व्यापार

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Alphabet's Google said hackers are sending extortion emails to an unspecified number of executives, claiming to have stolen sensitive data from their Oracle business applications. In a statement, Google said a group claiming affiliation with the ransomware gang cl0p was sending emails to "executives at numerous organizations claiming to have stolen sensitive data from their Oracle E-Business Suite." Google cautioned that it "does not currently have sufficient evidence to definitively assess the veracity of these claims." Messages seeking comment from cl0p and Oracle were not immediately returned. Google described the email campaign as "high-volume" but declined to share further details. (Reporting by Raphael Satter in WashingtonEditing by Shri Navaratnam)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)

By Manya Saini and Arasu Kannagi Basil (Reuters) -Fair Isaac Corp's shares surged in Thursday morning trading after the U.S. data analytics company said it would license its credit scores directly to mortgage resellers, raising concerns of margin pressure for major credit bureaus.  Shares of Experian, Equifax and TransUnion tumbled on fears that the move could curtail the intermediary role of the credit reporting companies. FICO score, created by Fair Isaac, is a U.S. credit scoring system used by nearly 90% of lenders to evaluate a borrower's creditworthiness. The higher the number, the lower the risk of default. Fair Isaac said direct access to FICO scores for lenders and mortgage resellers would increase competition and bring price transparency.    "This new distribution model will allow lenders to avoid paying the current about 100% markup the credit bureaus currently charge for the FICO score," analysts at brokerage Raymond James said.   Fair Isaac's latest move was lauded by Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte, who said in a post on social media platform X that the company has generated "creative solutions" to help the American consumer. Pulte had earlier this year criticized the company over its pricing as he pushed to broaden the use of rival scoring models in mortgage lending. Following his comment, FICO shares extended gains and was last up 26%. If the gains hold, it would erase all the losses for the year. Citigroup analysts said direct licensing would cut out the margin that companies such as Experian and Equifax make on the FICO credit score. "Our initial reaction is this is negative for Experian and Equifax," they wrote in a note. Experian shares were down 4.8% in London. U.S.-listed Equifax fell 7%, while TransUnion was last down 11%.  Experian, Equifax and the Consumer Data Industry Association did not immediately respond to requests for comment, while TransUnion declined to comment. INDUSTRY SHIFT  The stock had taken a hit when Pulte allowed lenders to use VantageScore for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgages. VantageScore, founded in 2006, is a joint venture between credit bureaus Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. The agency's decision introduced direct competition for FICO in the mortgage market, sparking doubts about its ability to continue increasing its prices. "This is likely an FHFA-friendly outcome," brokerage Needham said, and could help lift the "FHFA overhang" on the stock. Fair Isaac said its direct mortgage score licensing plan would bring immediate cost savings to lenders, brokers and other industry participants, while noting that firms opting to work through the credit bureaus can continue to do so. "This change eliminates unnecessary mark-ups on the FICO Score and puts pricing model choice in the hands of those who use FICO scores to drive mortgage decisions," CEO Will Lansing said.  The change could intensify competition in the credit scoring business as it gives lenders more direct access to FICO scores. "By introducing a licensing program for tri-merge resellers, FICO is effectively taking away the ability of the credit bureaus to mark up the FICO score," Jefferies analysts said in a note.  The new model could hit credit bureau earnings by an average of 10% to 15%, it warned. "For the bureaus to take price, they will now have to directly negotiate with the lenders, as well as compete with each other."  (Reporting by Manya Saini and Arasu Kannagi Basil in Bengaluru and Samuel Indyk in London; Editing by Arun Koyyur)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)

