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The Morning Ledger: U.K. Suppliers Brace for Cash-Flow Constraints |
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Trucks crossing the English Channel could face delays in the event of a no-deal Brexit, economists say. PHOTO: GARETH FULLER/ASSOCIATED PRESS
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Good morning. European businesses are expected to press U.K. suppliers for discounts, delay payments or search for alternative sources if border delays arise as a result of a no-deal Brexit.
Budge an inch, please: About 20% of EU companies with suppliers in the U.K. would ask for discounts on their orders in case the U.K. leaves the European Union without a withdrawal agreement, according to a survey released Monday. Eleven percent of U.K. exporters expect their contracts to be canceled by European clients in the event of delays.
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Waiting for goods: One-quarter of European companies would postpone paying their U.K. suppliers until after the goods arrive, potentially causing a cash-flow problem for many British companies, the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply said. “The companies that will be hit hardest are the ones with low cash balances,” said John Glen, a CIPS economist.
Waiting for details: The terms under which the U.K. will exit the EU on March 29 haven’t been determined. Members of Parliament are set to vote again on the U.K. government’s Brexit deal on Tuesday.
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The U.S. Commerce Department releases January retail sales. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal expect sales to be flat compared to December.
ADT Inc., Casey's General Stores Inc., and Stitch Fix Inc. are among the companies slated to report earnings today.
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The U.S. Labor Department publishes the consumer-price index for February on Tuesday. Economists expect to see a 2.2% rise in core prices.
On Thursday, China’s national statistics bureau will release combined economic data for January and February.
On Friday, the U.S. Federal Reserve reports U.S. industrial production for February, a report that will provide insight into the factory sector’s ability to sustain momentum. Also coming out Friday is the University of Michigan’s preliminary survey of U.S. consumer sentiment in March.
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Deutsche Bank’s headquarters beside the Frankfurter Sparkasse skyscraper offices in Germany’s financial capital. PHOTO: KRISZTIAN BOCSI/BLOOMBERG NEWS
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Deutsche Bank AG’s top executives have agreed to hold discussions with rival Commerzbank AG about a potential merger, as Germany’s two biggest banks explore strategic options after suffering performance and share-price declines.
General Electric Co. said its two longest-serving directors, James Mulva and Geoff Beattie, are retiring as the conglomerate continues to restructure its board and operations after two difficult years.
European plane maker Airbus SE for two decades was the biggest champion of the world’s largest airliners. After dumping the A380 superjumbo, the jet maker is all but ceding the market for the biggest planes to rival Boeing Co.
Tesla Inc.’s plans to save money by closing most of its retail stores and selling all cars online face a big potential hurdle: Store landlords show no signs of giving the company an easy way out of its leases.
Helen of Troy Ltd., the maker of Revlon hair dryers and Pert shampoo, has put the business up for sale, as shoppers turn their backs on mass-market personal-care brands.
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A Boeing 737 MAX 8 in Zhoushan, China, in December. Chinese airlines operate 96 of the planes. PHOTO: THOMAS PETER/REUTERS
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China’s decision to order the country’s airlines to ground the Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft following Sunday’s deadly crash of an Ethiopian Airlines jet marks a sharp diversion from traditional air-safety practice.
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The U.S. Bureau of Prisons opened an investigation into Martin Shkreli’s behavior behind bars after The Wall Street Journal reported that the former executive is largely running his drug company, Phoenixus AG, from his prison cell via a contraband smartphone.
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Aviation regulators took the unusual step of warning Southwest Airlines Co. and its mechanics that their high-profile labor dispute threatens to damage the airline’s safety practices.
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Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Friday called for the breakup of Amazon.com Inc., Alphabet Inc.’s Google and Facebook Inc., taking an aggressive stance against some of the U.S.’s most powerful companies in her bid for president.
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A World Bank tribunal has ordered Venezuela to pay more than $8 billion to ConocoPhillips over assets expropriated in 2007, Reuters reports.
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Hong Kong’s stock exchange revamped its listing rules last April, allowing fledgling biotechnology companies to list before they turn a profit. It has hosted six such initial public offerings since.
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North Korea has punched a hole in the web of United Nations sanctions, according to a report to the U.N. Security Council that is expected to be issued this week.
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Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said that the current interest-rate setting is ‘roughly neutral,’ and he doesn’t expect that to change. PHOTO: JUSTIN SULLIVAN/GETTY IMAGES
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Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said the U.S. economic outlook is favorable and that the economy doesn’t require higher or lower interest rates now.
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President Trump is keeping European allies seeking details of the U.S.-China trade deal at bay, saying he isn’t willing to share the benefits of U.S. negotiations. That stance has drawn fire from allies and business groups who say the administration could strike a better deal with a unified front.
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Auto sales in China continued their downhill run into February, declining for the eighth consecutive month.
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Global investors could soon have an easier way to make bets on or against China’s stock market, with Hong Kong’s exchange planning to offer futures trading tied to mainland shares.
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Bloomin' Brands Inc., a Tampa, Fla.-based casual dining company, appointed Christopher Meyer as executive vice president and chief financial officer, effective April 1.
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Mr. Meyer will receive an annual base salary of $425,000 and is entitled to a target bonus of 85% of base salary and an equity award with a target value equal to 100% of his base salary. He will also receive a sign-on equity award of $1.275 million, Bloomin' Brands said in a filing.
Britvic PLC, a U.K. soft-drinks maker, named Joanne Wilson as CFO. Ms. Wilson replaces Mathew Dunn, who is continuing as CFO until the end of his notice period in April. Ms. Wilson joins from Dunnhumby, a Tesco PLC unit, where she is CFO. Compensation details weren't disclosed.
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