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OGSystems’ CEO to Transition to Chairman of the Board

Company Announces New Executive Leadership Team CHANTILLY, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- OGSystems, a leader in technology innovation for the Department of Defense (DoD) and Intelligence Community (IC), today announced that co-founder Omar Balkissoon will transition from Chief Executive Officer (CEO) to Chairman of the Board. Garrett Pagon, President and co-founder, will step into the role of CEO. Balkissoon will focus on further building the technology and organization of OGSystems’ recent tech start-up spinout, GeoSpark Analytics, serving as the new company’s CEO ( http://bizj.us/1pgb99 ). OGSystems also announced the recent promotion of Steve Martin as the Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Dan Ehrmantraut to Chief Financial Officer (CFO). This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180109005313/en/ OGSystems announces new executive leadership team. (Pictured left to right: Dan Ehrmantraut, Garrett Pagon, and Steve Martin) (Photo: Business Wire) “Since OGSystems’ founding, Garrett and I have put our heart and soul into the mission of making a positive impact on national security and the goal of providing growth opportunities for our people,” Balkissoon said. “We have a relentless focus on finding the right people, playing to their strengths, and empowering them to Own the Outcome. As co-founders, we’ve watched the company grow in ways we couldn’t imagine by enabling others to step into new roles with an eye towards delivering the best execution in the business. Having Garrett by my side has been instrumental to the journey as CEO, and that formula doesn’t change as I transition to Chairman with me by his.” Pagon is a graduate of Stanford University and served as an intelligence officer for the United States Air Force before he and Balkissoon founded OGSystems in 2005. Through his leadership, the company has become a recognized and trusted prime contractor capable of winning and executing large engineering projects for the IC. He is responsible for scaling an entrepreneurial outfit into a large and reliable organization, while keeping the innovative spirit of the original culture. “People are the secret sauce at OGSystems,” said Pagon. “We give leaders from within an opportunity to grow and we recognize those responsible for our success. Both Steve and Dan have the right combination of skill, commitment to leading their teams, and tremendous respect from their peers and industry partners.” With more than 20 years of DoD and IC experience - including over 10 years with OGSystems - Steve Martin has helped build the culture, client relationships, partnerships, and approaches that are the foundation of the company’s success. Previously serving as the Executive Partner responsible for performance on all client programs, Martin led the doubling of OGSystems revenues in the last three years. Known for a commitment to personnel development and increasing mission performance through innovation, he has overseen increases in key metrics such as employee retention to over twice the industry average. Dan Ehrmantraut joined OGSystems in 2014 and quickly established the growing organization’s first in-house corporate finance and accounting department. In three years, he has proven himself as an outstanding leader in command of all financial aspects of the business and now formally assumes the role from Bill Earle as the interim CFO. As CFO, Ehrmantraut manages an agile, high-performing team responsible for contract/subcontract management, corporate accounting, payroll, program control, cost proposals, and corporate financial reporting and forecasting. About OGSystems OGSystems’ (OGS) mission is to provide technically advanced geospatial and security solutions to customers through constant innovation, effecting positive change in every engagement. In an industry accustomed to long and inefficient system development cycles, OGS thinks differently - we are an alternative for DoD and IC clients seeking nimble companies to solve their most difficult problems. Headquartered in Chantilly, Virginia, with regional offices in St. Louis, Missouri, San Diego, California, and Portland, Oregon, OGS employs over 300 geospatial engineers, software developers, data scientists and mission subject matter experts. For more information, visit http://www.ogsystems.com . View source version on businesswire.com : http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180109005313/en/ OGSystems Carrie Drake, 703-870-7552, ext. 275 carrie.drake@ogsystems.com Source: OGSystems

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/09/business-wire-ogsystemsa-ceo-to-transition-to-chairman-of-the-board.html

Aramark Announces Offering of Senior Notes

PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Aramark (NYSE:ARMK) announced today that its indirect wholly owned subsidiary, Aramark Services, Inc. (the "Issuer"), intends to privately offer $1,150.0 million aggregate principal amount of senior unsecured notes due 2028 (the “Notes”). The Issuer intends to use the net proceeds from the offering of the Notes, together with cash on hand, to pay the purchase price for the acquisition of AmeriPride Services Inc., repay borrowings under its revolving credit facility and to pay related fees and expenses. The offering of the Notes is being made in reliance upon an exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), to investors who are reasonably believed to be qualified institutional buyers in accordance with Rule 144A under the Securities Act or to investors outside the United States in accordance with Regulation S under the Securities Act. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy the Notes. The Notes have not been registered under the Securities Act, and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act. About Aramark Aramark (NYSE: ARMK) proudly serves Fortune 500 companies, world champion sports teams, state-of-the-art healthcare providers, the world's leading educational institutions, iconic destinations and cultural attractions, and numerous municipalities in 19 countries around the world. Our 270,000 team members deliver experiences that enrich and nourish millions of lives every day through innovative services in food, facilities management and uniforms. We operate our business with social responsibility, focusing on initiatives that support our diverse workforce, advance consumer health and wellness, protect our environment, and strengthen our communities. Aramark is recognized as one of the World's Most Admired Companies by FORTUNE as well as an employer of choice by the Human Rights Campaign and DiversityInc. Learn more at www.aramark.com or connect with us on Facebook and Twitter . Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements made in this press release may constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements are based on management's expectations, estimates, projections, and assumptions. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks and uncertainties, which are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual future results and trends may differ materially from what is forecast in forward-looking statements due to a variety of factors. Additional information regarding these factors is contained in the "Risk Factors," "Legal Proceedings" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" sections and other sections of Aramark's Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the SEC on November 22,2017, as such factors may be updated from time to time in its other periodic filings with the SEC, which are accessible on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov and which may be obtained by contacting Aramark's investor relations department via its website www.aramark.com . View source version on businesswire.com : http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180110005623/en/ Aramark Media Inquiries: Karen Cutler, 215-238-4063 Cutler-Karen@aramark.com or Investor Inquiries: Kate Pearlman, 215-409-7287 Pearlman-Kate@aramark.com Source: Aramark

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/10/business-wire-aramark-announces-offering-of-senior-notes.html

Storm cancels flights, causes power outages in Eastern Canada

HALIFAX, NOVA SCOTIA (Reuters) - Dozens of flights were canceled and thousands of people were left without power in Eastern Canada on Thursday as the region felt the early impact of a massive storm arriving from the United States. Ice begins to collect at the base of the Horseshoe Falls in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada, January 3, 2018. REUTERS/Aaron Lynett More than 17,000 businesses and homes were without electricity in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, according to the Nova Scotia Power website. Most departing and arriving flights were canceled or delayed at Halifax Stanfield airport. In Montreal, 85 flights were canceled on Thursday because of snowstorms affecting airports in Canada’s so-called “Maritime” provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island and through much of the Eastern United States, an airport spokeswoman said. “For the Maritimes, it is a cocktail of precipitation and strong winds,” Environment Canada meteorologist Jean-Philippe Begin said by phone. The fast-developing storm bringing high winds and heavy snowfall has been dubbed by forecasters as a “weather bomb,” a “bombogenesis” or “bomb cyclone.” Wind speeds of up to 110 kilometers (68 miles) an hour are expected in some parts of the Maritimes, Begin said, and the storm will also dump up to 50 centimeters (20 inches) of snow in areas of Eastern Quebec. Reporting by Darren Calabrese in Halifax, Nova Scotia; Writing by Allison Lampert in Montreal; Editing by Jim Finkle and Bernadette Baum

https://in.reuters.com/article/us-canada-weather/storm-cancels-flights-causes-power-outages-in-eastern-canada-idINKBN1ET24E

Facebook group invents Flick to measure video frame rates

Facebook's virtual reality division has come up with a new unit of time — called Flicks — to measure the speed of digital audio and video. In an online forum used by developers of open source software, the company described Flicks as "a unit of time, slightly larger than a nanosecond that exactly subdivides media frame rates and sampling frequencies." One of the creators of Flicks is Christopher Horvath, a former architect with Facebook's Story Studio. Horvath left that team in May and began later that month at Facebook's social virtual reality unit, according to a representative from Oculus. He noted in a Facebook post that his invention had made it into the real world: Story Studio, which Facebook closed last year, was nominated for an Emmy for the VR film "Dear Angelica." Horvath won an Emmy for an earlier Oculus film called "Henry." Facebook shuttered the unit after deciding it didn't want a stand-alone studio.. According to Facebook, Flick "is the smallest time unit which is LARGER than a nanosecond." Correction: This article has been updated to reflect that Christopher Horvath began working with Facebook's social virtual reality unit in May, according to a representative from Oculus.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/22/facebook-group-invents-flick-to-measure-video-frame-rates.html

British bobsledder Tasker to miss Games after suffering stroke

January 11, 2018 / 2:54 PM / Updated 12 minutes ago British bobsledder Tasker to miss Games after suffering stroke Reuters Staff 2 Min Read (Reuters) - British bobsledder Bruce Tasker will miss next month’s Pyeongchang Olympics after suffering a minor stroke last week, Team GB said on Thursday. Winter Olympics - Team GB PyeongChang 2018 Media Summit - Edinburgh, Britain - August 18, 2017 Bruce Tasker poses during the media summit REUTERS/Russell Cheyne The 30-year-old Welshman, who is being treated for groin and hip injuries at home, was taken to Wexham Park Hospital on Jan. 4 after experiencing dizziness and nausea. Tasker was subsequently transferred to the stroke unit at High Wycombe Hospital on Saturday. “I‘m gutted not to be able to conclude the four-year cycle by going to the Olympics but I‘m very grateful that I‘m still fit and healthy,” Tasker, who, who was due to compete in his second Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, said in a statement. “I‘m set to make a 100 percent recovery and I already feel as though I‘m most of the way there.” Tasker is expected to resume training next season. “We are desperately sorry for Bruce to lose his chance of becoming a two-time Olympian so close to the Pyeongchang 2018 Games,” Team GB Chef de Mission Mike Hay added. “Bruce is an outstanding person and athlete with proven leadership skills and was a hugely valued and popular member of Team GB in Sochi.” Reporting by Hardik Vyas in Bengaluru, editing by Pritha Sarkar

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-olympics-2018-britain-tasker/british-bobsledder-tasker-to-miss-games-after-suffering-stroke-idUKKBN1F01Z7

Qualcomm signs $2 bln sales MOUs with Lenovo, Xiaomi, vivo and OPPO

(Reuters) - Qualcomm Technologies Inc ( QCOM.O ) has signed memorandums of understanding for sales worth at least $2 billion with top Chinese smartphone vendors, receiving vocal support from the firms as it fights an unsolicited buyout bid from Broadcom Ltd ( AVGO.O ). Lenovo Group ( 0992.HK ), Guangdong OPPO Mobile Telecommunications Corp, vivo Communication Technology and Xiaomi Communications have expressed an interest in buying Qualcomm components with a total value of no less than $2 billion over three years, the U.S. chip maker said on Thursday. The non-binding agreement will be subject to further agreements and covers technology related to RF Front-End components, Qualcomm said in a statement. The companies announced the multi-year agreement at a Qualcomm-hosted event in Beijing attended by the U.S. firm’s chairman and chief executive. At the event representatives from the Chinese companies expressed concerns that a possible acquisition of Qualcomm by Broadcom could hurt investment in chip technology. Broadcom in November made an unsolicited $103 billion bid for Qualcomm, which Qualcomm says undervalues it. A potential merger would likely face regulatory scrutiny in China, where Qualcomm has been fined before over anti-trust issues and where the government is promoting local chip production. China aims to become a dominant global chip maker by 2030 and has allocated extensive public funding to support local firms. “I was surprised about the reaction of some of those customers … but it’s probably what you would expect,” Qualcomm President Cristiano Amon told media. China is currently Qualcomm’s second-largest market but will soon become its top market, said Amon. Reporting by Cate Cadell in Beijing and Subrat Patnaik in Bengaluru; Editing by Himani Sarkar and Hugh Lawson

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-qualcomm/qualcomm-signs-2-billion-sales-mous-with-lenovo-xiaomi-vivo-and-oppo-idUSKBN1FE0D6

Czech central bank's Benda: rate rises could be faster than forecast

PRAGUE, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Inflation risks to the Czech central bank’s latest forecasts are slightly higher and can allow faster interest rate rises than the bank’s outlook sees, board member Vojtech Benda said in an interview on news website info.cz. Benda was one of two board members who voted for a rate hike at the bank’s last meeting in December. The bank paused with raising rates then after lifting borrowing costs twice since August, and analysts expect the next move in February. “I was one of two who thinks inflation risks are slightly higher,” Benda said in the interview. “This basically justifies, or would give us the possibility to raise interest rates at a slightly faster tempo than the trajectory we have in the forecast.” (Reporting by Jason Hovet)

https://www.reuters.com/article/czech-cenbank-benda/czech-central-banks-benda-rate-rises-could-be-faster-than-forecast-idUSP7N1IV02I

FOREX-Dollar skids to 3-year low as Mnuchin welcomes currency weakness

* Trump expected to push “America First” message in Davos speech * Mnuchin says weak dollar is good for U.S. trade * Euro hits 3-year high; sterling hits post-Brexit vote high * Dollar/yen touches lowest level since mid-September * Graphic: World FX rates in 2017 tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh By Jemima Kelly LONDON, Jan 24 (Reuters) - The dollar slid to a three-year low against a basket of major peers on Wednesday after the U.S. Treasury secretary said he welcomed weakness in the currency, as investors worried about President Donald Trump’s protectionist agenda. In a break with the traditional strong dollar mantra, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the weaker dollar was positive for American trade. He was speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos on the eve of Trump’s arrival at the Swiss resort. Mnuchin’s comments provided a fresh trigger for selling of the dollar, which has been on the back foot for months on the view that the U.S. Federal Reserve is no longer the only game in town when it comes to tighter monetary policy, as growth in other regions - in Europe in particular - picks up speed. “The Mnuchin comments have helped feed it (the weaker dollar) a little bit, but they certainly didn’t get the move going in the first place,” said BMO Capital Markets currency strategist Stephen Gallo, in London. “He gave the green light for benign neglect of the currency, in the short run. It’s going down for a number of fundamental reasons and he’s saying he’s not going to stop it.” The dollar index , which measures the greenback’s value against a basket of six major currencies, fell below the 90.00 threshold for the first time since December 2014 on Wednesday. It was last down 0.6 percent at 89.632. White House officials said on Tuesday that Trump would use his speech at Davos on Friday to stress his “America First” policies. Under that agenda, Trump has threatened to withdraw from the North American Free Trade Agreement, disavowed the global climate change accord and criticised global institutions including the United Nations and NATO. “It feels like the next few weeks could be a watershed moment for world trade and protectionism,” ING currency strategist Viraj Patel said in London. “(Trump‘s) ‘America First’ ideology...remains a risk strategy for the dollar – and for a U.S. economy that relies on the kindness of strangers to fund its structural external deficit,” he added. As the dollar fell broadly, the euro touched a fresh three-year peak of $1.2356 , while sterling soared to its highest level since Britain’s June 2016 vote to leave the European Union, at $1.4152. Investors are keenly awaiting the European Central Bank’s meeting on Thursday for clues on the outlook for monetary policy in the euro zone. Against the yen, the dollar fell below the 110 threshold for the first time in four months, last trading down 0.8 percent at 109.39 yen. (Reporting by Jemima Kelly with additional reporting by Masayuki Kitano in Singapore editing by Mark Heinrich) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

https://www.reuters.com/article/global-forex/forex-dollar-skids-to-3-year-low-as-mnuchin-welcomes-currency-weakness-idUSL8N1PJ3OT

AerCap CEO expects some airlines to be stretched by oil at $80

January 22, 2018 / 3:47 PM / Updated 19 minutes ago AerCap CEO does not expect wave of aircraft finance M&A Conor Humphries , Tim Hepher 3 Min Read DUBLIN (Reuters) - The head of the world’s largest aircraft leasing company, AerCap ( AER.N ), does not expect a significant number of mergers or acquisitions in the sector despite pressure on the owners of two of his largest rivals: GECAS and Avolon. Chief executive Aengus Kelly told the Airline Economics conference in Dublin on Monday that the draw of consistently stable returns would make owners of major aircraft leasing firms very reluctant to sell. “M&A is a continual theme. But do I think there will be much of it? No,” Kelly said. “Sellers that have been in this business a long time are very reluctant to take out an asset that has generated such stable returns historically.” He said he did not expect to see an attractive acquisition opportunity in the sector unless there was significant stress specific to one of the owners. Asked specifically about rivals GECAS and Avolon, Kelly said it was “impossible to say” what might happen, with both businesses showing consistent profitability. GECAS owner General Electric ( GE.N ) indicated last week that it was looking closely at breaking itself up as the conglomerate announced more than $11 billion in charges from its long-term care insurance portfolio and new U.S. tax laws. Avolon’s ultimate owner HNA group has admitted in recent months to liquidity problems. Kelly said the aviation sector was facing the prospect of increases in two key input costs: fuel and interest rates. While the oil price could tax some airlines if it climbs to $80 from just under $70, the business models of some airlines could be “stretched” he said. [L8N1PH5K5] Higher oil could nudge carriers towards more fuel-efficient newer planes, he said. Higher interest rates should be good for the aviation finance sector so long as the increase does not come too quickly, he added. “A rising rate environment is a good thing as it generally brings with it some form of asset inflation because it is reflective of a more positive global GDP,” he said. “But there can be a lag before that inflation occurs and that is where you have to make sure that the business is soundly funded when you have short periods of volatility.” While some firms that entered the market in recent years due to low yields elsewhere may leave the sector if interest rates rise, others will likely move in to take advantage of the higher rates, he said. Reporting by Conor Humphries; editing by Alexander Smith

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-aviation-finance-aercap-hldg/aercap-ceo-expects-some-airlines-to-be-stretched-by-oil-at-80-idUSKBN1FB255

Corus Entertainment Announces Fiscal 2018 First Quarter Results

Free cash flow (1) of $83.2 million for the quarter, up from $33.9 million last year Consolidated revenues decreased 2% for the quarter Consolidated segment profit (1) decreased 7% for the quarter Consolidated segment profit margin (1) of 39% for the quarter Net income attributable to shareholders of $77.7 million ($0.38 per share basic) for the quarter TORONTO, Jan. 10, 2018 /PRNewswire/ - Corus Entertainment Inc. (TSX: CJR.B) announced its first quarter financial results today. "Our first quarter results were below expectations, as gains in local Radio advertising and our Nelvana content business combined with better than expected subscriber revenues were more than offset by weak television advertising market conditions", said Doug Murphy, President and Chief Executive Officer. "We remain committed to advancing our strategic priorities as Canada's only pure play media and content company. Our ongoing financial discipline balanced with strategic growth investments in content and advanced advertising initiatives position us well over the longer term in a rapidly evolving media and content marketplace." Financial Highlights Three months ended November 30, (in thousands of Canadian dollars except per share amounts) 2017 2016 Revenues Television 415,464 425,564 Radio 41,924 42,417 457,388 467,981 Segment profit (1) Television 168,602 184,421 Radio 13,521 13,286 Corporate (4,236) (5,721) 177,887 191,986 Net income attributable to shareholders 77,673 71,146 Adjusted net income attributable to shareholders (1) (2) 78,885 80,826 Basic earnings per share $0.38 $0.36 Adjusted basic earnings per share (1) (2) $0.38 $0.41 Diluted earnings per share $0.38 $0.36 Free cash flow (1) 83,215 33,909 (1) Segment profit, segment profit margin, adjusted net income attributable to shareholders, adjusted basic earnings per share, and free cash flow do not have standardized meanings prescribed by IFRS. The Company believes these non-IFRS measures are frequently used as key measures to evaluate performance. For definitions and explanations, see discussion under the Key Performance Indicators section of the First Quarter 2018 Report to Shareholders. (2) Refer to page 10 of this press release for details of adjustments to arrive at adjusted net income attributable to shareholders and adjusted basic earnings per share. Consolidated Results from Operations Consolidated revenues for the three months ended November 30, 2017 were $457.4 million, down 2% from $468.0 million last year and consolidated segment profit was $177.9 million, down 7% from $192.0 million last year. Net income attributable to shareholders for the quarter ended November 30, 2017 was $77.7 million ($0.38 per share basic and diluted), as compared to $71.1 million ($0.36 per share basic and diluted) last year. Net income attributable to shareholders for the first quarter of fiscal 2018 includes business acquisition, integration and restructuring costs of $1.6 million ($nil per share, net of income taxes). Adjusting for the impact of this item results in an adjusted net income attributable to shareholders of $78.9 million ($0.38 per share basic) in the quarter. Net income attributable to shareholders for the prior year quarter includes business acquisition, integration and restructuring costs of $13.2 million ($0.05 per share, net of income taxes). Adjusting for the impact of this item results in an adjusted net income attributable to shareholders of $80.8 million ($0.41 per share basic) for the prior year quarter. Operational Results - Highlights Television Segment revenues were down 2% in Q1 2018 Advertising revenues decreased 4% in Q1 2018 Subscriber revenues were flat in Q1 2018 Merchandising, distribution and other revenues increased 7% in Q1 2018 Segment profit (1) decreased 9% in Q1 2018 Segment profit margin (1) of 41% in Q1 2018 compared to 43% in the prior year Radio Segment revenues were relatively flat in Q1 2018 Advertising revenues were down 1% in Q1 2018 Segment profit (1) increased 2% in Q1 2018 Segment profit margin (1) of 32% in Q1 2018 compared to 31% the prior year Corporate Free cash flow (1) of $83.2 million for the year, up from $33.9 million in the prior year Net debt to segment profit (1) leverage at 3.5 times Consolidated segment profit margin in Q1 of 39%, down from 41% in the prior year (1) Segment profit, segment profit margin, and free cash flow do not have standardized meanings prescribed by IFRS. The Company reports on these because they are key measures used to evaluate performance. For definitions and explanations, see discussion under the Key Performance Indicators section of the 2018 Report to Shareholders. Corus Entertainment Inc. reports in Canadian dollars. The unaudited consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes for the three months ended November 30, 2017 and Management's Discussion and Analysis are available on the Company's website at www.corusent.com in the Investor Relations section. A conference call with Corus senior management is scheduled for January 10, 2018 at 9:00 a.m. ET. While this call is directed at analysts and investors, members of the media are welcome to listen in. The dial-in number for the conference call for local and international callers is 1.416.981.9027 and for North America is 1.800.734.8582. More information can be found on the Corus Entertainment website at www.corusent.com in the Investor Relations section. Use of Non-IFRS Financial Measures This press release includes the non-IFRS financial measures of adjusted net income, adjusted basic earnings per share and free cash flow that are not in accordance with, nor an alternate to, generally accepted accounting principles ("IFRS") and may be different from non-IFRS measures used by other companies. In addition, these non-IFRS measures are not based on any comprehensive set of accounting rules or principles. Non-IFRS financial measures should not be considered as a substitute for, or superior to, measures of financial performance prepared in accordance with IFRS. They are limited in value because they exclude charges that have a material effect on the Company's reported results and, therefore, should not be relied upon as the sole financial measures to evaluate the Company's financial results. The non-IFRS financial measures are meant to supplement, and to be viewed in conjunction with, IFRS financial results. A reconciliation of the Company's non-IFRS measures is included in the Company's most recent Report to Shareholders which is available on Corus' website at www.corusent.com as well as on SEDAR. Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Information This press release contains forward-looking information and should be read subject to the following cautionary language: To the extent any statements made in this report contain information that is not historical, these statements are forward-looking statements and may be forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws (collectively, "forward-looking information"). These forward-looking statements relate to, among other things, our objectives, goals, strategies, intentions, plans, estimates and outlook, including advertising, distribution, merchandise and subscription revenues, operating costs and tariff

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/10/pr-newswire-corus-entertainment-announces-fiscal-2018-first-quarter-results.html

Atletico see off Lleida to reach King's Cup quarters

January 9, 2018 / 8:56 PM / Updated 14 minutes ago Atletico see off Lleida to reach King's Cup quarters Reuters Staff 1 Min Read BARCELONA (Reuters) - Atletico Madrid put on a second half show to beat third-tier Lleida Esportiu 3-0 on Tuesday and progress to the King’s Cup quarter-finals 7-0 on aggregate. The Catalonian side put up a good fight to stay level in the first half at a half-empty Wanda Metropolitano stadium, with Lucas Hernandez hitting the post and Diego Costa denied when one-on-one with the visiting keeper. The former Chelsea striker, however, made amends by teeing up Yannick Carrasco to slot home in the 57th minute, giving the few fans inside the stadium something to cheer. Kevin Gameiro fired home Atletico’s second 17 minutes later after good work by Angel Correa, before new signing Vitolo netted his first goal for the club after racing onto Fernando Torres’s through ball. Valencia host Las Palmas later on Tuesday after the first leg ended in a 1-1 draw. Reporting by Rik Sharma; Editing by Toby Davis

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-soccer-spain-cup/atletico-see-off-lleida-to-reach-kings-cup-quarters-idUKKBN1EY2J8

UPDATE 1-German union agrees to last-ditch talks to try to avert strikes

22 PM / in an hour UPDATE 1-German union agrees to last-ditch talks to try to avert strikes Reuters Staff * Union demands 6 pct higher pay, right to shorter hours * Employers reject call for right to shorter hours * Union threatens strikes if no deal by Saturday lunchtime (Recasts with union chief comment) By Edward Taylor and Ilona Wissenbach STUTTGART, Germany, Jan 26 (Reuters) - Powerful German union IG Metall will hold last-ditch talks with employers over higher wages and the right to shorter working hours for industrial workers, it said on Friday, holding off for now on its threat to call all-out strikes. After discussions among IG Metall’s leadership, the union has decided to make a final attempt to reach a deal over pay and working conditions, union chief Joerg Hofmann said at a press conference in Frankfurt on Friday. If these fail to yield a result by lunchtime on Saturday, IG Metall will escalate the dispute with 24-hour strikes. “The outcome of talks remains uncertain,” Hofmann said, adding that differences of opinion over what constitutes a fair wage had widened during the previous four rounds of talks. Regional wage talks in the southwestern state of Baden-Wuerttemberg, which is taking the lead in this year’s national wage round, stalled late on Wednesday, raising the prospect of nationwide strikes. But three people familiar with the talks told Reuters earlier on Friday that union and employer representatives would extend regional wage negotiations. Talks will continue in Baden-Wuerttemberg, home to Mercedes-Benz maker Daimler and sports car brand Porsche as well as auto suppliers Bosch and Mahle, from 1700 GMT. Emboldened by the fastest economic growth in six years and record low unemployment, IG Metall is demanding a 6 percent pay rise for 3.9 million metals and engineering workers across Germany. “Twenty-four hour strikes would indeed be painful,” a spokesman for BMW said, adding extended walkouts could disrupt production not only at the carmaker but also at suppliers. Three hours of stoppages at BMW’s Munich factory on Wednesday resulted in 250 cars not being assembled, BMW said, adding it was working to make up the production shortfall. Premium rival Audi said it too was trying to catch up after around 700 vehicles were not assembled as a result of two stoppages at its Ingolstadt and Neckarsulm factories this week. Daimler said it would similarly try to address any production shortfall as quickly as possible after any strikes. “We assume we will be able to deliver all vehicles to our customers that they have ordered,” a spokesman said. A big sticking point in the talks is a union demand that workers should have the right to reduce their weekly hours to 28 from 35 to care for children, elderly or sick relatives, and return to full-time employment after two years. This is IG Metall’s first major push for shorter hours since workers staged seven weeks of strikes in 1984 to help push through a cut of the working week to 35 hours from 40 hours. Employers have so far offered a pay rise of 2 percent plus a one-off 200-euro ($245) payment and have rejected demands for a shorter working week unless employers are allowed to increase hours temporarily as well. More than 900,000 workers have taken part in industrial action this year in support of IG Metall’s wage claims. Germany’s second biggest union, Verdi, which represents primarily services workers, is expected to publish its wage demand on Feb. 8. Verdi and IG Metall together account for around 15 percent of the German workforce, and other sectors tend to broadly follow their agreements. (Reporting by Ilona Wissenbach, Irene Preisinger and Jan Schwartz; Writing by Maria Sheahan and Edward Taylor; Editing by Georgina Prodhan and Mark Potter)

https://www.reuters.com/article/germany-wages/update-1-german-union-agrees-to-last-ditch-talks-to-try-to-avert-strikes-idUSL8N1PL3BZ

Franklin Limited Duration Income Trust Announces Sources of Monthly Dividend Distribution

SAN MATEO, Calif., Jan. 11, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Franklin Limited Duration Income Trust (NYSE:FTF) (CUSIP 35472T101) has declared a dividend of $0.1042 per common share payable January 12, 2018, to shareholders of record as of December 29, 2017. It is currently estimated that $0.0434 per share represents net investment income and $0.0608 per share represents return of principal. The Fund adopted a managed distribution plan and will make monthly distributions to common shareholders at an annual minimum fixed rate of 10%, based on the average monthly net asset value (NAV) of the Fund’s common shares. The Fund will calculate the average NAV from the previous month based on the number of business days in that month on which the NAV is calculated. The distribution will be calculated as 10% of the previous month’s average NAV, divided by 12. Management will generally distribute amounts necessary to satisfy the Fund’s plan and the requirements prescribed by excise tax rules and Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code. The plan is intended to provide shareholders with a constant, but not guaranteed, fixed minimum rate of distribution each month and is intended to narrow the discount between the market price and the NAV of the Fund’s common shares, but there is no assurance that the plan will be successful in doing so. Under the managed distribution plan, to the extent that sufficient investment income is not available on a monthly basis, the Fund will distribute long-term capital gains and/or return of capital in order to maintain its managed distribution level. No conclusions should be drawn about the Fund’s investment performance from the amount of the Fund’s distributions or from the terms of the Fund’s managed distribution plan. The Board may amend the terms of the plan or terminate the plan at any time without prior notice to the Fund’s shareholders. The amendment or termination of the plan could have an adverse effect on the market price of the Fund’s common shares. The plan will be subject to the periodic review by the Board, including a yearly review of the annual minimum fixed rate to determine if an adjustment should be made. In compliance with Rule 19a-1 of the Investment Company Act of 1940, shareholders will receive a notice that details the source of income for each dividend such as net investment income, gain from the sale of securities and return of principal. Please note: Determination of the actual source of the fund’s dividend can only be made at year-end. The actual source amounts of all fund dividends will be included in the fund’s annual or semiannual reports. In addition, the tax treatment may differ from the accounting treatment used to calculate the source of the fund’s dividends as shown on your statement. Please refer to your Form 1099-DIV for the character and amount of distributions for income tax reporting purposes. Since each shareholder’s tax situation is unique, please consult your tax advisor as to the appropriate treatment of fund distributions. You may request a copy of the Fund's current Report to Shareholders by contacting Franklin Templeton’s Fund Information Department at 1-800/DIAL BEN® (1-800-342-5236) or by visiting franklintempleton.com . All investments involve risks, including possible loss of principal. Interest rate movements and mortgage prepayments will affect the Fund's share price and yield. Bond prices generally move in the opposite direction of interest rates. As the prices of bonds in a fund adjust to a rise in interest rates, the fund’s share price may decline. Investments in lower-rated bonds include higher risk of default and loss of principal. The Fund is actively managed but there is no guarantee that the manager's investment decisions will produce the desired results. For portfolio management discussions, including information regarding the Fund’s investment strategies, please view the most recent Annual or Semi-Annual Report to Shareholders which can be found at franklintempleton.com or sec.gov . Franklin Resources, Inc. (NYSE:BEN) is a global investment management organization operating as Franklin Templeton Investments. Franklin Templeton Investments provides global and domestic investment management to retail, institutional and sovereign wealth clients in over 170 countries. Through specialized teams, the company has expertise across all asset classes—including equity, fixed income, alternative and custom solutions. The company’s more than 650 investment professionals are supported by its integrated, worldwide team of risk management professionals and global trading desk network. With offices in over 30 countries, the California–based company has more than 70 years of investment experience and over $753 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2017. For more information, please visit franklintempleton.com . Franklin Templeton Investments Shareholders/Financial Advisors: (800) 342-5236 Source:Franklin Limited Duration Income Trust

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/11/globe-newswire-franklin-limited-duration-income-trust-announces-sources-of-monthly-dividend-distribution.html

The Latest: Trump says decisions require 'heart and soul'

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on President Donald Trump's State of the Union speech (all times local): 5:30 p.m. What has President Donald Trump learned in his first year as president? That you have to lead with "heart." That's what Trump told network news anchors during a pre-State of the Union lunch Tuesday. Trump says, "You govern with all of the instincts of a businessperson, but you have to add much more heart and soul into your decisions than you would ever have even thought of before." That's according to excerpts released by the White House. Trump also says issues like immigration would be "so simple" to solve if they were pure business matters, but he says he realizes that "millions and millions of people" are affected by his actions. He adds that "it's much different, in that way, than I thought it would be." 4:30 p.m. First lady Melania Trump is promoting the guests she'll be sitting with at her husband's first State of the Union address. The first lady tweeted Tuesday that she'll be joined at the speech "by an honorable group of Americans," including "heroes who have served our nation in times of need, families who have suffered at the hands of evil, and citizens who have embraced the American dream." Mrs. Trump has been keeping a low profile following a report that adult film star Stormy Daniels had an affair with Donald Trump in 2006, shortly after he and the first lady wed. The Wall Street Journal has reported that Trump's personal lawyer brokered a $130,000 payment to Daniels to prohibit her from publicly discussing the alleged affair before the presidential election. 3:55 p.m. Many congressional Democrats are giving their guest passes for President Donald Trump's first State of the Union address to young immigrants known as "Dreamers," who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children. More than 20 Dreamers are expected in the House gallery Tuesday night to put a face on the toll of the congressional stalemate on immigration policy. They are the guests of high-profile Democrats including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and potential 2020 presidential candidates including New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker and California Sen. Kamala Harris. Trump ended Obama-era protections for such immigrants. He now says he wants to grant them a path to citizenship, but Congress has been unable to come up with a legislative solution for an issue at the center of the recent government shutdown. 2:50 p.m. President Donald Trump has told news anchors from all the major TV networks at a White House lunch that he is striving to bring the country together. Journalists from outlets including PBS, CNN and Fox News say Trump told the group Tuesday that there is "tremendous divisiveness" in the country that has existed for years. He says if he could unite the country, he would consider it a great achievement. The lunch is an annual White House tradition ahead of the president's State of the Union address. Fox News host Bret Baier said on the "The Daily Briefing with Dana Perino" that the lunch menu featured smoked tomato soup, thyme roasted chicken and orange merengue pudding. Baier says the rest of the lunch was off the record. 12:30 p.m. Four of the Supreme Court's nine justices are expected to attend the State of the Union address. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Stephen Breyer, Elena Kagan and Neil Gorsuch are expected at the speech. Roberts, Breyer and Kagan regularly attend, as do justices appointed by the president who is speaking. Trump nominated Gorsuch a year ago. Among the justices who will not be in the audience, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito haven't attended a State of the Union speech in years. Alito last went in 2010, when he was captured on camera mouthing the words "not true" in response to President Barack Obama's criticism of the court's then new ruling in the Citizens United campaign finance case. Justice Anthony Kennedy's long-standing travel plans have him in California. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is in Rhode Island and Justice Sonia Sotomayor is in Panama. 12:18 p.m. President Donald Trump's top economic and national security advisers help with his State of the Union address. A White House official says national security adviser H.R. McMaster and economic adviser Gary Cohn contributed to the speech Trump plans to deliver Tuesday night at the Capitol. The official says they were assisted by policy adviser Stephen Miller, staff secretary Rob Porter and other speechwriters. The official stressed that the speech is the president's and that Trump has spent months giving his aides "tidbits" on lines he wants to use. The White House has said Trump will use the speech to discuss economy and national security, as well as trade, immigration and infrastructure. The official was not authorized to discuss internal White House deliberations by name and spoke on condition of anonymity. 1:27 a.m. President Donald Trump will herald a robust economy and push for bipartisan congressional action on immigration in Tuesday's State of the Union address. The speech marks the ceremonial kickoff of Trump's second year in office and is traditionally a president's biggest platform to speak to the nation. However, Trump has redefined presidential communications with his high-octane, filter-free Twitter account and there's no guarantee that the carefully crafted speech will resonate beyond his next tweet. Still, White House officials are hopeful the president can use the prime-time address to Congress and millions of Americans watching at home to take credit for a soaring economy. Trump argues that the tax overhaul he signed into law late last year has boosted business confidence and will lead companies to reinvest in the United States.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/30/the-associated-press-the-latest-trump-says-decisions-require-heart-and-soul.html

Barca lose to Espanyol in Cup after Messi penalty miss

January 17, 2018 / 10:28 PM / Updated an hour ago Barca lose to Espanyol in Cup after Messi penalty miss Richard Martin 2 Min Read BARCELONA (Reuters) - Lionel Messi had a penalty saved as triple King’s Cup holders Barcelona suffered a surprise 1-0 loss at city rivals Espanyol in a quarter-final first leg on Wednesday, ending an unbeaten run of 29 games in all competitions. Espanyol’s academy graduate Oscar Melendo crashed in the only goal of the game in the 88th minute after Messi had his spot-kick turned away by former Real Madrid goalkeeper Diego Lopez earlier in the second half. Barca had not lost to Espanyol since 2009 and this was their first defeat by their local rivals in the Cup since 1970. The last game they had lost in any competition was in the Spanish Super Cup to Real Madrid on Aug. 16. The second leg of the tie at the Nou Camp is on Jan. 25. Elsewhere, Sevilla battled back from a goal down to win 2-1 at Atletico Madrid as Diego Simeone’s decision to rest number one goalkeeper Jan Oblak in favour of Miguel Angel Moya backfired. Moya clawed a cross into his own net in the 79th minute to cancel out Diego Costa’s arrowed strike six minutes earlier, while Joaquin Correa struck the winner in the 88th to give under-fire new Sevilla coach Vincenzo Montella a much-needed victory. Valencia also staged a late comeback to beat last year’s runners-up Deportivo Alaves 2-1 at home. The visiting side went ahead through Ruben Sobrino in the 66th minute but Portugal international Goncalo Guedes levelled for Valencia in the 73rd. Alaves defender Adrian Dieguez was dismissed in the 77th for picking up two bookings in the space of nine minutes, and Valencia striker Rodrigo Moreno took full advantage by shooting off the near post eight minutes from time. Real Madrid visit Leganes in the other quarter-final first leg on Thursday. Reporting by Richard Martin, editing by Ed Osmond

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-soccer-spain-cup/barca-lose-to-espanyol-in-cup-after-messi-penalty-miss-idUKKBN1F630P

