text
stringlengths 0
11M
| link
stringclasses 1
value | source
stringclasses 16
values |
|---|---|---|
(Repeats to attach to alerts. No change to text.)
BEIJING, May 15 (Reuters) - Real estate investment in China rose 10.3 percent in the first four months of 2018 from a year earlier, official data showed on Tuesday, while property sales softened in the face of government cooling measures.
That compared with a 10.4 percent gain in the first three months of the year.
Property sales measured by floor area grew 1.3 percent in January-April from the same period a year earlier, down from 3.6 percent in the first quarter of the year, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
New construction starts measured by floor area were up 7.3 percent in the period, compared with 9.7 percent in January-March, the NBS data showed.
Real estate is a key driver of economic growth in China but is expected to moderate as the government aims to curb excessive funds flowing into property. (Reporting by Beijing Monitoring Desk; Editing by Sam Holmes)
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. 0 : 0 narrow-browser-and-phone medium-browser-and-portrait-tablet landscape-tablet medium-wide-browser wide-browser-and-larger medium-browser-and-landscape-tablet medium-wide-browser-and-larger above-phone portrait-tablet-and-above above-portrait-tablet landscape-tablet-and-above landscape-tablet-and-medium-wide-browser portrait-tablet-and-below landscape-tablet-and-below Apps Newsletters Reuters Plus Advertising Guidelines Cookies Terms of Use Privacy
All Quote: s delayed a minimum of 15 minutes. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays.
© 2018 Reuters. All Rights Reserved. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/china-economy-property-investment/rpt-china-jan-april-property-investment-up-10-3-pct-y-y-idUSB9N1SG01Y |
Wilbur Ross: Connecting the dots on auto imports and national security 1 Hour Ago U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, talks about opening an investigation into imports of vehicles and auto parts to see if they pose a threat to the U.S. economy and national security. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.cnbc.com/video/2018/05/24/wilbur-ross-connecting-the-dots-on-auto-imports-and-national-security.html |
Watch episode two of our new weekly news show, The Breakdown , for a quick dive into some of the week’s most compelling topics by reporters and editors from Fortune, Time , Money, and Sports Illustrated . In this week’s edition, Time explains what you need to know about the latest peace talks in the Korean Peninsula, Money provides a primer on what’s going on with the stock market, Sports Illustrated tackles “the process” that’s shaped the Sixers and the NBA, and Fortune analyzes T-Mobile and Sprint’s proposed merger. The show stars Neha Joy and streams weekly on Wednesdays at 3:30 p.m. Eastern. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://fortune.com/2018/05/02/the-breakdown-episode-2/ |
May 8 (Reuters) - Wall Street ended little changed on Tuesday while energy stocks rose after President Donald Trump said the United States would quit the Iran nuclear deal, confirming what many investors had expected.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2.75 points, or 0.01 percent, to 24,360.07, the S&P 500 lost 0.71 point, or 0.03 percent, to 2,671.92 and the Nasdaq Composite added 1.69 points, or 0.02 percent, to 7,266.90. (Reporting by Noel Randewich Editing by James Dalgleish)
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/usa-stocks/us-stocks-snapshot-wall-st-flat-energy-rises-as-u-s-leaves-iran-deal-idUSZXN0RAL2I |
Good morning,
Target: Tehran
President Trump’s decision to walk away from the Iranian nuclear accord marks a momentous foreign-policy decision that could have significant consequences and reorder American diplomacy. It represents a giant bet, easily the biggest of his presidency so far. The move threatens to widen the gulf between the U.S. and its allies in the Middle East and Tehran and its backers. Oil firms, plane makers and banks have months to wind down their ties before risking penalties. Any new U.S. sanctions would... | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-10-point-1525862796 |
DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- CompTIA , the world’s leading technology association, announced today that Chithrai Mani, Director – Architecture and Delivery, has joined its Channel Advisory Board . Mani is a sought-after digital transformation leader, cloud evangelist, consultant and speaker, with extensive cross-industry experience in application development, project execution, operational planning, delivery, business alignment, systems design and integration, and architecting cloud, IOT, mobile and Big Data applications.
“With the breadth of his experience in our industry, Chithrai is a strong addition to our Channel Advisory Board,” said Annette Taber, CompTIA’s vice president for industry outreach. “His insights into the business of technology – how it is designed, constructed, tested and deployed – will help guide the actions we take as an advisory council, an association and an industry.”
“I look forward to lively discussion and joining a cohort of practitioners and thought leaders as part of the Channel Advisory Board,” adds Mani. “The topics of digital transformation and quality assurance are of primary importance for developers and business units rolling out new technology to keep up with market demand.”
The CompTIA Channel Advisory Board includes a select group of invited and appointed executives from technology hardware manufacturers, software publishers, carriers, service companies, distributors, master agents, and technology solution provider companies. This group provides counsel and insight to help technology solution providers adapt to the changing marketplace. This includes helping them to build out their “business solutions” practices, using cloud-based options and other emerging technologies to help customers with their digital transformations.
Chithrai Mani connects companies to transformative technologies - at the next level of connectivity and efficiency - including: artificial intelligence, the internet of things, machine learning, mobility, DevOPS and serverless data management. He has worked with companies around the world to choose, adopt, roll-out, and measure the impact of innovative technologies to increase productivity, accelerate collaboration and improve people’s lives.
ABOUT INFOVISION
InfoVision is a Global IT Services and Solutions company serving global Fortune 500 clients by offering Strategic Resources, Enterprise Applications and Technology Solutions to leading companies in industry verticals such as telecommunications, retail, banking/finance and transportation. InfoVision’s specialized offerings include Social Media Analytics, Outsourced Product Development, and Digital Transformation, such as Mobility, Cloud, DevOps, Advanced Analytics, Test Automation, AI/ML, and IoT. InfoVision’s Integrated Value Delivery capability is the combination of proven talent, technical depth, delivery discipline, culture of innovation, and domain expertise. To learn more, visit www.infovision.com .
ABOUT COMPTIA
The Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) is a leading voice and advocate for the $4.8 trillion global information technology ecosystem; and the more than seven million technology professionals, who design, implement, manage, and safeguard the technology that powers the U.S. economy. Through education, training, certifications, advocacy, philanthropy, and market research, CompTIA is the hub for advancing the tech industry and its workforce. Visit www.comptia.org to learn more.
View source version on businesswire.com : https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180529005072/en/
CONNECTIVE AGENCY
Jacqueline Chen Valencia, 469-540-1151
Partner
[email protected]
or
CompTIA
Steven Ostrowski, 630-678-8468
[email protected]
Source: InfoVision | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/29/business-wire-infovisionas-chithrai-mani-joins-comptia-channel-advisory-board.html |
LONDON (Reuters) - Pro-Brexit members of parliament heaped pressure on British Prime Minister Theresa May on Wednesday over her future customs plans with the European Union, calling on her to drop what some say is her preferred proposal.
Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May walks out of 10 Downing Street in London, Britain, May 2, 2018. REUTERS/Hannah McKay May’s decision to leave the EU’s customs union, which sets tariffs for goods imported into the bloc, has become one of the main flashpoints in the Brexit debate in Britain, pitting companies and pro-EU campaigners against a vocal group of hardline eurosceptic MPs.
With the added pressure of trying to prevent the return of a “hard” border in Ireland and find something Brussels might agree to, May has delayed putting any firm plans for future customs arrangements on the table, hoping to plot a route that could at least please more than one side.
Her spokesman said those ideas were evolving.
Just hours before May was due to meet her so-called Brexit war cabinet of 11 ministers, the pro-Brexit MPs called on her to drop one of her proposals for a customs partnership which would see Britain essentially act as the EU’s tariff collector.
Members of the European Research Group, a group of Brexit MPs in May’s Conservative Party, said they were not issuing her an ultimatum with their demands, rather presenting their argument that such a customs partnership would not work.
“It is more of a statement of our position, with supporting arguments,” a member of the ERG said.
Related Coverage May's latest Brexit headache - a customs deal with the EU Ideas on post Brexit customs setup are evolving - May's spokesman May is not only under pressure at home.
She also faces increasingly urgent demands from Brussels to come up with a customs plan to avoid a return to a hard border between British-ruled Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic.
There are fears that reintroducing checks on what will be Britain’s only land border with the EU could reignite sectarian violence.
In Dublin, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said there was a risk that Britain and the EU would fail to reach a withdrawal deal by an October deadline unless “real and meaningful” progress was made by a summit in June of the bloc’s leaders.
FILE PHOTO: A demonstrator carries a Union Jack and a European Union flag as the EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier visits Downing Street in London, Britain February 5, 2018. REUTERS/Hannah Mckay/File Photo - RC1EB97A3AE0 EVOLVING After losing her party’s majority at an ill-judged election last year, May has put off committing to a single plan, offering Brussels two options — the customs partnership or a technology-based streamlined customs arrangement, both of which EU negotiators have dismissed.
In parliament, May said there were a number of ways to solve the customs issue, in what seemed to suggest that her government could be looking beyond the two proposals already made.
Asked whether there were other options, her spokesman said: “Work has been ongoing on two options, that work has been proceeding. Ideas obviously are evolving as we go along and the prime minister said there are a number of ways to proceed.”
The easiest way to solve the problem, May’s critics say, is to stay in the customs union or negotiate a new one along the lines proposed by the main opposition Labour Party.
Her spokesman said earlier this week the government would “move forward with a single option”, but the question is when?
On Monday, her minister for the cabinet office, David Lidington, said it would most probably take a few weeks to decide on a final position, playing down any expectations of a quick decision at Wednesday’s meeting of the Brexit committee.
Brexit campaigners are hoping that the appointment of free-market advocate Sajid Javid as Home Secretary this week could shift the balance in their favour on the sub-committee.
But by leaving the question open May has been vulnerable to attempts both in the upper and lower houses of parliament to try to force the customs union back onto the agenda.
Her government was defeated in the House of Lords earlier this week, and has postponed votes in the House of Commons after several MPs in her party said they would support attempts to draw a commitment to stay in the customs union.
Additional reporting by Alistair Smout and Andrew MacAskill; editing by David Stamp
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-eu/pro-brexit-mps-pressure-may-over-customs-plan-idUSKBN1I3178 |
TEHRAN (Reuters) - The European Union’s energy chief sought to reassure Iran on Saturday that the bloc remained committed to salvaging a nuclear deal with Tehran despite U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to exit the accord and reimpose sanctions.
FILE PHOTO: Head of the Iranian Atomic Energy Organization Ali Akbar Salehi attends the lecture "Iran after the agreement: Hopes & Concerns" in Vienna, Austria, September 28, 2016. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo Miguel Arias Canete delivered the message on a visit to Tehran and also said the 28-nation EU, once the biggest importer of Iranian oil, hoped to strengthen trade with Iran.
“We have sent a message to our Iranian friends that as long as they are sticking to the (nuclear) agreement the Europeans will... fulfill their commitment. And they said the same thing on the other side,” Arias Canete, European Commissioner for energy and climate, told reporters after talks with Iran’s nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi.
Salehi said it would be disastrous if EU efforts fail to preserve the 2015 deal, in which Tehran agreed to curb its nuclear work in return for the lifting of most Western sanctions. “The ball is in their (EU leaders) court,” Salehi said. “We hope their efforts materialize.”
Since Trump’s announcement of the U.S. exit on May 8, EU leaders have pledged to try to keep Iran’s oil trade and investment flowing but admitted that will not be easy to do so.
Britain, France and Germany back the deal as the best way of stopping Tehran getting nuclear weapons but have called on Iran to limit its regional influence and curb the missile program.
“The EU’s adopted mechanisms ... should be enforced by August 8, when U.S. sanctions begin to take effect,” Iranian TV quoted Behrouz Kamalvandi, spokesman for Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization, as saying.
A collapse of the accord could tip the balance of power in Iran’s faction-ridden political establishment in favor of President Hassan Rouhani’s hardline rivals, who have fiercely criticized the president’s failure to deliver greater economic prosperity.
“ALL KINDS OF POSSIBILITIES” Salehi said Iran had several options, including resuming its 20 percent uranium enrichment, if the European countries failed to keep the pact alive. He said the EU had only a few weeks to deliver on their promises.
“If the other side keeps itself committed to its promises we also will. ...We hope the situation will not arise to the point that we will have to go back to the worst option,” Salehi told reporters in English.
“There are all kind of possibilities, we can ... start the 20 percent enrichment.”
Under the 2015 deal, Iran’s level of enrichment must remain at around 3.6 percent. Iran stopped producing 20 percent enriched uranium and gave up the majority of its stockpile as part of the agreement.
Uranium refined to 20 percent fissile purity is well beyond the 5 percent normally required to fuel civilian nuclear power plants, although still well short of the highly enriched, or 80 to 90 percent, purity needed for a nuclear bomb.
In their diplomacy with Tehran, EU sources say Iranian government officials have warned they are under pressure from those who say Iran has traded away its nuclear sovereignty without reaping any economic benefits.
Iran has struggled to cash in on the accord, partly because of remaining unilateral U.S. sanctions that have deterred major Western investors from doing business with Tehran.
Rouhani has tried to assure ordinary Iranians, frustrated by high unemployment and stagnant living standards, that Trump’s decision would have no impact on Iran’s oil-reliant economy.
“Unfortunately because of the negative interferences of the U.S., we were not able to reap the fruits of the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Actions) we expected,” Salehi said.
“Public opinion is not as supportive as it was before and if the other side does not deliver... we will keep losing the support of our people for the JCPOA.”
Iran’s clerical rulers fear a revival of January’s anti-government protests that underlined the establishment’s vulnerability to popular anger fueled by economic hardship.
Writing by Parisa Hafezi in Ankara; Editing by Gareth Jones and Ros Russell
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iran-nuclear-eu/iran-says-eu-promising-to-salvage-nuclear-deal-despite-trump-move-idUSKCN1IK063 |
COPENHAGEN, May 17 (Reuters) - The world’s largest container shipping firm A.P. Moller-Maersk said Thursday it would shut down its business in Iran to abide with reimposed sanctions after Washington pulled the United States from a nuclear accord.
“With the sanctions the Americans are to impose, you can’t do business in Iran if you also have business in the U.S., and we have that on a large scale,” Soren Skou told Reuters in an interview following the firm’s first-quarter report.
“I don’t know the exact timing details, but I am certain that we’re also going to shut down (in Iran)”.
The move comes one day after French energy giant Total joined other European companies in signalling they could exit Iran, casting doubt on whether European leaders meeting to try to salvage the Iran nuclear deal can safeguard trade with Tehran.
President Donald Trump’s withdrawal of the United States from the nuclear accord and his order that sanctions be reimposed on Tehran have left European allies scrambling to keep the deal alive and protect their Iranian trade.
French President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday that the European Union must protect EU companies doing business with Iran from U.S. sanctions. (Reporting by Stine Jacobsen and Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen; Editing by Jon Boyle)
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/iran-nuclear-maersk/maersk-says-u-s-sanctions-make-doing-business-in-iran-impossible-idUSL5N1SO218 |
May 21, 2018 / 6:04 AM / Updated 29 minutes ago Generali CEO says group aims to expand in Asia, Latin America - paper Reuters Staff 1 Min Read
MILAN (Reuters) - Europe’s third-largest insurer aims to expand in parts of Asia and Latin America, particularly Argentina and Brazil, although most of its future growth will be organic, Chief Executive Philippe Donnet said in an Italian newspaper on Monday. FILE PHOTO: Philippe Donnet, CEO of the Italian insurance company Generali, is seen before shareholders meeting in Trieste, Italy, April 27, 2017. REUTERS/Remo Casilli
“(Growth) will be mainly organic but if there are acquisition opportunities that allow us to speed up growth then we will evaluate them,” Donnet said in an interview with la Repubblica’s Affari&Finanza weekly supplement.
Donnet also said that with regards to acquisitions the group had a “disciplined and opportunistic” approach.
He added the group intended to strengthen its position in countries where it already did business but that it also wanted to expand in parts of Asia and Latin America, particularly in Argentina, where it is market leader, and Brazil.
Generali is due to present a new business plan at the end of November. Reporting by Giulia Segreti | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-generali-m-a/generali-ceo-says-group-aims-to-expand-in-asia-latin-america-paper-idUKKCN1IM0GQ |
(Repeats story, text unchanged)
* U.S. 10-year debt yield touches fresh 7-year highs
* Oil nears $80 a barrel
* Dollar rally pauses, Euro edges up from 5-month low
* MSCI’s gauge of world shares creeps up
* Italian bond yields grind higher amid political strife
* By Marc Jones
LONDON, May 17 (Reuters) - The dollar took a breather at a five-month high on Thursday, though government borrowing costs continued to grind upwards as oil prices hit their highest since 2014 at almost $80 a barrel.
Ten-year U.S. government Treasury yields, which are a key driver of global borrowing costs, neared a 7-year high of 3.12 percent as higher oil pointed to higher inflation and followed Wednesday’s upbeat U.S. retail sales numbers.
Europe’s FX traders nursed dollar index positions after its latest surge, but euro/dollar was struggling to keep a foothold back above $1.18 and dollar/yen hit its highest level since late January at 110.57.
“The big turnaround was the Japanese yen, there is clearly big time (U.S. vs Japan) rate sensitivity there,” said Saxo Bank’s head of FX strategy John Hardy.
“The correlation (between moves in yields and yen) is likely to one-to-one almost, and without any risk appetite meltdown that should continue.”
World and European shares did creep higher but other two big macro market spotlights stayed on Italy and Turkey.
Turkey’s lira was on the slide again as concerns persisted about what an expansion of President Tayyip Erdogan’s powers could mean if he wins elections in the country next month as widely expected.
It came despite the central bank saying on Wednesday that it would take action against a sell-off in the currency.
Benchmark Italian government bond yields nudged higher after a 16 basis point jump on Wednesday following reports, subsequently denied, that the prospective Five Star/League coalition government had drafted an economic plan that would seek 250 billion euros of debt forgiveness from the European Central Bank.
While few people see that as either a realistic proposal or one that would remain in the coalition’s agenda, the tone of the new government’s stance toward euro zone rules was seen as confrontational and spooked some investors.
Markets are now eagerly awaiting the final agreement to see what details remain. Two-year Italian government yields are now back in positive territory for the first time in almost a year – the only other positive yielding two-year euro zone government bond is Greece.
“I’m still sceptical on the euro, there is a lot of headline risk,” Saxo bank’s Hardy said, adding the worry for lira was that investors will bolt even before they know Erdogan’s post- election plans.
BACK TO THE FUTURES The other major mover was oil which was nearing the $80 a barrel threshold for first time since late 2014.
With the global economy running at healthy clip demand remains strong, while U.S. President Donald Trump’s plans to re-impose sanctions on Iran could soon cut global supply by a million barrels a day.
Brent crude futures were last at $79.47 per barrel, up 0.12 percent from their last close, while U.S. crude was at $71.67 a barrel, up 18 cents. Both are now up almost 30 percent since February and 80 percent since June last year.
ANZ bank said on Thursday that Brent was “now threatening to break through $80 per barrel ... (as) geopolitical risks continue to support prices, (and as) an unexpected fall in inventories in the U.S. got investors excited.”
U.S. bank Morgan Stanley meanwhile raised its Brent price forecast to $90 per barrel by 2020 due to a steady increase in demand.
Back in the currency markets, sterling rallied against both the dollar and the euro after a UK newspaper reported that Prime Minister Theresa May would tell Brussels that Britain was prepared to stay in the European Union’s customs union after a transitional arrangement beyond 2021.
Pressure on Mexico’s peso returned as hopes for a new-look NAFTA trade deal with the U.S. and Canada were pushed back and as the country’s central bank said its systems had been hit by a 300 million pesos ($15.33 million) cyber attack.
Additional reporting by Henning Gloystein in Singapore
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/global-markets/rpt-global-markets-government-borrowing-costs-rise-as-oil-heads-back-to-the-80s-idUSL5N1SO2VD |
Raymond James: Alibaba is its "top large cap stock" 42 Mins Ago | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.cnbc.com/video/2018/05/24/raymond-james-alibaba-is-its-top-large-cap-stock.html |
CENTRAL CITY, Colo., May 14, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- GS Mining Company announces additional professional mining personnel: Matt Mason to join the GS Mining Company
The GS Mining Company announces the addition of Matt Mason to the team at The Bates Hunter Gold mine effective today.
Mr. Mason will provide leadership in the role of Mine Manager in all phases of underground hard rock mining. He will work closely with Matthew Collins who is the General Manager at The Bates Hunter Gold mine.
Mr. Mason's Colorado and other experiences working underground have demonstrated results and proven value.
His track record includes repeated mining and construction project management which has been on time (or ahead of schedule) and under budget. In addition, he brings dewatering experience, additional "mine and life safety" training skills and a well-developed network of first rate mining staff to our team.
We welcome Matt aboard and look forward to his contribution to our progress as we redevelop this historic and significant gold property in the heart of the "richest square mile on Earth"
For more information contact:
[email protected] or 310.596.7026
About GS Mining Company LLC and The Moria Token
The Moria Token is a crypto-currency issued by the GS Mining Company LLC which operates the historic Bates Hunter gold mine in Colorado. Moria trades on the open crypto market and token holders who timely register and claim royalties on such dates as are announced by the company, will receive royalties based on gross annual gold sales.
For more information see www.moriatoken.com and www.gsminingcompany.com
Forward-Looking Statements
Forward-Looking Statements in this press release, which are not historical facts, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Our actual results, performance or achievements may differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the use of words such as "may," "could," "expect," "intend," "plan," "seek," "anticipate," "infer", "believe," "estimate," "predict," "potential," "continue," "likely," "will," "would" and variations of these terms and similar expressions, or the negative of these terms or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by us and our management, are inherently uncertain.
View original content with multimedia: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/gs-mining-company-announces-new-mining-personnel-300647703.html
SOURCE GS Mining Company LLC | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/14/pr-newswire-gs-mining-company-announces-new-mining-personnel.html |
President Donald Trump said Thursday reimbursement to his personal lawyer for hush money paid to porn actress Stormy Daniels was done through a monthly retainer and "had nothing to do with the campaign."
On Twitter, Trump says his personal attorney Michael Cohen received a monthly retainer "from which he entered into, through reimbursement, a private contract between two parties, known as a non-disclosure agreement, or NDA." He added that the agreement "was used to stop the false and extortionist accusations made by her about an affair."
Donald Trump tweet 1
Donald Trump tweet 2
Donald Trump tweet 3
Trump's tweets outlining the arrangement came after Rudy Giuliani, one of his attorneys, said Wednesday that Trump reimbursed Cohen for $130,000 in hush money to Daniels days before the 2016 presidential election, appearing to contradict the president's past claims that he didn't know the source of the money.
During an appearance on Fox News Channel's "Hannity," Giuliani said the money to repay Michael Cohen had been "funneled ... through the law firm and the president repaid it."
Asked if Trump knew about the arrangement, Giuliani said: "He didn't know about the specifics of it, as far as I know. But he did know about the general arrangement, that Michael would take care of things like this, like I take care of things like this for my clients. I don't burden them with every single thing that comes along. These are busy people."
The comments appeared to contradict statements made by Trump several weeks ago, when he said he didn't know about the payment to porn actress Stormy Daniels as part of a nondisclosure agreement she signed days before the presidential election. Giuliani later suggested to The Wall Street Journal that while Trump had repaid the $130,000, Cohen had settled the payment to Daniels without Trump's knowledge at the time.
Guiliani's revelation seemed aimed at reducing the president's legal exposure. But outside experts said it raised a number of questions, including whether the money represented repayment of an undisclosed loan or could be seen as reimbursement for a campaign expenditure.
Asked aboard Air Force One last month whether he knew about the payment, Trump said flatly: "No." Trump also said he didn't know why Cohen had made the payment or where he got the money.
In a phone interview with "Fox and Friends" last week, however, Trump appeared to muddy the waters, saying that Cohen represented him in the "crazy Stormy Daniels deal."
The White House referred questions to the president's personal legal team.
Giuliani, a former New York City mayor and ex-U.S. attorney who joined Trump's legal team last month, said the president had repaid Cohen over several months, indicating the payments continued through at least the presidential transition, if not into his presidency. He also said the payment "is going to turn out to be perfectly legal" because "that money was not campaign money."
No debt to Cohen is listed on Trump's personal financial disclosure form, which was certified on June 16, 2017.
Giuliani also described the payment to Daniels as "a very regular thing for lawyers to do."
Daniels' lawyer, Michael Avenatti, called the comment "a stunning revelation."
"Mr. Trump evidently has participated in a felony and there must be serious consequences for his conduct and his lies and deception to the American people," he said.
Giuliani made the statements to Fox host Sean Hannity , who has his own connection to the case. It was recently revealed in court that Hannity is one of Cohen's clients. Hannity has described his personal dealings with Cohen as centered on real estate advice and said that it "never rose to any level that I needed to tell anyone that I was asking him questions."
Daniels, whose legal name is Stephanie Clifford, says she had a sexual encounter with Trump in 2006, months after his third wife gave birth to his youngest child, and was paid to keep quiet as part of a nondisclosure agreement she is now seeking to invalidate. She has also filed a defamation suit against Trump after he questioned a composite sketch she released of a man she says threatened her to stay quiet.
The White House has said Trump denies having a relationship with Daniels.
Cohen had said previously: "Neither the Trump Organization nor the Trump campaign was a party to the transaction with Ms. Clifford, and neither reimbursed me for the payment, either directly or indirectly." He notably did not include the president personally.
Asked about Cohen's denial, Giuliani said that he didn't know whether Cohen had made the payment without asking Trump but that he had "no reason to dispute that."
The revelation from Giuliani came as Cohen was under escalating legal pressure. He is facing a criminal investigation in New York, and FBI agents raided his home and office several weeks ago seeking records about the nondisclosure agreement.
Daniels' lawsuit over the hush deal has been delayed, with the judge citing the criminal investigation.
The payment to Daniels has raised numerous legal questions, including whether it was an illegal campaign contribution and, now, a loan.
"If this is true then it looks like Cohen may have made an unreported loan to the campaign rather than a contribution," said Richard L. Hasen, an expert in election law at the University of California, Irvine.
He said that might be better for Cohen, but not for Trump, because it undermines the argument that Cohen was acting independently.
"The greatest significance is that it implicates the president directly," he said.
Law firms advance expenses for clients as a matter of course, and so there's nothing inherently improper about a lawyer covering a particular payment and then being reimbursed for it. In this case, though, the client who apparently reimbursed the expense was running for president and the money was paid just days before the election, raising questions about whether Cohen's law practice was functioning as a vendor for the campaign and whether the expense was therefore an unreported campaign expenditure. If so, that could be legally problematic.
Andrew Herman, an attorney specializing in campaign finance law at Miller & Chevalier, said Giuliani's argument that this was a private payment unrelated to the campaign appears to be "pretty far-fetched" given the timing — weeks before the election while Trump was under fire for his behavior with women and for an "Access Hollywood" tape in which he spoke of groping women without their consent.
But if Cohen or Trump could establish that discussions with Daniels over the payment long predated his run for office, that could help them with the argument that the money was a personal rather than political expense. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/03/trump-reimbursement-for-porn-star-hush-money-was-paid-to-cohen-through-a-retainer-not-from-the-campaign.html |
May 11, 2018 / 6:18 PM / Updated 36 minutes ago Takata's defective air bags linked to 278 injuries in U.S. - Senator Reuters Staff 2 Min Read
(Reuters) - Takata Corp’s defective air bags have been linked to 278 injuries across the United States, according to updated figures released by U.S. Democratic Senator Bill Nelson of Florida, in advance of a hearing next week on the nomination of Heidi King to head the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The logo of Takata Corp is seen on its display at a showroom for vehicles in Tokyo, Japan, February 9, 2017. REUTERS/Toru Hanai
The air bags have also been linked to 15 deaths, according to the statement from the Senator.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ordered the first recall in 2015, but Nelson said as of March 30 some 16.4 million unrepaired inflators remain in vehicles on the highways.
The defective inflators, which can explode with excessive force and unleash metal shrapnel inside cars and trucks, resulted in the auto industry’s biggest recall and pushed the Japanese company to file for bankruptcy protection in June 2017.
Florida had the highest number of injuries related to the inflators, according to the statement from Nelson, who heads the Senate committee that oversees the automakers. Reporting by Arunima Banerjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-takata-injury/takatas-defective-air-bags-linked-to-278-injuries-in-u-s-senator-idUKKBN1IC2B7 |
May 30, 2018 / 1:32 PM / Updated 20 minutes ago Graphic: The woes of India's state banking sector in four charts Subrat Patnaik , Devidutta Tripathy 3 Min Read
MUMBAI (Reuters) - India’s state-run banks posted a combined loss of 853.7 billion rupees ($12.65 billion) in the fiscal year ended this March, according to data compiled by Reuters, as their provisions for bad loans surged following stricter central bank rules. A rickshaw puller transports a passenger as he rides past closed automated teller machines (ATMs) during a 48-hour long strike, in Kolkata, India, May 30, 2018. REUTERS/Rupak De Chowdhuri
All but two of the 21 banks in which India owns a majority plunged into losses in the March quarter after the Reserve Bank of India in February withdrew half a dozen loan restructuring schemes and put in place other curbs.
For the fourth quarter alone, total losses in the state-run banking sector were 626.81 billion rupees ($9.30 billion) - negating modest profits at Indian Bank ( INBK.NS ) and Vijaya Bank ( VJBK.NS ).
(Graphic: India's State Banks Plunge Into Losses In 2017/18 - tmsnrt.rs/2KP0zbY ) Bank employees shout slogans and carry placards during a protest, as part of a 48-hour long strike, in Chandigarh, India, May 30, 2018. REUTERS/Ajay Verma
To be sure, state banks as a whole posted losses in the prior two years too, hurt mostly by bad loans. But the 2017/18 loss is the highest ever in their history.
(Graphic: Indian State Banks' loss/profit in the past five years - tmsnrt.rs/2JeK2Rn )
Gross non-performing loans at the 21 banks rose about 15 percent from three months earlier to 8.96 trillion rupees ($133 billion) at the end of March. Bad loans as a percentage of total loans also rose at most banks, with IDBI Bank ( IDBI.NS ) clocking the highest bad-loan ratio of 27.95 percent, followed by Indian Overseas Bank’s ( IOBK.NS ) 25.28 percent.
(Graphic: Gross Non-Performing Assets at India's state banks - tmsnrt.rs/2L6C61P )
The bad-loan surge and the record losses come at a time when New Delhi has drawn up a 2.11 trillion-rupee, two-year, plan to recapitalize the state lenders which account for two-thirds of the country’s banking assets in its efforts to kick-start lending growth.
However, some fear that most of the banks will be left with no funds for growth after meeting provision requirements and higher capital ratios mandated by global Basel III banking rules to be fully effective by March 2019.
(Graphic: Indian State Banks' Core Capital Ratio as of March 31, 2018 - tmsnrt.rs/2KKElYu ) Reporting by Subrat Patnaik and Devidutta Tripathy; Editing by Euan Rocha and Adrian Croft | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-india-banks/graphic-the-woes-of-indias-state-banking-sector-in-four-charts-idUSKCN1IV1PR |
HELSINKI (Reuters) - Finland should emulate Britain’s social security system as it plans new welfare reforms after a basic income pilot scheme that attracted global attention, Finance Minister Petteri Orpo said on Wednesday in an interview.
FILE PHOTO: Finland's Finance Minister Petteri Orpo listens to the media in Helsinki, Finland, November 29, 2017. REUTERS/Tuomas Forsell/File Photo Last year, 2,000 unemployed Finns who were chosen at random became the first Europeans to enjoy guaranteed basic income with monthly payments of 560 euros ($664) in a two-year trial the government has opted not to extend after next December.
The scheme was considered radical because it enabled unemployed people to receive payments with nothing expected in return.
The trial’s aim is to encourage them to start work without fear of losing benefits but some lawmakers and economists say the scheme is too expensive and narrow to yield credible conclusions. Swiss voters rejected a similar scheme in 2016.
“The trial was good to have. It helps us plan the welfare reform ... but I still haven’t grown into a fan of that model,” said Orpo, who is tipped as a possible next Prime Minister after a general election in April 2019.
