Headlines

Lawsuits by three firms seeking to improve their chances of obtaining proceeds in an auction of shares in Citgo Petroleum's parent can go ahead, a U.S. judge ruled in an order issued on Monday, Reuters reported. The decision could reduce the proceeds of any sale, the court officer overseeing the auction in federal court in Delaware had said in a motion seeking to block the parallel lawsuits. Shares in Citgo parent PDV Holding are being auctioned to repay $21 billion in claims for debt defaults and expropriations by Venezuela and state oil firm PDVSA. PDV is a U.S.

The company behind a proposed multi-billion pound theme park dubbed the 'Dartford Disneyland' is being taken to court by Hollywood studio Paramount, Yahoo Finance U.K. reported. London Resort Company Holdings (LRCH) had hoped to build the controversial attraction on the 372-acre Swanscombe Peninsula near Dartford, Kent and close to south Essex. First announced back in 2012, the huge park was envisioned to feature rollercoasters, water parks, hotels and live entertainment venues and would have been at least three times the size of any other theme park in the UK.

Insolvencies and restructuring could rise further over the start of 2025 as firms face more increased cost pressures, industry experts have warned, PAMedia.com reported. Restructuring bosses have cautioned that impending cost rises linked to the autumn Budget could particularly weigh on the retail, hospitality and care sectors. It comes after official figures pointed towards an uptick in insolvencies at the end of this year. Company insolvencies lifted by 13% in November compared with the previous month, although they were lower year-on-year, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Brazilian assets finished the year lagging all major peers, with the real posting its biggest slump since the pandemic shock of 2020 amid mounting skepticism over President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s commitment to fix a ballooning budget deficit, Bloomberg News reported. The real weakened 21% against the US dollar this year, the worst among 31 major currencies alongside Argentina’s tightly controlled peso. Losses accelerated in November after a long-awaited fiscal package underwhelmed investors.

The International Monetary Fund’s executive board is set to review Argentina’s current $44 billion aid program next month, according to people familiar with the matter, a crucial step as President Javier Milei negotiates for a new loan, Bloomberg News reported. The board is tentatively set to meet in early January to evaluate a staff report on the agreement Argentina struck with the IMF in 2022, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity as the details haven’t been made public.

China’s central bank injected 1.7 trillion yuan ($233 billion) of cash in December, dialing up liquidity support for the economy and financial markets at year-end, Bloomberg News reported. The People’s Bank of China conducted 1.4 trillion yuan in outright reverse repurchase agreements using three- and six-month contracts, aiming to maintain sufficient liquidity in the banking system, it said in a statement Tuesday. This follows injections of 800 billion yuan and 500 billion yuan in the past two months through the new tool introduced in October.

China's manufacturing activity barely grew in December though services and construction recovered, an official survey showed on Tuesday, suggesting policy stimulus is trickling into some sectors as the economy braces for new trade risks, Reuters reported. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) purchasing managers' index (PMI) slowed to 50.1 in December from 50.3 a month prior, staying above the 50-mark separating growth from contraction. China's $18 trillion economy has struggled to recover from the pandemic amid weak consumption and investment, and a protracted property crisis.

South Korea’s headline inflation averaged 2.3% in 2024 after staying below the central bank’s 2% target for a fourth consecutive month in December, the Wall Street Journal reported. The benchmark consumer-price index rose 1.9% from a year earlier in December, following the 1.5% rise in November, the country’s statistics office said Tuesday. The latest reading was above the median forecast of a 1.7% increase projected by nine economists polled by The Wall Street Journal.

German air taxi manufacturer Volocopter has declared insolvency as it seeks new funding, the company announced from its headquarters at Bruchsal near Stuttgart, DPA International reported. "The company needs funding that will allow it to take the final steps to entering the market," the new court-appointed insolvency administrator said. Volocopter still needs type certification from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for its electrical vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft to be allowed to carry passengers.