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☆ Magnificent 7 profits now exceed almost every country in the world. Should we be worried?
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-19 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Michael M. Santiago | Getty ImagesThe so-called "Magnificent 7" now wields greater financial might than almost every other major country in the world, according to new Deutsche Bank research. The meteoric rise in the profits and market capitalizations of the Magnificent 7 U.S. tech behemoths — Apple , Amazon , Alphabet , Meta , Microsoft , Nvidia and Tesla — outstrip those of all listed companies in almost every G20 country, the bank said in a research note Tuesday. Of the non-U.S. G20 countries, only China and Japan (and the latter, only just) have greater profits when their listed companies are combined. Deutsche Bank analysts highlighted that the Magnificent 7's combined market cap alone would make it the second-largest country stock exchange in the world, double that of Japan in fourth. However, this level of concentration has led some analysts to voice concerns over related risks in the U.S. and global stock market.

Persons: Michael M, Jim Reid, Deutsche, Reid, Tesla, Evelyn Partners, Daniel Casali, Evelyn, Casali Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, Santiago, Getty, Deutsche Bank, Microsoft, Nvidia, Tesla, Apple, Amazon, Evelyn Partners Locations: New York City, China, Japan, France, Saudi Arabia, U.S

☆ Uncle Sam just overhauled the H-1B visa lottery, and that's good news for startups
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-05 | by ( Melia Russell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewA new reform to the US H-1B visa program aims to ring out some of the uncertainty for migrant workers and employers. Each year, tens of thousands of foreign nationals wind up at venture-backed companies through the employment-based visa program. However, obtaining an H-1B visa remains challenging due to high demand. Data shows much of the increase was due to a record-breaking number of employers submitting multiple H-1B registrations for the same person. "This led to many individuals being entered into the lottery multiple times, through different companies, and ultimately decreasing the odds of being selected in the lottery," Finkelman said.

Persons: —, Jason Finkelman, Finkelman, USCIS, Sophie Alcorn, Alcorn Organizations: Service, Immigration Services, Business, Tech Locations: Austin, Hyderabad, Beijing, Silicon Valley

☆ Here are Wednesday's biggest analyst calls: Apple, Netflix, Nvidia, Uber, Tesla, Microsoft, Amazon & more
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-24 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Here are Wednesday's biggest calls on Wall Street: Citi reiterates Chipotle as buy Citi raised its price target on Chipotle to $2,699 per share from $2,292. "We are launching coverage of NKLA with an Outperform rating and a $2 price target." Polestar : On a Road to Nowhere - Initiating Coverage with a target price of $1.15, Underperform." Citi upgrades Sunoco to buy from neutral Citi said the oil and gas company is "compelling." Citi reiterates Microsoft as buy Citi raised its price target on the stock to $470 per share from $432 and said "ramping GenAI should keep growth accelerating."

Persons: Chipotle, Daiwa, Wells, Morgan Stanley, it's, Baird, Nikola, Bernstein, Biogen, Webster, Redburn, Tesla, Apple, Morgan Stanley downgrades PagerDuty, Gordon Haskett downgrades Uber, Gordon Haskett, Oppenheimer, PulteGroup, Wolfe Organizations: Citi, Verizon, Netflix, Amazon, EV, Devices, AMD, UBS, Apple, Uber, Deutsche Bank, Deutsche, Barclays downgrades, Barclays, Microsoft, BMO, HSBC, Stellantis, Entertainment, Nvidia, Wolfe Alpha, Valero, Phillips Locations: H1'24, Nowhere, China

☆ Bank of England set to hold interest rates as economists debate 2024 cuts
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-13 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A passageway near the Bank of England (BOE) in the City of London, U.K., on Thursday, March 18, 2021. The market is pricing an almost 100% chance of a hold on Thursday, according to LSEG, with economic data since the Bank's last meeting proving largely inconclusive. The latest labor market data on Tuesday indicated a continuation of recent trends, with unemployment remaining broadly flat and vacancies continuing to decline at pace. Average pay including bonuses fell by 1.6% between September and October, versus an average monthly growth rate of 1.1% in the first half of the year. "An unchanged forward guidance will also serve the MPC well to push against the current market pricing of Bank Rate which assigns an increasing probability to cuts in H1 2024," they said.

