Headlines

Lodha Developers Ltd has been directed to deposit Rs 520.80 crore as security in the Supreme Court against V Hotels Ltd, which the company acquired last year through an insolvency process, the Economic Times of India reported. In a regulatory filing on Wednesday, Lodha Developers Ltd informed that this matter is related to proceedings initiated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against the erstwhile promoter of V Hotels Ltd (VHL). This was in relation to a transaction of Rs 520.80 crore, allegedly routed through VHL before the start of the insolvency process.

A court-appointed special master recommended a nearly $7.4 billion bid from Venezuela creditor Gold Reserve for the country’s state-owned oil refiner Citgo Petroleum, roughly double the prior leading offer, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. Robert Pincus, the special master overseeing the forced sale of Venezuela’s stake in Citgo, said in court papers filed Wednesday that the bid from Gold Reserve’s Dalinar Energy is the highest and best offer.

The TotalEnergies West of Shetland offshore assets it agreed to sell to Prax Group last year remain under the French oil major's ownership, it said on Wednesday, so will not be subject to disposals resulting from liquidation proceedings affecting the British company, Reuters reported. "The transaction to sell our West of Shetland asset to Prax has not yet completed and as such we remain the operator of the Shetland Gas Plant and related fields," TotalEnergies EP UK said in its statement.

A council has defended its financial management after a report warned it is ‘bordering on insolvency’. The recent internal audit found Thetford Town Council has ‘excessively low balances’ and urged it to reassess its investments, the Suffolk News reported. The council has been criticised for several months over the handling of its finances after it voted to declare a ‘climate emergency’ and commit £30,000 of its funds to combat the issue. However, councillors have dismissed the warnings of the auditor as ‘isolated items’ and maintain the authority is ‘well run’.

Attabotics Inc., a Calgary-based robotics and automation startup, has filed for bankruptcy protection, according to multiple reports, the Calgary Herald reported. The company, founded in 2016 by CEO Scott Gravelle, designs and manufactures an automated storage and retrieval system, using robotics. Attabotics reportedly had more than 300 employees, including about 250 in Calgary as of 2022. It is unclear how many, if any, of the tech company’s employees will keep their jobs.

Canada’s share of exports destined for the US shrank to the smallest proportion since at least 1997, excluding the Covid pandemic. Shipments to other countries reached a new high, led by gold exports, Bloomberg News reported. With President Donald Trump’s tariffs crushing exports and imports between Canada and its biggest trading partner, the country’s share of exports destined for the US shrank to 68.3% in May, from last year’s monthly average of 75.9%, according to Statistics Canada data Thursday. Exports to the US were down for a fourth straight month, declining 0.9% in May.

The Bank of Japan should resume interest rate hikes following a temporary pause to evaluate the impact of U.S. tariffs, board member Hajime Takata said, signalling optimism the country was on track to durably achieve the central bank's price goal, Reuters reported. Takata said that Japan was close to achieving the BOJ's 2% inflation target with robust corporate profits and labour shortages driving up wages and building price pressures. While the BOJ must take its time scrutinising the fallout from U.S.

Hong Kong's retailers are battling against shifting consumer habits, as visitors spend less and locals head across the border to China for cheaper dining and shopping, leading to a wave of store closures, Reuters reported. A 36-year-old Chinese seafood restaurant chain and a popular high-end food court in the bustling Causeway Bay district closed this week. Other recent closures in the financial hub include cinema chains, a major catering group, a 41-year-old bakery and a three-decade-old congee chain.

Indonesia will sign a pact worth $34 billion with business partners next week to boost purchases from the U.S., as part of efforts to strike a trade deal with Washington ahead of the July 9 deadline, Indonesia's chief economic minister said on Thursday, Reuters reported. The deal would include increasing imports of fuels and investment by Indonesian companies in energy and agriculture sectors in the U.S. Separately, flag carrier Garuda Indonesia (GIAA.JK), opens new tab also said it is in talks to buy up to 75 jets from Boeing BA.N. Jakarta is facing a 32% tariff in U.S.