Today's Reuters Business News Headlines - Yahoo! News:
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S&P downgrades S.Africa outlook, cites structural problems
Wed,28 Mar 2012 10:54 PM PDT
Reuters - JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - S&P downgraded South Africa's outlook to negative from stable on Wednesday, citing the potential for a ratings downgrade if economic and social problems feed into the political debate ahead of 2014 elections. But the Treasury rejected the ratings assessment of the political risk in Africa's biggest economy, saying political debate should not be confused with instability. ... Full Story | Top |
Goldman board meets in India amid talk of splitting top jobs
Wed,28 Mar 2012 10:53 PM PDT
Reuters - MUMBAI (Reuters) - Half a world away from Wall Street, the board of directors of embattled Goldman Sachs Group Inc were meeting in India amid reports that senior executives have talked about splitting the roles of chief executive and chairman, both held now by Lloyd Blankfein. The meeting is the first in India for the directors of the investment bank. Access to the presidential suite hired by Goldman Sachs at Mumbai's landmark Taj Mahal Palace hotel, which was heavily damaged during the deadly November 2008 militant attack on the financial capital, was blocked to non-guests on Thursday ... Full Story | Top |
IMF approves final Angola loan tranche
Wed,28 Mar 2012 10:48 PM PDT
Reuters - LUANDA (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund on Wednesday approved the release of a final loan disbursement to Angola under the country's $1.4 billion loan agreement made in 2009. The IMF said it would immediately disburse $132.9 million to Angolan authorities and waived performance targets linked to international reserves and central bank credit. Earlier, rights groups wrote to IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde urging the IMF's executive board to withhold the final tranche until the Angolan government improved transparency on how it uses public funds. ... Full Story | Top |
China's Minmetals targets more African copper acquisitions
Wed,28 Mar 2012 10:44 PM PDT
Reuters - MELBOURNE (Reuters) - China's Minmetals Resources plans to use its C$1.3 billion Anvil Mining acquisition as a platform to buy more copper assets in central and southern Africa, a senior executive said on Thursday. "So we'll be very much looking for additional projects and/or acquisitions in the central African copper belt -- in both DRC, Zambia and southern African countries as well," Michael Nossal, the company's general manager of business development, told reporters at a teleconference briefing on results. Full Story | Top |
Brent near $124 as US crude stocks rise offsets Iran
Wed,28 Mar 2012 10:41 PM PDT
Reuters - SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Brent crude held steady near $124 on Thursday as news of a surge in U.S. crude inventories and Western nations' talks on releasing strategic oil reserves offset supply disruption concerns over tension in the Middle East. France is in contact with Britain and the United States over a possible release of strategic oil stocks while the largest weekly build in U.S. crude inventories in more than a year caught investors by surprise. Brent crude edged down 11 cents to $124.05 by 0432 GMT after a fall of 1.09 percent in the previous session. U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
Shares fall on U.S., China growth worries
Wed,28 Mar 2012 10:36 PM PDT
Reuters -  TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian shares fell for the second straight day on Thursday as concerns about growth prospects in the world's two largest economies, the United States and China, prompted investors to trim their risk exposure ahead of the end of the quarter. European equity markets were expected to track Asian markets lower, with financial spreadbetters predicting major European markets to open down 0.1 to 0.3 percent. U.S. stock futures were steady. ...
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Analysis: Canada's "Cushing moment": A northern pipeline crisis looms
Wed,28 Mar 2012 10:31 PM PDT
Reuters - CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Oil traders still grappling with an unprecedented pipeline bottleneck in the U.S. Midwest that roiled global energy markets last year should beware: Canada may be next. The pipelines that carry crude from Alberta's oil sands and the Bakken shale fields of North Dakota to U.S. refiners may run out of capacity as soon as 2015, some analysts now warn. Fears that the export of Canadian crude will be constrained have risen recently as a result of pipeline project delays and the unyielding growth of North Dakota output. ... Full Story | Top |
China allocates $24 billion foreign debt quota to foreign banks
Wed,28 Mar 2012 09:47 PM PDT
Reuters -  BEIJING (Reuters) - China has allocated $24 billion in long-term foreign debt quotas to foreign banks for 2012 to allow the lenders to bring more money into the Chinese economy, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said on Thursday. Among the banks the quota applies to are the China units of HSBC Holdings Plc , Deutsche Bank Ag , JP Morgan , Citigroup , Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp and Bank of East Asia , the economic planning agency said. The six banks are involved in a foreign debt pilot project, the agency said, without specifying the details of the project. ...