Persons: BOE, Hollie Adams, Jake Finney, Finney, Abbas Khan, Jack Organizations: Bank of England, City of, Bloomberg, Getty, Monetary, Federal Reserve, Reuters, Bank, Barclays, MPC Locations: City, City of London

OPEC and the IEA expect China's oil demand to show growth in 2023 of 7.6% and 12.1%, respectively. OPEC has dismissed fears of that demand growth for oil in China is fading, describing negative sentiment as "overblown" in a recent report. OPEC's forecasts show China accounting for 24.6% of global oil demand growth in the first half of 2024, according to Reuters calculations. Consultancies Wood Mackenzie, Rystad Energy and Energy Aspects respectively forecast China's first-half 2024 oil demand to grow by 3.7%, 4.0% and 4.4% versus the same period in 2023. Energy Aspects expects first-half diesel demand to be flat from a year earlier.

Persons: Aly, Consultancies Wood Mackenzie, Rystad, Lin Ye, Xia, Andrew Hayley, Simon Cameron, Moore Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, of Petroleum, International Energy Agency, OPEC, Rystad Energy, JET, Reuters Graphics Reuters, National Bureau of Statistics, Thomson Locations: Zhuhai, China, Rights BEIJING, OPEC, Russia, Beijing

☆ The U.S. has lost thousands of tech workers to Canada — here's why
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( Sydney Boyo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

As of last month, the Canadian government says more than 6,000 U.S. H-1B visa holders had arrived in Canada so far this year. That's after massive layoffs left high-skilled foreign H-1B holders in limbo. The H-1B program targets highly educated and specialized foreign workers in fields such as tech and health care. The study also shows that Canada now has 1.1 million tech workers, and Toronto and Vancouver ranked among the top 10 tech cities in the U.S. and Canada. To learn more about how Canada is targeting H-1B visa holders, watch the video.

Persons: Annie Beaudoin, Harnoor Singh, Frederick Anokye, Kubeir Kamal, I'm, Marc Miller wasn't Organizations: Google, Microsoft, Meta, Apple, U.S . Citizenship, Immigration Services, Micron, College of Immigration, Citizenship, Canada's Tech, Vancouver, Canadian Locations: Canada, Canadian, U.S, India, Ghana, Toronto

☆ Spirits giant Diageo's shares suffer Latin American hangover
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-10 | by ( Eva Mathews | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"Macroeconomic pressures in the region are resulting in lower consumption and consumer downtrading," the world's biggest spirits maker said. Last month, Mexico's Becle (CUERVO.MX), the world's largest tequila producer, said economic challenges in Europe and Latin America were slowing customer spending on liquor, which battered its profits. "Over time, as inflation moderates and productivity from our supply agility program flow through, we expect operating profit to grow ahead of organic net sales growth," Diageo said. Diageo narrowly beat earnings estimates for the year ended June 30, as sales of its more expensive liquor brands offset lower volumes. Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich, Emelia Sithole-Matarise and Alexander SmithOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Clodagh, Johnnie Walker, Julio, Sophie Lund, Yates, Hargreaves Lansdown, Mexico's, Eva Mathews, Rashmi Aich, Emelia, Alexander Smith Organizations: REUTERS, Caribbean ., Diageo, Thomson Locations: Dublin, Ireland, North America, Africa, Latin America, Europe, America, Bengaluru

The National Australia Bank Logo is seen on a branch in central Sydney, Australia, February 8, 2018. That has left NAB, ranked third for mortgages but first for business loans, in a prime position as the country's retail lenders look elsewhere for growth. We're not abandoning (mortgages), we're tilting towards our business bank." Larger mortgage rival Westpac (WBC.AX) also posted a higher annual profit on Monday, despite a decline in home loan profit. The company's net interest margin, a closely-watched bank metric of lending interest income minus payouts to deposit accounts, shrank to 1.71% as of Sept. 30, from 1.77% at March-end.

