Mubadala Capital Explores Buying Clear Channel Outdoor - Bloomberg
Mubadala Capital is exploring an acquisition of Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings Inc., according to people familiar with the matter.
The asset management arm of Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala Investment Co. has been working on a potential deal for the billboard operator, the people said, asking not to be identified because the matter is private.
Clear Channel Outdoor closed 19.72% higher Friday on the news, giving the company a market value of about $845 million. The company has about $6.4 billion in debt, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Deliberations are ongoing and Mubadala Capital may decide not to pursue a transaction, the people said.
Representatives for Mubadala Capital and Clear Channel declined to comment.
The news comes as Clear Channel Outdoor is under pressure from activist investor Anson Funds Management to sell itself, Bloomberg News previously reported.
Sagar Gupta, Anson’s head of activism and a portfolio manager said in an emailed statement Friday that an acquisition of the company “represents a generational opportunity to secure incredibly scarce, high quality assets in a consolidating media industry.”
He added, “We expect the board to take all steps necessary to maximize shareholder value immediately.”
For Mubadala Capital, the potential take-private is the latest sign of its global ambitions. The firm has a sprawling global portfolio but isn’t a major player in US media investments.
Earlier this year, Mubadala Capital sold a minority stake in itself to TWG Global, an investment firm led by Guggenheim Partners founder Mark Walter and financier Thomas Tull. That came after the asset manager snapped up Canadian mutual fund manager CI Financial Corp. in one of the largest privatizations by an Abu Dhabi entity.
Dealmaking in outdoor has been heating up lately. An investor group led by I Squared Capital has been planning a bid for German media group Ströer SE & Co.’s core advertising business, which could value the operations at €3.5 billion ($4.1 billion), Bloomberg News has reported. Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. has become a shareholder in Clear Channel rival Lamar Advertising, a filing in August showed.
Sunday, 19 October 2025
Oil’s Long-Awaited Surplus Arrives on Billion-Barrel Flotilla - Bloomberg
Oil’s Long-Awaited Surplus Arrives on Billion-Barrel Flotilla - Bloomberg
The best place to observe the shift taking place in global oil markets is at sea.
More than 1 billion barrels have been amassed on the world’s tanker fleet, according to consultant Vortexa Ltd. It’s the biggest flotilla of oil on the water since 2020, when a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia flooded the market during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The phenomenon gives tangible support to long-held predictions that surging production will push the market into surplus. While China has kept the excess hidden for months by scooping up cheap barrels for its strategic reserves, the market finally seems to have reached a tipping point.
Crude cargoes from the Middle East are starting to go unsold and key price gauges signal that supply scarcity is ending. International oil futures have sunk to a five-month low near $60 a barrel and top traders are braced for a further slide.
“For the last 12 months we’ve all known that there’s this surplus that’s coming,” Ben Luckock, global head of oil at Trafigura Group, said at the Energy Intelligence Forum in London this week. “I think it really is just about here now.”
The transition to oil supply abundance should offer relief to consumers after years of price inflation, and fulfill President Donald Trump’s unceasing desire for cheaper gasoline. But it poses a threat for US shale drillers already fretting over the industry’s future, and for the kingdom of Saudi Arabia as it grapples with a soaring budget deficit.
The International Energy Agency — a Paris-based forecaster that’s a benchmark for the oil industry — has been predicting a flood of supplies for more than a year. Additional barrels from the US, Brazil, Canada and Guyana were seen overwhelming growth in demand, which has been slowing as China adopts electric vehicles.
The scale of the projected oversupply started to swell in April, when Saudi Arabia and its partners in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries said they would begin reviving idle oil production far faster than scheduled. Riyadh’s objective, officials say privately, was to recoup its lost share of world markets.
World inventories have been accumulating at a rate of 1.9 million barrels a day so far this year, according to the IEA. The surge in barrels at sea could be the precursor to an even bigger buildup in 2026.
“That is in large part due to the accelerated unwinding of extra voluntary production cuts agreed in 2023 by eight OPEC+ countries. The outlook for non-OPEC+ supply growth has also marginally increased,” IEA Head of Oil Industry and Markets Toril Bosoni said in a commentary on the agency’s website. “Those hefty increases are set against a backdrop of tepid demand growth.”
Other prominent forecasters also anticipate a surplus next year, although their projections are less extreme. JPMorgan Chase & Co. sees an average daily overhang of 2.3 million barrels in 2026, while the US government’s Energy Information Administration predicts 2.06 million.
