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☆ A TikTok Shop exec breaks down the company's vision for the product and how it's wooing brands and creators
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Marta Biino | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

With Shop, TikTok wants to replicate the success of commerce on its Chinese sister app Douyin. Patrick Nommensen, TikTok GM of UK ecommerce, discussed some of the details for brands and creators. TikTok has big ambitions for shopping and has been investing heavily in it — from developing a logistics business to powering in-app purchases through TikTok Shop. Overseeing TikTok Shop has been one of Nommensen's focuses. Nommensen said TikTok has been working with some high-tier creators and celebrities on a strategic basis to spread awareness around TikTok Shop, pairing them with merchants.

Persons: TikTok, Patrick Nommensen, It's, Nommensen, Nommensen's, livestreaming, Sellers, it's Organizations: TikTok, ByteDance, Street Journal, Facebook, Insider Intelligence Locations: Asia, TikTok, Musical.ly, Spain, Brazil, Southeast Asia, China

☆ Exxon, Chevron shareholders soundly reject climate-related petitions
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Sabrina Valle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

HOUSTON, May 31 (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N) and Chevron Corp (CVX.N) shareholders on Wednesday overwhelmingly rejected calls for stronger measures to mitigate climate change, dismissing more than a dozen climate-related proposals at their annual meetings. His group, which represents some 9,500 shareholders in oil and gas companies, had requested Exxon set medium-term targets for meeting customer emissions reduction goals that seeks to keep global temperature increase below 1.5° Celsius. That resolution received less than half of the support 11% of vote cast compared with 27% from the group's emission reduction proposal last year. Exxon holders rejected all 12 shareholder proposals, the majority of which dealt with climate-related issues. Chevron investors also rejected proposals on customers' emissions reduction target, creating a board committee on decarbonization risk, and a report on worker and community impact from facility closures and energy transitions.

Persons: Mark van Baal, Darren Woods, Woods, Sabrina Valle, Arathy, Mrinalika Roy, Sourasis Bose, Jon Boyle, Marguerita Choy Organizations: HOUSTON, Exxon Mobil Corp, Chevron Corp, Shell PLC, BP PLC, Exxon, Chevron, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Guyana, Houston, Bengaluru

☆ WE Soda to sell shares in rare London IPO
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, May 31 (Reuters) - WE Soda, the world's largest producer of natural soda ash, said on Wednesday it planned to list shares on the London stock exchange, in a boost for Britain's flagging initial public offering (IPO) market. The UK-based company, which produces soda ash for a variety of uses including glass manufacturing, is considering applying for admission to trade on the premium segment of the London Stock Exchange (LSE). Though proceeds raised in London IPOs fell 90% last year, according to research by consultancy EY, the British capital has seen some activity in recent months. Earlier in May, Admiral Acquisition (ADMR.L), a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) founded by veteran dealmaker Martin E. Franklin, raised $550 million in a London flotation. In April, Melrose Industries (MRON.L) listed the former automotive division of British engineer GKN under the name Dowlais (DWL.L) on the LSE.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, London IPOs, EY, dealmaker Martin E, Franklin, GKN, Pablo Mayo, Jason Neely, Mark Potter Organizations: London Stock Exchange, LSE, Ciner, Press, JPMorgan, BNP, Deutsche Bank, Liberum, European Union, Melrose Industries, Thomson Locations: London, Cambridge

☆ Equinor, Shell and Exxon agree LNG project with Tanzania
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Terje Solsvik | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

OSLO, May 19 (Reuters) - Equinor (EQNR.OL), Shell (SHEL.L) and Exxon Mobil (XOM.N) have agreed a deal with the government of Tanzania for the development of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal in the East African country, the two sides said on Friday. "It paves the way for the series of milestones that need to follow to realise this fantastic LNG opportunity for the country and the world," Equinor's Tanzania country manager Unni Fjaer said in a statement. Equinor and Shell are joint operators of the development while Exxon, Pavilion Energy, Medco Energi and Tanzania's national oil company TPDC are partners. Tanzania said in 2014 that the project could cost $30 billion to develop, but analysts have said cost inflation in recent years could add billions more to the investment. Shell operates Tanzania's Block 1 and Block 4, which hold 16 trillion cubic feet in estimated recoverable gas.