Orpo said he favored Britain’s Universal Credit scheme, which simplifies payments to claimants by consolidating six different types of means-tested state benefit into one that is adjusted automatically for other income in a real-time register.
“This is what I support. It can be built with real incentives to take up work ... Our current system makes people passive, it is too complicated.”
Orpo said he hoped Finland’s next government would start a project to reform the welfare system.
Britain introduced the reform in 2013 but a series of management failures, expensive IT blunders and design faults mean the project has fallen at least five years behind schedule and its costs have ballooned.
The British government is pressing ahead with the rollout of the policy despite concerns by lawmakers that some claimants have to wait too long to receive payments and criticism that it risks harming vulnerable citizens.
AGEING FINNS Following the financial crisis of 2008, Finland suffered a decade of stagnation due to a string of external and internal problems, including high labor costs, a decline of Nokia’s ( NOKIA.HE ) former mobile phone business and recession in neighboring Russia, a major trade partner.
While the economy has returned to brisk growth, Finland’s employment rate lags around 71 percent, compared to 75 percent in neighboring Nordic countries.
“The work life has changed a lot .... We need to find new ways to flexibly combine small income with social security, and entrepreneurship with social security,” Orpo said.
In addition to the “welfare trap” problem, a fast-ageing population poses another strain: Finland’s ratio of old people who rely on working-age people is the third-highest in the EU after Italy and Greece.
“We need to lift the employment rate so we can take care of our services and pensions in the future,” Orpo said.
The three-party government has sought to solve economic problems with spending cuts, labor market reforms and a proposed health care reform.
In a recent opinion poll by Helsingin Sanomat, Orpo’s right-leaning NCP party ranked second after the Social Democrats, which is currently in opposition. Prime Minister Juha Sipila’s Centre Party was in third place.
($1 = 0.8432 euros)
Additional reporting by Andrew MacAskill in London; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-finland-basicincome/finland-should-emulate-britains-welfare-payments-scheme-finance-minister-idUSKBN1IA2T8 |
May 3, 2018 / 5:54 Bayer cuts full-year guidance on strong euro Reuters Staff 1 Min Read
FRANKFURT, May 3 (Reuters) - German drug and crop chemical Bayer on Thursday cut its full-year guidance as a stronger euro weighs on the value of overseas revenues.
Sales would likely decline in 2018 in the low single-digit percentage range to below 35 billion euros ($42 billion), where it had previously predicted about 35 billion euros for the year.
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA), adjusted for one-offs, were set to decline by a low-single-digit percentage and not match the prior-year level, as previously forecast.
Bayer’s adjusted (EBITDA) for the first quarter slipped 5 percent to 2.90 billion euros, hurt by a drop in sales of consumer care products. That was slightly higher than the average forecast by analysts of 2.83 billion euros. ($1 = 0.8343 euros) (Reporting by Ludwig Burger Editing by Edward Taylor) | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/bayer-results/bayer-cuts-full-year-guidance-on-strong-euro-idUSFWN1SA05U |
May 14, 2018 / 5:57 PM / Updated 2 hours ago Pompeo reaches out to European counterparts amid Iran tensions Reuters Staff 3 Min Read
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke to German, French and British counterparts in recent days to discuss cooperation over Iran, a State Department spokeswoman said on Monday a week after U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal. FILE PHOTO: U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks during a joint press availability with South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha (not shown) after their meeting at the State Department in Washington, DC, U.S., May 11, 2018. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo
“The Secretary underlined that the United States and our European allies share strong interests in preventing Iran from ever developing a nuclear weapon and in countering the Iranian regime’s destabilising activities in the region,” spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a statement.
“He is hopeful we can continue strong cooperation,” she added.
The White House on Sunday threatened to impose sanctions on European companies that do business with Iran after Trump withdrew the United States from the 2015 accord negotiated by the Obama administration.
Pompeo was in Pyongyang on Tuesday when Trump made the announcement and senior State Department officials said the secretary will try to persuade allies in Europe, the Middle East and Asia to pressure Tehran to return to talks.
White House national security adviser John Bolton said on Sunday U.S. sanctions on European companies that maintain business dealings with Iran were “possible” although Pompeo has remained hopeful Washington and its allies could strike a new nuclear deal with Tehran.
So far, China, France, Russia, Britain, Germany and Iran remain in the accord, which placed controls on Iran’s nuclear programme and led to a relaxation of economic sanctions against Iran and companies doing business there.
In a statement, British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said after talks with his French counterpart, Jean-Yves Le Drian, that both countries were determined “to conserve the essence of the Iran nuclear deal.”
He said British and European officials would meet in Brussels on Tuesday to discuss ways to protect companies against U.S. sanctions on Iran, which will be phased in over the next six months.
“I want to stress that that does not mean we are in any sense not going to be working with the Americans,” Johnson said, adding: “it’s vital that we continue to engage with the USA and continue to interrogate our friends in Washington about how they see the nuclear deal developing.” Reporting by Lesley Wroughton; Editing by James Dalgleish | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-iran-nuclear-usa/pompeo-discusses-cooperation-over-iran-with-european-counterparts-idUKKCN1IF2JR |
May 24, 2018 / 1:53 AM / Updated 9 minutes ago UPDATE 1-Australian court finds Westpac did not manipulate benchmark rate Reuters Staff
* ASIC had accused big four banks of manipulating BBSW rate
* Westpac only bank to challenge case in court
* Westpac acted unconscionably but didn’t rig BBSW rate-judge (Adds judge’s comments, background)
By Paulina Duran
SYDNEY, May 24 (Reuters) - Westpac Banking Corp did not manipulate a key rate in order to boost profits, an Australian court ruled on Thursday, rejecting charges levelled by a regulator and handing a rare bit of positive news for the scandal-tainted financial sector.
In a series of civil lawsuits, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) had accused the country’s “big four” banks of rigging the Bank Bill Swap Rate (BBSW)- a benchmark interest rate in Australia used to price trillions of dollars of assets - to inflate their profits.
In 2016, ASIC alleged Westpac rigged the BBSW to inflate profits from 2010 and 2012. Westpac is the only one of the top four lenders that chose to fight its case in court instead of settling with the regulator.
“In summary, I have rejected ASIC’s case,” Justice David Beach said in delivering the judgment in Melbourne. However, the judge also said Australia’s second-largest bank had engaged in unconscionable conduct.
The decision comes during an embarrassing public inquiry into the country’s highly-concentrated banking sector that has seen billions of dollars wiped from lenders’ collective market values and exposed them to massive fines.
Besides Westpac, the nation’s top banks are Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd and National Australia Bank Ltd.
ASIC had argued that communications within the bank and with external traders that included expletive-ridden exchanges between traders captured in email records and telephone recordings showed them boasting about how much money they had made from BBSW fixes.
“But many of these communications are open to competing interpretations, particularly when understood in context ... where there has been uncertainty as to what was said or what was meant or conveyed after considering the context and all relevant circumstances, I have resolved that uncertainty in Westpac’s favour,” the judge added.
“I have also concluded that by reason of inadequate procedures and training, Westpac contravened its financial services licensee obligations,” the judge said
Westpac shares were almost unchanged after the verdict, down 0.5 percent by midday on Thursday. (Reporting by Paulina Duran; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman) | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/australia-banks-court-westpac/update-1-australian-court-finds-westpac-did-not-manipulate-benchmark-rate-idUSL3N1SV0B2 |
AJAX, Ontario, May 30, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Environmental Waste International Inc. ("EWS") (TSX VENTURE:EWS) (the "Company"), announced that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with a North American company for the sale of a TR4000 waste tire system, which uses EWS’s patented Reverse Polymerization™ technology. The system, which is expandable, will initially be capable of processing 4,000 tires a day (12,000 metric tons per year). Besides Syngas, which is used to generate power to run the plant, the facility will produce 5.4 million kilograms of reclaimed Carbon Black and 5.2 million liters of oil. Each of these commodities can be sold back into industry to produce rubber, plastic, coatings and many other valuable products. The sale is subject to completion of definitive documentation, including a technology licensing contract and customary closing conditions. There is no guarantee that the sale will close.
Bob MacBean, CEO said “This is an important milestone and exciting time for EWS. We believe our technology is uniquely positioned to deal with the worldwide waste rubber problem in a profitable and environmentally friendly manner. We are currently in various stages of discussion with prospective customers or partners in countries around the world, which underscores the global nature of the problem and the attractiveness of our technology solution. The signing of this MOU comes after extensive due diligence conducted by this customer who concluded that our technology was superior from both an economic and environmental perspective. As with most emerging technologies, and almost all regulated industries such as waste management, there is a long lead time associated with business development initiatives. Nonetheless, I am pleased with the activity we are seeing in our sales pipeline.”
About Environmental Waste International Inc.
Environmental Waste International, Inc. specializes in eco-friendly systems for the breakdown of organic materials, including tires. EWS has spent over 15 years engineering systems that integrate the EWS patented Reverse Polymerization™ process and proprietary microwave delivery system. EWS’s unique microwave technology safely processes and recycles waste tires, while creating a highly valuable commodity output for industry, including carbon black, oil and steel. Each unit is designed to be energy efficient and where possible, create an economically positive model for the recovery of various hydrocarbon oil and gases. For more information please visit, www.ewi.ca .
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release includes certain forward-looking statements that are based upon current expectations, which involve risks and uncertainties associated with the Company's business and the environment in which the business operates. Any statements contained herein that are not statements of historical facts may be deemed to be forward-looking, including those identified by the expressions "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect", "intend", and similar expressions to the extent they relate to the Company or its management. The forward-looking statements are not historical facts, but reflect the Company's current expectations regarding future results or events. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations, including the matters discussed under "Risks and Uncertainties" in the Company’s most recent Management Discussion & Analysis, which can be found on the Company's profile at www.sedar.com . The Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements.
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Contact:
Environmental Waste International Inc.
Bob MacBean, CEO
(905) 686-8689 or (800) 399-2366
[email protected]
www.ewi.ca
Source:Environmental Waste International Inc. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/30/globe-newswire-environmental-waste-international-announcesamemorandum-of-understanding-for-sale-of-waste-tire-plant.html |
May 11, 2018 / 12:49 PM / Updated 30 minutes ago Iran's oil customers in Europe might reduce imports, flag financing issue Ahmad Ghaddar , Julia Payne , Dmitry Zhdannikov 4 Min Read
LONDON (Reuters) - European oil companies are not ruling out reducing Iranian oil imports after the threat of new U.S. sanctions, with some expecting banking issues to hinder trade, but there was no rush to immediately cut volumes. FILE PHOTO: A gas flare on an oil production platform in the Soroush oil fields is seen alongside an Iranian flag in the Persian Gulf, Iran, July 25, 2005. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi/File Photo
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday the United States was exiting an international nuclear deal with Iran and would impose new sanctions that seek to reduce oil exports from OPEC’s third-largest producer.
But as of Friday, companies in Europe said they were still taking Iranian oil. Iran pumps about 4 percent of the world’s oil and exports about 450,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude to Europe, according to tanker-tracking data.
“At this moment, our trading activity is business as usual,” said Marta Llorente, a spokeswoman for Spanish oil company Cepsa, one of Iran’s customers in Europe.
“We strictly conform with European Union and international laws and regulations, and scrupulously respect any trade restriction that could occur from any potential international sanctions or embargo.”
Another European buyer, Italy’s Eni ( ENI.MI ), said it is buying 2 million barrels a month of Iranian crude as part of a contract running to year-end, adding any new sanctions would take six months to kick in.
The U.S. sanctions have a 180-day period during which buyers should “wind down” oil purchases, meaning any loss of supply will not be immediately felt - and companies don’t have to rush to find alternatives.
But Greece’s biggest oil refiner Hellenic ( HEPr.AT ), which was the first European company to agree to buy crude oil from the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) after sanctions on Iran were lifted in January 2016, rang a cautious note:
“We are closely monitoring developments following (the) U.S. administration decision ... and will assess our position and commercial arrangements accordingly,” Hellenic said.
“In any case we will make sure that we comply with the applicable international regulatory framework and, given our crude supply flexibility and diversification, we do not expect any significant effect on our operations.”
The bulk of Iran’s crude exports, about 1.8 million bpd, go to Asia.
A decline in volumes due to the sanctions will add to upward pressure on oil prices, which have gained this year because of an OPEC-led supply cutting deal and strong global demand. Crude has topped $78 a barrel LCOc1, the highest since 2014, following Trump’s sanctions announcement.
Market participants said there were still many unanswered questions about how the United States might impact European companies.
“We’re doing nothing,” said the head of trading at another European refiner. “It’s wait and see. If we’re forced to reduce, we will. Iranian is not the only crude.” BANKING ISSUES
Sources at global trading companies predicted an imminent drop in Iranian exports due to banking issues, such as availability of trade finance.
A source at a trading company buying Iranian oil said it hoped to keep buying at least during the six-month “wind down” period before new sanctions take effect, but expected banking issues to put a stop to trade.
“It looks like you can still go on for six months,” the source, who declined to be identified, said. “The key is banks. If banks stop us, we might stop.”
A senior trader with another company said he expected banking to pose a major problem to Iranian oil trade and a third said even if waivers are granted, volumes would still decline.
“Waivers seem a sensible course of action,” the third source said, referring to potential exemptions from the latest U.S. sanctions.
“But you need to reduce your volume take over the grace period of 180 days to be favourably treated in the waiver discussion. You can’t just stay at current levels until then and get a waiver.” Additional reporting by Angeliki Koutantou, Bate Felix and Shadia Nasralla, writing and additional reporting by Alex Lawler; editing by Jane Merriman and Louise Heavens | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-iran-oil/irans-oil-customers-in-europe-might-reduce-imports-flag-financing-issue-idUKKBN1IC1ID |
Breakingviews TV: The World Cup 1:37am EDT - 04:34
Spoiler: Germany wins. So says the Breakingviews interactive graphic that screens the 32 countries’ soccer teams against various criteria to decide who’s strongest. Peter Thal Larsen explains how it works, and why Costa Rica might still have an outside chance.
Spoiler: Germany wins. So says the Breakingviews interactive graphic that screens the 32 countries’ soccer teams against various criteria to decide who’s strongest. Peter Thal Larsen explains how it works, and why Costa Rica might still have an outside chance. //reut.rs/2IYyB0Z | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/video/2018/05/30/breakingviews-tv-the-world-cup?videoId=431481337 |
May 30, 2018 / 3:42 PM / Updated 2 hours ago Lion cub triplets make first public appearance at Frankfurt zoo Reuters Staff 1 Min Read
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Lion cub triplets born at Frankfurt zoo last month made their first public appearance on Wednesday, winning over visitors as they played around with each other. The lion cub triplets of lioness Zarina are seen for the first time at their enclosure at the Zoo in Frankfurt, Germany, May 30, 2018. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach
The cubs are lioness Zarina’s first litter, the zoo said. Their sex has not been determined as they have yet to be examined, keepers said.
Since their birth, the triplets have remained with their mother and keepers hope their father Kumar will meet them soon. Slideshow (3 Images)
“I have no doubt that he would like to go and see them. That’s all he wants the whole time. He walks around and looks and calls out and shows that he already wants to be with them,” Anni Fuchs, head of the big cats section at the zoo, said.
“Only Zarina isn’t quite ready for that yet. They’ll be united when we think that the time is right.” Reporting by Reuters Television; Editing by Alison Williams | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-germany-lion-cubs/lion-cub-triplets-make-first-public-appearance-at-frankfurt-zoo-idUSKCN1IV23F |
May 24 (Reuters) - PROTEKTOR SA:
* SAID ON WEDNESDAY THAT ITS OFFER IN CONSORTIUM WITH GREGOR SA FOR DELIVERY OF SHOES WAS CHOSEN BY POLICE DEPARTMENT
* OFFER VALUE IS 912,000 ZLOTYS NET, REMUNERATION FOR PROTEKTOR AMOUNTS TO 456,000 ZLOTYS NET
* VALUE OF OPTIONAL ORDER IS 182,400 ZLOTYS NET AND REMUNERATION FOR PROTEKTOR IS 91,200 ZLOTYS NET
Source text for Eikon:
Further company coverage: (Gdynia Newsroom)
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSL5N1SV20T |
Celebrate '529 Day' and find out how to save for your child's education 1 Hour Ago CNBC's Sharon Epperson discusses why 529 savings plans can be useful in saving for a child's education. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.cnbc.com/video/2018/05/29/celebrate-529-day-and-find-out-how-to-save-for-your-childs-education.html |
Prices for many prescription drugs may be high, but CNBC's Jim Cramer argued Friday they might be worth the cost.
"Some of the drugs are lifesaving," Cramer said on " Squawk on the Street ." "That's very hard to put a price on."
Cramer's comments came ahead of President Donald Trump 's scheduled announcement Friday afternoon of a plan aimed at cutting prescription drug costs.
Currently, Medicare Part D plans receive a discount from drug manufacturers. Under the Trump plan, the discounts would be shared with patients.
In 2015, Medicare drug spending reached $162 billion, according to data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, a price many consumers believed was too high.
But Cramer, who described himself as "more pro-pharma than most," said the drug companies "do a lot of good."
While some prescription drug prices have soared, particularly those that treat rare diseases, Cramer said the cost of treating chronic pain without them would be much more expensive to insurance companies — and patients — over time.
One example is Gilead Sciences , the biopharmaceutical company that developed in 2014 a pill to treat Hep C . With a price tag of $84,000, the treatment is not cheap. But Cramer argued the prolonged maintenance of the disease would be much higher. "Then you're done."
In addition, research and development of new drugs is an expensive endeavor, one that often fails.
"Whenever you have this niche group, it's very difficult because you don't have a lot of companies that want to make that drug," Cramer said.
"These drugs cost billions of dollars and then sometimes when they get to phase three they fail," he said. "I think it's much more of a roulette game. A lot of these things just fail after they spend fortunes on them. So shouldn't [the pharmaceutical companies] be compensated?"
But on the other side of that argument are patients who find it difficult to make ends meet. Willie Dawson, 78, told CNBC she has to juggle her bills to pay for the dozen or so medications she takes to treat conditions that include hypertension and chronic obstructed pulmonary disease. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/11/cramer-it-is-hard-to-put-a-price-on-lifesaving-drugs.html |
LONDON (Reuters) - Tessa Jowell, a former British government minister who was instrumental in bringing the Olympic Games to London in 2012, died on Saturday after a brain haemorrhage, her family said.
General Sport - Beyond Sport Summit & Awards - Grange St. Pauls Hotel, 10 Godliman Street, London EC4V 5AJ - 9/7/09 Minister for the Cabinet Office and Olympics and London Paymaster General Tessa Jowell MP Mandatory Credit: Action Images / John Sibley Livepic Jowell, who was 70, was diagnosed with brain cancer in May last year.
Former Prime Minister Tony Blair led the tributes to Jowell, saying she had “passion, determination and simple human decency in greater measure than any person I have ever known”.
Jowell joined the government as a minister in the Department for Health after Blair’s Labour Party won the 1997 election by a landslide.
Slideshow (2 Images) Blair appointed her to the cabinet in 2001 as Minister for Culture, Media and Sport, where she headed London’s successful Olympic Games bid.
Following her cancer diagnosis, Jowell campaigned for better treatment for cancer patients from Britain’s state-funded health service.
Conservative Prime Minister Theresa May said: “The dignity and courage with which Dame Tessa Jowell confronted her illness was humbling and inspirational.”
Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by John Stonestreet
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. 0 : 0 narrow-browser-and-phone medium-browser-and-portrait-tablet landscape-tablet medium-wide-browser wide-browser-and-larger medium-browser-and-landscape-tablet medium-wide-browser-and-larger above-phone portrait-tablet-and-above above-portrait-tablet landscape-tablet-and-above landscape-tablet-and-medium-wide-browser portrait-tablet-and-below landscape-tablet-and-below Apps Newsletters Reuters Plus Advertising Guidelines Cookies Terms of Use Privacy
All Quote: s delayed a minimum of 15 minutes. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays.
© 2018 Reuters. All Rights Reserved. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-jowell/britains-olympic-games-minister-jowell-dies-at-70-idUSKCN1IE0AE |
May 10, 2017 / 8:34 AM / Updated 16 minutes ago Rugby-Updated pool draw for the 2019 World Cup Reuters Staff 1 Min Read May 16 (Reuters) - Updated pool draw for next year's Rugby World Cup in Japan after Russia replaced Romania as Europe 1 and Germany replaced Belgium in the cross regional playoffs on Tuesday : POOL A Ireland Scotland Japan Russia Playoff winner* POOL B New Zealand South Africa Italy Africa 1** Repechage winner*** POOL C England France Argentina United States Tonga POOL D Australia Wales Georgia Fiji Uruguay * Germany play Portugal with the winners facing Samoa in the playoff over two legs. ** Winners of the six-team 2018 Africa Gold Cup (Jun 16 to Aug 18) *** The losers of Germany and Portugal will join Canada and two as yet undetermined teams in a round robin repechage for a single spot in the finals (Compiled by Nick Mulvenney, editing by Ian Ransom) | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://uk.reuters.com/article/rugby-union-worldcup-draw/rugby-pool-draw-for-the-2019-world-cup-idUKL4N1IB1R5 |
May 27, 2018 / 6:32 PM / Updated an hour ago Tennis: Nishikori feeling great and has hopes for Paris Ossian Shine 1 Min Read
PARIS (Reuters) - Japan’s Kei Nishikori knows what he needs to go deep in the French Open — but it may be easier said than done. Tennis - French Open - Roland Garros, Paris, France - May 27, 2018 Japan's Kei Nishikori in action during his first round match against France's Maxime Janvier REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes
“You’ve got to be really focused... and also you’ve got to relax at the same time, you know?” he smiled after beating French wildcard Maxime Janvier 7-6(0) 6-4 6-3 on Sunday.
Providing he can master the seemingly contradictory feat, the 19th seed believes he is in great shape to maybe even go one better than the runners-up spot he achieved at the U.S. Open in 2014. Tennis - French Open - Roland Garros, Paris, France - May 27, 2018 France's Maxime Janvier in action during his first round match against Japan's Kei Nishikori REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes
“I’m feeling almost perfect. I think I had a good preparation, and I had a good couple of matches before coming here,” he told reporters on Sunday.
“So I’m feeling, yeah, great body-wise, and also tennis-wise, too. “Yeah, I’ve got to stay mentally strong... You know, two weeks is not a short time.” Editing by Clare Fallon | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tennis-frenchopen-nishikori/tennis-nishikori-feeling-great-and-has-hopes-for-paris-idUSKCN1IS0PW |
HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- NOW Inc. (NYSE:DNOW) has scheduled a conference call to discuss the results for the second quarter of 2018 on Thursday, August 2, 2018 at 8:00 am (US Central Time). Financial results for the second quarter ending on June 30, 2018 are expected to be released that morning before the market opens.
The call will be broadcast through the Investor Relations link on NOW Inc.’s web site at ir.distributionnow.com on a listen-only basis. Listeners should log in prior to the start of the call to register for the webcast. A replay of the call will be available online for thirty days following the conference. Participants may also join the conference call by dialing 1-800-446-1671 within North America or 1-847-413-3362 outside of North America five to ten minutes prior to the scheduled start time and ask for the “NOW Inc. Earnings Conference Call” or the “DistributionNOW Earnings Conference Call.”
NOW Inc. is one of the largest distributors to energy and industrial markets on a worldwide basis, with a legacy of over 150 years. NOW Inc. operates primarily under the DistributionNOW and Wilson Export brands. Through its network of approximately 275 locations and 4,500 employees worldwide, NOW Inc. offers a comprehensive line of products and solutions for the upstream, midstream and downstream energy and industrial sectors. Our locations provide products and solutions to exploration and production companies, energy transportation companies, refineries, chemical companies, utilities, manufacturers and engineering and construction companies.
View source version on businesswire.com : https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180522006210/en/
NOW Inc.
David Cherechinsky, 281-823-4722
Source: NOW Inc. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/22/business-wire-now-inc-announces-second-quarter-2018-earnings-conference-call.html |
BRAGA, Portugal (Reuters) - Portugal’s defensive frailties were again exposed as Tunisia hit back from two goals behind to hold the European champions to a 2-2 draw in a World Cup warm-up on Monday.
Soccer Football - International Friendly - Portugal vs Tunisia - Estadio Municipal de Braga, Braga, Portugal - May 28, 2018 Portugal's Joao Moutinho in action with Tunisia’s Ghailan Chaalali REUTERS/Miguel Vidal Portugal, who rested captain and leading scorer Cristiano Ronaldo after he played in Saturday’s Champions League final for Real Madrid, went ahead through an Andre Silva header from Ricardo Quaresma’s pinpoint cross in the 22nd minute.
Midfielder Joao Mario doubled the lead when he rifled in a shot from outside the penalty area and Portugal, who face Spain, Morocco and Iran in their World Cup group, seemed to be in control.
Slideshow (8 Images) The cracks began to appear five minutes later, however, when Anice Badri was left alone inside the penalty area to fire past Anthony Lopes and pull one back for Tunisia who face England, Panama and Belgium in their World Cup group.
Portugal’s defense imploded in their previous game, a 3-0 friendly defeat by the Netherlands in March, and gave coach Fernando Santos more cause for concern in the 64th minute.
They failed to properly clear a free kick and when the ball was played back in, Fakhreddine Ben Youssef got between four defenders to slide the ball home with the hosts appealing in vain for offside.
Writing by Brian Homewood in Bern, editing by Ed Osmond
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-soccer-worldcup-por-tun/soccer-portugal-defense-exposed-again-as-tunisia-force-draw-idUSKCN1IT21Q |
May 23, 2018 / 12:38 PM / Updated a day ago Commentary: Populism surge intensifies spotlight on economic, market orthodoxy Jamie McGeever 6 Min Read
LONDON (Reuters) - The leader of the free world is trash-talking globalisation and advocating trade tariffs, another president says inflation is caused by high interest rates, and the incoming government of a G7 country wants 250 billion euros of national debt written off. The Wall Street bull is seen in the financial district in New York, U.S., March 7, 2017. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
From Donald Trump to Turkey’s president Tayyip Erdogan to an incoming populist coalition in Italy, challenges to the global economic and financial market orthodoxy of the past 40 years are coming thick and fast.
The global economy, financial and banking system have recovered a decade on from the financial crisis, but millions of people around the world still feel enfeebled, left behind, and poorer than they were before.
The populist backlash that has delivered ballot box shocks around the world in recent years attests to that deep and widespread sense of dissatisfaction and frustration, and should come as little surprise.
Still, the fact that many of the ‘idees fixes’ in economic policymaking that have underpinned markets for decades are being challenged so boldly is fascinating.
There’s always been intellectual opposition from the left to the forces underpinning the so-called ‘Washington Consensus’ promoting globalization, independent central banks, flexible exchange and interest rates, mobile capital, private property rights, small government and fiscal discipline.
But for years a raft of left-leaning leaders, from Bill Clinton to Tony Blair and several others across Europe dared not question this orthodoxy far less try and tackle it, fearing it would be political suicide. Only now is the left starting to tentatively push back at the model, such as Britain’s opposition Labour Party under socialist leader Jeremy Corbyn.
In fact, in elctoral terms, the war on the consensus is being most sucessfully waged by the populist right. Surprisingly, barring the odd hotspot like Turkey, market tremors have been remarkably light: world stocks are up 30 percent since the Brexit referendum two years ago, volatility is near record lows; and raising debt for most governments, firms and households is still historically cheap.
The term ‘Washington Consensus’ was coined by economist John Williamson in 1989, and refered to a package of policies that were supposed to rescue Latin American countries from economic and financial crises in the 1980s.
This canon was rooted in the laissez-faire economic policies of 1980’s U.S. President Ronald Reagan and British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, which also included mass privatization of state-owned assets, deregulation of financial services, and income and corporate tax cuts. ‘TRUMPISM HAS ARRIVED IN EUROPE’
The most obvious manifestation of the populist backlash is U.S. President Donald Trump, who has promised to slash the country’s trade deficit and revive manufacturing which he says has been decimated by “unfair” trade deals.
His solution is to rip up multilateral trade pacts such as TPP and NAFTA, slap tariffs on a wide range of imports, and seek a series of bilateral agreements that he says will be “fairer” for the United States.
Trump’s economic nationalism and hostile stance towards free global trade has inspired others to challenge existing orthodoxy in their own ways.
Brexit may not be avowedly against free trade per se, but it’s junked more than 40 years of Britain’s central economic orientation and its supporters dismiss multilateral and central banking economists as fearmongers. “I think that the people of this country have had enough of experts,” said Conservative politician and leading Brexiteer Michael Gove.
Italy’s next government, the 66th since World War Two, looks set to be formed by the anti-establishment 5-Star Movement and the far-right League.
Earlier this month it was revealed they had plans to demand 250 billion euros of debt forgiveness and create procedures to allow countries to exit the euro. Italian stocks and bonds tumbled, and the two parties have since rowed back.
But their spending plans still look set to put Italy on a collision course with the European Union over the breach of budget rules. Fiscal rectitude? Not so much.
“With an avowed ‘Italy first’ agenda, this means Trumpism has arrived in Europe.” Oxford Economics wrote on Monday.
In Turkey, meanwhile, questions are mounting over the independence of the country’s central bank and separation of monetary and fiscal policy, thanks to president Erdogan’s increasingly vocal interventions.
Earlier this month he said interest rates are “the mother and father of all evil,” and repeated his claim that inflation is a result of high, not low, interest rates: “The lower the interest rate is, the lower inflation will be.”
While Erdogan has crushed his domestic enemies, he is finding that taking on international financial markets with policies that defy economic orthodoxy is much tougher. Turkey’s lira has plunged to record lows - it’s down 20 percent against the dollar so far this year - and bond yields are soaring.
You won’t find these policies and remedies in the economic textbooks that have been the basis for free market ideology over the past 40 years. They’re anathema to the Washington Consensus. But markets should get used to them.
The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters. Reporting by Jamie McGeever; Editing by Toby Chopra | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-global-economics-orthodoxy/commentary-populism-surge-intensifies-spotlight-on-economic-market-orthodoxy-idUKKCN1IO1RN |
May 9 (Reuters) - Mabion SA:
* SAID ON TUESDAY THAT AS A RESULT OF THE COMPANY’S SHARE CAPITAL INCREASE TWITI INVESTMENTS LTD HAS RAISED ITS STAKE IN THE COMPANY TO 18.37% FROM 5.08%
Source text for Eikon:
Further company coverage: (Gdynia Newsroom)
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSL8N1SG183 |
Russian revealed alive after 'staged' murder 12:57pm EDT - 01:26
A dissident Russian journalist who was reported murdered in Kiev dramatically reappeared alive on Wednesday in the middle of a briefing about his own killing by the Ukrainian state security service. ▲ Hide Transcript ▶ View Transcript
A dissident Russian journalist who was reported murdered in Kiev dramatically reappeared alive on Wednesday in the middle of a briefing about his own killing by the Ukrainian state security service. Press CTRL+C (Windows), CMD+C (Mac), or long-press the URL below on your mobile device to copy the code https://reut.rs/2IUGIeR | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/video/2018/05/30/russian-revealed-alive-after-staged-murd?videoId=431715726 |
Fourth Quarter Total Revenue Increased 10.8%; Michael Kors Comparable Sales Grew 2.3%
Earnings per Share were $0.29 Compared to Loss per Share of $0.17 Last Year
Exceeds Expectations for Revenue, Operating Margin and Earnings
LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Michael Kors Holdings Limited (NYSE:KORS) (the “Company”), a global fashion luxury group, today announced its financial results for the fiscal 2018 fourth quarter and fiscal year ended March 31, 2018. For the fourth quarter, earnings per diluted share were $0.29, a $0.46 increase compared to last year. On an adjusted basis, earnings per diluted share were $0.63 compared to $0.73 in the prior year.
Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2018 Highlights
Delivered better than anticipated revenue, operating margin and earnings results Began investments in the Jimmy Choo brand to lay the foundation for accelerated long term growth Made significant progress on the Michael Kors Runway 2020 strategic plan Comparable sales increased 2.3%, driven by strong response to innovative and elevated fashion luxury offering across accessories, footwear, ready-to-wear and men’s categories Launched KORSVIP loyalty program, with enrollment well ahead of initial expectations Transitioned additional store locations to new luxury concept and are pleased with the recent results at renovated stores, which are outperforming the balance of the chain
John D. Idol, the Company’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said, “Fiscal 2018 was an exciting year for our Company as we established a foundation to support long term growth. We created a global fashion luxury group with the acquisition of Jimmy Choo and completed the first year of our Runway 2020 strategic plan for the Michael Kors brand, ending the year significantly ahead of our expectations.”
Mr. Idol continued, “Looking to fiscal 2019, we have a number of initiatives planned to drive growth in both of our luxury brands. For Michael Kors, we expect growth to be led by our retail business, as we remain focused on executing initiatives across fashion luxury product, brand engagement and customer experience. For Jimmy Choo, we will continue to make strategic investments to expand our retail fleet globally, capitalize on the significant opportunity to grow our accessories business and increase brand engagement through glamorous red-carpet marketing communications. Additionally, we will continue to explore acquisitions to complement our existing luxury portfolio. Overall, we are well-positioned to deliver long-term growth and enhance shareholder value by executing on the strategies in place for both Michael Kors and Jimmy Choo."
Financial Results
The Company’s results are reported in this press release on both a GAAP and an adjusted, non-GAAP basis. A reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP financial information is provided at the end of this press release.
For the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2018:
Total revenue increased 10.8% to $1.18 billion, including a $107.9 million contribution from Jimmy Choo. On a constant currency basis, total revenue increased 7.2%. MK Retail revenue increased 4.4% to $600.6 million. Since the fourth quarter of last year, the Company opened 50 stores, primarily in Asia, and closed 48 stores. Comparable sales increased 2.3%, driven by growth in the accessories, footwear, ready-to-wear and men's categories. On a constant currency basis, retail revenue increased 0.1%, and comparable sales decreased 1.7%. MK Wholesale revenue decreased 3.2% to $441.3 million and on a constant currency basis decreased 6.1%, driven by the Company's strategic reduction in inventory levels in the channel to drive higher full price sell through and elevate brand positioning. MK Licensing revenue decreased 11.1% to $29.7 million. Gross profit increased 14.5% to $709.8 million and as a percentage of total revenue was 60.2%. Adjusted gross profit increased 14.9% to $712.3 million, and as a percentage of total revenue was 60.4%. This compares to 58.2% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017. This increase was the result of favorable channel mix due to a higher proportion of retail sales, expanded MK Retail and MK Wholesale gross margins, and the inclusion of Jimmy Choo, which contributed 80 basis points to the increase. Income from operations was $87.1 million, or 7.4% as a percentage of total revenue. Loss from operations was $42.6 million, or (4.0)% as a percentage of total revenue, for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017. Adjusted income from operations increased 2.0% to $154.2 million, or 13.1% as a percentage of total revenue. This compares to $151.2 million, or 14.2% as a percentage of total revenue, for the same period in fiscal 2017. These results reflect higher income from operations for the Michael Kors brand, partially offset by accelerated investments related to Jimmy Choo in marketing, ecommerce and store openings during a seasonally low revenue period. Net income attributable to MKHL was $44.1 million, or $0.29 per diluted share, based on 154.3 million weighted average diluted shares outstanding. Net loss attributable to MKHL for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017 was $26.8 million, or $0.17 per diluted share, based on 161.8 million weighted average diluted shares outstanding. Adjusted net income attributable to MKHL was $96.5 million, or $0.63 per diluted share. This compares to $118.0 million, or $0.73 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017. At March 31, 2018, Michael Kors operated 829 retail stores, including concessions, and an additional 151 retail stores, including concessions, were operated through licensing partners. Including licensed locations, there were 980 Michael Kors stores worldwide at the end of the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018. At March 31, 2018, Jimmy Choo operated 182 retail stores, including concessions, and an additional 61 retail stores, including concessions, were operated through licensing partners. Including licensed locations, there were 243 Jimmy Choo stores worldwide at the end of the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018.
For the fiscal year ended March 31, 2018:
Total revenue increased 5.0% to $4.72 billion from $4.49 billion, including a $222.6 million contribution from Jimmy Choo. On a constant currency basis, total revenue increased 3.6%. MK Retail revenue increased 5.4% to $2.71 billion. Comparable sales decreased 2.2%. On a constant currency basis, retail revenue increased 3.9%, and comparable sales decreased 3.7% MK Wholesale revenue decreased 7.7% to $1.64 billion and on a constant currency basis decreased 9.1%, driven by the Company's strategic reduction in inventory levels to drive higher full price sell through and elevate brand positioning. MK Licensing revenue decreased 0.6% to $144.9 million. Gross profit increased 7.4% to $2.86 billion, and as a percentage of total revenue was 60.6%, or 60.7% on an adjusted basis. This compares to 59.2% in the same period of fiscal 2017. This increase was primarily attributable to improved MK Retail gross margin and a 20 basis points contribution from the inclusion of Jimmy Choo, partially offset by the expected decline in the MK Wholesale gross margin. Income from operations was $749.1 million and as a percentage of total revenue was 15.9%. Income from operations was $689.9 million, or 15.4% as a percentage of total revenue, for the full fiscal year 2017. Adjusted income from operations was $888.0 million, or 18.8% as a percentage of total revenue. This compares to $900.4 million, or 20.0% as a percentage of total revenue, for the same period in fiscal 2017. Net income attributable to MKHL was $591.9 million, or $3.82 per diluted share, based on 155.1 million weighted average diluted shares outstanding. Net income attributable to MKHL for the full year fiscal 2017 was $552.5 million, or $3.29 per diluted share, based on 168.1 million weighted average diluted shares outstanding. Adjusted net income attributable to MKHL was $701.0 million, or $4.52 per diluted share. This compares to $712.1 million, or $4.24 per diluted share, for the same period of fiscal 2017.
Balance Sheet
As of March 31, 2018, debt on the balance sheet totaled $874.4 million after repaying $320.2 million of debt in the fourth quarter. Currently, the Company has approximately $804.7 available for future borrowings under its revolving credit facilities. Inventory at March 31, 2018, was $660.7 million, including $128.3 million for Jimmy Choo and $532.4 for Michael Kors. Inventory at the end of the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017 was $549.3 million. Inventory for Michael Kors was down 3.1% as compared to the prior year.
Share Repurchase Program
During the fourth quarter, the Company repurchased 3,157,459 of the Company's ordinary shares for approximately $200.0 million in open market transactions. As of March 31, 2018 the remaining availability under the Company’s share repurchase program was $642.2 million. Share repurchases may be made in open market or privately negotiated transactions, subject to market conditions, applicable legal requirements, trading restrictions under the Company’s insider trading policy, and other relevant factors. The program may be suspended or discontinued at any time.
Outlook
For the first quarter of fiscal 2019, the Company expects total revenue to be approximately $1.135 billion, including between $140 million and $145 million of incremental Jimmy Choo revenue. Comparable sales for Michael Kors are expected to be approximately flat. The Company expects operating margin to be approximately 15.2%. Diluted earnings per share are expected to be in the range of $0.90 to $0.95, including anticipated benefit from Jimmy Choo of approximately $0.01 to $0.03. This assumes approximately 153 million weighted average diluted shares outstanding and a tax rate of approximately 14.0%.
For fiscal 2019, the Company expects total revenue to be approximately $5.10 billion, including between $570 million and $580 million of incremental Jimmy Choo revenue. Comparable sales for Michael Kors are expected to be approximately flat. The Company expects operating margin to be approximately 17.7%. Diluted earnings per share are expected to be in the range of $4.65 to $4.75, including dilution from Jimmy Choo of approximately $0.05 to $0.10. This assumes approximately 154 million weighted average diluted shares outstanding and a tax rate of approximately 16.5%.
Conference Call Information
A conference call to discuss fourth quarter results is scheduled for today, May 30, 2018, from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. ET. A live webcast of the conference call will be available on the Company’s investor relations website, www.investors.michaelkors.com . In addition, a replay of the call will be available shortly after the conclusion of the call and remain available until June 6, 2018. To access the telephone replay, listeners should dial (844) 512-2921 or (412) 317-6671 for international callers. The access code for the replay is 2731688. A replay of the web cast will also be available within two hours of the conclusion of the call and will remain on the website for 90 days.
Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
Constant currency effects are non-GAAP financial measures, which are provided to supplement our reported operating results to facilitate comparisons of our operating results and trends in our business, excluding the effects of foreign currency rate fluctuations. Because we are a global Company, foreign currency exchange rates may have a significant effect on our reported results. We calculate constant currency measures and the related foreign currency impacts by translating the current-year’s reported amounts into comparable amounts using prior year’s foreign exchange rates for each currency. All constant currency performance measures discussed below should be considered a supplement to and not in lieu of our operating performance measures calculated in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“U.S. GAAP”).
Additionally, this earnings release includes certain non-GAAP financial measures relating to certain one-time costs associated with the Jimmy Choo acquisition, the acquisition of the Greater China licensee and restructuring and non-cash impairment charges primarily associated with underperforming retail stores. The Company uses non-GAAP financial measures, among other things, to evaluate its operating performance and in order to represent the manner in which the Company conducts and views its business. The Company believes that excluding non-recurring items helps its management and investors compare operating performance based on its ongoing operations. While the Company considers the non-GAAP measures to be useful supplemental measures in analyzing its results, they are not intended to replace, nor act as a substitute for, any amounts presented in its consolidated financial statements prepared in conformity with U.S. GAAP and may be different from non-GAAP measures reported by other companies.
About Michael Kors Holdings Limited
Michael Kors Holdings Limited is a global fashion luxury group, consisting of iconic brands that are industry leaders in design, style and craftsmanship. Its brands cover the full spectrum of fashion luxury categories including women’s and men’s accessories, footwear and apparel as well as wearable technology, watches, jewelry, eyewear and a full line of fragrance products. The company’s goal is to continue to extend the global reach of its brands while ensuring that they maintain their independence and exclusive DNA. Michael Kors Holdings Limited is publicly listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker KORS.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on such statements because they are subject to numerous uncertainties and factors relating to the Company’s operations and business environment, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the Company’s control. Forward-looking statements include information concerning the Company’s possible or assumed future results of operations, including descriptions of its business strategy. These statements often include words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “believe,” “expect,” “seek,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan,” “estimate” or similar expressions. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based on assumptions that the Company has made in light of management’s experience in the industry as well as its perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors that it believes are appropriate under the circumstances. You should understand that these statements are not guarantees of performance or results. They involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Although the Company believes that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, you should be aware that many factors could affect its actual financial results or results of operations and could cause actual results to differ materially from those in these forward-looking statements. These factors are more fully discussed in the “Risk Factors” section and elsewhere in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended April 1, 2017 (File No. 001-35368), Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended July 1, 2017 (File No. 001-35368) and other reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
SCHEDULE 1 MICHAEL KORS HOLDINGS LIMITED AND SUBSIDIARIES CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (In millions, except share and per share data) (Unaudited) Three Months Ended Fiscal Years Ended March 31,
2018 April 1,
2017 March 31,
2018 April 1,
2017 Total revenue $ 1,179.5 $ 1,064.8 $ 4,718.6 $ 4,493.7 Cost of goods sold 469.7 445.1 1,859.3 1,832.3 Gross profit 709.8 619.7 2,859.3 2,661.4 Total operating expenses 622.7 662.3 2,110.2 1,971.5 Income (loss) from operations 87.1 (42.6 ) 749.1 689.9 Other income, net (0.7 ) (0.7 ) (1.7 ) (5.4 ) Interest expense (income), net 12.1 (1.0 ) 22.3 4.1 Foreign currency loss (gain) 1.4 0.4 (13.3 ) 2.6 Income (loss) before provision for income taxes 74.3 (41.3 ) 741.8 688.6 Provision (benefit) for income taxes 29.8 (14.5 ) 149.7 137.1 Net income (loss) $ 44.5 $ (26.8 ) $ 592.1 $ 551.5 Less: Net income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interests 0.4 — 0.2 (1.0 ) Net income (loss) attributable to MKHL $ 44.1 $ (26.8 ) $ 591.9 $ 552.5 Weighted average ordinary shares outstanding: Basic 150,818,144 159,944,132 152,283,586 165,986,733 Diluted 154,252,751 161,827,486 155,102,885 168,123,813 Net income (loss) per ordinary share: Basic $ 0.29 $ (0.17 ) $ 3.89 $ 3.33 Diluted $ 0.29 $ (0.17 ) $ 3.82 $ 3.29 SCHEDULE 2 MICHAEL KORS HOLDINGS LIMITED AND SUBSIDIARIES CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (In millions, except share data) (Unaudited) March 31,
2018 April 1,
2017 Assets Current assets Cash and cash equivalents $ 163.1 $ 227.7 Receivables, net 290.5 265.8 Inventories 660.7 549.3 Prepaid expenses and other current assets 147.8 121.9 Total current assets 1,262.1 1,164.7 Property and equipment, net 583.2 591.5 Intangible assets, net 1,235.7 418.1 Goodwill 847.7 119.7 Deferred tax assets 56.2 73.3 Other assets 74.1 42.3 Total assets $ 4,059.0 $ 2,409.6 Liabilities and Shareholders’ Equity Current liabilities Accounts payable $ 294.1 $ 176.3 Accrued payroll and payroll related expenses 93.0 61.1 Accrued income taxes 77.6 60.3 Short-term debt 200.0 133.1 Accrued expenses and other current liabilities 295.6 135.0 Total current liabilities 960.3 565.8 Deferred rent 128.4 137.8 Deferred tax liabilities 186.3 80.0 Long-term debt 674.4 — Other long-term liabilities 88.1 31.0 Total liabilities 2,037.5 814.6 Commitments and contingencies Shareholders’ equity Ordinary shares, no par value; 650,000,000 shares authorized; 210,991,091 shares issued and 149,698,407 outstanding at March 31, 2018; 209,332,493 shares issued and 155,833,304 outstanding at April 1, 2017 — — Treasury shares, at cost (61,292,684 shares at March 31, 2018 and 53,499,189 shares at April 1, 2017) (3,015.9 ) (2,654.9 ) Additional paid-in capital 831.1 767.8 Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) 50.5 (80.6 ) Retained earnings 4,152.0 3,560.3 Total shareholders’ equity of MKHL 2,017.7 1,592.6 Noncontrolling interest 3.8 2.4 Total shareholders’ equity 2,021.5 1,595.0 Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity $ 4,059.0 $ 2,409.6 SCHEDULE 3 MICHAEL KORS HOLDINGS LIMITED AND SUBSIDIARIES CONSOLIDATED SEGMENT DATA ($ in millions) (Unaudited) Three Months Ended Fiscal Years Ended March 31,
2018 April 1,
2017 March 31,
2018 April 1,
2017 Revenue by Segment and Region: MK Retail The Americas $ 342.8 $ 351.7 $ 1,678.4 $ 1,713.7 Europe 120.1 106.5 564.4 507.7 Asia 137.7 117.1 469.0 350.7 MK Retail Revenue 600.6 575.3 2,711.8 2,572.1 MK Wholesale The Americas 328.2 353.3 1,234.0 1,340.9 EMEA 93.2 91.3 343.9 376.5 Asia 19.9 11.5 61.4 58.4 MK Wholesale Revenue 441.3 456.1 1,639.3 1,775.8 MK Licensing The Americas 13.4 16.0 83.5 86.1 EMEA 16.3 17.4 61.4 59.7 MK Licensing Revenue 29.7 33.4 144.9 145.8 Michael Kors Revenue 1,071.6 1,064.8 4,496.0 4,493.7 Jimmy Choo The Americas 16.3 — 37.3 — EMEA 58.0 — 123.0 — Asia 33.6 — 62.3 — Jimmy Choo Revenue 107.9 — 222.6 — Total Revenue $ 1,179.5 $ 1,064.8 $ 4,718.6 $ 4,493.7 Income from Operations: MK Retail $ (7.8 ) $ (154.6 ) $ 333.8 $ 159.8 MK Wholesale 110.2 100.9 373.8 468.1 MK Licensing 7.1 11.1 58.2 62.0 Michael Kors 109.5 $ (42.6 ) 765.8 689.9 Jimmy Choo (22.4 ) — (16.7 ) — Total Income (loss) from operations $ 87.1 $ (42.6 ) $ 749.1 $ 689.9 Operating Margin: MK Retail (1.3 )% (26.9 )% 12.3 % 6.2 % MK Wholesale 25.0 % 22.1 % 22.8 % 26.4 % MK Licensing 23.9 % 33.2 % 40.2 % 42.5 % Michael Kors 10.2 % (4.0 )% 17.0 % 15.4 % Jimmy Choo (20.8 )% — % (7.5 )% — % Total Operating Margin 7.4 % (4.0 )% 15.9 % 15.4 % SCHEDULE 4 MICHAEL KORS HOLDINGS LIMITED AND SUBSIDIARIES SUPPLEMENTAL RETAIL STORE INFORMATION (Unaudited) March 31, 2018 April 1, 2017 Retail Store Information: Store Count Square Footage Store Count Square Footage The Americas 379 1,250,061 398 1,280,168 Europe 198 534,752 201 541,627 Asia 252 523,590 228 436,164 Michael Kors 829 2,308,403 827 2,257,959 Jimmy Choo 182 233,492 — — Total MKHL 1,011 2,541,895 827 2,257,959 SCHEDULE 5 MICHAEL KORS HOLDINGS LIMITED AND SUBSIDIARIES CONSTANT CURRENCY DATA (In millions) (Unaudited) Three Months Ended % Change March 31,
2018 April 1,
2017 As
Reported Constant
Currency Total revenue: MK Retail $ 600.6 $ 575.3 4.4 % 0.1 % MK Wholesale 441.3 456.1 (3.2 )% (6.1 )% MK Licensing 29.7 33.4 (11.1 )% (11.2 )% Michael Kors 1,071.6 1,064.8 0.6 % (2.9 )% Jimmy Choo 107.9 — NM
NM Total revenue $ 1,179.5 $ 1,064.8 10.8 % 7.2 % Fiscal Years Ended % Change March 31,
2018 April 1,
2017 As
Reported Constant
Currency Total revenue: MK Retail $ 2,711.8 $ 2,572.1 5.4 % 3.9 % MK Wholesale 1,639.3 1,775.8 (7.7 )% (9.1 )% MK Licensing 144.9 145.8 (0.6 )% (0.6 )% Michael Kors 4,496.0 4,493.7 0.1 % (1.4 )% Jimmy Choo 222.6 — NM NM Total revenue $ 4,718.6 $ 4,493.7 5.0 % 3.6 % SCHEDULE 6 NON-GAAP RECONCILIATIONS OF REPORTED TO ADJUSTED MEASURES, EXCLUDING LONG-LIVED ASSET IMPAIRMENTS, RESTRUCTURING AND OTHER CHARGES, INVENTORY STEP-UP AND DERIVATIVE CONTRACT RELATED TO ACQUISITION OF JIMMY CHOO (In millions, except share and per share data) (Unaudited) Three Months Ended March 31, 2018 As Reported Impairment
Charges
Restructuring
and Other
Charges (1)
Inventory
Step-up
Adjustment
As Adjusted Total revenue $ 1,179.5 $ — $ — $ — $ 1,179.5 Gross profit $ 709.8 $ — $ — $ 2.5
$ 712.3 Gross profit margin 60.2 % — % —
% 0.2 % 60.4 % Operating expenses $ 622.7 $ (13.8 ) $ (50.8 ) $ — $ 558.1 Operating expense as percentage of revenue 52.8 % (1.2 )% (4.3 )% — % 47.3 % Total income from operations $ 87.1 $ 13.8 $ 50.8 $ 2.5 $ 154.2 Total operating margin 7.4 % 1.2 % 4.3 % 0.2 % 13.1 % MK Retail revenue $ 600.6 $ — $ — $ — $ 600.6 MK Retail operating (loss) income $ (7.8 ) $ 12.4 $ 45.4 $ — $ 50.0 MK Retail operating margin (1.3 )% 2.1 % 7.5 % — % 8.3 % MK Wholesale revenue $ 441.3 $ — $ — $ — $ 441.3 MK Wholesale operating income $ 110.2 $ 1.4 $ 0.9 $ — $ 112.5 MK Wholesale operating margin 25.0 % 0.3 % 0.2 % — % 25.5 % MK Licensing revenue $ 29.7 $ — $ — $ — $ 29.7 MK Licensing operating income $ 7.1 $ — $ 0.2 $ — $ 7.3 MK Licensing operating margin 23.9 % — % 0.7 % — % 24.6 % Michael Kors revenue $ 1,071.6 $ — $ — $ — $ 1,071.6 Michael Kors operating expense $ 529.0 $ (13.8 ) $ (46.5 ) $ — $ 468.7 Michael Kors operating expense as percentage of revenue 49.4 % (1.3 )% (4.4 )% — % 43.7 % Michael Kors operating income $ 109.5 $ 13.8 $ 46.5 $ — $ 169.8 Michael Kors operating margin 10.2 % 1.3 % 4.3 % — % 15.8 % Jimmy Choo revenue $ 107.9 $ — $ — $ — $ 107.9 Jimmy Choo operating expenses $ 93.7 $ — $ (4.3 ) $ — $ 89.4 Jimmy Choo operating income $ (22.4 ) $ — $ 4.3 $ 2.5 $ (15.6 ) Jimmy Choo operating margin (20.8 )% — % 4.0 % 2.3 % (14.5 )% Net income attributable to MKHL $ 44.1 $ 10.7 $ 39.7 $ 2.0 $ 96.5 Weighted average diluted ordinary shares outstanding 154,252,751 — — — 154,252,751 Diluted net income per ordinary share attributable to MKHL $ 0.29 $ 0.07 $ 0.26 $ 0.01 $ 0.63 | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/30/business-wire-michael-kors-holdings-limited-announces-fourth-quarter-and-annual-fiscal-2018-results.html |
May 1 (Reuters) - COFCO Property Group Co Ltd:
* SAYS CONTROLLING SHAREHOLDER PLANS TO BUY UP TO 2.0 PERCENT STAKE IN THE COMPANY AT NO MORE THAN 8.8 YUAN ($1.39) PER SHARE Source text in Chinese: bit.ly/2I3UHhg Further company coverage: ($1 = 6.3325 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Reporting by Hong Kong newsroom)
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-cofco-propertys-controlling-shareh/brief-cofco-propertys-controlling-shareholder-to-increase-stake-in-the-company-idUSL3N1S82X0 |
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and China will hold trade talks on Thursday and Friday, the White House said on Wednesday, as the two economic giants at loggerheads on a number of issues seek to avoid a trade war.
Reporting by Eric Beech; Editing by Mohammad Zargham
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-china-talks/u-s-to-hold-trade-talks-with-china-on-thursday-and-friday-white-house-idUSKCN1IH2X2 |
May 17, 2018 / 3:32 AM / Updated an hour ago CORRECTED-S.Korea c.bank chief says hard to be optimistic due to slow jobs growth Reuters Staff 1 Min Read
(Corrects day in second paragraph)
SEOUL, May 17 (Reuters) - South Korea’s central bank chief on Thursday said it was difficult to be optimistic about the economy as jobs growth remained tepid.
Governor Lee Ju-yeol was speaking at an inauguration ceremony of the Bank of Korea’s new board member Lim Ji-won, who began her four-year term on Thursday. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/southkorea-economy-cenbank/refile-s-korea-c-bank-chief-says-hard-to-be-optimistic-due-to-slow-jobs-growth-idUSL3N1SO1VS |
St. Louis right-hander Carlos Martinez pitched 7 1/3 strong innings and hit his first major league homer and Dexter Fowler homered in the Cardinals’ 3-2 interleague victory over the Chicago White Sox at Busch Stadium on Wednesday.
Martinez broke a scoreless tie with a two-out homer in the sixth inning and Fowler hit a two-run homer for a 3-0 lead in the seventh when the Cardinals swept the mini two-game series after losing their previous three games.
Martinez (3-1) gave up five hits and one run while striking out five and walking two in his first May start. He gave up two earned runs in 33 1/3 innings in April for an 0.54 ERA, the best in that month in franchise history among pitchers with at least 30 innings.
The White Sox had six hits, and Jose Abreu’s bloop double in the fourth inning was the only one for extra bases. The White Sox have lost four in a row and are 4-13 since April 12. They are 3-9 in one-run games,.
Yadier Molina had two of the Cardinals’ four hits. Fowler’s homer was his fourth.
The White Sox scored two runs in the seventh inning to make it 3-2. Tim Anderson singled and stole second before Dominic Leone replaced Martinez and walked Yoan Moncada with one out.
Yolmer Sanchez singled in Anderson and Abreu hit a sacrifice fly to score pinch runner Trayce Thompson. Moncada was forced to leave the game after sliding awkwardly into third base on Abreu’s fly.
Bud Norris struck out Nicky Delmonico to end the eighth inning and pitched the ninth for his sixth save.
White Sox right-hander Lucas Giolito (1-4) gave up four hits and three runs, striking out seven and walking two. He had retired 12 straight before Martinez homered on the first pitch with two outs in the sixth.
Molina’s infield single in the first inning was the Cardinals’ only hit until Martinez homered.
Martinez gave up a single to Leury Garcia and walked Omar Navarez with one out in the seventh inning but induced rookie Daniel Palka to hit into his second double play of the game to end the inning.
—Field Level Media
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/baseball-mlb-min-chw-recap/martinez-homers-and-pitches-cardinals-past-white-sox-idUSMTZEE524ANWUD |
May 1, 2018 / 11:46 PM / Updated 5 hours ago Vatican treasurer's trial on historical sex offences to last 10 weeks, court hears Sonali Paul 3 Min Read
MELBOURNE (Reuters) - The trial of Vatican Treasurer George Pell, who has pleaded not guilty to charges of historical sexual offences, is expected to last 10 weeks, an Australian court heard on Wednesday, with his defence lawyer seeking speedy action. Vatican Treasurer Cardinal George Pell is surrounded by Australian police as he leaves the Melbourne Magistrates Court in Australia, October 6, 2017. REUTERS/Mark Dadswell
The County Court of Victoria state will hold a second hearing on May 16 to plan how to proceed, with the prosecution and defence agreeing to press for two separate trials, each estimated to take about five weeks.
Pell, 76, is the highest ranking Catholic worldwide to face a criminal trial on sex offences. Details of the charges have not been made public.
The Victorian Magistrates’ Court ordered on Tuesday that Pell face trial on historical sexual offences involving multiple accusers following a month-long pre-trial hearing. Pell formally entered a not guilty plea.
No trial dates have been set yet.
Pell’s lawyer, Robert Richter, urged the County Court to move forward as quickly as possible on the charges, which involve offences alleged to have occurred 20 years apart at a public swimming pool and a church.
“We would like an expedited trial for various reasons - number one, my client is 76 years old,” Richter told the court.
Richter also said a “critical witness” for the case involving alleged offences at the church was 80 and in ill health.
“We would suggest the indictment for that one could proceed separately and quickly,” Richter said.
Prosecutor Mark Gibson initially estimated it would take three months to prepare for trial but Judge Susan Pullen said that seemed excessive.
“You’ve got to move on with this,” Pullen told the prosecutor.
Pell is on a leave of absence from his role as economy minister to Pope Francis, who has said he would not comment on the case until it was over.
The Vatican said in a statement it had “taken note” of the court’s decision to proceed to a full trial. The leave of absence the pope granted Pell last year so that he can defend himself against the charges “is still in place”, it said.
Pell’s defence team raised questions during the pre-trial hearing about police procedure, the reliability of witnesses’ memories and their psychological condition.
Prosecutor Mark Gibson had said none of the complainants had resiled from their allegations against Pell under cross-examination, while Victoria Police Detective Sergeant Chris Reed denied Richter’s suggestions of serious flaws in the police investigation. Reporting by Sonali Paul; Editing by Jane Wardell, Paul Tait and Neil Fullick | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-australia-abuse-pell/vatican-treasurers-trial-on-historical-sex-offences-to-last-10-weeks-court-hears-idUKKBN1I24LU |
May 16, 2018 0
BARCELONA (Reuters) – Former Barcelona coach Luis Enrique once likened the club to Disneyland and on Tuesday the La Liga champions announced plans to open their own amusement parks in Asia and the United States in a bid to further boost their global brand. Soccer Football – La Liga Santander – FC Barcelona v Real Madrid – Camp Nou, Barcelona, Spain – May 6, 2018 Barcelona’s Andres Iniesta, Gerard Pique, Lionel Messi and team mates celebrate in front of the fans after the match REUTERS/Sergio Perez
The five parks, which will be between 3,000 and 10,000 square metres, will be built by Spanish leisure park group Parques Reunidos in shopping malls and “iconic establishments” in major cities, with the first parks being opened in 2020.
“The club is viewing this as a strategic agreement that will project the Barca brand and awareness of the club around the world,” Barcelona said in a statement.
“These spaces will be dedicated exclusively to FC Barcelona, where visitors of different ages will be able to enjoy immersive experiences in this brand new entertainment concept, based on the history, values, players and memorable moments of the club, blending interaction, new technologies, education and fun.”
The move is the latest step in Barca’s global expansion, which has seen the club already open offices in Hong Kong and New York and discuss plans to launch offices in China and South America.
The club also has an extensive set of football schools in the United States and Canada and will hold their pre-season tour in the U.S. for a second year running, playing friendlies against Tottenham Hotspur, AS Roma and AC Milan.
Last year, Barca’s all-time top scorer and talisman Lionel Messi announced plans to open a theme park in Nanjing, China in 2020.
“The agreement with Parques Reunidos will help us to project our image in strategic territories like the United States and Asian countries, offering our supporters a 100 percent Barca experience, and at the same generating a major source of income,” said Barca’s head of marketing Manel Arroyo. Reporting by Richard Martin; Editing by Christian Radnedge | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-soccer-spain-fcb-themepark/barcelona-reveals-plans-for-theme-parks-in-us-and-asia-idUSKCN1IG2MB/ |
NEW ORLEANS, May 18, ClaimsFiler, a FREE shareholder information service, reminds investors that they have until June 25, 2018 to file lead plaintiff applications in a securities class action lawsuit against Allegiant Travel Company (NasdaqGS: ALGT), if they purchased the Company's securities between June 8, 2015 and April 13, 2018, inclusive (the "Class Period"). This action is pending in the United States District Court for the Central District of California.
Get Help
Allegiant investors should visit us at https://www.claimsfiler.com/cases/view-allegiant-travel-company-securities-litigation or call to speak to our claim center toll-free at (844) 367-9658.
About the Lawsuit
Allegiant and certain of its executives are charged with failing to disclose material information during the Class Period, violating federal securities laws.
On April 13, 2018, CBS News announced an impending exposé on a multitude of problems involving the Company's safety record. On this news, Allegiant's shares plummeted $14.20 to close at $151.05. The report was subsequently aired on April 15, 2018, revealing a host of serious mechanical incidents, insufficient infrastructure and personnel to properly maintain the aircraft, and the Company's involvement in discouraging the reporting of safety and maintenance problems.
On this news, the price of Allegiant's shares again dropped $4.65 per share to close at $146.40.
About ClaimsFiler
ClaimsFiler has a single mission: to serve as the information source to help retail investors recover their share of billions of dollars from securities class action settlements. ClaimsFiler's team of experts monitor the securities class action landscape and cull information from a variety of sources to ensure comprehensive coverage across a broad range of financial instruments.
