WORLDWIDE : HEADLINES
Virgin Australia bondholders to table rival deal for creditor vote – lawyer
SYDNEY – Virgin Australia Holdings Ltd (VAH.AX) bondholders plan to propose to creditors a debt-to-equity swap as an alternative deal to the purchase by Bain Capital agreed by the company’s administrator, a lawyer for the bondholders said on Friday.
Singapore’s Broad Peak Investment Advisers and Hong Kong’s Tor Investment Management plan to put forward an alternative deed of company arrangement (DOCA) to a vote at a creditor’s meeting next month, the lawyer Ian Jackman said.
“The administrators will no doubt put forward a DOCA that represents the Bain transaction at the second meeting of creditors,” he said at a court hearing.
“We for our part will have an alternative DOCA … with a view to improving the return of creditors as well as ensuring the future viability of the company.”
Broad Peak and Tor hold around A$300 million ($208 million) of Virgin’s A$2 billion of unsecured bonds, according to a court submission published on Thursday.
Full Coverage: REUTERS
South Korea finance minister says will raise tax rates for multiple home owners
SEOUL – South Korea finance minister on Friday said the government will raise real estate taxes for multiple home owners and encourage renters to unload homes.
Real estate taxes that kick in on properties valued over 600 million won ($499,488) for multiple home owners will be increased, while capital gains tax rates will also be raised, Hong said at a policy meeting.
Hong did not elaborate.
The government also plans to increase home supplies in the metropolitan area surrounding the capital Seoul.
Full Coverage: REUTERS
WORLDWIDE : BUSINESS / FINANCE / ECONOMY
Oil dips, heading for weekly loss as virus cases rise
TOKYO – Oil prices dipped on Friday after steep falls in the previous session and were set for a weekly decline on worries renewed lockdowns following a surge in coronavirus cases in the United States and elsewhere will suppress fuel demand.
Brent crude LCOc1 was down by 7 cents, or 0.2%, at $42.28 a barrel by 0114 GMT after falling more than 2% on Thursday. U.S. oil CLc1 fell 13 cents, or 0.3%, at $39.49 a barrel after a drop of 3% in the previous session.
Brent is heading for a weekly decline of more than 1% and U.S. crude is on track for a fall of nearly 3%.
While many analysts are expecting economies and fuel demand to recover from the pandemic, record daily increases in coronavirus infections this week in the United States, the world’s biggest oil consumer, raised concerns about the pace of any recovery.
Full Coverage: REUTERS
China’s autonomous vehicle company WeRide starts driverless testing
BEIJING – WeRide, a Chinese autonomous vehicle startup, said on Friday it has become the first autonomous company to start fully driverless vehicle testing in China, as the world’s biggest auto market accelerates development of autonomous technologies.
Three-year-old WeRide, backed by Nissan, Renault and Mitsubishi, said in a statement that it started tests on Wednesday on open roads in a designated area of Guangzhou after the southern Chinese city granted permission.
In China, companies such as Toyota-backed Pony.ai, Baidu Inc, and Didi Chuxing are also testing autonomous cars, but all with one or two safety staff onboard. The people onboard take control in unexpected situations.
WeRide said it will use a remote centre to take control of their vehicles if needed.
Full Coverage: REUTERS
Dollar, safe-haven currencies buoyed by U.S. coronavirus anxiety
TOKYO – The dollar and other safe-haven currencies were well bid on Friday after a surge in new coronavirus cases in the United States further undermined the case for a quick economic recovery.
The caution helped to lift the dollar index .DXY to 96.798 from near one-month low of 96.233 touched on Thursday.
The euro fell to $1.1288 EUR=, slipping back after having scaled a one-month high of $1.1371 on Thursday.
Against the safe-haven yen, the dollar traded at 107.20 yen JPY=, having touched its lowest level in 10 days in the previous trade.
The Swiss franc also strengthened to its highest level in six weeks against the euro, to 1.0609 franc per euro EURCHF=.
Full Coverage: REUTERS