Dems say Trump action on Florida drilling guided by politics

WASHINGTON (AP) — Opposition to the Trump administration's plan to expand offshore drilling mounted Wednesday as Democrats from coastal states accused President Donald Trump of punishing states with Democratic leaders and a second Republican governor asked to withdraw his state from the plan. Democrats said Trump and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke were being hypocritical by agreeing to a request by Florida's Republican governor to withdraw from the drilling plan, but not making the same accommodation to states with Democratic governors. Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff of California said on Twitter that his state, "like Florida, has hundreds of miles of beautiful coastline and a governor who wants to keep it that way. Or is that not enough for blue states?" "If local voices matter why haven't they excluded Virginia?" asked Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va. "Is it because the governor of Florida is a Republican and the Virginia governor is a Democrat?" The complaints came as South Carolina's Republican governor said Wednesday he is seeking an exemption from the proposed drilling expansion, a move that will test the relationship between Trump and one of his earliest supporters. Gov. Henry McMaster told reporters that risks associated with drilling pose a serious threat to South Carolina's lush coastline and $20 billion tourism industry. "We cannot afford to take a chance with the beauty, the majesty and the economic value and vitality of our wonderful coastline in South Carolina," McMaster said. Opposition to drilling is bipartisan within South Carolina's congressional delegation: All three House members who represent the state's 190 miles of coastline told The Associated Press they are against the expansion plan. Two of the three are Republicans, including Rep. Mark Sanford, a former governor who said Zinke had set a precedent by honoring Florida's request for an exemption. "What's good for the goose is good for the gander," Sanford said, adding that Republicans should respect local wishes. In Virginia, GOP Rep. Scott Taylor joined Kaine and Gov.-elect Ralph Northam in opposing the drilling plan. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., called Trump's plan "a complete non-starter." Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., said on Twitter that "the only science @SecretaryZinke follows is political science. He'll reverse course to protect fellow Republicans in Florida, but not to protect coastlines and jobs across the rest of the country? Totally unacceptable." Heather Swift, a spokeswoman for Zinke, accused Kaine and other Democrats of taking cheap shots at her boss. "The secretary has said since day one that he is interested in the local voice. If those governors would like to request meetings with the secretary, they are absolutely welcome to do so," she said. "Their criticism is empty pandering." As of Wednesday, only McMaster and Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina had requested a meeting with Zinke on offshore drilling, Swift said. In Oregon, Democratic Gov. Kate Brown took to Twitter to ask Zinke for relief. Linking to Zinke tweet about Florida, Brown wrote: "Hey @secretaryzinke, how about doing the same for #Oregon?" Zinke said after a brief meeting with Scott at the Tallahassee airport Tuesday that drilling in Florida waters would be "off the table," despite a plan that proposed drilling in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean off Florida. The change of course — just five days after Zinke announced the offshore drilling plan — highlights the political importance of Florida, where Trump narrowly won the state's 29 electoral votes in the 2016 election and has encouraged Scott to run for Senate. The state is also important economically, with a multibillion-dollar tourism business built on sunshine and miles of white sandy beaches. And Florida is where Trump has a winter home in Palm Beach. Trump spent his Christmas and New Year's break at his Mar-a-Lago resort. Former White House ethics chief Walter Shaub said Zinke's decision to exempt Florida from the drilling plan appears to be a conflict of interest for Trump. Trump is "exempting the state that is home to the festering cankerous conflict of interest that the administration likes to call the 'Winter White House' and none of the other affected states," Shaub tweeted. Zinke said Tuesday that "Florida is obviously unique" and that the decision to remove the state came after meetings and discussion with Scott, a Trump ally and a likely candidate for the Senate seat now held by Democrat Bill Nelson. Nelson called Scott's meeting with Zinke "a political stunt" and said Scott has long wanted to drill off Florida's coast, despite his recent opposition. Scott's office said he repeatedly voiced his opposition to drilling to Zinke, including at an October meeting in Washington. "Senator Nelson and anyone else who opposes oil drilling off Florida's coast should be happy the governor was able to secure this commitment. This isn't about politics. This is good policy for Florida," said John Tupps, a Scott spokesman. Zinke announced plans last week to greatly expand offshore oil drilling from the Atlantic to the Arctic and Pacific oceans, including multiple areas where drilling is now blocked. The plan was immediately met with bipartisan opposition on both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. Democratic governors along both coasts unanimously oppose drilling, as do a number of Republican governors, including McMaster, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan and Massachusetts Gov. Charles Baker. The five-year plan announced by Zinke would open 90 percent of the nation's offshore reserves to development by private companies. Industry groups praised the announcement, while environmental groups denounced the plan, saying it would impose "severe and unacceptable harm" to America's oceans, coastal economies, public health and marine life. Associated Press writers Meg Kinnard in Columbia, S.C., Ben Finley in Norfolk, Va., and Gary Fineout in Tallahassee, Fla., contributed to this report.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/10/the-associated-press-dems-say-trump-action-on-florida-drilling-guided-by-politics.html

Back Brexit law or risk chaos, May's Conservatives tell lawmakers

January 17, 2018 / 12:11 AM / Updated 23 minutes ago British lawmakers back Brexit legislation, stiffer tests yet to come William James 4 Min Read LONDON (Reuters) - British lawmakers voted in favour of the government’s legislative blueprint for Brexit on Wednesday, marking a victory for Prime Minister Theresa May over political opponents who want a softer approach to leaving the European Union. But the legislation will now face scrutiny from parliament’s largely pro-EU upper house, where May’s party does not have a majority, which will intensify efforts to force a re-run of a 2016 referendum, and water down or even stop the divorce. The European Union (Withdrawal) Bill was approved by a 324 to 295 vote in the lower house - a milestone on the long road towards cementing the legal foundations of Britain’s departure from the bloc. The bill repeals the 1972 law that made Britain a member of the EU, and transfers EU laws into British ones. “This bill is essential for preparing the country for the historic milestone of withdrawing from the European Union,” Brexit minister David Davis told parliament before the vote. “It ensures that on day one we will have a statute book that works, delivering the smooth and orderly exit desired by people and businesses across the United Kingdom and being delivered by this government.” The bill has become the focal point for months of divisive debate about what type of EU divorce Britain should seek, severely testing May’s ability to deliver on her exit strategy without a parliamentary majority. But despite one embarrassing parliamentary defeat, several government concessions and rebellion from within her own party, May’s Conservative lawmakers overcame opposition from the Labour Party and others. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn instructed his lawmakers to vote against passage of the bill because the government had not met conditions set out by the party, demanding safeguards on a range of issues including workers and consumer rights. “This bill has never been fit for purpose,” said Labour’s Brexit policy chief, Keir Starmer, describing any attempt to persuade the government that the legislation needed to change as “talking to a brick wall”. LORDS SCRUTINY The upper house, the House of Lords, will now begin months of scrutiny of the bill before it can become law. Any changes made by the lords will require approval from the lower house, and the whole process could take until May to complete. The House of Lords contains a diverse, largely unelected, mix of political appointees, experts, and members who inherited their positions. Many lords are opposed to Brexit. Some of those figures are expected to try to soften the Brexit approach to include remaining in the EU’s single market or a second public vote, but the most likely areas for changes involve technical and constitutional issues. May has ruled out a second vote and says Britain will be leaving. Labour’s Corbyn is also committed to following through with Brexit, albeit pushing for different priorities and aims. Nevertheless, calls for a second referendum are expected to persist, particularly as both pro- and anti-EU politicians have mooted the possibility recently. EU officials and some member states have said they would welcome a change of heart from Britain. But, barring a major change of policy from one of the country’s two largest political parties, Britain remains on course to leave the bloc in March 2019. Reporting by William James; Editing by Richard Balmforth

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-eu-lawmaking/back-brexit-law-or-risk-chaos-mays-conservatives-tell-lawmakers-idUKKBN1F600N

BRIEF-Obsidian Energy Comments On Statement By Frontfour Capital Group Llc

Jan 17 (Reuters) - Obsidian Energy Ltd: * OBSIDIAN ENERGY COMMENTS ON STATEMENT BY FRONTFOUR CAPITAL GROUP LLC * ‍ CONFIRMS IT IS AWARE OF A STATEMENT BY FRONTFOUR CAPITAL GROUP REGARDING THEIR VIEWS ON DIRECTION OF COMPANY​ * ‍OBSIDIAN ENERGY‘S CORPORATE STRATEGY HAS UNANIMOUS SUPPORT OF BOARD OF DIRECTORS​ * ‍BOARD INTERVIEWED CANDIDATES PROPOSED BY FRONTFOUR AND MUTUALLY AGREED TO ADDITION OF ONE OF THOSE INDIVIDUALS​ * ‍APPOINTMENT WAS ACCOMPANIED WITH SAME STANDSTILL AGREEMENT EXECUTED BY LATEST BOARD ADDITION, EDWARD KERNAGHAN​ * “‍RECEIVED A LETTER FROM FRONTFOUR IN EARLY OCTOBER, WHICH CONTAINED IDEAS WE HAD ALREADY BEEN PURSUING FOR SEVERAL MONTHS​” * ‍RECEIVED A SECOND LETTER FROM FRONTFOUR IN MID-DECEMBER​ * OBSIDIAN - ‍ DESPITE EXTENSIVE NEGOTIATIONS, FRONTFOUR WAS UNWILLING TO EXECUTE AGREEMENTAND CO WAS UNABLE TO ADD MUTUALLY AGREED UPON CANDIDATE TO BOARD​ Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:

https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-obsidian-energy-comments-on-statem/brief-obsidian-energy-comments-on-statement-by-frontfour-capital-group-llc-idUSFWN1PC1DE

Paul Hanly of Simmons Hanly Conroy to Co-Lead Legal Team in Federal Opioid Litigation

NEW YORK, Jan. 4, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- A federal judge has appointed Simmons Hanly Conroy Shareholder Paul J. Hanly Jr. as co-lead counsel in the national multidistrict litigation pending against pharmaceutical companies involved in the marketing of prescription opioid painkillers. U.S. District Court Judge Dan Aaron Polster, of the Northern District of Ohio, issued an order today naming Hanly and attorneys Joseph F. Rice and Paul T. Farrell Jr. as co-lead counsels for the plaintiffs in the federal litigation alleging pharmaceutical companies and physicians engaged in fraudulent marketing of prescription opioid painkillers, leading to the current nationwide epidemic. Hanly, with extensive experience in litigation against opioid manufacturers going back more than a decade, will work with his co-lead counsels to manage the federal litigation and oversee nearly 100 other law firms representing plaintiffs in more than 200 docketed opioid cases. "I am honored to have been appointed by Judge Polster to such a significant position in this litigation, which involves so many issues that are critical to the public health of our communities nationwide," said Hanly. "It is vital we hold the pharmaceutical companies accountable for their roles in the nation's ongoing drug crisis and epidemic." Hanly is a founding member of Simmons Hanly Conroy, headquartered in Alton, Illinois. Based in the firm's New York City office, he has extensive experience in mass torts litigation including representing more than 5,000 clients who sued Purdue Pharma in 2003, the maker of OxyContin, and winning a significant settlement in 2006. Rice is a founding partner of Motley Rice LLC, based in Mount Pleasant, S.C. Farrell is a partner at Green, Ketchum, Farrell, Bailey & Tweel, LLP, based in Huntington, W.V. Both, as well as many of the other lawyers involved, are viewed as the top mass torts litigators in the country. The defendants in the MDL lawsuit include dozens of parties with diverse roles in the pharmaceutical industry, including manufacturers Purdue Pharma L.P.; Purdue Pharma, Inc.; The Purdue Frederick Company, Inc.; Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc.; Cephalon, Inc.; Johnson& Johnson; Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Janssen Pharmaceutica, Inc.; Endo Health Solutions Inc.; and Endo Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Simmons Hanly Conroy and its attorneys have held multiple national positions of note in pharmaceutical mass torts litigations. Federal judges have appointed the firm's attorneys to serve on multiple plaintiff executive and steering committees in mass tort litigations including DePuy Pinnacle hip implants, Volkswagen emission scandal, testosterone replacement therapy, transvaginal mesh, Lipitor, Yaz and more. Their work has resulted in millions of dollars secured on behalf of clients injured by dangerous drugs and defective medical devices. The case is In Re: National Prescription Opiate Litigation, MDL No. 2804, Case No. 17-md-02804. About Simmons Hanly Conroy, LLC Simmons Hanly Conroy is one of the nation's largest mass tort law firms. Primary areas of litigation include asbestos and mesothelioma, pharmaceutical, consumer protection, environmental and personal injury. The firm's attorneys have been appointed to leadership in numerous national multidistrict litigations, including Vioxx, Toyota Unintended Acceleration, BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, DePuy Pinnacle and the Volkswagen Emission Scandal. The firm also represents small and mid-size corporations, inventors and entrepreneurs in matters involving business litigation. Offices are located in Alton, Ill.; Chicago; Los Angeles; New York City; San Francisco; and St. Louis. Read more at www.simmonsfirm.com . View original content: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/paul-hanly-of-simmons-hanly-conroy-to-co-lead-legal-team-in-federal-opioid-litigation-300577918.html SOURCE Simmons Hanly Conroy

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/04/pr-newswire-paul-hanly-of-simmons-hanly-conroy-to-co-lead-legal-team-in-federal-opioid-litigation.html

Apple to pay $38 billion in repatriation tax

January 17, 2018 / 6:16 PM / Updated 41 minutes ago Apple plans second U.S. campus, to pay $38 billion in foreign cash taxes Stephen Nellis 4 Min Read (Reuters) - Apple Inc ( AAPL.O ) will open a second U.S. campus as part of a 5-year, $30 billion U.S. investment plan and will make about $38 billion in one-time tax payments on its overseas cash, one of the largest corporate spending plans announced since the passage of a tax cut signed by U.S. President Donald Trump. Between the spending plan, tax payments and business with U.S. based suppliers, Apple on Wednesday estimated it would spend $350 billion in the U.S. over the next five years. Apple, however, did not say how much of its $252.3 billion in cash abroad, the largest of any U.S. corporation, it would bring to the United States, after the U.S. tax changes cut costs on bringing funds back from overseas. It also did not say whether the spending plan was driven by the new tax law. Apple has traditionally declined to publicly announce its spending plans. The iPhone maker, whose products are mostly made in Asian factories, said it plans a wave of investing and hiring in the United States and will create 20,000 jobs through hiring at its existing campus and the new one. It will announce the location later this year. About a third of the new spending will be on data centers to house its iCloud, App Store and Apple Music services, a sign of the rising importance of subscription services to a company known for its computers and gadgets. The company has data centers in seven states and also on Wednesday broke ground on an expansion of its operations in Reno, Nevada, where local officials granted it tax breaks on a downtown warehouse. The U.S spending would be a significant part of Apple’s overall capital expenditures. Globally, the company spent $14.9 billion in 2017 and expects to spend $16 billion in 2018, figures that include both U.S.-based investments in data centers and other projects and Asian investments in tooling for its contract manufacturers. If Apple’s overall capital expenditures continue to expand at the same rate expected this year, the $30 billion investment in the U.S. could represent about a third of its capital expenditures over the next five years. The announced tax payment was roughly in line with expectations, said Cross Research analyst Shannon Cross. The tax bill requires companies to pay a one-time tax on foreign-held earnings whether they intend to bring them back to the United States or not. Apple had set aside $36.3 billion in anticipation of tax payments on its foreign cash, meaning the payment would not represent a major impact on its cash flow this quarter. Apple also said it would boost its advanced manufacturing fund, which it uses to provide capital and support to suppliers such as Finisar Corp ( FNSR.O ) and Corning Inc ( GLW.N ), from $1 billion to $5 billion. Apple said it plans to spend $55 billion with U.S.-based suppliers in 2018, up from $50 billion last year. AMAZON VS APPLE Apple joins Amazon.com Inc ( AMZN.O ) in scouting for a location for a second campus. Amazon finished taking applications from cities in October for its second campus. Apple has not said whether it has settled on a second campus location yet. Currently, Apple’s largest U.S. operations are in Cupertino, California, at its new “spaceship” Apple Park headquarters, followed by a facility in Austin, Texas where it houses customer service agents and where contract manufacturers assemble some Mac computers. The company also employs several thousand workers and contractors in Elk Grove, California, where it has customer service agents and refurbishes iPhones. Apple also has built its own data centers in North Carolina, Oregon, Nevada, Arizona and a recently announced project in Iowa and leases data center space in other states. Additional reporting by Sonam Rai and Laharee Chatterjee in Bengaluru; editing by Patrick Graham, Peter Henderson and Marguerita Choy

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-apple-tax/apple-to-pay-38-billion-in-repatriation-tax-idUSKBN1F62FJ

Deal on U.S. 'Dreamer' immigrants still ways off: Republicans

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Congressional Republicans on Friday downplayed the likelihood of a deal soon with Democrats on saving 700,000 young, undocumented U.S. immigrants from being kicked out of the country in March, a possibility created by President Donald Trump. FILE PHOTO: 'Dreamers' react as they meet with relatives during the 'Keep Our Dream Alive' binational meeting at a new section of the border wall on the U.S.-Mexico border in Sunland Park, U.S., December 10, 2017. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez/File Photo Trump in September ordered an Obama-era program that provided the young “Dreamer” immigrants with work permits and prevented them from being deported to end in six months. The program is known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. Despite his order, the Republican president has vacillated in his view of the Dreamers. Young people brought to the United States as children illegally and raised and educated in the country, most of them have little or no experience of their parents’ homelands in Latin America, Asia, Africa and elsewhere. Saving the Dreamers is a high priority for Democrats, but the issue has been swept up in other debates, including one on the wall that Trump wants to build along the U.S.-Mexico border. Republican Senator John Cornyn, in a tweet on Friday, accused Democrats of trying to force a deal on Dreamers by doing a “slow walk” on efforts to approve critical disaster aid and defense spending. Two other Republicans late on Thursday said both sides remained far apart. “Our discussions on border security and enforcement with Democrats are much further apart, and that is key to getting a bipartisan deal on DACA,” senators Thom Tillis and James Lankford said in a statement. Democrats have said they are open to tying DACA to additional funding for border security technology. But they oppose Trump’s wall, projected to cost over $21 billion. The struggle over the Dreamers carries political weight for both parties heading into the November 2018 midterm congressional elections. Most of the Dreamers came from Mexico and Hispanics tend to vote for Democrats, who hope to gain seats in the Senate and the House of Representatives. Republican lawmakers met with Trump at the White House on Thursday and initially emerged saying they were optimistic that they could find a legislative fix for DACA. On Friday and Saturday, Trump and senior Republican congressional leaders are also likely to discuss the issue at a conference held at Camp David, the U.S. president’s mountain retreat in Maryland. A meeting between leaders of both parties was set for Tuesday. Cornyn, in an interview on Fox News on Friday, said Trump would demand that an immigration deal address the current visa lottery system and chain migration that unites family members. “Those are things that he’s insisted upon,” and Democrats would have to embrace them along with border security, said Cornyn. Additional reporting by Richard Cowan and Makini Brice; Editing by Kevin Drawbaugh and Alistair Bell

https://in.reuters.com/article/usa-immigration/deal-on-u-s-dreamer-immigrants-still-ways-off-republicans-idINKBN1EU1TH

Jim DuBois, former Microsoft CIO, joins Corent Tech

ALISO VIEJO, Calif., Jan. 30, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Corent Technology , the emerging leader in Cloud Migration and SaaS-enablement technologies, today announced that Jim DuBois, a global IT and Cloud industry veteran, and the most recent CIO of Microsoft - has joined Corent as a senior advisor. Jim DuBois, a global IT industry veteran and the most recent Microsoft Chief Information Officer, will advise Corent Tech - the emerging leader in Cloud Migration and SaaS enablement technologies “Corent’s SurPaaS Platform disrupts the existing paradigm of taking the existing on-premise enterprise applications to the cloud and enable them as SaaS without re-architecting the applications,” said DuBois. “I am pleased to join forces with Corent and help this innovative company with its accelerating momentum of growth and success in helping customers break the bonds of their most important applications with last generation data center architecture. With SurPaaS, CIOs can quickly scan, analyze, optimize, and migrate their applications to the Cloud without spending thousands of coding hours to build what SurPaaS offers rapidly, in an automated, reliable, and consistent fashion. “ “We are thrilled to have such a highly accomplished, insightful and proven technology leader join Corent as we are about to embark on an aggressive go to market plan together with some of the key Cloud industry leaders,” said Feyzi Fatehi, Corent’s CEO. Corent SurPaaS automatically migrates and Cloud-enables any software application as fully instrumented SaaS for efficient delivery ‘as a Service,’ saving years and millions of dollars worth of manual design and programming effort. SurPaaS was named the most Innovative Cloud Service and was recognized by the Gartner Group for its innovative approach for rapid delivery of conventional software as fully instrumented SaaS (Software as a Service). Corent was recently awarded a patent for its consequential invention of “Software Defined SaaS ® ” platform. About Jim Dubois Since 2013 Jim DuBois served as Corporate Vice President and Chief Information Officer (CIO) at Microsoft Corporation until late 2017. He was responsible for the company's global security, infrastructure, IT messaging, and business applications. Since joining Microsoft in 1993, he served various other roles in Microsoft including leading IT teams for application development, infrastructure and service management and as Microsoft's Chief Information Security Officer. Before joining Microsoft, Mr. DuBois worked for Accenture, focusing on financial and distribution systems. In 2017, Mr. DuBois authored “Six-Word Lessons on How to Think Like a Modern-Day CIO” - a highly acclaimed book that gives 100 practical lessons on thriving in a fast-paced tech world of digital transformation and effective use of technology to drive business value. About Corent Corent Technology, Inc. is the provider of SurPaaS platform - the emerging platform for Cloud migration and management. Corent is managed by a team of Silicon Valley veterans from Microsoft, IBM, HPE, Cisco, EMC, Oracle, and WMware among others. For more information about Corent, please visit: www.corenttech.com and to contact Corent please drop a note to info@corenttech.com . Media Contact: Dan Chmielewski Madison Alexander PR (949) 614-0634 info@corenttech.com A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/cfa89e18-7dfc-4744-b864-a89752b6e1f1 Source: Corent Technology

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/30/globe-newswire-jim-dubois-former-microsoft-cio-joins-corent-tech.html

At least eight killed, dozens hurt in fire, stampede in Portugal

January 14, 2018 / 12:11 AM / Updated 9 hours ago At least eight killed, dozens hurt in fire, stampede in Portugal Reuters Staff 1 Min Read LISBON (Reuters) - At least eight people have been killed and dozens injured in a fire and stampede in a local leisure association in the town of Vila Nova da Rainha in northern Portugal on Saturday night, officials said. Mayor Jose Antonio de Jesus said in televised remarks that over 60 people had been taking part or watching a card tournament in the two-storey popular gathering place of the town 260 km northeast of Lisbon when the fire erupted. “Several dozen people have been injured, some lightly and others gravely, and are still being assisted,” he said. He would not say what had caused the fire, but local media cited firefighters on the spot as saying that an explosion of a heating boiler was the likely cause. Portugal suffered from its deadliest ever forest fires last year, which killed a total of over 100 people - the worst loss of human lives in living memory in the country. Reporting By Andrei Khalip; Editing by David Gregorio

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-portugal-fire/at-least-eight-killed-dozens-hurt-in-fire-stampede-in-portugal-idUKKBN1F300D

Chris Lydon and Chris Tecu join Avison Young in Chicago

Highly regarded industry veterans become Principals, will work as a team while focusing on their industrial brokerage specialty CHICAGO, Danny Nikitas , Avison Young Principal and Managing Director of the firm's Chicago office, announced today the strategic hiring of highly regarded commercial real estate industry veterans Chris Lydon and Chris Tecu . Effective immediately, Lydon and Tecu become Principals of Avison Young and will work as a team while focusing on industrial brokerage services. Both will be based in the firm's Rosemont, IL office. Lydon was most recently a senior director with Cushman & Wakefield in Chicago while Tecu most recently served as a vice-president with CenterPoint Properties in Chicago. Lydon and Tecu previously worked together at Trammell Crow Company in Chicago. "We're thrilled that Chris Lydon and Chris Tecu have joined us in Chicago," comments Nikitas. "We have known them for many years as strong industrial brokerage professionals who have held various positions within the industrial real estate sector. Between them, they have more than 40 years of experience, and their reputations are impeccable in the industry. They are known for honest and intelligent representation of their clients, and have elevated themselves to a very high level of respect in our business. They will also enhance our capital markets capabilities with their experience on the investment side." Nikitas adds: "Their move to Avison Young is actually a reunion because they previously worked together at another firm. Both have adopted a collaborative approach to each transaction and, therefore, will fit seamlessly into Avison Young's culture and client-first business model. They will also play important roles as we expand our industrial service line throughout Chicagoland and further Avison Young's ongoing expansion program." Lydon brings 25 years of industry experience to Avison Young. During his career, he has been involved in transactions covering more than 100 million square feet (msf) with an aggregate value in excess of $950 million. A consistent top producer, he has represented institutional owners and users on both a local and national level while serving in the roles of broker, owner and developer. Lydon's past and current clients include Sears Holding Corporation, Seefried Properties, Liberty Property Trust, Panattoni Development, Wirtz Realty Corp., Invesco, 3D Exhibits, Prologis and Morgan Stanley, among others. Prior to joining Cushman & Wakefield, Lydon was a senior vice-president and industrial brokerage leader at Grubb & Ellis Company in Chicago. Before moving to Grubb & Ellis, he was a vice-president and marketing director at AMB Property Corporation, where he oversaw the leasing of the company's 14-msf Chicago industrial-building portfolio. He began his career as a vice-president with Trammell Crow Company, providing brokerage services and brokerage management for the Chicago-area office's industrial brokerage division while working in partnership with Tecu. Lydon is a member of the Society of Industrial and Office Realtors (SIOR) and the Chicago chapter of the Association of Industrial Real Estate Brokers (AIRE). "We look forward to our new venture here at Avison Young, and to leveraging the company's full-service platform," notes Lydon. "The Principal-based ownership model was highly attractive to us, as it allows us to participate in the company's overall decision-making process. We were very familiar with some of the existing industrial brokerage professionals and felt that we shared a similar vision in relation to the overall industry. The client-first attitude that exists at Avison Young will continue to be our emphasis moving forward." Tecu brings 19 years of commercial real estate experience to Avison Young. During his career, he has negotiated more than 80 msf of industrial real estate acquisitions, dispositions and leasing transactions. From 2010 to 2017, he managed CenterPoint Properties' acquisitions in the Gulf Coast region, particularly in the Houston marketplace. From 2008 to 2017, he was responsible for the purchase of more than $1 billion of industrial properties nationally. Prior to joining CenterPoint in 2008, Tecu was an industrial broker in the O'Hare submarket for CBRE. He entered the commercial real estate industry in 1999 with Trammell Crow Company in Chicago, where he originally partnered with Lydon. Tecu's past and current clients include AMB, Prologis, CenterPoint, Duke Realty, First Industrial Realty Trust and Sitex Realty Group. He is an active member of NAIOP and AIRE. He holds a bachelor's degree in business from the University of Kansas. Tecu adds: "We feel that the in-house resources here at Avison Young will enable us to even better service existing customers and help us expand our client base. There seems to be great entrepreneurial spirit within the firm, and we look forward to continuing with the overall collaboration within the industrial brokerage group. The firm is in a global growth mode and we are pleased to be part of its expansion here in Chicago. We look forward to collaborating with our new colleagues across the globe while serving local, national and international clients." Over the past nine years, Avison Young has grown from 11 to 82 offices and from 300 to more than 2,600 real estate professionals in Canada, the U.S., Mexico and Europe. Avison Young is the world's fastest-growing commercial real estate services firm. Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, Avison Young is a collaborative, global firm owned and operated by its principals. Founded in 1978, the company comprises 2,600 real estate professionals in 82 offices, providing value-added, client-centric investment sales, leasing, advisory, management, financing and mortgage placement services to owners and occupiers of office, retail, industrial, multi-family and hospitality properties. For further information/comment/photos: Sherry Quan , Principal, Global Director of Communications & Media Relations, Avison Young: 604.647.5098; cell: 604.726.0959 sherry.quan@avisonyoung.com Danny Nikitas , Principal and Managing Director, Chicago, Avison Young: 312.940.8797 danny.nikitas@avisonyoung.com Chris Lydon , Principal, Avison Young: 847.232.8610 chris.lydon@avisonyoung.com Chris Tecu , Principal, Avison Young: 847.232.8611 chris.tecu@avisonyoung.com Earl Webb , President, U.S. Operations, Avison Young: 312.957.7610 Mark Rose, Chair and CEO, Avison Young: 416.673.4028 www.avisonyoung.com Avison Young was a winner of Canada's Best Managed Companies program in 2011 and requalified in 2017 to maintain its status as a Best Managed Gold Standard company. Follow Avison Young on Twitter: For industry news, press releases and market reports: www.twitter.com/avisonyoung For Avison Young listings and deals: www.twitter.com/AYListingsDeals Follow Avison Young Bloggers : http://blog.avisonyoung.com Follow Avison Young on LinkedIn : www.linkedin.com/company/avison-young-commercial-real-estate Follow Avison Young on YouTube : www.youtube.com/user/AvisonYoungRE Follow Avison Young on Instagram: www.instagram.com/avison_young_global Editors/Reporters Please click on links to view and download photos of Chris Lydon and Chris Tecu: http://www.avisonyoung.com/documents/20342/2631393/Chris_Lydon.jpg http://www.avisonyoung.com/documents/20342/2631393/Chris_Tecu.jpg SOURCE Avison Young Commercial Real Estate (BC)

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/10/pr-newswire-chris-lydon-and-chris-tecu-join-avison-young-in-chicago.html

Commentary: Trump Conscience and Religious Freedom Division Dangerous | Fortune

By Louise Melling January 19, 2018 The Trump administration announced Thursday that it will create a “Conscience and Religious Freedom” division in the Department of Health and Human Services. The office’s stated goal is to protect institutions and people who refuse to provide medical assistance based on religious objections. It’s a new division, but an old—and dangerously discriminatory—approach to health care. Although the administration claims the new office is intended to protect religious beliefs, it will almost surely function to license discrimination against women, LGBT people, and others. Among those the administration wants to protect with today’s announcement are those who refuse to provide abortions. There was, naturally, no mention of the harm to women that results when hospitals refuse to provide abortions or referrals for abortions. Nor was there talk of what happens to women when nurses protest providing women care before and after abortion, as we have seen some do. See also: Commentary: ‘Religious Liberty’ Is Not an Excuse to Deny Transgender People Medical Care There was also no discussion of how the new division opens the door for health care workers and institutions to discriminate against transgender people, but there is reason to fear that’s just what they intend to do. The Trump administration has already taken protections away from trans students, trans service members, and trans employees. And anti-transgender advocates, who now have significant influence in the White House, have made it clear that a significant part of their agenda is to deprive transgender patients of essential, medically necessary health care. The new division could be one way to further this goal. Medical standards, not religious beliefs or moral convictions, should guide our health care policies. No one should be turned away when they need medical help. No one should be humiliated, demeaned, and left to suffer because of who they are or the health care they need. While Donald Trump and his administration may claim that initiatives such as this promote liberty, we know the opposite is true. The specifics of what this new division will do are still murky, but the principle of the law has been clear for a long time. Freedom of religion is at the core of our national fabric and our Constitution. But that freedom does not give anyone a right to harm others, including by way of an exemption from our nation’s laws that bar discrimination and that protect our health. Liberty doesn’t involve denying a patient needed health care. Freedom doesn’t include refusing to provide patients medical care based on the sex they were assigned at birth. We don’t yet know how the work of this new division will play out. But we will be watching. And should the administration choose to move forward to implement a discriminatory policy, we will see them in court. Louise Melling is the deputy legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union. SPONSORED FINANCIAL CONTENT

http://fortune.com/2018/01/19/donald-trump-conscience-and-religious-freedom/

Korea talks ease war fears in Washington, but for how long?

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Talks between North and South Korea ahead of next month’s Winter Olympics have eased fears of war over Pyongyang’s development of nuclear missiles capable of hitting the United States - at least for now. But North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has shown no sign of willingness to give in to U.S. demands and negotiate away a weapons program he sees as vital to his survival, so any reduction in tensions could prove shortlived. Rhetoric on all sides may have moderated as a result of the first round of intra-Korean talks in more than two years on Tuesday, but U.S. officials say hawks in President Donald Trump’s administration, up to and including Trump himself, remain pessimistic that they will lead anywhere. In recent days, in a series of media leaks, U.S. officials have spoken of the president’s willingness to consider a limited preemptive strike on North Korea to change Kim’s mindset, despite the risk of touching off a war. But there are divisions within the administration. National security adviser H.R. McMaster has been the most vocal of Trump’s aides arguing for a more active military approach, while Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and the military leadership have urged caution, stressing the need to exhaust diplomatic options, according to five officials who spoke on condition of anonymity. A White House National Security Council official said the administration was “constantly developing a range of options, both military and non-military” but declined to address any differences between senior aides. The Pentagon declined comment on internal discussions, though one spokesman said Mattis had stressed in public that the effort to confront the North Korean crisis was diplomatically led. The State Department referred to Tillerson’s statements on the need to pursue diplomacy backed by strong military options. According to the narrative put forth by those advocating a tougher response, a strike could be limited to a single target with the aim of making Kim see reason, not to topple his government, something North Korea’s neighbor and only major ally, China, would not countenance, the officials said. “Trump is convinced the only thing Kim understands and respects is a punch in the face, which he thinks no previous administration has had the guts to do,” one U.S. official said. “At a minimum, he thinks that warning the Chinese about a preemptive strike would motivate Beijing to force Kim to shut down the programs that threaten the U.S.,” the official said. It remains unclear whether these disclosures by people close to the internal deliberations were simply psychological warfare aimed at sowing strategy-changing fear within the North Korean leadership or reflected Trump’s serious intent.However, the administration’s debate on whether to put greater emphasis on strike plans has slowed because of the North-South contacts and February’s Winter Olympics to be hosted by South Korea. Pyongyang said it would send a delegation. Some U.S. officials have suggested that North Korea was using diplomatic overtures to try to drive a wedge between Washington and ally Seoul and did not intend to engage seriously. The South and the United States are technically still at war with the North because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with a truce, not a peace treaty. A new dawn: tmsnrt.rs/2Ar8lUu ‘WHO KNOWS WHERE IT LEADS?’ Trump’s public response to the intra-Korean meeting has been mostly positive though at times tinged with skepticism. FILE PHOTO: U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson concludes his remarks on the U.S.-Korea relationship during a forum at the Atlantic Council in Washington, DC, U.S. December 12, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo “Who knows where it leads?” he told reporters on Wednesday after discussing the talks with South Korean President Moon Jae-in, a long-time advocate of dialogue with Pyongyang and whose capital Seoul could be devastated in any major conflict. Trump, who has exchanged insults and threats with Kim in recent months, was Quote: d on Thursday as telling the Wall Street Journal in an interview: “I probably have a very good relationship with Kim Jong Un.” Trump offered no details and asked whether he had spoken with Kim, said: “I don’t want to comment on it. I‘m not saying I have or I haven‘t.” The administration had been due to hold a Cabinet-level meeting this week to sharpen its economic and military options for dealing with North Korea. But officials say this discussion has been postponed until after the Paralympic Games, which follow the Olympics and end in March, given the intra-Korean talks and a planned 20-country meeting on North Korea hosted by Canada next week. The Vancouver meeting, aimed at increasing the U.S.-led pressure campaign against Pyongyang, was announced by Washington just after North Korea’s last intercontinental ballistic missile test in late November. One U.S. official said one option would be to bomb a North Korean missile or nuclear facility based on a “high confidence” intelligence assessment that North Korea planned another test. Such a strike could be triggered by evidence that North Korea was fueling an ICBM, the official said. Another option would be a retaliatory strike on an ICBM or nuclear site after a test, another official said. The officials said McMaster has argued that if China were assured that a strike would be limited to one target and not the beginning of a campaign to overthrow Kim, an all-out war could be avoided. Chinese political experts said China was opposed to even limited strikes. However, Zhao Tong, a North Korea expert at the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center in Beijing, said China’s attitude might change if North Korea launched a nuclear-tipped ICBM into the Pacific Ocean or fired missiles toward Guam. China sees the Trump administration’s discussion of military options as a psychological game to force Beijing and Moscow to maintain pressure on Pyongyang, but they were making crisis preparations just in case, Zhao said. “Even if Trump is not really serious about a military strike, there is always the risk of miscalculation or an over-reaction from North Korea,” Zhao said. A South Korean official said Seoul believed the chance of a U.S. strike was still low. “President Trump is aware of the consequences. He’s been advised by a lot of agencies and departments of the damage it would cause and the number of victims,” the official said. The prevailing view at the State Department is that military action is not worth the huge risk, a senior U.S. official said. However, the official said, “there are military options that could achieve benefits we consider in our national interest at a cost we are willing to bear.” The consensus among U.S. intelligence agencies is Kim is convinced Washington seeks to overthrow him and only a nuclear arsenal can deter that. A Japanese ruling party lawmaker said he did not believe the Korean talks could narrow the gap between North Korea’s demand for recognition as a nuclear-armed state and the U.S. refusal to accept that. “It may be dangerous after the Olympics,” the lawmaker said. Reporting by David Brunnstrom, Matt Spetalnick, John Walcott and Phil Stewart in Washington,; Josh Smith, Hyonghee Shin and Soyoung Kim in Seoul, Christian Shepherd in Beijing and Nobohiro Kubo and Linda Sieg in Tokyo; editing by Grant McCool

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-missiles-usa/korea-talks-ease-war-fears-in-washington-but-for-how-long-idUSKBN1F033N

BRIEF-Aspen Says To Review Global Nutritionals Business

Jan 29 (Reuters) - Aspen Pharmacare Holdings Ltd: * STRATEGIC REVIEW OF ASPEN’S GLOBAL NUTRITIONALS BUSINESS * ‍HAS BEEN EXPLORING OPTIONS TO ENHANCE VALUE OF ITS GLOBAL NUTRITIONALS BUSINESS (“NUTRITIONALS”) SINCE RECEIVING AN UNSOLICITED APPROACH IN Q3 OF LAST YEAR​ * ‍CFDA OF REGISTRATION OF ASPEN‘S INFANT MILK FORMULA BRAND, ALULA, ASPEN HAS DECIDED TO FORMALISE ITS REVIEW OF STRATEGIC OPTIONS FOR NUTRITIONALS​ * ‍RANGE OF OPTIONS WILL BE CONSIDERED INCLUDING, INTER ALIA, INTRODUCTION OF A STRATEGIC PARTNER THAT COULD UNLOCK APPROPRIATE VALUE​ * ‍APPOINTED CENTERVIEW PARTNERS UK LLP AS FINANCIAL ADVISOR TO ASSIST IN STRATEGIC REVIEW PROCESS​ Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage: (Bengaluru Newsroom: +91 80 6749 1136)

https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-aspen-says-to-review-global-nutrit/brief-aspen-says-to-review-global-nutritionals-business-idUSFWN1PO0JU

Golf-Missile false alarm causes panic for PGA Tour players

January 14, 2018 / 12:02 AM / Updated 15 hours ago Golf-Missile false alarm causes panic for PGA Tour players Reuters Staff 2 Min Read Jan 13 (Reuters) - Some of the world’s top professional golfers were panicked by a false report of an incoming ballistic missile in Hawaii on Saturday, with one hiding under a mattress and another fleeing to the basement of his Honolulu hotel. The alert, issued shortly after 8 A.M. local time (1800 GMT), was sent mistakenly some three hours before the start of the third round of the PGA Tour’s Sony Open. “So this can’t be good. Everyone is freaking out in the hotel,” Steve Wheatcroft tweeted at 8.14 A.M. local time (1814 GMT). Another player, J.J. Spaun, took refuge in his hotel basement. “Barely any service. Can you send confirmed message over radio or tv,” he said in a tweet at 8.26 A.M. Two minutes after that, John Peterson revealed the evasive steps he had taken. “Under mattresses in the bathtub with my wife, baby and in laws. Please lord let this bomb threat not be real,” tweeted Peterson, who was tied for second place halfway through the tournament. Peterson and Spaun evidently took longer than Justin Thomas to receive word the warning had been sent out by mistake. “To all that just received the warning along with me this morning ... apparently it was a ‘mistake’ - hell of a mistake!! Haha glad to know we’ll all be safe,” Thomas, the defending champion and world number four, tweeted at the same time as Spaun. The third round started on time at Waialae Country Club. Reporting by Andrew Both in Cary, North Carolina

https://uk.reuters.com/article/golf-sonyopen-missiles/golf-missile-false-alarm-causes-panic-for-pga-tour-players-idUKL1N1P80GC

Autonomous vehicles will transform the way driving is regulated: Here's how

Whether you like it or not, driverless vehicles are going to become an increasingly important cog in 21st century living. As technology moves at a rapid pace, the world's biggest companies are looking to develop and deploy increasingly sophisticated self-driving technology. To give one example, Vehicles at Waymo, a subsidiary of Alphabet, have software and sensors designed to detect everything from pedestrians and cyclists to road works and other vehicles. Ride-hailing powerhouse Uber is also looking to make a mark in the self-driving market. "In 2019, we've committed to buy 24,000 Volvo SUVs that we're going to equip with our autonomous driving technology and start to roll out on the Uber app," Fred Jones, the business' head of cities in the U.K. and Ireland, told CNBC. Autonomous vehicles will not only change the way we get around our cities. Their economic impact will also be significant. The U.K. government, for instance, has said that the driverless technology market is set to be worth as much as £50 billion to the economy by 2035. As the way we drive undergoes a transformation, regulations will have to be modified. Unsurprisingly, that is going to be a big, big job. "There are no rules right now, international rules, on how to regulate automated vehicles," Philippe Crist, project manager for the International Transport Forum (ITF), told CNBC. "The safety regulation of automated vehicles will have to be the same as for regular vehicles, using the same principles." The ITF is an intergovernmental organization at the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The "object" of regulation, Crist explained, may change. Before, it was a driver and their vehicle. Now, it would need to include the algorithms and code that operate in an autonomous one. He added that future regulation would also include, to a certain extent, "the fitness of the sensor systems that are providing input to the vehicle (and) replacing human eyes and human ears." This was a new space for regulation, he said. And, as the way we drive morphs from using our hands to using smart, autonomous vehicles, Crist pointed to another striking development taking place. "One of the things we've seen is the knowledge about what's taking place on the streets, on roads, has shifted from the public sector to the private sector," he said. "Now, instantaneously, several companies know better what's happening on city streets, and public authorities who are mandated to manage those streets and manage transport infrastructure and investment don't have that insight." Follow CNBC International on Twitter and Facebook .

