Category: Business News

Filmart: Chinese Actors Say Farewell to Hollywood

No longer content to play underdeveloped roles in overstuffed tentpoles, China’s screen talents are turning down L.A. offers in search of bigger paydays, greater exposure and meatier roles at home. Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, Hong Kong’s A-list talent weren’t considered true superstars until they had made their mark in Hollywood.

Vegetable Oils Market Likely Forecasts Decline in Crude Oil Prices

The decline in crude oil prices on Wednesday should not be a surprise since data from the vegetable oils markets has often forecast demand and pricing in the market. The decline in crude oil prices on Wednesday and Thursday should not be a surprise since data from the vegetable oils markets has often forecast demand and pricing in the market, said Erik Norland, a senior economist for the CME Group, a Chicago-based derivatives marketplace.

Saudi Arabia, Russia Offer United Front on Oil Cuts

Saudi Arabia and Russia, the architects of an oil production cut that has stabilized prices, presented a united front on compliance just as rising U.S. inventories have sparked doubts about the OPEC and non-OPEC deal. Khalid Al-Falih, the Saudi energy minister, acknowledged that global crude inventories aren’t draining as quickly as he expected, opening the door for an extension of the production cuts into the second half of the year.

Dow Dips After Trump Speech

The Dow was on track to break its 10-day record-setting streak on Friday, as banks weighed and investors turned cautious after recent comments from the Trump administration indicated its pro-growth policies may have a longer path to implementation. Major Wall Street indexes have rallied to record levels since the election of Donald Trump as U.S. president, buoyed by promises of tax reforms, reduced regulations and increased infrastructure spending.

Russia Overtakes Saudi Arabia as World’s Largest Crude Producer

Russia overtook Saudi Arabia as the world’s largest crude producer in December, when both countries started restricting supplies ahead of agreed cuts with other global producers to curb the worst glut in decades. Russia pumped 10.49 million barrels a day in December, down 29,000 barrels a day from November, while Saudi Arabia’s output declined to 10.46 million barrels a day from 10.72 million barrels a day in November, according to data published Monday on the website of the Joint Organisations Data Initiative in Riyadh.

Chinese Game Site Said to Seek Funds at $1.2 Billion Valuation

Douyu, the live-streaming service backed by Tencent Holdings Ltd. that’s been compared to Amazon’s Twitch, is in talks to raise a billion yuan in funds at a valuation of about $1.2 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter. The three-year-old company, whose name means “fighting fish,” needs capital to expand beyond games-streaming and fend off rivals, the person said, asking not to be named discussing a private deal.

Strike closes Acropolis, ancient sites in Greece

Tourists stand on a hill under ancient Acropolis hill during a 24-hour strike by archaeological guards demanding unpaid wages and the recruitment of additional employees in Athens, Monday, Feb. 20, 2017. Greece has been struggling for months to conclude negotiations with its creditors on spending cuts and reforms demanded by European creditors and the International Monetary Fund as part of its third bailout program.

Baker Hughes Is Busy Drilling in Middle East Even as OPEC Cuts

Baker Hughes Inc., which will soon be the world’s second-largest oil services provider, called the Middle East a positive environment for expected work in the first half this year. “There’s a bit of a disconnect between the OPEC cuts that were announced and what we’re forecasting at least for the next 6 months in terms of activity,” Martin Craighead, chief executive officer at Baker Hughes, told analysts and investors Thursday on a conference call.

Goldman Fights Back in Suit Against Indonesian Businessman

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. filed a $1 billion counterclaim against an Indonesian businessman over ownership of shares in the company he manages. The U.S. bank is seeking damages to its reputation stemming from Benny Tjokrosaputro’s 15 trillion rupiah lawsuit alleging that it improperly obtained a stake in property developer PT Hanson International.

Samsung Looks to Repair Consumer Trust

Samsung’s apology and diagnosis of the Galaxy Note 7’s battery problems marked the company’s most concerted attempt to move past its biggest recent crisis, but concerns over product safety could continue to weigh on its brand. At an event in Seoul this week, Samsung blamed the overheating of its Galaxy Note 7 smartphones on problems with the manufacturing and design of the device’s batteries.

Oil Prices Rise as OPEC Output Cuts Drain Supply

Oil prices rose on Tuesday on evidence the global market was tightening as lower production by OPEC and other exporters drained stocks, but an increase in drilling in the United States could keep a lid on prices. Benchmark Brent crude was up 40 cents at $55.63 a barrel by 0840 GMT.

BHP and Vale Agree New Framework For Samarco Disaster Settlement

The preliminary agreement could ease the passage of a compensation deal and avoid the neccesity of fighting a $47.5 billion claim in court. BHP Billiton and Vale could avoid lengthy and risky court hearings relating to a fatal 2015 dam burst in Brazil after cutting a preliminary deal that will group various claims, including a $47.5 billion compensation demand, into a single negotiated settlement.

Oil Falls on China Concerns, Down for the Week on OPEC Doubts

Oil prices fell on Friday and ended the week 3 percent lower on lingering doubts over the extent of OPEC cuts, with sentiment worsened by concerns over the economic health of the world’s second-largest oil consumer, China, after it reported the steepest falls in overall exports since 2009. Record Chinese crude imports of 8.6 million barrels per day in December helped to buoy prices somewhat, traders said, but they could not hide underlying fears over the overall health of the world’s second-biggest economy.

China Needs U.S. More Than U.S. Needs China

I received several questions concerning the subject matter of my last column , wherein I introduced the Triffin Dilemma, so I’m going to expand on those issues here. Because of the rhetoric being used by Donald Trump and his economic team concerning the need to renegotiate new trade agreements and threatening domestic companies with penalties for taking advantage of existing agreements , it is important to understand the logic for doing so and the issues that may arise as a result.

The dirty secret about your clothes

A woman hangs dyed yarn to dry at a textile mill on the outskirts of Agartala, capital of India’s northeastern state of Tripura. In the Colours of Nature dye house, Vijayakumar Varathan is busy prepping a vat of indigo.

Oil Seen at $100 by End 2018 in Lottery Ticket Options Trade

Call it a pre-Christmas lottery ticket, but someone in the oil market has been busy making a bold bet, buying contracts that will be profitable if oil surges again to $100 a barrel. The $100 December 2018 call option — a contract that gives the right to buy Dec. 2018 futures at $100 per barrel — was the most traded contract on Tuesday across the whole ICE Brent market, the latest sign of resurgent optimism in oil.

BP Gains Abu Dhabi Oil Field Stake for $2.2 Billion in Stock

BP Plc cemented its 77-year relationship with Abu Dhabi by swapping about $2.2 billion of its own shares for a stake in one of the emirate’s largest onshore oil concessions. The U.K.’s second-biggest oil group will issue new ordinary shares to pay for 10 percent of the Abu Dhabi Company for Onshore Petroleum Operations Ltd., giving the emirate a 2 percent holding in BP, the London-based company said Saturday in a statement.