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By Swissquote Analysts
Morning News

Biden Is Expected to Tap Oil Reserves to Control Rising Gasoline Prices

President Biden is preparing to announce the release of up to 1 million barrels of oil a day from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve, according to people familiar with the plans. Mr. Biden is expected to deliver remarks on Thursday on the administration’s efforts to curb the rise in energy prices in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

By
Mathieu VILLARD
Morning News

UBS to Launch New $6 Bln Share-Buyback Program

UBS AG said Wednesday that it would launch a new share-buyback program of up to $6 billion. The Swiss bank said the repurchase program would start on Thursday and last two years. A previous program launched in February 2021 concluded on Tuesday with a volume of CHF3.81 billion ($4.09 billion), UBS said.

By
Mathieu VILLARD
Morning News

Lawmakers Launch Probe of Credit Suisse Compliance With Russia Sanctions

U.S. lawmakers asked Credit Suisse Group AG to hand over information related to the bank’s compliance with sanctions over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. They are seeking the information following reports that Credit Suisse instructed investors in a recent debt deal to destroy and erase information related to its dealings with rich clients.

By
Mathieu VILLARD
Morning News

EU Reaches a Deal on Law to Curb Tech Firms' Power

European lawmakers reached agreement on the main points of a new digital-competition law focused on the world's biggest tech companies, setting the stage for one of the most sweeping pieces of technology-regulation legislation to go into effect next year. The new law, known as the Digital Markets Act, is part of the biggest proposed expansion of global-tech regulation in decades.

By
Mathieu VILLARD
Morning News

Credit Suisse Warns of $500 Million Hit From Billionaire’s Lawsuit

Credit Suisse is expected to pay around $500 million after losing a lawsuit brought by a Georgian billionaire who claimed the bank mismanaged his money. Credit Suisse has spent years fending off claims from Bidzina Ivanishvili, a former prime minister of Georgia. He sued the bank in Bermuda and Singapore for breach of trust, alleging he lost $800 million on forged trades made by his Geneva-based private banker.

By
Mathieu VILLARD
Morning News

Putin Says Europe Must Pay for Gas In Rubles

Russian President Vladimir Putin said he wants his country to only accept rubles in gas deals with European countries and other customers, adding a new financial dimension to tensions over energy supplies while the war in Ukraine rages. Mr. Putin said Russia would refuse to accept payment for natural-gas supplies in currencies "that have compromised themselves," including dollars and euros.

By
Mathieu VILLARD
Morning News

Elon Musk Opens Tesla’s First European Factory

Elon Musk formally kicked off customer deliveries at Tesla Inc.’s (+7.9%) first European factory outside Berlin, marking a milestone in the electric-car maker’s international expansion. Mr. Musk called that a big step in the fight against global warming. Two years in the making, the factory will allow Tesla to build cars for European markets, which currently rely on expensive imports from the U.S. and China, and to tailor vehicles to local tastes.

By
Mathieu VILLARD
Morning News

Berkshire Hathaway to Buy Insurer Alleghany for $11.6 Billion

Shares of insurer Alleghany Corp. soared $167.85, or 25%, to $844.60 after Berkshire Hathaway said it agreed to buy the company for about $11.6 billion in cash, as billionaire Warren Buffett’s investment vehicle puts some of its massive cash pile to work in a deal that bolsters its insurance arm. Berkshire said it will pay $848.02 a share in cash for Alleghany, a 25.3% premium to Friday’s closing price of $676.75 and a multiple of 1.26 times the New York company’s book value at the end of 2021.

By
Mathieu VILLARD
Morning News

Aramco Profit Hits $110 Billion as Saudis Seek to Expand Investments

State oil giant Saudi Aramco said Sunday its 2021 net profit more than doubled to $110 billion, a boon to the Middle East's largest economy as it seeks to use its hefty profits for investment opportunities domestically and abroad. The world's largest oil exporter is benefiting from rapidly rising oil prices and said it raised its spending target this year as demand surges and the impacts from the pandemic recede. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, surged to an average of $70.86 a barrel last year after falling to an average of $41.96 a year earlier. It settled Friday at $107.93 a barrel, down 4.2% for the week.

By
Mathieu VILLARD
Morning News

Amazon Closes Deal to Acquire MGM

Amazon (+2.7%) closed its $6.5 billion acquisition of the MGM movie and television studio on Thursday, even as the Federal Trade Commission continues to examine the deal. The move comes after Amazon certified to the FTC that it had provided all the information requested by antitrust investigators reviewing the transaction. That step put the deal on a regulatory clock with the agency that has now expired, leaving the company free to move forward.

By
Mathieu VILLARD