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/10/autonomous-vehicles-will-transform-the-way-driving-is-regulated-heres-how.html

Dollar sags on U.S. government shutdown, losses limited for now

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The dollar pared losses against a basket of currencies on Monday, after news that Republican leaders in the U.S. Senate had rounded up enough votes to move a stopgap funding bill that would end a government shutdown. The U.S. government shutdown took effect at midnight on Friday after Democrats and Republicans failed to agree on a last-minute deal to fund government operations. Slideshow (2 Images) On Monday, Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer said the government would reopen in a “few hours.” The dollar index .DXY, which tracks the greenback against six major currencies, was down 0.04 percent to 90.538, after falling as low as 90.155 earlier in the session. The greenback jumped to a four-day high of 111.22 yen against the Japanese currency. Reporting by Saqib Iqbal AhmedEditing by Chizu Nomiyama

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-global-forex/dollar-sags-on-u-s-government-shutdown-losses-limited-for-now-idUSKBN1FB02C

Fair Isaac posts 1Q profit

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) _ Fair Isaac Corp. (FICO) on Thursday reported fiscal first-quarter net income of $27.3 million. On a per-share basis, the San Jose, California-based company said it had profit of 86 cents. Earnings, adjusted for non-recurring costs, came to $1.30 per share. The financial services company posted revenue of $235.3 million in the period. Fair Isaac expects full-year earnings to be $6.09 per share. Fair Isaac shares have increased slightly more than 6 percent since the beginning of the year. The stock has risen 30 percent in the last 12 months. This story was generated by Automated Insights ( http://automatedinsights.com/ap ) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on FICO at https://www.zacks.com/ap/FICO

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/26/the-associated-press-fair-isaac-posts-1q-profit.html

Alamo Group Inc. Declares And Increases Regular Quarterly Dividend

SEGUIN, Texas, Jan. 2, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Alamo Group Inc. (NYSE: ALG) announced today that its Board of Directors has declared its quarterly cash dividend of $0.11 per share, payable January 29, 2018, to shareholders of record at the close of business on January 16, 2018. This represents a 10% increase in the dividend over the $0.10 per share paid in the comparable period in 2017. Alamo Group is a leader in the design, manufacture, distribution and service of high quality equipment for infrastructure maintenance, agriculture and other applications. Our products include truck and tractor mounted mowing and other vegetation maintenance equipment, street sweepers, snow removal equipment, excavators, vacuum trucks, other industrial equipment, agricultural implements and related after-market parts and services. The Company, founded in 1969, has approximately 3,300 employees and operates 2 plants in North America, Europe, Australia and Brazil as of September 30, 2017. The corporate offices of Alamo Group Inc. are located in Seguin, Texas and the headquarters for the Company's European operations are located in Salford Priors, England. This release contains that are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which may cause the Company's actual results in future periods to differ materially from forecasted results. Among those factors which could cause actual results to differ materially are the following: market demand, competition, weather, seasonality, currency-related issues, and other risk factors listed from time to time in the Company's SEC reports. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update the information contained herein, which speaks only as of this date. View original content: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/alamo-group-inc-declares-and-increases-regular-quarterly-dividend-300575385.html SOURCE Alamo Group Inc.

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/02/pr-newswire-alamo-group-inc-declares-and-increases-regular-quarterly-dividend.html

Pope warns on being misled by the pursuit of money

Pope Francis advised against making the pursuit of money, a career or success the basis for one's whole life, urging people in his Epiphany remarks Saturday to also resist "the inclinations toward arrogance, the thirst for power and for riches." Francis said during a homily at Mass in St. Peter's Basilica that people "often make do" with having "health, a little money and a bit of entertainment." He urged helping the poor and others in need of assistance, giving freely without expecting anything in return. Many Christians observe Epiphany to recall the three wise men who followed a star to find baby Jesus. Francis suggested asking "what star we have chosen to follow in our lives." "Some stars may be bright, but do not point the way. So it is with success, money, career, honors and pleasures when these become our lives," the pope said. That path, he continued, won't ensure peace and joy. Later, during an appearance from his studio window overlooking St. Peter's Square, Francis told tens of thousands of faithful gathered below that some Christians prefer to live while indifferent to Jesus. "Instead of conducting themselves in coherence with their own Christian faith, they follow the principles of the world, which lead to satisfying the inclinations toward arrogance, the thirst for power and for riches," Francis said. He prayed that instead that "the world makes progress down the path of justice and of peace." Francis noted that some Eastern Rite Catholic and Orthodox churches are celebrating Christmas this weekend. In expressing cordial wishes to these believers, Francis added, "May this glorious celebration be a source of new spiritual vigor and of communion among us Christians." He also recalled the traditions such as in Poland, where many families join in processions recalling the three wise men. In some countries, Epiphany and not Christmas, is the holiday occasion to exchange gifts among loved ones.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/06/pope-dont-be-misled-by-making-money-and-career-your-life.html

Muguruza battles past Bertens To reach Sydney last eight

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Garbine Muguruza’s preparations for next week’s Australian Open were thrown into disarray when the world number three pulled out of the Sydney International due to a leg injury on Wednesday. Hours after battling past Kiki Bertens 6-3 7-6(6) to advance to the quarter-finals in her opening match, the 24-year-old Spanish top seed withdrew with a right thigh complaint. “I am disappointed but I have talked to the WTA doctors and my team after the match and following their recommendation, I have to withdraw from the tournament,” Muguruza said in a statement. “I have felt pain in my right adductor since I started practicing here. Yesterday, I felt better and wanted to play. However, during the match today the pain has been there all the time but I wanted to compete.” The Wimbledon champion accepted a wildcard into the tournament after retiring with leg cramps during her opening match at the Brisbane International last week and called for a medical timeout after just three games against Bertens. Muguruza, however, returned to the Ken Rosewall Arena and appeared to be moving freely, initially allaying fears of another injury setback by overcoming a woman who had beaten her in straight sets in their three previous meetings. ”Since the start I felt a little bit my adductor,“ Muguruza said after registering her first win of the season. ”I already felt it in Brisbane, so I thought I was going to be much better, but it came back. ”You always have to adapt... Sometimes you don’t need to have a pain. You just want to play a certain style of game or some tactic. “I figured out that being a little bit more aggressive, shorter points, that might help me and might help me also for my game. So it’s like a winning situation.” Muguruza’s withdrawal allows Daria Gavrilova a direct route to the semi-finals after the Spaniard’s scheduled last eight opponent won an all-Australian clash against Samantha Stosur 6-4 6-2. Elsewhere, Agnieszka Radwanska, the 2013 champion and last year’s losing finalist in Sydney, kept her preparations for the year’s first grand slam on track with a 7-6(4) 6-0 win over teenage American qualifier CiCi Bellis. The Polish 28-year-old will meet Camila Giorgi for a place in the last four after the Italian qualifier ousted twice Wimbledon and former Sydney champion Petra Kvitova 7-6(7) 6-2. Giorgi, belying her ranking of 100th in the world, beat U.S. Open champion Sloane Stephens in the first round and added another grand slam champion to her list of victims in just under two hours when Kvitova blasted a forehand wide. In the men’s draw, Italian veteran Paolo Lorenzi ousted top seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas of Spain in the second round. Ramos-Vinolas needed treatment for a leg problem early in the second set and fell 6-3 7-5 to the 36-year-old Lorenzi, who is ranked 45 in the world. Reporting by Sudipto Ganguly; Editing by John O'Brien

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tennis-sydney/muguruza-battles-past-bertens-to-reach-sydney-last-eight-idUSKBN1EZ0N9

Berlusconi backs EU rules on deficits ahead of election

BRUSSELS, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi said on Monday that his Forza Italia (Go Italy) party would seek to ensure that Italy respected the EU’s limit on budget deficits if it was elected to power. The EU limits public sector deficits to 3 percent of GDP. Italy’s budget deficit came in at 2.5 percent of gross domestic product in 2016 and was below that level last year, according to Italy’s central bank. “The 3 percent deficit rule can be a debatable one, but we intend on respecting it,” Berlusconi told reporters in Brussels. Opinion polls show the centre-right grouping involving Berlusconi is in the lead ahead of an election on March 4. (Reporting by Robert-Jan Bartunek, writing by Philip Blenkinsop)

https://www.reuters.com/article/eurozone-italy-berlusconi/berlusconi-backs-eu-rules-on-deficits-ahead-of-election-idUSB5N1JD02C

Beijing Games could help end NHL/IOC standoff

January 18, 2018 / 1:04 PM / Updated 6 minutes ago Beijing Games could help end NHL/IOC standoff Steve Keating 5 Min Read (Reuters) - Since saying “I do” to the International Olympic Committee in 1998 the National Hockey League and Winter Games have endured an often tumultuous relationship, one that ended last year in an acrimonious separation. In sporting terms this had been an arranged marriage and after five consecutive Winter Games together the NHL, feeling unappreciated and taken advantage of, told the IOC their players would not compete in Pyeongchang. During protracted negotiations to get the world’s best ice hockey players to the Olympics there had been plenty of finger pointing and take-it-or-leave-it ultimatums. The NHL, already convinced it could get by just fine without the exposure offered by the Olympics, relaunched its World Cup of Hockey in 2016 and made that tournament its top international commitment. The jilted IOC huffed and warned NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman not to come knocking in four years time when the 2022 Olympics will be in Beijing, a market that every major sports league covets. While NHL players will not be in South Korea for the Feb. 9-25 Olympics the league has already begun flirting with China having staged their first exhibition games there last September. International Ice Hockey Federation president Rene Fasel said this month it is his mission to get the NHL back on Olympic ice while NHL Players Association head Donald Fehr said the players want to return to the Winter Games. “The Olympics is a unique event and it provides not only an opportunity to play at an elite level but there’s a real element of patriotism and national pride that’s involved and it matters a lot,” Fehr told Reuters. “I think that it is very likely as we go forward that getting back into the Olympics will be something the players will want to pursue.” “It will be a significant issue.” COLLECTIVE BARGAINING Significant enough that the Olympics will be a carrot dangled when players and owners negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement sometime between now and 2022. It remains to be seen what the players might be willing to give up to get back on the global stage that is offered by the Winter Games. FILE PHOTO: Donald Fehr, executive director of the National Hockey League Players Association, speaks at a news conference in New York September 12, 2012. REUTERS/Eric Thayer When the NHL dangled Pyeongchang participation in front of the NHLPA in exchange for an extension of the current CBA the proposal was flatly rejected. “From my personal standpoint not only do the players want to participate in it but I think that participation in the Olympic Games, if it is handled right, is a very significant potential marketing and exposure opportunity for NHL players and therefore NHL hockey,” said Fehr. “I would hope that we get to the point where that is recognised.” While the NHL saw little upside in shutting down operations for almost three weeks to accommodate Olympic participation, the 2022 Beijing Games represent a gateway into the Chinese market. To grow hockey in China the NHL will need infrastructure and the Chinese government and businesses have already displayed a keen interest in helping the cause by building ice rinks. ”I guess they (NHL) are a little late to the (China) party but better to do it right than do it fast,“ David Carter, executive director at the USC Sports Business Institute and a member of the Los Angeles Kings advisory board, told Reuters. ”They would more likely look back and rue the day they didn’t figure this thing out than looking back and saying it was a wise move to forego the Games. ”It is a big market to penetrate and it is something that has captivated people in sport business for awhile. “But that doesn’t get you anywhere unless the home country is willing to spend time, money and invest capital in it.” The key to getting the NHL back on board for the 2022 Games will not be as simple as the lure of tapping into a new market. The NHL has long bristled at paying for the privilege of competing at the Olympics while, in their view, getting very little in return beyond the prestige and a two-week global platform for their product. ”China is a completely different economic opportunity than South Korea,“ Neal Pilson, head of Pilson Communications and former president of CBS Sports, told Reuters. ”There was really no way to figure out any possible benefit for the NHL allowing its players to play in South Korea but the league could negotiate a much better deal for its ownership when you are talking about teams, the league, the sport growing in China. ”I know they are thinking about how they can develop hockey in that nation. “China is a huge opportunity for the NHL.” Editing by Frank Pingue

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-olympics-2018-iceh-nhl/beijing-games-could-help-end-nhl-ioc-standoff-idUKKBN1F71O0

Travis Kalanick set to be an Uber billionaire

Travis Kalanick set to be an Uber billionaire 7:24am EST - 01:44 Uber co-founder and ousted CEO Travis Kalanick is selling nearly a third of his 10% stake in the ride-hailing company. Reuters’ Liana Baker says the deal will make him a billionaire for the first time, not just on paper. ▲ Hide Transcript ▶ View Transcript Uber co-founder and ousted CEO Travis Kalanick is selling nearly a third of his 10% stake in the ride-hailing company. Reuters’ Liana Baker says the deal will make him a billionaire for the first time, not just on paper. Press CTRL+C (Windows), CMD+C (Mac), or long-press the URL below on your mobile device to copy the code https://reut.rs/2CIwET7

https://www.reuters.com/video/2018/01/05/travis-kalanick-set-to-be-an-uber-billio?videoId=378294545

Mack-Cali Strengthens Executive Management Team

JERSEY CITY, N.J., Jan. 29, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Mack-Cali Realty Corporation (NYSE: CLI) today announced changes to its executive management team with the appointments of Mr. David J. Smetana as chief financial officer and Mr. Nicholas Hilton as executive vice president of leasing. Mr. Smetana will begin to perform his duties as chief financial officer upon the departure of Mr. Anthony Krug, who will be leaving Mack-Cali to pursue other opportunities. Mr. Krug will continue to serve as chief financial officer during the transition period in the first quarter of 2018. Mr. Hilton will start in February 2018 and Mr. Chris DeLorenzo will also depart after a transition period. Mr. Smetana has over 20 years of real estate experience across a variety of roles. Most recently, he was a managing director and REIT securities analyst on Morgan Stanley Investment Management's Global REIT Securities Team from 2001 to 2017. Previously, Mr. Smetana was a REIT investment banker at Morgan Stanley and was part of Morgan Stanley's Real Estate Special Situations Fund from 1997 to 2001. Mr. Smetana received his Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and holds a CPA certificate in Virginia. Mr. Hilton was most recently a senior vice president at CBRE, where he had been for over 13 years and worked with firms like Mack-Cali, Bentall Kennedy, Royal Bank of Canada, Ernst & Young and The Boston Consulting Group. Mr. Hilton received his Bachelor of Arts in English from Rutgers University. Michael J. DeMarco, Mack-Cali's chief executive officer, stated, "We are excited to add further depth to our executive management team. David's extensive knowledge of the real estate industry includes over twenty years of REIT experience, and we believe that he will bring significant experience and leadership in his new role as chief financial officer. Nicholas, who we've had the opportunity to work with while he was at CBRE, is one of the most talented brokers I've had the pleasure of working with. He is extremely knowledgeable about the waterfront and the New Jersey office markets and will help lead and enhance our leasing efforts across all of our office markets as we work to increase occupancy." Mr. DeMarco continued, "I would like to thank Tony and Chris for their tremendous hard work and contributions to the strategic repositioning of Mack-Cali. Our success to date has been a team effort in which they played an integral part. They will both remain not only colleagues but close friends, and I wish them all the best in their future endeavors." About Mack-Cali Realty Corporation One of the country's leading real estate investment trusts (REITs), Mack-Cali Realty Corporation is an owner, manager and developer of premier office and multifamily properties in select waterfront and transit-oriented markets throughout the Northeast. Mack-Cali is headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey, and is the visionary behind the city's flourishing waterfront, where the company is leading development, improvement and place-making initiatives for Harborside, a master-planned destination comprised of class A office, luxury apartments, diverse retail and restaurants, and public spaces. A fully-integrated and self-managed company, Mack-Cali has provided world-class management, leasing, and development services throughout New Jersey and the surrounding region for two decades. By regularly investing in its properties and innovative lifestyle amenity packages, Mack-Cali creates environments that empower tenants and residents to reimagine the way they work and live. For more information on Mack-Cali Realty Corporation and its properties, visit www.mack-cali.com . Statements made in this press release may be forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "may," "will," "plan," "potential," "projected," "should," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "target," "continue," or comparable terminology. Such forward-looking statements are inherently subject to certain risks, trends and uncertainties, many of which the Company cannot predict with accuracy and some of which the Company might not even anticipate, and involve factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or suggested. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements and are advised to consider the factors listed above together with the additional factors under the heading "Disclosure Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" and "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Reports on Form 10-K, as may be supplemented or amended by the Company's Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, which are incorporated herein by reference. The Company assumes no obligation to update or supplement forward-looking statements that become untrue because of subsequent events, new information or otherwise. Contacts: Michael J. DeMarco Deidre Crockett Mack-Cali Realty Corporation Mack-Cali Realty Corporation Chief Executive Officer Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications (732) 590-1589 and Investor Relations mdemarco@mack-cali.com (732) 590-1025 dcrockett@mack-cali.com View original content with multimedia: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mack-cali-strengthens-executive-management-team-300589402.html SOURCE Mack-Cali Realty Corporation

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/29/pr-newswire-mack-cali-strengthens-executive-management-team.html

Water main break at JFK airport adds to travelers' misery after winter storm flight delays

Flooding from a water main break forced the temporary suspension of some flights at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport on Sunday, adding to the misery of travelers after a winter storm canceled or delayed hundreds of flights in recent days. Water poured from the ceiling onto a check-in counter and covered large areas of the floor of Terminal 4, video on CNN showed. The disruption occurred while the U.S. Northeast continued to endure bone-chilling weather with the New York temperature at 17 degrees Fahrenheit (-8 Celsius). International flights to Terminal 4 were temporarily suspended and passengers who had already arrived there were diverted to other terminals, according to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the airport. The Port Authority said the water pipe break appears to be weather-related. Flights later resumed but with delays, it said. Mohammed Elshamy | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images A passenger and her luggage are seen during the weather-related cancellation at the John F. Kennedy Airport in New York, United States on January 08, 2017. "What happened at JFK Airport is unacceptable, and travelers expect and deserve better," Port Authority Executive Director Rick Cotton said in a statement. The authority said a water pipe that feeds the terminal's sprinkler system broke, which caused flooding and a led to a temporary power cut in some areas as a safety measure. The airport on Twitter advised travelers to check with their airlines before arriving. There were about 3 inches (7.5 cm) of water inside the west end of Terminal 4, Scott Ladd, a spokesman for the Port Authority, said in an email. The flooding hit just as the airport was crawling back to normal after a winter storm labeled a "bomb cyclone" forced the airport to close on Thursday. When operations resumed on Friday, the backlog led to hundreds more delays or cancellations, crowding the terminals with stranded passengers. Mohammed Elshamy | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images Passengers with their luggage are seen during the weather-related cancellation at the John F. Kennedy Airport in New York, United States on January 08, 2017. More than 500 flights into or out of JFK were canceled and nearly 1,400 delayed from Friday morning to Sunday afternoon, according to the flight-tracking website FlightAware. The extreme cold and recovery from Thursday's snowstorm created a "cascading series of issues for the airlines and terminal operators," the Port Authority said. Equipment froze and baggage handling was delayed, which was compounded by staff shortages and heavier than normal passenger loads, the Port Authority said. The backlog left passengers stuck on planes for long stretches while waiting for other aircraft to get in and out of gates.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/08/flooding-at-jfk-airport-adds-to-misery-after-flight-delays.html

For His Next Act, Ken Chenault Turns His Focus on Silicon Valley

Ever since Kenneth I. Chenault announced last fall that he would retire as chief executive of American Express , he has been fielding phone calls from companies looking to hire him. It's not surprising. Mr. Chenault is one of the most prominent African-American chief executives in the world and the man who led American Express through 9/11 and the financial crisis. When it came to selecting his next act, he was bound to have a wide variety of choices. In the last two weeks, he has announced he was joining the boards of Facebook and Airbnb. And for the last several weeks, he's been trying to keep one more secret — perhaps his biggest — about his future plans. More from The New York Times: American Express C.E.O. Ken Chenault to Step Down Airbnb, Edging Toward Possible I.P.O, Names Ken Chenault to Board Tesla's Elon Musk May Have Boldest Pay Plan in Corporate History "You're right,'' he said. "I literally have been inundated," he reluctantly acknowledged, almost embarrassed, when we spoke Monday. "People have talked to me about some very large companies and some digital technology companies. Obviously, I can't say from a confidentiality standpoint." The recruiters can stop calling. On Tuesday, he will announce he has a new full-time job. Mr. Chenault, a name long synonymous with Wall Street, will soon become a staple of Silicon Valley as a venture capitalist. He will be chairman and managing director of General Catalyst Partners, one of the most successful venture firms of the past two decades, with stakes in companies like Airbnb, Snap , Stripe and Warby Parker. Mr. Chenault 's choice to jump into the world of start-ups is more than just a business decision; to him, it is an opportunity to have a larger impact on Silicon Valley and its business culture. As he assessed his opportunities, he became convinced that the tech start-up world had often come up short in meeting society's challenges. This area, he said, is where he hopes he can have an impact. Consider Mr. Chenault some much-needed adult supervision. "What I think is happening right now in the digital space is a maturation cycle and some people, as we've seen, are going to handle that well and some people are going to crash and burn," he said, without naming names. Of course, he could be talking about any of a host of companies, like Uber, Google or Facebook, the latter of which is facing a revolt among consumers and possibly regulators over the way fake news proliferates on its site. Venture capital firms themselves are not exempt from these problems, as my colleague Katie Benner chronicled last summer with a striking exposé of harassment by powerful investors. "Given their age and the scale and size and impact that they can have on our society, unless they make a step up, we are going to have some serious problems,'' Mr. Chenault said. "And we do have serious problems." "Companies are starting to realize that they are growing up, and in growing up, they have to assume some broader responsibilities," he added. "Companies are at different stages, from a self awareness standpoint, in accepting that reality." Mr. Chenault's management skills may be a perfect fit for the role General Catalyst needs him to fill. As start-ups are staying private longer, venture capital firms are finding that someone has to actually run the companies they invest in, to think beyond the early stages of fast growth — and a quick sale or initial public offering — and to help them scale over a decade. "The median time to I.P.O. has risen dramatically over the last decade, from 4.9 years in 2006 to 8.3 years in 2016," according to a report from Pitchbook, a data company that tracks deals. Airbnb has been private for 10 years, Uber for nine. When Mr. Chenault joined Airbnb's board last week, a company co-founder, Brian Chesky, whom Mr. Chenault has mentored for years, wrote a note to employees announcing the appointment. "Many companies are designed to be finite,'' Mr. Chesky wrote. "Finite companies are focused on beating their competitors and appeasing short-term interests. But business is not finite. Unlike sports, there is no time clock, so there can be no winning or losing — there is merely surviving and innovating to endure." Mr. Chenault believes there is real value in trying to influence start-ups early in their life cycle, so that patience and foresight become embedded in the DNA. One problem Mr. Chenault wants to address — conspicuous to anyone paying attention, but bafflingly inconspicuous to those in the Valley — is the lack of diversity, both in gender and race, in the tech industry. "Diversity in the technology digital industry is a big issue," he said. "If we don't make accelerated progress in that area, it will have dire consequences for our society." It is even worse in the venture capital industry, where there are few women and even fewer African-Americans. The numbers are embarrassing and depressing: African-Americans make up only 3 percent of the venture capital work force, according to a study conducted in 2016 by the National Venture Capital Association and Deloitte University Leadership Center for Inclusion. Latinos represented only 4 percent of the venture capital industry. Mr. Chenault said he has known some of founding partners at General Catalyst for more than 20 years, including David Fialkow and Joel Cutler, who have been business partners since they met as children at Camp Cedar (a summer camp in Maine that I also attended). The fund, which has some $3.75 billion, was founded in Cambridge, Mass., in 1999 and has offices in New York; Palo Alto, Calif.; and San Francisco. Mr. Chenault said he would be based in New York. In addition to Facebook and Airbnb, he is also on the boards of IBM and Procter & Gamble , which gives him insight into what's going on in the economy. He acknowledged that there might be times he has to recuse himself from dealing with board issues that conflict with one of the investments General Catalyst makes. But at this stage of his career, he believes a move to venture capital is the right "vehicle'' to try to make a difference. Mr. Chenault hopes to help companies not just make long-term plans, but to think about their role in society. "Venture capital firms have to be more catalytic agents of change not just in the business development," he said, "but in helping change the culture in the technology digital sector so there is a greater focus on the responsibilities they have."

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/30/for-his-next-act-ken-chenault-turns-his-focus-on-silicon-valley.html

2017 costliest year on record for U.S. natural disasters

2017 costliest year on record for U.S. natural disasters 7:56pm GMT - 00:57 Weather and climate-related disasters cost the United States a record $306 billion in 2017, the third-warmest year on record, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said on Monday. Weather and climate-related disasters cost the United States a record $306 billion in 2017, the third-warmest year on record, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said on Monday. //uk.reuters.com/video/2018/01/08/2017-costliest-year-on-record-for-us-nat?videoId=381259334&videoChannel=118171

https://uk.reuters.com/video/2018/01/08/2017-costliest-year-on-record-for-us-nat?videoId=381259334

China to hold officials to account for protecting farmland

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China plans to hold government officials to account for the protection of farmland, part of its efforts to guarantee food production amid soaring levels of urbanization. Local governments will be held fully responsible for retaining and protecting arable land under their jurisdiction, and for improving land quality, according to new guidelines issued by China’s cabinet, the State Council, on Thursday. Central government funding for soil remediation projects will depend on how well a local government performs when it comes to protecting land, the guidelines published on China’s official government website said. Protecting land will also become one of the criteria on which local officials are assessed, with failures likely to affect promotion prospects or even result in dismissal. Food security has long been regarded as a key source of political legitimacy for the Chinese government, with the country having to feed nearly a quarter of the world’s population with just 7 percent of the world’s arable land. But its farmland has come under increasing pressure due to soaring rates of urbanization and industrial development, which have encroached on traditional farming belts and left large stretches of territory unusable as a result of pollution. The country’s environmental drive could also put more farmland out of reach, with the government committed to increasing forest coverage and establishing so-called “ecological red lines” that will make large swathes of territory off-limits to development. Reporting by David Stanway; editing by Richard Pullin

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-agriculture/china-to-hold-officials-to-account-for-protecting-farmland-idUSKBN1F801H

MOVES-Novakovic to head UBS wealth management in EMEA

ZURICH, Jan 23 (Reuters) - Christine Novakovic has been named head of UBS wealth management in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, the bank said, replacing Paul Raphael, who was in charge of Europe and emerging markets. A spokeswoman confirmed a report by finews that Raphael was leaving his job at UBS, which on Monday announced it was merging its global and Americas wealth management businesses. Novakovic has most recently headed UBS’s investment banking and corporate customers business in Switzerland. Sylvia Coutinho is taking on the new role as UBS head of Wealth Management Latin America. She is now chairman of UBS Brazil. Reporting by Angelika Gruber, Writing by Michael Shields, Editing by Adrian Croft

https://www.reuters.com/article/ubs-moves/moves-novakovic-to-head-ubs-wealth-management-in-emea-idUSL8N1PI50X

UPDATE 2-Shell says to sell its stake in Thai Bongkot fields to PTTEP for $750 mln

BANGKOK/SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell said on Wednesday that it will sell its stake in the Bongkot gas field and adjoining acreage offshore Thailand to PTT Exploration & Production PCL for $750 million before tax. The deal with PTTEP comes after Shell in October canceled a $900 million agreement to sell the same gas field stakes to Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (KUFPEC). “The two deal values are not comparable and we will not comment further on any commercial terms,” a Shell spokeswoman said in an e-mail when asked about the discrepancy between the price tags in the two sale accords. In a statement, Shell said, “This sale takes Shell a step closer to its divestment target of $30 billion” of non-core assets. The transaction is expected to be completed in the second quarter, both companies said. PTTEP is the upstream arm of oil giant PTT Pcl and currently operates the Bongkot field, which produces about 860 million cubic feet per day of natural gas and 26,000 barrels per day of condensate. The acquisition is in line with PTTEP’s strategy of adding producing assets or those which are in the final stage of development, located in Southeast Asia where PTTEP has experience, Chief Executive Officer Somporn Vongvuthipornchai said in a statement. PTTEP is keen to continue as the field’s operator and plans to participate in a bidding round for the Bongkot concession which expires in 2022-2023 to maintain Thailand’s energy security, Somporn said. Andrew Harwood, research director of Asia Pacific upstream oil and gas at ‎Wood Mackenzie, said the lower sale price for the asset probably reflects PTTEP taking on a larger share of future decommissioning liabilities. “The deal also puts PTTEP in a stronger position ahead the bidding round, expected to launch by mid-2018,” he said. The sales agreement covers Shell’s 22.2 percent stake in Blocks 15, 16 and 17 and Block G12/48, the companies said. PTTEP’s stake will increase to 66.7 percent after the purchase, with the remaining 33.3 percent held by France’s Total, they said. The deal will increase PTTEP’s sales volume by about 35,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. In the bidding round set for mid-2018, over 650 million barrels of oil equivalent of resource will be up for grabs in Thailand, including both the expiring Bongkot concession and areas licensed to Chevron Corp. Chevron operates the nearby Erawan field under a concession set to expire in 2022. The fields have a combined output of 2.2 billion cubic feet a day, making up about 76 percent of the Gulf of Thailand’s output. Reporting by Florence Tan in SINGAPORE and Chayut Setboonsarng in BANGKOK; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell and Richard Pullin

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-thailand-oil-shell-pttep/shell-says-to-sell-its-stake-in-thai-bongkot-fields-to-pttep-for-750-million-idUSKBN1FK0P0

BRIEF-Infinity Expects Net Loss For 2018 To Range From $40 Mln To $50 Mln​

January 8, 2018 / 1:38 PM / Updated 13 minutes ago BRIEF-Infinity Expects Net Loss For 2018 To Range From $40 Mln To $50 Mln​ Reuters Staff 1 Min Read Jan 8 (Reuters) - Infinity Pharmaceuticals Inc: * INFINITY PHARMACEUTICALS INC - ‍INFINITY EXPECTS NET LOSS FOR 2018 TO RANGE FROM $40 MILLION TO $50 MILLION​ * INFINITY PROVIDES UPDATE ON IPI-549 PHASE 1/1B STUDY, 2018 GOALS AND FINANCIAL GUIDANCE * INFINITY PHARMACEUTICALS INC - ‍INFINITY EXPECTS TO END 2018 WITH A YEAR-END CASH AND INVESTMENTS BALANCE RANGING FROM $10 MILLION TO $20 MILLION​ * INFINITY PHARMACEUTICALS INC - EXPECTS TO END 2018 WITH A YEAR-END CASH AND INVESTMENTS BALANCE RANGING FROM $10 MILLION TO $20 MILLION * INFINITY PHARMACEUTICALS INC - ‍INFINITY ENDED 2017 WITH APPROXIMATELY $57.6 MILLION IN CASH AND INVESTMENTS​ Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:

https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-infinity-expects-net-loss-for-2018/brief-infinity-expects-net-loss-for-2018-to-range-from-40-mln-to-50-mln-idUSASB0C04F

Federated Investors, Inc. Reports Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2017 Earnings