By Pooja Menon and Sheila Dang (Reuters) -Occidental Petroleum will sell its chemicals arm OxyChem to Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway for $9.7 billion, the company said on Thursday, marking its biggest divestment yet to slash debt after years of costly acquisitions. Shares of the U.S. oil and gas producer, however, fell more than 4% in morning trading. Roth MKM analysts said in a note the sale of OxyChem could weigh on free cash flow growth in coming years, as the unit was expected to contribute significantly to expansion. OxyChem, which produces chemicals used for treating swimming pools and vinyl products used for water supply piping and medical supplies, generated combined revenue of $2.42 billion in the first two quarters of this year. If the deal closes, it would be the biggest purchase for Berkshire since its $11.6 billion buyout of insurance firm Alleghany Corporation in 2022, and expand its chemical portfolio beyond Lubrizol. Berkshire is Occidental's largest shareholder and it began acquiring stake in the company in February 2022, around the time when Russia invaded Ukraine. The divestment highlights the close ties between the two. In a 2019 meeting with Buffett, Occidental CEO Vicki Hollub secured a $10 billion investment that allowed her to make an offer for oil producer Anadarko Petroleum, outbidding rival Chevron to secure some of the richest shale oilfields in Texas. But the $55 billion purchase of Anadarko left Occidental saddled with debt. The burden exacerbated after the company closed its $12 billion acquisition of privately held U.S. shale oil producer CrownRock last year. To reduce its massive debt load, which stood at $23.34 billion by the end of June, Occidental been steadily divesting assets in recent years. The company had disclosed in August $950 million of additional divestitures since the start of the second quarter, of which $370 million already closed and it repaid $3 billion of debt year-to-date. Occidental said on Thursday it would use $6.5 billion of the proceeds to reduce debt, bringing the total principal debt below the $15 billion target set after the CrownRock deal. The latest deal, expected to close in the fourth quarter, also indicates that Occidental is refocusing on its oil and gas business, which formed 75% of its total earnings last year. CEO Hollub said OxyChem's sale would allow Occidental to "unlock 20-plus years of low-cost resource runway" in oil and gas. (Reporting by Pooja Menon in Bengaluru and Sheila Dang in Houston; Editing by Nathan Crooks, Nia Williams and Shilpi Majumdar)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)

(Refiles to clarify in Sept. 30 story that Wise moved its primary listing from London to New York in paragraph 12) By Charlie Conchie LONDON (Reuters) -AstraZeneca’s move to upgrade its listing in the U.S. risks pulling liquidity away from London’s stock market and could pave the way for other large companies to follow suit, analysts, investors and advisers said. The British drugmaker, one of London’s most valuable listed companies, said on Monday it would retain its listings in London and Stockholm but also plans to offer its shares directly on the New York Stock Exchange, moving away from the current depositary receipt structure, from next February. AstraZeneca Chair Michel Demare cited the fact that U.S. shareholders represent the drugmaker's largest single investor group while its U.S. business accounted for 43% of total revenue last year and is expected to represent 50% of revenue by 2030. Some analysts and policymakers expressed relief after some media reports had suggested the company was considering ditching its London listing altogether. That would have been another rebuke to the UK after AstraZeneca recently paused a 200 million pound ($268.80 million) investment plan in Cambridge and earlier this year scrapped plans to invest in a vaccine manufacturing facility in Liverpool. A UK government spokesperson said AstraZeneca’s decision that it will stay listed, headquartered and paying tax in the UK brought clarity and was positive for employment, growth and innovation. "The decision signals clear confidence in the UK economy," the spokesperson said. "It shows British companies can scale globally, attract international investment – including from U.S. markets – and remain rooted in the UK." A person familiar with AstraZeneca's plans said the company, which has a market capitalisation of $230 billion as of Monday's close, had no current plans to scrap its London listing. Yet some people flag risks that not only could trading of AstraZeneca shares now drift towards New York, but that other large London-listed firms will be watching to see if they should follow in its wake. "A large proportion of large UK-listed companies have a big U.S. investor base," said Charles Hall, head of research at London investment bank Peel Hunt. "All companies look at what others do, and today this will be on the boardroom paper of a lot of other FTSE firms as they assess what the implications are.” Around 22.5% of AstraZeneca's shareholders are based in North America, similar to FTSE 100 companies such as HSBC, Shell, Rolls Royce, BAT and Rio Tinto, which range at 20.5-24.7%, according to LSEG data. "The risk to London will be if liquidity in AZ shares moves more to the U.S. than London as a result," said Alasdair Steele, a partner at law firm CMS. VALUATION GAP A number of London-listed firms have come under pressure from shareholders to consider swapping their primary listing to other markets due to a perceived valuation gap and the bumper performance of indices in other jurisdictions. The FTSE 100 is up 58% over the past decade, compared to the S&P 500, which is up 250%. "The wider point is that Astra is just too big a company for the London market now," said Mark Kelly, chief executive of advisory firm MKP Advisors. "Big companies like AstraZeneca should be part of big indices, where billions of dollars are being traded every day, and the reality is that in London you miss out on some of that," he said. Fintech firm Wise revealed plans to move its primary listing from London to New York this year, while mining companies Rio Tinto  and Glencore have both rejected calls to exit the market. Publisher Pearson has faced similar calls from investors to shift its listing.  Ian Pyle, senior investment director at Aberdeen, an AstraZeneca shareholder, pointed to a risk that the drugmaker may make a full exit in future. “The risk for the UK market is if this triple listing doesn’t deliver the desired outcome, then it may be a pathway to a primary listing in the U.S. and de-listing from the UK,” he said. Pyle and Hall at Peel Hunt both said AstraZeneca's recommitment to London was a positive for the market in the immediate term. The London Stock Exchange group, which has been campaigning for companies to choose the City for new listings, emphasized in a statement that AstraZeneca's decision represented "no change to their continued commitment to the UK, our capital markets and their important place as a key constituent of the FTSE100.” Still, AstraZeneca Chair Demare, in his letter to shareholders about the move on Monday, highlighted New York's advantages: "The U.S. has the world’s largest and most liquid public markets by capitalisation, and the largest pool of innovative biopharma companies and investors,” he wrote. Mark Austin, a partner at Latham & Watkins who has been involved in the overhaul of the UK's listing rules, remained confident of London's appeal.  "This should not be seen as a negative (for London)," Austin said. "It is about a UK-headquartered and UK and Swedish listed global company giving global investors easier access to its shares while keeping all the benefits of London." ($1 = 0.7440 pounds) (Reporting by Charlie Conchie; Additional reporting by Alistair Smout and Danilo; Editing by Anousha Sakoui and Susan Fenton)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)

