Greece licks wounds after bailout vote, ECB move expected (
Reuters)
Lose-Lose: Pushing Greece Out of Euro Is Costlier Than
Write-Off (
BBG)
EMU brutality in Greece has destroyed the trust of Europe's
Left (
Telegraph)
Schaeuble Shrugs Off Greek Vote Saying Euro Exit Is Best (
BBG)
Merkel’s tough tactics prompt criticism in Germany and abroad (
FT)
Investors Get Caught in Oil’s Slippery Wake (
WSJ)
Obama Girds for Battle With Congress on Iran Deal (
WSJ)
Icahn Flips Script on BlackRock’s Fink, a Longtime Critic (
WSJ)
Rice - Iran cannot avoid inspections of suspicious sites (
Reuters)
Drought Is the Mother of Invention on the Farm (
WSJ)
Puerto Rico Says It Failed to Send Money for Bond Payments (
BBG)
Congress to probe Planned Parenthood use of aborted fetus
tissue (
Reuters)
EU Launches Antitrust Investigations Into Qualcomm (
WSJ)
Overnight Media Digest
WSJ
* Greece's Parliament passed austerity measures needed to secure
a fresh bailout, but a rebellion within the ruling Syriza party is
testing whether Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras can hold his
government together as he seeks to complete the deal. (
http://on.wsj.com/1LkBWzT)
* Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen said the central bank
was on a path to raise rates this year as the economy improves, in
semiannual testimony to Congress that got off to a fiery start
Wednesday. (
http://on.wsj.com/1TCm7HL)
* The cost of resolving police-misconduct cases has surged for
big U.S. cities, with the 10 cities with the largest departments
paying out $248.7 million last year. (
http://on.wsj.com/1fKNz7J)
* U.S. President Barack Obama delivered a forceful defense of
the Iran nuclear deal the day after it was reached, girding for a
complicated political struggle with Congress. (
http://on.wsj.com/1Mvpyvz)
* A U.S. hedge fund's challenge to a once-in-a-generation
succession at Samsung is forcing South Korea's most powerful family
to rethink its relationship with shareholders. (
http://on.wsj.com/1gCzFol)
* In resisting a takeover bid from rival Monsanto, Syngenta has
argued that a merger would run afoul of antitrust regulators, but
Monsanto disputes that. (
http://on.wsj.com/1DicjsY)
FT
Deutsche Bank AG is now being investigated by the UK regulator
the Financial Conduct Authority to see whether the bank breached
any anti-money laundering laws for its Moscow clients. Earlier this
week, New York's banking regulator asked the bank to provide
details about a suspected bribe to a Moscow bank employee as part
of its investigation.
British payments processing firm Worldpay (IPO-WORLD.L) took a
step nearer a potential stock market listing by appointing
Barclays' deputy chairman Michael Rake as its new chairman on
Wednesday.
Santander Consumer Holdings USA has named former JPMorgan Chase
& Co executive Blythe Masters as its non-executive
chairman.
Belgian Privacy Commission defended its decision to take
Facebook to court by calling it "politically motivated". The data
protection agency took the company to court alleging that the
company tracks people over the web even if they do not use the
service.