PITTSBURGH, Federated Investors, Inc. (NYSE: FII), one of the nation's largest investment managers, today reported earnings per diluted share (EPS) of $1.31 and net income of $131.8 million for Q4 2017. Full-year 2017 EPS was $2.87 and net income was $291.3 million. Federated's Q4 2017 and full-year 2017 results included $70.4 million of net income, representing $0.70 and $0.69 per share for Q4 2017 and full-year 2017, respectively, resulting from the enactment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (Tax Act). Management believes adjusted EPS and adjusted net income, which are non-GAAP financial measures, are useful measures for investors to evaluate Federated's financial performance. The adjusted measures reflect what earnings would have been had the tax law changes not reduced the federal corporate income tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent, resulting in a revaluation of Federated's net deferred tax liability. As such, Federated's Q4 2017 adjusted EPS was $0.61, up 17 percent from EPS of $0.52 for Q4 2016, and adjusted net income was $61.4 million, compared to net income of $55.8 million for Q4 2016. Full-year 2017 adjusted EPS was $2.18, up 7 percent from EPS of $2.03 for 2016, and adjusted net income was $220.9 million, compared to net income of $208.9 million for 2016 1 . Federated's total managed assets were $397.6 billion at Dec. 31, 2017, up $31.7 billion or 9 percent from $365.9 billion at Dec. 31, 2016 and up $33.9 billion or 9 percent from $363.7 billion at Sept. 30, 2017. Average managed assets for Q4 2017 were $382.0 billion, up $23.7 billion or 7 percent from $358.3 billion reported for Q4 2016 and up $21.5 billion or 6 percent from $360.5 billion reported for Q3 2017. "In the fourth quarter, investors showed interest in our MDT and Kaufmann small-cap equity strategies," said J. Christopher Donahue, president and chief executive officer. "Also, continued investor demand for a range of quality fixed-income products helped fourth-quarter flows into high-yield and multisector bond funds." Federated's board of directors declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share. The dividend is payable on Feb. 15, 2018 to shareholders of record as of Feb. 8, 2018. During Q4 2017, Federated purchased 197,237 shares of Federated class B common stock for $4.6 million, bringing the total shares of Class B common stock purchased in 2017 to 1,841,800 shares for $47.0 million. Federated's equity assets were a record $68.1 billion at Dec. 31, 2017, up $5.7 billion or 9 percent from $62.4 billion at Dec. 31, 2016 and up $1.0 billion or 1 percent from $67.1 billion at Sept. 30, 2017. Top-selling equity funds on a net basis during Q4 2017 were Federated MDT Small Cap Core Fund, Federated MDT Small Cap Growth Fund, Federated Kaufmann Small Cap Fund, Federated International Leaders Fund and Federated Muni and Stock Advantage Fund. Federated's fixed-income assets were a record $64.2 billion at Dec. 31, 2017, up $12.9 billion or 25 percent from $51.3 billion at Dec. 31, 2016 and up $11.4 billion or 22 percent from $52.8 billion at Sept. 30, 2017. Federated added $11.2 billion in fixed-income separate account assets in Q4 2017, which included a new advisory mandate from a large public institution. Top-selling fixed-income funds on a net basis during Q4 2017 included Federated Institutional High Yield Bond Fund, Federated Total Return Bond Fund, Federated Ultrashort Bond Fund, Federated Short-Intermediate Total Return Bond Fund and Federated Bond Fund. Federated's money market assets were $265.2 billion at Dec. 31, 2017, up $13.0 billion or 5 percent from $252.2 billion at Dec. 31, 2016 and up $21.4 billion or 9 percent from $243.8 billion at Sept. 30, 2017. Money market mutual fund assets were $185.5 billion at Dec. 31, 2017, down $20.9 billion or 10 percent from $206.4 billion at Dec. 31, 2016 and up $7.6 billion or 4 percent from $177.9 billion at Sept. 30, 2017. Since Dec. 31, 2016, approximately $21 billion in money market assets have transitioned from Federated funds to Federated separate accounts. Federated's money market separate account assets were $79.7 billion at Dec. 31, 2017, up $33.9 billion or 74 percent from $45.8 billion at Dec. 31, 2016 and up $13.7 billion or 21 percent from $66.0 billion at Sept. 30, 2017. Financial Summary Q4 2017 vs. Q4 2016 Revenue decreased by $11.6 million or 4 percent primarily due to a change in a customer relationship and a change in the mix of average money market assets. The decrease in revenue was partially offset by a decrease in voluntary fee waivers related to certain money market funds in order for those funds to maintain positive or zero net yields (voluntary yield-related fee waivers) and an increase in revenue from higher average equity and fixed-income assets. During Q4 2017, Federated derived 60 percent of its revenue from equity and fixed-income assets (43 percent from equity assets and 17 percent from fixed-income assets) and 40 percent from money market assets. Operating expenses decreased by $17.6 million or 9 percent primarily due to a decrease in distribution expenses related to a change in a customer relationship and lower average money market fund assets, partially offset by an increase in distribution expenses related to a decrease in voluntary yield-related fee waivers. Q4 2017 vs. Q3 2017 Revenue was flat, while operating expenses decreased by $2.1 million or 1 percent primarily due to a decrease in distribution expenses related to a change in the mix of average money market fund assets partially offset by increased professional service fee expenses. 2017 vs. 2016 Revenue decreased by $40.4 million or 4 percent primarily due to a change in the mix of average money market assets and a decrease in revenue resulting from a change in a customer relationship. The decrease in revenue was partially offset by a decrease in voluntary yield-related fee waivers and an increase in revenue from higher average equity and fixed-income assets. During 2017, Federated derived 59 percent of its revenue from equity and fixed-income assets (42 percent from equity assets and 17 percent from fixed-income assets) and 41 percent from money market assets. Operating expenses decreased by $46.3 million or 6 percent primarily due to a decrease in distribution expenses related to lower average money market fund assets and a change in a customer relationship, partially offset by an increase in distribution expenses related to a decrease in voluntary yield-related fee waivers. The decrease in operating expenses is also attributable to a decrease in compensation and related expenses resulting from lower incentive compensation. Nonoperating income, net increased by $5.2 million primarily due to an increase in net investment income principally resulting from related gains recorded on available-for-sale securities. Federated's level of business activity and financial results are dependent upon many factors including market conditions, investment performance and investor behavior. These factors and others, including asset levels and mix, product sales and redemptions, market appreciation or depreciation, revenues, fee waivers, expenses and regulatory changes, can significantly impact Federated's business activity levels and financial results. Risk factors and uncertainties that can influence Federated's financial results are discussed in the company's annual and quarterly reports as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Federated will host an earnings conference call at 9 a.m. Eastern on Jan. 26, 2018. Investors are invited to listen to Federated's earnings teleconference by calling 877-407-0782 (domestic) or 201-689-8567 (international) prior to the 9 a.m. start time. The call may also be accessed in real time via the About Federated section of FederatedInvestors.com . A replay will be available from approximately 12:30 p.m. Eastern on Jan. 26, 2018 until Feb. 2, 2018 by calling 877-481-4010 (domestic) or 919-882-2331 (international) and entering access code 23407. An online replay will be available via FederatedInvestors.com for one year. Federated Investors, Inc. is one of the largest investment managers in the United States, managing $397.6 billion in assets as of Dec. 31, 2017. With 108 funds and a variety of separately managed account options, Federated provides comprehensive investment management to more than 8,500 institutions and intermediaries including corporations, government entities, insurance companies, foundations and endowments, banks and broker/dealers. Federated ranks in the top 6 percent of equity fund managers in the industry, the top 8 percent of money market fund managers and the top 11 percent of fixed-income fund managers 2 . Federated also ranks as the fifth-largest SMA manager 3 . For more information, visit FederatedInvestors.com . ### 1) Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures (Adjusted EPS and Adjusted Net Income): For Q4 2017, GAAP EPS of $1.31, less $0.70 resulting from the revaluation of Federated's net deferred tax liability, results in an adjusted EPS of $0.61 and GAAP net income of $131.8 million, less $70.4 million resulting from the revaluation of Federated's deferred tax liability, results in an adjusted net income of $61.4 million. For full-year 2017, GAAP EPS of $2.87, less $0.69 resulting from the revaluation of Federated's net deferred tax liability, results in an adjusted EPS of $2.18, and GAAP net income of $291.3 million, less $70.4 million resulting from the revaluation of Federated's deferred tax liability, results in adjusted net income of $220.9 million. 2) Strategic Insight, Dec. 31, 2017. Based on assets under management in open-end funds. 3) Money Management Institute/Dover Financial Research, Q3 2017. Federated Securities Corp. is distributor of the Federated funds. Separately managed accounts are made available through Federated Global Investment Management Corp., Federated Investment Counseling and Federated MDTA LLC, each a registered investment adviser. Certain statements in this press release, such as those related to the level of fee waivers and expenses incurred by the company, performance, investor preferences and demand, asset flows and mix, fee arrangements with customers and expenses constitute or may constitute forward-looking statements, which involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements of the company, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Other risks and uncertainties include the ability of the company to predict the level of fee waivers and expenses in future quarters, sustain product demand, and asset flows and mix, which could vary significantly depending on various factors, such as market conditions, investment performance and investor behavior. Other risks and uncertainties include the risk factors discussed in the company's annual and quarterly reports as filed with the SEC. As a result, no assurance can be given as to future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements, and neither the company nor any other person assumes responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of such statements in the future. Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income (in thousands, except per share data) Quarter Ended % Change Q4 2016 to Q4 2017 Quarter Ended % Change Q3 2017 to Q4 2017 Dec. 31, 2017 Dec. 31, 2016 Sept. 30, 2017 Revenue Investment advisory fees, net $ 186,145 $ 195,063 (5) % $ 184,886 1 % Administrative service fees, net—affiliates 49,051 51,466 (5) 47,461 3 Other service fees, net 43,116 43,375 (1) 45,968 (6) Total Revenue 278,312 289,904 (4) 278,315 0 Operating Expenses Distribution 80,408 101,785 (21) 84,838 (5) Compensation and related 71,990 68,740 5 72,454 (1) Professional service fees 8,922 8,001 12 6,948 28 Systems and communications 7,713 7,876 (2) 7,992 (3) Office and occupancy 7,453 7,156 4 7,293 2 Travel and related 3,496 3,501 0 3,258 7 Advertising and promotional 2,771 3,771 (27) 2,345 18 Other 4,725 4,252 11 4,497 5 Total Operating Expenses 187,478 205,082 (9) 189,625 (1) Operating Income 90,834 84,822 7 88,690 2 Nonoperating Income (Expenses) Investment income, net 3,601 1,706 111 3,556 1 Debt expense (1,239) (1,055) 17 (1,250) (1) Other, net (9) 48 NM 1 NM Total Nonoperating Income, net 2,353 699 237 2,307 2 Income before income taxes 93,187 85,521 9 90,997 2 Income tax (benefit) provision 1 (38,787) 28,292 (237) 33,756 (215) Net income including the noncontrolling interests in subsidiaries 131,974 57,229 131 57,241 131 Less: Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests in subsidiaries 164 1,387 NM 802 NM Net Income $ 131,810 $ 55,842 136 % $ 56,439 134 % Amounts Attributable to Federated Investors, Inc. Earnings Per Share 2,3 Basic and diluted $ 1.31 $ 0.52 152 % $ 0.56 134 % Weighted-average shares outstanding Basic 97,084 98,280 97,128 Diluted 97,086 98,280 97,129 Dividends declared per share $ 0.25 $ 1.25 $ 0.25 1) Dec. 31, 2017 includes a reduction of $70.4 million resulting from the revaluation of the net deferred tax liability due to the enactment of the Tax Act. 2) Dec. 31, 2017 includes an increase of $0.70 per share resulting from the revaluation of the net deferred tax liability due to the enactment of the Tax Act. 3) Unvested share-based awards that receive non-forfeitable dividend rights are deemed participating securities and are required to be considered in the computation of earnings per share under the "two-class method." As such, total net income of $5.0 million, $4.5 million and $2.2 million available to unvested restricted shareholders for the quarterly periods ended Dec. 31, 2017, Dec. 31, 2016 and Sept. 30, 2017, respectively, was excluded from the computation of earnings per share. Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Income (in thousands, except per share data) Year Ended Dec. 31, 2017 Dec. 31, 2016 % Change Revenue Investment advisory fees, net $ 731,670 $ 766,825 (5) % Administrative service fees, net—affiliates 188,814 211,646 (11) Other service fees, net 182,440 164,900 11 Total Revenue 1,102,924 1,143,371 (4) Operating Expenses Distribution 342,779 383,648 (11) Compensation and related 289,215 296,466 (2) Systems and communications 31,971 31,271 2 Office and occupancy 29,258 27,379 7 Professional service fees 29,064 29,443 (1) Travel and related 12,646 13,228 (4) Advertising and promotional 11,166 14,522 (23) Other 15,317 11,731 31 Total Operating Expenses 761,416 807,688 (6) Operating Income 341,508 335,683 2 Nonoperating Income (Expenses) Investment income, net 15,308 9,364 63 Debt expense (4,772) (4,173) 14 Other, net (42) 60 NM Total Nonoperating Income, net 10,494 5,251 100 Income before income taxes 352,002 340,934 3 Income tax provision 1 57,101 119,420 (52) Net income including the noncontrolling interests in subsidiaries 294,901 221,514 33 Less: Net income attributable to the noncontrolling interests in subsidiaries 3,560 12,595 NM Net Income $ 291,341 $ 208,919 39 % Amounts Attributable to Federated Investors, Inc. Earnings Per Share 2,3 Basic and diluted $ 2.87 $ 2.03 41 % Weighted-average shares outstanding Basic 97,411 99,116 Diluted 97,412 99,117 Dividends declared per share $ 1.00 $ 2.00 1) Dec. 31, 2017 includes a reduction of $70.4 million resulting from the revaluation of the net deferred tax liability due to the enactment of the Tax Act. 2) Dec. 31, 2017 includes an increase of $0.69 per share resulting from the revaluation of the net deferred tax liability due to the enactment of the Tax Act. 3) Unvested share-based awards that receive non-forfeitable dividend rights are deemed participating securities and are required to be considered in the computation of earnings per share under the "two-class method." As such, total net income of $11.4 million and $7.6 million available to unvested restricted shareholders for the years ended Dec. 31, 2017 and Dec. 31, 2016, respectively, was excluded from the computation of earnings per share. Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (in thousands) Dec. 31, 2017 Dec. 31, 2016 Assets Cash and other investments $ 369,538 $ 301,149 Other current assets 67,736 58,611 Intangible assets, net, including goodwill 736,915 733,137 Other long-term assets 57,221 62,210 Total Assets $ 1,231,410 $ 1,155,107 Liabilities, Redeemable Noncontrolling Interests and Equity Current liabilities $ 128,849 $ 162,538 Long-term debt 170,000 165,750 Other long-term liabilities 141,183 199,673 Redeemable noncontrolling interests 30,163 31,362 Equity excluding treasury stock 1,039,947 851,166 Treasury stock (278,732) (255,382) Total Liabilities, Redeemable Noncontrolling Interests and Equity $ 1,231,410 $ 1,155,107 Unaudited Changes in Equity and Fixed-Income Fund and Separate Account Assets (in millions) Quarter Ended Year Ended Dec. 31, 2017 Sept. 30, 2017 Dec. 31, 2016 Dec. 31, 2017 Dec. 31, 2016 Equity funds Beginning assets $ 37,741 $ 37,225 $ 37,777 $ 36,231 $ 34,125 Sales 1,375 1,275 2,050 5,764 11,617 Redemptions (2,090) (2,058) (3,462) (9,589) (11,159) Net (redemptions) sales (715) (783) (1,412) (3,825) 458 Net exchanges 34 (58) 38 (38) (41) Acquisition-related 0 0 0 287 0 Market gains and losses 1 1,041 1,357 (172) 5,446 1,689 Ending assets $ 38,101 $ 37,741 $ 36,231 $ 38,101 $ 36,231 Equity separate accounts 2 Beginning assets $ 29,314 $ 28,562 $ 26,337 $ 26,150 $ 19,431 Sales 3 1,257 1,426 2,299 6,447 10,773 Redemptions 3 (1,445) (1,343) (1,825) (6,617) (5,469) Net (redemptions) sales 3 (188) 83 474 (170) 5,304 Net exchanges 0 0 (1) 0 0 Market gains and losses 1 912 669 (660) 4,058 1,415 Ending assets $ 30,038 $ 29,314 $ 26,150 $ 30,038 $ 26,150 Total equity 2 Beginning assets $ 67,055 $ 65,787 $ 64,114 $ 62,381 $ 53,556 Sales 3 2,632 2,701 4,349 12,211 22,390 Redemptions 3 (3,535) (3,401) (5,287) (16,206) (16,628) Net (redemptions) sales 3 (903) (700) (938) (3,995) 5,762 Net exchanges 34 (58) 37 (38) (41) Acquisition-related 0 0 0 287 0 Market gains and losses 1 1,953 2,026 (832) 9,504 3,104 Ending assets $ 68,139 $ 67,055 $ 62,381 $ 68,139 $ 62,381 Fixed-income funds Beginning assets $ 41,214 $ 40,880 $ 39,796 $ 39,434 $ 37,989 Sales 3,675 3,424 4,182 14,814 14,624 Redemptions (3,740) (3,508) (3,988) (14,670) (14,403) Net (redemptions) sales (65) (84) 194 144 221 Net exchanges (50) 53 (57) (11) (69) Acquisition-related 0 0 0 148 0 Market gains and losses 1 101 365 (499) 1,485 1,293 Ending assets $ 41,200 $ 41,214 $ 39,434 $ 41,200 $ 39,434 Fixed-income separate accounts 2 Beginning assets $ 11,558 $ 11,627 $ 12,048 $ 11,880 $ 13,130 Sales 3 12,096 163 460 12,750 1,164 Redemptions 3 (892) (389) (380) (2,377) (3,097) Net sales (redemptions) 3 11,204 (226) 80 10,373 (1,933) Net exchanges 0 0 1 (56) 1 Market gains and losses 1 255 157 (249) 820 682 Ending assets $ 23,017 $ 11,558 $ 11,880 $ 23,017 $ 11,880 Total fixed income 2 Beginning assets $ 52,772 $ 52,507 $ 51,844 $ 51,314 $ 51,119 Sales 3 15,771 3,587 4,642 27,564 15,788 Redemptions 3 (4,632) (3,897) (4,368) (17,047) (17,500) Net sales (redemptions) 3 11,139 (310) 274 10,517 (1,712) Net exchanges (50) 53 (56) (67) (68) Acquisition-related 0 0 0 148 0 Market gains and losses 1 356 522 (748) 2,305 1,975 Ending assets $ 64,217 $ 52,772 $ 51,314 $ 64,217 $ 51,314 1) Reflects the approximate changes in the fair value of the securities held by the portfolios and, to a lesser extent, reinvested dividends, distributions, net investment income and the impact of changes in foreign exchange rates. 2) Includes separately managed accounts, institutional accounts, sub-advised funds and other managed products. 3) For certain accounts, Sales and Redemptions are calculated as the remaining difference between beginning and ending assets after the calculation of total investment return. Unaudited Total Changes in Equity and Fixed-Income Assets (in millions) Quarter Ended Year Ended Dec. 31, 2017 Sept. 30, 2017 Dec. 31, 2016 Dec. 31, 2017 Dec. 31, 2016 Funds Beginning assets $ 78,955 $ 78,105 $ 77,573 $ 75,665 $ 72,114 Sales 5,050 4,699 6,232 20,578 26,241 Redemptions (5,830) (5,566) (7,450) (24,259) (25,562) Net (redemptions) sales (780) (867) (1,218) (3,681) 679 Net exchanges (16) (5) (19) (49) (110) Acquisition-related 0 0 0 435 0 Market gains and losses 1 1,142 1,722 (671) 6,931 2,982 Ending assets $ 79,301 $ 78,955 $ 75,665 $ 79,301 $ 75,665 Separate accounts 2 Beginning assets $ 40,872 $ 40,189 $ 38,385 $ 38,030 $ 32,561 Sales 3 13,353 1,589 2,759 19,197 11,937 Redemptions 3 (2,337) (1,732) (2,205) (8,994) (8,566) Net sales (redemptions) 3 11,016 (143) 554 10,203 3,371 Net exchanges 0 0 0 (56) 1 Market gains and losses 1 1,167 826 (909) 4,878 2,097 Ending assets $ 53,055 $ 40,872 $ 38,030 $ 53,055 $ 38,030 Total assets 2 Beginning assets $ 119,827 $ 118,294 $ 115,958 $ 113,695 $ 104,675 Sales 3 18,403 6,288 8,991 39,775 38,178 Redemptions 3 (8,167) (7,298) (9,655) (33,253) (34,128) Net sales (redemptions) 3 10,236 (1,010) (664) 6,522 4,050 Net exchanges (16) (5) (19) (105) (109) Acquisition-related 0 0 0 435 0 Market gains and losses 1 2,309 2,548 (1,580) 11,809 5,079 Ending assets $ 132,356 $ 119,827 $ 113,695 $ 132,356 $ 113,695 1) Reflects the approximate changes in the fair value of the securities held by the portfolios and, to a lesser extent, reinvested dividends, distributions, net investment income and the impact of changes in foreign exchange rates. 2) Includes separately managed accounts, institutional accounts, sub-advised funds and other managed products. 3) For certain accounts, Sales and Redemptions are calculated as the remaining difference between beginning and ending assets after the calculation of total investment return. Unaudited Managed Assets (in millions) Dec. 31, 2017 Sept. 30, 2017 June 30, 2017 March 31, 2017 Dec. 31, 2016 By Asset Class Equity $ 68,139 $ 67,055 $ 65,787 $ 64,770 $ 62,381 Fixed-income 64,217 52,772 52,507 51,780 51,314 Money market 265,214 243,840 242,096 245,198 252,213 Total Managed Assets $ 397,570 $ 363,667 $ 360,390 $ 361,748 $ 365,908 By Product Type Funds: Equity $ 38,101 $ 37,741 $ 37,225 $ 37,159 $ 36,231 Fixed-income 41,200 41,214 40,880 40,239 39,434 Money market 185,536 177,865 173,338 175,232 206,411 Total Fund Assets $ 264,837 $ 256,820 $ 251,443 $ 252,630 $ 282,076 Separate Accounts: Equity $ 30,038 $ 29,314 $ 28,562 $ 27,611 $ 26,150 Fixed-income 23,017 11,558 11,627 11,541 11,880 Money market 79,678 65,975 68,758 69,966 45,802 Total Separate Account Assets $ 132,733 $ 106,847 $ 108,947 $ 109,118 $ 83,832 Total Managed Assets $ 397,570 $ 363,667 $ 360,390 $ 361,748 $ 365,908 Unaudited Average Managed Assets Quarter Ended (in millions) Dec. 31, 2017 Sept. 30, 2017 June 30, 2017 March 31, 2017 Dec. 31, 2016 By Asset Class Equity $ 67,466 $ 66,127 $ 65,399 $ 63,780 $ 62,575 Fixed-income 64,351 52,631 52,291 51,802 51,526 Money market 250,197 241,749 242,298 247,591 244,197 Total Avg. Managed Assets $ 382,014 $ 360,507 $ 359,988 $ 363,173 $ 358,298 By Product Type Funds: Equity $ 37,926 $ 37,301 $ 37,325 $ 36,957 $ 36,667 Fixed-income 41,240 40,967 40,670 40,086 39,571 Money market 176,918 174,358 172,626 182,418 203,474 Total Avg. Fund Assets $ 256,084 $ 252,626 $ 250,621 $ 259,461 $ 279,712 Separate Accounts: Equity $ 29,540 $ 28,826 $ 28,074 $ 26,823 $ 25,908 Fixed-income 23,111 11,664 11,621 11,716 11,955 Money market 73,279 67,391 69,672 65,173 40,723 Total Avg. Separate Account Assets $ 125,930 $ 107,881 $ 109,367 $ 103,712 $ 78,586 Total Avg. Managed Assets $ 382,014 $ 360,507 $ 359,988 $ 363,173 $ 358,298 Unaudited Average Managed Assets Year Ended (in millions) Dec. 31, 2017 Dec. 31, 2016 By Asset Class Equity $ 65,693 $ 59,431 Fixed-income 55,269 51,161 Money market 245,459 252,346 Total Avg. Managed Assets $ 366,421 $ 362,938 By Product Type Funds: Equity $ 37,377 $ 35,846 Fixed-income 40,741 38,772 Money market 176,580 213,906 Total Avg. Fund Assets $ 254,698 $ 288,524 Separate Accounts: Equity $ 28,316 $ 23,585 Fixed-income 14,528 12,389 Money market 68,879 38,440 Total Avg. Separate Account Assets $ 111,723 $ 74,414 Total Avg. Managed Assets $ 366,421 $ 362,938 releases/federated-investors-inc-reports-fourth-quarter-and-full-year-2017-earnings-300588579.html SOURCE Federated Investors, Inc.

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/25/pr-newswire-federated-investors-inc-reports-fourth-quarter-and-full-year-2017-earnings.html

Saudi Arabia Takes Reins of Construction Giant Binladin Group

DUBAI—Saudi Arabia is assuming supervisory control of the Saudi Binladin Group and could take a stake in the construction giant, people familiar with the matter said, a sign of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s willingness to disrupt the established corporate order in the kingdom. The move further upends a decades-old alliance with the country’s rulers that made the bin Ladens one of the kingdom’s wealthiest families. It comes as the company’s septuagenarian chairman, Bakr bin Laden, remains detained after his arrest in November... RELATED VIDEO Prince Mohammed bin Salman's Ambitious Plans for Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has huge ambitions for change in Saudi Arabia. But will his reforms also mean greater turbulence in the Middle East? WSJ's Niki Blasina reports. Photo: Getty To Read the Full Story Subscribe Sign In

https://www.wsj.com/articles/saudi-arabia-takes-reins-of-construction-giant-binladin-group-1515773084

Nintendo Just Had Its Best Third Quarter in Eight Years Thanks to Booming Switch Demand

videogames Nintendo Just Had Its Best Third Quarter in Eight Years Thanks to Booming Switch Demand A Nintendo Switch exhibit during the Electronic Entertainment Expo E3 at the Los Angeles Convention Center in June. Christian Petersen Getty Images By Reuters 6:33 AM EST Japanese videogames maker Nintendo Co Ltd reported its biggest third-quarter operating profit in eight years, driven by smashing demand for its new Switch games console, and said it expected annual earnings to outstrip its previous estimate. Growing popularity of the hybrid home-portable Switch has led to a near-doubling of Nintendo‘s stock price to nine-year highs since the device’s launch in March. Sales have exceeded initial estimates, on track to beat the lifetime numbers of its predecessor Wii U, leaving suppliers scrambling for parts. Switch console sales will likely hit 15 million units in the year to March and climb to 20 million next year, Nintendo said, fueling hopes of a repeat of the success of the first Wii that debuted in late 2006 and sold more than 100 million units. “The momentum for Switch over the last 10 months has been stronger than that of the Wii,” Nintendo President Tatsumi Kimishima said at an earnings briefing on Wednesday. “The key to Switch’s success in the second year will be to attract non-gamers,” he added. Analysts believe Nintendo‘s plan to launch “Labo,” LEGO-style accessories for the console that kids can build themselves on cardboard sheets, could bring in a younger audience. “This is exactly the kind of crazy idea that Nintendo is known for which we believe will help expand the company’s audience,” analysts at Macquarie wrote in a recent research note. It will be “appealing to younger audience which has not been addressed by Nintendo for some time.” Nintendo sold 7.2 million Switch consoles in the three months through December and raised its annual sales forecast by a million from an earlier projection of 14 million units. That already exceeds sales of 13.56 million consoles for the Wii U that was on the market from late 2012 through 2017. “Switch sales during the holiday season were stronger than expected in Japan, the United States and Europe,” Kimishima said at the briefing. Q3 BLOWS PAST CONSENSUS Stellar demand for Switch pushed Nintendo‘s operating profit up almost four-fold to 116.50 billion yen ($1.07 billion) for the third quarter. This was the highest ever it has earned for the October-December period since 2009. The results beat consensus estimate of around 67 billion yen from six analysts polled by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. The Kyoto-based company raised its profit forecast for the year ending March to 160 billion yen, from 120 billion yen, versus analysts’ estimate of 144 billion yen. The company’s annual profit hit a record high of 555 billion yen in the year to March 2009, driven by Wii sales. Shares of Nintendo closed up 2% before the quarterly results were announced, versus the wider market that closed down about 1%. Nintendo, which relies heavily on Switch to drive its earnings, is looking to diversify its revenue sources by moving into new areas such as smartphone gaming and theme parks with its roster of popular characters. But its efforts in smartphone gaming have produced lackluster results. It has released four smartphone titles over the last two years, but recently decided to ditch the first one, a social networking service-style application called Miitomo, due to sluggish demand. Pokemon GO was a phenomenal success, but Nintendo receives profits only through an affiliate which developed the game with a Google spinoff. “The smartphone business is yet to become a profit pillar for Nintendo,” Kimishima said. “We still have a lot to do.” SPONSORED FINANCIAL CONTENT

http://fortune.com/2018/01/31/nintendo-switch-sales-q3/

UK Stocks-Factors to watch on Jan 10

Jan 10 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 index is seen opening down 4 points on Wednesday, according to financial bookmakers. * IAG: The administrator of Niki said he would press ahead with an agreed sale of the insolvent Austrian airline to British Airways owner IAG after a German court ruling fanned concern that the deal could unravel. * GSK: GlaxoSmithKline's new chief executive said on Tuesday that the British drugmaker would have a look at Pfizer Inc's consumer products business, but would not overpay for the asset. * NOBLE GROUP: Noble Group is closing down its London oil desk and winding down its Asia oil operations, sources familiar with the matter said, as heavy losses and high debt force what was once Asia's biggest commodities trader to restructure. * UK ECONOMY: Britain's economy looks set for an underwhelming 2018, according to a major survey on Wednesday that showed businesses are in a subdued mood ahead of Brexit. * OIL: Oil prices hit their highest levels since 2014 on Wednesday due to ongoing production cuts led by OPEC as well as healthy demand, although analysts cautioned that markets may be overheating. * The UK blue chip index closed 0.45 percent higher at 7,731 points on Tuesday, as Morrisons led a buoyant retail sector on the back of a well-received Christmas trading update. * For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on: cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageId=livemarkets * UK CORPORATE DIARY: Shoe Zone Plc Full Year 2017 Earnings Release Taylor Wimpey Plc Trading Statement Release Tullow Oil Plc Trading Statement Release Big Yellow Group Q3 2017 Interim Plc Management Statement Release Superdry Plc Half Year 2018 Earnings Release J Sainsbury Plc Q3 2017/18 Trading Statement Release Pagegroup Plc Q4 2017 Trading Statement Release TODAY'S UK PAPERS > Financial Times > Other business headlines Multimedia versions of Reuters Top News are now available for: * 3000 Xtra : visit topnews.session.rservices.com * For Top News : topnews.reuters.com (Reporting by Radhika Rukmangadhan in Bengaluru)

https://www.reuters.com/article/britain-stocks-factors/uk-stocks-factors-to-watch-on-jan-10-idUSL4N1P521F

Cranberries singer Dolores O'Riordan laid to rest in home town

January 23, 2018 / 1:15 PM / Updated 2 hours ago Cranberries singer Dolores O'Riordan laid to rest in home town Clodagh Kilcoyne 2 Min Read BALLYBRICKEN, Ireland (Reuters) - Cranberries lead singer Dolores O‘Riordan was laid to rest at a private funeral in her home town on Tuesday, remembered as someone who rescued people from “the darkness of depression”. O‘Riordan, 46, whose distinctive and powerful Irish voice helped fuel The Cranberries’ rapid rise in the early 1990s, was found dead in a London hotel last week during a recording trip ahead of a planned tour. No cause of death has yet been established. Her mother, three children and bandmates Noel Hogan, Mike Hogan and Fergal Lawler attended the service at Saint Ailbe’s Church in the small rural County Limerick town of Ballybricken in the south-west of Ireland. “No words are adequate to describe Dolores or to accurately state the influence for good she has been over the years,” Canon Liam McNamara, a family friend who first met O‘Riordan when she was a teenager, told the mourners. Slideshow (4 Images) “The numbers she rescued from the darkness of depression are impossible to count.” Candles lit the streets of Ballybricken late on Monday, as her coffin was brought to the church where McNamara said she once sang and played keyboard in the local choir. The mass began with a recording of Ave Maria sung by O‘Riordan and Italian opera star Luciano Pavarotti. A guitar and a platinum disc award - symbols from a musical career that saw The Cranberries sell over 40 million records, second only to U2 among Irish acts - were brought to the alter. O‘Riordan, whose hits with The Cranberries such as “Linger” and “Zombie” catapulted her to fame as a shy 22-year-old, was the “voice of her generation,” Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said last week. Writing by Padraic Halpin Editing by Jeremy Gaunt

https://in.reuters.com/article/people-doloresoriordan/cranberries-singer-dolores-oriordan-laid-to-rest-in-home-town-idINKBN1FC1NX

Cray Announces Selected Preliminary 2017 Financial Results

SEATTLE, Jan. 16, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Global supercomputer leader Cray Inc. (Nasdaq:CRAY) today announced selected preliminary 2017 financial results. The 2017 anticipated results presented in this release are based on preliminary financial data and are subject to change until the year-end financial reporting process is complete. Based on preliminary results, total revenue for 2017 is expected to be about $390 million. While a wide range of results remains possible for 2018 and based on the Company’s preliminary 2017 results, Cray expects revenue to grow by 10-15% for 2018. Revenue is expected to be about $50 million for the first quarter of 2018. “With a strong effort across the company and in partnership with our customers, we completed all our large acceptances during the fourth quarter,” said Peter Ungaro, president and CEO of Cray. “A couple of smaller acceptances that we did not finish are now expected to be completed early in 2018. While 2017 was challenging, we’re beginning to see early signs of a rebound in our core market and I’m proud of the progress we made during the year to position the company for long-term growth.” Based on currently available information, Cray estimates that the impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (Tax Legislation) passed in December 2017 will result in a reduction to the Company’s GAAP earnings for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2017 in the range of $30-35 million. The large majority of this charge is due to the remeasurement of the Company’s U.S. deferred tax assets at lower enacted corporate tax rates. The charge may differ from this estimate, possibly materially, due to, among other things, changes in interpretations and assumptions the Company has made, and guidance that may be issued. This charge has no impact on the Company’s previously provided non-GAAP guidance. Going forward, the Company does not expect an increase in its non-GAAP tax rates as a result of the Tax Legislation. About Cray Inc. Global supercomputing leader Cray Inc. (Nasdaq:CRAY) provides innovative systems and solutions enabling scientists and engineers in industry, academia and government to meet existing and future simulation and analytics challenges. Leveraging more than 40 years of experience in developing and servicing the world’s most advanced supercomputers, Cray offers a comprehensive portfolio of supercomputers and big data storage and analytics solutions delivering unrivaled performance, efficiency and scalability. Cray’s Adaptive Supercomputing vision is focused on delivering innovative next-generation products that integrate diverse processing technologies into a unified architecture, allowing customers to meet the market’s continued demand for realized performance. Go to www.cray.com for more information. Safe Harbor Statement This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, including, but not limited to, statements related to Cray’s financial guidance and expected operating results and Cray’s ability to grow in the future. These statements involve current expectations, forecasts of future events and other statements that are not historical facts. Inaccurate assumptions as well as known and unknown risks and uncertainties can affect the accuracy of forward-looking statements and cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated by these forward-looking statements. Factors that could affect actual future events or results include, but are not limited to, the risk that Cray does not achieve the operational or financial results that it expects, the risk that changes to these preliminary results will be required as a result of completing the financial reporting closing process and financial audit, the risk that Cray will not be able to secure orders for Cray systems to be accepted in the future when or at the levels expected, the risk that the segments of the high-end of the supercomputing market that Cray targets do not recover from the current downturn as early or as completely as expected or at all, the risk that the systems ordered by customers are not delivered when expected, do not perform as expected once delivered or have technical issues that must be corrected before acceptance, the risk that the acceptance process for delivered systems is not completed, or customer acceptances are not received, when expected or at all, the risk that Cray is not able to successfully sell products and services in the big data, artificial intelligence and commercial markets as expected or at all, the risk that Cray is not able to expand and penetrate its addressable market as expected or at all, the risk that the expense and/or effort to address Cray systems at customer sites that have issues with third party components or with Cray components, including issues related to the “Spectre” and “Meltdown” processor security vulnerabilities, is material, the risk that Cray is not able to successfully complete its planned product development efforts in a timely fashion or at all, the risk that government funding for research and development projects is less than expected, the risk that new third-party processors and other components for our systems are not available with the anticipated performance, timing or pricing, the risk that Cray is not able to achieve anticipated gross margin or expense levels and such other risks as identified in Cray’s quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the period ended September 30, 2017, and from time to time in other reports filed by Cray with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. You should not rely unduly on these forward-looking statements, which apply only as of the date of this release. Cray undertakes no duty to publicly announce or report revisions to these statements as new information becomes available that may change Cray’s expectations. Cray is a federally registered trademark of Cray Inc. in the United States and other countries. Cray Media: Investors: Nick Davis Paul Hiemstra 206/701-2123 206/701-2044 pr@cray.com ir@cray.com Source:Cray Inc

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/16/globe-newswire-cray-announces-selected-preliminary-2017-financial-results.html

Google teams up with China's Tencent

Google teams up with China's Tencent Friday, January 19, 2018 - 01:30 Alphabet's Google signed a patent licensing deal with Tencent as it looks to expand in China where many of its products are blocked by regulators. Aleksandra Michalska reports. ▲ Hide Transcript ▶ View Transcript Alphabet's Google signed a patent licensing deal with Tencent as it looks to expand in China where many of its products are blocked by regulators. Aleksandra Michalska reports. Press CTRL+C (Windows), CMD+C (Mac), or long-press the URL below on your mobile device to copy the code https://reut.rs/2mRPg8x

https://www.reuters.com/video/2018/01/19/google-teams-up-with-chinas-tencent?videoId=387307115

German industrial workers widen strikes in wage dispute

January 9, 2018 / 8:11 AM / Updated an hour ago German industrial workers widen strikes in wage dispute Reuters Staff 2 Min Read HAMBURG, Jan 9 (Reuters) - German industrial workers are widening industrial action on Tuesday, with tens of thousands of staff at metals and engineering companies expected to down their tools in support of wage claims by union IG Metall. With the economy in robust health and unemployment at record lows, the country’s biggest union is demanding an inflation-busting 6 percent pay hike this year for about 3.9 million workers. Ahead of a round of regional negotiations due to begin on Thursday, employers have so far offered 2 percent plus a one-off 200 euro ($240) payment in the first quarter. IG Metall has called for industrial action at 143 companies in North Rhine-Westphalia, the industrial heartland of Germany, including LED components firm Lumileds and Thyssenkrupp unit Rothe Erde. In Bavaria, employees at 32 companies are expected to walk out. That adds to more than 15,000 workers that have already taken action across the nation since the start of last week. IG Metall is also campaigning for a right to reduce weekly hours to 28 from 35, and return to full-time employment after two years, for shift workers and those caring for children or other relatives. Employers have rejected that proposal too. The nationwide dispute follows a strong year of growth in Europe’s largest economy, driven by domestic demand from record numbers of German workers while borrowing costs and inflation remain low and exporters benefit from a global recovery. That pattern should extend through 2018, with the Ifo economic institute last month forecasting growth of 2.6 percent for the year. Talks between unions and employers’ associations are set for Thursday in the southwestern state of Baden-Wuerttemberg, where Volkswagen’s Porsche, Mercedes-Benz maker Daimler and automotive suppliers including Bosch are based. Next door in Bavaria, home to companies such as engineering group Siemens and carmaker BMW, negotiations will resume on Jan. 15, and to the north in North Rhine-Westphalia on Jan. 18. $1 = 0.8299 euros Reporting by Jan Schwartz; Writing by Maria Sheahan; Editing by Louise Heavens

https://www.reuters.com/article/germany-wages/german-industrial-workers-widen-strikes-in-wage-dispute-idUSL8N1P415L

METALS-Cold weather heats up lead metal market

January 4, 2018 / 2:03 AM / Updated 9 minutes ago METALS-Cold weather heats up lead metal market Reuters Staff 4 Min Read SYDNEY, Jan 4 (Reuters) - Forecasts for more frigid weather in the United States this week supported Chinese lead futures on Thursday amid expectations of seasonally strong demand and likely winter shortages. More than 80 percent of global lead consumption is for batteries mainly for autos, and the peak demand period is during the height of winter when freezing temperatures cause battery failures. China accounts for about 40 percent of global lead demand, estimated at around 12 million tonnes this year, but faces a potential supply shortfall over coming months due to an environmental crackdown on polluting industries. FUNDAMENTALS * LEAD: Three-month lead on the LME slipped 1 percent to $2,553 a tonne by 0138, but remained close to the 11-week peak touched in the Wednesday London session. The most-trade lead contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange was up 0.2 percent to 19,290 yuan ($2,967) a tonne. * DEFICIT: Wood Mackenzie forecasts the lead market will see a deficit of 115,000 tonnes this year and 56,000 tonnes in 2019 after a 119,000 shortfall last year. * FREEZING TEMPERATURES: Much of the eastern United States is in the grips of a sustained cold spell. * DOLLAR UP: The dollar extended gains on Thursday after upbeat U.S. data and supportive minutes from the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting helped it shake off recent weakness. * PRICES: LME copper added 0.3 percent to $7,167 a tonne, while LME aluminium, nickel and zinc all fell. * COBALT UNEASE: The emergence of two companies holding large amounts of cobalt on the London Metal Exchange is creating nervousness about price volatility among market participants as interest in the metal continues to soar. * SAMARCO TALKS: Vale SA is in talks with BHP Billiton Ltd over the future of their joint venture, Samarco Mineração SA, and one alternative is for the Brazilian miner to buy out its partner, a source with knowledge of the matter said on Wednesday. * For the top stories in metals and other news, click or MARKETS NEWS * Asian shares scaled a 10-year high on Thursday as solid economic data from the United States and Germany reinforced investors’ optimism while oil prices hovered at 2-1/2-year high with unrest in Iran stoking supply disruption concerns. DATA/EVENTS 0145 China Service sector PMI Dec 0850 France Final composite PMI Dec 0850 France Final service sector PMI Dec 0855 Germany Final composite PMI Dec 0855 Germany Final service sector PMI Dec 0900 Euro Zone Final Service sector PMI Dec 0900 Euro Zone Final composite PMI Dec 0930 U.K. Mortgage approvals Nov 0930 U.K. Service sector PMI Dec 1230 U.S. Companies’ planned layoffs Dec 1315 U.S. ADP employment report Dec 1445 U.S. Final service sector PMI Dec 1445 U.S. Final manufacturing PMI Dec PRICES

https://www.reuters.com/article/global-metals/metals-cold-weather-heats-up-lead-metal-market-idUSL4N1OZ16X

Girlfriend of Las Vegas Shooter Not Expected to Face Charges

LAS VEGAS—The girlfriend of the Las Vegas mass shooter Stephen Paddock isn’t expected to face criminal charges, but investigators are still considering other charges connected to the massacre that left 58 dead, authorities said Friday. The announcement concerning Marilou Danley, who was overseas at the time of the Oct. 1 attack, came as Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Sheriff Joseph Lombardo released an 81-page preliminary report on the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history. ... RELATED VIDEO Las Vegas Shooting Leaves Scores Dead, Hundreds Injured Dozens of people were killed when a shooter opened fire Sunday at a country music festival in Las Vegas from the nearby Mandalay Bay Hotel. Photo: Getty Images (Originally published Oct. 1, 2017)

https://www.wsj.com/articles/girlfriend-of-las-vegas-shooter-not-expected-to-face-charges-1516393351

UPDATE 1-Verdict in Hexagon CEO's trial to come Jan. 10

January 8, 2018 / 2:20 PM / Updated 36 minutes ago UPDATE 1-Verdict in Hexagon CEO's trial to come Jan. 10 Reuters Staff 1 Min Read (Adds exact time in final paragraph) OSLO, Jan 8 (Reuters) - The verdict in the insider trading trial of Hexagon Chief Executive Ola Rollen will be issued in the evening of Jan. 10, an Oslo court said on Monday. Prosecutors have called for an 18 month prison term for Rollen over his 2015 purchase of shares in Norway’s Next Biometrics, a transaction which did not involve Hexagon. One of Sweden’s best known business leaders, Rollen maintained his innocence during the trial. The verdict will be published at around 1830 CET (1730 GMT) on Jan. 10, the Oslo District Court said in a statement. (Reporting by Terje Solsvik, editing by Camilla Knudsen)

https://www.reuters.com/article/hexagon-ab-ceo-trial/update-1-verdict-in-hexagon-ceos-trial-to-come-jan-10-idUSL8N1P3476

Olympics: IOC extends North Korea deadline for Pyeongchang Games

BERLIN (Reuters) - The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has extended the deadline for registration of North Korean athletes for the Pyeongchang winter Olympics and is planning more talks with all sides, it said on Monday The IOC, which is eager to have North Korean athletes at the Games, did not say until when the registration deadline had been extended until but most sports have completed their Olympic qualifying events. Only a figure skating pair from North Korea has secured a spot in the Games in South Korea in February, although several other athletes could qualify through special places offered by the Olympic body. “We welcome the discussion which will take place on Wednesday between the governments of the Republic of Korea (ROK) and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK),” an IOC spokesman said. South Korea offered talks with North Korea this week, amid a tense standoff over Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile programs, after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said in a New Year’s Day speech that he was “open to dialogue” with Seoul. Kim and U.S. President Donald Trump have exchanged fiery barbs in the last year and Trump has warned that the United States would have no choice but to “totally destroy” North Korea if forced to defend itself or its allies. “As far as the participation of athletes from the National Olympic Committee of DPRK in the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 is concerned, the IOC has been having discussions with both sides for a long time,” the spokesman said. “In doing so we have kept the door open by extending the deadline for registration, and by offering support to North Korean athletes in the qualification process, whilst always respecting United Nations sanctions.” North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said in his New Year’s Day speech that he would consider sending a delegation to the Winter Olympics and North Korea last week reopened a long-closed border hotline with South Korea for talks. “The IOC will at very short notice continue its talks with all the parties concerned so that we can take the necessary decisions about participation and the format of any participation in due time,” the IOC spokesman said. ”The IOC’s mission is always to ensure the participation of all qualified athletes, beyond all political tensions and divisions. “With regard to the very particular situation on the Korean peninsula we need the political commitment from all parties concerned to make such a participation possible. Once this political commitment is clear the IOC will take the final decision.” Reporting by Karolos Grohmann, editing by Ed Osmond

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-olympics-2018-northkorea/olympics-ioc-extends-north-korea-deadline-for-pyeongchang-games-idUSKBN1EX1H8

Doug Wenners Joins Privia Health at the Helm as Acting CEO

ARLINGTON, Va., Jan. 4, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Privia Health, LLC ("Privia") announced today that Doug Wenners, Executive Vice President of Brighton Health Group and former Senior Executive for Anthem, Inc., has assumed the role of acting Chief Executive Officer for Privia Health. Wenners will lead the company in its next phase of growth partnership with the doctors and patients that they serve, with a focus on optimizing patient outcomes. Wenners brings a depth of experience from different facets of healthcare and is a nationally recognized leader in value-based payment and payer/provider partnership models. At Anthem, Wenners led the design and implementation of the largest commercial pay-for-value program in the country. He is also a graduate of The Dartmouth Institute at Dartmouth College, making him an internationally recognized leader in health outcomes research and policy. "Doug is the right leader to guide Privia during this transformative period in the company's evolution and during this pivotal moment in healthcare," said Bill Sullivan, Chairman of Brighton Health Group. "Doug's experience, vision, passion and human-centered leadership approach to the culture and mission will strengthen Privia as a driving force in changing healthcare for the better." As Privia has just surpassed its four-year milestone, it is in an advantageous position to accelerate its proven model of physician partnership and patient care to more providers across markets, continuing its rapid growth nationwide. In recent months, Privia has launched virtual visit capabilities to improve patient access and has plans to launch several new clinical innovations in 2018. "As a 25-year survivor of Hodgkin's Disease, driving positive change in healthcare is a lifelong passion that is extremely personal to me," said Wenners. "I am honored to lead a company that is a national leader in quality, innovation and thought-leadership within the healthcare industry. I am committed to the success of Privia, its physicians, and the patients we serve, and I believe that our best days as a company are ahead of us." About Privia Health Privia Health LLC, based in Arlington, VA, is a national physician practice management and population health technology company that partners with leading doctors to keep people healthy, better manage disease, and to reward providers for delivering high value care. Through its high-performance physician groups, accountable care organizations (Privia Quality Network), and population health management programs, Privia works in close partnership with forward-thinking health plans, national payers, and employees to better align reimbursements to quality and outcomes. Privia's proprietary technology platform, combined with an innovative approach to patient engagement and physician-driven wellness, focuses on building a better healthcare delivery system and a healthier patient population. For More Information: www.priviahealth.com . View original content with multimedia: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/doug-wenners-joins-privia-health-at-the-helm-as-acting-ceo-300577909.html SOURCE Privia Health, LLC