To learn more about ClaimsFiler, visit www.claimsfiler.com .
releases/allegiant-travel-shareholder-alert-claimsfiler-reminds-investors-with-losses-in-excess-of-100-000-of-lead-plaintiff-deadline-in-class-action-lawsuit-against-allegiant-travel-company---algt-300651022.html
SOURCE ClaimsFiler | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/18/pr-newswire-allegiant-travel-shareholder-alert-claimsfiler-reminds-investors-with-losses-in-excess-of-100000-of-lead-plaintiff-deadline-in.html |
April 30 (Reuters) - Biofrontera AG:
* REVENUES INCREASED 96% TO EUR12.0 MILLION FOR FULL YEAR 2017,
* GROSS PROFIT INCREASED 130% TO EUR10.3 MILLION FOR FULL YEAR 2017,
* NET LOSS WAS EUR16.1 MILLION IN 2017, COMPARED TO LOSS OF EUR 10.6 MILLION IN SAME PERIOD 2016 Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage: (Gdynia Newsroom)
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-biofrontera-fy-revenues-up-96-at-e/brief-biofrontera-fy-revenues-up-96-at-eur-12-0-million-idUSFWN1S7025 |
Product Innovations in Mass Cytometry and Genomics
Total Revenue of $25.2 million, Genomics Revenue Growth of 18 Percent
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., May 03, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fluidigm Corporation (NASDAQ:FLDM) today announced the first quarter ended March 31, 2018.
Total revenue for the first quarter was $25.2 million, a decrease of 1% from $25.5 million in the first quarter of 2017 and a decrease of 9% from $27.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2017. GAAP net loss for the first quarter of 2018 was $13.2 million, compared with a GAAP net loss of $17.2 million for the first quarter of 2017. Non-GAAP net loss for the first quarter of 2018 was $6.3 million, compared with a $9.6 million non-GAAP net loss for the first quarter of 2017 (see accompanying table for reconciliation of GAAP and non-GAAP measures).
“In the first quarter of 2018, Fluidigm posted strong growth in genomics as well as increased revenue in consumables and services,” said Chris Linthwaite, President and CEO. “Overall results were in line with our expectations and reflect operating leverage as well as improvements in gross margin. Although mass cytometry instrument sales fell short of expectations, we posted double-digit mass cytometry consumables growth and pull-through that exceeded our guidance. The robust opportunity pipeline for new mass cytometry system placements bodes well for growth in 2018. Equally, our increasing sales of genomics consumables and related systems is encouraging.
“Continued investment in research and development, a key pillar of our growth thesis, resulted in two innovative product launches early in the second quarter,” added Linthwaite. “In addition, we strengthened our balance sheet via the exchange of $150 million of outstanding convertible notes for new convertible notes with a later initial ‘put’ date of February 2023, compared to February 2021 in the prior notes, and new conversion features.
“We believe our instruments and systems will become indispensable tools for health care decision making, and we are excited about 2018 as we execute on our strategic roadmap for mass cytometry and high-throughput and single-cell genomics.”
First Quarter 2018 Performance
Revenue of $25.2 million by category:
Instrument revenue decreased 30% to $7.5 million from $10.7 million in the year ago period. Lower revenue from mass cytometry instruments was partially offset by increased revenue from genomics instruments. Notably, instrument revenue in the prior year period benefited from the fulfillment of a substantial portion of the initial orders for the Hyperion ™ Imaging System and Hyperion Tissue Imager by early-adopting customers.
Consumables revenue increased 23% to $13.0 million from $10.6 million in the year ago period, with growth across both mass cytometry reagents and high-throughput genomics products, partially offset by decreased revenue from single-cell genomics products.
Service revenue of $4.8 million increased 15% over the year ago period, primarily due to growth in service for mass cytometry systems globally.
Revenue of $25.2 million by market:
Genomics revenue, comprising instruments, consumables, and service, increased 18% to $16.3 million from $13.8 million in the prior year period. Genomics product revenue increased 22% to $13.8 million from $11.3 million in the prior year period, mainly due to increased revenue from high-throughput genomics products, partially offset by a decrease in single-cell genomics products.
Mass cytometry revenue, comprising instruments, consumables, and service, decreased 23% to $9.0 million from $11.7 million in the prior year period. Mass cytometry product revenue decreased 33% to $6.6 million from $10.0 million in the prior year period due to decreased revenue from instruments, partially offset by increased revenue from consumables. As noted above, mass cytometry revenue in the prior year period benefited from instrument orders for the Hyperion Imaging System and Hyperion Tissue Imager by early-adopting customers.
Total revenue by geographic area:
Geographic Area Revenue by Geography Year-over-Year Change % of Total Revenue United States $10.1 million (15 %) 40 % Europe $8.5 million 11 % 34 % Asia-Pacific $5.9 million 19 % 23 % Other $0.7 million (33 %) 3 % Product margin:
GAAP product margin was 50.1% in the first quarter of 2018 compared to 49.1% in the year ago period. Non-GAAP product margin was 67.2% in the first quarter of 2018 compared to 66.4% in the year ago period. The year-over-year increase in product margins was primarily due to lower genomics unit product costs for both instruments and consumables from higher production volumes. The increase in GAAP product margin was partially offset by fixed amortization over lower revenue in the first quarter of 2018. (See accompanying table for the reconciliation of GAAP and non-GAAP product margins.)
Cash, cash equivalents, and investments as of March 31, 2018:
Cash, cash equivalents, and investments as of March 31, 2018, were $47.3 million. Cash, cash equivalents, and investments as of December 31, 2017, were $63.1 million
Operational and Business Highlights
$ 150 Million Convertible Debt Exchange: Fluidigm exchanged $150 million of its outstanding convertible notes for new convertible notes with a later initial “put” date and new conversion features (including a reduced conversion price and an issuer conversion option, as described in more detail in our Annual Report on Form 10-K). The exchange improves Fluidigm’s capital structure, providing more secure footing for strategic growth. Maxpar ® Human Immune Monitoring Panel Kit : Early in the second quarter, Fluidigm launched the Maxpar Human Immune Monitoring Panel Kit for comprehensive immune cell profiling in cancer and immune-mediated diseases. Designed for use with the Helios™ mass cytometry system, the product is offered as a proven mass cytometry workflow and marks a significant step forward in high-parameter immune profiling.
Advanta™ CFTR NGS Library Prep Assay : In April, the company introduced a highly efficient and scalable next-generation sequencing library prep workflow for sequencing of the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene. The product was developed for research use with the Juno™ system, and will complement the CFTR sequencing assay currently in development with Baylor Genetics.
Brad Kreger Named SVP, Global Operations: Life sciences industry veteran Brad Kreger now leads manufacturing, supply chain, and demand planning for Fluidigm on a global basis. Kreger is charged with driving long-term changes to deliver on a strategic imperative to improve the customer experience through operational efficiencies, product quality, infrastructure, and execution. He joined the company in April.
Second Quarter 2018 Guidance
Total revenue of $ 25 million to $28 million. GAAP operating expenses of $27 million to $28 million. Non-GAAP operating expenses of $24.5 million to $25.5 million excluding stock-based compensation and depreciation and amortization expenses of approximately $1.5 million and $1 million, respectively. Total cash outflow of $6 million to $7 million including $2.8 million related to the convertible debt exchange.
Conference Call Information
Fluidigm will host a conference call today, May 3, 2018, at 2:00 p.m. PT (5:00 p.m. ET) to discuss first quarter 2018 financial results and operational progress. Individuals interested in listening to the conference call may do so by dialing (877) 556-5248 for domestic callers, or (720) 545-0029 for international callers. Please reference Conference ID 7270388. Interested parties may access the live teleconference in the Investors section of the company’s website at http://investors.fluidigm.com/events.cfm . The link will not be active until 1:45 p.m. PT (4:45 p.m. ET) on May 3, 2018.
A telephone replay of the teleconference will be available 90 minutes after the end of the call at (855) 859-2056 (domestic toll-free), or (404) 537-3406 (international toll), Conference ID 7270388. The conference call will also be archived on the Fluidigm Investors page at http://investors.fluidigm.com/ .
Statement Regarding Use of Non-GAAP Financial Information
Fluidigm has presented certain financial information in accordance with U.S. GAAP and also on a non-GAAP basis for the three-month periods ended March 31, 2018, and March 31, 2017, as well as projected for the second quarter of 2018. Management believes that non-GAAP financial measures, taken in conjunction with GAAP financial measures, provide useful information for both management and investors by excluding certain non-cash and other expenses that are not indicative of the company’s core operating results. Management uses non-GAAP measures to compare the company’s performance relative to forecasts and strategic plans and to benchmark the company’s performance externally against competitors. Our estimates of forward-looking non-GAAP operating expenses exclude estimates for stock-based compensation expense and depreciation and amortization; loss on disposal of property and equipment; future changes relating to developed and acquired technologies; other intangible assets; and income taxes, among other items, certain of which are presented in the table accompanying our earnings release. The time and amount of certain material items needed to estimate non-GAAP financial measures are inherently unpredictable or outside of our control. Material changes to any of these items could have a significant effect on guidance and future GAAP results. Non-GAAP information is not prepared under a comprehensive set of accounting rules and should only be used to supplement an understanding of the company’s operating results as reported under U.S. GAAP. Fluidigm encourages investors to carefully consider its results under GAAP, as well as its supplemental non-GAAP information and the reconciliation between these presentations, to more fully understand its business. Reconciliations between GAAP and non-GAAP operating results are presented in the accompanying tables of this release.
Use of Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, among others, statements regarding anticipated growth in sales pipeline and associated growth in revenues, strategic initiatives and their anticipated benefits, including the potential for growing demand for Fluidigm products in various markets, anticipated benefits of corporate and commercial transactions and product introductions, and projected revenues, expenses, and cash flows for the second quarter of 2018. Forward‑looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from currently anticipated results, including but not limited to risks relating to introductions of new products driving volatility in revenue from period to period; the future financial performance of Fluidigm product lines; challenges inherent in developing, manufacturing, launching, marketing, and selling new products; potential product performance and quality issues; the possible loss of key employees, customers, or suppliers; intellectual property risks; competition; Fluidigm research and development, sales, marketing, and distribution plans and capabilities; reduction in research and development spending or changes in budget priorities by customers; interruptions or delays in the supply of components or materials for, or manufacturing of, its products; seasonal variations in customer operations; unanticipated increases in costs or expenses; and risks associated with international operations. Information on these and additional risks and uncertainties and other information affecting Fluidigm's business and operating results is contained in the Fluidigm Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017, and in its other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof. Fluidigm disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements except as may be required by law.
About Fluidigm
Fluidigm (NASDAQ:FLDM) develops, manufactures, and markets life science analytical and preparatory systems for markets such as mass cytometry, high-throughput genomics, and single‑cell genomics. We sell to leading academic institutions, clinical research laboratories, and pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and agricultural biotechnology companies worldwide. Our systems are based on proprietary microfluidics and multiparameter mass cytometry technology and are designed to significantly simplify experimental workflow, increase throughput, and reduce costs while providing excellent data quality. Fluidigm products are provided for Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures.
We use our website ( www.fluidigm.com ), corporate Twitter account ( @fluidigm ), Facebook page ( https://www.facebook.com/fluidigm ), and LinkedIn page ( https://www.linkedin.com/company/fluidigm-corporation ) as channels of distribution of information about our products, our planned financial and other announcements, our attendance at upcoming investor and industry conferences, and other matters. Such information may be deemed material information, and we may use these channels to comply with our disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. Therefore, investors should monitor our website and our social media accounts in addition to following our press releases, SEC filings, public conference calls, and webcasts.
Fluidigm, the Fluidigm logo, Advanta, Helios, Hyperion, Juno, and Maxpar are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Fluidigm Corporation. All other trademarks are the sole property of their respective owners.
Contact
Investors:
Ana Petrovic
Director, Corporate Development and Investor Relations
Fluidigm Corporation
650 243 6628
[email protected]
Media:
Mark Spearman
Senior Director, Corporate Communications
Fluidigm Corporation
650 243 6621
[email protected]
FLUIDIGM CORPORATION CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (In thousands, except per share amounts) (Unaudited) Three Months Ended March 31, 2018
2017
Revenue: Instruments $ 7,520 $ 10,737 Consumables 12,957 10,570 Product revenue 20,477 21,307 Service revenue 4,771 4,167 License revenue - 59 Total revenue 25,248 25,533 Costs and expenses: Cost of product revenue 10,222 10,851 Cost of service revenue 1,598 1,118 Research and development 7,256 8,524 Selling, general and administrative 18,805 22,576 Total costs and expenses 37,881 43,069 Loss from operations (12,633 ) (17,536 ) Interest expense (1,889 ) (1,455 ) Other income, net 92 9 Loss before income taxes (14,430 ) (18,982 ) Income tax benefit 1,183 1,780 Net loss $ (13,247 ) $ (17,202 ) Net loss per share, basic and diluted $ (0.34 ) $ (0.59 ) Shares used in computing net loss per share, basic and diluted 38,856 29,239
FLUIDIGM CORPORATION CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (In thousands) March 31, 2018 December 31, 2017 (1) (Unaudited) ASSETS Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 41,972 $ 58,056 Short-term investments 5,282 5,080 Accounts receivable, net 16,267 15,049 Inventories 15,253 15,088 Prepaid expenses and other current assets 2,227 1,528 Total current assets 81,001 94,801 Property and equipment, net 11,433 12,301 Other non-current assets 7,360 7,541 Developed technology, net 65,800 68,600 Goodwill 104,108 104,108 Total assets $ 269,702 $ 287,351 LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY Current liabilities: Accounts payable $ 5,206 $ 4,211 Accrued compensation and related benefits 10,045 10,535 Other accrued liabilities 7,808 8,490 Deferred revenue, current portion 10,645 10,238 Total current liabilities 33,704 33,474 Convertible notes, net 164,156 195,238 Deferred tax liability, net 15,574 16,919 Other non-current liabilities 7,694 10,785 Total liabilities 221,128 256,416 Total stockholders' equity 48,574 30,935 Total liabilities and stockholders' equity $ 269,702 $ 287,351 (1) Derived from audited consolidated financial statements
FLUIDIGM CORPORATION CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (In thousands) (Unaudited) Three Months Ended March 31, 2018
2017
Operating activities Net loss $ (13,247 ) $ (17,202 ) Depreciation and amortization 1,983 1,951 Stock-based compensation expense 1,747 2,446 Amortization of developed technology 2,800 2,800 Other non-cash items (58 ) (126 ) Changes in assets and liabilities, net (9,401 ) 1,643 Net cash used in operating activities (16,176 ) (8,488 ) Investing activities Purchases of investments (186 ) (1,183 ) Proceeds from sales and maturities of investments - 19,375 Purchases of property and equipment (77 ) (692 ) Net cash (used in) provided by investing activities (263 ) 17,500 Financing activities Payment of debt issuance costs (82 ) - Proceeds from issuance of common stock through stock plans, net of tax - 3 Proceeds from exercise of stock options 24 - Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities (58 ) 3 Effect of foreign exchange rate fluctuations on cash and cash equivalents 413 37 Net (decrease) increase in cash and cash equivalents (16,084 ) 9,052 Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period 58,056 35,045 Cash and cash equivalents at end of period $ 41,972 $ 44,097
FLUIDIGM CORPORATION RECONCILIATION OF GAAP TO NON-GAAP FINANCIAL INFORMATION (In thousands, except per share amounts) (Unaudited) Three Months Ended March 31, 2018
2017
Net loss (GAAP) $ (13,247 ) $ (17,202 ) Stock-based compensation expense 1,747 2,446 Amortization of developed technology (a) 2,800 2,800 Interest expense (b) 1,889 1,455 Depreciation and amortization 1,433 1,871 Benefit from acquisition related income taxes (c) (916 ) (1,003 ) Net loss (Non-GAAP) $ (6,294 ) $ (9,633 ) Shares used in net loss per share calculation - basic and diluted (GAAP and Non-GAAP) 38,856 29,239 Net loss per share - basic and diluted (GAAP) $ (0.34 ) $ (0.59 ) Net loss per share - basic and diluted (Non-GAAP) $ (0.16 ) $ (0.33 ) ITEMIZED RECONCILIATION BETWEEN GAAP AND NON-GAAP PRODUCT MARGIN Three Months Ended March 31, 2018
2017
Product margin (GAAP) $ 10,255 $ 10,456 Amortization of developed technology (a) 2,800 2,800 Depreciation and amortization (d) 510 551 Stock-based compensation expense (d) 204 340 Product margin (Non-GAAP) $ 13,769 $ 14,147 Product margin percentage (GAAP) 50.1 % 49.1 % Product margin percentage (Non-GAAP) 67.2 % 66.4 % ITEMIZED RECONCILIATION BETWEEN GAAP AND NON-GAAP OPERATING EXPENSES Three Months Ended March 31, 2018
2017
Operating expenses (GAAP) $ 26,061 $ 31,100 Stock-based compensation expense (e) (1,543 ) (2,106 ) Depreciation and amortization (e) (923 ) (1,320 ) Operating expenses (Non-GAAP) $ 23,595 $ 27,674 ITEMIZED RECONCILIATION BETWEEN GAAP AND NON-GAAP LOSS FROM OPERATIONS Three Months Ended March 31, 2018
2017
Loss from operations (GAAP) $ (12,633 ) $ (17,536 ) Stock-based compensation expense 1,747 2,446 Amortization of developed technology (a) 2,800 2,800 Depreciation and amortization (e) 1,433 1,871 Loss from operations (Non-GAAP) $ (6,653 ) $ (10,419 ) (a) represents amortization of developed technology in connection with the DVS acquisition (b) represents interest expense on Senior Convertible Notes (c) represents the tax impact on the purchase of intangible assets in connection with the DVS acquisition (d) represents expense associated with cost of product revenue (e) represents expense associated with research and development, selling, general and administrative activities
Source:Fluidigm Corporation | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/03/globe-newswire-fluidigm-announces-first-quarter-financial-results-and-operational-progress.html |
KANSAS CITY, Mo., May 1, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Bret Pilney, vice president in the Aviation Group at Burns & McDonnell, is extending his ongoing work to strengthen international ties in the airports industry, focused on bringing people, businesses and markets together.
Pilney has been appointed by his peers to the World Business Partners Advisory Board of Airports Council International, the global trade representative for the world's airports. The 11-member board represents member businesses in various sectors — equipment, IT, retail, commercial, consulting, management, construction, security and more — to executives and other ACI members who own and operate nearly 2,000 airports in 176 countries.
The goal: Identify, share and support mutually beneficial services, suppliers and systems, so that airports can land partners to address their growing needs.
"It's an opportunity to share best practices around the world ," says Pilney, whose three-year term runs through 2020. "All the members in the ACI World Business Partners program provide great value. There's no one person or one group that has a lock on the best practices, so this is a great opportunity to share information. There's a lot of work, great work, being done in airports around the world. We find ways to leverage that great work, and great opportunities, throughout the world."
Pilney has been active in ACI-North America for more than two decades, including the past three years as a member of the organization's Associates Board, which works to further ACI's ongoing mission to promote professional excellence in airport management and operations. He leads the Aviation Group at Burns & McDonnell, which has experience planning, designing and constructing projects at more than 350 airports worldwide.
For photos and support materials, please visit our MEDIA KIT .
About Burns & McDonnell
Burns & McDonnell is a family of companies made up of more than 6,000 engineers, architects, construction professionals, scientists, consultants and entrepreneurs with offices across the country and throughout the world. We strive to create amazing success for our clients and amazing careers for our employee-owners. Burns & McDonnell is 100 percent employee-owned and is proud to be on Fortune's 2018 list of 100 Best Companies to Work For. For more information, visit burnsmcd.com .
Contact: MARY YOUNG, Burns & McDonnell
816-822-4369
[email protected]
View original content with multimedia: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/burns--mcdonnell-aviation-vp-joins-world-business-partners-advisory-board-300640208.html
SOURCE Burns & McDonnell | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/01/pr-newswire-burns-mcdonnell-aviation-vp-joins-world-business-partners-advisory-board.html |
May 21, 2018 / 11:05 PM / Updated 2 hours ago As Zuckerberg heads to Brussels, MPs ask for answers Reuters Staff 2 MPs want their European counterparts to quiz Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg about a scandal over improper use of millions of Facebook users’ data, as he will not give evidence in London himself.
Zuckerberg will be in Europe to defend the company after alleged misuse of its data by Cambridge Analytica, a British political consultancy that worked on U.S. President Donald Trump’s election campaign.
But while he will answer questions from lawmakers in Brussels on Tuesday, and is meeting French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday, he has so far declined to answer questions from British lawmakers, either in person or via video link.
Damian Collins, chair of the British parliament’s media committee, said on Tuesday that he believed Zuckerberg should still appear before British lawmakers.
“But if Mark Zuckerberg chooses not to address our questions directly, we are asking colleagues at the European Parliament to help us get answers - particularly on who knew what at the company, and when, about the data breach and the non-transparent use of political adverts which continue to undermine our democracy,” he said in a statement.
Last month, Facebook Chief Technical Officer Mike Schroepfer appeared before Collins’s Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, which is investigating fake news.
But the MPs have said his testimony and subsequent written answers from the firm to follow-up questions have been inadequate.
Collins outlined deficiencies in Facebook’s answers so far in a letter to Rebecca Stimson, head of public policy at Facebook UK, which has been shared with the EU lawmakers who will quiz Zuckerberg. Collins requested a response from Facebook to his questions by June 4. FILE PHOTO: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg arrives to testify before a Senate Judiciary and Commerce Committees joint hearing regarding the company’s use and protection of user data, on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., April 10, 2018. REUTERS/Aaron P. Bernstein/File Photo Reporting by Alistair Smout; Editing by Kevin Liffey | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-facebook-privacy-eu-britain/as-zuckerberg-heads-to-brussels-mps-ask-for-answers-idUKKCN1IM2HU |
By Polina Marinova 9:14 AM EDT CRUISIN'
Good morning, Term Sheet readers.
It had been a little while since SoftBank pumped an absurd amount of money into a company. But today, Masayoshi Son’s Vision Fund said it plans to invest $2.25 billion into GM’s self-driving car unit Cruise to help bring fleets of autonomous vehicles to market faster.
Cruise will remain a GM unit, but SoftBank will own 19.6% of the company. As part of the deal, GM will also invest $1.1 billion into Cruise.
The GM and SoftBank Vision Fund investments are expected to provide the capital needed to commercialize a fleet of a self-driving, ride-hailing service beginning in 2019.
The investment will be made in two parts. The first tranche of $900 million will be made at the closing of the transaction. Once Cruise’s autonomous vehicles are ready for commercial deployment, Softbank will complete the second investment of $1.35 billion.
And let’s not forget that SoftBank’s investments include major ride-hailing companies such as Uber, Didi Chuxing, Grab, Ola, and 99. All of these relationships are getting tangled, and I’m having a hard time keeping them separate. Remember that GM invested $500 million in Lyft in early 2016 and owns about 9% of the company?
Who cares which company will win the ride-hailing / autonomous vehicle arms race? SoftBank certainly doesn’t. When you’ve made a bet on an entire ecosystem, you’re bound to emerge as the winner.
….SPEAKING OF RIDE-HAILING, here’s an interesting tidbit: Warren Buffett offered to invest $3 billion in Uber, but the two sides couldn’t agree on the terms. Bloomberg reports that Berkshire Hathaway would have provided a convertible loan to Uber that would have protected Buffett’s investment should Uber hit financial straits, while providing significant upside if Uber continued to grow in value.
If this sounds familiar, that’s because it is.
Buffett had proposed similar terms to Goldman Sachs during the financial crisis. He invested $5 billion after the collapse of its rival Lehman Brothers in late 2008. In exchange, Buffett’s company got preferred stock that resulted in more than $1.6 billion in profit.
Bloomberg writes, “Buffett would have effectively lent Uber his sterling reputation, along with some capital, in exchange for cushy deal terms.” But talks died when Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi tried to decrease the size of the deal down to $2 billion, and the two parties could not come to consensus on the terms.
Advertisement THE LATEST FROM FORTUNE...
• Trump Predicts ‘Massive Drops in Prices’ for Drugs. Here’s Why That Probably Won’t Happen (by Sy Mukherjee)
• AI Is Better at Diagnosing Skin Cancer Than Your Doctor, Study Finds ( by Emily Price )
• IBM Pledges $30 Million for Techies to Fight Natural Disasters ( by Robert Hackett )
• Will He or Won’t He? Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky Teases a 2019 IPO ( by Natasha Bach )
VENTURE DEALS
• Signifyd , a San Jose, Calif.-based provider of guaranteed fraud protection for e-commerce businesses, raised $100 million in Series D funding. Premji Invest led the round, and was joined by investors including Bain Capital Ventures, Menlo Ventures, American Express Ventures, IA Ventures, Allegis Cyber and Resolute Ventures.
• Paxos , a New York-based financial technology company offering a blockchain-powered trust, raised $65 million in Series B funding. Investors include Liberty City Ventures, RRE Ventures, and Jay Jordan .
• Klaxoon , a France-based digital learning agency that develops interactive learning tools, raised $50 million in Series B funding. Idinvest Partners led the round, and was joined by investors including Bpifrance, Sofiouest, Arkea and White Star Capital Fund.
• Ava , a Switzerland-based women’s reproductive health company and maker of the cycle tracking Ava bracelet, raised $30 million in Series B funding. Investors include btov and SVC also joining the round.
• Nova Credit , a San Francisco-based provider of credit reporting solutions, raised $16 million in Series A funding. General Catalyst and Index Ventures co-led the round, and were joined by investors including First Round Capital, Nyca and Y Combinator.
• Coffee Meets Bagel , a San Francisco-based dating app, raised $12 million in Series B funding. Atami Capital led the round.
• SnackNation , a Los Angeles-based snack delivery service, raised $12 million in Series B funding. 3L Capital led the round.
• Curai , a machine learning-driven startup focused on healthcare, raised $10.7 million in Series A funding. General Catalyst led the round, and was joined by investors including Khosla Ventures .
• imToken , a China-based Ethereum wallet, raised $10 million in Series A funding. Investors include IDG Capital .
• Pixoneye , a U.K.-based artificial intelligence insights business, raised £6 million ($8 million) in Series A funding from Octopus Ventures.
• Modern Fertility , a San Francisco-based women’s health company that makes fertility information more accessible, raised $6 million in seed funding. Investors include Maveron , Union Square Ventures, Sound Ventures, SV Angel, and #Angels.
• Voltaiq , a Brooklyn-based provider of data visualization and analytics tools for batteries, raised $6.6 million in Series A funding. Anzu Partners led the round, and was joined by investors including Bee Partners, SJF Ventures, and UL Ventures.
• Neighborhood Goods , an immersive retail and social alternative to the department store, raised $5.75 million in seed funding. Forerunner Ventures led the round, and was joined by investors including Maveron, CAA Ventures, Global Founders Capital, and NextGen Venture Partners.
• Karnott , a France-based agriculture technology startup, raised €2.5 million ($2.9 million) in funding round to boost its international development. Partech and Leap Ventures, partner from the outset.
• CyberSaint , a Boston-based cyber-resilience, compliance and risk management platform, raised $3 million in funding. Audeo Capital and BlueIO led the round.
• Cursor , a San Francisco-based collaborative analytics platform, raised $2 million in seed funding. Toba Capital led the round, and was joined by investors including Ride Ventures.
Advertisement HEALTH AND LIFE SCIENCES DEALS
• CAMP4 Therapeutics , a Cambridge, Mass.-based platform aiming to discover effective treatment approaches for diseases, raised $30 million in Series A funding. Investors include Polaris Partners, Andreessen Horowitz, and The Kraft Group.
• Ancora Heart, Inc. , a Santa Clara, Calif.-based company developing a novel therapy to address heart failure, raised $17.8 million in funding. Savitr Capita l led the round.
Advertisement PRIVATE EQUITY DEALS
• LNK Partners invested $100 million in Schweiger Dermatology Group , a New York-based provider of medical, cosmetic and surgical dermatology services.
• Abris Capital Partners acquired a majority stake in Velvet Care , a Poland-based maker of personal hygiene products. Financial terms weren’t disclosed.
• Marlin Equity Partners acquired FrontStream , a Reston, Va.-based provider of software solutions for non-profit fundraising and corporate giving. Financial terms weren’t disclosed.
Advertisement IPOs
• BrightView Holdings , a Plymouth Meeting, Penn.-based landscaping service, filed for a $100 million IPO. The firm posted revenue of $2.2 billion in 2016. KKR (75% pre-offering) backs the firm. Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, KKR, and UBS are among bookrunners in the deal. The firm plans to list on the NYSE as “BV.” Read more .
• Provention Bio, an Oldwick, N.J.-based developer of autoimmune disease therapies, filed for a best efforts IPO of between $40 million to $50 million. The firm plans to offer up to 12.5 million shares at $4 a piece. MDB Capital Group (10.8% pre-offering), Vactech (9.4%), and Johnson and Johnson (11.2%) back the firm. MDB Capital is underwriter in the deal. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “PV.” Read more .
• Cushman & Wakefield , the New York-based real estate firm, is gearing up for an IPO filing in June, Real Deal reports citing sources. DTZ, backed by TPG, acquired the firm in 2015 for $2 billion. Read more .
• Bear Creek Mining , a Canadian mining firm, will likely IPO its Peruvian unit in Lima. Read more .
Advertisement EXITS
• Medical Properties Trust, Inc . agreed to sell its interest in Ernest Health , a Albuquerque, N.M. operator of long-term acute care facilities, to One Equity Partners. MPT expects its portion of proceeds to be $175 million and to generate an approximate 13% unlevered internal rate of return on its original $96 million investment.
• Motion Equity Partners, acquired Holweg Weber , a France-based producer of paper bag manufacturing machines, from Azulis Capital and co-investors. Financial terms weren’t disclosed.
Advertisement SHARE TODAY'S TERM SHEET
View this email in your browser .
Polina Marinova produces Term Sheet, and Lucinda Shen compiles the IPO news. Send deal announcements to Polina here and IPO news to Lucinda here . | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://fortune.com/2018/05/31/term-sheet-thursday-may-31/ |
TORONTO and SPOKANE, Wash., May 07, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Hydro One Limited (“Hydro One”) (TSX:H) and Avista Corporation (“Avista”) (NYSE:AVA) announced that on May 4, 2018, the companies received the Federal Communications Commission’s (“FCC”) consent to close their merger.
Applications for regulatory approval of the transaction are still pending with utility commissions in Idaho, Alaska, Washington, Oregon and Montana. An all-parties, all-issues settlement agreement was filed with the Idaho Public Utilities Commission on April 13, 2018. An all-parties, all-issues settlement agreement was filed with the Regulatory Commission of Alaska on April 3, 2018. An all-parties, all-issues settlement agreement was filed with the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission on March 27, 2018.
Hydro One and Avista received antitrust clearance on April 5, 2018 after the expiration of the waiting period under the U.S. Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended. The transaction received approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on January 16, 2018 and from Avista shareholders on November 21, 2017. Also required is clearance by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States as well as the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions. Hydro One and Avista continue to anticipate closing the transaction in the second half of 2018.
For further information:
Hydro One
Media:
Jay Armitage
Director, Corporate Communications
[email protected] , 416-345-6868
Investors:
Omar Javed
Vice President, Investor Relations
[email protected] , 416-345-5943
Avista
Media:
Casey Fielder, Communications Manager
[email protected] , 509-495-4916
Investors:
Lauren Pendergraft, Investor Relations Manager
[email protected] , 509-495-2998
About Hydro One Limited
We are Ontario's largest electricity transmission and distribution provider with more than 1.3 million valued customers, over C$25 billion in assets and 2017 annual revenues of nearly C$6 billion. Our team of over 7,400 skilled and dedicated regular and non-regular employees proudly and safely serves suburban, rural and remote communities across Ontario through our 30,000 circuit km of high-voltage transmission and 123,000 circuit km of primary distribution networks. Hydro One is committed to the communities we serve, and has been rated as the top utility in Canada for its corporate citizenship, sustainability, and diversity initiatives. We are one of only five utility companies in Canada to achieve the Sustainable Electricity Company designation from the Canadian Electricity Association. We also provide advanced broadband telecommunications services on a wholesale basis utilizing our extensive fibre optic network through Hydro One Telecom Inc. Hydro One Limited's common shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX:H).
Forward-Looking Statements and Information
This press release and the joint application and settlement agreement to which it refers may contain “forward-looking information” within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Words such as “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “attempt,” “may,” “plan,” “will”, “can”, “believe,” “seek,” “estimate,” and variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking information. These statements are not guarantees of future performance or actions and involve assumptions and risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed, implied or forecasted in such forward-looking information. Some of the factors that could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from the results expressed, implied or forecasted by such forward-looking information, including some of the assumptions used in making such statements, are discussed more fully in Hydro One’s filings with the securities regulatory authorities in Canada, which are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com . Hydro One does not intend, and it disclaims any obligation, to update any forward-looking information, except as required by law.
