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☆ New FTX chief says bankrupt crypto exchange could restart - WSJ
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 19 (Reuters) - Bankrupt crypto exchange FTX is looking into the possibility of reviving its business, Chief Executive Officer John Ray told the Wall Street Journal on Thursday. Ray, who took over the reins in November, has set up a task force to explore restarting FTX.com, the company's main international exchange, he said in an interview with the WSJ. "I'm glad Mr. Ray is finally paying lip service to turning the exchange back on after months of squashing such efforts!" "I'm still waiting for him to finally admit FTX US is solvent and give customers their money back," Bankman-Fried added. Bankman-Fried has been accused of stealing billions of dollars from the exchange's customers to pay debts incurred by his crypto-focused hedge fund, Alameda Research.

☆ Miners, energy firms drag FTSE 100 lower; Dr Martens hits record low
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Johann M Cherian | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies FTSE 100 sheds 0.6%, FTSE 250 off 1.0%Deliveroo achieves breakeven in second halfBoohoo's Christmas revenue drops 11%Dr Martens sinks to FTSE 250 bottom on annual profit warningJan 19 (Reuters) - UK's commodity-heavy FTSE 100 fell on Thursday, with energy firms and material stocks dragging the benchmark index lower, while shares of bootmaker Dr Martens slumped to a record low after its annual profit warning. The FTSE 100 (.FTSE) slid 0.6%, while the domestically-oriented FTSE 250 (.FTMC) shed 1.0%. Energy heavyweights Shell (SHEL.L) and BP (BP.L) fell below 1.7%, while industrial miners (.FTNMX551020) shed 1.8% as crude and copper prices declined after disappointing U.S. economic data and on worries about a hawkish Federal Reserve. Dr Martens (DOCS.L) sank 23.6%, after it warned of a lower annual profit and revenue due to operational issues at its new U.S. distribution centre. Reporting by Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Shailesh KuberOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Southwest Airlines pilot union calls for strike authorization vote
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 18 (Reuters) - Southwest Airlines Co's (LUV.N) pilot union has called for a strike authorization vote, weeks after a tech meltdown at the carrier left tens of thousands of passengers stranded across the United States. Casey Murray, president of Southwest Airlines Pilot Association (SWAPA), said in a statement. The strike authorization vote will take place beginning May 1 and will be counted at the end of that month, said SWAPA, which represents more than 10,000 pilots. Southwest pilots have been locked in talks over a new contract with the airline for nearly three years. Reporting by Kannaki Deka in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber and Shinjini GanguliOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ U.S. holiday sales miss estimates as inflation drags demand: NRF
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 18 (Reuters) - U.S. holiday sales rose by 5.3%, but fell short of estimates, as shoppers feeling the brunt of stubbornly high inflation pulled forward purchases to October when retailers offered hefty discounts, data from the National Retail Federation (NRF) showed on Wednesday. The leading retail industry group said including e-commerce, holiday sales jumped to $936.3 billion during November and December, missing its forecast of a rise of between 6% and 8% over 2021. "We knew it could be touch-and-go for final holiday sales given early shopping in October that likely pulled some sales forward plus price pressures and cold, stormy weather,” NRF Chief Economist Jack Kleinhenz said. However, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday that retail sales dropped 1.1% in December putting consumer spending and the overall economy on a weaker growth path heading into 2023 as shoppers pulled forward holiday purchases into October. However, online holiday sales grew at the slowest pace as customers felt the brunt of rising prices.

☆ Fintech Pagaya to lay off 20% of employees
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 18 (Reuters) - Financial technology firm Pagaya Technologies Ltd (PGY.O) said on Wednesday it was laying off nearly 20% of its employees across its offices in the United States and Israel. Fintech startups have been some of the biggest casualties of the challenging economic environment since last year, after the Federal Reserve began raising rates to combat inflation. Pagaya said the affected employees were informed by Tuesday. The company listed on NASDAQ last year through a merger with special purpose acquisition company EJF Acquisition Corp in a deal that valued it at $8.5 billion. A special purpose acquisition company is a company that is listed on an exchange solely with the purpose of raising money to acquire another company and take it public.

