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☆ BHP Anglo American bid: The clean energy race could trigger the biggest mining deal in decades
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

London CNN —Mining giant BHP has made a near-$40 billion bid to take over its UK rival Anglo American in what would be the largest mining deal on record. BHP said in a statement Thursday that it valued Anglo American shares at £25.08 ($31.40) apiece, or £31.1 billion ($38.9 billion) in total. The potential deal would have a higher value than the $38.3 billion acquisition of Switzerland’s Xstrata by commodities company Glencore in 2012, according to Dealogic data. It would also be the biggest merger or acquisition in the mining industry by value since Dealogic began collecting the data in 2004. Shares in Anglo American soared as much as 13.8% on the news.

Persons: BHP, Dealogic, “, Mike Henry, ” Susannah Streeter, Hargreaves Lansdown, Rob North Organizations: London CNN — Mining, BHP, London Metals, Oz Minerals, United Kingdom’s, London Stock Exchange, City of, Hargreaves Locations: Australia, City, City of London

☆ Cars, sugar and cruises: How the Port of Baltimore closure could hurt the economy
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Mark Thompson | Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The Port of Baltimore said in a post on X that vessel traffic was suspended until further notice, but trucks were still being processed at its terminals. It said it would discharge cargo destined for Baltimore in other ports nearby, but Maesrk warned customers that could mean delays. Closer to the Midwest than any other port on the East Coast, Baltimore is a major hub for vehicles, containers and commodities. Baltimore ranks first among US ports for autos and light trucks, handling a record 850,000 vehicles last year. While many of the 30,000 to 35,000 cars and trucks that used the Key Bridge daily can be rerouted through the two nearby tunnels, that will cause traffic delays.

Persons: Dali, Judah Levine, ” Maersk, “, VW, Oren Klachkin, Levine, Mark Zandi, ”, Zandi, Wes Moore, Joe Biden, Francis Scott Key, Tasos Katopodis, — Moore, Emily Stausbøll, Matt Lupoli, Hanna Ziady, Peter Valdes, Rob North, Sugam Pokharel Organizations: New York CNN, Baltimore, Atlantic, Nationwide Financial, US, Moody’s, Maryland Gov, Rebuilding, Francis Scott Key Bridge, Domino, Company, Royal Caribbean, Cruises, Cruise, Cruise Lines International Association, Royal Locations: London, New York, Port, Baltimore, East Coast, Singapore, East Coast , Baltimore, Philadelphia, Norfolk, of New York, New Jersey, Asia, Africa, Suez, Maryland, Patapsco, Rebuilding Baltimore, Baltimore , Maryland, Tasos, “, Norway, Royal Caribbean

☆ Lufthansa is hurting as Germany is gripped by strikes
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-07 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The strikes have also discouraged numerous customers from booking flights — particularly last-minute ”profitable” flights — resulting in a ”significant sales loss” for the company, he added. Lufthansa Group reported operating profit of around €2.7 billion ($2.9 billion) — the third-biggest in its history, and up 76% from 2022. The Verdi union, which represents 25,000 Lufthansa ground staff, had called for them to go on strike from early Thursday and until Saturday morning. The strikes are just the latest in a wave of industrial action in Germany, famed for its strong legal protections for workers, and follow walkouts by train drivers in January over wages. Deutsche Bahn, Germany’s state-owned rail operator, said it expected the industrial action to have a “massive” impact on its operations.

Persons: Berlin CNN —, Remco Steenbergen, Verdi, Marvin Reschinsky, Michael Niggemann, Chris Stern, Olesya Dmitracova, Eve Brennan, Rob North Organizations: Berlin CNN, Berlin CNN — Germany’s, Lufthansa Group, Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Security, Hamburg, Monetary Fund, Deutsche Bahn Locations: Berlin, €, Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, Germany, Germany’s, London

☆ Oil prices are falling even as Israel steps up its war on Hamas. A spike could still happen
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( Olesya Dmitracova | Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, fell 1.1% to $89 a barrel, and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude, the US benchmark, dropped 1.3% to trade at $84 a barrel by 7.51 a.m. The World Bank said Monday that a ratcheting up in the fighting in Gaza could push global commodity markets, including oil markets, into “uncharted waters,” and laid out three scenarios under which oil prices could surge. In that instance, the level of disruption would be comparable to that caused by the Arab oil embargo in 1973. The World Bank said a smaller disruption, equivalent to that resulting from the Libyan civil war in 2011, could send oil prices to $103 a barrel. Prices for Brent have risen 5.7% since Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, killing more than 1,400 people, mostly civilians.