About Avista Corporation
Avista Corporation is an energy company involved in the production, transmission and distribution of energy as well as other energy-related businesses. Avista Utilities is our operating division that provides electric service to 385,000 customers and natural gas to 350,000 customers. Its service territory covers 30,000 square miles in eastern Washington, northern Idaho and parts of southern and eastern Oregon, with a population of 1.6 million. Alaska Energy and Resources Company is an Avista subsidiary that provides retail electric service in the city and borough of Juneau, Alaska, through its subsidiary Alaska Electric Light and Power Company . Avista stock is traded under the ticker symbol "AVA." For more information about Avista, please visit www.myAvista.com .
This news release contains forward-looking statements regarding the company’s current expectations. Forward-looking statements are all statements other than historical facts. Such statements speak only as of the date of the news release and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the company’s control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from the expectations. These risks and uncertainties include, in addition to those discussed herein, all of the factors discussed in the company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 2017 and the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2018.
Source:Avista Corporation | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/07/globe-newswire-hydro-one-and-avista-receive-federal-communications-commission-approval-for-proposed-merger.html |
May 11, 2018 / 6:30 PM / Updated 9 minutes ago Russia bars German anti-doping journalist from World Cup Reuters Staff 3 Min Read
BERLIN (Reuters) - Russia has refused World Cup accreditation to a journalist specializing in investigations into illegal doping whom German public television had asked to include on its team covering the upcoming soccer tournament, the broadcaster said on Friday.
Germany’s ARD television had hoped to send its investigative sports reporter Hajo Seppelt after Russian sport was rocked by a series of scandals involving its athletes using performance enhancing drugs at international sports events.
The broadcaster said Seppelt had been declared persona non grata, barred from entering Russia, in response to its request to accredit the journalist, who has reported on doping scandals in Germany, China and Kenya as well as Russia.
The refusal of accreditation to report on a major sports event was “unique in the history of ARD’s sports journalism,” the broadcaster said, describing the refusal as an “unheard-of violation of press freedom”.
The Organising Committee for the World Cup in Russia and Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment.
The Russia-hosted World Cup begins next month after a series of doping scandals in recent years that led to scores of Russian athletes being barred from competition at major international events and the suspension of several Russian sports federations.
The press freedom organization Reporters Without Borders condemned the refusal of accreditation, which it labeled a political response to Seppelt’s investigation into Russian doping.
“The case shows that sport and politics cannot be separated,” said Reporters Without Borders director Christian Mihr, urging FIFA, soccer’s world governing body to lobby for the ban to be overturned.
The International Olympic Committee issued a ban, later overturned, on Russian participation in the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics after finding evidence of an “unprecedented systematic manipulation” of the anti-doping system.
Russia was reinstated after tests of the country’s athletes at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics were all returned negative. Reporting by Thomas Escritt; Editing by Toby Chopra | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-soccer-worldcup-journalist/russia-bars-german-anti-doping-journalist-from-world-cup-idUSKBN1IC2BV |
XELJANZ, an Oral Therapy, is the First and Only JAK Inhibitor Approved in the U.S. for This Patient Population
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) announced today that the United States (U.S.) Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved XELJANZ ® (tofacitinib) 10 mg twice-daily (BID) for at least eight weeks, followed by XELJANZ 5 mg BID or 10 mg BID, for the treatment of adult patients in the U.S. with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis (UC). 1
“Ulcerative colitis is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease that can significantly impact the lives of patients and has limited therapeutic options available,” said Michael Goettler, Global President, Inflammation and Immunology, Pfizer. “With the FDA approval of XELJANZ, adults living with moderately to severely active UC now have an oral option that may help achieve and maintain steroid-free remission.”
XELJANZ is indicated for the treatment of adult patients with moderately to severely active UC. Use of XELJANZ in combination with biological therapies for UC or with potent immunosuppressants such as azathioprine and cyclosporine is not recommended. 1
This approval was based on data from three pivotal Phase 3 studies from the O ral C linical T rials for tof A citinib in ulcerati VE colitis global clinical development program (OCTAVE Induction 1, OCTAVE Induction 2 and OCTAVE Sustain), and OCTAVE Open, an ongoing open label long-term extension study. 2,3 Data from all three pivotal Phase 3 studies met their respective primary endpoints, showing a statistically significant, greater proportion of patients in remission at week 8 in the induction studies and in remission at week 52 in the maintenance study in patients with moderately to severely active UC treated with tofacitinib compared to placebo. Remission was defined as a Mayo score of 2 points or lower, with no individual subscore exceeding 1 point, and a rectal bleeding subscore of 0. i Full results from OCTAVE Induction 1, OCTAVE Induction 2 and OCTAVE Sustain were published in the New England Journal of Medicine in May 2017.
“The FDA approval of XELJANZ is positive news for the ulcerative colitis community, a patient population that can often encounter frequent and debilitating disruptions to their daily lives,” said William J. Sandborn, MD, Chief, Division of Gastroenterology, Professor of Medicine at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine and OCTAVE study investigator. “XELJANZ provides people living with ulcerative colitis and their prescribing physicians with a new oral treatment option.”
Risks observed in the UC clinical program include serious infection, including herpes zoster and opportunistic infections, malignancies (including non-melanoma skin cancer [NMSC] and lymphoproliferative disorders), gastrointestinal perforation and laboratory abnormalities. There was no discernable difference in frequency of gastrointestinal perforation between the placebo and XELJANZ arms in clinical trials of patients with UC, and many of the trial participants were receiving background corticosteroids.
Dose-dependent adverse reactions seen in patients treated with 10 mg BID, in comparison to 5 mg BID, include the following: herpes zoster infections, serious infections, and NMSC.
“What works for one ulcerative colitis patient may not work for another and some struggle with ongoing symptoms. That is why it is so critical that our patients have different treatment options available to them,” said Michael Osso, President & CEO of the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation. “We are thrilled to have this new treatment option available to ulcerative colitis patients. Every new treatment provides new hope to our community.”
i Mayo score is a measurement index comprised of four categories (stool frequency, rectal bleeding, findings on endoscopy, physician global assessment) that are each rated from 0 (normal) to 3 (most severe) for a total score that ranges from 0-12. About Ulcerative Colitis
UC is a chronic and often debilitating inflammatory bowel disease that affects approximately 907,000 people in the U.S. 4,5 Symptoms of UC can include chronic diarrhea with blood and mucus, abdominal pain and cramping, and weight loss. 6 UC can have a significant effect on work, family and social activities. 7
About XELJANZ (tofacitinib)
XELJANZ is the first and only Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor approved by the FDA for adult patients with moderately to severely active rheumatoid arthritis (RA), active psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and moderately to severely active UC.
XELJANZ is now approved in more than 80 countries for the treatment of adult patients with moderate to severe RA, with additional applications pending globally for all three respective indications. XELJANZ was also recently approved for moderate to severe UC in Japan and Russia.
As the developer of tofacitinib, Pfizer is committed to advancing the science of JAK inhibition and enhancing understanding of tofacitinib through robust clinical development programs in the treatment of immune-mediated inflammatory conditions.
Please see full Prescribing Information, including BOXED WARNING for XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR available at: http://labeling.pfizer.com/ShowLabeling.aspx?id=959 .
INDICATIONS
Rheumatoid Arthritis
XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR (tofacitinib) is indicated for the treatment of adult patients with moderately to severely active rheumatoid arthritis who have had an inadequate response or intolerance to methotrexate. It may be used as monotherapy or in combination with methotrexate or other nonbiologic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs). Limitations of Use: Use of XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR in combination with biologic DMARDs or with potent immunosuppressants such as azathioprine and cyclosporine is not recommended.
Psoriatic Arthritis
XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR (tofacitinib) is indicated for the treatment of adult patients with active psoriatic arthritis who have had an inadequate response or intolerance to methotrexate or other disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs). Limitations of Use: Use of XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR in combination with biologic DMARDs or with potent immunosuppressants such as azathioprine and cyclosporine is not recommended.
Ulcerative Colitis
XELJANZ (tofacitinib) is indicated for the treatment of adult patients with moderately to severely active ulcerative colitis (UC). Limitations of Use: Use of XELJANZ in combination with biologic therapies for UC or with potent immunosuppressants such as azathioprine and cyclosporine is not recommended.
IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION
SERIOUS INFECTIONS
Patients treated with XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR are at increased risk for developing serious infections that may lead to hospitalization or death. Most patients who developed these infections were taking concomitant immunosuppressants, such as methotrexate or corticosteroids.
If a serious infection develops, interrupt XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR until the infection is controlled.
Reported infections include:
Active tuberculosis, which may present with pulmonary or extrapulmonary disease. Patients should be tested for latent tuberculosis before XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR use and during therapy. Treatment for latent infection should be initiated prior to XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR use. Invasive fungal infections, including cryptococcosis and pneumocystosis. Patients with invasive fungal infections may present with disseminated, rather than localized, disease. Bacterial, viral, including herpes zoster, and other infections due to opportunistic pathogens.
The most common serious infections reported with XELJANZ included pneumonia, cellulitis, herpes zoster, urinary tract infection, diverticulitis, and appendicitis. Avoid use of XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR in patients with an active, serious infection, including localized infections, or with chronic or recurrent infection.
In the UC population, XELJANZ 10 mg twice daily was associated with greater risk of serious infections compared to 5 mg twice daily. Opportunistic herpes zoster infections (including meningoencephalitis, ophthalmologic, and disseminated cutaneous) were seen in patients who were treated with XELJANZ 10 mg twice daily.
The risks and benefits of treatment with XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR should be carefully considered prior to initiating therapy in patients with chronic or recurrent infection, or those who have lived or traveled in areas of endemic TB or mycoses. Screening for viral hepatitis should be performed in accordance with clinical guidelines before starting therapy.
Patients should be closely monitored for the development of signs and symptoms of infection during and after treatment with XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR, including the possible development of tuberculosis in patients who tested negative for latent tuberculosis infection prior to initiating therapy.
Caution is also recommended in patients with a history of chronic lung disease, or in those who develop interstitial lung disease, as they may be more prone to infection.
MALIGNANCIES
Lymphoma and other malignancies have been observed in patients treated with XELJANZ. Epstein Barr Virus-associated post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder has been observed at an increased rate in renal transplant patients treated with XELJANZ and concomitant immunosuppressive medications.
Consider the risks and benefits of XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR treatment prior to initiating therapy in patients with a known malignancy other than a successfully treated non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) or when considering continuing XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR in patients who develop a malignancy.
Malignancies (including solid cancers and lymphomas) were observed more often in patients treated with XELJANZ 10 mg twice daily dosing in the UC long-term extension study.
Other malignancies were observed in clinical studies and the post-marketing setting including, but not limited to, lung cancer, breast cancer, melanoma, prostate cancer, and pancreatic cancer. NMSC have been reported in patients treated with XELJANZ. In the UC population, treatment with XELJANZ 10 mg twice daily was associated with greater risk of NMSC. Periodic skin examination is recommended for patients who are at increased risk for skin cancer.
GASTROINTESTINAL PERFORATIONS
Gastrointestinal perforations have been reported in XELJANZ clinical trials, although the role of JAK inhibition is not known. In these studies, many patients with rheumatoid arthritis were receiving background therapy with Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs). There was no discernable difference in frequency of gastrointestinal perforation between the placebo and the XELJANZ arms in clinical trials of patients with UC, and many of them were receiving background corticosteroids. XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR should be used with caution in patients who may be at increased risk for gastrointestinal perforation (e.g., patients with a history of diverticulitis or taking NSAIDs).
LABORATORY ABNORMALITIES
Lymphocyte Abnormalities: Treatment with XELJANZ was associated with initial lymphocytosis at one month of exposure followed by a gradual decrease in mean lymphocyte counts. Avoid initiation of XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR treatment in patients with a count less than 500 cells/mm 3 . In patients who develop a confirmed absolute lymphocyte count less than 500 cells/mm 3 , treatment with XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR is not recommended. Risk of infection may be higher with increasing degrees of lymphopenia and consideration should be given to lymphocyte counts when assessing individual patient risk of infection. Monitor lymphocyte counts at baseline and every 3 months thereafter.
Neutropenia: Treatment with XELJANZ was associated with an increased incidence of neutropenia (less than 2000 cells/mm 3 ) compared to placebo. Avoid initiation of XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR treatment in patients with an ANC less than 1000 cells/mm 3 . For patients who develop a persistent ANC of 500-1000 cells/mm 3 , interrupt XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR dosing until ANC is greater than or equal to 1000 cells/mm 3 . In patients who develop an ANC less than 500 cells/mm 3 , treatment with XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR is not recommended. Monitor neutrophil counts at baseline and after 4-8 weeks of treatment and every 3 months thereafter.
Anemia: Avoid initiation of XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR treatment in patients with a hemoglobin level less than 9 g/dL. Treatment with XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR should be interrupted in patients who develop hemoglobin levels less than 8 g/dL or whose hemoglobin level drops greater than 2 g/dL on treatment. Monitor hemoglobin at baseline and after 4-8 weeks of treatment and every 3 months thereafter.
Liver Enzyme Elevations: Treatment with XELJANZ was associated with an increased incidence of liver enzyme elevation compared to placebo. Most of these abnormalities occurred in studies with background DMARD (primarily methotrexate) therapy. If drug-induced liver injury is suspected, the administration of XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR should be interrupted until this diagnosis has been excluded. Routine monitoring of liver tests and prompt investigation of the causes of liver enzyme elevations is recommended to identify potential cases of drug-induced liver injury.
Lipid Elevations: Treatment with XELJANZ was associated with dose-dependent increases in lipid parameters, including total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. Maximum effects were generally observed within 6 weeks. There were no clinically relevant changes in LDL/HDL cholesterol ratios. Manage patients with hyperlipidemia according to clinical guidelines. Assessment of lipid parameters should be performed approximately 4-8 weeks following initiation of XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR therapy.
VACCINATIONS
Avoid use of live vaccines concurrently with XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR. The interval between live vaccinations and initiation of tofacitinib therapy should be in accordance with current vaccination guidelines regarding immunosuppressive agents. Update immunizations in agreement with current immunization guidelines prior to initiating XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR therapy.
PATIENTS WITH GASTROINTESTINAL NARROWING
Caution should be used when administering XELJANZ XR to patients with pre-existing severe gastrointestinal narrowing. There have been rare reports of obstructive symptoms in patients with known strictures in association with the ingestion of other drugs utilizing a non-deformable extended release formulation.
HEPATIC and RENAL IMPAIRMENT
Use of XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR in patients with severe hepatic impairment is not recommended.
For patients with moderate hepatic impairment or with moderate or severe renal impairment taking XELJANZ 5 mg twice daily, reduce to XELJANZ 5 mg once daily.
For UC patients with moderate hepatic impairment or with moderate or severe renal impairment taking XELJANZ 10 mg twice daily, reduce to XELJANZ 5 mg twice daily.
ADVERSE REACTIONS
The most common serious adverse reactions were serious infections. The most commonly reported adverse reactions during the first 3 months in controlled clinical trials in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) with XELJANZ 5 mg twice daily and placebo, respectively, (occurring in greater than or equal to 2% of patients treated with XELJANZ with or without DMARDs) were upper respiratory tract infection, nasopharyngitis, diarrhea, headache, and hypertension. The safety profile observed in patients with active psoriatic arthritis treated with XELJANZ was consistent with the safety profile observed in RA patients.
Adverse reactions reported in ≥5% of patients treated with either 5 mg or 10 mg twice daily of XELJANZ and ≥1% greater than reported in patients receiving placebo in either the induction or maintenance clinical trials for ulcerative colitis were: nasopharyngitis, elevated cholesterol levels, headache, upper respiratory tract infection, increased blood creatine phosphokinase, rash, diarrhea, and herpes zoster.
USE IN PREGNANCY
Available data with XELJANZ/XELJANZ XR use in pregnant women are insufficient to establish a drug associated risk of major birth defects, miscarriage or adverse maternal or fetal outcomes. There are risks to the mother and the fetus associated with rheumatoid arthritis and UC in pregnancy. In animal studies, tofacitinib at 6.3 times the maximum recommended dose of 10 mg twice daily demonstrated adverse embryo-fetal findings. The relevance of these findings to women of childbearing potential is uncertain. Consider pregnancy planning and prevention for females of reproductive potential.
Working together for a healthier world ®
At Pfizer, we apply science and our global resources to bring therapies to people that extend and significantly improve their lives. We strive to set the standard for quality, safety and value in the discovery, development and manufacture of health care products. Our global portfolio includes medicines and vaccines as well as many of the world's best-known consumer health care products. Every day, Pfizer colleagues work across developed and emerging markets to advance wellness, prevention, treatments and cures that challenge the most feared diseases of our time. Consistent with our responsibility as one of the world's premier innovative biopharmaceutical companies, we collaborate with health care providers, governments and local communities to support and expand access to reliable, affordable health care around the world. For more than 150 years, we have worked to make a difference for all who rely on us. We routinely post information that may be important to investors on our website at www.pfizer.com . In addition, to learn more, please visit us on www.pfizer.com and follow us on Twitter at @Pfizer and @Pfizer_News , LinkedIn , YouTube and like us on Facebook at Facebook.com/Pfizer .
DISCLOSURE NOTICE: The information contained in this release is as of May 30, 2018. Pfizer assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements contained in this release as the result of new information or future events or developments.
This release contains forward-looking information about XELJANZ and a new indication in the U.S. for the treatment of adult patients with moderately to severely active UC (the “new indication”), including its potential benefits, that involves substantial risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to those expressed or implied by such statements. Risks and uncertainties include, among other things, uncertainties regarding the commercial success of XELJANZ and XELJANZ XR, including for the new indication for XELJANZ; the uncertainties inherent in research and development, including the ability to meet anticipated clinical trial commencement and completion dates and regulatory submission dates, as well as the possibility of unfavorable clinical trial results, including unfavorable new clinical data and additional analyses of existing clinical data; the risk that clinical trial data are subject to differing interpretations, and, even when we view data as sufficient to support the safety and/or effectiveness of a product candidate, regulatory authorities may not share our views and may require additional data or may deny approval altogether; whether regulatory authorities will be satisfied with the design of and results from our clinical studies; whether and when any applications for the new indication or any other potential indications for XELJANZ or XELJANZ XR may be filed with regulatory authorities in any additional jurisdictions; whether and when regulatory authorities in any other jurisdictions may approve any applications that may be pending or filed for the new indication or for any other indications for XELJANZ or XELJANZ XR, which will depend on the assessment by such regulatory authorities of the benefit-risk profile suggested by the totality of the efficacy and safety information submitted; decisions by regulatory authorities regarding labeling and other matters that could affect the availability or commercial potential of XELJANZ and XELJANZ XR, including the new indication for XELJANZ; and competitive developments.
A further description of risks and uncertainties can be found in Pfizer’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017 and in its subsequent reports on Form 10-Q, including in the sections thereof captioned “Risk Factors” and “Forward-Looking Information and Factors That May Affect Future Results”, as well as in its subsequent reports on Form 8-K, all of which are filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and available at www.sec.gov and www.pfizer.com . | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/30/business-wire-pfizer-announces-u-s-fda-approves-xeljanza-tofacitinib-for-the-treatment-of-moderately-to-severely-active-ulcerative-colitis.html |
* Industry body sees 2017/18 exports at 7.5 mln bales
* That would be up nearly 30 pct from year before
* Rally in global prices, weak rupee boost shipments
* Imports seen at 1.2 mln bales vs 3 mln bales in previous year
* Stockpiles could drop to lowest in decades at 2 mln bales
By Rajendra Jadhav
MUMBAI, May 25 (Reuters) - India’s 2017/18 cotton exports are likely to jump nearly 30 percent from the year before to a four-year high of 7.5 million bales, as climbing global prices and a weaker rupee boost overseas demand, the head of an industry body told Reuters.
Increased supply from India could drag on a rally in international prices for the commodity and would likely compete with shipments to Asia from exporters like the United States, Brazil and Australia.
“We can end the season with exports of 7.5 million bales,” said Atul Ganatra, president of the Cotton Association of India (CAI), adding that higher international prices would drive up shipments.
The country has exported 6.3 million bales so far in the marketing year that started on Oct. 1 , he added. Each bale contains 170 kg of cotton.
India shipped 5.82 million bales of cotton overseas last marketing year, according to data compiled by the state-run textile commissioner’s office.
ICE cotton futures hit four-year highs earlier this week on buying from Chinese hedge funds, amid expectations of an increase in exports from the United States after trade war fears with China receded.
The Indian rupee has fallen more than 6 percent in 2018, making Indian cotton cheaper for overseas buyers, said Nayan Mirani, partner at leading cotton exporter Khimji Visram & Sons.
“There is export demand but supply of good quality cotton is limited as the season is coming to an end,” he said.
Pakistan, Bangladesh, China and Vietnam are the main buyers of Indian fibre.
Indian cotton is being offered around 84 to 86 cents per lb on a cost and freight basis (C&F) to buyers in Bangladesh and Vietnam, compared to over 92 cents from the United Sates and Brazil, said a Mumbai-based dealer with a global trading firm. He declined to be identified as he was not authorised to speak with media.
Meanwhile, the country’s cotton imports could drop to 1.2 million bales in 2017/18 from 3 million bales the year before, said Ganatra at CAI.
The South Asian country usually imports long staple cotton from the United States and Egypt.
And a pick-up in local consumption amid higher exports is likely to erode India’s cotton stockpile, Mirani said.
India’s cotton consumption is likely to rise 5.3 percent in 2017/18 from the year before to 32.4 million bales, CAI estimates.
The country could end the 2017/18 season with closing stocks of less than 2 million tonnes, the lowest in decades, Ganatra estimates. (Reporting by Rajendra Jadhav Editing by Joseph Radford)
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/india-cotton-exports/indias-cotton-exports-could-hit-4-yr-high-on-price-rally-weak-rupee-idUSL3N1SW2OG |
May 11, 2018 / 11:00 AM / Updated 6 minutes ago Wall St Week Ahead-Homebuilders poised for gains but face interest-rate fears Reuters Staff 6 Min Read By April Joyner NEW YORK, May 11 (Reuters) - Some investors are betting on shares of homebuilders to outperform U.S. stocks at large, but with interest rates expected to rise they may have to wait several months before those bets pay off. The U.S. economy looks ideal for homebuilding stocks to benefit. The unemployment rate has fallen to its lowest level in more than 17 years and consumer confidence is near the highest levels in 17 years, according to the Conference Board. And demand for housing in an already tight market is being supported by the many millennials seeking to purchase their first home, several investors said. The U.S. Commerce Department's data on April housing starts will be released on Wednesday, followed by data on new-home sales on May 23. But other factors could raise costs for home buyers, potentially hampering home sales. A sharp rise this year in U.S. Treasury yields reflects increasing worries about inflation and fears that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates more aggressively than has been expected. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note is used as the benchmark for mortgage interest rates; higher rates increase mortgage costs for home buyers. "The continued rally in yields is a potential red flag," said Jared Woodard, an investment strategist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in New York. The 10-year Treasury yield has briefly exceeded the 3 percent mark, the highest level since January 2014 and more than 50 basis points higher than where it started the year. The S&P Composite 1500 Homebuilding index has lagged the broader market, falling 16.9 percent from its Jan. 22 peak, which is more than three times the percentage decline of the S&P 500 from its high that month. In 2017, the homebuilding index soared 74.8 percent from the previous year. Other factors also cast a cloud on the housing market. Last year's federal tax overhaul put a cap on deductions for state and local and property taxes and lowered the amount of mortgage interest that is deductible, all of which results in higher costs for many homeowners. Homebuilders have also pointed to rising costs for materials and labor in their earnings calls, though so far they have had little impact on their margins. "The factors indicate that there may be some headwinds going forward," said Michael Cuggino, president and portfolio manager of Permanent Portfolio Funds in San Francisco, which owns shares of Lennar Corp , the largest U.S. homebuilder by market capitalization. Shares of the five largest U.S. homebuilders by market capitalization jumped on April 4, when Lennar reported robust quarterly sales and raised its forecast for the year. Lennar's shares climbed 10 percent that day, and PulteGroup Inc , D.R. Horton Inc , Toll Brothers Inc and NVR Inc rose between 4.1 percent and 6.4 percent. The stocks have given up much of those gains since then, even though homebuilders have continued to deliver upbeat results. Lennar shares have tumbled 13.7 percent. D.R. Horton, NVR and Toll Brothers are down 3.9 percent, 3.3 percent and 3 percent, respectively. Only PulteGroup has added to its April 4 gains, rising 1.8 percent. Homebuilders that sell units at multiple price points, from starter homes to luxury properties, and are active throughout the United States are best positioned to withstand investors' skittishness over interest rates, Cuggino said. Next up to report is Toll Brothers, which focuses on the luxury market and is scheduled to release its quarterly earnings on May 22. Still, some investors say this year's industry underperformance looks like a normal response to the 2017 run-up. Though housing starts have risen, hitting 1.319 million units in March, demand among home buyers has outpaced the limited housing supply in part because of the many millennials are entering the market. "This is just a pause," said Brian Macauley, co-portfolio manager of the Hennessy Focus Fund in Arlington, Virginia, which owns shares of NVR. "As fundamentals come through, the stocks will behave better." Signs of worries about affordability among home buyers, such as a move toward smaller homes or an uptick in adjustable-rate mortgages, have not yet emerged, said Jack Micenko, an analyst at Susquehanna Financial Group in New York. Low earnings multiples could also draw investors' attention. The 12-month forward price-to-earnings ratio for the S&P 500 Homebuilding index , which comprises just Lennar, PulteGroup and D.R. Horton, has fallen to 9.5 from 13.7 at the end of 2017. The price-to-earnings ratio for the S&P 500 is 16, down from 18.5 at the end of 2017. "If (homebuilders) have solid orders and growth and hold their margins, they could work from here," said Jonathan Woloshin, head of Americas equities and real estate at the chief investment office of UBS Global Wealth Management in New York. "There are some very attractive valuations out there." (Reporting by April Joyner Editing by Alden Bentley and Leslie Adler) | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/usa-stocks-weekahead/wall-st-week-ahead-homebuilders-poised-for-gains-but-face-interest-rate-fears-idUSL1N1SG2AA |
May 11, 2018 / 12:12 AM / in 11 hours AT&T deal with Cohen specified providing advice on Time Warner merger: Washington Post Reuters Staff 4 Min Read
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - AT&T’s $600,000 deal with U.S. President Donald Trump’s personal attorney, Michael Cohen, specified that Cohen would advise the company on its $85 billion merger with Time Warner, the Washington Post reported on Thursday, citing company documents. U.S. President Donald Trump's personal lawyer Michael Cohen arrives at his hotel in New York City, U.S., May 9, 2018. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
Trump expressed opposition to the merger during the campaign and his administration ultimately chose to fight it, with the Justice Department filing suit in November to block the agreement. The case has yet to be decided.
The Justice Department wants AT&T to divest Time Warner’s DirecTV unit or Turner networks as a condition of approving the acquisition. AT&T has argued that divestitures would destroy some of the consumer value of the merger.
Michael Avenatti, an attorney for porn star Stormy Daniels, revealed earlier this week that Cohen had received payments from a number of companies in 2017 and 2018, including AT&T, the Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG, Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd and Columbus Nova LLC.
Columbus Nova was listed in November 2017 as part of the Renova Group, a conglomerate controlled by Viktor Vekselberg, a businessman with ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
On Tuesday, Avenatti claimed that Cohen received $500,000 from billionaire Vekselberg in the months after the 2016 U.S. election. Reuters could not immediately verify the claim and it was not clear how Avenatti would have knowledge of any payment from Vekselberg to Cohen.
AT&T said on Tuesday that it had hired Essential Consultants, a company linked to Cohen, in early 2017 around the time of Trump’s inauguration, to advise it on working with the new administration.
On Wednesday, AT&T said it had cooperated fully with Special Counsel Robert Mueller in the Russia probe in November and December.
AT&T declined to comment on Thursday’s Post story, and Cohen’s attorney, Stephen Ryan, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
In an email to employees dated May 9 and seen by Reuters on Thursday, AT&T said that in early 2017, “We hired several consultants to help us understand how the president and his administration might approach a wide range of policy issues important to the company, including regulatory reform at the FCC, corporate tax reform and antitrust enforcement.”
The Washington Post reported that the internal documents it saw specified that Cohen would provide the company advice on its merger with Time Warner.
It reported that the documents showed the company turned to Cohen three days after Trump was elected, seeking his help on a wide range of issues pending before the federal government.
It was unclear what insights Cohen, a longtime real estate attorney, would have been able to offer AT&T on a complicated telecommunications-entertainment merger, the Post reported.
Following Trump’s election, corporations have paid Cohen at least $2.95 million through Essential Consultants, the Post reported, citing figures confirmed by the companies.
Essential Consultants was the same firm Cohen used in October to pay Stormy Daniels $130,000 in exchange for an agreement not to disclose her alleged affair with Trump.
Novartis said this week that it had provided information about its dealings with Cohen to the special counsel. Reporting by David Alexander and Diane Bartz; Editing by Toni Reinhold | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-trump-cohen/att-deal-with-cohen-specified-providing-advice-on-time-warner-merger-washington-post-idUSKBN1IC00A |
May 2(Reuters) - Zhong Fu Tong Group Co Ltd
* Says it wins information system related bid worth 5.8 million yuan
Source text in Chinese: goo.gl/oeUMKJ
Further company coverage: (Beijing Headline News)
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-zhong-fu-tong-group-wins-informati/brief-zhong-fu-tong-group-wins-information-system-related-bid-worth-5-8-mln-yuan-idUSL3N1S90P3 |
May 2 (Reuters) - Abeo Sas:
* ABEO AND EUROPEAN UNION OF GYMNASTICS EXTEND THEIR PARTNERSHIP UNTIL 2024 Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage: (Gdynia Newsroom)
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-abeo-and-european-union-of-gymnast/brief-abeo-and-european-union-of-gymnastics-extend-partnership-until-2024-idUSFWN1S80RA |
May 24, 2018 / 10:59 AM / Updated 3 minutes ago Medtronic beats estimates on cardio, diabetes gains Manas Mishra 3 Min Read
(Reuters) - Medtronic Plc ( MDT.N ) topped analysts’ estimates for profit in the fourth quarter as it kept a tight lid on costs and upped sales of its heart valves and insulin pumps, offsetting the impact of hurricane damage to production in Puerto Rico.
Shares of the company rose 3 percent as the company outlined 10 percent and 26 percent rises in sales, respectively, in its units which produce cardiac and vascular devices and equipment for diabetics.
That quelled concerns among analysts that events in Puerto Rico and a network service outage which affected the medical device maker’s distribution, ordering and manufacturing would again weigh on results.
“Relative to nervousness that investors have come to expect around Medtronic’s earnings releases, we thought the fourth-quarter print was solid,” Evercore ISI analyst Vijay Kumar said.
The company launched a restructuring plan in January that it hopes will save $500 million to $700 million annually over the next five years and Reuters calculations showed total costs fell to $6.21 billion from $6.29 billion.
Sales across Medtronic’s business units beat analysts’ estimates, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S, and the company forecast an adjusted profit of $5.10 to $5.15 per share for fiscal 2019 compared to expectations of $5.14.
“We view this as conservative based upon recent new products and others in the new product pipeline, and ongoing cost-control initiatives,” Edward Jones analyst John Boylan said.
Rival Edwards lifesciences ( EW.N ) said last month that growth in procedures using its transcatheter heart valves in Europe had been hampered by a shift in market share to Medtronic.
Sales at Medtronic’s coronary & structural heart sub-unit, which houses the transcatheter valves, rose 18.7 percent to $1.01 billion.
Sales in the broader cardiac and vascular business jumped 10.1 percent to $3.14 billion, beating an average estimate of $3.1 billion while those in the diabetes unit rose 26 percent to $645 million, helped by demand for its new sensor-augmented insulin pumps.
