Company news in brief
India gold demand to plummet
India's gold consumption is likely to drop to its lowest in eight years in 2017, hit by government moves to make bullion trading more transparent and by faltering demand from some rural areas, the World Gold Council (WGC) said.
The nation's gold demand in the July-September quarter dropped 24% from a year ago.
Evidence of weaker appetite in a country where gold is used in everything from investment to wedding gifts could drag on global prices that have been hovering near their highest in three weeks. India is the word's No.2 consumer of gold behind China. – Nampa/Reuters
Merrill Lynch to raise pay for top brokers
Bank of America Merrill Lynch said it will increase the pay of brokers each month who grow their business in 2018 and will cut the monthly pay of those who do not, in a bid to the Wall Street brokerage's own growth.
The new compensation plan, which was sent to Merrill's 15 000 brokers Wednesday afternoon, also eliminates a penalty that sharply cut base pay for advisers whose productivity fell below the lowest tier, a move that will likely keep young, inexperienced advisers who are struggling.
The change comes as top US wealth management firms struggle to maintain growth amid increasing regulatory costs and competition from robo advisers and independent firms. – Nampa/Reuters
Nigeria's senate approves MTN report
Nigeria's senate approved on Wednesday a report largely exonerating South African telecoms company MTN Group Ltd's Nigerian unit, after the business was accused of illegally repatriating US$14 billion to its parent.
But the senate report also asked Nigeria's central bank to sanction Stanbic IBTC Bank "for improper documentations in respect of capital repatriation and loan repayments" on behalf of MTN.
Stanbic IBTC did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment. – Nampa/Reuters
Tencent buys 12% of Snap
Tencent Holdings Ltd now has a 12% stake in Snapchat operator Snap Inc, company filings showed on Wednesday.
Snap's largely privately owned structure, which reserves 95% of voting rights for its co-founders, made it likely Tencent was just accumulating a financial stake.
Along with Alibaba and Baidu, Tencent has poured billions of cash from a decade of growth in China into buying US firms. – Nampa/Reuters
M&S to speed up store closures
Marks & Spencer will speed up store closures after falling sales and cost pressures dragged first-half profit lower, underlining its struggle to retain the loyalty of British shoppers.
The 133-year-old M&S made a pretax profit before one-off items of 219 million pounds (US$288 million) in the 26 weeks to Sept. 30 - ahead of analysts' average forecast of 201 million pounds but a 5.3% fall on last year.
M&S, one of the best known names in UK retail, said finance chief Helen Weir would leave the business when a successor is found after less than three years in the role. – Nampa/Reuters
India's gold consumption is likely to drop to its lowest in eight years in 2017, hit by government moves to make bullion trading more transparent and by faltering demand from some rural areas, the World Gold Council (WGC) said.
The nation's gold demand in the July-September quarter dropped 24% from a year ago.
Evidence of weaker appetite in a country where gold is used in everything from investment to wedding gifts could drag on global prices that have been hovering near their highest in three weeks. India is the word's No.2 consumer of gold behind China. – Nampa/Reuters
Merrill Lynch to raise pay for top brokers
Bank of America Merrill Lynch said it will increase the pay of brokers each month who grow their business in 2018 and will cut the monthly pay of those who do not, in a bid to the Wall Street brokerage's own growth.
The new compensation plan, which was sent to Merrill's 15 000 brokers Wednesday afternoon, also eliminates a penalty that sharply cut base pay for advisers whose productivity fell below the lowest tier, a move that will likely keep young, inexperienced advisers who are struggling.
The change comes as top US wealth management firms struggle to maintain growth amid increasing regulatory costs and competition from robo advisers and independent firms. – Nampa/Reuters
Nigeria's senate approves MTN report
Nigeria's senate approved on Wednesday a report largely exonerating South African telecoms company MTN Group Ltd's Nigerian unit, after the business was accused of illegally repatriating US$14 billion to its parent.
But the senate report also asked Nigeria's central bank to sanction Stanbic IBTC Bank "for improper documentations in respect of capital repatriation and loan repayments" on behalf of MTN.
Stanbic IBTC did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment. – Nampa/Reuters
Tencent buys 12% of Snap
Tencent Holdings Ltd now has a 12% stake in Snapchat operator Snap Inc, company filings showed on Wednesday.
Snap's largely privately owned structure, which reserves 95% of voting rights for its co-founders, made it likely Tencent was just accumulating a financial stake.
Along with Alibaba and Baidu, Tencent has poured billions of cash from a decade of growth in China into buying US firms. – Nampa/Reuters
M&S to speed up store closures
Marks & Spencer will speed up store closures after falling sales and cost pressures dragged first-half profit lower, underlining its struggle to retain the loyalty of British shoppers.
The 133-year-old M&S made a pretax profit before one-off items of 219 million pounds (US$288 million) in the 26 weeks to Sept. 30 - ahead of analysts' average forecast of 201 million pounds but a 5.3% fall on last year.
M&S, one of the best known names in UK retail, said finance chief Helen Weir would leave the business when a successor is found after less than three years in the role. – Nampa/Reuters
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