Persons: Brent, Susannah Streeter, Hargreaves Lansdown, ”, Germany —, ” Indermit Gill, Benjamin Netanyahu, ” Israel, Daniel Hagari, Jake Sullivan, Ebrahim Raisi, — Rob North Organizations: London CNN, West Texas, Hargreaves, Bank, Hamas, Sunday, CBS Locations: Gaza, Germany, Ukraine, Iraq, Israel, Israeli, Iran, Lebanese, Tehran

☆ Putin: Sanctions could hurt Russia's economy
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

London CNN —President Vladimir Putin has conceded that Western sanctions designed to starve the Kremlin of funds for its invasion of Ukraine could deal a blow to Russia’s economy. “The illegitimate restrictions imposed on the Russian economy may indeed have a negative impact on it in the medium term,” Putin said in televised remarks Wednesday reported by state news agency TASS. It is a rare admission by the Russian leader, who has repeatedly insisted that Russia’s economy remains resilient and that sanctions have hurt Western countries by driving up inflation and energy prices. Putin said Russia’s economy had been growing since July, thanks in part to stronger ties with “countries of the East and South,” likely referring to China and some African countries. Russia’s economy has showed surprising resilience to unprecedented sanctions imposed by the West, including an EU ban on most imports of oil products.

☆ Credit Suisse faces fateful weekend. Will UBS step up with a rescue bid?
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( Mark Thompson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

London CNN —The fate of Credit Suisse could be decided in the next 36 hours after a torrid week for Switzerland’s second biggest bank. But by Friday, analysts were speculating that a full-blown rescue would be needed, and reports began to swirl of a possible takeover by its biggest Swiss rival, UBS (UBS). The FT said the boards of UBS and Credit Suisse were expected to meet separately over the weekend. Credit Suisse and UBS both declined to comment to Reuters. “BlackRock is not participating in any plans to acquire all or any part of Credit Suisse, and has no interest in doing so,” a BlackRock spokesperson told CNN.

☆ Credit Suisse shares plunge again on report of regulatory probe
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Olesya Dmitracova | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

London CNN —Shares of embattled Swiss bank Credit Suisse fell to a record low Tuesday after a report that regulators are reviewing comments the lender’s chairman made about the health of its finances. The bank’s stock plunged as much as 9% to trade at 2.52 Swiss francs ($2.73), before recovering slightly. Credit Suisse did not respond to a CNN request for comment Tuesday. The Swiss financial regulator, Finma, declined to comment. The rumors, which sparked a selloff in the lender’s shares, followed a series of missteps and compliance failures that cost Credit Suisse billions.

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☆ The UK is gripped by an economic crisis of its own making
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-29 | by ( Mark Thompson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

“While this is welcome, the fact that it needed to be done in the first place shows that the UK markets are in a perilous position,” said Paul Dales, chief UK economist at Capital Economics, commenting on the bank’s intervention. “It wouldn’t be a huge surprise if another problem in the financial markets popped up before long,” Dales added. The UK government should also postpone its tax cuts, El-Erian said. We look like reckless gamblers who only care about the people who can afford to lose the gamble,” one former Conservative minister told CNN. “Truss and Kwarteng are now facing a severe economic crisis as the world’s financial markets wait for them to make policy changes that they and the Conservative party will find unpalatable,” the Eurasia analysts wrote.

London CNN Business —One of the world’s leading multilateral financial institutions has joined a chorus of criticism of huge tax cuts announced by the UK government last week that sent the pound plunging to a record low. In a rare and stinging rebuke for such a large developed economy, the International Monetary Fund warned that the tax cuts — the biggest in Britain since the early 1970s — would likely increase inflation and inequality. “We understand that the sizable fiscal package announced aims at helping families and businesses deal with the energy shock and at boosting growth via tax cuts and supply measures,” an IMF spokeperson said. UK finance minister Kwasi Kwarteng has shown no signs of backing down, despite the market crash. Yields on 10-year UK government bonds fell sharply after the Bank of England’s announcement on Wednesday but remain elevated.

Markets fear the plan will drive up inflation, forcing the Bank of England to push interest rates as high as 6% next spring, from 2.25% at present. “Were dysfunction in this market to continue or worsen, there would be a material risk to UK financial stability. To prevent that happening, the central bank said it would buy long-dated UK government bonds until October 14. Yields on 10-year UK government bonds fell sharply after the Bank of England’s announcement on Wednesday but remain elevated. UK interest rates have risen seven times since December 2021.

☆ Pound to dollar: The pound's crash will make inflation worse
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Julia Horowitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Consequently, the Bank of England will come under pressure to jack up interest rates further and faster. It has been sharply critical of the UK government’s proposals. Why a plunging pound is bad newsThe pound hit a record low against the dollar on Monday, dropping near $1.03 before recovering to almost $1.07. Investors expect the Bank of England will need to increase interest rates much more aggressively to get inflation in check. The central bank has given no indication it will hike interest rates outside its normal schedule of meetings.

☆ The pound’s crash will make inflation worse and push interest rates higher
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Julia Horowitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Consequently, the Bank of England will come under pressure to jack up interest rates further and faster. It has been sharply critical of the UK government’s proposals. Investors expect the Bank of England will need to increase interest rates much more aggressively to get inflation in check. The central bank has given no indication it will hike interest rates outside its normal schedule of meetings. “If markets still don’t have faith in the fiscal picture, I’m not sure how the Bank of England wins this,” Rossiter said.

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