“We know that there’s much work to be done, but we’re as excited and optimistic as our direction is,” Chief Executive Officer Omar Ishrak said on a call with analysts.
Net income attributable to the company jumped 25.5 percent to $1.46 billion, or $1.07 per share, in the quarter ended April 27. Excluding items, the company earned $1.42 per share, beating the average analyst estimate of $1.39. Reporting by Manas Mishra in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber and Maju Samuel | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-medtronic-results/medical-device-maker-medtronic-reports-25-5-percent-rise-in-profit-idUSKCN1IP1MF |
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Glencore was temporarily barred from the S&P Global Platts price assessment process for fuel oil cargoes starting at the end of April, according to five sources with knowledge of the matter.
FILE PHOTO: The logo of commodities trader Glencore is pictured in front of the company's headquarters in Baar, Switzerland, July 18, 2017. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File Photo However, by Thursday, the company had returned to the so-called market-on-close (MOC) price assessment process for the Singapore fuel oil market, known by traders as the “window”, according to trade data collected by Reuters. The window activity is a primary contributor to setting prices for fuel oil in the region.
Glencore in late April was placed under what Platts calls “editorial review” but is known to market participants as “being boxed” and means a company is not allowed to participate in the MOC. In the MOC, traders place bids, offers and trades that are monitored by Platts in order to calculate a daily price assessment.
Three of the sources said Glencore’s exclusion from the window was likely caused by the delayed delivery of an unknown number of fuel oil cargoes it sold during the MOC for April delivery.
One of those three sources and another one of the five sources also said that Glencore sold cargoes that did not meet quality specifications outlined by Platts and that also contributed to the company being barred.
Glencore spokesman Charles Watenphul responded “No comment.” to an email request from Reuters for a statement on the matter.
S&P Global Platts said in a statement it “does not comment on any participation reviews that may or may not occur, nor the activities of any individual company that participate in our assessment processes.”
Glencore is one of the world’s largest energy and commodity traders and being barred from the MOC would have left it unable to give inputs on setting the price for fuel oil in the region.
Glencore, typically an active participant in the Singapore fuel oil price assessment process, had last appeared during the MOC on April 23 when it offered to sell multiple 380-centistoke fuel oil cargoes, trade data collected by Reuters showed.
In April, Glencore was the largest supplier of fuel oil cargoes in the Singapore fuel oil MOC process by volume having sold 340,000 tonnes of the fuel to multiple buyers. A typical cargo sold through the MOC is 20,000 tonnes.
While such exclusions not uncommon and tend to be brief, the sources said delivery disruptions could have ripple effects for the buyers or end-consumers of those cargoes including increased logistical costs and risks of non-performance for cargoes that have been sold on to third parties.
Reporting by Roslan Khasawneh; Editing by Christian Schmollinger
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-singapore-fueloil-platts/glencore-temporarily-barred-from-platts-singapore-fuel-oil-pricing-process-sources-idUSKBN1IC0AX |
READING, Pa., May 30, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- EnerSys (NYSE:ENS), the global leader in stored energy solutions for industrial applications, announced today results for its fourth quarter and full year of fiscal 2018, which ended on March 31, 2018.
Net earnings attributable to EnerSys stockholders (“Net earnings”) for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018 were $54.0 million, or $1.27 per diluted share, which included a favorable highlighted net of tax impact of $1.5 million or $0.03 per share from highlighted items described in further detail in the tables shown below, reconciling non-GAAP adjusted financial measures to reported amounts. The $1.5 million net of tax impact included a tax benefit of $9.6 million for the release of a foreign valuation allowance, partially offset by a $4.1 million tax expense related to the recently enacted Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“Tax Act”).
Net earnings attributable to EnerSys stockholders for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2017 were $33.8 million, or $0.76 per diluted share, which included an unfavorable highlighted net of tax impact of $22.8 million or $0.52 per share from highlighted items described in further detail in the tables shown below.
Excluding these highlighted items, adjusted Net earnings per diluted share for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018, on a non-GAAP basis, were $1.24 which met the guidance of $1.20 to $1.24 per diluted share given by the Company on February 7, 2018. These earnings compare to the prior year fourth quarter adjusted Net earnings of $1.28 per diluted share. Please refer to the section included herein under the heading “Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” for a discussion of the Company’s use of non-GAAP adjusted financial information which include tables reconciling GAAP and non-GAAP adjusted financial measures for the quarters and twelve months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017.
Net sales for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2018 were $683.0 million, an increase of 9% from the prior year fourth quarter net sales of $626.8 million and a 4% sequential quarterly increase from the third quarter of fiscal 2018 net sales of $658.9 million. The increase in the current quarter compared to the prior year quarter was the result of a 5% increase in foreign currency translation impact, 3% increase in pricing and a 1% increase in organic volume. The 4% sequential quarterly increase was due to a 2% increase in foreign currency translation impact and a 1% increase each in organic volume and pricing.
The Company’s operating results for its business segments for the fourth quarters of fiscal 2018 and 2017 are as follows:
Quarter ended ($ millions) March 31, 2018 March 31, 2017 Net sales by segment Americas $ 380.5 $ 363.8 EMEA 227.6 199.3 Asia 74.9 63.7 Total net sales $ 683.0 $ 626.8 Operating earnings Americas $ 49.5 $ 53.5 EMEA 21.8 19.3 Asia 1.9 3.3 Inventory adjustment relating to exit activities - Americas (3.4 ) — Restructuring and other exit charges - EMEA (0.9 ) (1.8 ) Restructuring charges - Asia (0.2 ) (0.3 ) Impairment of goodwill and indefinite-lived intangibles - Americas — (9.3 ) Impairment of goodwill and indefinite-lived intangibles - EMEA — (4.7 ) Competition investigations and related legal charges - EMEA — (6.7 ) ERP system implementation and other - Americas (1.2 ) (1.1 ) Acquisition activity expense - Americas (0.1 ) (0.1 ) Acquisition activity expense - EMEA (0.1 ) (0.2 ) Total operating earnings $ 67.3 $ 51.9
EMEA - Europe, Middle East and Africa Net earnings for the twelve months of fiscal 2018 were $119.6 million, or $2.77 per diluted share, which included an unfavorable net of tax impact of $80.9 million or $1.88 per diluted share from highlighted items described in further detail in the tables shown below, reconciling non-GAAP adjusted financial measures to reported amounts. The $80.9 million net of tax impact includes an estimated net tax expense of $81.4 million comprised of a one-time transition tax expense of $97.5 million, a tax benefit related to the remeasurement of U.S. deferred taxes of $14.1 million, and a tax benefit of $2.0 million related to the reduction of the fiscal 2018 effective federal tax rate of 31.5%, on account of the Tax Act.
Net earnings for the twelve months of fiscal 2017 were $160.2 million, or $3.64 per diluted share, which included an unfavorable net of tax impact of $48.9 million or $1.11 per share from highlighted items described in further detail in the tables shown below.
Adjusted Net earnings for the twelve months of fiscal 2018, on a non-GAAP basis, were $4.65 per diluted share. This compares to the prior year twelve months adjusted Net earnings of $4.75 per diluted share. Please refer to the section included herein under the heading “Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures” for a discussion of the Company's use of non-GAAP adjusted financial information.
Net sales for the twelve months of fiscal 2018 were $2,581.8 million, an increase of 9% from the net sales of $2,367.1 million in the comparable period in fiscal 2017. This increase was the result of a 4% increase in pricing, a 3% increase in organic volume and a 2% increase in foreign currency translation impact.
The Company's operating results for its business segments for the twelve months of fiscal years 2018 and 2017 are as follows:
Twelve months ended ($ millions) March 31, 2018 March 31, 2017 Net sales by segment Americas $ 1,429.8 $ 1,332.3 EMEA 849.5 763.1 Asia 302.5 271.7 Total net sales $ 2,581.8 $ 2,367.1 Operating earnings Americas $ 192.6 $ 199.3 EMEA 77.2 76.6 Asia 12.6 15.1 Inventory adjustment relating to exit activities - Americas (3.4 ) — Restructuring charges - Americas (1.3 ) (0.9 ) Inventory adjustment relating to exit activities - EMEA — (2.1 ) Restructuring and other exit charges - EMEA (4.0 ) (5.5 ) Restructuring charges - Asia (0.2 ) (0.7 ) Impairment of goodwill and indefinite-lived intangibles - Americas — (9.3 ) Impairment of goodwill and indefinite-lived intangibles - EMEA — (4.7 ) Competition investigations and related legal charges - EMEA — (23.7 ) ERP system implementation and other - Americas (3.3 ) (9.4 ) Deferred purchase consideration - Americas — 1.9 Acquisition activity expense - Americas (0.3 ) (0.3 ) Acquisition activity expense - EMEA (0.6 ) (0.4 ) Total operating earnings $ 269.3 $ 235.9
EMEA - Europe, Middle East and Africa “Our global business opportunities are stronger than ever,” stated David M. Shaffer, President and Chief Executive Officer of EnerSys. “Our customers are recognizing our premium products deliver a lower total cost of ownership and are anxiously awaiting the launch of our new maintenance free modular products at the end of this year.” Mr. Shaffer added, “We maintain our previously announced guidance for our first quarter of fiscal 2019 for adjusted net earnings per diluted share of $1.15 to $1.19, which excludes an expected charge of $0.06 from our restructuring programs, ERP system implementation and acquisition expenses.”
Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
This press release contains financial information determined by methods other than in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, ("GAAP"). EnerSys' management uses the non-GAAP measure “adjusted Net earnings” as applicable, in their analysis of the Company's performance. This measure, as used by EnerSys in past quarters and years, adjusts Net earnings determined in accordance with GAAP to reflect changes in financial results associated with the Company's restructuring initiatives and other highlighted charges and income items. Management believes the presentation of this financial measure reflecting these non-GAAP adjustments provides important supplemental information in evaluating the operating results of the Company as distinct from results that include items that are not indicative of ongoing operating results; in particular, those charges that the Company incurs as a result of restructuring activities, impairment of goodwill and indefinite-lived intangibles and other assets and those charges and credits that are not directly related to operating unit performance, such as fees and expenses related to acquisition activities, stock-based compensation of senior executives, significant legal proceedings, ERP system implementation and tax valuation allowance changes, including those related to the adoption of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Because these charges are not incurred as a result of ongoing operations, or are incurred as a result of a potential or previous acquisition, they are not as helpful a measure of the performance of our underlying business, particularly in light of their unpredictable nature and are difficult to forecast.
Income tax effects of non-GAAP adjustments are calculated using the applicable statutory tax rate for the jurisdictions in which the charges (benefits) are incurred, while taking into consideration any valuation allowances. For those items which are non-taxable, the tax expense (benefit) is calculated at 0%.
This non-GAAP disclosure has limitations as an analytical tool, should not be viewed as a substitute for Net Earnings determined in accordance with GAAP, and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for analysis of the Company's results as reported under GAAP, nor is it necessarily comparable to non-GAAP performance measures that may be presented by other companies. Management believes that this non-GAAP supplemental information will be helpful in understanding the Company's ongoing operating results. This supplemental presentation should not be construed as an inference that the Company's future results will be unaffected by similar adjustments to Net Earnings determined in accordance with GAAP.
Included below is a reconciliation of non-GAAP adjusted financial measures to reported amounts. Non-GAAP adjusted Net Earnings are calculated excluding restructuring and other highlighted charges and credits. The following tables provide additional information regarding certain non-GAAP measures:
Quarter ended (in millions, except share and per share amounts) March 31, 2018 March 31, 2017 Net Earnings reconciliation As reported Net Earnings $ 54.0 $ 33.8 Non-GAAP adjustments: Restructuring charges 4.5 (1 ) 2.1 (1 ) Impairment of goodwill and indefinite-lived intangibles — 14.0 (2 ) Legal proceedings charge — 6.7 (3 ) ERP system implementation and other 1.2 (4 ) 1.1 (4 ) Acquisition activity expense 0.2 (6 ) 0.3 (6 ) Income tax effect of above non-GAAP adjustments (1.9 ) (1.4 ) Reversal of foreign tax valuation allowance (9.6 ) — Tax Act 4.1 — Non-GAAP adjusted Net Earnings $ 52.5 $ 56.6 Outstanding shares used in per share calculations Basic 41,934,187 43,430,911 Diluted 42,441,647 44,221,143 Non-GAAP adjusted Net Earnings per share: Basic $ 1.25 $ 1.30 Diluted $ 1.24 $ 1.28 Reported Net Earnings per share: Basic $ 1.29 $ 0.78 Diluted $ 1.27 $ 0.76 Dividends per common share $ 0.175 $ 0.175 The following table provides the regional allocation of the non-GAAP adjustments shown in the reconciliation above:
Quarter ended ($ millions) March 31, 2018 March 31, 2017 Pre-tax Pre-tax (1) Inventory adjustment relating to exit activities - Americas - (Cleveland, Ohio Facility) $ 3.4 $ — (1) Restructuring and other exit charges - EMEA 0.9 1.8 (1) Restructuring charges - Asia 0.2 0.3 (2) Impairment of goodwill and indefinite-lived intangibles - Americas — 9.3 (2) Impairment of goodwill and indefinite-lived intangibles - EMEA — 4.7 (3) Competition investigations and related legal charges - EMEA — 6.7 (4) ERP system implementation and other - Americas 1.2 1.1 (6) Acquisition activity expense - Americas 0.1 0.1 (6) Acquisition activity expense - EMEA 0.1 0.2 Total Non-GAAP adjustments $ 5.9 $ 24.2
EMEA - Europe, Middle East and Africa
Twelve months ended (in millions, except share and per share amounts) March 31, 2018 March 31, 2017 Net Earnings reconciliation As reported Net Earnings $ 119.6 $ 160.2 Non-GAAP adjustments: Restructuring charges 8.9 (1 ) 9.2 (1 ) Impairment of goodwill and indefinite-lived intangibles — 14.0 (2 ) Legal proceedings charge — 23.7 (3 ) ERP system implementation and other 3.3 (4 ) 9.4 (4 ) Deferred purchase consideration — (1.9 ) (5 ) Acquisition activity expense 0.9 (6 ) 0.7 (6 ) Income tax effect of above non-GAAP adjustments (4.0 ) (4.9 ) Reversal of foreign tax valuation allowance (9.6 ) — Tax Act 81.4 — Non-controlling partner's share of restructuring and exit charges - EMEA - South Africa joint venture — (1.3 ) Non-GAAP adjusted Net Earnings $ 200.5 $ 209.1 Outstanding shares used in per share calculations Basic 42,612,036 43,389,333 Diluted 43,119,856 44,012,543 Non-GAAP adjusted Net Earnings per share: Basic $ 4.70 $ 4.82 Diluted $ 4.65 $ 4.75 Reported Net Earnings per share: Basic $ 2.81 $ 3.69 Diluted $ 2.77 $ 3.64 Dividends per common share $ 0.70 $ 0.70 The following table provides the regional allocation of the non-GAAP adjustments shown in the reconciliation above:
Twelve months ended ($ millions) March 31, 2018 March 31, 2017 Pre-tax Pre-tax (1) Inventory adjustment relating to exit activities - Americas - (Cleveland, Ohio Facility) $ 3.4 $ 0.9 (1) Restructuring charges - Americas 1.3 — (1) Inventory adjustment relating to exit activities - EMEA - (South Africa joint venture) — 2.1 (1) Restructuring and other exit charges - EMEA 4.0 5.5 (1) Restructuring charges - Asia 0.2 0.7 (2) Impairment of goodwill and indefinite-lived intangibles - Americas — 9.3 (2) Impairment of goodwill and indefinite-lived intangibles - EMEA — 4.7 (3) Competition investigations and related legal charges - EMEA — 23.7 (4) ERP system implementation and other - Americas 3.3 9.4 (5) Deferred purchase consideration - Americas — (1.9 ) (6) Acquisition activity expense - Americas 0.3 0.3 (6) Acquisition activity expense - EMEA 0.6 0.4 Total Non-GAAP adjustments $ 13.1 $ 55.1
EMEA - Europe, Middle East and Africa Summary of Earnings (Unaudited)
(In millions, except share and per share data)
Quarter ended March 31, 2018 March 31, 2017 Net sales $ 683.0 $ 626.8 Gross profit 167.0 167.1 Operating expenses 98.6 92.4 Restructuring charges and other exit charges 1.1 2.1 Impairment of goodwill and indefinite-lived intangibles — 14.0 Legal proceedings charge — 6.7 Operating earnings 67.3 51.9 Earnings before income taxes 59.7 45.1 Income tax expense 5.6 11.4 Net earnings attributable to EnerSys stockholders $ 54.0 $ 33.8 Net reported earnings per common share attributable to EnerSys stockholders: Basic $ 1.29 $ 0.78 Diluted $ 1.27 $ 0.76 Dividends per common share $ 0.175 $ 0.175 Weighted-average number of common shares used in reported earnings per share calculations: Basic 41,934,187 43,430,911 Diluted 42,441,647 44,221,143
Twelve months ended March 31, 2018 March 31, 2017 Net sales $ 2,581.8 $ 2,367.1 Gross profit 656.9 650.6 Operating expenses 382.1 369.9 Restructuring charges and other exit charges 5.5 7.1 Impairment of goodwill and indefinite-lived intangibles — 14.0 Legal proceedings charge — 23.7 Operating earnings 269.3 235.9 Earnings before income taxes 238.3 212.7 Income tax expense 118.5 54.5 Net earnings attributable to EnerSys stockholders $ 119.6 $ 160.2 Net reported earnings per common share attributable to EnerSys stockholders: Basic $ 2.81 $ 3.69 Diluted $ 2.77 $ 3.64 Dividends per common share $ 0.70 $ 0.70 Weighted-average number of common shares used in reported earnings per share calculations: Basic 42,612,036 43,389,333 Diluted 43,119,856 44,012,543 EnerSys also announced that it will host a conference call to discuss the Company's fourth quarter and full fiscal year 2018 financial results and provide an overview of the business. The call will conclude with a question and answer session.
The call, scheduled for Thursday, May 31, 2018 at 9:00 a.m., Eastern Time, will be hosted by David M. Shaffer, Chief Executive Officer, and Michael J. Schmidtlein, Chief Financial Officer.
The call will also be Webcast on EnerSys' website. There will be a free download of a compatible media player on the Company’s website at http://www.enersys.com .
The conference call information is:
Date: Thursday, May 31, 2018 Time: 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time Via Internet: http://www.enersys.com Domestic Dial-In Number: 877-359-9508 International Dial-In Number: 224-357-2393 Passcode: 4228359
A replay of the conference call will be available from 12:00 p.m. on May 31, 2018 through midnight on June 30, 2018.
The replay information is:
Via Internet: http://www.enersys.com Domestic Replay Number: 855-859-2056 International Replay Number: 404-537-3406 Passcode: 4228359
For more information, contact Thomas O'Neill, Vice President and Treasurer, EnerSys, P.O. Box 14145, Reading, PA 19612-4145, USA. Tel: 610-236-4040 or by emailing [email protected] ; Web site: www.enersys.com .
EDITOR'S NOTE: EnerSys, the global leader in stored energy solutions for industrial applications, manufactures and distributes reserve power and motive power batteries, battery chargers, power equipment, battery accessories and outdoor equipment enclosure solutions to customers worldwide. Motive power batteries and chargers are utilized in electric forklift trucks and other commercial electric powered vehicles. Reserve power batteries are used in the telecommunication and utility industries, uninterruptible power supplies, and numerous applications requiring stored energy solutions including medical, aerospace and defense systems. Outdoor equipment enclosure products are utilized in the telecommunication, cable, utility, transportation industries and by government and defense customers. The company also provides aftermarket and customer support services to its customers in over 100 countries through its sales and manufacturing locations around the world.
More information regarding EnerSys can be found at www.enersys.com .
Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements
This press release, and oral statements made regarding the subjects of this release, contains forward-looking statements, within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, or the Reform Act, which may include, but are not limited to, statements regarding EnerSys’ earnings estimates, intention to pay quarterly cash dividends, return capital to stockholders, plans, objectives, expectations and intentions and other statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts, including statements identified by words such as “believe,” “plan,” “seek,” “expect,” “intend,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “will,” and similar expressions. All statements addressing operating performance, events, or developments that EnerSys expects or anticipates will occur in the future, including statements relating to sales growth, earnings or earnings per share growth, order intake, backlog, payment of future cash dividends, execution of its stock buy back program, judicial or regulatory proceedings, and market share, as well as statements expressing optimism or pessimism about future operating results or benefits from either its cash dividend or its stock buy back programs, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Reform Act. The forward-looking statements are based on management's current views and assumptions regarding future events and operating performance, and are inherently subject to significant business, economic, and competitive uncertainties and contingencies and changes in circumstances, many of which are beyond the Company’s control. The statements in this press release are made as of the date of this press release, even if subsequently made available by EnerSys on its website or otherwise. EnerSys does not undertake any obligation to update or revise these statements to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this press release.
Although EnerSys does not make forward-looking statements unless it believes it has a reasonable basis for doing so, EnerSys cannot guarantee their accuracy. The foregoing factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements. For a list of other factors which could affect EnerSys’ results, including earnings estimates, see EnerSys’ filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, “Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” including “Forward-Looking Statements,” set forth in EnerSys’ Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2018. No undue reliance should be placed on any forward-looking statements.
Source:Enersys | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/30/globe-newswire-enersys-reports-fourth-quarter-and-full-year-fiscal-2018-results.html |
May 29, 2018 / 7:54 AM / Updated 7 hours ago China regions vow to step up pollution crackdown after central government probes David Stanway 4 Min Read
SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Eight Chinese regions have promised to beef up anti-pollution curbs, vowing fresh cuts in smog, cleaner water and soil and tighter scrutiny over government officials after Beijing-led probes uncovered thousands of violations. FILE PHOTO: Smoke billows from chimneys of a steel plant on a hazy day in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province March 18, 2015. REUTERS/Stringer
China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) said on Tuesday that the heavily populated industrial provinces of Shandong, Zhejiang and Sichuan were among the regions committing themselves to new measures, as well as Xinjiang and Tibet in the remote northwest. [nL2N1T0063]
As part of efforts to crack down on persistent polluters and negligent local administrations, Beijing launched a nationwide audit at the end of 2015 into the environmental records of 31 provinces and regions.
Teams led by retired ministers were granted powers to make unannounced spot checks at factories and summon local bureaucrats to explain their actions. The inspections, completed last year, have already had a big impact.
“There are definitely a lot of issues that might not have come to light without central government inspections, such as steel plants failing to retire capacity as ordered or building new capacity without a permit,” said Lauri Myllyvirta, clean air campaigner with environment group Greenpeace.
In a statement published by the MEE, Shandong on China’s eastern coast vowed to “unswervingly” implement government policies and restructure its heavy industrial economy.
It pledged to cut concentrations of hazardous airborne particles known as PM2.5 by half compared to 2013, though Myllyvirta said the target of 49 micrograms per cubic meter was not especially ambitious.
“Local officials are being incentivised very strongly to meet air quality targets so they shouldn’t be the ones setting them,” he said. Related Coverage Factbox: China regions vow to step up pollution crackdown
In its commitments, Xinjiang, a major oil and gas producing region, promised to set winter production caps on industries like thermal power, steel and chemicals in a bid to cut 2017 levels of PM2.5 by a quarter by 2020.
The manufacturing hub of Zhejiang, near Shanghai, promised to cut PM2.5 to the national standard of 35 micrograms, and make 91 percent of polluted arable land fit for human use by 2020.
By end-March, more than 2,000 government and state enterprise officials in 15 regions had been held to account as a result of the inspections, according to Reuters calculations based on MEE data. Most received an official reprimand and 22 face criminal charges.
State-owned China Minmetals Group was also accused by inspectors of being a “big corporate bully” after failing to rectify violations. [nL4N1KN2RX]
China’s President Xi Jinping vowed this month to use the full might of the Communist Party to redress the damage done to the country’s skies, soil and water since its economy was first opened up in 1978. [nL3N1SQ04P]
Meanwhile the government is planning to launch a second round of regional inspections early next year, the Communist Party newspaper People’s Daily reported last week.
“It shows how resolute the Center is on this issue and how it is determined to keep up the pressure on the provinces,” said Peter Corne, managing partner at legal firm Dorsey & Whitney in Shanghai, who follows China’s environmental policies.
“They have nowhere to hide,” he added. Reporting by David Stanway; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell and Manolo Serapio Jr. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-pollution/china-regions-vow-to-step-up-pollution-crackdown-after-central-government-probes-idUSKCN1IU0PC |
Microsoft is luring A.I. developers to its cloud by offering them faster chips Jordan Novet Reblog The chips boost the performance of Microsoft's Azure machine learning cloud service, and over time will become available for use in other facilities. Google has taken a different approach, designing its own AI chip. As the cloud battle heats up, Microsoft MSFT is taking a unique approach to silicon that it says can help developers more quickly perform artificial intelligence computing tasks. Reblog What to Read Next | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/07/microsoft-is-luring-a-i-developer-by-offering-them-faster-chips.html?__source=yahoo%7Cfinance%7Cheadline%7Cstory%7C&par=yahoo&yptr=yahoo |
* Euro close to Friday’s low, weakest since January
* Higher Treasury yields supporting dollar
* Graphic: World FX rates in 2018 tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh
By Tommy Wilkes
LONDON, May 1 (Reuters) - The euro fell on Tuesday, heading towards a 3-1/2 month low as weaker-than-expected economic data at the start of the week dented euro zone sentiment ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s policy decision.
The dollar has rallied in the last fortnight, helped by the 10-year Treasury yield topping 3 percent and a reconnection between higher interest rates and a buoyant currency.
While markets don’t expect a change in interest rates from the U.S. Federal Reserve at the conclusion of a meeting on Wednesday, analysts will be watching for any change in language.
BNY Mellon strategists said in a note that if the Fed drops any cautionary comments on its inflationary outlook, then it would signal a growing confidence among policymakers that inflation has firmed up enough for an increase in forecasts.
Bond markets are expecting roughly three rate hikes until the end of the year.
That, combined with growing doubts about when the European Central Bank will move to slow its stimulus as the economy shows signs of peaking, have knocked the single currency lower.
The euro fell 0.2 percent to $1.2058, not far from the $1.2055 it hit at the end of last week, the weakest level since mid-January.
The dollar rose 0.1 percent against a basket of currencies to 91.964.
Markets are also focused on Friday’s April U.S. non-farm payrolls report, which could provide further signs of strength in the world’s biggest economy.
The greenback had risen 2 percent in April, its biggest monthly gain since November 2016, after the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield climbed above the psychologically significant 3.0 percent threshold to four-year highs last week.
The U.S. currency received its latest lift after the euro slumped on soft German March retail sales data.
“The euro’s downturn is expected to continue in the near term amid receding prospects of the ECB embarking on monetary tightening,” said Masafumi Yamamoto, chief forex strategist at Mizuho Securities in Tokyo.
“With such themes weighing on its peers, the dollar looks well supported against the euro and pound, even without help from higher Treasury yields.”
European markets are closed on Tuesday for a public holiday.
The dollar was a shade higher at 109.43 yen.
The greenback climbed to a 2-1/2-month high of 109.540 yen on Friday as long-term U.S. yields rose. But it has lost momentum as Treasury yields have pulled back from four-year peaks.
The Australian dollar traded flat after dropping to $0.7525 on Monday, its lowest since Dec. 12.
The currency showed little response to the Reserve Bank of Australia’s well anticipated decision on Tuesday to leave its cash rate unchanged at 1.50 percent.
Currencies such as the Australian and the New Zealand dollar, which previously enjoyed the support of relatively high interest rates, have declined as their yield advantages have been eroded, particularly against the dollar.
The New Zealand dollar extended its decline to touch $0.7029 , its lowest since Dec. 27. The kiwi fell nearly 3 percent in April. (Additional reporting by Shinichi Saoshiro in TOKYO Editing by Andrew Heavens)
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/global-forex/forex-euro-near-3-1-2-month-lows-as-dollar-cements-gains-idUSL8N1S80SC |
GENEVA (Reuters) - India has launched a complaint against the United States to challenge U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminium, a filing published by the World Trade Organization showed on Wednesday.
A World Trade Organization (WTO) logo is pictured on their headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, June 3, 2016. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/Files Indian officials told Reuters last month that their government would open a WTO dispute if the country’s firms were not granted an exemption.
Trump imposed the tariffs in March, levying 25 percent on steel imports and 10 percent on aluminium. He said they were justified by national security concerns and therefore outside the WTO’s remit.
India, China, Russia, Japan, Turkey and the European Union have all dismissed that claim, regarding the U.S. tariffs as “safeguards” under the WTO rules, entitling them to a combined $3.5 billion in annual compensation.
India’s retaliation claim seeks to recoup a cost of $31 million levied on its aluminium exports and $134 million on steel, and it has said it could target U.S. exports of soya oil, palmolein and cashew nuts in its retaliation.
Its latest legal challenge seeks to force the United States to scrap the tariffs entirely. It follows a similar move last month by China, which Washington called “completely baseless”.
Under WTO rules, the United States has 60 days to settle the complaint, after which India could ask the WTO to set up an expert panel to adjudicate.
However, uncertainty is hanging over the WTO’s dispute settlement system because Trump is vetoing the appointment of new appeals judges.
In its complaint, India listed a string of ways the U.S. tariffs violated the WTO rules and unfairly damaged India’s interests.
It said they broke the WTO’s safeguards agreement and the United States was trying to use its tariffs to get other countries to agree to “voluntary export restraints”.
The United States had also exceeded the maximum import tariff allowed by the WTO and the tariffs were not applied uniformly to steel and aluminium imports from all suppliers, breaking a core principle of the WTO rulebook.
Reporting by Tom Miles; Editing by Catherine Evans and David Stamp
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://in.reuters.com/article/usa-trade-india/india-takes-u-s-steel-tariffs-complaint-to-the-wto-idINKCN1IO1WL |
16 Hours Ago | 02:28
It will be very challenging for the U.S. and China to come to an agreement about trade this week, in part because the Trump administration has been "unclear in what it really wants," a strategist said on Friday.
"On the one hand, the President remains very focused on the size of the bilateral trade deficit, and reportedly the Chinese has come to Washington with a package of about $200 billion worth of purchases that would certainly remedy a large portion of that deficit," said Amy Celico, principal at the Albright Stonebridge Group, a global strategy and business advisory firm.
But on the other hand, the U.S. administration and Congress want China to change some of its behavior on unfair trade practices, and seek to put an end to subsidies for advanced technology industries and forced technology transfers.
However, those would be challenging for China to make concessions on as it deems them to be "core interests" that it will not give up for a quick trade deal with Washington, Celico told CNBC's "The Rundown."
Celico's comments follow President Donald Trump's meeting with the leader of the Chinese trade delegation, Vice Premier Liu He on Thursday, as the two economic powerhouses kick off a second round of negotiations.
The White House described the meetings as part of "ongoing trade discussions" and said: "The United States officials conveyed the President's clear goal for a fair trading relationship with China."
Earlier on Thursday, Trump criticized China and other trading partners as being "very spoiled" on trade with the U.S., but said he was aiming for an overall deal with Beijing.
Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump said China had "ripped off" the United States for too long and that he told Chinese President Xi Jinping that "we just can't do that anymore."
Trump was "trying to act a bit tougher after he seemed to be making quite a significant concession to the Chinese in renegotiating the remedy for ZTE's non-compliance with the package that was put in place after it was found to have broken American sanctions laws," said Celico, on the president's comments.
— Reuters contributed to this story. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/17/us-china-trade-talks-challenging-for-both-sides-to-agree.html |
Check out the companies making headlines before the bell:
Foot Locker – The athletic apparel and footwear retailer reported adjusted quarterly profit of $1.45 per share , 20 cents a share above estimates. Revenue also beat forecasts, but comparable-store sales fell by 2.8 percent — that was smaller than the Thomson Reuters consensus estimate of a 3.9 percent decline.
Hibbett Sports – Hibbett, also a retailer of athletic apparel and footwear, fell 3 cents short of estimates with profit of $1.12 per share, with revenue also missing forecasts. Comparable-store sales were down 0.3 percent, surprising analysts who had expected a 1.1 percent gain.
