Business

By Leika Kihara

TOKYO (Reuters) – The Bank of Japan has reshuffled its board and brought in a new member seen as more keen to end ultra-low interest rates than his dovish predecessor, potentially tilting the board away from Governor Haruhiko Kuroda’s aggressive monetary easing policy.

Former private economist Hajime Takata, and another newcomer Naoki Tamura who joins from a commercial bank, will hold a joint inaugural news conference at 5 p.m. (0800 GMT) on Monday, following their official appointment by the government the day before.

They replace Goushi Kataoka, a former economist who was a vocal advocate of aggressive monetary easing, and former commercial banker Hitoshi Suzuki, whose five-year terms ended on July 23.

The reshuffle precedes a change in the BOJ leadership when Kuroda’s second, five-year term ends in April next year. The terms of his two deputies will also expire in March.

Takata, a bond market expert, is considered by markets to be more open to dialing back Kuroda’s prolonged and massive stimulus programme, which has been hailed for reviving growth but criticised for causing market distortions.

He once wrote in a research note that the BOJ could come under pressure to consider exiting its ultra-loose policy if the European Central Bank (ECB) follows in the footsteps of the U.S. Federal Reserve in withdrawing monetary stimulus.

That view contrasts with his predecessor Kataoka, who consistently proposed ramping up stimulus by strengthening the BOJ’s commitment to ultra-low rates.

The ECB last week hiked rates for the first time in 11 years, joining a wave of central banks tightening monetary policy to combat surging inflation.

That left the BOJ among the few remaining central banks keeping its money tap wide open. Kuroda last week reiterated his resolve to keep interest rates ultra-low, after the BOJ’s widely expected decision to maintain an extremely loose monetary policy.

(Reporting by Leika Kihara; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Edmund Klamann)

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BANGKOK (AP) — Asian shares opened mostly lower on Monday after a retreat on Wall Street spurred by disappointing economic data and corporate earnings. Oil prices also slipped.

Investors are awaiting the next move by the U.S. Federal Reserve, which is expected to raise its key interest rate again on Wednesday as it strives to beat back inflation.

The Fed will likely announce its second 0.75% point increase in its short-term rate in a row, a hefty increase that it hasn’t otherwise implemented since 1994. That will put the Fed’s benchmark rate in a range of 2.25% to 2.5%, the highest level since 2018.

The U.S. economy is slowing but healthy hiring shows it is not yet in recession, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” She spoke ahead of the release this week of a slew of economic reports that will shed light on an economy currently besieged by rampant inflation as interest rates rise.

The highest-profile report will likely be Thursday, when the Commerce Department will release its first estimate of the economy’s output in the April-June quarter.

Some economists forecast it may show a contraction for the second quarter in a row. The economy shrank 1.6% in the January-March quarter. Two straight negative readings is considered an informal definition of a recession, though in this case economists think that’s misleading.

Similar data from Europe have underscored the weakness of the global economy as central banks jack up interest rates. Higher rates make economic conditions more difficult, and too-aggressive hikes could cause a recession.

“While rising jobless claims, softer home sales, and a buildup in gasoline inventory show the Fed front-loading rate hikes are causing a slowdown and bringing inflation under control, the issue is at what cost,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary.

On Monday in Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 gained 0.8% to 27,678.94 and the Kospi in Seoul added 0.3% to 2,400.38.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng declined 0.7% to 20,465.69, while the Shanghai Composite index gave up 0.3% to 3,260.74.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 edged 0.1% lower to 6,784.00.

On Wall Street on Friday, the benchmark S&P 500 lost 0.9% to 3,961.63, breaking a three-day rally that had carried it to its highest level in six weeks.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 0.4% to 31,899.29. It held up better largely because constituent American Express gave an encouraging earnings report and said its cardholders were spending more.

The Nasdaq sank 1.9% to 11,834.11 following worse-than-expected profit reports from Snap, Seagate Technology and other tech-oriented companies.

The company behind the Snapchat app tumbled 39.1% after it reported a worse loss and lower revenue for the spring than Wall Street had forecast.

On Friday the two-year Treasury yield tumbled again, to 2.98% from 3.09% late Thursday and from 3.14% a week ago, on worries about the economy. A report Friday morning indicated U.S. business activity may be shrinking for the first time in nearly two years, with service industries particularly weak.

Despite Friday’s declines on Wall Street, the S&P 500 still rose 2.5% for the week.

Besides the easing of Treasury yields through the week, dropping prices for crude oil and other commodities also provided some relief on the inflation front, raising hopes that inflation may be peaking.

Early Monday, U.S. benchmark crude oil lost 64 cents to $94.06 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Brent crude, the pricing basis for international trading, shed 97 cents to $97.41 per barrel.