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News Corp says BBC accusations on TV piracy baseless
Wed,28 Mar 2012 09:39 PM PDT
Reuters -  (Reuters) - News Corp President Chase Carey said that allegations in a BBC documentary that a subsidiary ran a secret unit promoting pirating of pay-TV rivals were "unfair and baseless", backing a call for the broadcaster to retract the allegations. The BBC's Panorama alleged in a documentary broadcast on Monday that NDS, a pay-TV smartcard maker recently sold by News Corp for $5 billion, hired a consultant to post the encryption codes of ITV Digital, a rival of the then Sky TV, on his website. ...
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Exclusive: Investors press U.S. shale oil drillers to control flaring
Wed,28 Mar 2012 08:40 PM PDT
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Investors representing $500 billion in assets are pushing energy companies in the shale oil rush in North Dakota and other states to disclose the amount of natural gas they burn - a practice they see as a wasteful financial risk. "We want to encourage companies to articulate plans for resolving this issue while shale oil production is still in its relative infancy," said Karina Litvack, the head of governance and sustainable investment at F&C Asset Management. ... Full Story | Top |
Brent near $124 as U.S. crude stocks rise offset Iran
Wed,28 Mar 2012 08:28 PM PDT
Reuters -  SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Brent crude held steady near $124 on Thursday as news of a surge in U.S. crude inventories and Western nations' talks on releasing strategic oil reserves offset supply disruption concerns over tension in the Middle East. France is in contact with Britain and the United States over a possible release of strategic oil stocks while the largest weekly build in U.S. crude inventories in more than a year caught investors by surprise. Brent crude edged down 3 cents to $124.13 by 0250 GMT (10.50 pm EDT)after a fall of 1.09 percent in the previous session. U.S. ...
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TEPCO decides to ask government for $12 billion injection: Kyodo
Wed,28 Mar 2012 07:21 PM PDT
Reuters -  TOKYO (Reuters) - Tokyo Electric Power Co , troubled operator of the tsunami-hit Fukushima nuclear power plant, formally decided on Thursday to ask the government to inject 1 trillion yen ($12.06 billion) in tax money to stay afloat, Kyodo news agency said. The move by the company, known as Tepco, coincides with doubts about the future of Japan's atomic energy policy. Only one of 54 reactors is on stream as the government seeks backing from local authorities to restart units shut for maintenance. ...
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Balfour Beatty warns 12,000 jobs at risk: report
Wed,28 Mar 2012 06:58 PM PDT
Reuters -  LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's biggest construction company Balfour Beatty has warned all its 12,000 staff in the UK that their jobs are at risk, the construction industry magazine Building reported on Wednesday. A spokeswoman for the London-based company, which developed the city's Olympic Aquatics Centre, is cited as saying all 12,000 staff in the construction services division had been notified, but did not specify how many jobs would be at risk. ...
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Wall Street eases as energy and materials sectors weigh
Wed,28 Mar 2012 06:30 PM PDT
Reuters -  NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks declined on Wednesday as sliding oil and metals prices gave investors a reason to sell commodity-related shares. A sharp fall in U.S. crude oil futures hit energy stocks, prompted by talk of a release of some U.S. and European strategic oil reserves. Materials shares dropped as well. A weaker-than-expected report on U.S. durable goods orders deflated some of the recent investor optimism over the economy, leading to softness in industrial shares. ...
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Goldman's deal with union: something for everyone
Wed,28 Mar 2012 06:22 PM PDT
Reuters -  BOSTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs' leadership restructuring deal with a powerful union allows Lloyd Blankfein to keep both his titles of chairman and chief executive officer and present a strong public face at a time when such dual roles are falling out of favor. But the deal also quietly opens the door for stronger corporate governance oversight within the giant firm, which faces long-running pressure to reform a corporate culture that has come to define Wall Street's resistance to change. ...
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