The Buckle – The seller of fashion accessories reported quarterly earnings of 38 cents per share, 2 cents a share above estimates. Revenue missed forecasts, however, even though comparable-store sales fell less than expected. Sales at stores open at least a year were down 3.1 percent, compared to a 3.4 percent Thomson Reuters estimate.
Gap – Gap reported quarterly profit of 42 cents per share , missing consensus estimates by 4 cents a share. The apparel retailer's revenue beat forecasts, however. Comparable-store sales missed estimates, with Gap stores trying to deal with excess inventory and bad weather.
Deckers Outdoor – Deckers more than doubled the consensus estimate of 19 cents per share by earning an adjusted 50 cents per share for its fourth quarter. The shoe retailer also saw revenue beat forecasts on strong sales of its Ugg, Teva, and other brands.
Autodesk – Autodesk earned an adjusted 6 cents per share for its latest quarter, compared to a 3 cents a share consensus estimate. The software company's revenue also beat forecasts, however Autodesk issued weaker-than-expected current-quarter earnings guidance.
Ross Stores – Ross beat estimates by 3 cents a share, with quarterly profit of $1.10 per share. The discount retailer's revenue was essentially in line with forecasts, however it issued a weaker-than-expected current-quarter forecast for both comparable-store sales and earnings.
AstraZeneca – AstraZeneca said its cancer drug Imfinzi achieved a second goal by improving survival in lung cancer patients.
Apple – Apple was awarded $539 million in its patent retrial against Samsung, which had been accused of copying patents related to Apple's iPhone. Samsung had previously paid $399 million for patent infringement, which would be credited against the total amount if the jury verdict is upheld on appeal.
United Continental – United named former FAA chief Jane Garvey as its non-executive chair, the first woman to lead the airline's board of directors.
PayPal – PayPal was upgraded to "buy" from "hold" at Stifel Nicolaus , which said the payment processing service is in the early stages of transforming into a global platform. Stifel raised its price target on the stock to $99 per share from $82.
Lionsgate – The movie studio reported adjusted quarterly profit of 25 cents per share, compared to an anticipated loss. The company got a particularly strong contribution from its media networks unit, with "over-the-top" revenue more than doubling from a year earlier. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/25/stocks-making-the-biggest-moves-premarket-fl-hibb-bke-gps-deck-adsk-rost-more.html |
NEW YORK, May 18, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Concierge Auctions has announced it will be accelerating the sale of a collection of homes this July through a bidding event exclusively featuring mountain properties. The firm is now accepting sellers. Properties in the sale will launch in June, with bidding open from July 27 th to July 30 th and hosted via the Concierge Auctions' online marketplace, conciergeauctions.com , allowing prospective buyers to participate in real-time from anywhere in the world.
"With a decade in business and nearly $2 billion in sales achieved since our inception — one-third of which were of mountain properties across the United States, Canada, and in Europe — our team is deeply experienced in matching active buyers to premier properties in some of the most sought-after mountain destinations around the world," stated Concierge Auctions Senior Vice President of Business Development Nick Leonard. "Our global platform paired with our industry-leading database and targeted outreach during peak exposure in key mountain markets is sure to deliver a successful sale, benefiting sellers and buyers who are ready to bid on choice, one-of-a-kind properties alike. We look forward to releasing the collection in June."
The July sale will kick off with a series of launch events around the Aspen Food & Wine Classic and Jackson Hole Food & Wine Summer Festival, as well as a VIP private dinner in Park City, Utah and culminate with a closing event during Big Sky PBR. In addition to these events, Concierge Auctions will directly reach buyers via its proven platform of marketing, advertising, and sales efforts in addition to targeted outreach to approximately 70,000 buyer prospects and agents worldwide and robust print advertising in national and the key mountain markets of Aspen, Park City, Jackson Hole, Sun Valley, and Vail.
As part of Concierge Auctions' Key for Key ® giving program in partnership with Giveback Homes, each sale will result in a new home built for a family in need.
To find out more about how your property or listing could be considered for the July Sale or to arrange a complimentary market analysis and consultation, call +1.212.257.5239 or email [email protected] . Space is limited. Concierge Auctions offers a commission to both the sellers' and buyers' representing real estate agents. See Auction Terms and Conditions for full details.
About Concierge Auctions
Concierge Auctions is the largest luxury real estate marketplace in the world. Powered by state-of-the-art technology, the company has generated nearly $2 billion in sales and is active in 38 U.S. states/territories and 19 countries. Concierge curates the best properties globally, matches them with qualified buyers, and facilitates transparent, market-driven transactions in an expedited timeframe. The firm owns what is arguably the most valuable, ultra-high-net-worth client list in real estate and has been named one of America's fastest-growing companies by Inc. Magazine for the past four years. As part of Concierge Auctions' Key for Key® giving program in partnership with Giveback Homes, each sale results in a new home built for a family in need.
Contact:
Kari Neering [email protected]
Chanelle Kasik [email protected]
212-257-1500
View original content: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/concierge-auctions-announces-mountain-summer-sale-300651138.html
SOURCE Concierge Auctions | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/18/pr-newswire-concierge-auctions-announces-mountain-summer-sale.html |
May 1, 2018 / 1:30 AM / Updated 7 hours ago Taiwan says China dangled $3 billion to grab ally Dominican Republic Jess Macy Yu , Ben Blanchard 6 Min Read
TAIPEI/BEIJING (Reuters) - China offered the Dominican Republic a $3.1 billion package of investments and loans to get them to sever ties with Taiwan, a Taiwan official said on Tuesday, after the Caribbean nation switched allegiance to China in a diplomatic blow to the self-ruled island.
China said there were no economic pre-conditions.
Taiwan, claimed by China as its own, has formal relations now with only 19 countries, many of them poor nations in Central America and the Pacific like Belize and Nauru. China says Taiwan is simply a wayward province with no right to state-to-state ties.
China and Taiwan have tried to poach each other’s allies over the years, often dangling generous aid packages in front of developing nations, though Taipei struggles to compete with an increasingly powerful China.
Panama ended its long-standing relationship with Taiwan last year in a major diplomatic victory for China. The Vatican is possibly next on the list, as the Holy See and China edge closer to an accord on the appointment of bishops in China.
The news on the Dominican Republic switch, announced in both Beijing and Santo Domingo, drew strong and swift condemnation from Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu.
“President Danilo Medina of the Dominican Republic has ignored our long-term partnership, the wishes of the people of the Dominican Republic, and the years of development assistance provided by Taiwan, to accept false promises of investment and aid by China,” Wu told reporters.
“(Taiwan) strongly condemns China’s objectionable decision to use dollar diplomacy to convert Taiwan’s diplomatic allies. Beijing’s attempts at foreign policy have only served to drive a wedge between the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, erode mutual trust and further harm the feelings of the people of Taiwan.”
A Taiwan Foreign Ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters that, according to initial calculations, China dangled at least a $3.1 billion package of investments, financial assistance and low-interest loans for the Dominican Republic, which shares an island with Haiti to the west.
That included $400 million for a new freeway, $1.6 billion for infrastructure projects and $300 million for a new natural gas power plant.
“It was a cost that Taiwan could not match,” the official said.
China’s Foreign Ministry said the move was a political one with no economic pre-conditions, but that now they have established ties, China will “proactively promote mutually beneficial cooperation in all areas”.
A person who answered the telephone at the Dominican Republic’s Beijing representative office said it did not know about the situation and declined further comment.
China has stepped up the pressure on Taiwan since the 2016 election of Tsai Ing-wen, from the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party, as president. Beijing fears she will push for Taiwan’s formal independence, but Tsai says she wants to maintain the status quo.
The Dominican Republic had been a diplomatic ally of the Republic of China - Taiwan’s official name - for 77 years, including when the government ruled all of China before being forced to Taiwan in 1949 after losing a civil war to the Communists. China's Vice President Wang Qishan shakes hand with Dominican Republic's Chancellor Miguel Vargas at the Zhongnanhai Leadership Compound in Beijing, China May 1, 2018. Minoru Iwasaki/Pool via REUTERS
Taiwan’s presidential office said that despite the severe challenges, the government would not bow its head in pressure to Beijing, and vowed to do all it could to protect Taiwan’s interests.
The Taiwan official said the Dominican Republic move was not unexpected.
“We’ve always known things were not looking rosy here,” the official said. GROWTH POTENTIAL IMMENSE
The Chinese government’s top diplomat, State Councillor Wang Yi, lauded the decision as in line with the trend of the times and history, in comments to reporters in Beijing at a hastily arranged news conference.
“This important and correct decision by the Dominican Republic absolutely accords with the basic interests of the country and its people,” Wang said. “We highly appreciate this.”
The Dominican Republic said it had taken the decision after a long process of consultation, taking its needs and potential into account, according to a statement on the president’s website.
It said that even without formal diplomatic ties, China was already its second largest supplier of imported products.
“Of course we know that now we’re establishing diplomatic relations, the growth potential of our trade links is immense,” presidential legal adviser Flavio Dario Espinal said.
Espinal said that the government was grateful to Taiwan.
“We are deeply grateful for the cooperation we’ve shared for years,” he said. “However, history and the socioeconomic reality force us now to change direction.”
In Taipei, Wu said China had failed to follow through on its promises to former Taiwan diplomatic allies, including $140 million in aid to the small West African country of Sao Tome and Principe in late 2016.
“Developing nations should be aware of the danger of falling into a debt trap when engaging with China,” he said. Slideshow (13 Images)
Neither Wang, nor Dominican Republic Foreign Minister Miguel Vargas Maldonado, who stood by his side at the Beijing news conference, took questions from reporters.
Speaking in March, Wang said it was in the best interests of Taiwan’s few remaining diplomatic allies to recognize an “irresistible trend” and ditch Taipei in favor “one China” ruled by Beijing. Reporting by Jessica Macy Yu and Ben Blanchard; Additional reporting by Josephine Mason in BEIJING, Fabian Hamacher in TAIPEI and Frank Jack Daniel in MEXICO CITY; Editing by Nick Macfie | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-dominicanrepublic-taiwan/taiwan-condemns-chinas-deal-to-establish-ties-with-dominican-republic-idUSKBN1I22LN |
May 16, 2018 / 2:12 AM / Updated 9 minutes ago Brazilian prosecutors charge JBS shareholder with corruption - source Ricardo Brito 2 Min Read
BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazilian federal prosecutors presented charges against Joesley Batista, a major shareholder in meatpacker JBS SA ( JBSS3.SA ), another senior executive and a former federal prosecutor accusing them of corruption, money laundering and obstruction of Justice, a source familiar with the matter said on Tuesday. FILE PHOTO: Brazil's billionaire businessman Joesley Batista leaves the Federal Police headquarters after losing immunity from prosecution amid a corruption scandal, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, September 11, 2017. REUTERS/Leonardo Benassatto
The charges against Joesley Batista, former executive Francisco Assis and former federal prosecutor Angelo Goulart were presented to a Brazilian court. They would become defendants in a criminal case if the court agreed with the charges.
Lawyers for Batista and Assis said in a statement that charges against Batista and Assis could not be presented before the decision by the Supreme Court on the validity of their plea deals. Efforts to locate an attorney for Goulart were unsuccessful.
The charges, which are under seal, accuse Goulart of leaking internal Prosecutors Office information to Batista and Assis to ease their negotiations for a plea deal.
Under terms of their plea deal signed a year ago, Batista, who at the time headed family holding J&F Investimentos SA, and Assis confessed to certain corruption crimes and were exempted from prosecution for their cooperation.
Supreme Court Justice Edson Fachin is considering whether to annul the plea deal, analysing a request made by former prosecutor general Rodrigo Janot last September during his final days in office. Janot said the plea deal should be voided because facts had been hidden from authorities. Writing Tatiana Bautzer | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-brazil-corruption/brazilian-prosecutors-charge-jbs-shareholder-with-corruption-source-idUKKCN1IH064 |
NEW YORK, May 15, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- FC Bancorp Ltd. ("MFC") announced that Gerardo Cortina has retired from the board of directors of MFC effective today in order to focus on and pursue his own outside ventures.
The Corporation wishes to thank Mr. Cortina for his service to MFC and wishes him the best in his future endeavours.
View original content: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/gerardo-cortina-retires-from-the-board-of-directors-of-mfc-bancorp-ltd-300648196.html
SOURCE MFC Bancorp Ltd. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/15/pr-newswire-gerardo-cortina-retires-from-the-board-of-directors-of-mfc-bancorp-ltd.html |
Bitcoin to hit $50,000 by year-end, says CEO of largest bitcoin exchange 20 Hours Ago CNBC's Seema Mody reports on the world's largest bitcoin conference. And Arthur Hayes, BitMEX CEO, discusses his outlook for the cryptocurrency. With CNBC's Melissa Lee and the Fast Money traders, Pete Najarian, Tim Seymour, Dan Nathan and Guy Adami. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.cnbc.com/video/2018/05/14/bitcoin-to-hit-50000-by-year-end-says-ceo-of-largest-bitcoin-exchange.html |
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump will announce a decision about the future of an international nuclear agreement with Iran on Tuesday.
Here are four possible avenues Trump could take on the fate of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, under which Iran accepted restraints on its nuclear program in return for the lifting of U.N., European and U.S. sanctions.
Trump could claim that Iran is not living up to the deal by pointing to last week’s revelation by Israel of what it said was evidence of a secret Iranian nuclear weapons program, most of which was already known to the international community and U.N. nuclear inspectors.
The International Atomic Energy Agency says Iran is in compliance with the agreement. While senior U.S. officials acknowledge that Iran has complied with the letter of the deal, Trump points to Iran’s ballistic missile activity and regional conduct as evidence of the deal’s shortcomings.
SCENARIO 1 - TRUMP RE-ISSUES SANCTIONS WAIVERS
Trump could waive U.S. sanctions on Iran’s central bank and oil exports – as he has done every four months – while continuing talks with Germany, France and Britain on a side agreement that addresses what he sees as the deal’s flaws.
SCENARIO 2 - TRUMP DOES NOT WAIVE SANCTIONS
Trump could decide not to waive the U.S. sanctions, under which the penalties would take effect 180 days later, and leave it to European allies – who favor preserving the deal - to decide on their own course of action. In this scenario, Iran would have to decide whether it will continue to abide by the accord’s restrictions on its nuclear program.
SCENARIO 3 - TRUMP DOESN’T WAIVE SANCTIONS, BUT COULD RECONSIDER
Trump could decide not to waive sanctions, but announce that he could restore the waivers before the penalties for violating the sanctions go back into effect if European allies reach a side agreement with the United States. Again, it would be Iran’s choice whether to continue abiding by the deal in the meantime.
SCENARIO 4 - TRUMP DOESN’T WAIVE SANCTIONS AND SAYS IRAN VIOLATING THE DEAL
Trump could announce that he will not waive the sanctions, and, citing the purported evidence revealed by Israel, claim that Iran is violating the deal.
The United States could then use a dispute resolution mechanism laid out in the JCPOA to seek a “snap-back” of U.N. sanctions on Iran.
Reporting by Jonathan Landay; Editing by Leslie Adler
Our | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iran-nuclear-options/trumps-options-on-iran-nuclear-deal-idUSKBN1I901J |
May 22, 2018 / 9:16 AM / Updated 8 hours ago UK government launches plan to curb air pollution Reuters Staff 2 Min Read
LONDON (Reuters) - The British government announced on Tuesday it was launching a new plan which aims to reduce air pollution and its costs on society by 1 billion pounds ($1.4 billion) a year by 2020. FILE PHOTO: An exhaust emits fumes as a car is driven through Richmond in London, Britain, December 2, 2016. REUTERS/Peter Nicholls/File Photo
The new plan comes just days after the European Commission said it would take Britain and five other European Union member states to the EU Court of Justice for failing to respect air quality limits.
Under the EU’s Air Quality Directive, member states were supposed to comply with nitrogen dioxide emission limits in 2010 - or by 2015 if they delivered plans to deal with high levels of the gas, which is produced mainly by diesel engines.
The Commission said Britain had failed to respect curbs on nitrogen dioxide which is associated with respiratory and other illnesses.
The government said its plan was on top of a 3.5 billion pound plan to reduce air pollution from road transport and diesel vehicles set out in July last year.
It would aim to halve the number of people living in locations where concentrations of particulate matter are above World Health Organisation limits, the government said.
In addition, legislation will be introduced to give local authorities powers to improve air quality and ensure only the cleanest domestic fuels were available for sale.
The government will also take action to tackle ammonia from farming by requiring farmers to invest in infrastructure and equipment that will reduce emissions.
It said it would reduce the costs of air pollution to society by an estimated 1 billion pounds a year by 2020, rising to 2.5 billion pounds a year from 2030.
The new strategy drew criticism from some lawmakers and environmental groups.
Caroline Lucas, co-leader of the Green Party, said the details of the plan looked “extremely underwhelming” and failed to be backed up with cash. Reporting by Nina Chestney; Editing by Richard Balmforth | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://uk.reuters.com/article/us-britain-pollution/uk-government-launches-plan-to-curb-air-pollution-idUKKCN1IN0ZB |
May 22, 2018 / 12:09 PM / Updated 36 minutes ago UK brings more charges against two people in Unaoil investigation Reuters Staff 2 Min Read
May 22 (Reuters) - British prosecutors have brought further charges against two people in an ongoing investigation into alleged bribery and corruption at privately-held Unaoil, a Monaco-based oil and gas services company.
The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) said on Tuesday it had charged Basil Al Jarah and Ziad Akle with conspiracy to give corrupt payments to secure the award of a $733 million contract to Leighton Contractors Singapore PTE Ltd for a project to build two oil pipelines in southern Iraq. Al Jarah, 68, who was Unaoil’s Iraq partner, was charged with two offences of conspiracy. Akle, 43, who was Unaoil’s territory manager for Iraq, was charged with one offence, the SFO said. Akle and Al Jarah have been told to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on May 23.
Akle and Jarah were charged in November by requisition with conspiracy to make corrupt payments to secure contracts in Iraq to Unaoil’s client SBM Offshore between June 2005 and August 2011.
Unaoil did not respond to an immediate request for comment. (Reporting By Justin George Varghese in Bengaluru) | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/britain-unaoil-charges/uk-brings-more-charges-against-two-people-in-unaoil-investigation-idUSL5N1ST3DZ |
CBS battle is crazy for creatives as well, says media exec 1 Hour Ago Ben Silverman, Propagate Content co-CEO and former NBC Universal co-chair, weighs in on the battle between CBS and National Amusements. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.cnbc.com/video/2018/05/18/cbs-battle-is-crazy-for-creatives-as-well-says-media-exec.html |
Signs emerge of Iraq's next coalition 10:07am EDT - 01:16
Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr meets the prime minister, in what looks like a sign the two will work together to form the next government. Sadr is opposed to both the United States and Iran and has emerged as likely kingmaker after winning the country's election.
Iraqi cleric Moqtada al-Sadr meets the prime minister, in what looks like a sign the two will work together to form the next government. Sadr is opposed to both the United States and Iran and has emerged as likely kingmaker after winning the country's election. //reut.rs/2LhFVCc | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/video/2018/05/20/signs-emerge-of-iraqs-next-coalition?videoId=428728658 |
May 16 (Reuters) - GREMPCO SA:
* REPORTED ON TUESDAY Q1 NET PROFIT OF 1.1 MILLION ZLOTYS VERSUS 1,242 ZLOTYS YEAR AGO
* Q1 REVENUE 75,964 ZLOTYS VERSUS 46,816 ZLOTYS YEAR AGO Source text: bit.ly/2IkXEuN
Further company coverage: (Gdynia Newsroom)
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSL5N1SN0YA |
May 8 (Reuters) - CytRx Corp:
* Q1 LOSS PER SHARE $0.15 * CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS OF $35.1 MILLION AS OF MARCH 31, 2018 Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage: ([email protected])
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-cytrx-reports-first-quarter-loss-o/brief-cytrx-reports-first-quarter-loss-of-0-15-per-share-idUSASC0A0HI |
Startup culture emerges from Greek economy woes 6:45am EDT - 01:57
Greece is a place where roughly one-in-five people are unemployed. It's left many with few options: Think outside the box to pay the bills, or immigrate to richer shores. ▲ Hide Transcript ▶ View Transcript
Greece is a place where roughly one-in-five people are unemployed. It's left many with few options: Think outside the box to pay the bills, or immigrate to richer shores. Press CTRL+C (Windows), CMD+C (Mac), or long-press the URL below on your mobile device to copy the code https://reut.rs/2KzXYTS | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/video/2018/05/04/startup-culture-emerges-from-greek-econo?videoId=423779168 |
May 15, 2018 / 10:04 AM / in 35 minutes CEE MARKETS-Forint markets lead fall, U.S. yield rise renews sell-off Reuters Staff 7 Min Read * Dollar, U.S. yields rise renews asset selling in CEE * Forint hits 22-month low, CEE bond yields rise * Loose monetary policy does not support forint-dealers * Budapest leads fall of equity indices By Sandor Peto BUDAPEST, May 15 (Reuters) - The forint hit a 22-month low against the euro on Tuesday as a rebound of the dollar and U.S. debt yields caused a renewed sell-off in Central European markets, even as first-quarter data confirmed strong economic growth in the region. Sentiment in emerging markets was also soured by a plunge of the Turkish lira after President Tayyip Erdogan said he wanted to take tighter control of monetary policy. With debt yields in core markets rising and the dollar renewing its rally in global markets after a 3-day pause, the forint proved the most vulnerable currency in Central Europe. It traded at 317.28 versus the euro at 0907 GMT, off a 22-month low of 317.36, but weaker by 0.6 percent from Monday, while the zloty shed 0.4 percent, to trade at 4.282. The forint got little help from figures that showed faster-than-expected 4.4 percent first-quarter growth in the Hungarian economy. Breaking through a technical support level at 315.5, it was heading towards the next support at 318, Erste analysts said in a note. Hungary's 10-year government bond yield rose 2 basis points to 2.93 percent, tracking a rise in the corresponding U.S. Treasury yield above 3 percent. That was a smaller increase than a 5-basis-point rise in Poland's 10-year yield to 3.27 percent on Tuesday, but the Hungarian yield has risen by about 30 basis points this month, the biggest rise in the region, due to the international rise in debt yields. "Why Hungarian markets are getting the biggest beating, it is hard to say," one Budapest-based currency dealer said. "This may be happening because interest rates are low and the National Bank (of Hungary) looks unwilling to change them," the dealer added. Despite the noise in global markets, the Hungarian central bank is unlikely to give up its ultra-loose policy, and may even deploy new policy tools to keep long-term interest rates lower, Erste analyst Gergely Urmossy said in a separate note. Poland's central bank is also expected to reiterate after its meeting on Wednesday that it could keep rates on hold for years. The region's equity indices mostly fell, led by a 1.6 percent decline in Budapest and a 2.9 percent fall in OTP Bank's stocks which has been jittery around a key technical level at 11,0000 forints ($414.45) in the past two weeks. CEE SNAPSHOT AT MARKETS 1107 CET CURRENCI ES Latest Previous Daily Change bid close change in 2018 Czech <EURCZK= 25.5400 25.4970 -0.17% +0.01% crown > Hungary <EURHUF= 317.2800 315.5000 -0.56% -2.01% forint > Polish <EURPLN= 4.2820 4.2667 -0.36% -2.47% zloty > Romanian <EURRON= 4.6300 4.6260 -0.09% +1.07% leu > Croatian <EURHRK= 7.3850 7.3820 -0.04% +0.61% kuna > Serbian <EURRSD= 118.1000 118.1500 +0.04% +0.34% dinar > Note: calculated from 1800 CET daily change Latest Previous Daily Change close change in 2018 Prague 1107.59 1104.330 +0.30% +2.73% 0 Budapest 37992.39 38602.89 -1.58% -3.52% Warsaw 2298.31 2321.09 -0.98% -6.62% Bucharest 8664.14 8755.58 -1.04% +11.74% Ljubljana <.SBITOP 891.23 888.49 +0.31% +10.52% > Zagreb 1847.46 1843.09 +0.24% +0.25% Belgrade <.BELEX1 735.59 737.44 -0.25% -3.19% 5> Sofia 645.47 644.24 +0.19% -4.72% BONDS Yield Yield Spread Daily (bid) change vs Bund change in Czech spread Republic 2-year <CZ2YT=R 0.8090 -0.0770 +135bps -8bps R> 5-year <CZ5YT=R 1.3320 0.0200 +134bps +2bps R> 10-year <CZ10YT= 1.8740 0.0130 +125bps +0bps RR> Poland 2-year <PL2YT=R 1.6050 0.0410 +215bps +4bps R> 5-year <PL5YT=R 2.5350 0.0410 +254bps +4bps R> 10-year <PL10YT= 3.2750 0.0410 +265bps +3bps RR> FORWARD RATE AGREEMEN T 3x6 6x9 9x12 3M interban k Czech Rep 0.99 1.14 1.27 0.90 <PRIBOR= > Hungary 0.07 0.19 0.29 0.06 Poland 1.75 1.76 1.81 1.70 Note: FRA are for ask prices quotes | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/easteurope-markets/cee-markets-forint-markets-lead-fall-u-s-yield-rise-renews-sell-off-idUSL5N1SM44R |
23 Hours Ago | 02:47
The market has hit a key point that points to a bounce, says chart-minded trader Todd Gordon.
"We've been tracking this consolidation in the S&P for all of 2018, and I think we've just reached a very critical level," the TradingAnalysis.com founder said Tuesday on CNBC's "Trading Nation."
Gordon had previously pointed out that the S&P 500-tracking ETF ( SPY ) has been in a triangle consolidation for most of 2018. Just a few weeks, ago, Gordon began tracking the lower points of the consolidation and said the rally could be over if the SPY fell below a support line at around $260.
Since then, SPY has managed to hold that support, which just happens to be the ETF's 200-day moving average, leading Gordon to believe it will soon bounce.
"I think there is time to add, to continue up, through this consolidation that has contained all of this year," he said. "We should be able to move on up, retest these old highs at just about the $280 mark."
To play for a bounce, Gordon wants to buy the June monthly 275-strike call and pair that with the sale of the June monthly 280-strike call for about 73 cents, or $73 per options spread. Should SPY close above $280, Gordon could make $427 on the trade.
Markets were choppy on Tuesday leading up to and following President Donald Trump's announcement that the U.S. would pull out of the Iran deal. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/09/market-has-hit-critical-level-and-is-about-the-bounce-higher-trader.html |
HONG KONG (Reuters Breakingviews) - Investors have mixed signals from AIA. First-quarter figures on Friday from the $107 billion insurer hint at the challenges of maintaining rapid growth at scale – yet also point to a future where it depends less extensively on China.
AIA Group Chief Executive and President Ng Keng-hooi attends a news conference on the company's annual results in Hong Kong, China February 27, 2018. REUTERS/Bobby Yip There were a handful of important data points. Firstly, AIA Chief Executive Ng Keng Hooi hailed a record quarter by “value of new business”, noting that this key measure topped $1 billion for the first time.
Yet an annual VONB increase of 20 percent, before currency moves, undershoots the blistering 55 percent in the first quarter of 2017, although AIA has since moved its fiscal year-end, meaning the two periods differ by a month. It also lags the 28 percent rate of the last two full years.
It is unwise to read too much into a single short quarterly update. But AIA could be starting to run up against what is sometimes known in finance as the law of large numbers, or the simple idea that rapid growth gets harder to maintain as a company grows larger.
On the other hand, there was good news from Thailand and Singapore, where AIA respectively hailed “positive” and “very strong” growth in new business. The measure had declined in both territories, AIA’s biggest non-Chinese markets, in fiscal 2017.
That is encouraging, because at present the company is largely a bet on China: Hong Kong and the mainland made up 64 percent of VONB last year, and 51 percent of operating profit after tax. This focus has served AIA extremely well in recent years. Moves by Beijing to further open up the insurance market to foreigners could favour AIA too, by making it easier to expand out from its bases in the cities of Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen, and the provinces of Guangdong and Jiangsu.
But if China’s economy slows, or regulations change again, AIA would suffer disproportionately. Being more diversified would insulate against that outcome, and mean the company was seen more as a proxy for increasing financial sophistication across the wider region. It might delay the reckoning with the law of large numbers, too.
Breakingviews Reuters Breakingviews is the world's leading source of agenda-setting financial insight. As the Reuters brand for financial commentary, we dissect the big business and economic stories as they break around the world every day. A global team of about 30 correspondents in New York, London, Hong Kong and other major cities provides expert analysis in real time.
Sign up for a free trial of our full service at https://www.breakingviews.com/trial and follow us on Twitter @Breakingviews and at www.breakingviews.com . All opinions expressed are those of the authors.
0 : 0 narrow-browser-and-phone medium-browser-and-portrait-tablet landscape-tablet medium-wide-browser wide-browser-and-larger medium-browser-and-landscape-tablet medium-wide-browser-and-larger above-phone portrait-tablet-and-above above-portrait-tablet landscape-tablet-and-above landscape-tablet-and-medium-wide-browser portrait-tablet-and-below landscape-tablet-and-below Apps Newsletters Reuters Plus Advertising Guidelines Cookies Terms of Use Privacy
All Quote: s delayed a minimum of 15 minutes. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays.
© 2018 Reuters. All Rights Reserved. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-aia-group-results-breakingviews/breakingviews-aia-sends-mixed-signals-on-growth-idUSKBN1I50E1 |
May 23 (Reuters) - Gap Inc:
* ANNOUNCES SECOND QUARTER DIVIDEND * SETS QUARTERLY DIVIDEND OF $0.2425 PER SHARE Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-gap-inc-announces-q1-dividend/brief-gap-inc-announces-q1-dividend-idUSFWN1SU0YD |
Investors are missing perspective, says strategist 10:03 AM ET Thu, 10 May 2018 Brian Belski, BMO Capital Markets chief investment strategist, and Art Cashin, UBS director of floor operations, discuss the current trends in the markets. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.cnbc.com/video/2018/05/10/investors-are-missing-perspective-says-strategist.html |
There’s further sterling weakness ahead, strategist says 7 Hours Ago Guy Miller, chief market strategist at Zurich Insurance, said sterling weakness was correlated with upward moves in U.K. equities. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.cnbc.com/video/2018/05/28/theres-further-sterling-weakness-ahead-strategist-says.html |
May 17, 2018 / 8:07 AM / Updated 3 hours ago PM May says Britain will leave customs union, to offer Ireland backstop Tsvetelia Tsolova 5 Min Read
SOFIA (Reuters) - Prime Minister Theresa May said on Thursday Britain would leave the EU customs union after Brexit but a source said London was considering a backstop plan that would apply the bloc’s external tariffs beyond December 2020. Anti-Brexit demonstrators wave EU and Union flags outside the Houses of Parliament in London, Britain, January 30, 2018. REUTERS/Toby Melville
Asked about reports that London would ask to stay in the European Union’s customs area beyond the end of a post-Brexit transition period in 2020, May denied she was “climbing down” on plans to leave.
“No. The United Kingdom will be leaving the customs union as we’re leaving the European Union. Of course, we will be negotiating future customs arrangements with the European Union and I’ve set three objectives,” May told reporters on the sidelines of an EU summit in the Bulgarian capital Sofia.
She said the objectives were that Britain should have its own trade policy with the rest of the world, should have frictionless trade with the EU and that there be no hard border with EU member Ireland.
In talks with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and European Council President Donald Tusk, she reiterated her view that a backstop agreement put forward by Brussels to prevent a hard border was “unacceptable”.
“The prime minister said the UK would shortly put forward its own backstop proposal in relation to customs,” her spokeswoman said.
Earlier, the source, who is familiar with the discussions, said on condition of anonymity the government was trying to find a way to make the backstop arrangement more acceptable to Britain rather than seeking an extension of a transition period.
The source said Britain could apply the EU’s external tariffs for a limited period beyond December 2020 in the case of a delay in the implementation of any Brexit deal.
May’s spokeswoman said negotiations on the backstop arrangement were continuing, and that Britain did not want or expect to have to use it.
May has been struggling to unite her cabinet over the terms of Britain’s divorce with the EU, with a row over future customs arrangement dividing her government and all but stalling Brexit negotiations.