The dollar slipped to 136.13 Japanese yen from 136.27 yen on Friday. The euro weakened to $1.0210 from $1.0214.

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AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Jury selection is set for Monday in a trial that will determine for the first time how much Infowars host Alex Jones must pay Sandy Hook Elementary School parents for falsely telling his audience that the deadliest classroom shooting in U.S. history was a hoax.

The trial in Austin, Texas — where the conspiracy theorist lives and broadcasts his show — follows months of delays. Jones has racked up fines for ignoring court orders and he put Infowars into bankruptcy protection just before the trial was originally set to start in April.

At stake for Jones is another potentially major financial blow that could put his constellation of conspiracy peddling businesses into deeper jeopardy. He has already been banned from YouTube, Facebook and Spotify over violating hate-speech policies.

The trial involving the parents of two Sandy Hook families is only the start for Jones; damages have yet to be awarded in separate defamation cases for other families of the 2012 massacre in Newtown, Connecticut.

The lawsuits do not ask jurors to award a specific dollar amount against Jones.

Courts in Texas and Connecticut have already found Jones liable for defamation for his portrayal of the Sandy Hook massacre as a hoax involving actors aimed at increasing gun control. In both states, judges have issued default judgements against Jones without trials because he failed to respond to court orders and turn over documents.

The 2012 shooting killed 20 first graders and six educators. Families of eight of the victims and an FBI agent who responded to the school are suing Jones and his company, Free Speech Systems.

Jones has since acknowledged that the shooting took place. During a deposition in April, Jones insisted he wasn’t responsible for the suffering that Sandy Hook parents say they have endured because of the hoax conspiracy, including death threats and harassment by Jones’ followers.

“No, I don’t (accept) responsibility because I wasn’t trying to cause pain and suffering,” Jones said, according to the transcripts made public this month. He continued: “They are being used and their children who can’t be brought back (are) being used to destroy the First Amendment.”

Jones claimed in court records last year that he had a negative net worth of $20 million, but attorneys for Sandy Hook families have painted a different financial picture.

Court records show that Jones’ Infowars store, which sells nutritional supplements and survival gear, made more than $165 million between 2015 and 2018. Jones has also urged listeners on his Infowars program to donate money.

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Associated Press reporter Paul J. Weber contributed to this report.

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SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China’s homegrown C919 narrow-body jet, designed to challenge the Airbus-Boeing duopoly, is nearing certification as its test planes completed all of the test flight tasks, the company said on Saturday.

The state-owned manufacturer Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC) said on its official social media account that the six test planes have finished the testing tasks as the programme enters the final stage of receiving a certificate from the Civil Aviation Administration of China which is required for commercial operations.

That would mark a milestone in China’s ambitions to climb up the manufacturing supply chain.

Designed to compete directly with the Boeing 737 MAX and Airbus 320neo families, the C919 aircraft programme has faced a range of technical issues and tougher U.S. export controls, after being launched in 2008, Reuters has reported.

The launch customer is the state-owned China Eastern Airlines, which has placed an order for five C919 jets in March last year. Changjiang Daily, a newspaper owned by the local government of Wuhan, said in a report on July 8 the airline is scheduled to take the first delivery in August.

Assembled in China, the plane relies heavily on Western components, including engines and avionics.

(This story corrects to remove incorrect reference in paragraph 3 to Boeing taking over Embraer)

(Reporting by Winni Zhou, Stella Qiu and Brenda Goh, Editing by Louise Heavens and William Mallard)

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By RachnaManojkumar Dhanrajani and Lisa Baertlein

(Reuters) – Independent truckers who have been protesting at California’s busy Oakland seaport over the past week against a new state law known as the “gig-worker” law took a break on Saturday, when the port business slowed to a crawl.

But some truckers said protests may resume on Monday when normal port traffic is scheduled.

“Protests are scheduled for Monday to Friday, as the port also does not have any major operations scheduled through the weekend,” Bill Aboudi, owner of a trucking company and supporter of the protests, told Reuters.

The Port of Oakland’s four marine terminals do not have scheduled operating hours on Saturday and the truck gates, too remain shut, Oakland Port’s spokesperson confirmed to Reuters.

However, Oakland Port spokesperson also said operation of the terminals is leased out to companies that schedule their operations and may have been carrying out some shipping operations on Saturday morning.

Oakland International Container Terminal (OICT) is the largest, handling about 70% of the port’s cargo. It is operated by SSA Marine, who did not immediately respond to Reuters request for a comment, outside of business hours.

“If the protests will resume or not on Monday, that shall be determined on Monday only as the truckers are in active talks with the concerned authorities,” Aboudi said.

