|
The Morning Ledger: U.S., Canada Launch Talks to Rewrite Nafta |
|
|
| |
|
|
Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland speaks to journalists in Washington, D.C., U.S., Aug. 28, 2018. PHOTO: CHRIS WATTIE/REUTERS
|
|
|
Good morning. Executives at companies operating in the U.S., Canada and Mexico are weighing their options as U.S. and Canadian negotiators try to complete a rewrite of the North American Free Trade Agreement, report the WSJ's Paul Vieira and Jacob M. Schlesinger.
Little room for negotiations: After being sidelined in the discussions for months, Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland arrived in Washington to meet with U.S. counterparts, a day after Mr. Trump said the U.S. and Mexico had agreed to new trade terms and suggested Canada had little leeway to change what the other sides had agreed upon.
[Continues below…]
|
|
|
|
|
Tough decisions ahead: The Trump administration’s trade deal with Mexico is likely to force auto makers to rethink their strategy for many Mexican-built models, threatening the country’s role as a go-to producer of lower-priced small cars and sedans for the U.S. market.
Relocation to Mexico: Mexico could attract new investments in other industries should companies follow the example of Austria’s Voestalpine AG. The steel maker is shifting part of its production for the automotive industry from the U.S. to Mexico to avoid U.S. tariffs on imported steel, Reuters reports.
|
|
|
Dicks Sporting Goods Inc., Eaton Vance Corp., Guess? Inc. and Salesforce.com Inc. are among the companies slated to report earnings today.
|
|
|
HP Enterprise Names New Finance Chief |
|
|
Mr. Robbiati will join the Palo Alto, Calif., company on Sept. 17. He succeeds Tim Stonesifer, who has served as chief financial officer of the maker of server, storage and networking gear since 2016, when the company split from personal computer and printing system maker Hewlett-Packard Co.
Mr. Robbiati joins HPE from Sprint, where he served as CFO from August 2015 until January. He helped Sprint lower its debt costs and oversaw the company’s finances as it engaged rival T-Mobile US Inc. in potential merger talks.
|
|
|
|
The president accused Google and other websites of suppressing conservative voices. PHOTO: MANDEL NGAN/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES
|
|
|
-
President Trump accused Alphabet Inc.'s Google of elevating critical stories about him, calling it a “very serious situation” that will be addressed. Google responded by saying “we don’t bias our results toward any political ideology.”
-
Yahoo, the web giant owned by Verizon Communications Inc., analyzes more than 200 million inboxes for clues about what products people might buy -- a practice much of Silicon Valley has declared off-limits.
-
Chinese electric-vehicle maker NIO Inc. launched a U.S. stock sale that could raise up to $1.32 billion, moving to tap the public markets before generating any substantial revenue.
-
The former chief executive of Barnes & Noble Inc. is suing the bookseller, accusing the company’s executive chairman of fabricating reasons to fire him about a month after a deal to sell the company fell apart.
-
Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd. on Wednesday unveiled plans for a stock-market listing that could value the maker of the famed sports car driven by James Bond at around $6 billion.
-
Sears Holdings Corp. expanded its program to install and balance tires for customers of Amazon.com Inc.’s sites.
-
J.Crew Group Inc.’s flagship brand snapped a four-year slump, posting a slight gain in quarterly sales at its existing stores and websites.
-
If America’s tech and telecom giants have an opinion about the planned T-Mobile US Inc. and Sprint Corp. merger, most are keeping it to themselves. Dish Network Corp. is one of the few large companies to take a stand.
-
Hain Celestial Group Inc. warned of continuing sales declines in the U.S. as competition intensifies for natural and organic products.
-
Yum China Holdings Inc. has rejected a private buyout offer from a consortium of investors that valued the restaurant operator at more than $17 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter.
|
|
|
The Financial Reporting Council has fined and reprimanded Grant Thornton UK LLP and three statutory auditors for misconduct in relation to the audits of Nichols PLC and the University of Salford for the years ending 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013, the U.K. regulator said in a statement on Wednesday. In addition, a former senior partner at Grant Thornton was fined and excluded from the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales for five years.
Grant Thornton will pay a dscounted fine of £3 million ($3.86 million) as well as £165,000 for legal costs. The three auditors and the former senior partner will pay a total of £322,500, the FRC said.
|
|
|
|
|
The Senate has confirmed Richard Clarida as vice chairman of the Federal Reserve. PHOTO: ANDREW HARRER/BLOOMBERG NEWS
|
|
|
-
The Senate voted Tuesday to confirm Columbia University economist Richard Clarida to become U.S. Federal Reserve vice chairman, filling a top leadership position ahead of the central bank’s September policy meeting.
-
The Senate on Tuesday confirmed two nominees to join the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, bringing the main U.S. derivatives regulator to full strength for the first time since 2014.
-
The U.S. Justice Department is investigating whether Jho Low, a fugitive Malaysian financier, laundered tens of millions of dollars and used the funds to pay a U.S. legal team that includes former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and a lawyer who represents President Trump, according to people familiar with the matter.
-
The U.S. Labor Department said Tuesday that it is creating an office to better help companies comply with regulations before finding they have run afoul of labor laws, which policy watchers called a change in tone from an Obama-era emphasis on enforcement.
-
Switzerland-based Basler Kantonalbank struck a deferred-prosecution agreement with U.S. authorities, admitting it helped Americans avoid their tax obligations for a decade.
-
Gilead Sciences Inc.’s blood cancer drug Yescarta is too expensive to be recommended for use in the U.K.’s health service, a national regulator said Tuesday, reports MarketWatch.
-
The German government has asked pharmaceutical companies to examine their supply chains for any vulnerability that could cause shortages of essential drugs in the event that Britain leaves the European Union without a Brexit deal, reports Reuters.
-
The U.K. Pensions Regulator has warned pension plan operators about being too generous when they offer lump sums to people considering to cash out of defined benefit plans, reports the BBC.
|
|
|
|
Getting rid of the excess gas by setting it on fire, a practice known as flaring, is better for the environment than releasing it directly into the atmosphere. PHOTO: NICK OXFORD/REUTERS
|
|
|
-
Roughly $1 million worth of natural gas extracted in the Permian Basin goes to waste each day, as shale drillers end up having to burn a byproduct that they don't have enough pipeline or storage capacity to take to market.
-
A preliminary report on international trade for the month of July showed the U.S. trade deficit in goods widened last month to $72.2 billion from $67.9 billion in June.
-
The Conference Board's index of U.S. consumer confidence rose in August to 133.4 from 127.9 in July, its highest level since October 2000.
-
U.S. home price gains slowed in June, indicating that rising mortgage rates and growing affordability challenges are finally beginning to slow price gains.
-
Iran oil shipments are declining at a faster-than-expected pace ahead of U.S. sanctions set to begin in November.
|
|
|
Lattice Semiconductor Corp., a Hillsboro, Ore., provider of connectivity solutions, said it plans to search for a new chief financial officer. The company's current CFO, Max Downing, will remain in his role until a successor is appointed.
|
|
|
Lattice intends to hire a new CFO before the end of February 2019. Mr. Downing will assist with an orderly transition through the filing of the company's annual report and will receive enhanced compensation for each month during which he remains with Lattice, according to a filing.
|
|
|
|
|