“The financial industry used to be an idea that we reserved for Hong Kong,” said one Chinese official who requested anonymity. “We used to give all the favorable policies to Hong Kong. In contrast, China has condemned anti-government protests in Hong Kong and accused demonstrators in the financial center of undermining national stability. The idea is not for Macau to replace or undermine Hong Kong but for China to have a contingency plan in case the situation in Hong Kong worsens, they said. “Th

Saudi state-owned oil giant Saudi Aramco is set to become a “polarizing stock,” with analysts flagging corporate governance as a key risk for investors. Quite a polarizing stock, frankly. Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest initial public offering (IPO), debuted on the country’s stock exchange on Wednesday morning. Quite a polarizing stock, frankly. Geopolitical risks include instability in the region, with Molchanov flagging the attacks on Saudi Aramco oil facilities in September that shut down h

European stocks traded cautiously higher Thursday morning after the U.S. Federal Reserve signaled that it did not plan to raise interest rates in 2020. The pan-European Stoxx 600 edged up 0.1% in early trade, with technology stocks adding 0.6% to lead gains as most sectors entered positive territory. The European Central Bank (ECB) will announce its latest monetary policy decision on Thursday afternoon, marking a debut for new President Christine Lagarde. Back in Europe, voters head to the polls

China’s President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump during a meeting outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. The senior trade advisors are expected to present divergent views during the high-stakes meeting, but the final decision will be up to Trump, the sources said. Many had expected the two sides to reach a deal ahead of the Dec. 15 tariffs, but that prospect now appeared unlikely, according to multiple U.S. and Chinese sources. “The message is that it will not be painful,” sa

It then identified the skills typically required for each role and in which cities the greatest number of jobs were concentrated. Here are India’s top 15 emerging jobs of 2020, the skills they require and where the most jobs are, according to LinkedIn. Top industries hiring for this role: Information technology and services, computer software, internet, marketing and advertising, financial services. Top industries hiring for this role: Information technology and services, computer software, inte

China tried to get World Bank loans to fund facial recognition technology for the purpose of using it in the Chinese region of Xinjiang, according to a report by news website Axios on Wednesday. The country reportedly wanted to tap on a World Bank loan program in Xinjiang, where Beijing has been widely condemned for human rights abuses and deep surveillance on Muslim minority groups. The Chinese asked for funding to buy facial recognition and night vision cameras, and other surveillance technolo

9, the inland Wagga Beach stands out on the list, as it’s located 170 miles from the nearest coastline. Selecting it for the annual list of Australia’s best beaches, opens a Pandora’s box, said Tourism Australia’s beach ambassador Brad Farmer. Wagga Beach is in the New South Wales town of Wagga Wagga. Brad Farmer Tourism Australia’s beach ambassadorAfter his visit to Wagga Beach, Farmer was also surprised by what he found in the vicinity. Cycling is popular around Wagga Wagga.

A majority of financial executives in boardrooms around the world say Amazon Founder and Chief Executive Jeff Bezos should be considered as the top businessperson of the decade. Almost a third of chief financial officers (CFOs) quizzed in CNBC’s latest Global CFO Council survey picked out Bezos as their most impressive business leader. Jack Ma, founder of rival online marketplace Alibaba, and Tesla boss Elon Musk came in second and third, respectively. The CNBC Global CFO Council represents some

Voters across the U.K. are heading to the polls Thursday for a general election that is likely to shape the country for decades to come. The prime minister has repeatedly said a vote for his party means the ability to “get Brexit done.” It is estimated that any winning party must grab in excess of 320 seats for any sort of majority. Labour are pledging to give the public a second vote on Brexit, saying that it will secure a “sensible Brexit deal” that it will them put to another referendum again

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, as well as three other Democratic Presidential hopefuls Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, Gov. In other words, Wharton projects the proposed wealth tax will raise $1 trillion to $1.4 trillion less than the Warren campaign advertises. “A wealth tax doesn’t just affect the billionaires: It has a broader impact on everybody because those billionaires are investing in companies that employ everybody.” Warren’s wealth tax would also impose a 2% tax on net worth between $50 million and $

