the bottomline

RIYADH:

General Electric (GE) signed a one billion riyal ($267 million) joint venture agreement on Wednesday with Saudi Arabia’s statebacked Dussur industrial development company to manufacture gas turbines in the eastern city of Dammam.

The agreement, announced at a press conference in Riyadh, follows an announcement by GE during U.S. President Donald Trump’s visit last weekend of $15 billion of business deals, including memorandums of understanding which would require further agreements to materialise.

GE and Dussur signed a memorandum of understanding last year that is expected to result in nearly 3.75 billion riyals of investment by the two companies across multiple sectors in 2017. (RTRS)

DUBAI:

SaudiGulf Airlines expects to finalise an agreement with Boeing to acquire up to 16 twin-aisle 777 aircraft by the third quarter of this year, its chief executive said on Wednesday.

Boeing announced this week during United States President Donald Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia that it was in talks to sell some widebody jets to the privately-owned airline but did not disclose the aircraft type.

“We are currently evaluating a fairly good offer from Boeing,” SaudiGulf’s chief executive Samer Majali told Reuters by phone. (RTRS)

NEW YORK:

New York state bank regulators fined BNP Paribas $350 million for “illegal, unsafe and unsound” currency trading practices that included use of secret hand signals to dupe customers, officials announced Wednesday.

The charges involved “significant, long-term violations,” including fake trades, manipulating currency prices, using confidential information to profit at the customers’ expense, and misleading customers, New York’s Department of Financial Services said in a statement.

From 2007 to 2011, the bank “paid little or no attention to the supervision of its foreign exchange trading business, allowing BNPP traders and others to violate New York State law over the course of many years and repeatedly abused the trust of their customers,” Financial Services Superintendent Maria T. Vullo said. (AFP)

MOORESVILLE:

Lowe’s Cos. is reporting fiscal first-quarter profit of $602 million.

On a per-share basis, the Mooresville, North Carolina-based company said it had profit of 70 cents. Earnings, adjusted to extinguish debt, came to $1.03 per share.

The results fell short of Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of 13 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $1.07 per share. (AP)

LOS ANGELES:

Samsung is going to start selling its new Gear 360 camera this Thursday for $229, the company announced Wednesday. The camera will be available via Best Buy, Amazon, a number of mobile phone carriers as well as Samsung’s own online store, according to a news release.

Consumers who buy one of the company’s new flagship phones will be able to get the camera for just $49. This promotion lasts until June 19, and is only available through Samsung’s website.

The Gear 360 is capable of shooting 4K 360-degree video as well as 15 megapixel photos. Combined with a compatible smart phone, it can also be used to live stream 360-degree video to Facebook, YouTube and Samsung’s own VR video platform. However, the app necessary for this kind of live streaming, as well as remote control of the camera, is only available for Samsung phones. (RTRS)

LONDON:

Marks and Spencer posted a 71-percent slump in annual net profits on Wednesday, hit by vast restructuring costs and sliding clothing sales, the British retail giant said Wednesday.

Net profits dived to £117.1 million ($152 million, 135 million euros) in the group’s financial year to April 1, M&S said in a statement. That compared with profit after taxation of £406.9 million a year earlier.

Underlying pre-tax profits sank 10.3 percent to £613.8 million. (AFP)

LONDON:

Britain’s Dixons Carphone on Wednesday beat fourth-quarter trading forecasts and narrowed its fullyear headline pretax profit guidance to 485-490 million pounds ($628.85 million-$635.33 million) from 475-495 million.

The company, which trades as Currys, PC World and Carphone Warehouse in its home market, Elkjop and Elgiganten in Nordic countries and Kotsovolos in Greece, said like-for-like group sales rose 2 percent in the 16 weeks to April 29, its fiscal fourth quarter, ahead of a company compiled consensus of 0.9 percent growth.

Like-for-like sales in the UK and Ireland rose 2 percent, driven by a strong electricals performance. (RTRS)

LONDON:

British soft drinks firm Britvic Plc said it was poised to deliver full-year performance in line with market expectations as strong sales of its drinks across all its markets helped drive an 11.5 percent rise in first-half revenue.

The Robinsons squash maker on Wednesday also named John Daly, senior independent director and chair of the Remuneration Committee, as chairman, effective Sept 1.

Daly will assume the role from Gerald Corbett, who will retire from the board on Sept. 1, the company said. (RTRS)

COPENHAGEN, Denmark:

Denmark’s Dong Energy has reached an agreement to divest its oil and gas business to privately held chemicals group INEOS, saying it has reached its goal announced in November of transforming itself “into a leading, pure play renewables company.”

Copenhagen-based Dong Energy says the deal means “an unconditional payment” of $1.05 billion on a cash and debt-free basis. (AP)

MILAN:

Italian businessman Adriano Riva, whose family owned the bankrupt Ilva steel firm, was handed a twoand-half-year term on Wednesday after transferring 1.3 billion euros ($1.5 billion) siphoned off from the company.

Heavily indebted and short of cash, Ilva was taken over by the Italian state in 2014. (AFP)