Persons: Daniel Munoz, Ross McEwan, We're, Azib Khan, Roushni Nair, Archishma Iyer, Shounak Dasgupta, Jamie Freed Organizations: National, REUTERS, NAB, SYDNEY, National Australia Bank, Westpac, P, Thomson Locations: Sydney, Australia, Bengaluru

☆ National Australia Bank's second-half cash profit falls as inflation persists
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-09 | by ( Roushni Nair | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The National Australia Bank Logo is seen on a branch in central Sydney, Australia, February 8, 2018. But for the half-year ended Sept. 30, cash earnings sank as the impact of monetary policy tightening and inflationary pressures crippled households and the economy. The annual performance of its business and institutional banking divisions stood out with of 10.1% and 14.9% in cash profits respectively, while the personal banking division was a drag on its results, posting a 9.1% decline in cash earnings to A$1.45 billion. The bank reported a jump in its credit impairment charge for the year to A$802 million, up from just A$125 million a year ago, which it said reflected volume growth and worsening asset quality. The bank declared a final dividend of 84 Australian cents per share, up from 78 Australian cents apiece a year earlier.

Persons: Daniel Munoz, Ross McEwan, Roushni Nair, Archishma Iyer, Shounak Dasgupta, Jamie Freed Organizations: National, REUTERS, National Australia Bank, NAB, Thomson Locations: Sydney, Australia, Bengaluru

☆ Nintendo hikes profit forecast as Switch battles on
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-07 | by ( Sam Nussey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

An attendee uses a Nintendo Switch game console while playing a video game at the Paris Games Week (PGW), a trade fair for video games in Paris, France, November 5, 2023. Nintendo sold 6.84 million Switch units in the first six months of the financial year, a slight increase on the 6.68 million units it sold in the same period last year. Reuters GraphicsNintendo's broad pop culture appeal has also been underscored by the success of a Super Mario Bros. movie. Nintendo maintained its full-year forecast for the console of 15 million units, which would be a 16.5% decline on a year earlier. Nintendo's line-up for the critical year-end shopping season will likely also be bolstered by some new additions including "Super Mario RPG", which launches on Nov. 17.

Persons: Claudia Greco, Zelda, Mario, Shuntaro Furukawa, Sam Nussey, David Dolan, Christopher Cushing Organizations: Nintendo, Paris Games, REUTERS, Reuters, Mario Bros, Thomson Locations: Paris, France, TOKYO, Kyoto

☆ Japan's Itochu H1 net profit down 14.5% y/y, sets buy back
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

The logo of Itochu Corp is seen outside the company's headquarters in Tokyo, Japan, November 7, 2016. REUTERS/Toru Hanai/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 6 (Reuters) - Japanese trading house Itochu (8001.T) on Monday posted a 14.5% drop in six-month net profit but raised its full-fiscal year profit forecast on stronger non-resource business development expectations and weaker yen. Itochu's net profit to Sept. 30 was 412.90 billion yen ($2.8 billion), down from the same period last year on weaker coal and iron ore prices. It raised its net profit forecast for the year ending in March 2024 by 20 billion yen to 800 billion yen. The company will buy back up to 1.2% of its shares worth 75 billion yen, it added on Monday.

Persons: Toru Hanai, Katya Golubkova, Kim Coghill Organizations: Itochu, REUTERS, Thomson Locations: Tokyo, Japan

☆ Turbine troubles have sent wind energy stocks tumbling — and a slew of issues remain
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

A Siemens Gamesa blade factory on the banks of the River Humber in Hull, England on October 11, 2021. Siemens Energy made the headlines earlier this year when it scrapped its profit forecast and warned that costly failures at wind turbine subsidiary Siemens Gamesa could drag on for years. It sparked concerns about wider problems across the industry and thrust Europe's wind energy giants' earnings into the spotlight. Read more:Deutsche had previously highlighted challenges in the wind turbine industry including supplier delays, lower tax credits and rising rates. Reliability issues Those surveyed by ONYX also expressed reliability concerns, with 69% expecting more reliability issues due to aging assets and 56% seeing problems associated with new turbine technology.

Persons: PAUL ELLIS, Kepler Cheuvreux, Morgan Stanley, Morgan, Ben Uglow, Ørsted, Read, —, Ashley Crowther, Crowther Organizations: Siemens, AFP, Getty, Siemens Energy, Grid Technologies, Siemens Gamesa, Gas, Grid, Deutsche Bank, Deutsche, Vestas, ONYX Locations: Hull , England, Ukraine