The leading retail industry group said including e-commerce, holiday sales which is not adjusted for inflation jumped to $936.3 billion during November and December. It had previously forecast a rise of between 6% and 8% over 2021 to between $942.6 billion and $960.4 billion. Separately, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday that retail sales dropped 1.1% in December putting consumer spending and the overall economy on a weaker growth path heading into 2023. According to the NRF, online and other non-store sales were up 9.5% at $261.6 billion, which fell short of its forecast of a 10% to 12% growth. During the holiday period, furniture and home furnishings stores saw sales drop 1.1%, while electronics and appliance sales fell 5.7% - the only two categories that saw a decline in the season.

☆ India's Eris Lifesciences to buy some dermatology brands from Glenmark Pharma
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Indian drugmaker Eris Lifesciences Ltd (ERIS.NS) said on Tuesday it would acquire a portfolio of dermatology brands from Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd (GLEN.NS) for 3.4 billion rupees ($41.63 million) to deepen its presence in the anti-fungal and anti-psoriasis segments. The deal, through Eris' dermatology focused unit, is for the purchase of nine brands, including Onabet, Halobate, Sorvate, and Demelan for India and Nepal, Eris said. Glenmark said, post divestiture of the brands, it will further consolidate its position in the core therapeutic areas of cardiometabolic, respiratory, dermatology, and oncology segments. Separately, Eris on Tuesday reported a consolidated net profit of 1.02 billion rupees in its third quarter, from 1.01 billion rupees a year earlier. ($1 = 81.6740 Indian rupees)Reporting by Yagnoseni Das in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh KuberOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ India's Adani partners with Leyland, Ballard to make hydrogen fueled electric truck
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The project led by Adani, will have Ballard supply the fuel cell engine, while Indian truck maker Ashok Leyland will provide vehicle and technical support for the project. If the devices that do that, electrolysers, are powered by renewable energy, the product is called green hydrogen. The Indian government had recently approved an incentive plan of 174.9 billion rupees ($2.11 billion) to promote green hydrogen and had set green hydrogen consumption targets for some industries earlier this month. Indian companies such as Reliance Industries (RELI.NS), Indian Oil (IOC.NS), NTPC (NTPC.NS), Adani, JSW Energy (JSWE.NS), ReNew Power (RENE.BO) and Acme Solar (ACMO.NS) have big plans for green hydrogen. Adani has a tie-up with French energy company TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) as part of a deal to form a new green hydrogen project in India.

☆ FTSE 100 slides into red as Ocado weighs
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Johann M Cherian | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth/FilesSummarySummary Companies FTSE 100 down 0.1%, FTSE 250 off 0.05%Wage growth rises unexpectedlyRevolution Bars Group slumpsFTSE 100 hovers over 4-1/2-year highJan 17 (Reuters) - UK's blue-chip FTSE 100 edged lower on Tuesday, snapping a four-day winning streak, as Ocado sank on grim Christmas sales at its online supermarket venture, while data showing rising pay growth fuelled fears about the Bank of England (BoE) keeping monetary policy tight. The blue-chip FTSE 100 (.FTSE) fell 0.1%, while the domestically-oriented FTSE 250 (.FTMC) shed 0.05%. Shares of retailer Ocado Group (OCDO.L) tumbled 5.5% after its online supermarket joint venture with Marks & Spencer (MKS.L), Ocado Retail, said customers purchased fewer items per order in the run-up to Christmas. This saw the personal care, drug and grocery index (.FTNMX452010) lose 0.9%, making it the worst performing sector. Reporting by Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty and Shailesh KuberOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ UnitedHealth quarterly profit beats as medical costs stay low
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies UnitedHealth Group Inc FollowJan 13 (Reuters) - UnitedHealth Group Inc (UNH.N) on Friday reported a quarterly profit that beat Wall Street estimates, helped by lower medical costs and a boost from its Optum health services unit, which operates the company's pharmacy benefit management business. Health insurers' costs have been in flux during the pandemic, but have eased over the past year as COVID-related hospitalizations have fallen from their peak. Revenue from Optum rose 16.5% to $47.87 billion, aided by strong growth in its health service and pharmacy benefit management business. Optum includes the company's pharmacy benefit management business that helps negotiate the terms of coverage between health insurers, their clients and drug manufacturers. Reporting by Leroy Leo and Khushi Mandowara in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh KuberOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ EMA seeks to issue guidance on liver damage from Novartis' gene therapy
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 13 (Reuters) - The European Medicines Agency (EMA) said on Friday it plans to issue advice for physicians using Novartis AG's (NOVN.S) Zolgensma, calling on them to monitor patients for any liver injury after treatment. The statement follows two deaths due to liver failure after treatment with the gene therapy against spinal muscular atrophy, reported by Novartis in August. Spinal muscular atrophy is a group of rare genetic disorders which affect the nerve cells and cause muscle wasting and weakness. The advice for healthcare professionals has yet to be approved by further expert panels at EMA, which typically takes a few weeks. In Europe, however, such letters had been the subject of discussions with EMA, but Novartis would soon be cleared to send them in EU member states, it added.