NYT
* More than 15 months after a law firm hired by Qatar, the site
of the 2022 World Cup, issued a report urging reforms in the
treatment of migrant construction workers, critics say many of the
major recommendations remain unaddressed, and thousands of foreign
laborers continue to work under conditions akin to indentured
servitude.(
http://nyti.ms/1CFdgRf)
* Under threat from the nation's creditors to move quickly or
lose any chance of obtaining a desperately needed new bailout
package, Greece's Parliament approved painful new austerity
measures early Thursday, virtually guaranteeing that life would get
harder for millions of Greeks. (
http://nyti.ms/1CFdlV3)
* Dispensaries for expensive drugs that treat complex or rare
diseases are surging, but their customer service and business
practices are under scrutiny.(
http://nyti.ms/1CFdDLS)
* Janet Yellen, the Federal Reserve chairwoman, told lawmakers
on Wednesday that proposals to increase congressional oversight of
the central bank could cause collateral damage to the broader
economy. (
http://nyti.ms/1CFdNTi)
* Nearly 80 years after kicking out foreign oil companies,
Mexico reversed course on Wednesday, auctioning 14 exploration
blocks in an effort to attract international energy giants and
increase the country's slumping production. But the results were a
disappointment. (
http://nyti.ms/1CFdRCw)
* Public Finance Corporation, a financing unit of the Puerto
Rican government failed to make a $93.7 million debt-service
payment on Wednesday, underscoring recent warnings by Governor
Alejandro Garcia Padilla that the commonwealth, which is seeking a
"negotiated moratorium" on its $72 billion of debt, is fast running
out of cash. (
http://nyti.ms/1CFdTuc)
Canada
THE GLOBE AND MAIL
** The Bank of Canada lowered its trend-setting overnight rate a
quarter percentage point Wednesday to 0.50 percent - the second
rate cut in six months. (
http://bit.ly/1fLnzJn)
** Shaw Communications Inc said Thursday it will open a
40,000-square-foot data center in Calgary and launch a number of
cloud computing and data management services aimed at enterprise
customers. (
http://bit.ly/1fLnEgl)
** Premium apparel producer and retailer Tilley Endurables Inc,
known for its hard-wearing sun hats, has been sold to a private
equity firm, with the goal of reversing its slide in sales amid
tougher competition. Re:Capital, the Canadian arm of British firm
Hilco Capital, has acquired Tilley, the company said on Wednesday.
(
http://bit.ly/1I58GOo)
NATIONAL POST
** Waste disposal company Stericycle Inc said it would buy
privately held Shred-it International Inc, a secure information
destruction services provider, for $2.3 billion in cash. (
http://bit.ly/1fLojy9)
** Cogeco Inc's profit and revenue jumped in the third quarter,
mainly on the back of growth in its U.S. cable services as well as
favorable exchange rates. Revenue for the Montreal-based company
increased by 4.1 percent to $557.8 million. (
http://bit.ly/1fLoXMi)
** The Canadian government is actively consulting on a move to
increase the minimum down payment required to buy a house. Sources
say that Ottawa has been studying proposals to increase the minimum
down payment from five percent and said the government is
particularly keen on adding restrictions for high-priced housing. (
http://bit.ly/1fLp5eH)
Hong Kong
SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
-- The high court has appointed two provisional liquidators for
the cash-strapped company behind Sing Pao Daily News, raising fresh
doubts over the future of the city's oldest Chinese-language
newspaper. Another Chinese daily, the Hong Kong Daily News, went
out of business on Sunday after 56 years, succumbing to years of
financial losses. (bit.ly/1M6JSFJ)
-- The ICAC has been drawn into a global hacking controversy
after leaked emails showed graft-busters sought the services of an
Italian online surveillance company notorious for helping
governments. The revelations surfaced after Milan-based
cybersecurity firm Hacking Team became the victim of a cyberattack
where hackers hijacked its Twitter account and published the
information. (bit.ly/1e1sEvf)
THE STANDARD
-- Ten public housing estates with 24,000 households will be
tested for lead contamination as the Hong Kong government tries to
staunch worries over hazardous heavy metal in drinking water. The
water scare was prompted by a Democratic Party investigation that
found excessive lead levels in water samples at Kai Ching Estate.
(bit.ly/1So4yZw)
-- Hong Kong's big-ticket home deals hit an all-time high last
month but are expected to ease amid stock market jitters. The Land
Registry logged 163 registrations in June of used homes valued
above HK$20 million ($2.58 million), or 3.7 percent of the 4,443
homes registered in the secondary market last month. That marked
the highest share since records began in 1996. (bit.ly/1Gn2uKi)
HONG KONG ECONOMIC JOURNAL
-- China home grown sports brand 361 Degrees International Ltd,
which recorded a 7.2 percent growth in same store sales in the
quarter ended June, said it did not expect the number of stores in
its network to increase or decrease significantly in the upcoming
quarters.