☆ Whitbread's profits jump as Premier Inn-owner enjoys steady demand
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-18 | by ( Eva Mathews | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Shares in the British company, originally a brewer, were up 3.5% to 3,437 pence by 0737 GMT to lead London's blue-chip (.FTSE) index. Leisure and business demand are showing signs of staying, Paul said, adding forward-booked revenue was ahead of last year. Whitbread, which owns restaurant chains such as Bar+Block Steakhouse and Brewers Fayre has also seen signs of food inflation easing. The company announced a further 300 million pound share buyback on Wednesday and proposed an interim dividend per share of 34.1 pence, up 40% on last year. ($1 = 0.8193 pounds)Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; editing by Subhranshu Sahu and Jason NeelyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Lee Smith, WTB.L, Dominic Paul, Paul, Whitbread, Hargreaves, Derren Nathan, Brewers Fayre, Eva Mathews, Subhranshu Sahu, Jason Neely Organizations: Premier Inn Hotel, Brewers, REUTERS, H1, Whitbread, Inn, Thomson Locations: Durham, County Durham, Britain, British, Germany, Bengaluru

☆ A widely followed Wall Street survey shows investors turning bearish again, raising cash levels
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-17 | by ( Samantha Subin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Professional investors are turning more bearish again amid the current macro backdrop, according to a closely watched Wall Street survey from Bank of America. The bank's Global Fund Manager survey showed investors have upped their cash levels and are maintaining a pessimistic outlook on growth and the economy. Specifically, strategist Michael Hartnett said the cash allocation among those surveyed increased to 5.3% from 4.9%, while staying neutral on stocks. "1 out of 4 [fund manager survey] investors expect that there will be no recession in the next 18 months," Hartnett said. A record number of respondents also indicated that monetary policy remains too tight, while fiscal policy is too easy.

Persons: Michael Hartnett, Hartnett, —, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Bank of America, Global, Reserve

A general view of GE Renewable Energy wind turbines, part of Pattern Energy’s Western Spirit Wind project, the largest wind project in the U.S., near Encino, New Mexico, U.S., March 15, 2023. Renewable energy funds globally suffered a net outflow of $1.4 billion in the July-September quarter, the biggest ever quarterly outflow, according to LSEG Lipper data. Reuters GraphicsInvestors have been exiting traditional energy funds, too, but the rate has slowed - net outflows reached $438 million in the last quarter compared with $3.32 billion in the previous three months. Reuters GraphicsDemand for exposure to renewable energy had been a major driver of cash flowing into climate-related funds in recent years. Wind projects off Britain, the Netherlands and Norway have been delayed or shelved due to rising costs and supply chain constraints, raising concerns about countries hitting their 2030 renewable energy targets.

Persons: Bing Guan, Denmark's, Madeline Ruid, Ruid, Morningstar, they're, Rich Pontillo, Patturaja, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Simon Jessop, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: GE Renewable Energy, REUTERS, Investors, Reuters Graphics, Companies, U.S . Infrastructure, Clean Energy Exchange, Energy, Reuters, Nasdaq, Intelligence, Thomson Locations: U.S, Encino , New Mexico, BENGALURU, LONDON, Britain, Netherlands, Norway, Bengaluru, London

Adding to its woes, last month the antitrust regulator sued Qantas accusing it of selling fares on thousands of already-cancelled flights in 2022. The so-called "flying kangaroo" said it would now spend A$80 million ($52 million) on "customer improvements" on top of the A$150 million previously flagged. "The group will continue to absorb these higher costs, but will monitor fuel prices in the weeks ahead and, if current levels are sustained, will look to adjust its settings," Qantas said. "Any changes would look to balance the recovery of higher costs with the importance of affordable travel in an environment where fares are already elevated." RBC Capital Markets analyst Owen Birrell said the company would likely absorb the higher fuel costs "until its target margins come under pressure and then would seek to claw back those costs through capacity cuts and higher fares.

Persons: Loren Elliott, Owen Birrell, Byron Kaye, Himanshi, Kim Coghill, Subhranshu Organizations: Qantas, Sydney Airport, REUTERS, Australia's, Qantas Airways, RBC Capital, Thomson Locations: Sydney, Australia, SYDNEY, Bengaluru

However, that was still nearly twice as much as the 5.5 billion euros invested in 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic hit. Reuters GraphicsOverall German direct investment flows dropped more sharply, to 63 billion euros from 104 billion euros last year, as Europe's largest economy battled recession. "Although the German economy is overall investing much less abroad, new direct investments in China remain nearly as high as before." Matthes pointed out that investments in the rest of Asia as a share of Germany's overall investments was also rising. "It is notable that nearly a quarter of German direct investment flows recently went to Asia," he said.