☆ Google says India antitrust ruling to drive up costs for app developers
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 13 (Reuters) - Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) Google said on Friday that India's new antitrust order to change how the company markets its Android platform will drive up costs for app developers, equipment makers, and consequently, consumers. The Competition Commission of India (CCI) in October fined Google $161 million for exploiting its dominant position in Android, and asked it to change restrictions imposed on smartphone makers related to pre-installing apps. Google licenses its Android system to smartphone makers, but critics say that its imposition of restrictions, such as the mandatory pre-installation of its own apps, is anti-competitive. Reuters reported earlier this month that Google warned in a Supreme Court challenge to the order that Android ecosystem's growth in India was on the brink of stalling due to the order. Reporting by Tiyashi Datta in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber and Devika SyamnathOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Google Cloud's top U.S. sales executive departs
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 12 (Reuters) - Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) Google promoted the head of its international cloud businesses, Adaire Fox-Martin, to take on a top sales role as part of an operating model rejig, a spokesperson said on Thursday. The head of Google Cloud unit in the Americas, Kirsten Kliphouse, has left the company, the spokesperson said. Fox-Martin's appointment aims at "unifying global go-to-market organization," the company said and the role will focus on all global sales as well as service and support. The company is also under pressure amid disappointing ad sales, with advertisers cutting back on their spending in the face of an economic slowdown. Reporting by Tiyashi Datta and Vansh Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber and Krishna Chandra EluriOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

WASHINGTON/CHICAGO, Jan 12 (Reuters) - U.S. airline operations returned to normal on Thursday even as the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) continues to investigate pinpoint the cause of a computer outage that grounded flights nationally and to prevent it from happening again. "FAA operations are back to normal, and we are seeing no unusual delays or cancellations this morning," the FAA said in a tweet. More than 11,300 flights were delayed or canceled on Wednesday in the first national grounding of domestic traffic in about two decades. As of noon Thursday, 1,400 U.S. flights were delayed and 117 were canceled, according to FlightAware, a typical aviation day given current weather issues. Major carriers Delta Air Lines (DAL.N), United Airlines (UAL.O), American Airlines Group Inc (AAL.O) and Southwest Airlines (LUV.N) all were reporting normal operations on Thursday.

Jan 12 (Reuters) - Crypto broker Genesis owes creditors more than $3 billion, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters, as woes pile up for its owner, venture capital company Digital Currency Group (DCG). DCG is considering offloading parts of its venture capital holdings to raise money, the Financial Timesreported Thursday. DCG's portfolio includes 200 crypto-related projects such as exchanges, banks and custodians in at least 35 countries, and are worth about $500 million, the report added. Meanwhile, its parent DCG saw calls from Cameron Winklevoss, co-founder of crypto exchange Gemini, for the removal of DCG's chief executive officer, Barry Silbert, earlier this week amid tensions between the high-profile executives. Stamford, Connecticut-based DCG is also the parent company of several high-profile crypto firms, including crypto asset manager Grayscale.