Yet crude prices haven’t been at levels that would indicate a glut. They initially faltered after OPEC+ opened the taps in April, but proved surprisingly resilient for much of the year. Between January and the end of September, Brent futures averaged $70 per barrel.
The prevailing view today is that China’s stockpiling binge diverted supplies away from major western storage hubs, such as Cushing in Oklahoma, where weekly data disclosures have a greater influence on prices. Geopolitical risks like Trump’s strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities also lent support.
“The reality of the market is that we haven’t built any stock in western market centers — the excess has ended up predominantly in China,” said Russell Hardy, chief executive officer of Vitol Group, the world’s top independent oil trader. But “more supply has hit the market in the second half because OPEC has steadily increased.”
That’s becoming a problem. Middle Eastern exporters such as the United Arab Emirates and Qatar struggled to sell cargoes for loading in November. Some shipments from the region have only just found buyers, later than normal, while a few others remain unsold.
The clearest shift has been in the price curve — an array of contracts that show how much traders have to pay to secure crude supplies for each month in the future. Back in April, it was most expensive to guarantee supplies for next-month delivery, a structure known as backwardation that indicates supply scarcity.
That premium has disappeared, with much of the curve now showing the opposite pattern known as contango, a sign of abundant supply where immediate delivery of crude is cheaper.
The consequences of this switch are evident in the world’s biggest oil consumer. US crude stockpiles have climbed for three straight weeks to the highest seasonal level since 2023. One storage broker reported a surge in bids for securing tank capacity for January at Cushing, a sign that traders are positioning themselves for a glut.
On its current trajectory the world is on course for a record-breaking glut of almost 4 million barrels a day next year, according to the IEA. But history has showed that the oil market is capable of rapidly changing course, and some key players are skeptical that the surplus will be quite so big.
The Energy Information Administration sees the rapid growth in US crude production coming to an end next year as prices at current levels are curbing drilling. The country could see its first annual output drop since 2021.
Recent monthly supply increases by OPEC+ have fallen short of the advertised volumes as many members struggle to pump more. If the market does slump, some forecasters such as Morgan Stanley say the group may reverse course and reduce output. Trump’s squeeze on India’s purchases of Russian crude while he seeks an end to the war in Ukraine may also tighten the market.
Trading giants including Gunvor Group and Vitol anticipate a short-term price slide, with Trafigura predicting crude in the $50s next year, but they also expect the market to recover into the mid-$60s within about 12 months.
The prevailing narrative is “setting up this bearish kind of view of the world,” said Ryan Lance, chief executive officer of ConocoPhillips Inc. “But then again, you look at the physicals, you look at the physical market that’s happening today, and you don’t see that playing itself out.”
Even if the actual surplus doesn’t live up to the dizzying projections seen on paper — something even the IEA’s Bosoni says is likely as the market adjusts — the current shift is undeniable.
“We are now moving into a bit of a different market,” Torbjorn Tornqvist, CEO of trading giant Gunvor Group Ltd., said in an interview. “We have heard it before and people have been burned on that. But this time around, at this stage, I think there’s a bit more substance in the oversupplied narrative.”
The best place to observe the shift taking place in global oil markets is at sea.
More than 1 billion barrels have been amassed on the world’s tanker fleet, according to consultant Vortexa Ltd. It’s the biggest flotilla of oil on the water since 2020, when a price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia flooded the market during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The phenomenon gives tangible support to long-held predictions that surging production will push the market into surplus. While China has kept the excess hidden for months by scooping up cheap barrels for its strategic reserves, the market finally seems to have reached a tipping point.
Crude cargoes from the Middle East are starting to go unsold and key price gauges signal that supply scarcity is ending. International oil futures have sunk to a five-month low near $60 a barrel and top traders are braced for a further slide.
“For the last 12 months we’ve all known that there’s this surplus that’s coming,” Ben Luckock, global head of oil at Trafigura Group, said at the Energy Intelligence Forum in London this week. “I think it really is just about here now.”
The transition to oil supply abundance should offer relief to consumers after years of price inflation, and fulfill President Donald Trump’s unceasing desire for cheaper gasoline. But it poses a threat for US shale drillers already fretting over the industry’s future, and for the kingdom of Saudi Arabia as it grapples with a soaring budget deficit.