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/04/pr-newswire-doug-wenners-joins-privia-health-at-the-helm-as-acting-ceo.html

Hong Kong star Eric Tsang denies sexual assault allegations

January 17, 2018 / 3:06 PM / Updated 6 hours ago Hong Kong star Eric Tsang denies sexual assault allegations Reuters Staff 3 Min Read HONG KONG (Reuters) - Hong Kong celebrity Eric Tsang denied allegations of sexual misconduct on Wednesday and said he was taking legal action against one of his two accusers. Tsang, a household name in Hong Kong, China, Taiwan and Chinese-speaking communities around the world, is one of the most high-profile Asian stars to face such accusations amid a global campaign against sexual harassment and assault. Speaking at a news conference, Tsang denied any wrongdoing after being accused in widely circulated online reports of raping a Hong Kong actress in Singapore in the 1990s. “Recently, there are some untrue reports on the Internet about myself. Those reports carry very serious accusations toward me,” said Tsang. “They have affected my reputation, and sadly, they have hurt my supporting friends, my beloved family, my children ... I feel that there is a need for me to now step up and to make a public response.” Tsang, an actor, comedian, director and producer, described the rape allegation as “totally made-up”. “I am willing to cooperate with any investigation,” he said. He also said that he was taking legal action against Grace Han, a former head of the Ford Modelling agency in Asia, over allegations she had posted on Weibo, China’s version of Twitter. “Regarding Madam Han’s untrue accusations on Sina Weibo, I have already undertaken legal action to sue her. Currently, legal proceedings are under way,” said Tsang, who took no questions from reporters. Han had written on her verified Weibo account in January, after the rape reports began circulating, that Tsang had made “sexual assaults on female celebrities more than once”. On another occasion, she said Tsang had tried to spike the drinks of some of her models in a karaoke lounge in Hong Kong. Han gave no immediate response to a Reuters request for comment. The campaign aimed at raising awareness of sexual harassment and assault, epitomized by the #MeToo social media hashtag, was last month named Time magazine’s 2017 “Person of the Year”. It has sparked numerous accusations by men and women who said they were victimized by high-powered figures in the entertainment industry and other fields. Reporting by Donny Kwok in Hong Kong and Ben Blanchard in Beijing; Editing by James Pomfret and Alex Richardson

https://in.reuters.com/article/us-hongkong-actor-tsang/hong-kong-star-eric-tsang-denies-sexual-assault-allegations-idINKBN1F61WD

Fernandez blows away rivals to claim sixth European title

January 19, 2018 / 8:12 PM / in 10 minutes Fernandez blows away rivals to claim sixth European title Gabrielle Tetrault-Farber 3 Min Read MOSCOW (Reuters) - A flawed routine could not stop Javier Fernandez from becoming the first man in more than 80 years to win six consecutive European figure skating titles as the Spaniard proved he will be among the title favourites at next month’s Winter Olympics. Despite losing his balance on a double toeloop and stumbling on a triple Salchow, the twice world champion blew away his rivals by more than 20 points with a combined total of 295.55. Russian Dmitri Aliev earned silver with 274.06 while his compatriot Mikhail Kolyada improved on his fourth place finish in the short program to snatch the bronze with 258.90. Skating to the music from the “Man of La Mancha” musical, the 26-year-old Fernandez became the first man since Karl Schaefer in 1936 to win six in a row. Austrian Schaefer won eight successive golds from 1929. The Pyeongchang Olympics will be Fernandez’s third and final Games. He is keen to end his country’s 26-year Winter Olympic medal drought after finishing fourth in Sochi four years ago. Kolyada won the bronze despite struggling with his quadruple jumps throughout his free skate, starting with a fall on his opening quad Lutz. Figure Skating - ISU European Championships 2018 - Men's Victory Ceremony - Moscow, Russia - January 19, 2018 - Gold medallist Javier Fernandez of Spain attends the ceremony. REUTERS/Grigory Dukor FRENCH ICE DANCERS LEAD Earlier on Friday French ice dancers Gabriella Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron took the lead with an upbeat short dance that puts them on pace to win their fourth consecutive European title. Dancing to music by British singer Ed Sheeran, the twice world champions produced a solid performance that gave them a comfortable lead with 81.29 points, less than one point away their personal best in the short dance. Papadakis and Cizeron, who last year became the first ice dancers to break the 200-points barrier, were left frustrated as they went out of sync on their twizzles. “It’s not something that happens often and it’s very frustrating,” Papadakis told reporters. “I guess we will have to work on that.” Russians Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin finished nearly six points behind their French rivals after an energetic performance on home ice. Italians Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte finished third with 74.76 points. Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Christian Radnedge and Pritha Sarkar

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-figureskating-europe-fernandez/fernandez-blows-away-rivals-to-claim-sixth-european-title-idUSKBN1F82JO

Slovenian public sector workers strike for higher wages

January 24, 2018 / 9:25 AM / Updated 25 minutes ago Slovenian public sector workers strike for higher wages Marja Novak 3 Min Read LJUBLJANA (Reuters) - More than 10,000 Slovenian public servants including customs officers, nurses, social workers and university professors started a one-day strike on Wednesday to demand higher wages. Several thousand people are expected to protest for more pay in front of the government building in the centre of Ljubljana later on Wednesday, trade unions said. “Although this is the fifth year of economic growth some wage restrictions imposed in 2012 have not been lifted yet. It is time to scrap all restrictions and increase wages,” said Jakob Pocivavsek, the unions’ head of strike coordination. He told Reuters public sector wages should rise by 16 to 20 percent over a period of time due to be determined in negotiations with the government. Slovenia curbed public sector wage growth in 2012 amid a severe financial crisis which ended with a bank overhaul in 2013 that enabled the country to narrowly avoid an international bailout. It returned to economic growth a year later. “We are trying to share the effects of economic growth as fairly as possible ... and only in the past two years the public sector wage bill was increased by 10.7 percent while the average wage rose by seven percent,” Prime Minister Miro Cerar told parliament on Monday. “That is why it is really hard to understand these extreme pressures of trade unions with enormous demands for more money,” he said, adding “we cannot share what we do not have”. The government has said unions’ demands have reached almost one billion euros (877.3 million pounds) and are unacceptable as they are not justified by productivity and economic growth and would threaten the planned fiscal consolidation. “If we increase the cost of labour in the public sector by one billion euros, we break macroeconomic balances. As a society we cannot survive that,” Public Administration Minister Boris Koprivnikar said. Policemen, nurses and teachers plan separate strikes in February unless the government agrees to raise wages by then. Analysts said unions have increased their demands in recent months because they hope the centre-left government may be more generous ahead of a parliamentary election due in June. Slovenia, a 40-billion-euro economy, expects economic expansion of 3.9 percent this year versus 4.4 percent in 2017, boosted by higher exports and investments. The government plans to run a budget surplus of 0.4 percent of GDP this year versus a deficit of 0.8 percent in 2017. Reporting By Marja Novak, Editing by William Maclean

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-slovenia-strike/slovenian-public-sector-workers-strike-for-higher-wages-idUKKBN1FD0XH

Abbott Reports Fourth-Quarter 2017 Results

ABBOTT PARK, Ill., Jan. 24, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Abbott (NYSE: ABT) today announced financial results for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, 2017. Fourth-quarter worldwide sales of $7.6 billion increased 42.3 percent on a reported basis and 7.7 percent on a comparable operational * basis. Reported diluted EPS from continuing operations under GAAP was a $(0.50) loss in the fourth quarter, primarily due to the net expense of $1.46 billion for the estimated 1 impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (U.S. tax reform). Excluding the impact of U.S. tax reform and other specified items, adjusted diluted EPS from continuing operations was $0.74 in the fourth quarter, at the high end of the previous guidance range of $0.72 to $0.74. Abbott issues full-year 2018 guidance for diluted EPS from continuing operations on a GAAP basis of $1.22 to $1.32. Projected full-year adjusted diluted EPS from continuing operations is $2.80 to $2.90, reflecting 14.0 percent growth 2 at the midpoint. In October, Abbott received U.S. FDA clearance for its Confirm Rx™ Insertable Cardiac Monitor (ICM), the world's first and only smartphone-compatible ICM designed to help physicians remotely identify cardiac arrhythmias, and obtained CE Mark for XIENCE Sierra™, the newest generation of the company's gold-standard XIENCE everolimus-eluting coronary stent system. In November, Abbott initiated the U.S. launch of FreeStyle ® Libre, the only continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system available that comes factory-calibrated and removes the need for routine fingersticks 3 for people with diabetes. In January, Abbott announced that FreeStyle Libre is now available and approved for coverage by the U.S. Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). In December, Abbott received U.S. FDA approval for magnetic resonance (MR)-conditional labeling for its Quadra Assura™ and Quadra Assura MP™ cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillator (CRT-D) devices and its Fortify Assura™ implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD). With these approvals, Abbott has MR-conditional labeling for its full suite of pacemaker, ICD and CRT-D devices. "2017 was a great year for us – we performed well, our new product pipeline was highly productive and we took some very important strategic steps forward," said Miles D. White, chairman and chief executive officer, Abbott. "We're entering 2018 with very good momentum." * See note on comparable operational growth below. FOURTH-QUARTER BUSINESS OVERVIEW Note: Management believes that measuring sales growth rates on a comparable operational basis is an appropriate way for investors to best understand the underlying performance of the business. Comparable operational sales growth: Includes prior year results for St. Jude Medical, which was acquired on Jan. 4, 2017, and reflects a reduction to St. Jude Medical's historic sales related to administrative fees paid to conform to Abbott's presentation; Excludes prior year and current year results for the Abbott Medical Optics (AMO) and St. Jude Medical vascular closure businesses, which were divested during the first quarter 2017; Excludes the current year results for Rapid Diagnostics, which reflect results for Alere, Inc., which was acquired on Oct. 3, 2017; and Excludes the impact of exchange. Following are sales by business segment and commentary for the fourth quarter and the full year: Total Company ($ in millions) % Change vs. 4Q16 Sales 4Q17 Reported Comparable Operational U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total Total * 2,676 4,913 7,589 61.7 33.6 42.3 7.2 7.9 7.7 Nutrition 769 1,015 1,784 3.2 2.8 3.0 3.2 1.1 2.0 Diagnostics 692 1,214 1,906 84.6 37.8 51.7 5.7 7.1 6.7 Established Pharmaceuticals -- 1,145 1,145 n/a 17.0 17.0 n/a 14.0 14.0 Medical Devices 1,206 1,531 2,737 129.0 85.1 102.2 10.5 8.8 9.6 * Total Abbott sales from continuing operations include Other Sales of $17 million. In 2016, the AMO business, which was divested during the first quarter 2017, was reported as part of the Medical Devices group. Comparable operational growth rates above exclude results from the AMO business. % Change vs. 12M16 Sales 12M17 Reported Comparable Operational U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total Total * 9,673 17,717 27,390 49.1 23.3 31.3 4.0 5.4 4.9 Nutrition 3,031 3,894 6,925 2.1 (0.9) 0.4 2.1 (0.5) 0.6 Diagnostics 1,817 3,799 5,616 26.5 12.5 16.7 5.9 5.4 5.5 Established Pharmaceuticals -- 4,287 4,287 n/a 11.1 11.1 n/a 9.5 9.5 Medical Devices 4,710 5,615 10,325 130.1 76.3 97.3 4.7 6.6 5.7 * In 2017, total Abbott sales from continuing operations include Other Sales of $237 million, including sales of $175 million from the AMO business, which was divested during the first quarter 2017. In 2016, the AMO business was reported as part of the Medical Devices group. Comparable operational growth rates above exclude results from the AMO business. n/a = Not Applicable. Note: In order to compute results excluding the impact of exchange rates, current year U.S. dollar sales are multiplied or divided, as appropriate, by the current year average foreign exchange rates and then those amounts are multiplied or divided, as appropriate, by the prior year average foreign exchange rates. Fourth-quarter 2017 worldwide sales of $7.6 billion increased 42.3 percent on a reported basis. On a comparable operational basis, worldwide sales increased 7.7 percent. Refer to tables titled "Non-GAAP Reconciliation of Comparable Historical Revenue" for a reconciliation of comparable historical revenue. Nutrition ($ in millions) % Change vs. 4Q16 Sales 4Q17 Reported Comparable Operational U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total Total 769 1,015 1,784 3.2 2.8 3.0 3.2 1.1 2.0 Pediatric 450 550 1,000 3.6 1.5 2.4 3.6 (0.2) 1.5 Adult 319 465 784 2.7 4.3 3.6 2.7 2.8 2.8 % Change vs. 12M16 Sales 12M17 Reported Comparable Operational U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total Total 3,031 3,894 6,925 2.1 (0.9) 0.4 2.1 (0.5) 0.6 Pediatric 1,777 2,112 3,889 6.0 (4.3) 0.2 6.0 (3.9) 0.3 Adult 1,254 1,782 3,036 (3.0) 3.4 0.7 (3.0) 3.8 0.9 Worldwide Nutrition sales increased 3.0 percent on a reported basis in the fourth quarter, including a favorable 1.0 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 2.0 percent on an operational basis. Worldwide Pediatric Nutrition sales increased 2.4 percent on a reported basis in the fourth quarter, including a favorable 0.9 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 1.5 percent on an operational basis. In the U.S., continued above-market growth was led by Abbott's market-leading toddler brands, PediaSure ® and Pedialyte ® . International sales decreased 0.2 percent on an operational basis, as growth in China and India was offset by continued challenging market conditions in certain other international countries. Worldwide Adult Nutrition sales increased 3.6 percent on a reported basis in the fourth quarter, including a favorable 0.8 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 2.8 percent on an operational basis. Worldwide sales growth was led by Ensure ® , Abbott's market-leading complete and balanced nutrition brand, and Glucerna ® , Abbott's market-leading diabetes-specific nutrition brand. Diagnostics ($ in millions) % Change vs. 4Q16 Sales 4Q17 Reported Comparable Operational U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total Total * 692 1,214 1,906 84.6 37.8 51.7 5.7 7.1 6.7 Core Laboratory 243 856 1,099 7.7 10.0 9.4 7.7 7.0 7.2 Molecular 37 85 122 (14.5) 15.3 4.2 (14.5) 12.4 2.4 Point of Care 116 29 145 9.8 (1.8) 7.2 9.8 (3.7) 6.8 Rapid Diagnostics * 296 244 540 n/m n/m n/m n/m n/m n/m * Rapid Diagnostics reflects sales from Alere, Inc., which was acquired on Oct. 3, 2017. Comparable operational growth rates above exclude results from the Rapid Diagnostics business. % Change vs. 12M16 Sales 12M17 Reported Comparable Operational U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total Total * 1,817 3,799 5,616 26.5 12.5 16.7 5.9 5.4 5.5 Core Laboratory 921 3,142 4,063 9.4 4.6 5.7 9.4 4.9 5.9 Molecular 160 303 463 (12.8) 11.2 1.5 (12.8) 9.8 0.7 Point of Care 440 110 550 7.0 8.2 7.3 7.0 8.0 7.2 Rapid Diagnostics * 296 244 540 n/m n/m n/m n/m n/m n/m * Rapid Diagnostics reflects sales from Alere, Inc., which was acquired on Oct. 3, 2017. Comparable operational growth rates above exclude results from the Rapid Diagnostics business. n/m = Percent change is not meaningful. Worldwide Diagnostics sales increased 51.7 percent on a reported basis in the fourth quarter. On a comparable operational basis, sales increased 6.7 percent. Refer to tables titled "Non-GAAP Reconciliation of Comparable Historical Revenue" for a reconciliation of comparable historical revenue. Core Laboratory Diagnostics sales increased 9.4 percent on a reported basis in the fourth quarter, including a favorable 2.2 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 7.2 percent on an operational basis, reflecting continued above-market growth driven by share gains globally. Molecular Diagnostics sales increased 4.2 percent on a reported basis in the fourth quarter, including a favorable 1.8 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 2.4 percent on an operational basis. As expected, growth in infectious disease testing, Abbott's core area of focus in the molecular diagnostics market, was partially offset by a planned scale down in other testing areas, primarily in the U.S. Point of Care Diagnostics sales increased 7.2 percent on a reported basis in the fourth quarter, including a favorable 0.4 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 6.8 percent on an operational basis, led by continued adoption of Abbott's i-STAT ® handheld system. Rapid Diagnostics sales of $540 million were led by infectious disease testing, including flu and strep testing. Established Pharmaceuticals ($ in millions) % Change vs. 4Q16 Sales 4Q17 Reported Comparable Operational U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total Total -- 1,145 1,145 n/a 17.0 17.0 n/a 14.0 14.0 Key Emerging Markets -- 894 894 n/a 15.0 15.0 n/a 12.5 12.5 Other -- 251 251 n/a 24.5 24.5 n/a 19.6 19.6 % Change vs. 12M16 Sales 12M17 Reported Comparable Operational U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total Total -- 4,287 4,287 n/a 11.1 11.1 n/a 9.5 9.5 Key Emerging Markets -- 3,307 3,307 n/a 13.6 13.6 n/a 11.9 11.9 Other -- 980 980 n/a 3.4 3.4 n/a 2.2 2.2 Established Pharmaceuticals sales increased 17.0 percent on a reported basis in the fourth quarter, including a favorable 3.0 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 14.0 percent on an operational basis. Key Emerging Markets comprise several countries that represent the most attractive long-term growth opportunities for Abbott's branded generics product portfolio. Sales in these geographies increased 15.0 percent on a reported basis in the fourth quarter, including a favorable 2.5 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 12.5 percent on an operational basis. Operational sales growth was led by double-digit growth across several geographies, including India, China and Latin America. Other sales increased 19.6 percent on an operational basis primarily due to the favorable timing of sales in certain countries during the fourth quarter. Medical Devices ($ in millions) % Change vs. 4Q16 Sales 4Q17 Reported Comparable Operational U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total Total 1,206 1,531 2,737 129.0 85.1 102.2 10.5 8.8 9.6 Cardiovascular and Neuromodulation 1,114 1,210 2,324 263.4 192.2 222.5 10.9 3.5 6.9 Rhythm Management 247 282 529 n/m n/m n/m 5.8 (1.2) 2.0 Electrophysiology 163 218 381 n/m n/m n/m 16.4 15.8 16.1 Heart Failure 128 44 172 n/m n/m n/m 10.9 14.0 11.6 Vascular 289 445 734 9.5 22.7 17.2 (1.1) (1.9) (1.6) Structural Heart 112 178 290 174.7 246.2 214.4 15.8 9.4 11.9 Neuromodulation 175 43 218 n/m n/m n/m 37.4 4.4 29.5 Diabetes Care 92 321 413 6.7 43.4 33.2 6.7 35.6 27.6 % Change vs. 12M16 Sales 12M17 Reported Comparable Operational U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total U.S. Int'l Total Total 4,710 5,615 10,325 130.1 76.3 97.3 4.7 6.6 5.7 Cardiovascular and Neuromodulation 4,378 4,533 8,911 251.1 175.0 207.7 4.9 2.1 3.4 Rhythm Management 1,030 1,073 2,103 n/m n/m n/m (11.4) (4.6) (8.0) Electrophysiology 609 773 1,382 n/m n/m n/m 11.9 12.0 12.0 Heart Failure 491 152 643 n/m n/m n/m 2.9 11.4 4.8 Vascular 1,180 1,712 2,892 9.2 18.0 14.2 (2.0) (1.9) (1.9) Structural Heart 432 651 1,083 177.0 232.4 207.8 15.0 9.6 11.7 Neuromodulation 636 172 808 n/m n/m n/m 53.8 13.9 43.2 Diabetes Care 332 1,082 1,414 2.1 32.4 23.8 2.1 31.0 22.8 Worldwide Medical Devices sales increased 102.2 percent on a reported basis in the fourth quarter. On a comparable operational basis, sales increased 9.6 percent. Refer to tables titled "Non-GAAP Reconciliation of Comparable Historical Revenue" for a reconciliation of comparable historical revenue. In Cardiovascular and Neuromodulation, worldwide sales in the fourth quarter were led by double-digit growth in Electrophysiology, Heart Failure, Structural Heart and Neuromodulation. In Electrophysiology, during the fourth quarter, Abbott initiated the U.S. launch of its Confirm Rx Insertable Cardiac Monitor (ICM), the world's first and only smartphone-compatible ICM designed to help physicians remotely identify cardiac arrhythmias. Growth in Structural Heart was driven by MitraClip ® , Abbott's market-leading device for the minimally-invasive treatment of mitral regurgitation. In Heart Failure, sales growth was led by market uptake of Abbott's HeartMate 3™ system, which received U.S. FDA approval in the third quarter of 2017. In Neuromodulation, strong double-digit growth was led by several recently launched products for the treatment of chronic pain and movement disorders. In the fourth quarter, in Rhythm Management, Abbott received U.S. FDA approval for MR-conditional labeling for its Quadra Assura and Quadra Assura MP cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillator (CRT-D) devices and its Fortify Assura implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD). In Vascular, Abbott obtained CE Mark for its XIENCE Sierra drug-eluting coronary stent system, which enhances its competitive position in this category of the market. In Diabetes Care, worldwide sales increased 33.2 percent on a reported basis in the fourth quarter, including a favorable 5.6 percent effect of foreign exchange, and increased 27.6 percent on an operational basis. Strong double-digit international sales growth was led by FreeStyle Libre, Abbott's revolutionary CGM system. FreeStyle Libre is the only CGM system available that comes factory-calibrated and removes the need for routine fingersticks 3 for people with diabetes. During the fourth quarter, Abbott initiated the U.S. launch of FreeStyle Libre, and in January 2018, Abbott announced that FreeStyle Libre is now available and approved for coverage by CMS. ABBOTT ISSUES FINANCIAL OUTLOOK FOR 2018 Abbott is issuing full-year 2018 guidance for diluted earnings per share from continuing operations under Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) of $1.22 to $1.32. Abbott forecasts net specified items for the full year 2018 of approximately $1.58 per share. Specified items include intangible amortization expense, acquisition-related expenses, charges associated with cost reduction initiatives and other expenses. Excluding specified items, projected adjusted diluted earnings per share from continuing operations would be $2.80 to $2.90 for the full year 2018. Abbott is issuing first-quarter 2018 guidance for diluted earnings per share from continuing operations under GAAP of $0.16 to $0.18. Abbott forecasts specified items for the first quarter of $0.41 per share primarily related to intangible amortization expense, acquisition-related expenses, cost reduction initiatives and other expenses. Excluding specified items, projected adjusted diluted earnings per share from continuing operations would be $0.57 to $0.59. Abbott has stated its commitment to reduce its debt levels following the recent acquisitions of St. Jude Medical and Alere, Inc. For the full year 2017, Abbott generated operating cash flow in excess of $5.0 billion and free cash flow 4 in excess of $4.0 billion. In January 2018, Abbott repaid $4.0 billion of debt and anticipates additional debt repayments throughout 2018. ABBOTT ANNOUNCES INCREASE IN QUARTERLY DIVIDEND On Dec. 15, 2017, the board of directors of Abbott increased the company's quarterly dividend to $0.280 per share from $0.265 per share. Abbott's cash dividend is payable Feb. 15, 2018, to shareholders of record at the close of business on Jan. 12, 2018. This marks the 376 th consecutive quarterly dividend to be paid by Abbott. Abbott has increased its dividend payout for 46 consecutive years and is a member of the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats Index, which tracks companies that have annually increased their dividend for at least 25 consecutive years. About Abbott: Abbott is a global healthcare company devoted to improving life through the development of products and technologies that span the breadth of healthcare. With a portfolio of leading, science-based offerings in diagnostics, medical devices, nutritionals and branded generic pharmaceuticals, Abbott serves people in more than 150 countries and employs approximately 99,000 people. Visit Abbott at www.abbott.com and connect with us on Twitter at @AbbottNews. Abbott will webcast its live fourth-quarter earnings conference call through its Investor Relations website at www.abbottinvestor.com at 8 a.m. Central time today. An archived edition of the call will be available later that day. — Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 — A Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements Some statements in this news release may be forward-looking statements for purposes of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Abbott cautions that these forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Economic, competitive, governmental, technological and other factors that may affect Abbott's operations are discussed in Item 1A, "Risk Factors'' to our Annual Report on Securities and Exchange Commission Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 2016, and are incorporated by reference. Abbott undertakes no obligation to release publicly any revisions to forward-looking statements as a result of subsequent events or developments, except as required by law. 1 The provisional estimate of the impact of U.S. tax reform recorded in the fourth quarter of 2017 is based on Abbott's initial analysis of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and may be adjusted in future periods due to, among other things, additional analysis performed by Abbott and additional guidance that may be issued by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. 2 Full-year 2018 guidance for diluted EPS from continuing operations on a GAAP basis represents 535.0 percent growth at the midpoint of the range. 3 Fingersticks are required for treatment decisions when you see Check Blood Glucose symbol, when symptoms do not match system readings, when you suspect readings may be inaccurate, or when you experience symptoms that may be due to high or low blood glucose. 4 Free cash flow equals operating cash flow less capital expenditures. In 2017, capital expenditures totaled approximately $1 billion. Abbott Laboratories and Subsidiaries Condensed Consolidated Statement of Earnings Fourth Quarter Ended December 31, 2017 and 2016 (in millions, except per share data) (unaudited) 4Q17 4Q16 % Change Net Sales $7,589 $5,333 42.3 Cost of products sold, excluding amortization expense 3,263 2,312 41.1 Amortization of intangible assets 560 121 n/m Research and development 613 343 78.9 Selling, general, and administrative 2,462 1,609 52.9 Total Operating Cost and Expenses 6,898 4,385 57.3 Operating earnings 691 948 (27.0) Interest expense, net 211 129 63.4 Net foreign exchange (gain) loss -- (2) n/m Other (income) expense, net (94) (54) 69.4 Earnings from Continuing Operations before taxes 574 875 (34.5) Tax expense on Earnings from Continuing Operations 1,438 110 n/m 1) Earnings (Loss) from Continuing Operations (864) 765 n/m Earnings from Discontinued Operations, net of taxes 36 33 8.4 2) Gain on Sale of Discontinued Operations, net of taxes -- -- -- Net Earnings from Discontinued Operations, net of taxes 36 33 8.4 Net Earnings (Loss) $(828) $798 n/m Earnings from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, as described below $1,303 $971 34.2 3) Diluted Earnings (Loss) per Common Share from: Continuing Operations $(0.50) $0.51 n/m Discontinued Operations 0.02 0.02 -- Total $(0.48) $0.53 n/m Diluted Earnings per Common Share from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, as described below $0.74 $0.65 13.8 3) Average Number of Common Shares Outstanding Plus Dilutive Common Stock Options 1,746 1,483 4) NOTES: See tables below for an explanation of certain non-GAAP financial information. n/m = Percent change is not meaningful. See footnotes below. 1) 2017 Tax expense on Earnings from Continuing Operations includes net expense of $1.46 billion for the estimated impact of U.S. tax reform. The provisional estimate of the impact of U.S. tax reform is based on Abbott's initial analysis of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and may be adjusted in future periods due to, among other things, additional analysis performed by Abbott and additional guidance that may be issued by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. 2) 2017 and 2016 Earnings and Diluted Earnings per Common Share from Discontinued Operations primarily reflect net favorable adjustments to tax expense as a result of the resolution of various tax positions from previous years related to discontinued operations. 3) 2017 Earnings from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, excludes net after-tax charges of $2.167 billion, or $1.24 per share, for the estimated impact of U.S. tax reform, intangible amortization expense and expenses primarily associated with acquisitions, restructuring actions and other expenses. 2016 Earnings from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, excludes net after-tax charges of $206 million, or $0.14 per share, for intangible amortization expense, expenses primarily associated with acquisitions, including bridge facility fees and other debt related costs, charges related to cost reduction initiatives and other expenses. 4) 2017 Average number of common shares outstanding excludes approximately 12.2 million shares related to dilutive common stock options, which would be antidilutive as a result of the loss in the quarter. Abbott Laboratories and Subsidiaries Condensed Consolidated Statement of Earnings Year Ended December 31, 2017 and 2016 (in millions, except per share data) (unaudited) 12M17 12M16 % Change Net Sales $27,390 $20,853 31.3 Cost of products sold, excluding amortization expense 12,337 9,024 36.7 Amortization of intangible assets 1,975 550 n/m Research and development 2,235 1,422 57.2 Selling, general, and administrative 9,117 6,672 36.6 Total Operating Cost and Expenses 25,664 17,668 45.2 Operating earnings 1,726 3,185 (45.8) Interest expense, net 780 332 n/m Net foreign exchange (gain) loss (34) 495 n/m 1) Other (income) expense, net (1,251) 945 n/m 2) Earnings from Continuing Operations before taxes 2,231 1,413 57.8 Tax expense on Earnings from Continuing Operations 1,878 350 n/m 3) Earnings from Continuing Operations 353 1,063 (66.8) Earnings from Discontinued Operations, net of taxes 124 321 (61.4) Gain on Sale of Discontinued Operations, net of taxes -- 16 n/m Net Earnings from Discontinued Operations, net of taxes 124 337 (63.3) 4) Net Earnings $477 $1,400 (65.9) Earnings from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, as described below $4,400 $3,281 34.1 5) Diluted Earnings per Common Share from: Continuing Operations $0.20 $0.71 (71.8) Discontinued Operations 0.07 0.23 (69.6) 4) Total $0.27 $0.94 (71.3) Diluted Earnings per Common Share from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, as described below $2.50 $2.20 13.6 5) Average Number of Common Shares Outstanding Plus Dilutive Common Stock Options 1,749 1,483 NOTES: See tables below for an explanation of certain non-GAAP financial information. n/m = Percent change is not meaningful. See footnotes below. 1) 2016 Net foreign exchange (gain) loss includes a loss of $480 million related to the revaluation of Abbott's net monetary assets in Venezuela using the Dicom exchange rate, which is the Venezuelan government's official floating exchange rate. 2) 2017 Other (income) expense, net includes a pretax gain of $1.163 billion from the sale of the AMO business. 2016 Other (income) expense, net includes a charge of $947 million related to an adjustment of Abbott's holdings of Mylan N.V. ordinary shares to reflect the share price as of Sept. 30, 2016. 3) 2017 Tax expense on Earnings from Continuing Operations includes the net expense of $1.46 billion for the estimated impact of U.S. tax reform, as well as the tax associated with a $1.163 billion pretax gain on the sale of the AMO business. The provisional estimate of the impact of U.S. tax reform is based on Abbott's initial analysis of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and may be adjusted in future periods due to, among other things, additional analysis performed by Abbott and additional guidance that may be issued by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. 2016 Tax expense on Earnings from Continuing Operations includes the impact of a net tax benefit of approximately $225 million, primarily as a result of the resolution of various tax positions from prior years, partially offset by the unfavorable impact of non-deductible foreign exchange losses related to Venezuela and an adjustment to the equity investment in Mylan and the recognition of deferred taxes associated with the sale of the AMO business. 4) 2017 and 2016 Earnings, net of taxes and Diluted Earnings per Common Share from Discontinued Operations, primarily relates to a net tax benefit as a result of the resolution of various tax positions from prior years. 5) 2017 Earnings and Diluted Earnings per Common Share from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, excludes net after-tax charges of $4.047 billion, or $2.30 per share, for the estimated impact of U.S. tax reform, intangible amortization expense and other expenses primarily associated with acquisitions and restructuring actions, partially offset by a gain on the sale of the AMO business. 2016 Earnings and Diluted Earnings per Common Share from Continuing Operations, excluding Specified Items, excludes net after-tax charges of $2.218 billion, or $1.49 per share, for intangible amortization expense, the foreign exchange loss related to Venezuela, an adjustment to the equity investment in Mylan, expenses associated with acquisitions, including bridge facility fees, other charges related to cost reduction initiatives and other expenses and the recognition of deferred taxes associated with the sale of AMO, partially offset by the favorable impact of a net tax benefit as a result of the resolution of various tax positions from prior years. NON-GAAP RECONCILIATION OF FINANCIAL INFORMATION FROM CONTINUING OPERATIONS Abbott Laboratories and Subsidiaries Non-GAAP Reconciliation of Financial Information From Continuing Operations Fourth Quarter Ended December 31, 2017 and 2016 (in millions, except per share data) (unaudited) 4Q17 As Reported (GAAP) Specified Items As Adjusted % to Sales Intangible Amortization $560 $(560) -- Gross Margin 3,766 694 $4,460 58.8% R&D 613 (90) 523 6.9% SG&A 2,462 (266) 2,196 28.9% Interest expense, net 211 (5) 206 Other (income) expense, net (94) 69 (25) Earnings from Continuing Operations before taxes 574 986 1,560 Tax expense on Earnings from Continuing Operations 1,438 (1,181) 257 Earnings (Loss) from Continuing Operations (864) 2,167 1,303 Diluted Earnings (Loss) per Share from Continuing Operations $(0.50) $1.24 $0.74 Specified items reflect intangible amortization expense of $560 million and other expenses of $426 million, primarily associated with acquisitions, restructuring actions and other expenses, and the estimated net impact of U.S. tax reform of $1.46 billion. See tables titled "Details of Specified Items" for additional details regarding specified items. 4Q16 As Reported (GAAP) Specified Items As Adjusted % to Sales Intangible Amortization $121 $(121) -- Gross Margin 2,900 161 $3,061 57.4% R&D 343 (9) 334 6.3% SG&A 1,609 (99) 1,510 28.3% Interest expense, net 129 (101) 28 Net foreign exchange (gain) loss (2) 1 (1) Other (income) expense, net (54) 52 (2) Earnings from Continuing Operations before taxes 875 317 1,192 Tax expense on Earnings from Continuing Operations 110 111 221 Earnings (Loss) from Continuing Operations 765 206 971 Diluted Earnings (Loss) per Share from Continuing Operations $0.51 $0.14 $0.65 Specified items reflect intangible amortization expense of $121 million and other expenses of $196 million, primarily associated with acquisitions, including bridge facility fees and other debt related costs, charges related to cost reduction initiatives and other expenses. See tables titled "Details of Specified Items" for additional details regarding specified items. Abbott Laboratories and Subsidiaries Non-GAAP Reconciliation of Financial Information From Continuing Operations Year Ended December 31, 2017 and 2016 (in millions, except per share data) (unaudited) 12M17 As Reported (GAAP) Specified Items As Adjusted % to Sales Intangible Amortization $1,975 $(1,975) -- Gross Margin 13,078 3,153 $16,231 59.3% R&D 2,235 (236) 1,999 7.3% SG&A 9,117 (861) 8,256 30.1% Interest expense, net 780 (24) 756 Other (income) expense, net (1,251) 1,236 (15) Earnings from Continuing Operations before taxes 2,231 3,038 5,269 Tax expense on Earnings from Continuing Operations 1,878 (1,009) 869 Earnings from Continuing Operations 353 4,047 4,400 Diluted Earnings per Share from Continuing Operations $0.20 $2.30 $2.50 Specified items reflect intangible amortization expense of $1.975 billion and other expenses of $2.226 billion, primarily associated with acquisitions, including approximately $907 million of inventory step-up amortization related to St. Jude Medical and Alere, Inc., charges related to restructuring actions and other expenses, partially offset by a gain of $1.163 billion from the sale of the AMO business. Tax expense includes the estimated net impact of U.S. tax reform of $1.46 billion. See tables titled "Details of Specified Items" for additional details regarding specified items. 12M16 As Reported (GAAP) Specified Items As Adjusted % to Sales Intangible Amortization $550 $(550) -- Gross Margin 11,279 661 $11,940 57.3% R&D 1,422 (77) 1,345 6.5% SG&A 6,672 (249) 6,423 30.8% Interest expense, net 332 (240) 92 Net foreign exchange (gain) loss 495 (480) 15 Other (income) expense, net 945 (910) 35 Earnings from Continuing Operations before taxes 1,413 2,617 4,030 Tax expense on Earnings from Continuing Operations 350 399 749 Earnings from Continuing Operations 1,063 2,218 3,281 Diluted Earnings per Share from Continuing Operations $0.71 $1.49 $2.20 Specified items reflect intangible amortization expense of $550 million, an adjustment to the equity investment in Mylan of $947 million, the impact of the foreign exchange loss in Venezuela of $480 million, and other expenses of $640 million, primarily associated with acquisitions, including bridge facility fees, and charges related to cost reduction initiatives and other expenses and the recognition of approximately $70 million of deferred taxes associated with the sale of AMO, partially offset by a net tax benefit of approximately $225 million, primarily as a result of the resolution of various tax positions from prior years. See tables titled "Details of Specified Items" for additional details regarding specified items. Reconciliation of Tax Rate for Continuing Operations A reconciliation of the fourth-quarter tax rates for continuing operations for 2017 and 2016 is shown below: 4Q17 ($ in millions) Pre-Tax Income Taxes on Earnings Tax Rate As reported (GAAP) $574 $1,438 250.7% 1) Specified items 986 (1,181) Excluding specified items $1,560 $257 16.5% 4Q16 ($ in millions) Pre-Tax Income Taxes on Earnings Tax Rate As reported (GAAP) $875 $110 12.7% Specified items 317 111 Excluding specified items $1,192 $221 18.6% 1) Reported tax rate on a GAAP basis for the fourth quarter of 2017 includes the estimated net impact of U.S. tax reform of $1.46 billion and the impact of approximately $30 million in excess tax benefits associated with share-based compensation. A reconciliation of the full-year tax rates for continuing operations for 2017 and 2016 is shown below: 12M17 ($ in millions) Pre-Tax Income Taxes on Earnings Tax Rate As reported (GAAP) $2,231 $1,878 84.2% 2) Specified items 3,038 (1,009) Excluding specified items $5,269 $869 16.5% 12M16 ($ in millions) Pre-Tax Income Taxes on Earnings Tax Rate As reported (GAAP) $1,413 $350 24.8% Specified items 2,617 399 Excluding specified items $4,030 $749 18.6% 2) Reported tax rate on a GAAP basis for 2017 includes the estimated net impact of U.S. tax reform of $1.46 billion, the impact of taxes associated with a $1.163 billion pre-tax gain on the sale of the AMO business and the impact of approximately $120 million in excess tax benefits associated with share-based compensation. Abbott Laboratories and Subsidiaries Non-GAAP Reconciliation of Comparable Historical Revenue Fourth Quarter Ended December 31, 2017 and 2016 ($ in millions) (unaudited) 4Q17 4Q16 % Change vs. 4Q16 Abbott Reported Divested Businesses Comparable Revenue Abbott Reported Acquired St. Jude Business a) AMO Comparable Revenue Comparable Rapid Diagnostics Reported Reported Operational b) Total Company 7,589 -- (540) 7,049 5,333 1,415 (323) 6,425 42.3 9.7 7.7 U.S. 2,676 -- (296) 2,380 1,655 696 (133) 2,218 61.7 7.2 7.2 Int'l 4,913 -- (244) 4,669 3,678 719 (190) 4,207 33.6 10.9 7.9 Total Diagnostics 1,906 -- (540) 1,366 1,256 -- -- 1,256 51.7 8.7 6.7 U.S. 692 -- (296) 396 375 -- -- 375 84.6 5.7 5.7 Int'l 1,214 -- (244) 970 881 -- -- 881 37.8 10.0 7.1 Rapid Diagnostics 540 -- (540) -- -- -- -- -- n/m n/m n/m U.S. 296 -- (296) -- -- -- -- -- n/m n/m n/m Int'l 244 -- (244) -- -- -- -- -- n/m n/m n/m Total Medical Devices 2,737 -- -- 2,737 1,354 1,415 (323) 2,446 102.2 11.8 9.6 U.S. 1,206 -- -- 1,206 527 696 (133) 1,090 129.0 10.5 10.5 Int'l 1,531 -- -- 1,531 827 719 (190) 1,356 85.1 12.8 8.8 Cardiovascular and Neuromodulation 2,324 -- -- 2,324 721 1,415 -- 2,136 222.5 8.7 6.9 U.S. 1,114 -- -- 1,114 307 696 -- 1,003 263.4 10.9 10.9 Int'l 1,210 -- -- 1,210 414 719 -- 1,133 192.2 6.8 3.5 Rhythm Management 529 -- -- 529 -- 511 -- 511 n/m 3.7 2.0 U.S. 247 -- -- 247 -- 233 -- 233 n/m 5.8 5.8 Int'l 282 -- -- 282 -- 278 -- 278 n/m 1.9 (1.2) Electrophysiology 381 -- -- 381 2 323 -- 325 n/m 16.8 16.1 U.S. 163 -- -- 163 2 137 -- 139 n/m 16.4 16.4 Int'l 218 -- -- 218 -- 186 -- 186 n/m 17.1 15.8 Heart Failure 172 -- -- 172 -- 152 -- 152 n/m 12.9 11.6 U.S. 128 -- -- 128 -- 116 -- 116 n/m 10.9 10.9 Int'l 44 -- -- 44 -- 36 -- 36 n/m 19.3 14.0 Vascular 734 -- -- 734 627 103 -- 730 17.2 0.6 (1.6) U.S. 289 -- -- 289 264 27 -- 291 9.5 (1.1) (1.1) Int'l 445 -- -- 445 363 76 -- 439 22.7 1.7 (1.9) Structural Heart 290 -- -- 290 92 159 -- 251 214.4 14.8 11.9 U.S. 112 -- -- 112 41 56 -- 97 174.7 15.8 15.8 Int'l 178 -- -- 178 51 103 -- 154 246.2 14.1 9.4 Neuromodulation 218 -- -- 218 -- 167 -- 167 n/m 30.6 29.5 U.S. 175 -- -- 175 -- 127 -- 127 n/m 37.4 37.4 Int'l 43 -- -- 43 -- 40 -- 40 n/m 8.9 4.4 a) Reflects reported actuals for St. Jude Medical, excluding results from the vascular closure business, as well as a reduction to St. Jude Medical sales related to the reclassification of fees paid to group purchasing organizations from the Selling, general, and administrative line. b) In order to compute results excluding the impact of exchange rates, current year U.S. dollar sales are multiplied or divided, as appropriate, by the current year average foreign exchange rates and then those amounts are multiplied or divided, as appropriate, by the prior year average foreign exchange rates. Abbott Laboratories and Subsidiaries Non-GAAP Reconciliation of Comparable Historical Revenue Year Ended December 31, 2017 and 2016 ($ in millions) (unaudited) 12M17 12M16 % Change vs. 12M16 Abbott Reported Divested Businesses a) Comparable Revenue Abbott Reported Acquired St. Jude Business b) AMO Comparable Revenue Comparable Rapid Diagnostics Reported Reported Operational c) Total Company 27,390 (187) (540) 26,663 20,853 5,697 (1,195) 25,355 31.3 5.1 4.9 U.S. 9,673 (84) (296) 9,293 6,486 2,923 (475) 8,934 49.1 4.0 4.0 Int'l 17,717 (103) (244) 17,370 14,367 2,774 (720) 16,421 23.3 5.8 5.4 Total Diagnostics 5,616 -- (540) 5,076 4,813 -- -- 4,813 16.7 5.5 5.5 U.S. 1,817 -- (296) 1,521 1,437 -- -- 1,437 26.5 5.9 5.9 Int'l 3,799 -- (244) 3,555 3,376 -- -- 3,376 12.5 5.3 5.4 Rapid Diagnostics 540 -- (540) -- -- -- -- -- n/m n/m n/m U.S. 296 -- (296) -- -- -- -- -- n/m n/m n/m Int'l 244 -- (244) -- -- -- -- -- n/m n/m n/m Total Medical Devices 10,325 (12) -- 10,313 5,233 5,697 (1,195) 9,735 97.3 5.9 5.7 U.S. 4,710 (6) -- 4,704 2,047 2,923 (475) 4,495 130.1 4.7 4.7 Int'l 5,615 (6) -- 5,609 3,186 2,774 (720) 5,240 76.3 7.0 6.6 Cardiovascular and Neuromodulation 8,911 (12) -- 8,899 2,896 5,697 -- 8,593 207.7 3.5 3.4 U.S. 4,378 (6) -- 4,372 1,247 2,923 -- 4,170 251.1 4.9 4.9 Int'l 4,533 (6) -- 4,527 1,649 2,774 -- 4,423 175.0 2.3 2.1 Rhythm Management 2,103 -- -- 2,103 -- 2,284 -- 2,284 n/m (8.0) (8.0) U.S. 1,030 -- -- 1,030 -- 1,162 -- 1,162 n/m (11.4) (11.4) Int'l 1,073 -- -- 1,073 -- 1,122 -- 1,122 n/m (4.5) (4.6) Electrophysiology 1,382 -- -- 1,382 12 1,223 -- 1,235 n/m 11.8 12.0 U.S. 609 -- -- 609 12 532 -- 544 n/m 11.9 11.9 Int'l 773 -- -- 773 -- 691 -- 691 n/m 11.7 12.0 Heart Failure 643 -- -- 643 -- 613 -- 613 n/m 5.0 4.8 U.S. 491 -- -- 491 -- 477 -- 477 n/m 2.9 2.9 Int'l 152 -- -- 152 -- 136 -- 136 n/m 12.3 11.4 Vascular 2,892 (12) -- 2,880 2,532 402 -- 2,934 14.2 (1.7) (1.9) U.S. 1,180 (6) -- 1,174 1,079 118 -- 1,197 9.2 (2.0) (2.0) Int'l 1,712 (6) -- 1,706 1,453 284 -- 1,737 18.0 (1.6) (1.9) Structural Heart 1,083 -- -- 1,083 352 611 -- 963 207.8 12.1 11.7 U.S. 432 -- -- 432 156 220 -- 376 177.0 15.0 15.0 Int'l 651 -- -- 651 196 391 -- 587 232.4 10.2 9.6 Neuromodulation 808 -- -- 808 -- 564 -- 564 n/m 43.4 43.2 U.S. 636 -- -- 636 -- 414 -- 414 n/m 53.8 53.8 Int'l 172 -- -- 172 -- 150 -- 150 n/m 14.7 13.9 a) Reflects sales related to the AMO and St. Jude Medical vascular closure businesses prior to divesting in the first quarter 2017. b) Reflects reported actuals for St. Jude Medical, excluding results from the vascular closure business, as well as a reduction to St. Jude Medical sales related to the reclassification of fees paid to group purchasing organizations from the Selling, general, and administrative line. c) In order to compute results excluding the impact of exchange rates, current year U.S. dollar sales are multiplied or divided, as appropriate, by the current year average foreign exchange rates and then those amounts are multiplied or divided, as appropriate, by the prior year average foreign exchange rates. Abbott Laboratories and Subsidiaries Details of Specified Items Fourth Quarter Ended December 31, 2017 (in millions, except per share data) (unaudited) Acquisition or Divestiture- related (a) Restructuring and Cost Reduction Initiatives (b) Intangible Amortization Other (c) Total Specifieds Gross Margin $ 113 $ 21 $ 560 $ -- $ 694 R&D (35) (2) -- (53) (90) SG&A (242) (24) -- -- (266) Interest expense, net (5) -- -- -- (5) Other (income) expense, net 69 -- -- -- 69 Earnings from Continuing Operations before taxes $ 326 $ 47 $ 560 $ 53 986 Tax expense on Earnings from Continuing Operations (d) (1,181) Earnings (Loss) from Continuing Operations $ 2,167 Diluted Earnings (Loss) per Share from Continuing Operations $ 1.24 The table above provides additional details regarding the specified items described on tables titled "Non-GAAP Reconciliation of Financial Information From Continuing Operations". a) Acquisition-related expenses include bankers' fees and costs for legal, accounting, tax, and other services related to business acquisitions, integration costs which represent incremental costs directly related to integrating the acquired businesses and include expenditures for consulting, retention, severance, and the integration of systems, processes and business activities, fair value adjustments to contingent consideration related to a business acquisition, and inventory step-up amortization. Divestiture-related expenses include incremental costs to separate the divested businesses as well as bankers' fees and costs for legal, accounting, tax, and other services related to the divestitures. Divestiture-related items also include any gains in the period related to the sale of Mylan N.V. ordinary shares. b) Restructuring and cost reduction initiative expenses include severance, outplacement, inventory write-downs, asset impairments, accelerated depreciation, and other direct costs associated with specific restructuring plans and cost reduction initiatives. Restructuring and cost reduction plans consist of distinct initiatives to streamline operations including the consolidation and rationalization of business activities and facilities, workforce reductions, the transfer of product lines between manufacturing facilities, and the transfer of other business activities between sites. c) Other expense primarily relates to the impairment of an R&D asset. d) Reflects net expense for the estimated tax impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the net tax benefit associated with the specified items and excess tax benefits associated with share-based compensation. Abbott Laboratories and Subsidiaries Details of Specified Items Fourth Quarter Ended December 31, 2016 (in millions, except per share data) (unaudited) Acquisition or Divestiture- related (a) Restructuring and Cost Reduction Initiatives (b) Venezuela Devaluation Intangible Amortization Other (c) Total Specifieds Gross Margin $ 11 $ 29 $ -- $ 121 $ -- $ 161 R&D (2) (7) -- -- -- (9) SG&A (54) (28) -- -- (17) (99) Interest expense, net (101) -- -- -- -- (101) Net foreign exchange (gain) loss -- -- 1 -- -- 1 Other (income) expense, net 52 -- -- -- -- 52 Earnings from Continuing Operations before taxes $ 116 $ 64 $ (1) $ 121 $ 17 317 Tax expense on Earnings from Continuing Operations (d) 111 Earnings (Loss) from Continuing Operations $ 206 Diluted Earnings (Loss) per Share from Continuing Operations $ 0.14 The table above provides additional details regarding the specified items described on tables titled "Non-GAAP Reconciliation of Financial Information From Continuing Operations". a) Acquisition-related expenses include bankers' fees and costs for legal, accounting, tax, and other services related to business acquisitions, integration costs which represent incremental costs directly related to integrating the acquired businesses and include expenditures for consulting, retention, severance, and the integration of systems, processes and business activities, fair value adjustments to contingent consideration related to a business acquisition, inventory step-up amortization, and gains on a previously held investment for which the company acquired a controlling interest. The specified items in interest expense include amortization expense associated with acquisition-related bridge facility fees and net interest expense associated with the debt issued in November 2016 in advance to fund the cash portion of the acquisition of St. Jude Medical in January 2017. Divestiture-related expenses include incremental costs to separate the divested businesses as well as bankers' fees and costs for legal, accounting, tax, and other services related to the divestitures. b) Restructuring and cost reduction initiative expenses include severance, outplacement, inventory write-downs, asset impairments, accelerated depreciation, and other direct costs associated with specific restructuring plans and cost reduction initiatives. Restructuring and cost reduction plans consist of distinct initiatives to streamline operations including the consolidation and rationalization of business activities and facilities, workforce reductions, the transfer of product lines between manufacturing facilities, and the transfer of other business activities between sites. Any gains related to the divestiture of a facility as part of a restructuring program are also included in this category. c) Other expense relates to other unusual significant costs such as a significant litigation settlement. d) Reflects the net tax benefit associated with the specified items and approximately $60 million of tax benefits related to the recognition of deferred tax assets associated with the sale of AMO, which was pending at December 31, 2016, partially offset by approximately $25 million primarily as a result of the resolution of various tax positions from prior years. Abbott Laboratories and Subsidiaries Details of Specified Items Year Ended December 31, 2017 (in millions, except per share data) (unaudited) Acquisition or Divestiture- related (a) Restructuring and Cost Reduction Initiatives (b) Intangible Amortization Other (c) Total Specifieds Gross Margin $ 983 $ 195 $ 1,975 $ -- $ 3,153 R&D (72) (105) -- (59) (236) SG&A (812) (50) -- 1 (861) Interest expense, net (24) -- -- -- (24) Other (income) expense, net 1,285 (34) -- (15) 1,236 Earnings from Continuing Operations before taxes $ 606 $ 384 $ 1,975 $ 73 3,038 Tax expense on Earnings from Continuing Operations (d) (1,009) Earnings from Continuing Operations $ 4,047 Diluted Earnings per Share from Continuing Operations $ 2.30 The table above provides additional details regarding the specified items described on tables titled "Non-GAAP Reconciliation of Financial Information From Continuing Operations". a) Acquisition-related expenses include bankers' fees and costs for legal, accounting, tax, and other services related to business acquisitions, integration costs which represent incremental costs directly related to integrating the acquired businesses and include expenditures for consulting, retention, severance, and the integration of systems, processes and business activities, fair value adjustments to contingent consideration related to a business acquisition, and inventory step-up amortization. The specified items in interest expense include amortization expense associated with acquisition-related bridge facility fees. Divestiture-related expenses include incremental costs to separate the divested businesses as well as bankers' fees and costs for legal, accounting, tax, and other services related to the divestitures. Divestiture-related items also include any gains in the period related to the sale of Mylan N.V. ordinary shares. b) Restructuring and cost reduction initiative expenses include severance, outplacement, inventory write-downs, asset impairments, accelerated depreciation, and other direct costs associated with specific restructuring plans and cost reduction initiatives. Restructuring and cost reduction plans consist of distinct initiatives to streamline operations including the consolidation and rationalization of business activities and facilities, workforce reductions, the transfer of product lines between manufacturing facilities, and the transfer of other business activities between sites. Any gains related to the divestiture of a facility as part of a restructuring program are also included in this category. c) Other expense primarily relates to impairments of a financial instrument and an R&D asset as well as the acquisition of an R&D asset. d) Reflects net expense for the estimated tax impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the net tax benefit associated with the specified items and excess tax benefits associated with share-based compensation. Abbott Laboratories and Subsidiaries Details of Specified Items Year Ended December 31, 2016 (in millions, except per share data) (unaudited) Acquisition or Divestiture- related (a) Restructuring and Cost Reduction Initiatives (b) Mylan Equity Investment Adjustment (c) Venezuela Devaluation (d) Intangible Amortization Other (e) Total Specifieds Gross Margin $ 24 $ 72 $ -- $ 15 $ 550 $ -- $ 661 R&D (9) (6) -- -- -- (62) (77) SG&A (133) (89) -- (10) -- (17) (249) Interest expense, net (240) -- -- -- -- -- (240) Net foreign exchange (gain) loss -- -- -- (480) -- -- (480) Other (income) expense, net 38 -- (947) (1) -- -- (910) Earnings from Continuing Operations before taxes $ 368 $ 167 $ 947 $ 506 $ 550 $ 79 2,617 Tax expense on Earnings from Continuing Operations (f) 399 Earnings from Continuing Operations $ 2,218 Diluted Earnings per Share from Continuing Operations $ 1.49 The table above provides additional details regarding the specified items described on tables titled "Non-GAAP Reconciliation of Financial Information From Continuing Operations". a) Acquisition-related expenses include bankers' fees and costs for legal, accounting, tax, and other services related to business acquisitions, integration costs which represent incremental costs directly related to integrating the acquired businesses and include expenditures for consulting, retention, severance, and the integration of systems, processes and business activities, fair value adjustments to contingent consideration related to a business acquisition, inventory step-up amortization, and gains on a previously held investment for which the company acquired a controlling interest. The specified items in interest expense include amortization expense associated with acquisition-related bridge facility fees and net interest expense associated with the debt issued in November 2016 in advance to fund the cash portion of the acquisition of St. Jude Medical in January 2017. Divestiture-related expenses include incremental costs to separate the divested businesses as well as bankers' fees and costs for legal, accounting, tax, and other services related to the divestitures. b) Restructuring and cost reduction initiative expenses include severance, outplacement, inventory write-downs, asset impairments, accelerated depreciation, and other direct costs associated with specific restructuring plans and cost reduction initiatives. Restructuring and cost reduction plans consist of distinct initiatives to streamline operations including the consolidation and rationalization of business activities and facilities, workforce reductions, the transfer of product lines between manufacturing facilities, and the transfer of other business activities between sites. Any gains related to the divestiture of a facility as part of a restructuring program are also included in this category. c) Mylan equity investment adjustment expense reflects the adjustment of Abbott's holding of Mylan N.V. ordinary shares due to a decline in the fair value of the securities which was considered by Abbott to be other than temporary. d) Venezuela devaluation expenses include the foreign exchange loss of $480 million related to the revaluation of Abbott's net monetary assets in Venezuela using the Dicom exchange rate as well as inventory and other asset impairments in Venezuela related to the move to the Dicom exchange rate. The Dicom rate is the Venezuelan government's official floating exchange rate. e) Other expense relates to other unusual significant costs such as a significant litigation settlement and the impairment of an R&D asset. f) Reflects the net tax benefit associated with the specified items and a net tax benefit of approximately $225 million primarily as a result of the resolution of various tax positions from prior years, partially offset by the recognition of approximately $70 million of deferred taxes associated with the sale of AMO, which was pending at December 31, 2016. View original content with multimedia: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/abbott-reports-fourth-quarter-2017-results-300587414.html SOURCE Abbott