By Amy-Jo Crowley, Dominique Patton and Mathieu Rosemain LONDON (Reuters) -Armani representatives have approached potential buyers over a minority stake in the renowned Italian fashion group, three sources told Reuters, starting a de facto auction for a slice of one of the world's best-known fashion empires weeks after the designer's death.  L'Oreal is among those that have been approached, two of the people said. Private equity bidders so far have not been solicited as potential buyers, one of those sources and a fourth person said. Rothschild is expected to advise the company on a transaction, according to two of the sources. The group has a link to the advisory firm through Irving Bellotti, a Rothschild partner who sits on the board of the Armani foundation. The talks are at an early stage, however, one of the people said, adding that any progress could take months. ARMANI INSTRUCTED HEIRS TO SELL STAKE WITHIN 18 MONTHS Reuters could not determine who had done the outreach on behalf of the sellers of the company. The four sources spoke on condition of anonymity because the matter is private. Armani Group and Rothschild declined to comment. L'Oreal, which holds a licensing agreement with the Armani group until 2050, did not respond to requests for comment. In his will, late Italian designer Giorgio Armani instructed heirs to sell an initial 15% stake in the fashion house within 18 months of his death, and later to transfer an additional 30% to 55% stake to the same buyer or seek a market listing. The will says priority should be given to luxury conglomerate LVMH , beauty behemoth L'Oreal, and eyewear maker EssilorLuxottica , with which the fashion house has a commercial partnership. It may also be given to another group of "equal standing" identified by a foundation the designer set up to preserve his legacy with the agreement of Armani's business and life partner Pantaleo Dell'Orco. All three companies named previously issued statements suggesting they were open to the possibility of a deal.  The will was published last month following the designer's death on September 4. It lists six different types of shares with different voting rights.  The charitable foundation and Dell'Orco hold 30% and 40% of the company voting rights respectively, meaning they would together control the fashion group with 70%. The foundation will retain a 30.1% stake in a listing and in a sale, the will says. Dell'Orco, who was also on the foundation's executive committee, could not be reached for comment.  A representative for the Armani foundation declined to comment via email. BRAND COULD BE WORTH UP TO 12 BILLION EUROS  Giorgio Armani was the sole major shareholder in the company he set up 50 years ago and over which he maintained a tight creative and managerial rein.  The potential sale process is being closely watched, as the brand remains one of the most iconic in the fashion industry and could be worth between 5 billion euros and 12 billion euros ($14 billion), according to analyst estimates. The provisions in the will are essentially binding and could be challenged in court if not fulfilled, according to the Italian notary association. ($1 = 0.8517 euros) (Reporting by Amy-Jo Crowley in London and Dominique Patton and Mathieu Rosemain in Paris and Lisa Jucca in Milan. Additional reporting by Elisa Anzolin. Editing by Anousha Sakoui and Jan Harvey)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)

