16 Sep 2019
Gold rallies on concern Saudi attack may presage wider conflict
Ranjeetha Pakiam
Gold and other precious metals rallied after a strike against Saudi Arabian oil facilities raised the possibility of retaliatory US military action in the Middle East.
Investors are seeking haven assets at the start of a week that will also see critical policy decisions from central banks including the Federal Reserve.
Gold futures jumped as much as 1.3% as investors gauged the ramifications from the assault against the world’s top oil exporter, and palladium hit a fresh record. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo blamed Iran for the disruption; that charge was rejected by Tehran.
16 Sep 2019
AB InBev among 39 firms targeted as EU probes Belgian taxes
Anheuser-Busch InBev NV is among 39 firms targetted by fresh European Union investigations into Belgian tax deals after an earlier order to recoup about 800 million euros ($885 million) was criticised by an EU court.
The European Commission opened separate probes into so-called tax rulings that Belgium doled out to multinational companies from 2005 to 2014, it said in an emailed statement on Monday. The rulings “may have given a selective advantage” to the companies “allowing them to pay substantially less tax.”
16 Sep 2019
More than 96% of the Naspers shareholding opted for Prosus
The overwhelming majority of Naspers shareholders chose to get shares in its new tech company Prosus, rather than more Naspers shares.
Investors representing 96.3% of Naspers shares went for the default option: they received one Prosus share for every Naspers N share they held. Alternatively, they could have opted to get 0.36986 new Naspers shares for every Naspers share they owned.
16 Sep 2019
Crude soars as Saudi attack spurs shift to havens
Yakob Peterseil, Bloomberg, with Fin24
Oil surged and havens climbed after a strike on the heart of Saudi Arabia’s crude production heightened geopolitical risk.
European stocks slipped with US futures, while shares in Asia were mixed.
Brent oil posted its biggest ever intraday jump to more than $71 a barrel before paring gains, as news of the devastating attack on the world’s largest crude exporter also sent currencies of commodity-linked nations higher, including the Norwegian krone and the Canadian dollar.
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell, while futures on the S&P 500 pointed to a lower open in New York. Shares in Asia were mixed after China data missed estimates, with Hong Kong equities underperforming, while those in South Korea rose after a holiday.
The JSE All-Share index was up 0.5% at 12:15.
Japanese markets were closed for a holiday.
Saudi Arabian stocks declined, with the Tadawul All Share Index falling as much as 3.1% after the attacks. The pound retreated as Prime Minister Boris Johnson headed into his first face-to-face meeting on Brexit with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.
Gold, Treasuries and the yen climbed.
16 Sep 2019
Oil soars, gold gains after Saudi oil attacks
Adam Haigh and Andreea Papuc
Oil surged along with gold and Treasury futures after a strike on the heart of Saudi Arabia’s oil production increased geopolitical risk concerns.
US and European equity futures declined, while shares in Asia were mostly lower.
Brent soared 11% and West Texas Intermediate added about 9%, paring some earlier gains. News of the devastating attack on the world’s largest crude exporter also sent currencies of commodity-linked nations higher, including the Norwegian krone and the Canadian dollar.
Shares in Hong Kong underperformed after China data missed estimates and the yuan retreated. Equities in Australia and Shanghai were little changed, while South Korea rose after a holiday.
US President Donald Trump said he has authorised the release of supplies from the country’s emergency fuel storage, known as the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, if that is needed. Gains in the yen eased.
16 Sep 2019
Record spike in oil price after shock drone attacks on Saudi oil
Oil surged along with gold and Treasury futures after a strike on the heart of Saudi Arabia’s oil production increased geopolitical risk concerns. US and European equity futures declined, while shares in Asia were mostly lower.
Oil posted its biggest ever intraday jump to more than $71 a barrel after a strike on a Saudi Arabian oil facility removed about 5% of global supplies, an attack the US has blamed on Iran.
In an extraordinary start to trading on Monday, London’s Brent futures leapt almost $12 in the seconds after the open, the most in dollar terms since they were launched in 1988. Prices have since pulled back about half of that initial surge of almost 20%, but were still heading for the biggest advance in more than three years.