1.Turing Pharmaceuticals, the US company that hit the headlines for gouging the price of a HIV treatment drug by 5,000%, made a big loss in the third quarter:
For the quarter ending September 30, the company posted a $US14.6 million (£9.6 million) net loss. Those three months cover the time that Turing acquired the US marketing rights to drug Daraprim.
2.As many as 15 million jobs are under threat of replacement by smart machines, the Bank of England’s chief economist has warned:
The Telegraph reports that Andy Haldane said a new generation of increasingly creative robots could replace “at risk” jobs over the next 20 years, such as those held by accountants and sales people.
3.Shares in troubled mining giant Glencore tumbled more than 6% in morning trade in Hong Kong on Friday after a rout in London:
Investors are spooked by the continued sell-off in metals. The losses come as the Switzerland-based company Glencore struggles under the weight of tens-of-billions-of-dollars in debt with a global rout in commodities prices hitting its bottom line.
4.European GDP figures are coming:
Country-by-country figures for third quarter growth are rolling in all morning, before Eurozone-wide stats at 10.00 a.m. GMT (5.00 a.m. ET). Economists are predicting growth of 1.7% on last year’s figure and 0.4% on the second quarter.
5.Two Biggest Euro Economies Show Muted Growth as ECB Ponders:
Lackluster growth in the euro area’s two largest economies that has so far proved insufficient to reignite inflation provided more evidence for the European Central Bank to chew over as it examines the need for fresh stimulus.
Gross domestic product in Germany and France rose 0.3 percent each in the third quarter, national statistics offices said on Friday. That matched economists’ estimates and compares with German growth of 0.4 percent and French stagnation in the previous three months. Italian GDP growth of 0.2 percent and a Dutch rate of 0.1 percent fell short short of projections. The numbers pose a downside risk for projections for a 0.4 percent expansion in the currency bloc.
6.China’s Troubled Credit Swells to Sweden-Sized $628 Billion:
Chinese banks’ troubled loans swelled to almost 4 trillion yuan ($628 billion) by the end of September, more than the gross domestic product of Sweden, according to figures released by the industry regulator.Banks’ profit growth slumped to 2 percent in the first nine months from 13 percent a year earlier, according to data released on Thursday night by the China Banking Regulatory Commission.
7.China Changes Its Currency-Market Ways:
China’s typically ham-handed approach to currency interventions—exemplified by its market-wrenching August devaluation—may be giving way to a lighter touch.
8.LoanDepot Postpones IPO:
LoanDepot Inc., a nonbank mortgage lender aiming to sell shares to the public at a valuation of up to $2.6 billion, postponed its initial public offering Thursday, citing market conditions, the company said.
9.Okomu’s Q3 strong performance attributable to aggressive expansion:
The aggressive expansion plan embarked upon by the management of Okomu Oil Palm Plc, with a view to meeting local consumption and competing well at the international arena has yielded fruit as the company recorded a strong performance in the third quarter of the year.
10.APM Terminals announces job cut over 30% drop in import volume:
APM Terminals Apapa, Nigeria’s busiest container terminal, Wednesday said it planned to cut down staff strength over sharp drop in import traffic as global oil prices have fallen by 50 percent over the past one year.