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/24/pr-newswire-abbott-reports-fourth-quarter-2017-results.html

Hyundai Joins Softbank to Invest in Ride-Hailing Firm Grab | Fortune

Hyundai Hyundai Is Investing in Grab, Uber's Biggest Rival in Southeast Asia Models stand beside Grab cars during the launch of the ride hailing-firm's services in in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on Dec. 19, 2017. Charly Two—AFP/Getty Images By Kirsten Korosec 9:05 PM EST Hyundai Motor (hyundai-motor) has invested in Singapore-based ride-hailing firm Grab (grabtaxi) , Uber’s (uber) biggest ride-hailing rival in Southeast Asia, as the South Korean automaker looks to expand beyond its traditional business of producing and selling vehicles. Grab did not disclose the value of Hyundai’s investment. Hyundai joined other investors, including Didi Chuxing, SoftBank and Toyota Tsusho (Toyota’s Next Technology Fund) in the latest fundraising round, Grab said. The two companies will work on a new mobility service platform that will use Hyundai vehicle models such as the Ioniq Electric. Ioniq is available in three electrified powertrain-hybrid, plug-in hybrid and pure battery electric. For more on Hyundai, watch Fortune’s video: The strategic partnership aims to give Hyundai an inside view into what works in the so-called sharing economy that Grab is a central player in. Grab is now in eight Southeast Asian countries. It could also help Hyundai position itself to offer its own mobility services in one of the world’s fastest-growing markets, Southeast Asia. Hyundai is looking into several mobility services including car-sharing and ride-hailing. For instance, Hyundai partnered with WaiveCar in January 2017 to launch a car-sharing program that runs on advertising money, using IONIQ Electric model in the United State. Hyundai opened in October its first company-operated electric car sharing service in Amsterdam, Netherlands. SPONSORED FINANCIAL CONTENT

http://fortune.com/2018/01/10/hyundai-grab-uber-southeast-asia/

Two-year race for top ECB jobs start next week

FRANKFURT/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Euro zone officials could pick a new European Central Bank vice president within weeks, kicking off two years of flux at the top of one of Europe’s most vital institutions and previewing a tussle to replace ECB chief Mario Draghi in 2019. Germany is seen as eager to claim the presidency at last, two decades after the ECB’s creation, but the hawkish views of its obvious candidate, Bundesbank chief Jens Weidmann, will count against him in some member states, euro zone sources say. Also, women seem unlikely to claim either of the two top jobs in a male-dominated institution, and whatever the outcome, the reshuffle must be conducted alongside the delicate task of raising interest rates and unwinding a 2.55 trillion euro money-printing programme without provoking an upheaval on markets. Having played a leading role in fighting off the euro zone’s debt crisis, the ECB has been a pillar of the bloc’s five-year economic recovery and changes in its executive and supervisory boards could test its role as an anchor of trust in European Union institutions. Draghi relied on the ECB’s - and his own - credibility in 2012 when he promised to do ‘whatever it takes’ to preserve the euro. Then three years later he presided over the launch of the scheme to stimulate growth by flooding the financial system with cash via bond purchases. In doing this, he was arguably the key figure in holding the 19-member currency bloc together in its darkest hour. When the Italian completes his non-renewable, eight-year term in November 2019, his successor will be in the spotlight from day one. First to go at the bank will be Vice President Vitor Constancio of Portugal in May, followed next year by bank supervisor Daniele Nouy, chief economist Peter Praet, Draghi himself, and executive board member Benoit Coeure. Finance ministers will launch the process to choose a new vice president on Monday and may make a decision in February. This could offer clues about political positions in the contest to replace Draghi, euro zone officials told Reuters. Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos, so far the only publicly known candidate, is favourite for the number two job. With EU spoils shared around the regions, selecting a southern European would signal that Draghi’s job will go to northern Europe, possibly Germany, the officials, who asked not to be named, said. One source noted that the chair of the euro zone finance ministers’ group has just passed to a Portuguese. “Southern Europe got the Eurogroup presidency so if they also get Constancio’s job, then Draghi’s position would have to go north to keep the regional balance,” the source said. “Then, it’s likely to be France and Germany fighting it out.” GERMANS Picking the Bundesbank chief for the ECB presidency may be tricky, even though Germany is Europe’s biggest economy and Weidmann is considered a top-notch central banker. He has alienated some officials with his opposition to the ECB’s ultra easy monetary policy, which is credited with reviving economic growth. Some regarded this as disloyalty in a time of crisis. European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi addresses a news conference at the ECB headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, December 7, 2017. REUTERS/Ralph Orlowski/Files The ECB has to follow the U.S. Federal Reserve in unwinding that policy and raising rates from record lows without major dislocation. Weidmann has also ruffled some political feathers, engaging in public exchanges with former Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi by criticising Rome’s performance in cutting its debt. After joining the losing side in the ECB’s biggest decisions to stimulate the economy, Weidmann could also struggle to unite the Governing Council, which rarely takes votes and strives for the broadest possible consensus. “De Guindos is a done deal (for the vice presidency),” another source said. “But while Germany might have a claim on the Draghi job, Weidmann is considered too hawkish. So some people say a German ‘yes’, but Weidmann ‘no’,” a further euro zone official said. Slideshow (3 Images) That would leave Berlin with three options: fight for Weidmann, select another German or give up the ECB and seek top jobs at the European Commission. The positions of the president, foreign policy chief and economic and monetary affairs chief all come up next year. Other Germans touted by analysts and euro zone sources as potential candidates include European Stability Mechanism managing director Klaus Regling, university professor Volker Wieland and Marcel Fratzscher, the head of economic research institute DIW Berlin. Weidmann has often said that a discussion about succession was premature and nationality should not affect the decision. No candidate has publicly expressed interest in Draghi’s job. FRANCE? French central bank chief Francois Villeroy de Galhau, a German speaker with extensive ties to Germany, is also a potential candidate to replace Draghi. Villeroy is seen as acceptable to German Chancellor Angela Merkel but France has already occupied the ECB presidency, meaning he would face an uphill battle. In a possible compromise, Dutchman Jeroen Dijsselbloem, the outgoing Eurogroup head, could also be considered, some of the sources said. Another factor is the dearth of high ranking female policymakers. Only two women serve on the 25-member rate-setting Governing Council and one of them, Sabine Lautenschlaeger, would have to quit if a fellow German replaced Draghi. This would be to avoid having two people from the same country sitting on the executive board. Lautenschlaeger, a specialist in bank regulation, could not take the top job either as under ECB rules, the president must come from outside the board on which she already sits. Possible women that may be considered for board seats include Irish central bank Deputy Governor Sharon Donnery, Italian economist Lucrezia Reichlin or France’s Sylvie Goulard. The ECB also needs a new chief economist next year with Irish central bank chief Philip Lane and Estonia’s Ardo Hansson mentioned as potential candidates. In a nod to smaller member states, Finland’s Olli Rehn - widely seen as a successor to central bank chief Erkki Liikanen - could be considered for a board position, the sources said. Additional reporting by Noah Barkin, Francesco Canepa and Frank Siebelt; editing by David Stamp

https://in.reuters.com/article/ecb-president/two-year-race-for-top-ecb-jobs-start-next-week-idINKBN1F61YN

Canada regulator sets out process for pipeline permit disputes

VANCOUVER, Jan 18 (Reuters) - The National Energy Board on Thursday set out a process for resolving permit disputes related to Kinder Morgan Canada’s Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project, which has faced repeated delays due to difficulty in obtaining permits. The regulator said that under the new process it will consider future disputes between the company and provincial and municipal authorities, and provide a response within three to five weeks, providing a “measure of certainty” for all parties. The announcement came a day after Kinder Morgan Canada, a division of Houston-based Kinder Morgan Inc, said the start-up of the expanded pipeline would be delayed until December 2020 due to permitting struggles. The Trans Mountain expansion, which would nearly triple capacity to 890,000 barrels per day, is hotly opposed by environmental groups, the province of British Columbia, and some local municipalities, including the Vancouver suburb of Burnaby, where the pipeline ends. While the project has federal approvals, Burnaby last year refused to issue key construction permits, forcing Kinder Morgan to appeal to the NEB for permission to proceed with its work. The company won that appeal in December. The NEB said it hopes the new process, which was requested by Kinder Morgan, will be used sparingly and that all participants will approach future permitting on a good faith basis, noting that the company must comply with all local laws. Separately, the NEB said it will hold hearings in Burnaby starting next week on the final route of the expansion, which is a twinning of an existing line from Alberta’s energy heartland to the British Columbia coast. (Reporting by Julie Gordon in Vancouver; Editing by Tom Brown)

https://www.reuters.com/article/kinder-morgan-cn-transmountain-neb/canada-regulator-sets-out-process-for-pipeline-permit-disputes-idUSL1N1PD2HA

BRIEF-First Commonwealth To Enter The Cincinnati Market Through The Acquisition Of Foundation Bank

Jan 10 (Reuters) - First Commonwealth Financial Corp : * FIRST COMMONWEALTH FINANCIAL CORP - DEAL FOR ‍CASH AND STOCK TRANSACTION VALUED AT APPROXIMATELY $58 MILLION​ * FIRST COMMONWEALTH FINANCIAL CORP - ‍EXPECTS THAT TRANSACTION WILL BE ACCRETIVE TO TANGIBLE BOOK VALUE PER SHARE AT CLOSING​ * FIRST COMMONWEALTH FINANCIAL - SHAREHOLDERS OF GARFIELD ACQUISITION WILL RECEIVE ABOUT 2.8 MILLION SHARES OF CO‘S COMMON STOCK * FIRST COMMONWEALTH FINANCIAL CORP - ‍ EXPECTS DEAL TO BE NOMINALLY ACCRETIVE TO EPS IN FIRST FULL YEAR OF OPERATIONS​ * FIRST COMMONWEALTH FINANCIAL - UPON CLOSING OF DEAL, FOUNDATION BANK WILL MERGE INTO FIRST COMMONWEALTH BANK & OPERATE UNDER FIRST COMMONWEALTH NAME * FIRST COMMONWEALTH FINANCIAL CORP - SHAREHOLDERS OF GARFIELD ACQUISITION WILL RECEIVE ABOUT $17.4 MILLION IN CASH * FIRST COMMONWEALTH TO ENTER THE CINCINNATI MARKET THROUGH THE ACQUISITION OF FOUNDATION BANK * FIRST COMMONWEALTH FINANCIAL - CO, GARFIELD ACQUISITION SIGN MERGER AGREEMENT AS PER WHICH CO WILL ACQUIRE GARFIELD ACQUISITION AND FOUNDATION BANK

https://www.reuters.com/article/brief-first-commonwealth-to-enter-the-ci/brief-first-commonwealth-to-enter-the-cincinnati-market-through-the-acquisition-of-foundation-bank-idUSASB0C0LW

Australian retail sales surge on iPhone, Black Friday bonanza

(Corrects to show online sales are included in the data, paragraphs 10-11) By Wayne Cole SYDNEY, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Australian retail sales boasted the biggest monthly rise in four years in November as consumers splashed out on Apple iPhones and Black Friday promotions, a major boost for an economy that had been struggling with sluggish spending. The local dollar jumped a third of a U.S. cent to $0.7874 as the surprising strength helped counter concerns consumers had lapsed into a near-permanent depression. Thursday’s figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) showed retail sales jumped 1.2 percent in November from October, when they rose a solid 0.5 percent. That was three times the market forecast and the steepest gain since early 2013. Sales were up 2.9 percent on a year earlier at a record seasonally adjusted high of A$26.38 billion ($20.75 billion). Gains were led by a hefty 4.5 percent rise in household goods and a 2.2 percent increase for other retailing. “Seasonally adjusted sales in both these industries are influenced by the release of the iPhone X and the increasing popularity of promotions in November, including Black Friday sales,” the ABS said in a note. Consumer spending has been under pressure from record-high household debt and sluggish wage growth, one reason the Reserve Bank of Australia is in no rush to raise interest rates from record lows. Futures markets <0#YIB;> still imply around a 50-50 chance of a hike by September and are not fully priced for a rise from 1.5 percent until February next year. The marked revival in sales in October and November greatly improved the outlook for gross domestic product growth in the fourth quarter, given household spending accounts for around 57 percent of annual economic output. Household consumption had expanded at its slowest pace since 2008 in the third quarter, marring an otherwise respectable annual growth outcome of 2.8 percent. THEN THERE‘S ONLINE The retail series also showed rapid growth in online sales, which are only set to take a bigger share as Amazon set up shop late last year and is rapidly expanding its offerings. The ABS measure showed online sales surged 22 percent in original terms in November to A$1.51 billion. National Australia Bank (NAB) produces an online measure of its own that showed a sharp 4.7 percent rebound in sales in November, the fastest pace since late 2014. In all, NAB estimates consumers spent A$24 billion online in the year to November, with annual growth running atop 14 percent. Anecdotal evidence from traditional retailers still suggest they had a better December holiday season than first feared, while surveys found a marked brightening in the consumer mood. A survey from ANZ and Roy Morgan out this week showed confidence had improved to the best since late 2013. Notably, those saying they were “better off” financially picked up to 35 percent, helping offset concerns about slow wages growth. ($1 = 1.2711 Australian dollars) (Reporting by Wayne Cole; Editing by Paul Tait) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

https://www.reuters.com/article/australia-economy-salesfigures/australian-retail-sales-surge-on-iphone-black-friday-bonanza-idUSL4N1P4563

HIGHLIGHTS-Tennis-Australian Open day 14

January 28, 2018 / 5:21 AM / Updated 17 minutes ago WRAPUP1-HIGHLIGHTS-Tennis-Australian Open day 14 3 Min Read (Updates ‘Read More’ section) MELBOURNE, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Roger Federer overcame Marin Cilic 6-2 6-7(5) 6-3 3-6 6-1 in a thrilling Melbourne Park final to win a record-equalling sixth Australian Open trophy and 20th grand slam title of his glittering career. Federer prevailed in just over three hours under the Rod Laver Arena roof to become the third man after Roy Emerson and Novak Djokovic to claim six Australian Open titles. The Swiss now has four more grand slam titles than his great rival Rafael Nadal. Cilic, who knocked out an ailing Nadal in the quarter-finals, showed plenty of courage in his first final appearance at the event as he came from a break down in the fourth set to take the match into a deciding set. But despite his big hitting, he could not stop Federer from running away with the title. “I‘m so happy, it’s unbelievable,” Federer said with a quivering voice. “I‘m happy it’s over, but winning is just an absolute dream come true. The fairytale continues for me. After the great year I had last year, it’s incredible.” Addressing the fans, he added: “You guys make me nervous. You guys make me practice. You guys fill the stadiums. Thank you.” Earlier, Croatia’s Mate Pavic and Canada’s Gabriela Dabrowski beat India’s Rohan Bopanna and Timea Babos of Hungary 2-6 6-4 (11-9) to win the mixed doubles title. READ MORE Federer fights off Cilic to win sixth Australian Open title 20 majors down, Federer thrilled as fairytale continues Weeping Federer hails emotional 20th grand slam title Cilic dealt tough hand again against Federer Cilic blames closed roof for slow start against Federer FACTBOX-List of Australian Open men’s singles champions FACTBOX-Australian Open men’s champion Roger Federer FACTBOX-Roger Federer’s grand slam records - in numbers Roger Federer v Marin Cilic - match stats Pavic, Dabrowski win Australian Open mixed doubles Highlights of Sunday’s 14th day of the Australian Open, the first grand slam tournament of the year (times in GMT): 1140 FEDERER BEATS CILIC TO WIN AUSTRALIAN OPEN Federer defeated Cilic 6-2 6-7(5) 6-3 3-6 6-1 to claim a record-equalling sixth Australian Open title and 20th grand slam. 0836 PLAY UNDERWAY IN MEN‘S FINAL The men’s final got underway at the Rod Laver Arena. 0617 DABROWSKI-PAVIC WIN MIXED DOUBLES TITLE Dabrowski and Pavic defeated Babos and Bopanna 2-6 6-4 (11-9) in 68 minutes to win the mixed doubles title. (Compiled by Shrivathsa Sridhar; Editing by Amlan Chakraborty and Pritha Sarkar)

https://uk.reuters.com/article/tennis-ausopen/highlights-tennis-australian-open-day-14-idUKL4N1PN00X

LIVE MARKETS-Morning call: European shares seen mixed at the open

January 10, 2018 / 6:18 AM / Updated 40 minutes ago LIVE MARKETS-Closing snapshot: Europe pulls back from highs Reuters Staff 20 Min Read * European stocks fall on bond sell-off * Defensives under pressure; banks rise * Gold jumps, U.S. stocks down Jan 10 (Reuters) - Welcome to the home for real-time coverage of European equity markets brought to you by Reuters stocks reporters and anchored today by Julien Ponthus. Reach him on Messenger to share your thoughts on market moves: julien.ponthus.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net CLOSING SNAPSHOT: EUROPE PULLS BACK FROM HIGHS (1708 GMT) Bond market jitters have weighed on the broader stock market today, leaving rate-sensitive banks, up 2.1 percent, as the only clear sectoral winner on the day, while bond proxies like utilities and real estate suffered the most. Overall that resulted in the STOXX 600 index falling just 0.4 percent after hitting fresh 2-1/2 year highs yesterday, while the bank-heavy FTSE MIB index managed to post a small gain. Here's your closing snapshot: (Danilo Masoni) **** EYES ON THE 2.6% LEVEL (1644 GMT) Nervousness on the bond market is the flavour of the day and equity investors are also closely watching U.S. Treasury yield charts for any further spike that could have meaningful repercussions on the stock market. "The 2.6% level on the 10-Year is an important level which if surpassed could be detrimental for equities," says Stephane Ekolo, Global Equity Strategist at Avalon Capital Markets. The yield on 10-year U.S. Treasuries has spiked today to fresh 10-month highs, to within striking distance from the 2.6% level. "US CPI data point (this Friday at 1:30pm UK) should be closely monitored as it may provide evidence confirming the uptrend on the 10yr yield," adds Ekolo. (Danilo Masoni) CHRISTMAS CHEER? A MIXED BAG FOR UK RETAILERS (1606 GMT) Retailers' Christmas updates so far have been a mixed bag, Liberum analysts say, with electronics, clothing and fashion the weakest segments, although most warned of tough conditions going into 2018. Company updates and industry data alike paint a picture of weak in-store footfall being offset by strong online sales. "What we're seeing is the disparity between the 'new-world' retailers versus the more traditional, mid-market players where the consumer proposition and service elements are not compelling or agile enough, is widening," they note, adding that most retailers highlighted tough conditions in 2018. What to bet on? Strong online players and value propositions, according to them - Liberum's preferences include ASOS, B&M and Boohoo, while it remains concerned about M&S, which reports Christmas trading tomorrow. Today we've had some disappointing updates from Superdry and Moss Brothers sending their shares sliding 8.8 and 16 percent respectively. But overall valuations for the UK's general retail sector have ticked up recently as some Christmas updates beat gloomy expectations. (Helen Reid) HOW DOES IT FEEL BEING A CRYPTO? 267 PCT HIGH THANK YOU! (1545 GMT) Shares of Eastman Kodak Co are up 65 percent today and have surged 267 percent since the beginning of the year after the one-time leader in photography became the latest company to jump on the cryptocurrency bandwagon. There's really something magical (or not) about crypto : Riot Blockchain shares have tripled since October when the former biotechnology firm changed its name. Same thing for soft drinks maker Long Island Iced Tea which has more than doubled since it said it was shifting focus to blockchain technology and changed its name to Long Blockchain. Here's crypto magic for you in the form of Kodak shares: (Julien Ponthus) JPM AM STICKS WITH SLIGHT PRO-CYCLICAL TILT IN EUROPE (1510 GMT) Stephen Macklow-Smith, head of Europe equity strategy at JPMorgan Asset Management, tells us that the faster earnings growth he expects to see in Europe is probably going to be in the financial and cyclical area of the market. "If we're seeing higher growth and higher inflation, then yields should be moving higher and yield curves should be steepening, and that's exactly what we are seeing," Macklow-Smith says. "That's normally an environment in which financials and cyclicals outperform defensives and growth companies." Macklow-Smith adds that they are sticking with the "modest pro-cyclical financial tilt to the portfolio" they have had through most of the time since the yield curve in Europe started to steepen in the middle of 2016. (Kit Rees) "NO I DON’T THINK THIS IS THE START": PERMABEAR REBUFFS BOND BEAR CLAIMS (1502 GMT) With bond kings such as Bill Gross claiming the start of a bear market has begun, you would have thought that SocGen's Albert Edwards, who's been warning for quite some time now about the possibility of a market collapse, would join in. But no, far from it. "The US 10y can rise all the way to 3% and we will still be in a long-term secular bull market", he just told us. "My own view is that we could visit 3% before yields crash lower in the next recession to -1% US10y (yes that is minus 1%)", he added. Just to reassure you guys, he is still a permabear : "Do I think the equity markets could collapse this year, just like in 1987? Yes I certainly do," he stressed. Here's the chart he used yesterday during a conference in London to make his case: (Julien Ponthus) IS THIS THE TURNING POINT FOR A SOUR BET ON EUROPEAN BANKS?(1440 GMT) One equity trade of 2017 that has so far failed to pay off was euro zone banks, driven by the expectation that recovering economies and an eventual pull-back in bond purchasing by the ECB would finally nudge interest rates higher, firing up bank profits. But a turning point could be ahead with bank stocks shooting up today as bond yields rise. Every market watcher is talking about the interest rate outlook today and how to position in equities in preparation - with many strongly bullish on bank stocks. "Higher rates could be coming in our view, and given the moves can be vicious when they finally arrive it seems sensible to position for such ahead of the event," write Northern Trust Capital Markets analysts. They cite valuation discounts, dividend premiums, a peak in regulation as just a few of the reasons to buy bank stocks. "Clearly banks should win in a rising rate environment; so too should commodities," the analysts add. Citi analysts also remain overweight financials, saying the sector will be driven higher by rising bond yields, solid earnings growth, as well as the potential for sector M&A. (Helen Reid) AFTERNOON UPDATE: EUROPEAN BANKS SOAR BUT STOXX STILL SOUR (1354 GMT) It's just past lunchtime and financials are the one bright spot in an otherwise negative European stockmarket. Over in the U.S. it looks like it's going to be a similar story with Wall St futures pointing to a muted start to trading following a report that China may slow its purchases of U.S. bonds. Here's your snapshot: (Kit Rees) SMALL IS BEAUTIFUL IN EUROPEAN EQUITIES (1340 GMT) JP Morgan strategists are pouring praise on the small- and mid-cap parts of the market which they see as safe bets in this late-cycle stock market where valuations are running high. Small and mid-caps in Europe continue to offer faster earnings growth than large-caps, at discounted valuations, and with less leveraged balance sheets, they note. JPM believes the next global recession will start in the U.S., and accordingly analyzes the performance of small and mid-caps around th

https://www.reuters.com/article/europe-stocks/live-markets-morning-call-european-shares-seen-mixed-at-the-open-idUSL8N1P50LP

House panel to probe sexual abuse in sports

January 26, 2018 / 5:25 PM / in 2 hours House panel to investigate sexual abuse in sports Reuters Staff 2 Min Read WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee said Friday it will investigate sexual abuse in organized sports after the sentencing of a USA Gymnastics team doctor for sexually abusing female athletes. The committee sent letters to USA Gymnastics, the U.S. Olympic Committee, Michigan State University, USA Swimming and USA Taekwondo, asking questions about sexual abuse within organized sports. Some were asked when they became aware of abuse allegations relating to the U.S. gymnastics team doctor, Larry Nassar, and answers were requested by Feb. 9. Nassar was sentenced in Michigan this week to up to 175 years in prison for sexually assaulting young female gymnasts. Separately, the U.S. Department of Education said Friday it was also investigating the Nassar abuse case. “What happened at Michigan State is abhorrent,” Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said in a statement. “The Department is investigating this matter and will hold MSU accountable for any violations of federal law.” Reporting by David Shepardson Editing by Bernadette Baum

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-gymnastics-usa-congress/house-panel-to-probe-sexual-abuse-in-sports-idUSKBN1FF2BQ

Bill Clinton repays a favor to Fleetwood Mac at MusiCares ceremony

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Their 1977 song “Don’t Stop” helped power Bill Clinton into the White House in 1992, and on Friday it was the former U.S. president doing the honors for Fleetwood Mac. Clinton presented Fleetwood Mac with statuettes as the 2018 MusicCares honorees, making them the first band to win the annual award given to a musician for creative achievements and charitable work. Clinton chose the British-American band’s single “Don’t Stop” as the theme song for his 1992 presidential campaign, helping to revive their popularity and encouraging the fractious soft rock band to reunite for his inaugural ball in 1993. “They let me use it as a theme song and I have been trying to live by it ever since,” Clinton told the audience at Radio City Music Hall in New York. “I owe a great deal to all of them,” he added. At the concert and ceremony on Friday, Miley Cyrus, Lorde, Keith Urban, Harry Styles and Juanes were among musicians across genres to perform their own interpretations of Fleetwood Mac’s biggest hits over a 50-year career. Band members Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Stevie Nicks, Christine McVie and Lindsey Buckingham ended the three-hour celebration by taking to the stage to perform “Go Your Own Way” and “Little Lies.” Former U.S. President Bill Clinton (L) and Neil Portnow (R), President & CEO of The Recording Academy, stand with honorees (2nd L-2nd R) Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham, Christine McVie, Mick Fleetwood, and John McVie during the 2018 MusiCares Person of the Year show honoring Fleetwood Mac at Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan, New York, U.S., January 26, 2018. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly Fleetwood Mac formed in London in 1967 and went on to become one of the best-selling bands in the world, with more than 100 million records sold, including Grammy-winning 1977 album “Rumours” and hit singles “Songbird,” “Rhiannon” and “Dreams.” After romantic and creative tensions, some members going solo and several changes of line-up, Fleetwood, McVie, Nicks, Buckingham and Christine McVie put their differences behind them and reunited in 2014 for the first time since 1998, and embarked on a sell-out world tour. Slideshow (2 Images) “Fleetwood Mac is well known for being a dysfunctional family... and it was certainly much of the fuel for our material,” said Buckingham. “But what we are feeling really more now than ever in our career is love,” he added. Proceeds from the annual MusiCares gala support members of the music industry in times of financial and medical need. Friday’s event, held two days before the Grammy Awards, raised some $7 million for MusiCares, Recording Academy chairman Neil Portnow said. Previous recipients include Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, Barbra Streisand, Bruce Springsteen and Paul McCartney. Editing by Nick Macfie

https://in.reuters.com/article/awards-grammys-musicares/bill-clinton-repays-a-favor-to-fleetwood-mac-at-musicares-ceremony-idINKBN1FG065

Italy to ask EU to reconsider Milan for drugs agency headquarters

ROME (Reuters) - Italy will ask European authorities to reconsider whether the European Medicines Authority (EMA) could be moved to Milan after Brexit, in light of concerns about its planned move to Amsterdam, an Italian government source said on Monday. Milan lost out when the new destination for the authority, which must leave its current home in London when Britain leaves the European Union, was decided by drawing lots in November. But in light of concerns raised by Executive Director Guido Rasi on Monday about the temporary space available in Amsterdam, Italy would try again for the chance to host the agency, the source said. “The government will take all appropriate action with the European Commission and the relevant authorities to make sure that ... the decision by which Milan lost out at the draw is (reconsidered),” he said. Rasi said his organization had little choice other than to accept a temporary Amsterdam base with half the space of its London offices as it rushes to relocate ahead of Britain’s March 2019 exit from the EU. The Dutch health ministry specified in a separate statement EMA will occupy the “Spark” building in western Amsterdam during 2019, ahead of the scheduled completion of a new, building to house the EMA in south Amsterdam starting in 2020. Reporting by Crispian Balmer and Toby Sterling; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg

https://in.reuters.com/article/us-britain-eu-ema-italy/italy-to-ask-eu-to-reconsider-milan-for-drugs-agency-headquarters-source-idINKBN1FI2H0

Concurrent Closes Previously Announced Sale of Content Delivery & Storage Business to Vecima Networks for $29 Million; Changes Name to CCUR Holdings, Inc.