By Marcela Ayres and Isabel Teles BRASILIA/SAO PAULO (Reuters) -Brazil's government said it was confident the Senate would pass a bill expanding income tax exemptions for the middle class, after the measure cleared the Lower House late Wednesday. The proposal, a key initiative of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, could boost his prospects ahead of next year's general election. Finance Minister Fernando Haddad told reporters he did not expect any hurdles in the Senate. "The bill is based on fiscal balance and seeks tax justice," Haddad told reporters on Thursday, hailing its unanimous passage by lawmakers. "I am certain the proposal will also enjoy broad support in the Senate," Lula wrote on X late Wednesday, adding that the measure would benefit 15 million Brazilian workers. Under the approved legislation, the monthly income tax exemption threshold would rise next year to 5,000 reais ($940), above three minimum wages, from the current 3,036 reais. To offset the revenue loss, the bill introduces a progressive minimum tax on monthly incomes above 50,000 reais and imposes a 10% withholding tax on dividends sent abroad, regardless of whether the recipient is an individual or a company. Beyond exempting monthly incomes up to 5,000 reais, the bill also eases the tax burden for earners up to 7,350 reais, covering much of Brazil's middle class, a key voter bloc that has turned conservative in recent years and that Lula's Workers Party hopes to lure back. The bill further mandates that, beginning in January, any dividend payment exceeding 50,000 reais in a single month from the same company to the same individual will be subject to a 10% withholding tax. Arthur Lira, the bill's sponsor in the Lower House, estimated that the expansion of tax exemptions would reduce revenue by 31.3 billion reais next year, offset by new income tax collections of 25.2 billion reais and 8.9 billion reais from foreign-sent dividend taxation.   ($1 = 5.3203 reais) (Reporting by Marcela Ayres in Brasilia and Isabel Teles in Sao Paulo, Editing by Louise Heavens and Alex Richardson)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)

(Reuters) -Rivian Automotive lowered the midpoint of its annual deliveries forecast range on Thursday as the EV-maker braces for an uncertain few quarters due to the lapse of federal tax credits, sending its shares down more than 3.3% before the bell. Despite reporting a nearly 32% jump in deliveries, Rivian and the electric-vehicle industry face a cloudy outlook after the U.S. Congress, through sweeping legislation, moved to abolish a $7,500 tax credit on leasing that EV makers had long relied on to bolster sales. The tax credit expired on Tuesday. Analysts and experts had predicted that EV sales and leasing would plummet after it ended, but that a rush to purchase EVs from buyers looking to beat the deadline would precede the fall. Rivian narrowed its annual forecast for deliveries to between 41,500 and 43,500 vehicles, the midpoint of which is 500 vehicles lower than its previous forecast of between 40,000 and 46,000 cars. The company delivered 13,201 vehicles in the third quarter, compared with an estimate of 12,690 vehicles, according to analysts polled by Visible Alpha. Along with the removal of consumer tax credits, the imposition of high tariffs on imports of auto parts has hit makers of electric vehicles by pushing up manufacturing costs and compressing margins. The duties left carmakers scrambling to reorganize supply chains, reduce foreign dependency and increase investment in the U.S. – a policy emphasized by the Trump administration. The rise in vehicle costs could cause Rivian's margins to take a hit when the company has been looking to boost profitability ahead of the rollout of its more affordable R2 SUVs next year. Rivian is expected to release its third-quarter financial results on November 4, after markets close. (Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)

By Amy-Jo Crowley, Dominique Patton and Mathieu Rosemain LONDON (Reuters) -Armani representatives have made informal approaches to some potential buyers for a minority stake in the renowned Italian fashion group, three sources with knowledge of the situation told Reuters, effectively starting a de-facto auction for a slice of one of the world's best-known fashion empires weeks after the designer's death.  L'Oreal, is among those that have been approached, two of the people said. The talks are early stage, however, one of the people said, adding that any progress could take months.  Private equity bidders so far have not been solicited as potential buyers, one of the sources and a fourth one said. Rothschild is expected to advise the company on a transaction, those two people said. The group has a link to the advisory firm through Irving Bellotti, a Rothschild partner who sits on the board of the Armani foundation, according to the bank's website. Reuters could not determine who had done the outreach on behalf of the sellers of the company. The four sources spoke on condition of anonymity because the matter is private. Armani Group and Rothschild declined to comment. L'Oreal, which holds a licensing agreement with the Armani group until 2050, did not respond to requests for comment. (Reporting by Amy-Jo Crowley in London and Dominique Patton and Mathieu Rosemain in Paris and Lisa Jucca in Milan. Additional reporting by Elisa Anzolin. Editing by Anousha Sakoui)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)

