Oil mixed as weak Chinese data, growing U.S. supplies offset Trump plan to ease lockdown - Reuters: Oil prices were mixed on Friday, with weak Chinese economic figures and rapidly filling U.S. crude storage offsetting bullishness built on U.S. President Donald Trump's outlines for the U.S. economy to emerge from the coronavirus shutdown.
Brent futures LCOc1 rose 26 cents, or 0.9%, to settle at $28.08 a barrel while West Texas Intermediate crude contract (WTI) for June CLc2, which became the day’s more active contract, ended the session down 50 cents, or 2%, at $25.03.
The less active prompt WTI for May delivery CLc1 tumbled by $1.60, or 8.1%, to $18.27, ahead of its April 21 expiration as investors rapidly switched out of that contract into June futures. The contract slumped to a low of $17.31 a barrel during the session, the lowest since November 2001.
May WTI futures slumped nearly 20% on the week, based on last Thursday’s settle, while Brent dropped nearly 11%. Markets were closed last Friday for Good Friday.
Friday, 17 April 2020
EY ordered to pay $10m to #Dubai whistleblower | Financial Times
EY ordered to pay $10m to Dubai whistleblower | Financial Times:
Accountancy firm EY has been ordered to pay $10.8m in compensation to a former partner who blew the whistle on a client in Dubai suspected of laundering money and smuggling gold.
In an excoriating High Court ruling, Mr Justice Kerr awarded the payout to Amjad Rihan, who previously worked as an auditor for EY in Dubai. The ruling found that the accounting firm had breached professional duties in its handling of a 2013 audit of Dubai-based Kaloti Jewellery International.
Mr Rihan sued four EY entities, including its global and European businesses, in the English courts claiming that he had been forced out of the firm after he identified alleged money laundering by Kaloti. He said that EY suppressed his concerns that gold bullion had been coated in silver so the company could dodge export restrictions.
Mr Rihan also alleged that EY breached its professional duties of integrity and objectivity by colluding with Kaloti and the Dubai regulator to ensure that concerns raised in the audit were not published or reported to the authorities. He claimed that he was later forced to flee Dubai.
Accountancy firm EY has been ordered to pay $10.8m in compensation to a former partner who blew the whistle on a client in Dubai suspected of laundering money and smuggling gold.
In an excoriating High Court ruling, Mr Justice Kerr awarded the payout to Amjad Rihan, who previously worked as an auditor for EY in Dubai. The ruling found that the accounting firm had breached professional duties in its handling of a 2013 audit of Dubai-based Kaloti Jewellery International.
Mr Rihan sued four EY entities, including its global and European businesses, in the English courts claiming that he had been forced out of the firm after he identified alleged money laundering by Kaloti. He said that EY suppressed his concerns that gold bullion had been coated in silver so the company could dodge export restrictions.
Mr Rihan also alleged that EY breached its professional duties of integrity and objectivity by colluding with Kaloti and the Dubai regulator to ensure that concerns raised in the audit were not published or reported to the authorities. He claimed that he was later forced to flee Dubai.
Amanda Staveley taps ‘anti-Wall Street’ skills to woo #Saudi elite | Financial Times
Amanda Staveley taps ‘anti-Wall Street’ skills to woo Saudi elite | Financial Times:
Last October on the Red Sea, British financier Amanda Staveley and her husband stepped aboard the megayacht of Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman.
Also among the party were Yasir al-Rumayyan, head of Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, and global business chiefs including SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son and Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani.
This week one of the fruits of that trip became evident. Discussions on the yacht Serene helped revive an attempt led by the Saudi fund to buy the Premier League football club Newcastle United. Despite football being suspended in the coronavirus pandemic, an agreement was reached this week for a £300m purchase of the club from retail tycoon Mike Ashley. The talks were led by Ms Staveley, whose private equity firm will also invest.
The acquisition — Ms Staveley’s first with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund — marks a return to high-profile dealmaking for a woman best known for orchestrating the purchase of Manchester City by the Abu Dhabi royal Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan in 2008, and shortly afterwards a £3.5bn Abu Dhabi investment as part of an emergency cash call by Barclays bank at the height of the financial crisis.
Last October on the Red Sea, British financier Amanda Staveley and her husband stepped aboard the megayacht of Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman.
Also among the party were Yasir al-Rumayyan, head of Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, and global business chiefs including SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son and Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani.
