CMPA," said Greg Behar, chief executive of Nestl? Health Science. The new test will need to go through extensive clinical trials before it is cleared for sale and DBV expects it to be submitted for approval to regulators worldwide by 2021. Behar's division, which employs around 3,000 people, is an expanding part of Nestle's operations. Given ageing populations around the world and spiralling cases of lifestyle diseases, the Swiss group sees big opportunities in health - but the initiative also poses new challenges by taking it into the highly regulated medical field. Strategically the shift towards health offers Nestle a hedge against slowing growth in packaged foods and may also offset crackdowns on unhealthy foods blamed for obesity and other lifestyle problems. The milk allergy test dovetails with Nestle's presence in infant formula, where it had 22 percent of the market in 2015, according Euromonitor International. It already has a range of products called Althera, Alfare and Alfamino that are designed for infants allergic to cow’s milk. For DBV, the deal is a vindication of its Viaskin patch technology. The company also has a patch to treat peanut allergy in clinical trials, as well as an earlier-stage programme for egg allergy.

Nestle, on health kick, moves into milk allergy testing

Apple Inc plans to issue bonds in Taiwan for the first time with the aim of raising $1 billion, sources familiar with the matter said. It will be joining a queue of big global names that have sold billions of dollars on the island`s busy debt market.&nbsp; 
The U.S. dollar bonds will have a tenor of 30 years, the sources told Reuters on Wednesday, speaking on condition of anonymity. Apple declined to comment when asked about the plan.&nbsp; 
Liquidity in the Taiwanese bond market is flush, with long-term buyers of debt, primarily life insurance firms, seeking creditworthy names and chasing higher yields. Blue-chip multinationals regularly issue dollar bonds of such size on the island, home to Apple`s supply chain. 
In December, U.S. chipmaker Intel Corp sold $915 million of 30-year bonds with yields of 4.7 percent. A month later, Global brewer Anheuser Busch InBev SA issued a $1.47 billion bond of the same maturity at 4.915 percent, according to Taiwan Over-The-Counter Exchange data.&nbsp; 
So far this year, upwards of $16 billion in new U.S. dollar bonds have been issued, already more than half of the $29 billion in U.S. dollar bonds sold for all of 2015, OTC exchange data shows.&nbsp; 
Taiwan`s over-the-counter exchange, where corporate bonds can trade in the secondary market, said it was not aware of any plan by Apple to issue bonds. In Taiwan, bond issuers only need three days or less to notify the exchange before being listed.&nbsp; 
Market participants have been looking at initial yields of around 4.2 percent to 4.3 percent on the planned Apple bonds, two of the sources said.&nbsp; 
The island`s 30-year government bond, which is less liquid in the secondary market, was last quoted around 1.6475 percent. 
The planned Apple bonds will not be redeemable for the first two years, two of the sources said, citing market participants that had made enquiries.

Apple Inc plans to issue bonds in Taiwan for the first time with the aim of raising $1 billion

Apple Inc plans to issue bonds in Taiwan for the first time with the aim of raising $1 billion, sources familiar with the matter said. It will be joining a queue of big global names that have sold billions of dollars on the island`s busy debt market. The U.S. dollar bonds will have a tenor of 30 years, the sources told Reuters on Wednesday, speaking on condition of anonymity. Apple declined to comment when asked about the plan. Liquidity in the Taiwanese bond market is flush, with long-term buyers of debt, primarily life insurance firms, seeking creditworthy names and chasing higher yields. Blue-chip multinationals regularly issue dollar bonds of such size on the island, home to Apple`s supply chain. In December, U.S. chipmaker Intel Corp sold $915 million of 30-year bonds with yields of 4.7 percent. A month later, Global brewer Anheuser Busch InBev SA issued a $1.47 billion bond of the same maturity at 4.915 percent, according to Taiwan Over-The-Counter Exchange data. So far this year, upwards of $16 billion in new U.S. dollar bonds have been issued, already more than half of the $29 billion in U.S. dollar bonds sold for all of 2015, OTC exchange data shows. Taiwan`s over-the-counter exchange, where corporate bonds can trade in the secondary market, said it was not aware of any plan by Apple to issue bonds. In Taiwan, bond issuers only need three days or less to notify the exchange before being listed. Market participants have been looking at initial yields of around 4.2 percent to 4.3 percent on the planned Apple bonds, two of the sources said. The island`s 30-year government bond, which is less liquid in the secondary market, was last quoted around 1.6475 percent. The planned Apple bonds will not be redeemable for the first two years, two of the sources said, citing market participants that had made enquiries.

Apple plans to sell bonds worth $1bn in Taiwan: sources

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