Operations at the Northern California port ground to a near standstill last week after protesters used pickets and tractor-trailers to block terminal gates. Work on ships and docks slowed after cargo flows stopped and hundreds of International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) members declined to cross blockade lines for safety reasons.

The Port of Oakland is a key hub for California’s $20 billion-plus agriculture exports, which include almonds, dairy products and wine. The eighth-busiest U.S. container seaport, which also handles imports like coffee, electronics and manhole covers, was already working to clear a pandemic-fueled cargo backup before the trucker protests began.

Independent truck drivers are opposed to California’s labor law formally known as AB5. It would make it harder for companies to classify workers as independent contractors.

Truckers say the law will require them to spend thousands of dollars on insurance and equipment rentals like chassis to remain independent.

“AB5 is everything that obstructs a small truck business owner’s ambition to live the ‘American Dream,’” Aboudi said.

(Reporting by Rachna Dhanrajani in Bengaluru and Lisa Baertlein in Los Angeles; editing by Diane Craft)

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Dwayne Johnson went a few steps beyond merely teasing his long-awaited “Black Adam” movie at Comic-Con in San Diego on Saturday.

Ever the showman, Johnson brought a new traile r for the DC Comics superhero film and some flashy technology, lighting up the biggest room at the annual fan convention all while in costume. But he had another big reveal too: Johnson told the 6,000-some people in the audience that they could see “Black Adam” in IMAX for free with the help of the ticketing service Fandango.

The character Black Adam has the powers of the ancient gods and has been entombed for some 5,000 years before being released into the modern world. In the trailer he says his powers are “a curse, not a gift.”

Set for an Oct. 21 theatrical release, “Black Adam” reunites Johnson with his “Jungle Cruise” director Jaume Collet-Serra. It also stars Aldis Hodge as Hawkman, Noah Centineo as Atom Smasher and Quintessa Swindell as Cyclone, all of whom joined Johnson and Collet-Serra for the panel.

“Black Adam” was just one part of Warner Bros. return to Comic-Con, where audiences also got a glimpse at a new trailer for “ Shazam! Fury of the Gods.” Stars Zachary Levi and Lucy Liu were on hand to promote the sequel, which is due to arrive in theaters on Dec. 21 and continues the story of a teenager-turned-superhero who is feeling a bit like a fraud. The film sees the return of Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer and Adam Brody and adds Helen Mirren and Rachel Zegler of “West Side Story” to the mix.

The studio stuck to its 2022 superhero releases, forgoing sneak peeks at films due next year. One of those is “The Flash,” whose star Ezra Miller was arrested in Hawaii twice this year — in a disorderly conduct case and on suspicion of assault.

Miller plays Barry Allen in the Andy Muschietti-directed film, which has wrapped production and is supposed to open in June 2023. They have been credited as the first out LGBT person to play a lead role in a major superhero film.

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By Echo Wang

(Reuters) – U.S. stocks ended lower on Friday as disappointing earnings from Snap spooked investors and shares in social media and ad tech firms dropped, offsetting gains from card issuer American Express following an upbeat forecast.

Still, all three major indexes posted weekly gains despite Friday’s losses with the tech heavy Nasdaq closing out the week 3.3% higher. The S&P 500 advanced 2.4%, and the Dow gained 2%.

Snapchat owner posted its weakest-ever quarterly sales growth as a public company, sending Snap Inc’s shares down nearly 40%, while Twitter Inc reversed earlier losses to add 0.8% following a surprise fall in revenue.

Other online companies that depend heavily on ads, such as tech giants Meta Platforms Inc and Alphabet Inc tumbled 7.6% and 5.6%, respectively, weighing on the Nasdaq.

Meta and Alphabet are set to post their earnings next week, along with mega-cap peers, including Apple Inc, Microsoft Corp and Amazon.com Inc.

The S&P 500 communication services and information technology tumbled 4.3% and 1.4%, respectively, leading declines among the index’s 11 sectors.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 137.61 points, or 0.43%, to 31,899.29, the S&P 500 lost 37.32 points, or 0.93%, to 3,961.63 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 225.50 points, or 1.87%, to 11,834.11.

“Earnings are coming in less bad than feared, but they’re deteriorating from what we got used to and accustomed to over the last several quarters,” said Bob Doll, CIO at Crossmark Global Investments.

With 106 of the S&P 500 companies having reported earnings through Friday morning, 75.5% have topped analyst expectations, below the 81% beat rate over the past four quarters, according to Refinitiv data.[L1N2Z31SC]

All eyes are on the Federal Reserve’s meeting and second-quarter U.S. gross domestic product data next week. While the U.S. central bank is expected to raise interest rates by 75 basis points to curb runaway inflation, the GDP data is likely to be negative again.