This week one of the fruits of that trip became evident. Discussions on the yacht Serene helped revive an attempt led by the Saudi fund to buy the Premier League football club Newcastle United. Despite football being suspended in the coronavirus pandemic, an agreement was reached this week for a £300m purchase of the club from retail tycoon Mike Ashley. The talks were led by Ms Staveley, whose private equity firm will also invest.
The acquisition — Ms Staveley’s first with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund — marks a return to high-profile dealmaking for a woman best known for orchestrating the purchase of Manchester City by the Abu Dhabi royal Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan in 2008, and shortly afterwards a £3.5bn Abu Dhabi investment as part of an emergency cash call by Barclays bank at the height of the financial crisis.
Cash-rich Gulf funds hunt for bargains as asset prices plunge | Financial Times #SaudiArabia #AbuDhabi #UAE
Cash-rich Gulf funds hunt for bargains as asset prices plunge | Financial Times:
Gulf sovereign wealth funds including Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala are mobilising to buy assets whose valuations have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.
Bankers and people close to the funds said they were looking to invest in areas that would bounce back in a global recovery, such as healthcare, technology and logistics.
A senior Saudi official told the Financial Times that the kingdom had set up a dedicated team to look at the “midterm and long-term, downside and upside” of the global crisis, while the $320bn PIF, chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, pursued a strategy that was a “mix of strategic and opportunistic”.
The Saudi fund has already made a series of big investments in the past few weeks, from cruise operator Carnival to oil groups Royal Dutch Shell, Total, Repsol, Equinor and Eni. This week it led a group that agreed to acquire English football club Newcastle United in a £300m deal.
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| Saudi Arabia’s PIF, chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, is one of several Gulf funds on the prowl |
Gulf sovereign wealth funds including Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund and Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala are mobilising to buy assets whose valuations have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.
Bankers and people close to the funds said they were looking to invest in areas that would bounce back in a global recovery, such as healthcare, technology and logistics.
A senior Saudi official told the Financial Times that the kingdom had set up a dedicated team to look at the “midterm and long-term, downside and upside” of the global crisis, while the $320bn PIF, chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, pursued a strategy that was a “mix of strategic and opportunistic”.
The Saudi fund has already made a series of big investments in the past few weeks, from cruise operator Carnival to oil groups Royal Dutch Shell, Total, Repsol, Equinor and Eni. This week it led a group that agreed to acquire English football club Newcastle United in a £300m deal.
Oil Extends Slump Below $19 as Gloomy Demand Outlook Persists - Bloomberg
Oil Extends Slump Below $19 as Gloomy Demand Outlook Persists - Bloomberg:
Oil fell below $19 a barrel in New York as a wave of gloomy demand forecasts and a cratering physical market outweighed an unprecedented deal to cut output.
China’s economy suffered a historic slump in the first quarter as the coronavirus outbreak threatened global markets for its goods. Meanwhile OPEC predicted demand for its oil will fall to the lowest in three decades. Refiners from Japan to Indonesia are canceling or delaying crude purchases, and European processors have requested big cuts in Saudi supply next month.
Near-term prices for U.S. crude are trading at huge discounts to later-dated contracts on concern stockpiles at the storage hub of Cushing, Oklahoma, will fill to capacity. That has seen prices disconnect from Brent futures in London.
Dated Brent was assessed at $18.86 on Thursday, according to S&P Global Platts, far below futures prices, and real cargoes are trading at even steeper discounts.
Oil fell below $19 a barrel in New York as a wave of gloomy demand forecasts and a cratering physical market outweighed an unprecedented deal to cut output.
China’s economy suffered a historic slump in the first quarter as the coronavirus outbreak threatened global markets for its goods. Meanwhile OPEC predicted demand for its oil will fall to the lowest in three decades. Refiners from Japan to Indonesia are canceling or delaying crude purchases, and European processors have requested big cuts in Saudi supply next month.
Near-term prices for U.S. crude are trading at huge discounts to later-dated contracts on concern stockpiles at the storage hub of Cushing, Oklahoma, will fill to capacity. That has seen prices disconnect from Brent futures in London.
Dated Brent was assessed at $18.86 on Thursday, according to S&P Global Platts, far below futures prices, and real cargoes are trading at even steeper discounts.
Mashreq bank reports 28.3% drop in net profit in Q1 2020 amid Covid-19 - Arabianbusiness #UAE
Mashreq bank reports 28.3% drop in net profit in Q1 2020 amid Covid-19 - Arabianbusiness:
The UAE’s oldest bank Mashreq has reported a 28.3% drop in net profit in Q1 2020 to total AED450 million compared to AED628 million in the same period last year, as Covid-19 challenges continue.