LONDON, May 18 (Reuters) - Shell (SHEL.L) will likely face one of its most acrimonious annual meetings next week as it struggles to balance investor pressure to capture profits from oil and gas and a vocal minority saying it must move faster to tackle climate change. Big Oil firms posted record profits last year amid soaring energy prices following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. That resolution echoes a ruling by a Dutch court telling Shell to adjust its climate targets, which Shell has appealed. It also said it was pleased that proxy advisers ISS and Glass Lewis had recommended votes against the Follow This resolution. The measures, however, did not prevent climate activist participants from heckling and disrupting proceedings before being escorted out, some carried by security staff.

☆ UK equities rise on upbeat global mood, BT Group tumbles on weak cash flow
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Johann M Cherian | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"There's clearly a lack of real strategy and it's not enough to just say we're going to cut costs. Vodafone Group Plc (VOD.L) earlier this week said it would cut 11,000 jobs globally over three years after it warned that a poor performance in its biggest market Germany would hit cash flow. The blue-chip FTSE 100 (.FTSE) rose 0.6%, reflecting an upbeat mood in global markets on hopes that Washington is edging closer to a deal to raise the U.S. debt ceiling and avert a default. Among other movers, luxury group Burberry Group Plc (BRBY.L) fell 6.2% as continued weakness in the United States overshadowed a stronger-than-expected fourth quarter sales driven by a rebound in China. EasyJet Plc rose 1% after the airline posted a first-half loss in line with its guidance.

☆ Aston Martin stock soars after $295 million Geely investment
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

May 18 (Reuters) - Aston Martin's (AML.L) stock popped nearly 22% on Thursday, after the luxury carmaker announced a 234 million pound investment by China's Geely (0715.HK), that will see the automotive firm become its third-largest shareholder. Geely will acquire about 42 million ordinary shares from Chairman Lawrence Stroll's Yew Tree, which is currently the Aston Martin's largest stakeholder, at 335 pence apiece and subscribe for another 28 million shares at the same price. Aston Martin shares, which closed at 231.2 pence on Wednesday, were trading up to 279.4 pence at 0727 GMT. "Our decision to increase our shareholding in Aston Martin reflects our confidence in the company's growth prospects, its technologies and its management team," said Geely Chairman Eric Li. The investment gives Geely a 17% stake in the company and entitles it to one board seat, behind number two shareholder Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF).

☆ UK's Melrose Industries lifts 2025 expectations on aerospace focus
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The company raised its adjusted operating margin outlook for aerospace to between 17% and 18% by 2025, compared with 14% previously. The operating margin for the Engines business is expected to be 28% in 2025, compared with 22% in 2023. Shares in Melrose, which spun out its automotive business into Dowlais (DWL.L) last month, rose 6% by 1232 GMT, topping London's blue-chip index. Melrose, which makes airframe and engine structures and electrical interconnection systems for the aerospace industry, said last week it had decided to continue as a pure-play aerospace firm. The outlook for 2025 laid out on Wednesday divides its aerospace business into two divisions, namely engines and structures, for the first time.

NEW YORK, May 17 (Reuters) - Shell Plc (SHEL.L) will use AI-based technology from big-data analytics firm SparkCognition in its deep sea exploration and production to boost offshore oil output, the companies said on Wednesday. SparkCognition's AI algorithms will process and analyze large amounts of seismic data in the hunt for new oil reservoirs by Shell, the largest oil producer in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. "We are committed to finding new and innovative ways to reinvent our exploration ways of working," Gabriel Guerra, Shell's vice president of innovation and performance, said in a statement. "Generative AI for seismic imaging can positively disrupt the exploration process and has broad and far-reaching implications," said Bruce Porter, chief science officer for Austin, Texas-based SparkCognition. The technology would generate subsurface images using fewer seismic data scans than usual, helping with deep sea preservation, the companies said.