The International Energy Agency — a Paris-based forecaster that’s a benchmark for the oil industry — has been predicting a flood of supplies for more than a year. Additional barrels from the US, Brazil, Canada and Guyana were seen overwhelming growth in demand, which has been slowing as China adopts electric vehicles.
The scale of the projected oversupply started to swell in April, when Saudi Arabia and its partners in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries said they would begin reviving idle oil production far faster than scheduled. Riyadh’s objective, officials say privately, was to recoup its lost share of world markets.
World inventories have been accumulating at a rate of 1.9 million barrels a day so far this year, according to the IEA. The surge in barrels at sea could be the precursor to an even bigger buildup in 2026.
“That is in large part due to the accelerated unwinding of extra voluntary production cuts agreed in 2023 by eight OPEC+ countries. The outlook for non-OPEC+ supply growth has also marginally increased,” IEA Head of Oil Industry and Markets Toril Bosoni said in a commentary on the agency’s website. “Those hefty increases are set against a backdrop of tepid demand growth.”
Other prominent forecasters also anticipate a surplus next year, although their projections are less extreme. JPMorgan Chase & Co. sees an average daily overhang of 2.3 million barrels in 2026, while the US government’s Energy Information Administration predicts 2.06 million.
Yet crude prices haven’t been at levels that would indicate a glut. They initially faltered after OPEC+ opened the taps in April, but proved surprisingly resilient for much of the year. Between January and the end of September, Brent futures averaged $70 per barrel.
The prevailing view today is that China’s stockpiling binge diverted supplies away from major western storage hubs, such as Cushing in Oklahoma, where weekly data disclosures have a greater influence on prices. Geopolitical risks like Trump’s strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities also lent support.
“The reality of the market is that we haven’t built any stock in western market centers — the excess has ended up predominantly in China,” said Russell Hardy, chief executive officer of Vitol Group, the world’s top independent oil trader. But “more supply has hit the market in the second half because OPEC has steadily increased.”
That’s becoming a problem. Middle Eastern exporters such as the United Arab Emirates and Qatar struggled to sell cargoes for loading in November. Some shipments from the region have only just found buyers, later than normal, while a few others remain unsold.
The clearest shift has been in the price curve — an array of contracts that show how much traders have to pay to secure crude supplies for each month in the future. Back in April, it was most expensive to guarantee supplies for next-month delivery, a structure known as backwardation that indicates supply scarcity.
That premium has disappeared, with much of the curve now showing the opposite pattern known as contango, a sign of abundant supply where immediate delivery of crude is cheaper.
The consequences of this switch are evident in the world’s biggest oil consumer. US crude stockpiles have climbed for three straight weeks to the highest seasonal level since 2023. One storage broker reported a surge in bids for securing tank capacity for January at Cushing, a sign that traders are positioning themselves for a glut.
On its current trajectory the world is on course for a record-breaking glut of almost 4 million barrels a day next year, according to the IEA. But history has showed that the oil market is capable of rapidly changing course, and some key players are skeptical that the surplus will be quite so big.
The Energy Information Administration sees the rapid growth in US crude production coming to an end next year as prices at current levels are curbing drilling. The country could see its first annual output drop since 2021.
Recent monthly supply increases by OPEC+ have fallen short of the advertised volumes as many members struggle to pump more. If the market does slump, some forecasters such as Morgan Stanley say the group may reverse course and reduce output. Trump’s squeeze on India’s purchases of Russian crude while he seeks an end to the war in Ukraine may also tighten the market.
Trading giants including Gunvor Group and Vitol anticipate a short-term price slide, with Trafigura predicting crude in the $50s next year, but they also expect the market to recover into the mid-$60s within about 12 months.
The prevailing narrative is “setting up this bearish kind of view of the world,” said Ryan Lance, chief executive officer of ConocoPhillips Inc. “But then again, you look at the physicals, you look at the physical market that’s happening today, and you don’t see that playing itself out.”
Even if the actual surplus doesn’t live up to the dizzying projections seen on paper — something even the IEA’s Bosoni says is likely as the market adjusts — the current shift is undeniable.
“We are now moving into a bit of a different market,” Torbjorn Tornqvist, CEO of trading giant Gunvor Group Ltd., said in an interview. “We have heard it before and people have been burned on that. But this time around, at this stage, I think there’s a bit more substance in the oversupplied narrative.”