Persons: Thomas Peter, Juergen Matthes, Matthes, Sarah Marsh, Friederike Heine, Christina Fincher Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Investment, Reuters, Reuters Graphics, Volkswagen, BASF, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, Asia

☆ Bank of America says it's an official economic recovery now so history points to these stocks outperforming ahead
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

There appears to be an economic rebound taking place — and history shows ways to play it in the market, according to Bank of America. "It's official: we're in a Recovery," wrote strategist Savita Subramanian in a note to clients Sunday. An average recovery lasts nine months, though shorter durations seen in recent history raise concern that this one may not have staying power, she said. Still, the average analyst has a hold rating on the stock, according to LSEG. The average analyst has a hold rating on the stock, but price targets imply an upside of more than 7% on average.

Persons: Savita Subramanian, Subramanian, FactSet, Piper Sandler, John Barnidge, Barnidge, AIZ, Newell, Canaccord, Brian McNamara, McNamara, Molson Coors, Bud, Invesco, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Bank of America, Wall, Newell Brands, LSEG, destocking, Anheuser, Busch InBev, Bud Light, TAP BUD, Molson Coors, Busch Inbev, Molson, ZOA Energy Locations: U.S

FILE PHOTO: An Aramco employee walks near an oil tank at Saudi Aramco's Ras Tanura oil refinery and oil terminal in Saudi Arabia May 21, 2018. Riyadh says it aims to stabilise the oil market by extending a voluntary oil output cut of 1 million barrels per day until the end of 2023. Declining oil production and revenue this year could see Saudi Arabia's economy shrink for the first time since 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, although a hefty dividend from state oil producer Saudi Aramco (2222.SE) should provide a cushion for public finances. Last year the Saudi economy grew 8.7% and generated a fiscal surplus of 2.5% of GDP, its first surplus in nine years as oil soared to highs near $124. "Certainly, we see no signs that the Public Investment Fund's acquisition streak is cooling," RBC Capital Markets said in a note.

Persons: Ahmed Jadallah, Justin Alexander, Monica Malik, Alexander, James Swanston, PIF, Neil Quilliam, Quilliam, Rachna Uppal, Yousef Saba, Ahmad Ghaddar, Susan Fenton Organizations: REUTERS, Saudi Aramco, OPEC's, Khalij Economics, Abu, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, PMI, GlobalSource Partners, Capital Economics, International Monetary Fund, IMF, Public Investment Fund, Saudi, Public Investment, RBC Capital Markets, Reuters, Chatham House, Aramco, Riyadh bourse, Thomson Locations: Aramco, Saudi, Saudi Arabia, DUBAI, Riyadh, Ukraine, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Aramco, London, PIF

The January-June operating loss at the privately held (BNPL) fintech, which last made a full-year profit in 2018, was 2.01 billion crowns ($185 million) against a year-earlier loss of 6.17 billion. "We feel very confident that we'll be posting a profitable quarter very soon and then eventually also a full profitable year." Klarna Bank is a unit of Klarna Holdings, which has attracted investment from the likes of Sequoia, Permira and Silver Lake. Siemiatkowski said Klarna, whose biggest market by revenue is the U.S., now has more than 30 million users. In the second quarter, gross merchandise volume (GMV) - the value of goods purchased through Klarna - was up 14%, and revenue growth was 17%.

Persons: Sebastian Siemiatkowski, Siemiatkowski, Klarna, Supantha Mukherjee, Anna Ringstrom, Terje Solsvik, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Klarna Bank, Reuters, Klarna, Klarna Holdings, Sequoia, Thomson Locations: STOCKHOLM, Ukraine, Silver, U.S, Klarna

Country Garden is China's largest private developer. Country Garden has been in talks with onshore creditors to extend payments on the private bond and has proposed to repay in instalments over three years instead of meeting its obligations by the deadline on Saturday. "Country Garden may be able to extend its debts, but it does not mean the company and property sector are out of the woods unless home sales rebound." On Wednesday, creditors holding 10.5% of the outstanding principal, added a new proposal where they can vote to immediately call the company in default. The company's extension plan for the onshore private bond calls for payments in seven instalments ending in September 2026.