Companies JPMorgan Chase & Co FollowJan 12 (Reuters) - JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) on Thursday shut down the website of Frank, a college financial planning platform it acquired in 2021, after suing the startup's founder Charlie Javice and Chief Growth Officer Olivier Amar for creating nearly 4 million fake customer accounts. The largest U.S. bank by assets had paid $175 million for Frank in a bid to deepen its ties with students. The bank said it was led to believe more than 4.25 million students had created accounts on Frank. However, when JPMorgan sent marketing test emails to a list of Frank's customers that the company had provided, only 28% of them were delivered, the bank alleged. JPMorgan said it generally sees a delivery rate of 99% with similar campaigns.

☆ Tesla nears deal to build production facilities in Indonesia -Bloomberg News
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Tesla China-made Model 3 vehicles are seen during a delivery event at its factory in Shanghai, China January 7, 2020. REUTERS/Aly SongCompanies Tesla Inc FollowJan 12 (Reuters) - Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) is nearing a preliminary deal to build production facilities in Indonesia with a capacity of one million units, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing unidentified people familiar with the matter. Tesla makes its electric cars in China's Shanghai, Germany's Berlin, and Austin and Fremont in the United States. The latest report said the Indonesia talks include plans for production facilities and to facilitate the company's supply chain. Tesla has signed contracts worth about $5 billion to buy materials for batteries from nickel processing companies in Indonesia, a senior cabinet minister told CNBC Indonesia last year.

☆ DCG's crypto broker Genesis owes creditors more than $3 bln - FT
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 12 (Reuters) - Crypto broker Genesis owes creditors more than $3 billion, prompting its owner Digital Currency Group (DCG) to explore selling assets in its venture portfolio to raise money, the Financial Times reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. Genesis and DCG did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. Several crypto companies have lately been under pressure trying to navigate unprecedented industry-wide turmoil amid waning investor appetite for digital assets after major exchange FTX blew up late last year. Meanwhile, its parent DCG saw calls from Cameron Winklevoss, co-founder of crypto exchange Gemini, for the removal of DCG's chief executive officer, Barry Silbert, earlier this week amid tensions between the high-profile executives. Stamford, Connecticut-based DCG is also the parent company of several high-profile crypto firms, including crypto asset manager Grayscale.

☆ Mark Cuban's pharmaceuticals startup ties up with RxPreferred
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 11 (Reuters) - Billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban's pharmaceuticals startup has tied up with pharmacy benefits manager RxPreferred Benefits, the companies said on Wednesday, in a move to offer lower priced drugs through some employer-backed health insurance plans. Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs provides generic drugs through direct contracts with manufacturers and charges a standard markup on every drug it sells. Under the partnership, RxPreferred Benefits' customers will have the option to use Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs as part of their health insurance plans. Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs in December partnered with EmsanaRx, a nonprofit coalition of nearly 40 companies including U.S. retailers Walmart (WMT.N) and Costco (COST.O), that operates a PBM service for employers. PBMs serve as intermediaries between drug manufacturers, health insurance plans and pharmacies to negotiate prescription drug prices.

☆ Tesla nears deal to build production facilities in Indonesia - Bloomberg News
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Tesla China-made Model 3 vehicles are seen during a delivery event at its factory in Shanghai, China January 7, 2020. REUTERS/Aly SongCompanies Tesla Inc FollowJan 11 (Reuters) - Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) is nearing a preliminary deal to build production facilities in Indonesia with a capacity of one million units, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. The country's investment minister confirmed talks with the world's most valuable automaker, the report added. The report said that the talks include plans for production facilities and to facilitate the company's supply chain. Tesla has signed contracts worth about $5 billion to buy materials for their batteries from nickel processing companies in Indonesia, a senior cabinet minister told CNBC Indonesia last year.