In a statement on Thursday, the bank said its operating income also declined to AED1.5 billion during the first quarter of the year compared to 2019.
However it said it reported significant growth - 164.5% to be exact - in investment income from AED48m in Q1 2019 to AED127m in Q1 2020.
Its total assets also grew by 2% to AED162.6bn, and loans and advances rose by 2.8% to AED78.3bn compared to December 2019. On the other hand, customer deposits declined by 2.7% to AED88.5bn, while loan-to-deposit ratio remained strong at 88.5%.
The UAE’s oldest bank Mashreq has reported a 28.3% drop in net profit in Q1 2020 to total AED450 million compared to AED628 million in the same period last year, as Covid-19 challenges continue.
In a statement on Thursday, the bank said its operating income also declined to AED1.5 billion during the first quarter of the year compared to 2019.
However it said it reported significant growth - 164.5% to be exact - in investment income from AED48m in Q1 2019 to AED127m in Q1 2020.
Its total assets also grew by 2% to AED162.6bn, and loans and advances rose by 2.8% to AED78.3bn compared to December 2019. On the other hand, customer deposits declined by 2.7% to AED88.5bn, while loan-to-deposit ratio remained strong at 88.5%.
#SaudiArabia faces coronavirus crisis with strong reserves, low debt-minister - Reuters
Saudi Arabia faces coronavirus crisis with strong reserves, low debt-minister - Reuters:
Saudi Arabia is facing the global crisis from a position of strength, given its strong financial position and reserves, with relatively low government debt, its finance minister said, referring to the impact of the coronavirus outbreak.
The Saudi government’s priorities are necessary resources for the health care system and financial and economic support to those affected by coronavirus, the minister was quoted as saying in a state news agency SPA report published early on Friday.
It is also taking into account the re-prioritization of spending under the current circumstances, Mohammed al-Jadaan said in comments to a virtual meeting of the International Monetary and Financial Committee on Thursday.
The finance minister expected the global economy to fall into ‘the worst recession’ this year, saying it would be much worse than during the global financial crisis.
Saudi Arabia is facing the global crisis from a position of strength, given its strong financial position and reserves, with relatively low government debt, its finance minister said, referring to the impact of the coronavirus outbreak.
The Saudi government’s priorities are necessary resources for the health care system and financial and economic support to those affected by coronavirus, the minister was quoted as saying in a state news agency SPA report published early on Friday.
It is also taking into account the re-prioritization of spending under the current circumstances, Mohammed al-Jadaan said in comments to a virtual meeting of the International Monetary and Financial Committee on Thursday.
The finance minister expected the global economy to fall into ‘the worst recession’ this year, saying it would be much worse than during the global financial crisis.
Oil falls as Chinese economy outweighs Trump plan to ease lockdown - Reuters
Oil falls as Chinese economy outweighs Trump plan to ease lockdown - Reuters:
Oil prices fell on Friday, giving up early gains as China’s worst economic contraction on record outweighed news of U.S. President Donald Trump’s plans to get the American economy moving again.
Brent was down by 10 cents, or 0.4%, at $27.72 a barrel by 0815 GMT while U.S. crude CLc1 for May delivery tumbled by $1.54, or 7.8%, to $18.33. The more active June contract was down 3 cents, or 0.1%, at $25.50.
The extent of the U.S. decline was attributable to the imminent expiry of the May contract, on April 21, and fast-filling crude storage. The more active June contract for U.S. crude was down only 3 cents, or 0.1%, at $25.50.
“The market knows that U.S. crude stocks will fill very rapidly ... as refinery runs continue to be cut tremendously,” said Bjornar Tonhaugen, head of oil markets at Rystad Energy.
Oil prices fell on Friday, giving up early gains as China’s worst economic contraction on record outweighed news of U.S. President Donald Trump’s plans to get the American economy moving again.
Brent was down by 10 cents, or 0.4%, at $27.72 a barrel by 0815 GMT while U.S. crude CLc1 for May delivery tumbled by $1.54, or 7.8%, to $18.33. The more active June contract was down 3 cents, or 0.1%, at $25.50.
The extent of the U.S. decline was attributable to the imminent expiry of the May contract, on April 21, and fast-filling crude storage. The more active June contract for U.S. crude was down only 3 cents, or 0.1%, at $25.50.
“The market knows that U.S. crude stocks will fill very rapidly ... as refinery runs continue to be cut tremendously,” said Bjornar Tonhaugen, head of oil markets at Rystad Energy.
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