[1/3] Edwin Gariguez, a Catholic priest from the Philippines, who is touring top European banks on environmental issues, is pictured in Frankfurt, Germany, May 10, 2023. "It's really frustrating on my part," Gariguez said on a stopover in Frankfurt after meetings with Deutsche Bank and DWS (DWSG.DE). Barclays and San Miguel didn't respond. On its website, San Miguel says: "As sustainability champions, we hold ourselves accountable." The nation's Department of Energy sees LNG as a "transition fuel", as it moves away from coal-fired power generation toward more renewable energy.

☆ UK's Melrose Industries to focus on aerospace after automotive spin-off
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The company also said it expects annual revenue between 3.35 billion pounds ($4.23 billion) and 3.45 billion pounds, while analysts are expecting a revenue of 3.4 billion pounds, according to company-compiled estimates. Melrose also said it will not seek acquisitions of "an unrelated industrial business or, in the near term, a material aerospace business," as it shifts its strategy to focus on aerospace. In April, Melrose listed shares in the former automotive division of British engineer GKN on the London Stock Exchange. Newly created Dowlais (DWL.L), which encompasses GKN's Automotive, Powder Metallurgy and Hydrogen businesses, was spun off to existing Melrose shareholders. It is still holding on to GKN's Aerospace division, which manufactures airframe and engine structures and interconnection systems for the aerospace industry.

☆ Aramco’s dividend largesse contains a hard logic
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

That could work out to up to $18 billion a year, Royal Bank of Canada analysts reckon. Given that there are solid long-term reasons to hold Aramco shares, it might seem odd that the world’s largest oil producer feels the need to keep its investors on side. Meanwhile, Aramco’s dividend has been fixed since its listing, but that arrangement expires next year. Flagging to prospective foreign investors that its dividend policy is not entirely dependent on the whims of the Saudi state is probably not a bad idea. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ Fire burns for third day at Shell Texas chemical plant
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-07 | by ( Erwin Seba | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

HOUSTON, May 7 (Reuters) - A fire burned for a third day on Sunday at Shell Plc's (SHEL.L) chemical plant in the Houston suburb of Deer Park, Texas, a company spokesperson said. The fire initially ignited on Friday afternoon in an explosion in an olefins unit, used to make plastics and rubber. The fire was extinguished for a few hours on Saturday morning before it reignited around 3 p.m. CDT (2000 GMT), said Shell spokesperson Curtis Smith. Water runoff has exceeded the chemical plant's wastewater capacity and is being diverted into the Houston Ship Channel, Smith said. Olefins units are the central units in petrochemical complexes, producing ethylene, butadiene and propylene from hydrocarbon feedstocks.

☆ No harmful chemical levels in air after Shell Texas chemical plant fire, company says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] An olefins unit burns in fire at Shell Deer Park, Texas chemical plant in this screengrab obtained from social media on May 5, 2023, in Deer Park, Texas, U.S. Johnny Walea via TMX/via REUTERSMay 6 (Reuters) - Air monitoring around an extinguished fire at the Shell Plc's (SHEL.L) chemical plant in Deer Park, Texas, showed no harmful levels of chemicals in the air, the company said on Saturday, added that there was no threat to the surrounding community. The fire broke out shortly before 3 p.m. CDT (2000 GMT) on Friday after in an olefins unit at the plant in the Houston suburb. Five people were taken for evaluation of possible injuries due to exposure to burned chemicals, the county sheriff said on Friday. The company on Saturday said in a series of tweets that the fire was extinguished and air monitoring has detected no harmful levels of chemicals. Operations at the refinery continued despite the fire in the chemical plant, sources familiar with the refinery's operations said.

☆ Australia govt to change petroleum tax, LNG projects to pay more
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SYDNEY, May 6 (Reuters) - Australia will change its Petroleum Resource Rent Tax (PRRT) to increase the tax paid by the offshore LNG industry, moves that should increase revenue by A$2.4 billion ($1.6 billion) over the next four fiscal years, Treasurer Jim Chalmers said on Saturday. "Under the current rules, most LNG projects are not expected to pay any significant amounts of PRRT until the 2030s. The Treasury review of gas pricing was started under the previous conservative government. Chalmers said both reviews had found that aspects of the PRRT were better suited to oil projects than LNG projects, and the deductions cap and other changes would help address that. There is expected to be a substantial improvement in the budget position due to higher than expected commodity prices boosting revenues.