EU leaders meeting May in Sofia on Thursday were “in listening mode” and hoping for reassurances from her, said one official, before a formal summit in June when the sides want to mark another milestone in the negotiations.
That is needed to seal a final divorce deal in October, leaving the EU enough time to ratify it by Brexit day in March 2019. Related Coverage | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-eu-customs-source/britain-considering-extending-eu-tariffs-to-improve-brexit-back-stop-option-source-idUKKCN1II0VT |
Leverkusen, Germany, May 30, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Biofrontera AG (NASDAQ: BFRA; Frankfurt Stock Exchange: B8F) (the “Company”), an international biopharmaceutical company, today reported its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2018 and provided an update on recent operational and clinical developments.
“We entered 2018 with a strong presence in the U.S. achieving record revenue increase and successfully completing an initial public offering on the Nasdaq Capital Market. Combined with a preemptive rights offering in Germany, Biofrontera raised €21.6 million in net proceeds that will support our expansion opportunities. In the U.S., revenues increased 161% year-over-year, exceeding the analyst consensus, as our 31 sales reps start to leverage a new product specific J-code and more favorable reimbursement for PDT. And as we seek to further expand our efforts in the U.S., we recently submitted a revised Investigational New Drug application to the FDA, outlining the protocol design for our phase III trial for basal cell carcinoma (BCC), expected to begin in the second half of the year. Closer to home, we received approval to treat field cancerization and actinic keratosis (AK) with Daylight-PDT in Europe, representing a key achievement as we are now able to compete directly with the self-applied topical prescriptions that represent the majority of treatments for AK in Europe. We remain focused on executing on our commercial strategy for Ameluz ® as the pieces of the puzzle to our future success continue to fall into place, and we look forward to demonstrating continued success over the coming quarters,” commented Prof. Dr. Hermann Lübbert, CEO of Biofrontera.
First Quarter 2018 Financial Highlights:
Revenues increased 79% to €4.7 million for the first quarter 2018, compared to €2.6 million in the same period 2017.
Revenues in the U.S. were €3.4 million for the first quarter 2018, compared to €1.3 for the first quarter 2017, representing a 161% increase.
Product revenues in Europe increased by 31% to € 1.2 million in the first quarter 2018 compared to € 0.9 million in the first quarter 2017.
Gross profit increased 78% to €4.0 million for the first quarter 2018, compared to €2.3million in the previous year.
Research and development costs decreased 17% to €0.9 million in the first quarter, compared to €1.1 million in the same period 2017.
Sales and marketing costs were €4.3 million for the first quarter 2018, an increase of 20% from €3.6 million for the same period 2017.
Net loss for the period was (€3.4 million) in the first quarter 2018, or (€0.08) per share, compared to (€3.5 million), or (€0.09) per share, in the same period 2017.
Cash and cash equivalents was €30.3 million as of March 31, 2018.
Early repayment of convertible bond 2016/2021 was completed.
Recent Operational and Clinical Development Highlights:
Completed initial public offering (IPO) of American Depositary Shares on the Nasdaq Capital Market in the U.S. and a preemptive rights offering in Germany of Biofrontera's ordinary shares, with aggregate net proceeds of €21.6 million.
European Commission approved use of Ameluz ® in combination with Daylight Photodynamic Therapy.
Product-specific J-Code and revised CPT codes went into effect as of January 2, 2018 and will improve reimbursement for PDT prescribing physicians in the United States.
Scottish medicines consortium (SMC) recommended Ameluz ® for the treatment of basal cell carcinoma.
Biofrontera generated total revenue of €4.7 million for the first quarter of 2018, representing an increase of 79% year-over-year. In the U.S., revenues grew significantly to €3.4 million for the first quarter of 2018, representing a 161% increase compared to the same period in 2017. Revenue in Germany amounted to €0.6 million, representing a 3% decrease compared with the previous year. Despite this reduction, the number of Ameluz ® units sold in pharmacies increased by 20%. The difference in revenue presumably reflects a significant effect from reimports from Austria. Foreign revenue excluding the U.S. amounted to €0.6 million, an increase of 110% compared with the previous year. Foreign revenue included reimports, as well as revenue in Spain, which increased by 48%.The development projects with Maruho generated revenue of €0.1 million in the first quarter of 2018 compared to €0.4 million in the first quarter of 2017.
Gross profit increased 78% to €4.0 million in the first quarter of 2018 from €2.3 million in the same period 2017. Gross margin decreased slightly to 85.7% in the first quarter 2018, compared to 86.1% for the same period in the previous year.
The consolidated net loss for the first quarter 2018 was (€3.4) million, or (€0.08) per share, compared to the net loss of (€3.5) million, or (€0.09) in the same period last year. The decrease in net loss reflects the higher gross margin driven by increased revenue.
Cash and cash equivalents were €30.3 million as of March 31, 2018, compared to €11.1 million as of December 31, 2017.
U.S. Commercial Update
Biofrontera kicked off 2018 with very strong sales in the U.S., increasing 161% year-over-year to €3.4 million for the first quarter of 2018. The U.S. represents Biofrontera’s most significant market for PDT and the company’s 31 sales representatives continue to ramp as the initial difficulties during the first two years of sales have been largely resolved.
In January 2018, the company’s unique product-specific billing code, or J-code (J7345), went into effect. The J-code, which has been gradually included in the billing systems of physicians and hospitals over the past 5 months, provides reimbursement coding clarity for dermatologists, significantly streamlining the reimbursement process for Ameluz ® . Additionally, the improved cost reimbursement for PDT, which was introduced through revised CPT codes from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), have already begun to make a positive impact on our revenue.
Biofrontera has also submitted a revised investigational new drug (IND) application to the FDA, including the protocol design for its proposed Phase III trial for basal cell carcinoma. This revised protocol is based on a July 2017 meeting with the agency to discuss the development pathway for Ameluz for the treatment of superficial BCC, and is informed by the Company’s previous BCC trial in Europe and the agency’s feedback to the original protocol proposal. Biofrontera anticipates initiating patient recruitment for the trial in the second half of 2018.
EU Commercial Update
In February 2018, the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) recommended the prescription of Ameluz ® for the treatment of superficial or nodular basal cell carcinoma within the National Health Service (NHS). The SMC specifically noted that it views Ameluz ® as an excellent alternative to surgery for patients where surgical removal of the lesions would be unsuitable and believes that long term treatment with PDT would reduce the need for additional cost intensive treatments at a later date.
In March 2018, the European Commission approved the use of Ameluz ® to include treatment with Daylight PDT for field cancerization and actinic keratosis. This approval allows Ameluz ® to directly compete within the patient-applied topical market and qualifies Ameluz ® for full reimbursement in countries such as Germany. The company started marketing Ameluz ® in combination with daylight PDT in April 2018.
Operational Update
Biofrontera successfully completed its initial public offering in the U.S. of American Depositary Shares and concurrent preemptive rights offering of its ordinary shares pursuant to German law to its existing holders of ordinary shares. The ADSs began trading on The NASDAQ Capital Market under the symbol "BFRA" on February 14, 2018. The Company received aggregate net proceeds from its offerings of approximately €21.6 million.
The quarterly statement including financial statements is available at
www.biofrontera.com/en/investors/financial-reports .
-End-
Enquiries, please contact:
Biofrontera AG
Thomas Schaffer, Chief Financial Officer
+49(0)214 87 6320
[email protected]
IR UK: Seton Services
Toni Vallen
+44(0) 20 7729 0805 IR and PR US: The Ruth Group
IR: Tram Bui
PR: Kirsten Thomas
+1 646-536-7035
+1 508-280-6592 About Biofrontera:
Biofrontera AG is an international biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development and commercialization of a platform of pharmaceutical products for the treatment of dermatological conditions and diseases caused primarily by exposure to sunlight that results in sun damage to the skin. Biofrontera’s approved products focus on the treatment in the U.S. and Europe of actinic keratoses, which are skin lesions that can sometimes lead to skin cancer, as well as the treatment of certain forms of basal cell carcinoma in the European Union. American Depositary Shares representing Biofrontera’s ordinary shares are listed on the NASDAQ Capital Market under the symbol “BFRA”, and Biofrontera’s ordinary shares are listed in the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (B8F, ISIN: DE0006046113). Information is also available at www.biofrontera.com .
Forward Looking Statements:
Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 regarding the public offering and the intended use of proceeds from the offering. These statements may be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as "anticipate," "believe," "forecast," "estimate" and "intend," among others. Such forward-looking statements are based on the currently held beliefs and assumptions of the management of Biofrontera AG, which are expressed in good faith and, in their opinion, reasonable. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results, financial condition, performance, or achievements of the Company, or industry results, to differ materially from the results, financial condition, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and other factors are set forth in the Registration Statement on Form F-1 filed with the SEC, including in the section “Risk Factors,” and in future reports filed with the SEC. Given these risks, uncertainties and other factors, prospective investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. The Company does not undertake an obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement.
Source: Biofrontera AG | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/30/globe-newswire-biofrontera-reports-first-quarter-2018-financial-results.html |
0 COMMENTS Here are some of the companies with shares expected to trade actively in Tuesday’s session. Stock movements reflect premarket trading.
Citigroup —Up 1.1% : Activist investor ValueAct Capital Partners LP has built a roughly $1.2 billion stake in Citigroup, The Wall Street Journal reported. It’s a bet that the giant bank’s strength as a service provider to corporations will enable it to thrive in the post-crisis era and make up ground its shares have lost in recent years.
21st Century Fox —Up 2.7% : Cable giant Comcast is getting the pieces in place to make a hostile bid for 21st Century Fox’s entertainment assets should it choose to do so, Reuters first reported late Monday. Fox agreed in December to sell the assets in question to Walt Disney for $52.4 billion in stock . Disney shares were down 1.3%, while Comcast shares declined 2%.
Amazon.com —Down 0.2% : Amazon closed up 1.2% at $1,600.14 in a third straight session of gains Monday, giving the e-commerce giant its first all-time high in almost two months. The stock needs to gain an additional 3% and reach $1,648.71 to give Amazon a market value of $800 billion for the first time.
Snap —Up 2.2% : The social-media firm said Chief Financial Officer Drew Vollero is stepping down , leaving the social-media company that has struggled since he helped take it public last year.
Valeant Pharmaceuticals International —Up 11%: The drug company plans to change its name to Bausch Health Cos., as management takes another step toward remaking the company and distancing it from past controversies. The company also reported its first organic quarterly revenue growth since 2015.
Macy's —Up 0.3% : Shares of the department store fell 3.8% Monday, their worst day in more than three months, after Deutsche Bank said in a note to clients it sees “limited upside” for department stores.
Dish Network —Down 1.2% : Dish said sales fell 6% in the first quarter, a slightly larger drop than analysts expected, while its Pay-TV subscribers declined from a year earlier.
Dean Foods —Up 5.5% : The milk company exceeded quarterly profit and income expectations after slashing costs, while maintaining its full-year 2018 guidance.
Hertz Global Holdings —Down 9.5% : Hertz reported a steeper-than-expected first-quarter loss, though the car-rental firm’s sales increased more than analysts projected.
AMC Entertainment Holdings —Up 1.2% : The movie theater operator said revenue rose more than Wall Street expected in the first quarter after the market closed Monday. Shares closed up 5.5%. during the regular session.
Jacobs Engineering Group —Up 1.8% : Jacobs, a Dallas-based technical services company, boosted its full-year profit guidance after topping expectations in the most recent quarter.
Zillow Group —Down 6.6% : Zillow issued a weaker-than-expected guidance for the current quarter, though the online real estate company exceeded profit and revenue expectations in the most recent quarter.
Crocs —Up 7.6% : The shoe company beat on earnings and revenue in the most recent quarter and gave upbeat sales projections for the current quarter.
This is an expanded version of the “Stocks to Watch” section of our Morning MoneyBeat newsletter. To receive it every morning via email, click here: https://www.wsj.com/newsletters?sub=263
Share this: 21st Century Fox Amazon.com AMC Entertainment Citigroup Comcast Crocs Dean Foods Dish Network Hertz Hot Stocks Jacobs Engineering Macy's SNAP Snapchat Stocks to Watch Valeant Pharmaceuticals ValueAct Capital Walt Disney Zillow Previous Apple Is Leading the Market Once Again Next Did Debut of Bitcoin Futures Trigger Crash in Price? | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://blogs.wsj.com/moneybeat/2018/05/08/stocks-to-watch-citigroup-21st-century-fox-disney-amazon-snap-valeant-macys-dish-dean-foods/ |
May 10 (Reuters) - PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd :
* ANNOUNCES FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR THE QUARTER ENDED MARCH 31, 2018
* Q2 SALES $46.6 MILLION * Q2 REVENUE VIEW $16.3 MILLION — THOMSON REUTERS I/B/E/S Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-pennantpark-floating-rate-capital/brief-pennantpark-floating-rate-capital-reports-q2-sales-46-6-million-idUSASC0A1KM |
May 21, 2018 / 12:08 PM / Updated 25 minutes ago Blackstone to buy LaSalle Hotel for $3.7 billion Reuters Staff 2 Min Read
(Reuters) - Private equity firm Blackstone Group LP ( BX.N ) said on Monday it would buy U.S. hotel owner LaSalle Hotel Properties ( LHO.N ) for $3.7 billion (2.8 billion pounds), topping a rival bid from Pebblebrook Hotel Trust ( PEB.N ) in April for $3.5 billion. FILE PHOTO: The ticker and trading information for Blackstone Group is displayed at the post where it is traded on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), New York, NY, U.S., April 4, 2016. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo
The deal values LaSalle at $33.50 per share compared with Pebblebrook’s offer of $31.75 per share and represents a premium of 5 percent to LaSalle’s closing price on Friday.
Pebblebrook raised its offer in April after LaSalle rejected it a previous bid, saying it undervalued the owner of high-end locations including ‘W’ Los Angeles.
LaSalle Chairman Stuart Scott said it was in touch with 20 potential buyers and signed confidentiality agreements with 10 of them before deciding on Blackstone’s offer.
Blackstone usually buys hotels and other real estate holdings at a discount, restructures them and sells for a profit.
The private equity firm exited Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc ( HLT.N ) on Friday after nearly 11 years by selling about 5.8 percent stake or 15.8 million shares in the hotel chain operator for about $1.32 billion.
Shares of LaSalle rose 5.2 percent at $33.55 in premarket trading, while shares of Blackstone were marginally up.
Citigroup Global Markets Inc and Goldman Sachs & Co LLC were the financial advisers, while Goodwin Procter LLP and DLA Piper LLP (US) were the legal advisers to LaSalle.
Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and J.P. Morgan were the financial advisers to Blackstone. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP was acting as legal adviser to Blackstone. Reporting by Sanjana Shivdas and Sonam Rai in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-lasalle-hotel-m-a-blackstone-group/blackstone-to-buy-lasalle-hotel-for-3-7-billion-idUKKCN1IM167 |
May 9 (Reuters) - Bank of Nova Scotia:
* REACHED AN AGREEMENT WITH CENCOSUD PERU TO ACQUIRE A 51% CONTROLLING INTEREST IN BANCO CENCOSUD, FOR APPROXIMATELY C$130 MILLION
* SAYS ITS PERUVIAN SUBSIDIARY, SCOTIABANK PERU, REACHED AGREEMENT WITH CENCOSUD PERU TO BUY A 51% CONTROLLING INTEREST IN BANCO CENCOSUD
* TERMS OF TRANSACTION ARE NOT FINANCIALLY MATERIAL TO SCOTIABANK Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-bank-of-nova-scotia-says-scotiaban/brief-bank-of-nova-scotia-says-scotiabank-peru-reached-agreement-with-cencosud-peru-to-buy-51-controlling-interest-in-banco-cencosud-idUSFWN1SG1NY |
A few years ago, veteran pro golfer Davis Love III took his son to see the renowned sports psychologist Bob Rotella. Dru Love, who was then playing for the University of Alabama, was struggling badly with his driver, so Rotella asked him some questions.
Who were his favorite golfers? “Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson,” the younger Love said.
And... | ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.wsj.com/articles/in-golfs-bomb-and-gouge-era-the-fairway-is-an-afterthought-1526641200 |
By Sarah Gray May 14, 2018
A number of Google employees have resigned in protest over a contract between the tech giant and the Pentagon, according to tech news site Gizmodo .
In March, Gizmodo revealed that Google was working with the Defense Department to develop artificial intelligence for analyzing drone footage as part of an initiative known as Project Maven.
Google’s involvement sparked ethical concern and anger among employees, Gizmodo initially reported. An internal petition called on Google CEO Sundar Pichai to cancel Project Maven and “[d]raft, publicize, and enforce a clear policy stating that neither Google nor its contractors will ever build warfare technology.” The New York Times reported in April that over 3,000 Google employees signed the petition.
Now, according to Gizmodo, “about a dozen” Google employees are resigning due to Project Maven. Their reasons for leaving range from lack of transparency to ethical concerns. “Over the last couple of months, I’ve been less and less impressed with the response and the way people’s concerns are being treated and listened to,” an unidentified employee who resigned told Gizmodo.
For its part, Google says that its Pentagon contract is only a test and that it covers non-classified images.
“The technology flags images for human review, and is for non-offensive uses only,” a Google spokesperson told Gizmodo in March. “Military use of machine learning naturally raises valid concerns. We’re actively discussing this important topic internally and with others as we continue to develop policies and safeguards around the development and use of our machine learning technologies.”
Still members of the tech industry are concerned. In addition to the Google-specific internal petition, there is a broader petition targeting IBM , Microsoft , Amazon and Google, created by tech workers who “believe that tech companies should not be in the business of war.”
Researchers who are critical of Google also posted an open letter worrying about Google providing the Pentagon with “open source ‘deep learning’ technology” along with engineering expertise.
“The DoD contracts under consideration by Google, and similar contracts already in place at Microsoft and Amazon, signal a dangerous alliance between the private tech industry, currently in possession of vast quantities of sensitive personal data collected from people across the globe, and one country’s military,” the letter states. “They also signal a failure to engage with global civil society and diplomatic institutions that have already highlighted the ethical stakes of these technologies.”
In October of 2017, over 100 companies attended an industry event related to Project Maven, according to the Defense Department.
Fortune contacted Google for comment about these resignations and will update this post if it responds.
Project Maven was started in April of 2017 by then-Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work, who started an Algorithmic Warfare Cross-Functional Team. “The project’s first task involves developing and integrating computer-vision algorithms needed to help military and civilian analysts encumbered by the sheer volume of full-motion video data that DoD collects every day in support of counterinsurgency and counterterrorism operations,” according to a Defense Department article from 2017. SPONSORED FINANCIAL CONTENT | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://fortune.com/2018/05/14/report-google-employees-resign-pentagon-contract/ |
BAKU, May 16 (Reuters) - Azeri oil exports through the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline via Georgia and Turkey fell by 0.2 percent to 10.861 million tonnes in the first four months of this year versus the same period in 2017, state energy company SOCAR said on Wednesday.
The BTC pipeline is used to export oil from the Azeri, Chirag and Guneshli (ACG) oilfields operated by BP.
Export volumes through BTC declined to 27.5 million tonnes in 2017 from 28.8 million tonnes in 2016.
Azerbaijan also exports oil via Russia, through the Baku-Novorossiisk pipeline and via Georgia by rail and through the Baku-Supsa pipeline.
Oil from Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Russia is also exported through the BTC pipeline.
Azerbaijan’s oil exports through all pipelines totalled 13.349 million tonnes in January-April this year. (Reporting by Nailia Bagirova; Writing by Margarita Antidze; Editing by Mark Potter)
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/azerbaijan-oil-exports/azerbaijans-jan-apr-oil-exports-via-turkey-pipeline-fall-0-2-pct-yr-yr-idUSL5N1SN5RX |
May 22 (Reuters) - Photronics Inc:
* SEES Q3 2018 REVENUE $128 MILLION TO $136 MILLION * Q2 REVENUE $130.8 MILLION VERSUS I/B/E/S VIEW $124.2 MILLION
* Q2 EARNINGS PER SHARE VIEW $0.07 — THOMSON REUTERS I/B/E/S Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage: ([email protected])
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-photronics-reports-q2-earnings-per/brief-photronics-reports-q2-earnings-per-share-0-15-idUSASC0A363 |
May 4 (Reuters) - AMP Ltd:
* AMP LIMITED APPOINTS DAVID MURRAY AO AS INDEPENDENT CHAIRMAN
* EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN MIKE WILKINS WILL RETURN TO POSITION OF ACTING CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
* FOLLOWING APPOINTMENT OF A NEW CEO, WILKINS WILL RETURN TO HIS ROLE AS A NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
* MURRAY TO JOIN BOARD ON OR BEFORE 1 JULY 2018 * MURRAY WILL LEAD REDEVELOPMENT OF GOVERNANCE PROCESSES AT CO INCLUDING PROCESS OF CONSIDERED BOARD RENEWAL Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-amp-ltd-appoints-david-murray-as-i/brief-amp-ltd-appoints-david-murray-as-independent-chairman-idUSFWN1SA1IW |
TOKYO (Reuters) - China, Japan and South Korea agreed on Wednesday to cooperate in seeking the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula, with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe saying recent positive momentum must be matched by “concrete action” by North Korea.
North Korea, which has been pursuing nuclear and missile programs in defiance of U.N. Security Council resolutions, figured prominently in talks between the three leaders in Tokyo after South Korean President Moon Jae-in’s historic meeting last month with the North’s Kim Jong Un.
Kim is expected to have a summit soon with U.S. President Donald Trump.
Leaders of the three Asian powers, whose ties have been strained by territorial and historical disputes, also touched on economics in the face of U.S. trade pressure on China and Japan.
Abe praised efforts by Moon and China to engage North Korea and said further efforts on denuclearisation were essential.
“We must take the recent momentum towards denuclearisation on the Korean peninsula and towards peace and security in Northeast Asia, and, cooperating even further with international society, make sure this is linked to concrete action by North Korea,” Abe told a news conference after the meeting.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang also attended the three-way summit, which was last held in Seoul in 2015.
Moon said the three countries agreed to highlight unity as the two Koreas moved towards a permanent peace settlement.
Related Coverage China's Li tells South Korea's Moon to appropriately handle THAAD issue Japan says to normalize North Korea ties if nuclear, abduction issues are solved “Above all, we reached the consensus that complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula, a permanent peace settlement and improvement of South-North relations is very important for peace and prosperity of Northeast Asia,” Moon said.
North and South Korea are technically still at war because their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, not a treaty.
In talks with Moon later on Wednesday, Abe expressed Japan’s concern that pressure on North Korea might be lifted too early as a “reward” for its shutting down its nuclear test site or halting missile launches.
Abe called for additional, specific action, a spokesman for South Korea’s presidential office said in a Tokyo briefing.
Moon assured Abe that no such steps would be taken without conferring with the United Nations, the United States and others.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and South Korean President Moon Jae-in pose for photographers prior to their summit in Tokyo, Wednesday, May 9, 2018. Eugene Hoshiko/Pool via Reuters TRADE PRESSURE AND DEALS Trump’s trade pressure on China and Japan, the world’s second and third-largest economies, appeared to have had an impact as Li urged swifter discussions on regional free trade deals, such as a Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership backed by Beijing.
“We are all beneficiaries of free trade and even though various issues have emerged, these should not stand in the way,” Li said. “Through actual behavior, let’s show that we three nations support engaging in free trade.”
Before a meeting as part of Li’s state visit to Japan - the first such visit by a Chinese premier since 2010 - Abe said he wanted to raise bilateral ties to a new level and visit China later this year.
After their talk, Abe and Li oversaw the signing of an agreement to set up a security hotline to defuse possible maritime incidents that could spark tensions.
The pact, a decade in the making, also provides for regular meetings between defense officials and a mechanism for their naval vessels to communicate at sea to avert maritime incidents.
In remarks to journalists, both men hailed warming ties between their countries with Li saying better relations between them was contributing to global stability and development.
Diplomatic relations between the two nations, clouded by Japan’s occupation of parts of China before and during World War Two, have gradually improved after deteriorating sharply in 2012, when Tokyo nationalized a cluster of disputed East China Sea islets that China also claims.
As the meeting’s host, Abe has won an opportunity to project himself in a leadership role and move beyond domestic woes such as suspected cronyism scandals, falling support rates and calls for his finance minister to quit.
Slideshow (11 Images) Japan fears it may be left out of North Korean negotiations, with Abe and Kim yet to set up a summit.
In comments aimed at a domestic audience, Abe said Japan would normalize ties with North Korea if the issue of Japanese abducted by Pyongyang to train spies, a key plank of his political platform, was comprehensively resolved.
Additional reporting by Christine Kim in Seoul, Writing by Elaine Lies and Malcolm Foster; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Nick Macfie
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/us-japan-summit/china-japan-and-south-korea-to-highlight-unity-amid-north-korea-moves-idUSKBN1IA01T |
May 17 (Reuters) - Itamar Medical Ltd:
* ITAMAR MEDICAL REPORTS RECORD FINANCIAL RESULTS FOR THE FIRST QUARTER, WITH 26% INCREASE IN REVENUE TO $5.5 MILLION AND MINIMAL OPERATING LOSS
* Q1 REVENUE ROSE 26 PERCENT TO $5.5 MILLION * ITAMAR MEDICAL - BOARD ADVANCING LISTING OF SHARES ON NASDAQ STOCK EXCHANGE IN U.S.
* ITAMAR MEDICAL - LISTING OF SHARES ON NASDAQ STOCK EXCHANGE THROUGH AMERICAN DEPOSITARY RECEIPT PROGRAM
* ADR PROGRAM CURRENTLY DOES NOT INCLUDE PLANS TO RAISE CAPITAL AS PART OF LISTING
* NON-GAAP OPERATING LOSS IN Q1 OF 2018 WAS $0.5 MILLION Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-itamar-medical-q1-revenue-rises-26/brief-itamar-medical-q1-revenue-rises-26-percent-to-5-5-million-idUSASC0A2SR |
May 2 (Reuters) - Ajanta Pharma Ltd:
* MARCH QUARTER CONSOL PROFIT 944.9 MILLION RUPEES VERSUS PROFIT 1.14 BILLION RUPEES YEAR AGO
* MARCH QUARTER CONSOL REVENUE FROM OPERATIONS 5.30 BILLION RUPEES VERSUS 4.77 BILLION RUPEES YEAR AGO Source text - bit.ly/2KwfQ1U Further company coverage:
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-indias-ajanta-pharma-march-qtr-con/brief-indias-ajanta-pharma-march-qtr-consol-profit-falls-idUSFWN1S90G2 |
HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- DXP Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ: DXPE) today announced that Eugene (“Gene”) Padgett has been appointed as DXP’s new Chief Accounting Officer, effective May 21, 2018. Mr. Padgett is a certified public accountant and has over 20 years of experience in accounting within a public company environment. Gene replaces Mac McConnell, who retired on March 31, 2018.
Previous to DXP, Mr. Padgett spent ten years with Spectra Energy in several positions with increasing responsibility including General Manager of U.S. and Canadian Tax, Director of U.S. Operations Accounting and General Manager Corporate Accounting. Prior to Spectra Energy, he spent seven years with Duke Energy in various roles covering Corporate Accounting, Accounting Research and Policy and working as a divisional controller. Mr. Padgett started his career at PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Kent Yee, CFO, added, “I am excited to have Gene as part of the DXP Accounting and Finance team. After conducting an extensive search, we found a great candidate and partner in Gene. I look forward to working with Gene and building a stronger strategic, technical and operational accounting and finance function to support the DXP businesses. We will continue to drive functional excellence in all areas of accounting and finance. We look forward to continuing the momentum and a positive fiscal year 2018 for the operations of our accounting and finance team.”
About DXP Enterprises, Inc.
DXP Enterprises, Inc. is a leading products and service distributor that adds value and total cost savings solutions to industrial customers throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico and Dubai. DXP provides innovative pumping solutions, supply chain services and maintenance, repair, operating and production ("MROP") services that emphasize and utilize DXP’s vast product knowledge and technical expertise in rotating equipment, bearings, power transmission, metal working, industrial supplies and safety products and services. DXP's breadth of MROP products and service solutions allows DXP to be flexible and customer-driven, creating competitive advantages for our customers. DXP’s business segments include Service Centers, Innovative Pumping Solutions and Supply Chain Services. For more information, go to www.dxpe.com .
The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a “safe-harbor” for . Certain information included in this press release (as well as information included in oral statements or other written statements made by or to be made by the Company) contains statements that are forward-looking. Such forward-looking information involves important risks and uncertainties that could significantly affect anticipated results in the future; and accordingly, such results may differ from those expressed in any forward-looking statement made by or on behalf of the Company. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to; ability to obtain needed capital, dependence on existing management, the ability to remediate material weaknesses, leverage and debt service, domestic or global economic conditions, and changes in customer preferences and attitudes. In some cases, you can identify by terminology such as, but not limited to, “may,” “will,” “should,” “intend,” “expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential,” “goal,” or “continue” or the negative of such terms or other comparable terminology. For more information, review the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
View source version on businesswire.com : https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180515006702/en/
DXP Enterprises, Inc.
Kent Yee, 713-996-4700
Senior Vice President, CFO
www.dxpe.com
Source: DXP Enterprises, Inc. | ashraq/financial-news-articles | http://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/15/business-wire-dxp-enterprises-appoints-gene-padgett-chief-accounting-officer.html |
(Reuters Health) - Physicians’ employers should commit to gender equity in pay, leadership development, career opportunities, and parental and family leave policies, a leading U.S. doctors group recommends.
Among other things, the recommendations from the American College of Physicians (ACP) urge hospitals, clinics and other places that employ doctors to avoid financial or career penalties for working less than full time. Both men and women should also have the same access to a minimum of six weeks of family and medical leave even when they’re still medical students or physicians in training.
“For many reasons, including the pay gap and gender bias and discrimination, women physicians face a higher rate of burnout than men - some studies show that rate to be as high as 71 percent for women physicians,” said Dr. Susan Thompson Hingle, chair of the ACP Board of Regents and a professor at the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine.
“Burnout is not only due to the pay gap, but it certainly contributes,” Hingle said by email. “Burned out physicians not only leave medicine early, thus worsening the physician shortage, but they also provide lower quality care . . . , have higher rates of medical errors, and lower patient satisfaction.”
To start addressing gender equity issues, parental leave should be mandated even in medical school and there should be flexibility in board certification processes that allow for trainees who take time off for parental leave to still sit for their boards, Hingle said.
“Promotion and academic rank are contributors to salary and to respect,” Hingle added. “Because of many factors, including societal expectations, women progress more slowly through the academic ranks, thus contributing to the gender disparities in salary and in leadership.”
Hospitals, clinics and other employers should also take steps to increase the number of women in leadership positions, the recommendations note. Employers should also investigate the impact of gender compensation inequity and barriers to career advancement and best practices to close these gaps across all practice settings.
Regular training sessions should also cover topics like implicit bias that might get in the way of women receiving equal pay or opportunities for mentoring, training and advancement on the job.
In addition, employers should offer programs in leadership development, negotiation and career development to medical students and junior physicians.
“Gender and status are so tightly conflated (men and things associated with men like leadership, power, authority are imbued with higher status than women and things like nurturing, supporting, relational) that it allows subjectivity to unintentionally influence the way the human mind evaluates objective data,” said Dr. Molly Carnes, author of an accompanying editorial and director of the Center for Women’s Health Research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
“So a high salary ‘for a woman’ brings to mind a different dollar amount that a high salary ‘for a man,’ and this leads to salary discrepancies across all fields,” Carnes said by email. “Every field has its own metrics for calculating salary, but the same phenomenon leads to the gender pay gaps in all fields.”
SOURCE: bit.ly/2Fw3qmY Annals of Internal Medicine, online April 16, 2018.
| ashraq/financial-news-articles | https://in.reuters.com/article/us-health-doctors-gender-equity/u-s-doctors-group-calls-for-equal-pay-opportunities-for-female-physicians-idINKBN1I24HM |
Subsets and Splits
No saved queries yet
Save your SQL queries to embed, download, and access them later. Queries will appear here once saved.