#Dubai's Emirates NBD to buy 60% stake in India's RBL Bank for $3 billion | Reuters
Dubai's Emirates NBD to buy 60% stake in India's RBL Bank for $3 billion | Reuters
Middle Eastern bank Emirates NBD (ENBD.DU), opens new tab will buy a 60% stake in Indian private lender RBL Bank (RATB.NS), opens new tab for $3 billion, in the largest cross-border acquisition in India's financial sector.
Emirates NBD will invest 268.53 billion Indian rupees ($3.05 billion) in the bank through a preferential issue of shares, RBL Bank said in a statement to exchanges.
The deal is among a series of cross-border deals in India this year, and comes months after Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation's move to buy up to 25% of Yes Bank.
UAE banks have also been considering cross-border expansions in the region and further afield. Both ENBD and Abu Dhabi’s FAB have been expanding their presence in markets like Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
TAPPING INDIA'S FAST-GROWING FINANCIAL SECTOR
"This investment reflects ENBD's confidence in India's fast-growing financial sector, reinforcing India's strategic importance within the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor," the banks said in a joint statement after the deal was announced.
The lender, which is entirely owned by retail shareholders and investment funds, said the deal is subject to regulatory approvals.
India allows 74% foreign investment in private banks but limits shareholdings of any single foreign institution to 15% unless regulator the Reserve Bank of India grants an exemption. The RBI has informally communicated its backing for the ENBD deal, Reuters has reported.
As part of the deal, Emirates NBD will also launch an open offer for additional shares from retail shareholders in line with India's takeover regulations. They will be offered at 280 rupees per share, according to an investor presentation by RBL Bank.
As per these rules, an acquisition of more than 25% shares in a company requires the acquirer to offer to buy another 26% from retail shareholders.
Emirates NBD will ensure its shareholding does not go beyond the overall 74% foreign investment limit, the exchange announcements from both banks said.
The Dubai-based lender will be designated the "promoter" of RBL Bank, a regulatory classification in India used for large shareholders with management control. It will also have the right to nominate directors to the RBL Bank board, subject to regulatory approvals.
Anand Dama, head of financial sector research at Mumbai-based brokerage Emkay Global Capital Financial Services, said the acquisition "will open up flood gates for more such investments into small- and mid-sized banks in the country".
PAN-INDIA PRESENCE
RBL Bank's former CEO Vishwavir Ahuja resigned abruptly in 2021 after the Indian central bank appointed an additional director to its board - a step typically taken to increase scrutiny on a bank.
Since then, the bank has seen a management change and earnings have stabilised. Its stock has soared 90% so far in 2025 against an 8% gain in India's benchmark Nifty 50(.NSEI), opens new tab index.
As of March 2025, RBL Bank had assets of 1.46 trillion Indian rupees ($16.61 billion), making it the 13th largest of 21 private banks in the country.
The lender has 15.17 million customers and a network of 562 branches across 28 Indian states and union territories.
"The infusion will significantly strengthen RBL Bank's balance sheet, enhance its Tier-1 capital ratio, and provide long-term growth capital," the banks said in the press release.
Investors will watch to see if a combined Emirates NBD-RBL Bank, with so much capital at its disposal, would look at more acquisitions in banking, Dama said.
Emirates NBD, which is majority-owned by Dubai's government, had assets worth $297 billion as of end-June. Together with other UAE banks, it has benefited in recent years from rising demand for credit and government-driven investment in non-oil sectors.
It has operations in countries including Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, where it acquired DenizBank in 2019.
Middle Eastern bank Emirates NBD (ENBD.DU), opens new tab will buy a 60% stake in Indian private lender RBL Bank (RATB.NS), opens new tab for $3 billion, in the largest cross-border acquisition in India's financial sector.
Emirates NBD will invest 268.53 billion Indian rupees ($3.05 billion) in the bank through a preferential issue of shares, RBL Bank said in a statement to exchanges.
The deal is among a series of cross-border deals in India this year, and comes months after Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation's move to buy up to 25% of Yes Bank.
UAE banks have also been considering cross-border expansions in the region and further afield. Both ENBD and Abu Dhabi’s FAB have been expanding their presence in markets like Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
TAPPING INDIA'S FAST-GROWING FINANCIAL SECTOR
"This investment reflects ENBD's confidence in India's fast-growing financial sector, reinforcing India's strategic importance within the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor," the banks said in a joint statement after the deal was announced.
The lender, which is entirely owned by retail shareholders and investment funds, said the deal is subject to regulatory approvals.