Persons: Matthew Pestronk, Goldman Sachs, Moody's, Kaven Tsang, Gary Ng, Ng, Xie Yu, Clare Jim, Li Gu, Matt Tracy, Sumeet Chatterjee, Anne Marie Roantree, Jacqueline Wong, Kim Coghill, Susan Fenton Organizations: HK, Post, People's Bank of China, Thursday, Asia Pacific, Thomson Locations: China, HONG KONG, SHANGHAI, Beijing, Hong Kong, Philadelphia, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Caa1, Asia, Shanghai

The logo of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) is pictured at the entrance to its branch in Beijing, China April 1, 2019. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd (ICBC) (601398.SS), the country's biggest lender, and Bank of China (BoC) (601988.SS) posted in exchange filings first half profit growth of 1.2% and 0.78%, respectively, from a year earlier. "There are some regional risks that have begun to emerge," Liu said, adding that asset quality has declined slightly but remains under control. BoC's NIM narrowed to 1.67% at end-June from 1.7% at end-March. "Chinese banks are likely to continue to face earnings pressure from margin compression," said Ming Tan, director at S&P Global Ratings.

Persons: Florence, Liu Jiandong, Liu, NIM, BoC's NIM, ICBC, Ming Tan, Tan, BoC's, Ziyi Tang, Engen Tham, Selena Li, Muralikumar Anantharaman, Mark Potter, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: Industrial, Commercial Bank of China, REUTERS, BoC, Commercial Bank of China Ltd, Bank of China, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, BEIJING, SHANGHAI, HONG KONG, ICBC's

☆ Top China bank ICBC posts 1.2% H1 profit rise
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

The logo of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) is pictured at the entrance to its branch in Beijing, China April 1, 2019. REUTERS/Florence Lo/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBEIJING, Aug 30 (Reuters) - Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd (ICBC) (601398.SS), the country's biggest lender, said on Wednesday net profit grew 1.2% year-on-year in the first half of this year. Profit was 173.74 billion yuan ($23.83 billion) for the first half of this year, compared with the restated 171.67 billion yuan in the same period a year earlier, the bank said in a filing. ($1 = 7.2543 Chinese yuan renminbi)Reporting by Ziyi Tang, Engen Tham and Selena Li; Editing by Muralikumar AnantharamanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Florence, Ziyi Tang, Engen Tham, Selena Li, Muralikumar Organizations: Industrial, Commercial Bank of China, REUTERS, Rights, Commercial Bank of China Ltd, Profit, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, Rights BEIJING

The quarterly production dropped 2.2% to 3.9 million barrels per day, Rosneft said, adding that its first-half sales reached 3.9 trillion roubles ($41 billion), down by more than a quarter from the previous year due to weaker oil prices. Still, revenue in the reported quarter increased 12.1% to 2 trillion roubles. Profits for global oil majors this year have dropped by about half from a bumper 2022, when Russia's actions in Ukraine sent oil and gas prices soaring. Russia divested its oil sales away from Europe to Asia and other global regions after the West imposed sanctions, including an embargo on Russia sea-borne oil purchases, over Moscow's actions in Ukraine. Rosneft's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) in the January-June period declined 5.1% to 1.4 trillion roubles.

Persons: Sechin, Rosneft, Igor Sechin, Vladimir Putin, Vladimir Soldatkin, Jacqueline Wong, Sherry Jacob, Phillips Organizations: OPEC, Gazprom, of, Petroleum, Kremlin, Thomson Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Europe, Asia, India, China

☆ Xiaomi revenue drops but EV strategy ahead of schedule
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Sales dropped to 67.4 billion yuan ($9.2 billion) from 70.17 billion in the same quarter a year earlier, but beating analysts' estimates of 65.13 billion. Net income rose to 5.14 billion yuan over the period, an increase of 147% from 2.08 billion yuan a year earlier, also beating expectations. "Despite the macroeconomic headwinds in the global market we continue to expand our footprint," Xiaomi President Lu Weibing said on an earnings call. Lu said the company's plans to start mass production of EVs in the first half of 2024 remains unchanged. "Our current progress is ahead of expectations and of the original production schedule," he said.

Persons: Lu Weibing, Lu, Stringer, Canalys, David Kirton, Mo Yelin, Louise Heavens, David Holmes Organizations: Xiaomi Corp, HK, REUTERS, Reuters, Thomson Locations: SHENZHEN, China, Shenyang, Liaoning province, India, Shenzhen, Mo, Beijing

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