Reuters Business News

BP will write off up to $17.5 billion from the value of its assets after cutting its long-term oil and gas price forecasts, betting the COVID-19 crisis will cast a lasting chill on energy demand and accelerate a shift away from fossil fuels.

The London Stock Exchange will not offer concessions to EU antitrust regulators reviewing its $27 billion bid for data and analytics company Refinitiv, two people familiar with the matter said, a move which will likely trigger a four-month probe.

Italian Economy Minister Roberto Gualtieri said on Monday the government is closely watching the merger between the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and Refinitiv, and its implications for the Italian bourse owned by LSE.

Britain's Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab voiced a thinly veiled criticism of HSBC on Monday after the bank backed China's national security law for Hong Kong, contradicting the British government's opposition to it.

The U.S. economy will experience a "significant, historic" contraction in the second quarter before it starts to rebound, and unemployment will remain elevated at the end of 2020, Dallas Federal Reserve President Robert Kaplan said on Monday.

The Federal Reserve said on Monday it had opened registration for lenders interested in participating in its Main Street Lending Program, launching arguably the most complex program undertaken yet by the U.S. central bank to help keep the backbone of the economy from buckling under the strains of the coronavirus pandemic.

Brazilian planemaker Embraer SA said on Monday it was replacing the head of its commercial aviation unit after a planned deal to have Boeing Co take over that division fell apart in April.

Wall Street was set to drop sharply at the open on Monday as a recent jump in coronavirus cases in China and parts of the United States dashed investor hopes of a quick economic rebound that had powered the Nasdaq to record levels last week.

General Electric Co said on Monday David Joyce, the chief executive of the company's aviation unit, would retire after 40 years with the industrial conglomerate.

Delta Air Lines has received approval from the Shanghai government to resume flights from June 18, a company spokeswoman said on Monday, paving the way for the carrier to resume services to China after months of suspension due to COVID-19.

United Airlines said on Monday it is securing a $5 billion loan backed by its MileagePlus loyalty program, bringing potential total liquidity to $17 billion, an amount that senior executives said would be enough to carry it through a potential second or third wave of the new coronavirus that could hit the aviation industry.

Passenger revenue at Latin America's No. 2 airline, Avianca Holdings , has fallen 51% for the year as of early June compared with a year ago, the carrier said, in a look into the dire financial toll that the coronavirus has taken on the company.

Walmart Inc said on Monday it has partnered with e-commerce firm Shopify Inc , as it looks to expand its online marketplace business and cash in on the coronavirus-driven jump in online shopping.

Oil prices fell on Monday as new coronavirus infections hit China, Japan and the United States, adding to concerns that a resurgence of the virus could hamper a recovery in fuel demand.

Honeywell International Inc, a major supplier of aerospace products, said Monday it launched an unmanned aerial systems business to bet on the autonomous aviation space – drones, air taxis, and unmanned cargo delivery vehicles.

Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo has agreed to sell more branches and assets to rival BPER to try to overcome antitrust objections to its proposed takeover of UBI Banca .

Volkswagen expects a very bad second quarter, but also sees a positive adjusted operating profit before special items for 2020, Chief Financial Officer Frank Witter said in an internal newsletter.

Fears of a second wave of COVID-19 infections sent jitters across global markets on Monday with stocks and oil under pressure while investors bought into safe havens such as government bonds.

The U.S. mattress business has bounced back after months of shutdowns from the coronavirus pandemic kept customers away.

Smithfield Foods Inc [SFII.UL] is missing about a third of its employees at a South Dakota pork plant because they are quarantined or afraid to return to work after a severe coronavirus outbreak, according to the workers' union.