India allows 74% foreign investment in private banks but limits shareholdings of any single foreign institution to 15% unless regulator the Reserve Bank of India grants an exemption. The RBI has informally communicated its backing for the ENBD deal, Reuters has reported.
As part of the deal, Emirates NBD will also launch an open offer for additional shares from retail shareholders in line with India's takeover regulations. They will be offered at 280 rupees per share, according to an investor presentation by RBL Bank.
As per these rules, an acquisition of more than 25% shares in a company requires the acquirer to offer to buy another 26% from retail shareholders.
Emirates NBD will ensure its shareholding does not go beyond the overall 74% foreign investment limit, the exchange announcements from both banks said.
The Dubai-based lender will be designated the "promoter" of RBL Bank, a regulatory classification in India used for large shareholders with management control. It will also have the right to nominate directors to the RBL Bank board, subject to regulatory approvals.
Anand Dama, head of financial sector research at Mumbai-based brokerage Emkay Global Capital Financial Services, said the acquisition "will open up flood gates for more such investments into small- and mid-sized banks in the country".
PAN-INDIA PRESENCE
RBL Bank's former CEO Vishwavir Ahuja resigned abruptly in 2021 after the Indian central bank appointed an additional director to its board - a step typically taken to increase scrutiny on a bank.
Since then, the bank has seen a management change and earnings have stabilised. Its stock has soared 90% so far in 2025 against an 8% gain in India's benchmark Nifty 50(.NSEI), opens new tab index.
As of March 2025, RBL Bank had assets of 1.46 trillion Indian rupees ($16.61 billion), making it the 13th largest of 21 private banks in the country.
The lender has 15.17 million customers and a network of 562 branches across 28 Indian states and union territories.
"The infusion will significantly strengthen RBL Bank's balance sheet, enhance its Tier-1 capital ratio, and provide long-term growth capital," the banks said in the press release.
Investors will watch to see if a combined Emirates NBD-RBL Bank, with so much capital at its disposal, would look at more acquisitions in banking, Dama said.
Emirates NBD, which is majority-owned by Dubai's government, had assets worth $297 billion as of end-June. Together with other UAE banks, it has benefited in recent years from rising demand for credit and government-driven investment in non-oil sectors.
It has operations in countries including Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, where it acquired DenizBank in 2019.
#Saudi bourse ends 4-day winning streak on weak oil; Egypt hits record high | Reuters
Saudi bourse ends 4-day winning streak on weak oil; Egypt hits record high | Reuters
Saudi Arabia's stock market closed lower on Sunday, snapping a four-session winning streak due to soft oil prices, while Egypt's index reached a fresh all-time high.
Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI), opens new tab eased 0.1%, dragged lower by a 0.6% fall in Al Rajhi Bank (1120.SE), opens new tab and a 0.6% decrease in oil major Saudi Aramco (2222.SE), opens new tab.
Oil prices - a catalyst for the Gulf's financial markets - managed small gains on Friday but were headed for a weekly loss of nearly 3% after the IEA forecast a growing glut and U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to meet again to discuss Ukraine.
In Qatar, the index (.QSI), opens new tab fell 0.1%, with Qatar Islamic Bank (QISB.QA), opens new tab losing 1%.
Egypt raised prices on a wide range of fuel products on Friday, the country's official gazette said, marking the second increase this year, in line with government policies to reduce subsidies and ease a budget deficit.
Saudi Arabia's stock market closed lower on Sunday, snapping a four-session winning streak due to soft oil prices, while Egypt's index reached a fresh all-time high.
Saudi Arabia's benchmark index (.TASI), opens new tab eased 0.1%, dragged lower by a 0.6% fall in Al Rajhi Bank (1120.SE), opens new tab and a 0.6% decrease in oil major Saudi Aramco (2222.SE), opens new tab.
Oil prices - a catalyst for the Gulf's financial markets - managed small gains on Friday but were headed for a weekly loss of nearly 3% after the IEA forecast a growing glut and U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to meet again to discuss Ukraine.
In Qatar, the index (.QSI), opens new tab fell 0.1%, with Qatar Islamic Bank (QISB.QA), opens new tab losing 1%.
Outside the Gulf, Egypt's blue-chip index (.EGX30), opens new tab advanced 0.6%, led by a 5.1% gain in Egypt Aluminum (EGAL.CA), opens new tab.
Egypt raised prices on a wide range of fuel products on Friday, the country's official gazette said, marking the second increase this year, in line with government policies to reduce subsidies and ease a budget deficit.
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