Oil Set For Weekly Fall on Crude Output Doubts

Oil prices are on track to end the week lower on lingering doubts over the extent of OPEC cuts, with sentiment worsened by concerns over the health of the Chinese economy after it reported the steepest falls in exports since 2009. Brent crude futures, the international benchmark for oil prices, were trading 20 cents down at $55.81 a barrel at 1004 GMT on Friday.

Animal rights activist Peta buys stake in Louis Vuitton

Animal rights pressure group Peta has bought shares in Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessey in order to pressure it to stop selling bags and other products made from exotic animal skins. The stake in the French luxury group will give Peta the right to attend shareholder meetings and question the board in front of other shareholders.

French M&A Fund Bets on Successful Deal in Syngenta Takeover

That’s according to OFI Asset Management, a Paris-based investor who’s looking to win big betting on a successful takeover of the Swiss pesticide maker. Even after a 11 percent rally in two months, Syngenta is still around 14 percent below ChemChina’s offer price of about $470 per share, which is composed of cash and a special dividend.

Oakland: Airbnb landlords, affordable housing advocates face off at city meeting

Airbnb landlords came out in force Thursday evening to defend the short-term rental platform, occasionally sparring with affordable housing advocates as they implored city officials not to restrict their ability to rent their homes. During a two-hour meeting at City Hall, two-dozen Oakland residents – most of them Airbnb supporters – talked about how the platform helped them afford to keep their homes, or about how their guests brought money to neighborhood businesses.

Chinese Paper Calls Tillerson’s South Sea Threat – Foolish’

China’s state media rebuffed a suggestion by President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of state that Beijing must be denied access to reclaimed reefs in the disputed waters of the South China Sea. large-scale war in the South China Sea, any other approaches to prevent China access to the islands will be foolish,” the Communist Party-run Global Times newspaper wrote in an editorial.

Facebook Is Already Flirting With Censorship

Censorship is almost always a touchy subject, but it’s also par for the course in certain parts of the world. Just as Facebook is now coming to grips with its own power and responsibility over what information people see, it seems that the company is starting to flirt a little bit with censorship.