Telefonica Deutschland, one of Germany’s top mobile carriers, has picked Huawei and Nokia to build out its 5G network. The move is a potential snub to the U.S. government which has been campaigning for its allies to keep the Chinese telecoms equipment giant out of their 5G networks. Japan and Australia have effectively banned the company from their 5G networks. The German government decided in October it would not exclude Huawei from its 5G networks. Instead, it introduced a draft proposal for s

U.S. stock index futures were slightly higher Thursday morning. ET, Dow futures rose 20 points, indicating a positive open of more than 23 points. Futures on the S&P and Nasdaq were both slightly higher. The U.S. central bank’s decision to keep borrowing costs unchanged was unanimous, following several dissents in recent meetings. Market participants also closely monitored global trade developments, with three days to go before the U.S. is due to impose even more tariffs on Chinese goods.

Signage of Saudi Aramco’s initial public offering (IPO) is seen during a news conference by the state oil company at the Plaza Conference Center in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia November 3, 2019. Shares of Saudi Aramco surged on their second day of public trading, pushing the kingdom’s record IPO to a gargantuan $2 trillion valuation and briefly touching Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s long-held target for the company. Share rose 10% to 38.7 riyals apiece ($10.32) but slipped back to 37 riyals within

The U.S. central bank left interest rates unchanged on Wednesday, a decision that was largely anticipated — capping a year where the Fed cut its benchmark rate three times. The central bank also indicated it does not expect any policy changes through at least 2020 . Meanwhile, shares in Australia declined in morning trade, with the S&P/ASX 200 around 0.5%. Stocks in Asia edged higher in Thursday morning trade after the U.S. Federal Reserve signaled overnight that it would not raise interest rate

Stocks in Asia are set to edge higher at the open on Thursday after the U.S. Federal Reserve signaled overnight that it would not raise interest rates in 2020. Futures pointed to a higher open for Japanese stocks. Meanwhile, shares in Australia declined in early trade, with the S&P/ASX 200 down more than 0.1%. The U.S. central bank left interest rates unchanged on Wednesday, a decision that was largely anticipated — capping a year where the Fed cut its benchmark rate three times. The central ban

OneConnect set a price range of $9 to $10 per share for its initial public offering of 26 million shares, down from the $12 to $14 per share range it had set earlier. The company also downsized the offering from 36 million American depositary shares (ADSs) to 26 million ADSs. OneConnect, a unit of China’s biggest insurer by market value, Ping An Insurance Group Co of China, counts Japan’s SoftBank and Japanese financial firm SBI Group as some of its main investors. That is well below its $7.5 bi

Model, television personality, and the unofficial “Mayor of Twitter” Chrissy Teigen took to the platform earlier this week to answer her followers’ questions. Teigen pulled back the curtain on her celebrity lifestyle to reveal how she and her husband, the singer John Legend, pay for their home, how she manages and feels about her money, and more. She feels ‘most guilty about’ moneyTeigen revealed that the “perk” she feels most guilty about is the amount of money she has access to. Teigen has a w

A majority of Americans say the economy is only benefitting the wealthy, despite record-low unemployment and rising wages. A poll by Pew Research Center found that 69% of Americans say the economy is helping the wealthy, while hurting the poor, those without college degrees and the middle class. Nearly three-quarters of upper-income households say the current economic conditions are “excellent/good,” while a majority of lower-income earners say the economy is “only fair/poor.” “To the extent tha

Legendary U.S. oilman Harold Hamm, who once called the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries a “toothless tiger,” will step down as chief executive of Continental Resources and become its executive chairman, the company said on Wednesday. Hamm will be replaced as CEO by William Berry, a former ConocoPhillips executive and Continental board member, as of Jan. 1. I’d say there is no living American, perhaps with the exception of Charles Koch, that has had as much influence on the Ameri

The Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged Wednesday at its December meeting, just as markets expected. These experts weigh in on what they’re watching now. And that’s really the problem because global business is holding back on investing because they don’t know what the rules can be around trade. So I think that’s going to be an anchor on both global interest rates, frankly, and on the global economy over the next year.” Frederic Mishkin, Columbia University economics professor and form