HONG KONG ECONOMIC TIMES
-- China Overseas Land and Investment Ltd said its contracted
sales totalled HK$85.45 billion ($11.02 billion) for the first half
of 2015, up 17 percent from a year ago. It met 50.9 percent of its
annual sales target of HK$168 billion.
Britain
The Times
GROVELLING TSIPRAS FIGHTS FOR THE REFORMS HE LOATHES
Alexis Tsipras, the Greek prime minister, last night was
fighting for survival as he struggled to push through reforms,
including spending cuts and tax rises, in a series of crucial
parliamentary votes. (
http://thetim.es/1I3xZAy)
JOBLESS RATE RISES TO WORST IN TWO YEARS
George Osborne has suffered a setback only a week after his
budget with the worst set of official jobs figures in two years.
Taking markets and forecasters by surprise, unemployment rose to
5.6 percent in the three months to May and employment fell by
67,000. (
http://thetim.es/1MuQSdh)
The Guardian
MICHAEL RAKE LEAVES BARCLAYS DAYS AFTER OUSTING CHIEF EXECUTIVE
ANTONY JENKINS
Barclays Plc faces further boardroom upheaval after it emerged
the deputy chairman, Michael Rake, who played a key role in ousting
Chief Executive Antony Jenkins last week is also to leave the bank.
(
http://bit.ly/1MuQUC8)
BRITISH GAS TO CUT GAS PRICES BY 5 PERCENT
British Gas has announced it will cut gas prices by 5 percent
from the end of August. Britain's biggest energy provider said that
the price cut, which will take effect from Aug. 27, would reduce
annual energy bills on average by 35 stg and benefit 6.9 million of
its customers on Standard and Fix & Fall tariffs. (
http://bit.ly/1K8c0Wz)
The Telegraph
BRITISH TAXPAYERS 'PROTECTED' AS OSBORNE STRIKES DEAL ON GREEK
LOANS
British taxpayers will not be left exposed for another Greek
bailout, Chancellor George Osborne hopes, under a compromise struck
with Jean-Claude Juncker. (
http://bit.ly/1I41OPr)
SINGAPOREAN INVESTOR TO BUY 20 PCT STAKE IN LONDON HOUSE BUILDER
GALLIARD GROUP
Singapore's Oxley Holdings Ltd is to buy a 20 percent stake in
house builder Galliard in a deal that highlights continued Asian
interest in London's booming property market. (
http://bit.ly/1O7iupj)
Sky News
GROCERS FACE CMA ACTION AFTER SUPER-COMPLAINT
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will on Thursday
unveil a series of recommendations aimed at improving the
transparency of supermarkets' pricing activities. (
http://bit.ly/1I3rOuf)
OFCOM TO REVIVE PROSPECT OF BT GROUP BREAK-UP
Ofcom is set to seek views about the impact of BT Group Plc
hiving off Openreach, the unit which manages access to the national
telecoms network. (
http://bit.ly/1Hvugs7)
The Independent
GOVERNMENT FACES MULTI-BILLION POUND BLACK HOLE IN BUDGET TO PAY
FOR CLEAN ENERGY SUPPLIES - WHICH COULD MEAN YOUR ELECTRICITY BILL
RISES
The government is facing a multi-billion pound black hole in its
budget to pay for new clean energy supplies, which could result in
rising household electricity bills unless there is a dramatic
decline in investment in renewable technologies. Department of
Energy and Climate Change has already overspent its budget by 1.5
billion stg to support renewable energy projects over the next five
years. (
http://ind.pn/1e1mhrZ)