ATLANTA, Jan. 03, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Concurrent (NASDAQ:CCUR) reported yesterday that it closed the previously-announced sale of its content delivery and storage business to Vecima Networks Inc. (VCM:TO) for $29 million in cash. Effective immediately, the Company has changed its name to “CCUR Holdings, Inc.” (“CCUR” or the “Company”). The Company will continue to trade on the NASDAQ market under the symbol “CCUR” and has launched a new website located at www.ccurholdings.com . About CCUR Holdings, Inc. CCUR Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCUR) recently divested its linux and real-time business and its content delivery and storage business. The Company is in the process of evaluating opportunities intended to maximize the value of its remaining assets, which consists primarily of cash and cash equivalents. This will include the evaluation of opportunities to invest in or acquire one or more operating businesses intended to provide appreciation in value, thereby enhancing the Company’s liquidity, and potentially allowing the Company greater ability to utilize existing NOLs. More information on the Company is available at www.ccurholdings.com . Forward Looking Statements Certain statements in this communication and the documents referenced herein constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are often identified by words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “intend,” “estimate,” “expect,” “see,” “continue,” “could,” “can,” “may,” “will,” “likely,” “depend,” “should,” “would,” “plan,” “predict,” “target,” and similar expressions, and may include references to assumptions and relate to the Company’s future prospects, developments and business strategies. Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this communication may contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties that may cause the Company’s actual results to be materially different from such forward-looking statements and could materially adversely affect its business, financial condition, operating results and cash flows. These risks and uncertainties include the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstances that could affect the ability of the Company to invest or acquire an operating business or otherwise maximize the Company’s assets; general business conditions; changes in overall economic conditions; the impact of competition; and other factors which are often beyond the control of the Company, as well other risks listed in the definitive proxy statement filed on November 6, 2017 or the Company’s Form 10-K filed September 20, 2017 with the Securities and Exchange Commission and risks and uncertainties not presently known to the Company or that the Company currently deems immaterial. CCUR wishes to caution you that you should not place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they were made. CCUR does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements, except as required by law. Investor Relations: Doug Sherk (415) 652-9100 dsherk@evcgroup.com Todd Kehrli (310) 625-4462 tkehrli@evcgroup.com Source:Concurrent Computer Corporation

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/03/globe-newswire-concurrent-closes-previously-announced-sale-of-content-delivery-storage-business-to-vecima-networks-for-29-millionachanges.html

The Wall Street Journal: Army rips out Chinese-made surveillance cameras overlooking U.S. base

Published: Jan 12, 2018 11:12 a.m. ET Share Hikvision has repeatedly said its devices are safe and secure and the company hasn’t been accused of using its devices to spy By Dan Strumpf The U.S. Army said it removed surveillance cameras made by a Chinese state-backed manufacturer from a domestic military base, while a congressional committee plans to hold a hearing this month into whether small businesses face cybersecurity risks from using the equipment. Fort Leonard Wood, an Army base in Missouri’s Ozarks, replaced five cameras on the base branded and made by Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Co., said Col. Christopher Beck, the base’s chief of staff. He said officials at the base acted after reading media reports about the company. “We never believed [the cameras] were a security risk. They were always on a closed network,” Col. Beck said. The decision to replace the cameras was meant to “remove any negative perception” surrounding them following media reports, he added, without elaborating. A Wall Street Journal article in November highlighted the prevalence in the U.S. of devices made by Hikvision , the world’s largest maker of surveillance cameras, which is 42% owned by the Chinese government. The Journal reported that some security-system vendors in the U.S. refuse to carry Hikvision cameras or place restrictions on their purchase, concerned they could be used by Beijing to spy on Americans. A Hikvision spokeswoman said the company “believes the products it builds and distributes around the world must meet the highest standards of not only quality but also security. We stand by our products and processes.” A Defense Department spokesman said the Hikvision cameras at Fort Leonard Wood weren’t connected to the military network. He said the department is conducting a review of all network-connected cameras on the base to ensure they are “in compliance with all security updates.” The spokesman declined to comment on whether Hikvision cameras are in use at other military facilities.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/army-rips-out-chinese-made-surveillance-cameras-overlooking-u-s-base/

Enbridge Inc. to Host a Joint Webcast with Enbridge Income Fund Holdings Inc., Enbridge Energy Partners, L.P. & Spectra Energy Partners, LP to Discuss 2017 Fourth Quarter and Year End Financial Results on February 16

CALGARY, Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ - Enbridge Inc. (TSX, NYSE: ENB) (Enbridge) will host a joint conference call and webcast with Enbridge Income Fund Holdings Inc. (TSX: ENF), Enbridge Energy Partners, L.P. (NYSE: EEP) and Spectra Energy Partners, LP (NYSE: SEP) to provide an enterprise-wide business update and review 2017 fourth quarter and year end financial results on February 16, 2018 at 7:00 a.m. MT (9:00 a.m. ET). Enbridge and Enbridge Income Fund Holdings Inc. will announce fourth quarter earnings results before markets open on February 16, 2018, while Enbridge Energy Partners, L.P. and Spectra Energy Partners, LP will announce fourth quarter earnings results after markets close on February 15, 2018. 2017 Fourth Quarter and Year End Earnings Webcast and Conference Call When: Friday, February 16, 2018 7:00 a.m. MT (9:00 a.m. ET) Webcast: Sign-up Call: Dial-in # (Audio only – please dial in 10 minutes ahead): North America Toll Free: 1 (877) 930-8043 Outside North America: 1 (253) 336-7522 Participant Passcode: 4939158 A webcast replay and podcast will be available approximately two hours after the conclusion of the event and a transcript will be posted to the company websites within approximately 24 hours after the event. Replay: Audio Replay # (Available for 7 days after call): North America Toll Free: 1 (855) 859-2056 Outside North America: 1 (404) 537-3406 Replay Passcode: 4939158 The conference call format will include prepared remarks from the executive team followed by a question and answer session for the analyst and investor community only. Enbridge's media and investor relations teams will be available after the call for any additional questions. Forward-Looking Statements Advisory The conference call will cover each of Enbridge Inc., Enbridge Income Fund Holdings Inc., Enbridge Energy Partners, L.P. and Spectra Energy Partners, LP's (collectively, the Entities) most recent financial results and may contain forward-looking statements. When used in the call, words such as "anticipate", "expect", "project", and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Although each of the Entities believes that its respective statements are or will be based on information and assumptions which are current, reasonable and complete, these statements are necessarily subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties pertaining to operating performance, regulatory parameters, economic conditions, commodity prices and other matters. You can find a discussion of those assumptions, risks and uncertainties in the Canadian securities law and/or American SEC filings for the applicable Entity. While each Entity makes its respective forward-looking statements in good faith, should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary significantly from those expected. Except as may be required by applicable securities laws, no Entity assumes any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements made herein, on the call or otherwise, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. About Enbridge Inc. Enbridge Inc. is North America's premier energy infrastructure company with strategic business platforms that include an extensive network of crude oil, liquids and natural gas pipelines, regulated natural gas distribution utilities and renewable power generation. The Company safely delivers an average of 2.8 million barrels of crude oil each day through its Mainline and Express Pipeline, and accounts for nearly 65% of U.S.-bound Canadian crude oil production, and moves approximately 20% of all natural gas consumed in the U.S. serving key supply basins and demand markets. The Company's regulated utilities serve approximately 3.5 million retail customers in Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and New York State. Enbridge also has interests in more than 2,500 MW of net renewable generating capacity, and an expanding offshore wind portfolio in Europe. The Company has ranked on the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations index for the past eight years; its common shares trade on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges under the symbol ENB. Life takes energy and Enbridge exists to fuel people's quality of life. For more information, visit www.enbridge.com . About Enbridge Income Fund Holdings Inc. Enbridge Income Fund Holdings Inc., through its investment in Enbridge Income Fund, indirectly holds high quality, low-risk energy infrastructure assets. Enbridge Income Fund's assets consist of a portfolio of Canadian liquids transportation and storage businesses, including the Canadian Mainline, the Regional Oil Sands System, the Canadian segment of the Southern Lights Pipeline, Class A units entitling the holder to receive defined cash flows from the US segment of the Southern Lights Pipeline, a 50 percent interest in the Alliance Pipeline, which transports natural gas from Canada to the U.S., and interests in more than 1,400 MW of renewable and alternative power generation assets. Enbridge Income Fund Holdings Inc. is a publicly traded corporation on the Toronto stock exchange under the symbol ENF; information about the company is available on its website at www.enbridgeincomefund.com . About Enbridge Energy Partners, L.P. Enbridge Energy Partners, L.P. owns and operates a diversified portfolio of crude oil transportation systems in the United States. Its principal crude oil system is the largest pipeline transporter of growing oil production from western Canada and the North Dakota Bakken formation. The system's deliveries to refining centers and connected carriers in the United States account for approximately 23 percent of total U.S. oil imports. Enbridge Energy Partners, L.P. is traded on the New York stock exchange under the symbol EEP; information about the company is available on its website at www.enbridgepartners.com . About Spectra Energy Partners, LP Spectra Energy Partners, LP is one of the largest pipeline master limited partnerships in the United States and connects growing supply areas to high-demand markets for natural gas and crude oil. These assets include more than 15,000 miles of transmission pipelines, approximately 170 billion cubic feet of natural gas storage, and approximately 5.6 million barrels of crude oil storage. Spectra Energy Partners, LP is traded on the New York stock exchange under the symbol SEP; information about the company is available on its website at www.spectraenergypartners.com . FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT: Media: Suzanne Wilton Toll Free: (888) 992-0997 Email: suzanne.wilton@enbridge.com Investment Community: Enbridge Inc. Jonathan Gould Toll Free: (800) 481-2804 Email: investor.relations@enbridge.com Enbridge Income Fund Holdings Inc. & Enbridge Energy Partners, L.P. Adam McKnight Toll Free: (800) 481-2804 Email: investor.relations@enbridge.com Spectra Energy Partners, LP Roni Cappadonna Toll Free: (800) 481-2804 Email: investor.relations@enbridge.com SOURCE Enbridge Inc.

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/22/pr-newswire-enbridge-inc-to-host-a-joint-webcast-with-enbridge-income-fund-holdings-inc-enbridge-energy-partners-l-p-spectra-energy.html

Seychelle Reports Increased Revenues and Profitability for the Fiscal Quarter and Nine Months ended November 30, 2017

ALISO VIEJO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Seychelle Water Filtration Products, a DBA of Seychelle Environmental Technologies, Inc. (Seychelle, we, us, our or the Company) (OTCQB: SYEV), a worldwide leader in the development, assembly and sale of proprietary portable water filtration bottles, made several announcements today. For the Fiscal Quarter ended November 30, 2017, Revenue was $1,629,324, compared to $1,257,844 in the prior year’s fiscal quarter. Seychelle had Net income of $246,618 for the fiscal quarter ended November 30, 2017, or $.01 per share, compared to prior year's fiscal quarter Net loss of $290,083, or ($.01) per share. Seychelle had a cash position of $1,776,482 at November 30, 2017, compared to a cash position of $732,112 at February 28, 2017. For the Nine Months ended November 30, 2017, Revenue was $3,829,465, compared to $2,885,212 in the prior year’s nine months period. Seychelle had Net income of $491,995 for the nine months ended November 30, 2017, or $.02 per share, compared to prior year's nine months’ Net loss of $877,041, or ($.03) per share. Seychelle continues to manage cost in line with current revenue. At this time it is too early to give definitive guidance regarding sales for the fourth fiscal quarter. This year, Seychelle products have expanded its sales efforts in the following international markets: Mexico, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and China. Management intends to expand marketing activities to the international market and E-commerce. We recently completed testing in Sri Lanka and Vietnam. We also completed tests with the government of South Korea. All tests showed basically non-detectable levels on all inorganics/organics bacteriological contaminants. We have developed four new products for the disaster preparedness market. Our new products are an inline flat five phase filter that now includes five different phases of contaminant reduction including hollow fiber technology for final reduction of microbiological contaminants, two new products for our new Amazon marketing activities which include a pH pitcher that has a fast flow capability and a new pH bottle that is designed to eliminate all phases of contaminants; aesthetic, biological, chemical, inorganic and radiological up to 200 gallons. "Dedicated to improving the quality of life through the quality of our drinking water." Note to Investors This press release may contain certain forward-looking information about the Seychelle's business prospects/projections. These are based upon good-faith current expectations of Seychelle's management. Seychelle makes no representation or warranty as to the attainability of such assumptions/projections. Investors are expected to conduct their own investigation with regard to Seychelle. Seychelle assumes no obligation to update the information in this press release. , please visit www.seychelle.com or call (949) 234-1999. View source version on businesswire.com : http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180117005140/en/ Seychelle Water Filtration Products Carl Palmer (949) 234-1999 cpalmer@seychelle.com Source: Seychelle Water Filtration Products

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/17/business-wire-seychelle-reports-increased-revenues-and-profitability-for-the-fiscal-quarter-and-nine-months-ended-november-30-2017.html

Barca visit thrill-seeking Betis after ending unbeaten run

49 AM / Updated 4 minutes ago Barca visit thrill-seeking Betis after ending unbeaten run Richard Martin 3 Min Read BARCELONA (Reuters) - Barcelona have had their confidence trimmed by Espanyol snapping their 29-game unbeaten run in all competitions with a surprise win in the King’s Cup, and the runaway Liga leaders will be put to the test again on Sunday against thrill seekers Real Betis. Only Barca and high-flying Valencia have scored more goals than Betis, who have garnered a reputation as one of the most exciting teams in the league this season under attacking ideologue Quique Setien. The former Las Palmas coach’s open approach has had dire consequences for his side’s defence, however, which is the third worst in the league, with only basement club Las Palmas and 18th-placed Deportivo La Coruna shipping more goals than them. Betsy won a wild local derby at fierce rivals Sevilla 5-3 at the start of the month, while earlier this season their swashbuckling style saw them lose 6-3 to Valencia and draw 4-4 with Real Sociedad. Their last outing was a thrilling 3-2 win over Leganes in which they threw away a two-goal lead before returning hero Ruben Castro came off the bench to strike the winning penalty in his first game back at the club. Barca have been accused of uninspiring football on occasion this season but last week turned on the style to come from two goals down to beat Real Sociedad 4-2, ending an 11-year hoodoo away to the Basque club and preserving their nine-point lead at the top of the standings. Despite the danger posed by Barca, Setien ruled out a cautious approach from Betis against the Catalans and also said he would not instruct his players to man-mark Lionel Messi. “Barcelona are a very difficult team to face, we have some doubts, but we’re going to be brave against them, we’re sure of that,” the coach told radio station Cadena Ser. ”Our destiny is to play, to press them high and rob the ball off them in their half, and as long as they will permit us, to try and cause them problems in their area. Betis captain Joaquin added: “They have every move programmed and they play so perfectly that it’s going to be very difficult, but we’re going to die with our philosophy and we’re going to try and cause them problems.” There was little sign of alarm among Barca players after they lost 1-0 to Espanyol in the first leg of their Cup quarterfinal to an 88th minute winner from Oscar Melendo after Messi had a penalty saved. “If you could choose a day to lose, it might have been today,” defender Gerard Pique said after Barca’s first defeat in any competition since August. Elsewhere in La Liga, second-placed Atletico Madrid host Girona while crisis-hit champions Real Madrid play at home to relegation-fighting Deportivo La Coruna looking for a first win in four league games. Reporting by Richard Martin; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-soccer-spain/barca-visit-thrill-seeking-betis-after-ending-unbeaten-run-idUKKBN1F71G6

Republicans and Democrats spin the government shutdown

Republicans and Democrats spin the government shutdown 1:09am IST - 01:40 With a government shutdown on the one year anniversary of Trump’s inauguration, the president on Twitter trying to shift the blame onto the Democrats. ▲ Hide Transcript ▶ View Transcript With a government shutdown on the one year anniversary of Trump’s inauguration, the president on Twitter trying to shift the blame onto the Democrats. Press CTRL+C (Windows), CMD+C (Mac), or long-press the URL below on your mobile device to copy the code https://in.reuters.com/video/2018/01/20/republicans-and-democrats-spin-the-gover?videoId=387513065&videoChannel=13423

https://in.reuters.com/video/2018/01/20/republicans-and-democrats-spin-the-gover?videoId=387513065

Snowboarding: Veteran Clark joins newcomer Kim on U.S. team

January 21, 2018 / 6:28 AM / in 6 hours Snowboarding: Veteran Clark joins newcomer Kim on U.S. team Rory Carroll 3 Min Read MAMMOTH, California (Reuters) - Veteran Kelly Clark qualified for her fifth Olympic Games on Saturday by winning the snowboarding halfpipe competition at the U.S. Grand Prix in Mammoth, edging out fellow American and celebrated newcomer Chloe Kim. “It never gets old and it never gets easy,” Clark told a crowd assembled for the team-naming ceremony after the competition. “This is one of the greatest privileges of my life.” Clark, the most decorated women’s snowboarder of all time, scored an 89 on her first of three trips down the halfpipe. The 17-year-old Kim, who has called the 34-year-old Clark a mentor, scored an 87 on her second run but was unable to catch Clark. Kim had already secured her spot on the U.S. team prior to Saturday’s competition and did not attempt some of the more challenging tricks that have made her a favorite to win gold in Pyeongchang next month. Korean-American Kim said getting the chance to compete in South Korea for this first Olympics added an extra layer of excitement. “I have family in Korea as well so this has a special meaning to me,” she said. “I am really excited for these next couple months. I think it will be a good time.” Clark and Kim will be joined by 17-year-old Maddie Mastro, who finished third, with the fourth spot yet to be determined, but is likely go to 21-year-old Arielle Gold. Chase Josey scored an impressive 94.5 on his first run to win his first Grand Prix and make a strong case to be given the fourth spot on the U.S. men’s snowboarding team for Pyeongchang. Ben Ferguson, Shaun White and Jake Pates had all already qualified. Only Ferguson competed on Saturday, looking explosive on the course but finishing second to the 22-year-old Josey. Two-time gold medalist White had been expected to compete on Saturday but withdrew due to illness. White booked his ticket to Pyeongchang last weekend when he scored a perfect 100 to win at the U.S. Grand Prix in Snowmass, Colorado. White was on hand for the competition on Saturday and said his enthusiasm was running high ahead of his fourth Olympics. “I am so excited because it is not easy,” he told a press conference. “I‘m pumped.” A scary moment came when veteran American Danny Davis crashed toward the end of his second run, landing hard on his back at the top of the railing before skidding to the halfpipe floor. After being treated by medical staff for several minutes he walked off unaided, earning loud applause from the crowd. Editing by Greg Stutchbury and Sudipto Ganguly

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-olympics-2018-sno-usa/snowboarding-veteran-clark-joins-newcomer-kim-on-u-s-team-idUSKBN1FA04S

Fashion group Esprit sees H1 loss on declining stores sales

HONG KONG, Jan 25 (Reuters) - Esprit Holdings Ltd said it expected to post losses in the fiscal first half, ended in December 2017, hit by weak sales at its brick-and-mortar retail stores as the fashion group rationalized its distribution footprint and a decline in China business. The Europe-focused clothing retailer expected to post a net loss of up to HK$980 million ($125.4 million) for July-December period, as compared with HK$61 million profit in the year-ago period, the company said in a filing late on Wednesday. Esprit said its gross profit margin had slightly increased and operating expenses had further reduced, but were not sufficient to outweigh the negative impact of the revenue decline during the period. The operating environment continues to be “very challenging” amid the rapidly-changing industry dynamics, and the financial performance in the second half remains “uncertain”, the company added. It is due to release the interim results on Feb. 28. Esprit is undergoing a multi-year revamp that includes store closures, price adjustments, new return policies, and technology and distribution upgrades. It said in November it would continue downsizing effort to accelerate closure of loss-making retail stores and expect improvement in gross profit margin and operating expenses to outweigh the negative impact of revenue decline. The company has expected controlled retail space to shrink by single digits in percentage terms in the current financial year with falling revenue. Esprit shares dived more than 15 percent in early trade at HK$3.44, their lowest since April 1999. $1 = 7.8176 Hong Kong dollars Reporting by Donny Kwok; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips

https://www.reuters.com/article/esprit-results-forecast/fashion-group-esprit-sees-h1-loss-on-declining-stores-sales-idUSL4N1PK190

GRAPHICS-India's 2017 oil demand growth posts lowest gain since 2013

* Demonetisation, tax increase hit consumption -Morgan Stanley * 2018 fuel demand outlook to improve -Trifecta * Indian car sales pick up but still far below China’s By Henning Gloystein SINGAPORE, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Indian oil consumption in 2017 grew at its slowest in four years, according to government statistics, hit by the government’s demonetisation move and a tax increase that knocked the gain in fuel use back to a modest 2.3 percent. The low growth also coincided with another year of weak, albeit improving, new vehicle sales. Last year’s oil demand was held back “by headwinds from demonetisation and a new goods and services tax,” U.S. bank Morgan Stanley said in a note to clients. India imports almost all of its oil, shipping in around 4.2 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude in 2017, according to trade flow data in Thomson Reuters Eikon. “Gasoline demand rose 7.4 percent, or 41,000 barrels per day, down from 12 percent growth in 2016 as demand was affected by demonetisation at the start of the year,” the bank said. India in late 2016 pulled all 500- and 1,000-rupee notes out of circulation, crimping retail and wholesale markets. “The demonetization exercise hit consumption, particularly in the first half of 2017. We are likely to see better growth this year,” said Sukrit Vijayakar, director at Indian energy consultancy Trifecta. India also saw some structural demand changes that affected the use of refined oil products. A government push for household to use more liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has India challenging China as the world’s top LPG importer. This has come at the cost of a straight 15-month decline in jet fuel and kerosene demand in India, Morgan Stanley said. Also, “naphtha demand ... was down 8 percent for 2017 as a whole, possibly driven by more LPG use in petrochemicals,” it said. SLOW CAR SALES India’s slow oil demand growth has surprised many, given the country has often been touted as the next China in terms of rising oil consumption. Yet the oil demand figures correlate with slow growth in a related field: car sales. India’s new passenger car sales in 2017 likely approached 3 million for the first time and outgrew a record hit in 2012. The figure, though, remains far below China’s new car sales, which stand at almost 3 million a month. The low auto sales are partly explained by India’s annual per capita gross domestic product (GDP) being merely a fifth of China‘s. Fuels at Indian petrol stations are also much more expensive. If an Indian citizen with an average salary buys 10 gallons of gasoline per month, that would represent nearly 30 percent of the person’s income, while the average Chinese would fork out just 5 percent, data from statistics company Numbeo showed. However, India’s lacklustre auto sales may pick-up as its economy continues to grow strongly, at over 6 percent per year . Trifecta’s Vijayakar said car and motorbike sales in India “have shown good growth in the last few months ... (and) should be better this year.” Reporting by Henning Gloystein; Editing by Tom Hogue Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

https://www.reuters.com/article/india-oil-demand/graphics-indias-2017-oil-demand-growth-posts-lowest-gain-since-2013-idUSL8N1P6074

Amazon pulls kids clothes bearing 'Slavery gets shit done' slogan

LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Children’s clothes bearing the slogan ‘Slavery gets shit done’ have been pulled from sale by online retail giant Amazon.com Inc after criticism from shoppers and anti-slavery groups. A range of products featuring the slogan, from mugs and bags to T-shirts modeled by young children, were listed by third-party sellers and have been removed from sale, Amazon said. “All Marketplace sellers must follow our selling guidelines and those who don’t will be subject to action including potential removal of their account,” an Amazon spokesman said in a statement. “The products in question are no longer available.” While the slavery-themed products are no longer available to buy on Amazon’s UK website, bags bearing the slogan were still on sale on the U.S.-based Amazon.com on Monday. The sale of such items by a major retailer trivializes the global drive to end modern slavery, said charities Anti-Slavery International (ASI) and International Justice Mission (IJM) UK. “If it is meant to be funny, it fails miserably,” Jakub Sobik of ASI told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by phone. More than 40 million people were living as modern slaves last year - either trapped in forced labor or forced marriages - according to the United Nations International Labour Organization (ILO) and human rights group Walk Free Foundation. “Children the same age as those modeling the T-shirts will be forced to work long hours for no pay in desperate conditions where starvation, beatings and sleep deprivation are common,” said David Westlake, chief executive of IJM UK. “Rather than trivializing slavery, companies and the global community must recognize the vast injustice of modern slavery and work together to end it for good,” he added. The imagery linked to slavery, and the issues it raises over history and identity, has stirred increasing debate with deep division over the fate of slavery-era statues in the United States, and worldwide outrage about slogans and pictures used by big brands. British supermarket Waitrose this month pulled a brand of coffee off its shelves after shoppers noticed the packaging featured images of 19th-century slaves working on plantations. Reporting By Kieran Guilbert, Editing by Ros Russell; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, property rights, climate change and resilience. Visit news.trust.org

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-amazon-com-slavery/amazon-pulls-kids-clothes-bearing-slavery-gets-shit-done-slogan-idUSKBN1FB1OW

Vice President Pence to lead U.S. delegation to Winter Olympics

January 10, 2018 / 2:13 PM / Updated 32 minutes ago Vice President Pence to lead U.S. delegation to Winter Olympics Reuters Staff 2 Min Read WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Vice President Mike Pence and second lady Karen Pence will lead the U.S. delegation to the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, next month, a senior White House official said on Wednesday. FILE PHOTO - U.S. Vice President Mike Pence speaks to troops in a hangar at Bagram Air Field in Afghanistan on December 21, 2017. REUTERS/Mandel Ngan/Pool Pence will also visit Alaska and Japan as part of the trip. Pence will review ICBM defence systems in Alaska and reaffirm to the leaders of Japan and South Korea that the United States is fully committed to stability in the region, the official said. The Pyeongchang Olympics, which start on Feb. 9, coincide with high tensions on the Korean Peninsula due to North Korean nuclear tests and contentious exchanges between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. North Korea will also send high-ranking officials, athletes, and a cheering squad to the Olympics, a senior South Korean official said on Tuesday. The U.S. State Department said in a briefing on Tuesday that there are not any current plans for the American delegation to meet with the North Korean delegation. Republican U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham has said he opposed inviting the North Korean delegation to the Games. “I don’t mind talks with North Korea but I do have serious concerns about legitimising the most barbaric leader on the planet,” Graham wrote in a post on Twitter on Tuesday. Reporting by Blake Brittain; Editing by Andrew Hay

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-olympics-2018-usa-pence/vice-president-pence-to-lead-u-s-delegation-to-winter-olympics-idUKKBN1EZ1QI

Daily Briefing: Brexit bill set for Lords; new start in Catalonia

January 17, 2018 / 8:32 AM / Updated 25 minutes ago Daily Briefing: Brexit bill set for Lords; new start in Catalonia Reuters Staff 7 Min Read LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's controversial EU Withdrawal Bill is set to complete its first journey through parliament's lower house with a vote some time after 1900 GMT today , marking a major legal step on the way to Brexit. Despite its wafer-thin majority, the government is likely to be able to get the bill through, meaning it then passes to the largely pro-EU upper chamber House of Lords for more scrutiny. Calls for a second referendum on Brexit have grown this month, and EU leaders insist Britain is welcome to stay in the EU if it changes its mind ; but Theresa May's government reaffirmed on Monday it is determined to see Brexit through. The new Catalan parliament meets for the first time today with the task of electing its governing body and its speaker. It also triggers a 10-day deadline for Catalan leader-in-exile Carles Puigdemont to say whether he plans to come back to the region and face arrest for sedition and rebellion. Some of his backers have suggested he could try and rule Catalonia by Skype - an unprecedented arrangement which the Spanish government in Madrid has said it would contest in the courts. Further east, two sagas of politics and graft are reaching a head. Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis, who is battling allegations of EU subsidy fraud, saw his minority government lose a confidence vote on Tuesday , which means he must now try to cut a deal with opposition parties to stay in office. In Romania, the ruling Social Democrat Party (PSD) has put forward as prime minister a close ally of the powerful party leader Liviu Dragnea . Dragnea himself is barred from government due to a vote-rigging conviction: assuming nominee Viorica Dancila is appointed, the question is whether she will help Dragnea sidestep that ban. MARKETS Former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont attends a meeting with his party 'Junts per Catalunya' parliament group in Brussels, Belgium January 12, 2018. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir Global markets had another hiccup overnight as investors kick the tyres of the new year rally. After the Dow Jones topped 26,000 for the time – a doubling in just over five years – Wall St stocks turned tail to end in the red . GE’s drop of almost 3 percent stole the show after it announced plans for a further breakup of the sprawling conglomerate alongside a huge $11 billion charge on its insurance business and due to tax changes. As eye-catching was the jump in the ViX volatility gauge to its highest close since Dec. 4 of 11.66 percent. The speed bump in 2018’s equity surge – which has already propelled MSCI’s all-country world index up more than 4 percent in the year-to-date – rippled through Asia bourses overnight, though without any obvious new triggers beyond some profit-taking and recalibration of the speed January’s surge while Q4 earnings stream in. Shanghai, HK, Tokyo and Seoul all ended in the red and European stocks are marked down about 0.2 percent. In Europe, the earnings focus was on ASML after the chip tool maker reported a better-than-expected net profit for the fourth quarter, claiming several customers asked for early delivery of products amid a booming semiconductor industry. That will ease some recent concerns about a topping out in that industry in Q3 last year. In the UK, Interserve fell more than 10 percent at the open, hit by an FT report that the construction service provider was being monitored by the UK government over its financial health and in the light of Carillion's collapse this week . Bond markets too remain on the backfoot, with two-year Treasury yields hitting 2.035 percent - their highest since 2008 – early on Wednesday. Germany’s two-year government bond yield rose to its highest in more than six months, meantime, amid ongoing angst about a possible change in the European Central Bank’s policy guidance at its first meeting of the year next week. Reuters ECB sources reckon no new change in its massive bond-buying plan is imminent and Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann said late Tuesday that analyst expectations for an ECB interest-rate hike in the middle of next year are roughly in line with the ECB's own guidance . ECB Vice President Constancio told Wednesday’s La Repubblica newspaper monetary policy would remain accommodative for a very long time and the central bank saw no sign of emerging inflation. After hitting a new three-year high of $1.2322 overnight, the euro has recoiled to as low as $1.22. The dollar was firmer across the board, with a close eye on the Canada’s dollar ahead a possible interest rate rise from the Bank of Canada later in the day. Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies continued to come under pressure after heavy losses of up to 20 percent on Tuesday amid fears of an intensifying regulatory crackdown in China and South Korea. Bitcoin fell to within a whisker of $10,000 at one stage before steadying and was last about $11,200. Editing by Hugh Lawson

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-europe-view-wednesday/daily-briefing-brexit-bill-set-for-lords-new-start-in-catalonia-idUKKBN1F60UB

U.S. to implement security upgrades to refugee programme

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New security upgrades to the U.S. refugee admissions programme will help block suspected criminals from entering the United States from “high-risk” countries, the head of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said on Monday. “We will be rolling out new security measures for applicants from high-risk countries which will seek to prevent the programme from being exploited by terrorists, criminals and fraudsters,” U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said at a public event in Washington. “These changes will not only improve security but importantly they will help us better assess legitimate refugees fleeing persecution.” Nielsen did not give further details about the upgrade. Since taking office, President Donald Trump has slashed the number of refugees allowed into the country and paused the refugee programme for four months last year. He has also instituted stricter vetting requirements and quit negotiations on a voluntary pact to deal with global migration. In late October, the Trump administration effectively paused refugee admissions from 11 countries mostly in the Middle East and Africa, pending a 90-day security review which was set to expire last week. The countries subject to the review are Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Mali, North Korea, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. It is unclear if these are the same “high-risk” countries referred to by Nielsen. For each of the last three years, refugees from the 11 countries made up more than 40 percent of U.S. admissions. But a Reuters review of State Department data shows that as the 90-day review went into effect, refugee admissions from the 11 countries plummeted. On Dec. 23, a federal judge in Seattle partially blocked restrictions on admitting refugees from the 11 countries, saying the administration could carry out the 90-day review, but could not stop processing or admitting refugees from the 11 countries in the meantime, as long as those refugees had significant ties to the United States. Since the judge’s ruling, 23 refugees from the 11 countries have been allowed into the United States, according to State Department data. Reporting by Yeganeh Torbati; Writing by Susan Heavey; Editing by Paul Simao and David Gregorio

https://in.reuters.com/article/usa-immigration-refugees/u-s-homeland-security-chief-security-upgrades-expected-to-protect-refugee-program-idINKBN1FI28T

U.S. Releases Russian Oligarch List

The U.S. Treasury Department released an unclassified list of Russian senior political figures and oligarchs, provoking ire in Moscow even as its consequences were unclear. The list totaled more than 200 names of top officials, heads of state-controlled companies and wealthy businessmen. President Vladimir Putin isn’t on the list, but top Kremlin aides and government ministers, including Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, are. Also on the list are some of the country’s wealthiest tycoons, including Oleg Deripaska, Roman Abramovich... RELATED VIDEO Russia's Sophisticated Efforts to Interfere in 2016 Election Based on the information that's now coming out of congressional committees, Russian goals to interfere in the 2016 election were very broad. WSJ's Gerald F. Seib explains just how sophisticated the Russian efforts were using social media. Photo: AP

https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-releases-russian-oligarch-list-1517293593

Tesco reports 1.9 percent rise in Christmas like-for-like sales

LONDON, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Tesco reported a 1.9 percent rise in like-for-like sales in its home market for the Christmas period, falling short of market forecasts after strong growth in fresh food was offset by lower demand for general merchandise. Analysts had forecast a rise of 2.4-3.2 percent in the six weeks to Jan. 6 at Britain’s biggest retailer. Tesco said on Thursday it was confident in its outlook for the full year and was firmly on track to deliver its medium-term ambitions. ​ (Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by Kate Holton) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

https://www.reuters.com/article/tesco-outlook/tesco-reports-1-9-percent-rise-in-christmas-like-for-like-sales-idUSFWN1P5123

Greene County Bancorp, Inc. Reports 30.9% Increase in Net Income for the Six Months Ended December 31, 2017 and Completes Expansion in Columbia County