LONDON, May 6 (Reuters) - Shell (SHEL.L) shareholders should vote against a climate activist resolution seeking faster emissions cuts, proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) said on Saturday, while acknowledging the merits of the proposal. Shell investors will vote at an annual general meeting on May 23 on a resolution filed by the Follow This activist shareholder group which asks the energy giant to align with the 2015 Paris climate deal. Shell has recommended its shareholders vote against the Follow This proposal. It said the merits of the activist resolution are "fully accepted" but if adopted it would "represent a change in strategy from the one that Shell has adopted" which is why ISS recommends a vote against it. At Shell's 2022 shareholder meeting, Follow This received 20% of votes, down from 30% the previous year.

☆ Why Warren Buffett is so keen on Japan's versions of Berkshire Hathaway
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Tim Hornyak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

But Warren Buffett added a spark in April when he visited Japan to announce that Berkshire Hathaway boosted its investment in Japanese trading houses to 7.4%. Buffett said the five — Itochu Corp., Marubeni Corp., Mitsubishi Corp., Mitsui, and Sumitomo Corp. — are comparable to Berkshire itself. Samurai roots for Buffett's Japanese stocks The five trading firms that Berkshire has invested in are the biggest of Japan's so-called sogo-shosha, or general trading companies. Today, Japan's trading companies derive most of their revenue from non-trade activities. Shosha: The Big Five Mitsubishi The largest of Japan's trading companies is Mitsubishi Corp. , set up in 1954.

☆ Six injured in Shell Texas chemical plant fire
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Erwin Seba | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

HOUSTON, May 5 (Reuters) - Six people were injured after a fire broke out in an olefins unit on Friday at Shell Plc's (SHEL.L) Deer Park, Texas chemical plant, said five people familiar with plant operations. A large column of black smoke could be seen rising from the fire in the olefins unit located near Highway 225 in the Houston suburb of Deer Park, the sources said. In a notice posted on a website for nearby residents, Shell said there was a fire at the chemical plant. All personnel at the plant at the time the fire broke out had been accounted for by 4 p.m. CDTOperations at the neighboring Pemex (PEMX.UL) refinery were continuing despite the fire in the chemical plant, said sources familiar with the refinery's operations. Pemex bought the Deer Park refinery from Shell in 2022.

Shell shares were up 0.8% by 1242 GMT. "In Q1, Shell delivered strong results and robust operational performance, against a backdrop of ongoing volatility," Chief Executive Officer Wael Sawan said in a statement. Sawan, who took the helm in January, told reporters he was focused on narrowing a wide gap in the share performance of Shell and its European peers against their U.S. rivals. Lower natural gas prices in the quarter weighed on Shell's giant integrated gas business, with profits slumping 18% to $4.9 billion. Shell showed "strong operational performance in the quarter across all divisions with oil and gas trading playing a key role," Jefferies analyst Giacomo Romeo said in a note.

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationSummarySummary Companies Shell maintains dividend unchangedAnnounces $4 bln in share buybacksLONDON, May 4 (Reuters) - Shell (SHEL.L) on Thursday posted first-quarter net profit of $9.65 billion, topping analysts' forecasts, as strong earnings from fuel trading and higher liquefied natural gas (LNG) sales offset cooling energy prices. Lower natural gas prices in the quarter weighed on Shell's giant integrated gas business, with profits slumping 18% to $4.9 billion. Shell shares were up 2% by 0830 GMT. Reuters GraphicsPROFITS BEATShell reported adjusted earnings of $9.65 billion in the first quarter, exceeding a company-provided analyst forecast of $8 billion. That compared with earnings of $9.1 billion a year earlier and $9.8 billion in the fourth quarter of 2022, when Shell reported a record annual profit of $40 billion.

