AIRLINES
Norwegian cuts routes
Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA, which challenged British Airways PLC and other established rivals by launching transatlantic flights, yesterday said that it would end those services and seek government help. The budget airline, founded in 1993, has been forced to ground all but six of its 138 aircraft due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “Norwegian will henceforth focus on its core Nordics business, operating a European short-haul network with narrow body aircraft,” the company said. It aims to cut its fleet to about 50 aircraft before expanding to about 70 next year, it said.
AUTOMAKERS
PSA sales plunge 27.8%
France’s PSA Group, which is in the process of merging with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV, yesterday said that last year’s sales plunged 27.8 percent to 2.5 million vehicles as the COVID-19 pandemic shut down economies worldwide. Sales in Europe, its main market, were down 29.7 percent at 2.1 million, while in China, sales plunged nearly 58 percent to 45,965 vehicles, continuing a rapid decline from 740,000 in 2014. PSA, which groups the Peugeot, Citroen, DS, Opel and Vauxhall brands, said that the pandemic had boosted online sales and it expected to sell 100,000 vehicles this way this year, up from 40,000 last year.
FRANCE
Carrefour takeover chided
Minister of Labor, Employment and Economic Inclusion Elisabeth Borne yesterday said that she was against a takeover of French retailer Carrefour SA by Canadian convenience-store operator Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. “I am in favor of not questioning Carrefour’s current shareholding structure and allowing [the firm] to pursue its strategy,” Borne told Europe 1 radio. The Canadian firm’s near US$20 billion takeover approach for Carrefour — continental Europe’s largest retailer — on Wednesday ran into early opposition, with the French government raising concerns about food sovereignty and job security at one of the country’s largest employers.
RETAIL
Tesco posts 6.7% growth
Tesco PLC, the UK’s biggest retailer, yesterday followed rivals in reporting buoyant Christmas trading, as COVID-19 pandemic restrictions meant that people splashed out on celebrations at home. The group said that like-for-like sales growth in the UK was 6.7 percent in its third quarter to Nov. 28 last year, accelerating to 8.1 percent in the six weeks to Saturday last week. “We delivered a record Christmas across all of our formats and channels,” Tesco CEO Ken Murphy said. Tesco estimated that additional COVID-19 costs would be ￡810 million (US$1.1 billion) for this year and next year, up from ￡725 million forecast in October.
ETFS
State Street snubs US ban
The worldwide largest exchange-traded fund (ETF) tracking the Hang Seng Index is to resume buying shares of Chinese companies included in a US investment ban, marking a U-turn by State Street Corp after it was criticized by former Hong Kong Monetary Authority chief executive Joseph Yam (任志剛). The US$13 billion Tracker Fund of Hong Kong, the city’s most actively traded ETF, said in a statement on Wednesday that it had reversed a decision announced just two days earlier to stop making new investments in firms included in the US ban. State Street said in a separate statement yesterday that the ban would not apply because the Tracker Fund and its manager, State Street Global Advisors Asia, are considered to be non-US entities.
DIVIDED VIEWS: Although the Fed agreed on holding rates steady, some officials see no rate cuts for this year, while 10 policymakers foresee two or more cuts There are a lot of unknowns about the outlook for the economy and interest rates, but US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled at least one thing seems certain: Higher prices are coming. Fed policymakers voted unanimously to hold interest rates steady at a range of 4.25 percent to 4.50 percent for a fourth straight meeting on Wednesday, as they await clarity on whether tariffs would leave a one-time or more lasting mark on inflation. Powell said it is still unclear how much of the bill would fall on the shoulders of consumers, but he expects to learn more about tariffs
NOT JUSTIFIED: The bank’s governor said there would only be a rate cut if inflation falls below 1.5% and economic conditions deteriorate, which have not been detected The central bank yesterday kept its key interest rates unchanged for a fifth consecutive quarter, aligning with market expectations, while slightly lowering its inflation outlook amid signs of cooling price pressures. The move came after the US Federal Reserve held rates steady overnight, despite pressure from US President Donald Trump to cut borrowing costs. Central bank board members unanimously voted to maintain the discount rate at 2 percent, the secured loan rate at 2.375 percent and the overnight lending rate at 4.25 percent. “We consider the policy decision appropriate, although it suggests tightening leaning after factoring in slackening inflation and stable GDP growth,”
Greek tourism student Katerina quit within a month of starting work at a five-star hotel in Halkidiki, one of the country’s top destinations, because she said conditions were so dire. Beyond the bad pay, the 22-year-old said that her working and living conditions were “miserable and unacceptable.” Millions holiday in Greece every year, but its vital tourism industry is finding it harder and harder to recruit Greeks to look after them. “I was asked to work in any department of the hotel where there was a need, from service to cleaning,” said Katerina, a tourism and marketing student, who would
i Gasoline and diesel prices at fuel stations are this week to rise NT$0.1 per liter, as tensions in the Middle East pushed crude oil prices higher last week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said yesterday. International crude oil prices last week rose for the third consecutive week due to an escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, as the market is concerned that the situation in the Middle East might affect crude oil supply, CPC and Formosa said in separate statements. Front-month Brent crude oil futures — the international oil benchmark — rose 3.75 percent to settle at US$77.01
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