CATSKILL, N.Y., Jan. 24, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Greene County Bancorp, Inc. (the “Company”) (NASDAQ:GCBC), the holding company for The Bank of Greene County and its subsidiary Greene County Commercial Bank, today reported net income for the three and six months ended December 31, 2017, which is the second quarter of the Company’s fiscal year ending June 30, 2018. Net income for the three and six months ended December 31, 2017 was $3.6 million, or $0.43 per basic and diluted share, and $7.1 million, or $0.84 per basic and $0.83 per diluted share, respectively, as compared to $2.9 million, or $0.34 per basic and diluted share, and $5.4 million, or $0.64 per basic and diluted share, for the three and six months ended December 31, 2016, respectively. Net income increased $714,000, or 24.4%, when comparing the three months ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, and increased $1.7 million, or 30.9%, when comparing the six months ended December 31, 2017 and 2016. The enactment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (“TCJA”) resulted in the recognition of a tax benefit of $251,000. The impact to earnings per share was a positive $0.03 per share for the three and six months ended December 31, 2017. Donald Gibson, President & CEO, stated, “I am pleased to report solid performance for both the three months and six months ended December 31, 2017. The earning performance was driven by the steady measured growth of our balance sheet across all three of our primary banking lines - retail, commercial, and municipal. I believe our success is continued evidence that our long term strategy which is focused on community and customer relationships has been successful.” Gibson continued, “I am also pleased to report that we completed the renovations and opened our full-service branch in Copake, NY during the quarter ended December 31, 2017. This represents our first branch in Eastern Columbia County and has been extremely well received.” Selected highlights for the three and six months ended December 31, 2017 are as follows: Net Interest Income and Margin Net interest income increased $729,000 to $8.5 million for the three months ended December 31, 2017 from $7.7 million for the three months ended December 31, 2016. Net interest income increased $1.8 million to $16.6 million for the six months ended December 31, 2017 from $14.8 million for the six months ended December 31, 2016. These increases in net interest income were primarily the result of the growth in the average interest-earning asset balances. This was partially offset by a lower yield on securities. The lower yield on securities is the result of a decrease in prepayment penalty income on mortgage-backed securities, included in interest income, of $355,000 when comparing the three months ended December 31, 2017 and 2016 and $256,000 when comparing the six months ended December 31, 2017 and 2016. Net interest spread decreased 23 basis points to 3.21% for the three months ended December 31, 2017 compared to 3.44% for the three months ended December 31, 2016. Net interest spread decreased 11 basis points to 3.24% for the six months ended December 31, 2017 compared to 3.35% for the six months ended December 31, 2016. Net interest margin decreased 21 basis points to 3.29% for the three months ended December 31, 2017 compared to 3.50% for the three months ended December 31, 2016. Net interest margin decreased 10 basis points to 3.32% for the six months ended December 31, 2017 compared to 3.42% for the six months ended December 31, 2016. Net interest income on a taxable-equivalent basis includes the additional amount of interest income that would have been earned if the Company’s investment in tax-exempt securities and loans had been subject to federal and New York State income taxes yielding the same after-tax income. Tax equivalent net interest margin was 3.50% and 3.75% for the three months ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. Tax equivalent net interest margin was 3.53% and 3.67% for the six months ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. Tax equivalent net interest margin for the three and six months ended December 31, 2017 has been adjusted to reflect the Federal blended statutory tax rate applicable to our fiscal year 2018 of 28.1% resulting from the TCJA. As a result of utilizing this lower statutory tax rate for the periods ended December 31, 2017, the tax equivalent net interest margin decreased six basis points for both the three and six months ended December 31, 2017. Asset Quality and Loan Loss Provision Provision for loan losses amounted to $352,000 and $586,000 for the three months ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. The provision for loan losses amounted to $699,000 and $1.1 million for the six months ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. The decrease in the provision for loan loss for the period is the result of slower growth in average loan balances. Allowance for loan losses to total loans receivable decreased to 1.68% as of December 31, 2017 as compared to 1.74% as of June 30, 2017, and 1.73% as of December 31, 2016. Net charge-offs amounted to $98,000 and $141,000 for the three months ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively, and amounted to $369,000 and $193,000 for the six months ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. The increase in net charges-offs for the six months is due to the charge-off of two commercial loans during the period. There were no commercial loan charge-offs during the six months ended December 31, 2016. Nonperforming loans amounted to $3.7 million and $3.6 million at December 31, 2017 and June 30, 2017, respectively. At December 31, 2017 and June 30, 2017, respectively, nonperforming assets to total assets were 0.43% and 0.45% and nonperforming loans to net loans were 0.55% and 0.58%. At December 31, 2016, nonperforming assets to total assets were 0.45% and nonperforming loans to net loans were 0.65%. Noninterest Income and Noninterest Expense Noninterest income increased $275,000, or 17.1%, to $1.9 million for the three months ended December 31, 2017 as compared to $1.6 million for the three months ended December 31, 2016. Noninterest income increased $466,000, or 14.7%, to $3.6 million for the six months ended December 31, 2017 as compared to $3.2 million for the six months ended December 31, 2016. These increases are primarily due to increases in debit card fees and service charges on deposit accounts resulting from continued growth in the number of checking accounts with debit cards, as well as increased monthly or transactional service charges on deposit accounts. Noninterest expense increased $524,000, or 10.9%, to $5.3 million for the three months ended December 31, 2017 as compared to $4.8 million for the three months ended December 31, 2016. Noninterest expense increased $663,000, or 7.0%, to $10.2 million for the six months ended December 31, 2017 as compared to $9.5 million for the six months ended December 31, 2016. These increases in noninterest expense are primarily the result of an increase in salaries and employee benefits expenses, resulting from additional staffing to support the Bank’s growth. New positions were added within the Bank’s lending department, customer service center, investment center and for the Bank’s new branch in Copake, New York. The increase is also due to higher service and data processing fees resulting from costs associated with offering more services to customers through online banking. Income Taxes Provision for income taxes directly reflects the expected tax associated with the pre-tax income generated for the given year and certain regulatory requirements. The effective tax rate was 22.3% and 24.0% for the three and six months ended December 31, 2017, respectively compared to 26.3% and 25.7% for the three and six months ended December 31, 2016. The decrease in the effective tax rate for the three and six months ended December 31, 2017 is primarily the result of a net tax benefit of $251,000 recognized at December 31, 2017 as a result of the enactment of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“TCJA”) in December 2017. The effective tax rate decreased from 27.6% to 22.3% for the three months ended December 31, 2017 and decreased from 26.6% to 24.0% for the six months ended December 31, 2017 as a result of this adjustment. TCJA permanently reduces the maximum corporate income tax rate from 35% to 21% effective January 1, 2018. The lower corporate income tax rate means that deferred tax assets and liabilities that will be deductible or taxable in the future would need to be computed at the new tax rate. Additionally, fiscal year-end taxpayers such as Greene County Bancorp, Inc. are required to utilize a “blended rate” in calculating the effective tax rate for the fiscal year based on a ratio utilizing the number of days at the 35% tax rate and the number of days at the 21% tax rate. Greene County Bancorp, Inc.’s statutory blended rate for fiscal 2018 is approximately 28%. This statutory rate is impacted by the benefits derived from tax-exempt bond and loan income, the Company’s real estate investment trust subsidiary income, as well as the tax benefit derived from premiums paid to the Company’s pooled captive insurance subsidiary to arrive at the effective tax rate. Balance Sheet Summary Total assets of the Company were $1.1 billion at December 31, 2017 as compared to $982.3 million at June 30, 2017, an increase of $78.5 million, or 8.0%. This growth is the result of the continued expansion within our existing markets, across all three of our primary banking lines - retail, commercial, and municipal. Securities available-for-sale and held-to-maturity increased $26.8 million, or 8.5%, to $342.1 million at December 31, 2017 as compared to $315.3 million at June 30, 2017. Securities purchases totaled $74.8 million during the six months ended December 31, 2017 and consisted of $62.1 million of state and political subdivision securities, $10.4 million of mortgage backed securities, and $2.3 million of U.S. government sponsored enterprises securities. Principal pay-downs and maturities during the six months amounted to $47.1 million, of which $9.2 million were mortgage-backed securities, $36.4 million were state and political subdivision securities, and $1.5 million were corporate debt securities. Net loans receivable increased $39.7 million, or 6.4%, to $663.9 million at December 31, 2017 from $624.2 million at June 30, 2017. The loan growth experienced during the six month period consisted primarily of $10.8 million in commercial real estate loans (including commercial construction loans), $17.8 million in commercial loans, $4.5 million in multi-family real estate loans, and $6.7 million in residential real estate loans. Total deposits increased to $920.8 million at December 31, 2017 from $859.5 million at June 30, 2017, an increase of $61.3 million, or 7.1%. NOW deposits increased $59.5 million, or 15.2%, money market deposits increased $2.0 million, or 1.7%, savings deposits increased $8.1 million, or 4.1% and noninterest-bearing deposits increased $3.4 million, or 3.6% when comparing December 31, 2017 and June 30, 2017. These increases were partially offset by a decrease in certificates of deposit of $11.9 million, or 22.2%, when comparing December 31, 2017 and June 30, 2017. These increases were the result of a $39.9 million increase in municipal deposits at Greene County Commercial Bank, primarily from continued growth in new account relationships as well as tax collection. Included within certificates of deposits at December 31, 2017 and June 30, 2017 were $3.9 million and $15.0 million, respectively, in brokered certificates of deposit. Borrowings amounted to $20.3 million of overnight and $20.2 million of long-term borrowings, with the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York at December 31, 2017, compared to $6.9 million of overnight borrowings and $22.7 million of term borrowings at June 30, 2017. Shareholders’ equity increased to $89.6 million at December 31, 2017 from $83.5 million at June 30, 2017, as net income of $7.1 million was partially offset by a $322,000 increase in accumulated other comprehensive loss and dividends declared and paid of $763,000. Other changes in equity, an increase of $25,000, were the result of options exercised with the Company’s 2008 Stock Option Plan. Included in accumulated other comprehensive income is $259,000 which represents the stranded credit resulting from the change in Federal tax rates upon the enactment of the TCJA and its impact on deferred taxes associated with items reported in accumulated other comprehensive income. Greene County Bancorp, Inc. is the direct and indirect holding company, respectively, for The Bank of Greene County, a federally chartered savings bank, and Greene County Commercial Bank, a New York-chartered commercial bank, both headquartered in Catskill, New York. Our primary market area is the Hudson Valley in New York State. For more information on Greene County Bancorp, Inc., visit www.tbogc.com . This press release contains statements about future events that constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such a difference include, but are not limited to, general economic conditions, changes in interest rates, regulatory considerations, competition, technological developments, retention and recruitment of qualified personnel, and market acceptance of the Company’s pricing, products and services. In addition to presenting information in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (GAAP), this news release contains financial information determined by methods other than GAAP (non-GAAP). The following measures used in this release, which are commonly utilized by financial institutions, have not been specifically exempted by the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") and may constitute "non-GAAP financial measures" within the meaning of the SEC's rules. The Company has provided in this news release supplemental disclosures for the calculation of net interest margin utilizing a fully taxable-equivalent adjustment. Management believes that the non-GAAP financial measures disclosed by the Company from time to time are useful in evaluating the Company's performance and that such information should be considered as supplemental in nature and not as a substitute for or superior to the related financial information prepared in accordance with GAAP. Our non-GAAP financial measures may differ from similar measures presented by other companies. See the reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP measures in the section "Select Financial Ratios." Greene County Bancorp, Inc. Consolidated Statements of Income (Unaudited) At or for the Three Months At or for the Six Months Ended December 31, Ended December 31, Dollars in thousands, except share and per share data 2017 2016 2017 2016 Interest income $ 9,420 $ 8,484 $ 18,509 $ 16,298 Interest expense 960 753 1,879 1,480 Net interest income 8,460 7,731 16,630 14,818 Provision for loan losses 352 586 699 1,129 Noninterest income 1,887 1,612 3,627 3,161 Noninterest expense 5,312 4,788 10,205 9,542 Income before taxes 4,683 3,969 9,353 7,308 Tax provision 1,043 1,043 2,241 1,875 Net Income $ 3,640 $ 2,926 $ 7,112 $ 5,433 Basic EPS $ 0.43 $ 0.34 $ 0.84 $ 0.64 Weighted average shares outstanding 8,504,168 8,491,929 8,503,451 8,487,554 Diluted EPS $ 0.43 $ 0.34 $ 0.83 $ 0.64 Weighted average diluted shares outstanding 8,533,126 8,509,316 8,532,274 8,503,913 Dividends declared per share 4 $ 0.0975 $ 0.0950 $ 0.1950 $ 0.1900 Selected Financial Ratios Return on average assets 1 1.39 % 1.30 % 1.40 % 1.23 % Return on average equity 1 16.55 % 15.15 % 16.45 % 14.25 % Net interest rate spread 1 3.21 % 3.44 % 3.24 % 3.35 % Net interest margin 1 3.29 % 3.50 % 3.32 % 3.42 % Fully taxable-equivalent net interest margin 2 3.50 % 3.75 % 3.53 % 3.67 % Efficiency ratio 3 51.34 % 51.25 % 50.38 % 53.07 % Non-performing assets to total assets 0.43 % 0.45 % Non-performing loans to net loans 0.55 % 0.65 % Allowance for loan losses to non-performing loans 309.91 % 272.30 % Allowance for loan losses to total loans 1.68 % 1.73 % Shareholders’ equity to total assets 8.44 % 8.41 % Dividend payout ratio 4 23.21 % 29.69 % Actual dividends paid to net income 5 10.73 % 13.66 % Book value per share $ 10.53 $ 9.22 1 Ratios are annualized when necessary. 2 Interest income calculated on a taxable-equivalent basis includes the additional interest income that would have been earned if the Company’s investment in tax-exempt securities and loans had been subject to federal and New York State income taxes yielding the same after-tax income. The rate used for this adjustment was approximately 28.1% and 34% for federal income taxes and 3.62% and 3.32% for New York State income taxes for the three and six months ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. Non-GAAP reconciliation – Fully taxable equivalent net interest margin For the three months ended For the six months ended (Dollars in thousands) 12/31/2017 12/31/2016 12/31/2017 12/31/2016 Net interest income (GAAP) $ 8,460 $ 7,731 $ 16,630 $ 14,818 Tax-equivalent adjustment 532 537 1,037 1,057 Net interest income (fully taxable-equivalent basis) $ 8,992 $ 8,268 $ 17,667 $ 15,875 Average interest-earning assets $ 1,028,241 $ 882,482 $ 1,001,639 $ 865,510 Net interest margin (fully taxable-equivalent basis) 3.50 % 3.75 % 3.53 % 3.67 % 3 The efficiency ratio has been calculated as noninterest expense divided by the sum of net interest income and noninterest income. 4 The dividend payout ratio has been calculated based on the dividends declared per share divided by basic earnings per share. No adjustments have been made to account for dividends waived by Greene County Bancorp, MHC (“MHC”), the owner of 54.2% of the Company’s shares outstanding. 5 Dividends declared divided by net income. The MHC waived its right to receive dividends declared during the six months ended December 31, 2017 and 2016. Greene County Bancorp, Inc. Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition (Unaudited) As of December 31, 2017 As of June 30, 2017 (Dollars In thousands) Assets Total cash and cash equivalents $ 27,714 $ 16,277 Long term certificate of deposit 1,895 2,145 Securities- available for sale, at fair value 102,969 91,483 Securities- held to maturity, at amortized cost 239,140 223,830 Federal Home Loan Bank stock, at cost 2,488 2,131 Gross loans receivable 674,435 634,331 Less: Allowance for loan losses (11,352 ) (11,022 ) Unearned origination fees and costs, net 790 878 Net loans receivable 663,873 624,187 Premises and equipment 13,499 13,615 Accrued interest receivable 4,610 4,033 Foreclosed real estate 905 799 Prepaid expenses and other assets 3,717 3,791 Total assets $ 1,060,810 $ 982,291 Liabilities and shareholders’ equity Noninterest bearing deposits $ 99,388 $ 95,929 Interest bearing deposits 821,363 763,606 Total deposits 920,751 859,535 Borrowings from FHLB, short term 20,300 6,900 Borrowings from FHLB, long term 20,150 22,650 Accrued expenses and other liabilities 10,036 9,685 Total liabilities 971,237 898,770 Total shareholders’ equity 89,573 83,521 Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity $ 1,060,810 $ 982,291 Common shares outstanding 8,506,614 8,502,614 Treasury shares 104,726 108,726 For Further Information Contact: Donald E. Gibson President & CEO (518) 943-2600 donaldg@tbogc.com Michelle M. Plummer, CPA EVP, COO & CFO (518) 943-2600 michellep@tbogc.com Source:Greene County Bancorp, Inc.

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/24/globe-newswire-greene-county-bancorp-inc-reports-30-point-9-percent-increase-in-net-income-for-the-six-months-ended-december-31-2017-and.html

Ogletree shareholder hits firm with $300 mln sex bias class action

Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart was hit with a proposed class action accusing the Atlanta-based employment law firm of operating an “old boys’ club” that systematically underpays female shareholders and denies them the same opportunities as their male colleagues. Dawn Knepper, a non-equity shareholder in the firm’s Orange County office, filed a lawsuit on Friday in San Francisco federal court alleging the firm violated state and federal anti-bias laws by giving men credit for women’s client development work, saddling women with less-valued tasks and holding them to a higher standard for promotions than men. Knepper is represented by Sanford Heisler Sharp. To read the full story on Westlaw Practitioner Insights, click here: bit.ly/2EPM9Fr

https://www.reuters.com/article/usa-employment-discrimination/ogletree-shareholder-hits-firm-with-300-mln-sex-bias-class-action-idUSL1N1PC03N

Bentall Kennedy’s VP of Sustainability Appointed to Co-Chair United Nations Environment Programme Working Group to Drive Global Sustainability in Commercial Real Estate

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Bentall Kennedy is pleased to announce the appointment of Anna Murray, Vice President of Sustainability, to the Investment Committee of the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI). As Bentall Kennedy’s representative, Anna Murray will Co-Chair the Property Working Group of the UNEP FI, with a global mandate to drive adoption of sustainability in real estate investment and property management. The UNEP FI was created at the conclusion of the 1992 Earth Summit and now includes membership from more than 200 global financial institutions, including banks, insurers and investors. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180129005122/en/ Anna Murray, VP of Sustainability, Bentall Kennedy. (Photo: Business Wire) As a member of the Investment Committee, Murray will share responsibility for developing and monitoring the UNEP FI sustainability strategy for the investment industry and engaging with leading global investors to address pressing sustainability issues. “With buildings accounting for approximately one-third of global greenhouse gas emissions and consuming 40 per cent of global energy, there is an incredible opportunity to reduce the real estate industry’s overall environmental footprint,” said Murray. “I am honored to represent Bentall Kennedy to help lead a global movement for sustainability, climate change action, and environmental progress that strengthens the long-term value generation and competitiveness of commercial real estate.” UNEP FI’s work also includes a strong focus on policy – by stimulating country-level dialogues between finance practitioners, supervisors, regulators and policy-makers, and, at the international level, by promoting financial sector involvement in processes such as the global climate negotiations. “In the buildings sector alone, meeting the Paris commitments will require in the region of USD 300 billion annually by 2020 just for financing energy efficiency retrofits,” said Eric Usher, Head of the UNEP FI. “The UNEP FI Property Working Group works to address and contribute to the most imminent challenges in the field of sustainable real estate investment, and for many years Bentall Kennedy has helped steer that course of innovation within our initiative. We welcome Anna Murray on the UNEP FI Investment Committee and look forward to growing and strengthening sustainable real estate investment in North America.” About Bentall Kennedy Bentall Kennedy, a Sun Life Investment Management company, is one of the largest global real estate investment advisors and one of North America's foremost providers of real estate services. Bentall Kennedy serves the interests of more than 550 institutional clients with expertise in office, retail, industrial and multi-residential assets throughout Canada and the U.S. Bentall Kennedy's Investment Management group has approximately $46 billion (CAD)/$37 billion (USD) of assets under management (as of September 30, 2017). Bentall Kennedy is one of the largest real estate services providers in Canada, managing 60 million square feet on behalf of third-party and investment management clients (as of September 30, 2017). Bentall Kennedy is a member of UN PRI and a recognized Responsible Property Investing leader ranked among the top firms around the globe in the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) for the seventh consecutive year since GRESB was launched. Bentall Kennedy includes Bentall Kennedy (Canada) Limited Partnership, Bentall Kennedy (U.S.) Limited Partnership and the real estate and commercial mortgage investment groups of certain of their affiliates, all of which comprise a team of real estate professionals spanning multiple legal entities. The assets under management shown above include real estate equity and mortgage investments of the companies within Bentall Kennedy. For more information, visit www.bentallkennedy.com . View source version on businesswire.com : http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180129005122/en/ Media Contact: Bentall Kennedy Group Rahim Ladha, 416-986-9027 Vice President, Corporate Communications rladha@bentallkennedy.com Source: Bentall Kennedy

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/29/business-wire-bentall-kennedyas-vp-of-sustainability-appointed-to-co-chair-united-nations-environment-programme-working-group-to-drive.html

Market's tug-of-war between record earnings and rate hike worries

We are more than a quarter through earnings season, with another 120 companies reporting this week. On the surface, the news could not be better: Earnings are growing faster than anyone anticipated even a few months ago, even heading into the first quarter of 2018. But we may finally be seeing a visible catalyst for a pullback. As the 10-year Treasury yield has passed 2.7 percent, traders have been getting nervous. Rates moved up 5 basis points over the weekend on not much news. It's not just the level of rates, it's also the velocity of the moves. The market has shown it does not react positively if rates move too quickly. Strategists have taken note: Stifel, in a note this morning, said "We see a 5+ percent S&P 500 correction in Q1 2018 as yields rise abruptly to reflect growth as well as inflation, and central banks pursue a more coordinated and multi-lateral exit from increasingly risky rate suppression." This means that in a week filled with potentially market-moving news (State of the Union address, the biggest earnings week of the quarter, the December jobs report) the single biggest most likely market-moving news will come from the Fed meeting on Wednesday. With rates moving this fast, it wouldn't take much to move the markets, and convince traders that we are in for at least four rates hikes this year, not three — and possibly more. "If the FOMC acknowledges the U.S. economy continues to gain momentum as the labor market slack shrinks further as well as comment that market-based measures of inflation expectations, (i.e. 10Y TIPS breakeven rate) is moving higher, that will further fuel bond bears and support in their call for four rate hikes instead of three," Adrian Miller, an independent bond analyst, wrote to me this morning. Traders are already looking at signs inflation might be picking up. They include a pickup in wages (Goldman's Jan Hatzius expects average hourly earnings to grow 3 percent to 3.5 percent in 2018), better than expected economic numbers (the Citigroup Economic Surprise Index, a measure of how much economic forecasts are exceeding estimates, is near its highest level ever) and an 8 percent gain in the last month in the price of gold, a traditional hedge against inflation. That is a near-18 month high. So, why isn't the market reacting even more to these concerns? After all, everyone knows the biggest killers of market rallies have been recessions and sudden spikes in interest rates. The answer is in the tidal wave of higher earnings. More companies are 1) beating estimates, 2) beating by wider margins, and 3) seeing estimates continue to rise into the first quarter. Let's start with the companies beating estimates. According to Thomson Reuters, 79.7 percent of companies reporting so far are beating earnings estimates in the fourth quarter. That is way above the historic trend of 64 percent. And 82 percent are beating revenue estimates, way above the 60 percent that historically beat expectations. Another important trend: They are beating by wider margins than normal. Take today's earnings news — Seagate Technology and Lockheed Martin . Seagate reported earnings 9 percent above expectations, while Lockheed Martin reported earnings about 6 percent above expectations. So far, earnings have been 4.6 percent above expectations, versus a long-term historical norm of 3.1 percent. Finally, the numbers are continuing to rise in the first quarter. Q1 2018 S&P 500 Earnings Earnings: up 16.7 percent Revenue: up 7.3 percent Source: Thomson Reuters These numbers traditionally go up through the quarter, and then come down in the final weeks as analysts get greater clarity. But that did not happen in the fourth quarter. The numbers rose into the end of the year, and there is a good chance they will not drop appreciably in this quarter. With numbers like these, it's not hard to understand why traders are reluctant to dump such a hot hand.

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/29/markets-tug-of-war-between-record-earnings-and-rate-hike-worries.html

UPDATE 1-China's Leshi flags $1.8 bln annual loss, cites LeEco cash crunch

14 AM / Updated 4 minutes ago UPDATE 1-China's Leshi flags $1.8 bln annual loss, cites LeEco cash crunch Reuters Staff * Leshi’s loss includes 7.9 bln yuan of provisions * Jia Yueting is Leshi’s largest shareholder; Sunac 2nd biggest * Leshi, Sunac shares slide after loss announcement (Adds details from Leshi statement, Sunac share move) By Sijia Jiang HONG KONG, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Chinese video-streaming firm Leshi Internet flagged a net loss of 11.6 billion yuan ($1.83 billion) for 2017, its first annual loss as a listed firm, citing a cash crunch at its founder Jia Yueting’s embattled technology conglomerate LeEco. Leshi Internet Information & Technology announced the estimated loss - which is more than five times its combined profits since listing on the Shenzhen stock exchange in 2010 - in a statement late on Tuesday. The loss included 4.4 billion yuan of bad debt reserve for account receivables from LeEco units and 3.5 billion yuan of asset devaluation provision, it said. The magnitude of the loss shows the aftermath of the debt-fuelled expansion of LeEco, a Netflix-to-Tesla-like group that has struggled to meet its obligations since Jia admitted to a cash crunch in late 2016. It also adds pressure on Jia, who has defied Chinese regulators’ orders to return from the United States, where he has been based since the summer. Jia resigned as chairman and CEO from Leshi after property developer Sunac China made a $2 billion investment last year in Leshi to become its second-largest shareholder. But he remains Leshi’s largest shareholder with a 25.67 percent stake, though most of that has been pledged to financial institutions. Leshi, which makes internet-connected TVs and produces video entertainment, was deeply intertwined with LeEco units for related transactions but is increasingly trying to distance itself from the conglomerate. With loans and financial liabilities of around $1.5 billion, Leshi said last week it is seeking equity stakes in the car businesses of Jia, including Faraday Future, for debts owed by him and LeEco units totalling 7.5 billion yuan. LeEco has disputed that figure. LeEco did not immediately respond to an emailed request for a comment. Leshi is due to report 2017 results on April 24. Its shares plunged by the daily limit of 10 percent on Wednesday, the sixth consecutive day they have tumbled the maximum allowed since resuming trading a week ago following a nine-month suspension. Shares of Sunac China dropped as much as 5.4 percent in Hong Kong on Wednesday morning before recouping the loss by noon. ($1 = 6.3230 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Reporting by Sijia Jiang; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)

https://www.reuters.com/article/lecom-results-stocks/update-1-chinas-leshi-flags-1-8-bln-annual-loss-cites-leeco-cash-crunch-idUSL4N1PQ1UG

Provident Financial Services, Inc. Schedules Fourth Quarter and Year-Ended Earnings Conference Call

ISELIN, N.J., Jan. 03, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Provident Financial Services, Inc. (NYSE:PFS) announced that it expects to release financial results for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2017 on Friday, January 26, 2018 at approximately 8:00 a.m. (ET). A copy of the earnings release will be immediately available on the Company’s website, www.Provident.Bank , by going to Investor Relations and clicking on Press Releases . Representatives of the Company will hold a conference call for investors on January 26, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. (ET) to discuss highlights of the Company’s fourth quarter and full year financial results. Information about the conference call is as follows: Dial-in (Domestic): 1-888-336-7149 (International): 1-412-902-4175 Canada Dial-in (Toll Free): 1-855-669-9657 A replay of the call will be available beginning at 12:00 noon (ET) on January 26, 2018 until 9:00 a.m. (ET) on February 9, 2018. Replay (Domestic): 1-877-344-7529 (International): 1-412-317-0088 Canada (Toll Free): 1-855-669-9658 Passcode 10115465 Internet access to the call will be available (listen only) at www.Provident.Bank by going to Investor Relations and clicking on Webcast . The call will also be archived on the Company’s web site for a period of one year. Provident Financial Services, Inc. is the holding company for Provident Bank. As of September 30, 2017, the Company reported assets of $9.5 billion. The Bank currently operates a network of full service branches throughout northern and central New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania. SOURCE: Provident Financial Services, Inc. CONTACT: Investor Relations, 1-732-590-9300 Web Site: http://www.Provident.Bank Source:Provident Financial Services, Inc.

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/03/globe-newswire-provident-financial-services-inc-schedules-fourth-quarter-and-year-ended-earnings-conference-call.html

Cyber security startups stumble despite hacking frenzy

Cyber security startups stumble despite hacking frenzy 3:01am IST - 02:02 These are not great days for cyber security companies looking to make stock market debuts as fortunes quickly get erased by an inability to keep up with hackers, competition from well-established players, and a change in the way large corporations buy cyber protection. These are not great days for cyber security companies looking to make stock market debuts as fortunes quickly get erased by an inability to keep up with hackers, competition from well-established players, and a change in the way large corporations buy cyber protection. //reut.rs/2B9RJ31

https://in.reuters.com/video/2018/01/17/cyber-security-startups-stumble-despite?videoId=386761083

Belden to Report Fourth Quarter 2017 Results on February 1

ST. LOUIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Belden Inc. (NYSE: BDC), a global leader in high quality, end-to-end signal transmission solutions for mission-critical applications, will report results for the fiscal fourth quarter ended December 31, 2017, before trading begins on Thursday, February 1, 2018. Management will discuss the Company’s results during a conference call at 8:30 a.m. Eastern. The listen-only audio of the conference call will be broadcast live via the Internet at http://investor.belden.com . The dial-in number for participants in the U.S. is 800-281-7973; the dial-in number for participants outside the U.S. is 323-794-2093. A replay of this conference call will remain accessible in the investor relations section of the Company’s website for a limited time. About Belden Belden Inc. delivers a comprehensive product portfolio designed to meet the mission-critical network infrastructure needs of industrial, enterprise and broadcast markets. With innovative solutions targeted at reliable and secure transmission of rapidly growing amounts of data, audio and video needed for today’s applications, Belden is at the center of the global transformation to a connected world. Founded in 1902, the company is headquartered in St. Louis and has manufacturing capabilities in North and South America, Europe and Asia. For more information, visit us at www.belden.com or follow us on Twitter @BeldenInc . BDC-E View source version on businesswire.com : http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180110005211/en/ Belden Investor Relations 314-854-8054 Investor.Relations@Belden.com Source: Belden Inc.

http://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/10/business-wire-belden-to-report-fourth-quarter-2017-results-on-february-1.html

China says does not need Taiwan's permission to open new air route

TAIPEI (Reuters) - A Chinese carrier group has sailed through the narrow Taiwan Strait that separates the self-ruled island from its giant neighbour but no unusual activity was detected, Taiwan said on Wednesday, amid heightened tension with Beijing. Beijing has taken an increasingly hostile stance towards Taiwan since the election two years ago of President Tsai Ing-wen of the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party. China suspects Tsai wants to push for formal independence, though she has said she wants to maintain the status quo and is committed to ensuring peace. In recent months, China has stepped up military drills around Taiwan, alarming Taipei. China says the exercises are routine, but that it will not tolerate any attempt by the island to declare independence. Taiwan’s Defence Ministry said a group of Chinese ships led by the Liaoning aircraft carrier entered the southwestern part of the Taiwan Strait in the early hours of Tuesday, though it stayed on the Chinese side of the waterway. As of midday on Wednesday the carrier group had left Taiwan’s Air Defence Identification Zone heading in a northerly direction, the ministry said, adding it had monitored the group’s movements throughout. “While the group was passing through the Taiwan Strait there were no abnormal activities, and people can rest easy,” it added. China’s Defence Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but the Soviet-era Liaoning, China’s first aircraft carrier, has passed through the Taiwan Strait before on its way to and from exercises in the South China Sea. While heavily travelled by commercial shipping and flights, the Taiwan Strait is also a sensitive military zone. This month, Taiwan complained about China launching a new air route for civilian flights that runs close to two groups of Taiwan-controlled islands off the Chinese coast in the strait, saying it threatened regional security and aviation safety. China does not need Taiwan’s permission to open new air routes, a government spokesman said on Wednesday, denying there was a safety risk. Taiwan said on Friday the new flight path was so close to the middle line of the Taiwan Strait that it would affect Taiwan air force exercises and other flight operations. “The planes can come very close to each other,” an official added, referring to other connecting routes that China has opened and where Taiwan civilian flights already operate. “It becomes a very dangerous situation if we do not consult with each other.” China, which considers Taiwan a wayward province, snapped official communication with its government after Tsai took office. Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard in Beijing; Editing by Michael Perry and Clarence Fernandez

https://in.reuters.com/article/china-taiwan-flights/china-says-does-not-need-taiwans-permission-to-open-new-air-route-idINKBN1F60C7

Trump says he wants action to help those affected by DACA decision

WASHINGTON, Jan 10 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he would like to see action on helping undocumented young people who moved to the United States as children, but he said any immigration bill also would have to improve jobs, wealth and security for U.S. citizens. Trump, speaking at the start of a cabinet meeting, said he wanted to see action to help those affected by his decision to rescind the so-called Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy, which enabled some undocumented people who came into the United States as children to remain temporarily. “We want to see something happen with DACA. It’s been spoken of for years, and children are now adults in many cases,” Trump said, noting that hundreds of thousands of people were affected by the policy. But he added, “Above all else, any bill we pass must improve jobs, wages and security for American citizens.” (Reporting by Steve Holland; Writing by David Alexander; Editing by Lisa Lambert) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

https://www.reuters.com/article/usa-immigration-trump/trump-says-he-wants-action-to-help-those-affected-by-daca-decision-idUSS0N1O400C

Last major challenger to Egypt's Sisi calls off campaign after arrest

January 23, 2018 / 11:34 AM / Updated 10 minutes ago Last major challenger to Egypt's Sisi calls off campaign after arrest Reuters Staff 4 Min Read CAIRO (Reuters) - The last challenger seen as a potential threat to the re-election of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was detained on Tuesday, and halted his campaign after the army accused him of breaking the law by running for office without permission. Former military chief of staff Lieutenant General Sami Anan, who had announced his candidacy last week, was taken to the Military Prosecutor’s office in Cairo, according to his son and one of his lawyers, who were waiting outside the building. An army statement read on state TV said Anan’s presidential bid amounted to “a serious breach of the laws of military service”, because as a military officer he was required to end his service and seek permission before seeking office. Anan’s spokesman denied he had broken any laws. The charges “come from an inaccurate reading of Anan’s announcement,” Hazem Hosni told Reuters, without elaborating. The campaign announced Anan was halting his bid. “To be banned by the state to enter the elections ... (means) that the state doesn’t want to hold an election,” Anan’s spokesman Hosni said. The military declined to comment on Anan’s detention. The interior ministry could not immediately be reached for comment. The Military Prosecution later issued a statement banning media coverage of its investigation into Anan. A witness who knows Anan told Reuters the candidate was detained while driving to his office shortly before the army statement was broadcast. His car was stopped by what appeared to be armed military police on a main road in Cairo. Anan, who served as armed forces chief of staff from 2005-2012, was the final high profile challenger to Sisi left in the race after a number of others dropped out, some citing intimidation by the authorities. “He was the longest-serving chief of staff but that didn’t stop them arresting him,” Anan’s office director Mustafa al-Shal said outside the Military Prosecutor’s office. Egypt’s president’s office and government press center have not commented on the election race. The electoral commission has said it will ensure the vote is fair and transparent. Sisi, who as military chief led the overthrow of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi in 2013 and was elected president the following year, announced last week he will seek a second term in the election set for late March. CANDIDATES WITHDRAW Ahmed Shafik, a former prime minister and air force chief, abandoned a bid this month, saying that after several years living abroad he was out of touch with Egyptian politics. The announcement came amid media criticism and speculation that he was being held by authorities in a Cairo hotel. Mohamed Anwar al-Sadat, the nephew of assassinated President Anwar al-Sadat, said last week he would not run, citing an environment of fear surrounding the vote. Rights lawyer Khaled Ali has said he will still run, but he might be disqualified over a legal case against him. Anan announced his presidential bid in a video declaration posted on his official Facebook page last week, saying he was running to save Egypt from incorrect policies and calling on state institutions to maintain neutrality toward all candidates. Egyptian law requires former army officials to end their service and receive permission from the military before they can run for political office. The army’s statement said Anan had falsified documents that stated his military service had ended. Sisi’s critics say his popularity has eroded over tough economic reforms tied to a $12 billion International Monetary Fund loan, which have squeezed many Egyptians, and over a crackdown on dissidents. His supporters say firm measures are necessary to bring security and stability to a country that has seen unrest since a 2011 uprising toppled long-serving autocrat Hosni Mubarak. Egypt is fighting a stubborn Islamic State insurgency in its North Sinai region. Militants have expanded their attacks to target civilians, especially over the past year. Reporting Cairo bureau; Editing by Peter Graff and Janet Lawrence

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-egypt-politics-army/egypt-army-says-ex-military-chiefs-presidential-bid-is-incitement-idUSKBN1FC1CV

10 things to stop wasting your money on in 2018

Most of us can find areas to cut back in. How much do you spend on takeout? Uber? What about coffee? If you want to build more wealth in 2018, start by identifying where you're wasting money. Do any of the purchases below sound familiar? If so, try giving them up and redirecting the savings toward your savings goals or retirement account, where it could grow significantly over time . ATM fees It'll cost you a record high of $4.57 to withdraw money from an out-of-network ATM. There's no reason to continue paying these fees, which can add up significantly over time. A simple 2018 resolution: If your bank's logo isn't on the ATM, don't use it. Late fees Like ATM fees, late fees are a pointless money suck. And there's more to late payments than simply paying a fee. Missing payments can also lower your credit score , which affects your ability to borrow money for bigger purchases, like a home or car , in the near future. Never miss a bill again by setting up automatic payments online for fixed costs such as cable, internet, and insurance. For expenses that can't be paid online, such as rent, set up calendar reminders and pay them at the same time each month so it becomes routine. show chapters 5 lifestyle changes you can make to get rich 2:41 PM ET Wed, 27 Dec 2017 | 00:53 Underused subscriptions While you're doing some deep cleaning and purging at the start of the new year, also go through all of the subscriptions you're signed up for. Look over your last couple of credit card statements and figure out exactly what you're paying for, whether it be subscriptions to magazines, software or online services. Next, ask yourself which you can eliminate, and cancel them on the spot to save a couple hundred dollars a year. You could also use Trim , which automatically finds and cancels your subscriptions with a text. Buying lunch every day Dining out can add up quickly . The more food you can prepare at home , the better off your food budget will be. Plus, packing lunch also tends to be better for your waistline. Of course, it's OK to treat yourself and buy the occasional meal out, but if you're aiming to hit major financial goals in 2018, going homemade is one of the simplest ways to cut back without making dramatic sacrifices. show chapters 5 easy chicken meals you can prep for the week that will save you time and money 12:48 PM ET Tue, 19 Dec 2017 | 04:46 Bottled water While you're getting into the habit of packing your lunch, start filling up a water bottle too. Whether it's bottled water or grabbing a coffee on your way to work, it's all too easy to spend mindlessly . But that money leaving your pocket could be directed toward your 2018 savings goals. Unused gym membership If you're a gym rat, power to you, but if you can't remember the last time you stepped foot inside the facilities, it may be time to cancel your membership. Plus, if you're ever itching to work out, there are plenty of ways to do it without a gym. Try following free YouTube workouts at home, walking, biking or hiking outside, making the most of training apps or joining a running club. show chapters How to stay fit without joining a gym 3:09 PM ET Wed, 10 May 2017 | 02:35 Cable The average American spends more than $100 a month on cable . That's a large sum to pay for a service that people often don't take full advantage of. Consider cutting the cord in 2018 and getting your TV from the internet, through services like Netflix ($8 a month), Hulu ($8 a month) or HBO Now ($15 a month). Excess groceries Collectively, we waste a lot of food . Every time you throw away excess groceries, that's money down the drain. Before you grocery shop, think about the meals you're going to make for the week and write down exactly what ingredients you'll need to prepare those meals. When you actually go to the store, stick to just the ingredients on your list. show chapters One simple hack will help you turn your food scraps into delicious veggie stock 5:24 PM ET Mon, 18 Dec 2017 | 01:52 Brand-name products Going generic — for certain groceries, toiletries or pet supplies — is an easy way to save money over time. You don't have to buy generic for everything. Identify what's really important to you and what you're willing to sacrifice. Then buy brand-name for the stuff you care about and go generic for everything else. Impulse buys From grocery stores to department stores, retailers have a way of tricking you into spending money mindlessly . One tactic is loading the checkout aisle with tempting products: cold sodas, candy bars and 99-cent knick-knacks. Make it a 2018 resolution to skip the candy or magazine. Chances are, you won't miss it, and your bank account will thank you. This is an updated version of a previously published piece. Like this story? Like CNBC Make It on Facebook ! Don't miss: 7 simple money habits that will help you build wealth in 2018 show chapters Shopping hacks that will save you thousands of dollars 11:37 AM ET Wed, 30 Nov 2016 | 01:31

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/01/05/10-things-to-stop-wasting-your-money-on-in-2018.html

Concern over climate change linked to depression, anxiety: study

NEW YORK (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Depression and anxiety afflict Americans who are concerned with the fate of the environment, according to a study of the mental health effects of climate change. Most hard-hit are women and people with low incomes who worry about the planet’s long-term health, said the study published this week in the journal Global Environmental Change. Symptoms include restless nights, feelings of loneliness and lethargy. “Climate change is a persistent global stressor,” said Sabrina Helm, lead author of the paper and professor of family and consumer sciences at the University of Arizona. Risks to mental health from climate change are a “creeping development,” she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. Due to climate change, scientists predict sea levels are on track to surge as temperatures rise, posing threats such as deadly heat, extreme weather and land swallowed by rising water. World leaders mobilized to curb man-made greenhouse gas emissions to fight global warming in a 2015 agreement, although the United States has since said it would withdraw from the landmark deal. Signs of depression do not appear in people concerned about climate change’s risks to humanity but do appear in people worried about its impact on other species, plants and nature overall, the research said. The study pulled from 342 online surveys of respondents whose views broadly reflect the wider U.S. population, it said. Experts have looked at ways extreme weather such as hurricanes and floods, whose intensity has increased due to climate change, can cause mental health issues such as post-traumatic stress disorder, it said. But little research has looked into anxiety arising from climate change as an everyday concern, the study said. Reporting by Sebastien Malo @sebastienmalo, Editing by Ellen Wulfhorst. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking, property rights, climate change and resilience. Visit news.trust.org

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-climate-depression/concern-over-climate-change-linked-to-depression-anxiety-study-idUSKBN1F738X