[1/2] Shell logo and stock graph are seen through a magnifier displayed in this illustration taken September 4, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationSummarySummary Companies Shell maintains dividend unchangedAnnounces $4 bln in share buybacksLONDON, May 4 (Reuters) - Shell (SHEL.L) on Thursday posted first-quarter net profit of $9.65 billion, topping analysts' forecasts, as strong earnings from fuel trading offset cooling oil and gas prices. Shell reported adjusted earnings of $9.65 billion in the first quarter, exceeding a company-provided analyst forecast of $8 billion. That compared with earnings of $9.1 billion a year earlier and $9.8 billion in the fourth quarter of 2022, when Shell reported a record annual profit of $40 billion. Lower natural gas prices in the quarter weighed on Shell's giant integrated gas business, with profits slumping 18% on the quarter to $4.9 billion.

SummarySummary Companies Shell, Equinor shares outperform sector indexRivals BP, Chevron, Exxon also beat expectationsOil and gas prices slumped in first quarterShell shares up 2.1%, Equinor up 2.7%LONDON/OSLO, May 4 (Reuters) - Energy giants Shell (SHEL.L) and Equinor (EQNR.OL) reported higher-than-expected first-quarter profits on Thursday, using the heft of their trading desks to offset lower oil and gas prices. The stronger-than-expected profits from the two companies follow forecast beating results from rivals Exxon Mobil (XOM.N), Chevron and BP over the past week. Shell's shares were up around 2.1% in early trading and Equinor shares rose around 2.7%, outperforming a European index of oil and gas companies (.SXEP) which was up around 1%. Benchmark Brent crude oil prices averaged $81 per barrel in the first three months of the year, down 16% from a year earlier and 7% from the fourth-quarter. Lower natural gas prices also weighed on Shell's giant integrated gas business, with profits slumping 18% on the quarter.

☆ Aston Martin sticks to 2023 outlook after smaller Q1 pretax loss
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Employees work on a car at the Aston Martin factory in Gaydon, Britain, March 16, 2022. REUTERS/Phil NobleMay 3 (Reuters) - British luxury carmaker Aston Martin Lagonda (AML.L) on Wednesday reported a narrower quarterly pretax loss and maintained its 2023 outlook, benefiting from the strong sales of its sport utility vehicle DBX and higher selling prices. Free cash outflow in the quarter stood at 118 million pounds, compared with 25 million pounds of outflow a year ago as it spent on the development of new sports cars and its electrification programme. Aston Martin said it expects 2023 to be the "peak year" of capital spend. Loss before tax for the three months to March 31 was 74.2 million pounds ($92.7 million), compared with 111.6 million pounds a year earlier.

While the Fed is widely expected to raise rates by 25 basis points at its policy rate announcement at 1800 GMT, the hopes of a pause in increases have grown after a banking crisis that has threatened to hurt economic growth. Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY.L) edged down 0.8% despite beating quarterly profit estimates, as the bellwether lender echoed rivals in maintaining its full-year forecasts. However, energy stocks (.FTNMX601010) were a drag, down 1.2%, tracking weakness in crude prices. Haleon (HLN.L) lost 3.8% as the world's biggest standalone consumer health business reported first-quarter profit below analyst expectations. Luxury carmaker Aston Martin Lagonda (AML.L) lost 2.2% after it reported a narrower quarterly pre-tax loss and maintained its 2023 outlook.

☆ BP’s strategy risks pleasing no one
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Investors had cheered its February decision to walk back previously targeted 2030 oil and gas production cuts: BP’s shares rose 12% from Feb. 6 to Friday, compared with Shell’s (SHEL.L) 2%. BP’s shares subsequently fell 5% on Tuesday morning, wiping $6 billion off its market value, despite otherwise rosy earnings. Chief Financial Officer Murray Auchincloss pointed out that the decision was consistent with BP’s commitment to allocate 60% of 2023 surplus cash flow to share buybacks. CEO Bernard Looney is getting heat from both sides, with some investors pushing for faster decarbonisation and others willing him to pump more oil. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

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