Turkey working on corporate tax cuts

ANKARA: Turkey is working on corporate tax cuts in some strategic sectors in order to boost investment in the real sector, Finance Minister Naci Agbal said on Monday Agbal told Reuters that work on the tax cuts had not yet been finalised, as the finance ministry was still evaluating the sectors and the rates.—Reuters

SE Asia ride-hailing app Grab raises $2.5bn

JAKARTA: Japan’s Softbank and China’s top ride-hailing firm Didi Chuxing are pouring $2 billion into the latest round of financing by cash-hungry Southeast Asian taxi app Grab.

Grab said on Monday that it expects another $500 million will come from other existing and new investors. Its last announced cash injection was in September when it raised $750m led by Softbank, whose chief executive Masayoshi Son is Japan’s richest person and a self-styled tech visionary.—AP

Vodafone India-Idea deal approved

MUMBAI: India’s antitrust regulator has approved the merger of Vodafone Group Plc’s Indian unit with Idea Cellular, a lawyer representing Vodafone in the matter said on Monday.

In March, Vodafone India and Idea agreed to merge operations in a $23 billion deal, creating the country’s biggest telecom player after the entry of new entrant Reliance Jio sparked a price war.

The deal has been pending Competition Commission of India (CCI) approval, along with other regulatory clearances.—Reuters

UPL explores bid for agrochem unit

NEW DEHLI: Indian agrochemicals producer UPL Ltd is exploring a bid of more than $4 billion for the agrochemicals business of Platform Specialty Products Corp to expand its global footprint, according to people familiar with the matter.

The bid would challenge a rival offer for the unit by a private equity consortium of Blackstone Group LP and CVC Capital Partners Ltd, the sources said on Monday. A competitive bid would be a boon for Platform Specialty and its biggest shareholder, William Ackman’s hedge fund Pershing Square Capital Management LP.—Reuters

Reckitt rattles Britain’s FTSE

LONDON: Britain’s top share index fell on Monday as heavyweight Reckitt Benckiser dropped following its results and as airlines were hit by price war worries. Britain’s blue-chip FTSE 100 index ended down 1pc at 7,377.7 points.

Consumer goods company Reckitt Benckiser fell 3.3 per cent, the biggest FTSE loser, after second-quarter sales fell 2pc following last month’s cyber attack, which disrupted its operations.

“We consider the quality of these results disappointing for a company like RB, and expect the stock to underperform today particularly given management’s commentary around 2017 outlook,” analysts at UBS said in a note.

Published in Dawn, July 25th, 2017