FAA officials said a preliminary review traced the outage to a damaged database file, but added there was no evidence of a cyberattack and the investigation was continuing. FAA officials said they were working to "further pinpoint the causes" so the problem can be avoided in the future. One issue airlines are facing is trying to get planes in and out of crowded gates, which is causing further delays. He described confusion as airline employees and many passengers were initially unaware of the FAA's moves and flight delays. The U.S. Travel Association, which represents the travel industry including airlines, called the FAA system failure "catastrophic."

☆ Miners push FTSE 100 to over 4-year high, Direct Line tumbles
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Shashwat Chauhan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Direct Line drops after scrapping final dividend for 2022JD Sports rises after reporting high revenue growthReach slumps after saying annual profit to miss expectationsU.S. CPI awaitedFTSE 100 up 0.5%, FTSE 250 adds 0.7%Jan 11 (Reuters) - UK's exporter-heavy FTSE 100 hit an over four-year high on Wednesday, buoyed by gains in mining stocks, while insurer Direct Line plunged after cancelling its final dividend for 2022. The blue-chip FTSE 100 (.FTSE) advanced 0.5%, its highest since August 2018, while the more domestically focused FTSE 250 mid-cap index (.FTMC) gained 0.7%. Fed Governor Michelle Bowman said overnight that the central bank will have to raise interest rates further to combat high inflation. The commodity-heavy FTSE 100 has had a bright start to the year so far, rising for five of the previous six trading sessions, after it outperformed major global peers in 2022 as commodity prices jumped. Reporting by Shashwat Chauhan in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Shailesh KuberOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Asian companies see earnings upgrades by analysts over the past month
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 10 (Reuters) - Analysts raised 2023 earnings estimates for Asian companies over the past month, contrasting with the raft of earnings downgrades in the last year, as China's reopening and slowing inflationary pressures boost optimism. MSCI Asia-Pacific's (.MIAP00000PUS) 2023 earnings estimates were raised by 2.5% over the past month, with China's earnings raised by 3.1%, followed by Japan's 2.3%. By sector, analysts lifted consumer discretionary and industrials earnings by over 2% in the past month, while financials and tech companies were increased by 1.2% each. Last year, analysts cut their forward 12-month earnings by 7% as the region's revenues shrank due to China's stricter COVID-restrictions and as higher product prices affected companies' profit margins. Breakdown by sector for estimates changes"In general, valuations of Asian equities look attractive compared with those of developed markets.

☆ Gemini's Winklevoss calls for removal of DCG chief Barry Silbert
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 10 (Reuters) - Cryptocurrency exchange Gemini co-founder Cameron Winklevoss on Tuesday called for the removal of Digital Currency Group Inc (DCG) chief Barry Silbert, amid tensions between the two high-profile crypto executives in the wake of the FTX collapse. Genesis halted customer withdrawals in November, after major exchange FTX filed for bankruptcy. In his open letter to the DCG board, Winklevoss said Genesis and DCG had "defrauded" some 340,000 Earn users. "There is no path forward as long as Barry Silbert remains CEO of DCG," Winklevoss wrote. The latest development comes a week after Winklevoss penned another open letter to Silbert, saying Genesis owed more than $900 million to Earn users.

☆ Amazon to widely launch 'Buy with Prime', says offering improved merchant sales
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

'Buy With Prime', which was launched as an invite-only offering in April, will be widely available to U.S.-based merchants by Jan. 31, the company said. It added that the product has increased shopper conversion rate by an average of 25%, meaning that many more people placed an order when 'Buy with Prime' was available versus when it was not. Prime members, who pay $139 per year and drive most of Amazon's sales volume, can buy products from these merchants by clicking the 'Buy With Prime' button on their storefront. The offering competes with the Shopify Pay feature offered by the Canadian company, which has emerged as an alternative for online merchants looking to directly sell products to consumers. CNBC had reported in September that Shopify was warning merchants trying to install 'Buy With Prime' button that the feature violates its terms of service.

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