Meanwhile, a survey on Friday showed that U.S. business activity contracted for the first time in nearly two years in July, deepening concerns about an economy stunted by high inflation, rising interest rates and dwindling consumer confidence.

“Economic data is coming in weaker.. kind of confirming the fact that a recession is highly likely over the next 12 months. And the markets is trying to figure out what that looks like with economic growth slowing significantly [and] the Fed in the midst of pretty aggressive tightening fiscal,” said Megan Horneman, chief investment officer at Verdence Capital Advisors in Hunt Valley, Maryland.

Verizon Communications Inc tumbled 6.8% after announcing it cut its annual adjusted profit forecast as inflation weighs. American Express Co rose 1.9% on strong earnings and an increased revenue forecast.

Volume on U.S. exchanges was 10.38 billion shares, compared with the 11.53 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.

Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a 1.43-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 2.49-to-1 ratio favored decliners.

The S&P 500 posted 1 new 52-week highs and 31 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 32 new highs and 74 new lows.

(Reporting by Echo Wang in New York; Additional reporting by Shreyashi Sanyal, Aniruddha Ghosh and Bansari Mayur Kamdar in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty, Sriraj Kalluvila, Shounak Dasgupta and Aurora Ellis)

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By Jonathan Stempel

(Reuters) -Uber Technologies Inc on Friday accepted responsibility for covering up a 2016 data breach that affected 57 million passengers and drivers, as part of a settlement with U.S. prosecutors to avoid criminal charges.

In entering a non-prosecution agreement, Uber admitted that its personnel failed to report the November 2016 hacking to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, even though the agency had been investigating the ride-sharing company’s data security.

U.S. Attorney Stephanie Hinds in San Francisco said Uber waited about a year to report the breach, after installing new executive leadership who “established a strong tone from the top” regarding ethics and compliance.

Hinds said the decision not to criminally charge Uber reflected new management’s prompt investigation and disclosures, and Uber’s 2018 agreement with the FTC to maintain a comprehensive privacy program for 20 years.

The San Francisco-based company is also cooperating with the prosecution of a former security chief, Joseph Sullivan, over his alleged role in concealing the hacking.

Uber did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Sullivan was originally indicted in September 2020. Prosecutors said Sullivan arranged to pay the hackers $100,000 in bitcoin and have them sign nondisclosure agreements that falsely stated they had not stolen data.

Uber had a bounty program designed to reward security researchers who report flaws, but not to cover up data thefts.

In September 2018, Uber paid $148 million to settle claims by all 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C., that it was too slow to disclose the hacking.

Uber shares closed down 93 cents at $23.30 on Friday. The non-prosecution agreement was disclosed after U.S. markets closed.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Leslie Adler)

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(Reuters) – Uber Technologies Inc has entered a non-prosecution agreement to resolve a criminal investigation into its cover-up of a significant data breach, U.S. Attorney Stephanie Hinds in San Francisco said on Friday.

Hinds said Uber admitted that its personnel failed to report the November 2016 breach to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission even though the agency was investigating data security at the ride-sharing company.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Leslie Adler)

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FRANKFURT/HELSINKI (Reuters) -Uniper on Friday received 15 billion euros ($15.2 billion) in guarantees and equity as the German government stepped in to save the gas importer that is the biggest casualty of Europe’s energy crisis so far.

The state bail-out caps weeks of intense negotiations between Germany and Finland, which controls Uniper’s majority shareholder Fortum. It provides a lifeline after falling Russian gas supplies drained the company’s finances.

Uniper shares initially rose 5% after the announcement, but by 1035 GMT were down 14%.

As part of the deal, the German government will take a 30% stake in Uniper. Fortum will end up holding 56% in Uniper, down from around 80% currently.

“We are living through an unprecedented energy crisis that requires robust measures,” Fortum CEO Markus Rauramo said, adding the deal reflected the interests of all parties. “We were driven by urgency and the need to protect Europe’s security of supply in a time of war.”

Following the immediate rescue, Uniper, Fortum and the German government will work on a long-term solution to reform the company’s wholesale gas contract architecture, which has exposed the group to billions in losses.

The parties intend to agree on the longer-term solution by the end of 2023, they said.

A drop in Russian gas supplies meant that, rather than being able to rely on long-term price agreements, Uniper had to buy expensive gas on the spot market to make up for the shortfall.

Friday’s agreement will allow Uniper to pass on higher gas prices, which have risen eight-fold as a result of Moscow cutting supplies, to customers, but German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the government was looking at relief measures.

($1 = 0.9847 euros)

(Reporting by Christoph Steitz, Essi Lehto, Matthias Inverard, Holger Hansen, Andreas Rinke, Markus Wacket; Editing by Maria Sheahan, Kirsti Knolle and Barbara Lewis)

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