Select a category

American depositary receipts (ADRs) of Alibaba Group Holding (BABA) sank as the Chinese e-commerce giant's profit plunged on investment losses.

Alibaba said its fiscal fourth-quarter net income fell 86% over the year to 3.27 billion Chinese yuan ($453 million). Adjusted earnings for the quarter ended March were CNY10.14 ($1.40) per ADS. Both were below forecasts. A 7% increase in revenue at CNY221.9 billion ($30.73 billion) beat estimates.

The company blamed the profit decline primarily on “a net loss from our investments in publicly-traded companies during the quarter, compared to a net gain in the same quarter last year, due to the mark-to-market changes.”

Alibaba’s revenue got a boost from its core Taobao and Tmall Chinese online shopping business, which posted a 4% increase in sales to CNY93.22 billion ($12.91 billion).

In addition, the company announced that the board has approved a special two-part dividend made up of an annual regular cash dividend of $0.125 per ordinary share or $1.00 per ADS, and a one-time extraordinary dividend of $0.0825 per ordinary share or $0.66 per ADS. 

Alibaba ADRs were down 7.3% to $78.42 as of 12:15 p.m. ET.

Read more on Investopedia

A writer by name Kim has revealed a new trend among couples in Lekki, Lagos, whereby they exchange each other’s spouses for the weekend.

She lamented how the trend of married couples exchanging each other’s spouses for sexual relations has become a norm, while expressing her concern at the direction the current generation is going.

Continue reading on Instablog

Anglo American is planning to split up and sell several assets after rejecting a sweetened $43 billion offer by rival mining giant BHP Group (BHP) in a break-up plan Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Duncan Wanblad called its most “radical” shakeup in decades.

Anglo said Tuesday that it would spin off its platinum-metals subsidiary Anglo American Platinum; explore options for putting its nickel operation on “care and maintenance” before divesting it; divest or demerge its diamond unit De Beers; and sell its steelmaking coal assets.

BHP had made the bid for Anglo on soaring demand for copper at a time when the world is moving away from fossil fuels towards more renewable energy projects and electric vehicles. Wanblad said the breakup will mean the miner’s assets base will be focused on copper and premium iron ore.

Copper has been on a tear this year, driven by rising demand for artificial intelligence (AI), which feeds on power from increasingly large data centers. Copper is commonly used in electrical wiring.

Bank of America (BAC) released a note earlier this month estimating that prices could rise another 17% by 2026, 

BHP American depositary receipts (ADRs) were 3% higher as of 10:54 a.m. ET Tuesday, while Anglo shares were trading 3.6% lower in London.

Read more on Investopedia

Nigerian Army personnel under Operation Hadin Kai have reportedly k+lled a top commander of the Jamā’at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da’wah wa’l-Jihād, otherwise known as Boko Haram, Tahir Baga during their recent raid on Sambisa Forest in Borno State.

According to Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency expert and security analyst in the Lake Chad region, the t£rrorist top commander was k+lled on Monday, May 13, when the army cleared their enclaves of Shababul Umma, Garin Panel Beater and Lagara Anguwan Gwaigwai at the heart of the forest.

Zagazola added that the troops and the terrorists cla§hed in heavy g¥n b@ttles which resulted in the d£ath of several top Boko Haram commanders including Baga.

According to the report, “Third Baga was a close ally to Abubakar Shekau. He was among the first sets who founded the Boko Haram movement in Maiduguri before moving into Sambisa Forest with the likes of Mamman Nur, Khalid Albarnawi, Abubakar Shekau, Kaka Ali, Mustapha Chad, Abu Maryam and Abu Krimima.

Tahir Baga was a revered Imam who was respected among the Sect group. He had on several bases truncated the efforts of many fighters and their families to surrender and also pushed many under-aged girls to go on suicide bombing after convincing them that they would be granted paradise as an everlasting reward.

The k+lling of Tahir Baga is a major blow to the Boko Haram t£rrorist groups.

A heap of b%mb-making materials; 1 RPG 7 tube; Pkm 1X Rpg 7 tube, 1X ak47 rifle, 1 RPG Bomb, 1X RPG 7 Charger quantities of 97X 7.62MM Nato, quantities of 99X7.62 MMX 51MM, quantities 554X7.62 MM X 54 MM, 5, MCs, 2 bicycles, 3 mobile phones 11 magazines, 3 hand grenades 2 bandolier, one starlink WiFi system, among others items were found in the t£rrorists enclaves.”

Continue reading on Instablog

A writer has revealed that sacking her driver of two years made her realize how much he has been fleecing her after a full tank of fuel last her for one week.

She lamented how her driver has probably been using her car in her absence, as she vowed never to be nonchalant about her car anymore.

Continue reading on Instablog

President Joe Biden imposed sweeping tariffs on a large swath of Chinese imports from steel to semiconductors and electric vehicles on Tuesday, turning up the heat on trade tensions between the two countries as U.S. officials accuse China of overcapacity in manufacturing.

The changes, the culmination of a review of the Section 301 tariffs under former President Donald Trump starting in 2018, are projected to affect around $18 billion in current annual imports, according to the White House.

"Today’s actions to counter China’s unfair trade practices are carefully targeted at strategic sectors," the White House said in its statement.

The administration said that the tariff rate on certain steel and aluminum products under Section 301 will increase to 25% in 2024 from 0%–7.5%; the rate on semiconductors will increase to 50% by 2025 from 25%; and the rate on electric vehicles will rise to 100% this year from 25%.

Also this year, there will be an increase to 25% from 7.5% on the tariff rate for lithium-ion EV batteries and battery parts, and increase to 50% on solar cells from 25%.

Trade Representative Katherine Tai separately said the report also includes a recommendation for allocating additional funds to U.S. Customs and Border Protection for greater enforcement of the tariffs.

The Biden administration has been spending billions of dollars to promote domestic manufacturing in critical industries in recent months as it seeks to counter what it sees as China's increasing dominance in many fields.

The CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 has earmarked over $50 billion for investment in semiconductor research and manufacturing facilities to be built in the U.S. after the industry mostly has moved overseas in recent years.

Read more on Investopedia