By Pooja Menon and Sheila Dang (Reuters) -Occidental Petroleum will sell its chemicals arm OxyChem to Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway for $9.7 billion, the company said on Thursday, marking its biggest divestment yet to slash debt after years of costly acquisitions. If the deal closes, it would also be the biggest for Berkshire since its $11.6 billion purchase of insurance firm Alleghany Corporation in 2022, and expand its chemical portfolio beyond Lubrizol. Berkshire is Occidental's largest shareholder and it began acquiring stake in the U.S. oil and gas producer in February 2022, around when Russia invaded Ukraine. The divestment highlights the close ties between the two. In a 2019 meeting with Buffett, Occidental CEO Vicki Hollub secured a $10 billion investment that allowed her to make an offer for oil producer Anadarko Petroleum, outbidding rival Chevron to secure some of the richest shale oilfields in Texas. But the $55 billion purchase of Anadarko left Occidental saddled with debt. The burden exacerbated after the company closed its $12 billion acquisition of privately held U.S. shale oil producer CrownRock last year. To reduce its massive debt load, which stood at $23.34 billion by the end of June, Occidental been steadily divesting assets in recent years. The company had disclosed in August $950 million of additional divestitures since the start of the second quarter, of which $370 million already closed and it repaid $3 billion of debt year-to-date. Occidental said on Thursday it would use $6.5 billion of the proceeds to reduce debt, bringing the total principal debt below the $15 billion target set after the CrownRock deal. TPH analyst Matt Portillo said the debt repayment should open the door for increased shareholder returns in the form of share repurchases. Occidental shares were up 1% in premarket trading. CEO Hollub said the sale of OxyChem, which produces chemicals used for treating swimming pools and vinyl products used for water supply piping and medical supplies, would allow Occidental to "unlock 20-plus years of low-cost resource runway" in oil and gas. The unit had generated a combined revenue of $2.42 billion in the first two quarters of this year. The deal, expected to close in the fourth quarter, also indicates that Occidental is refocusing on its oil and gas business, which formed 75% of its total earnings last year. (Reporting by Pooja Menon in Bengaluru and Sheila Dang in Houston; Editing by Nathan Crooks, Nia Williams and Shilpi Majumdar)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)

By Nqobile Dludla GQEBERHA, South Africa (Reuters) -South Africa and Europe should collaborate on building an alternative "value chain" for electric vehicle components such as batteries, to reduce dependence on China, the CEO of BMW South Africa said, calling for a national-level strategy. South Africa, which accounts for 51% of Africa's vehicle output, is seeking to position itself as a player in the global EV supply chain. But industry leaders say more policy clarity and investment are needed to unlock its potential. "South Africa, together with Europe, could put a strategy together to create an alternative value chain for EV batteries, for example," Peter van Binsbergen said in an interview on Wednesday on the sidelines of an auto conference. "That gives the world an alternative to China." China currently dominates global battery cell production, making it difficult for some automakers to meet rules of origin requirements for exports, particularly in Europe. "If you want a battery, it comes from China," van Binsbergen said. "We need to get that right." South Africa is Africa's biggest auto manufacturing hub. Global automakers like Ford, Volkswagen, BMW and Toyota manufacture models in South Africa for both the local and European markets. Britain and the European Union together consume nearly half of the vehicles South Africa produces. South African car industry executives want a coordinated national approach to EV development, saying that efforts by individual brands will not be sufficient. Neale Hill, President of Ford Motor Company Africa, said automakers are concerned that the country's new energy vehicle roadmap is not moving, despite President Cyril Ramaphosa having announced potential consumer subsidies and stating that hybrids and plug-in hybrids should be included in planned production incentives last year. "In stark contrast to our lack of progress, consider a country like Ethiopia, which has already over 100,000 EV vehicles on the road versus just over 4,000 in South Africa," Hill said. There is a need for urgency as the UK and the European Union have committed to ending the sale of new fossil-fuel vehicles by 2035. The South African government has already announced a 150% tax deduction from next year for qualifying investments in EV and hydrogen vehicle production, Trade Minister Parks Tau told delegates on Thursday. South Africa, in partnership with international partners including the World Bank, has also developed a national critical minerals strategy aimed at securing supply chains for the local electric vehicle industry, attracting investment into battery manufacturing facilities as well as EV components. "If we do not adapt, we risk losing these key export markets," Tau said. (Reporting by Nqobile Dludla. Editing by Jane Merriman)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)