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BEIRUT — Several petrol stations in protest-hit Lebanon stopped services on Saturday, as reserves ran dry due to a shortage of US dollars to pay suppliers, a syndicate head said.

The shuttering of petrol stations came as demonstrators again took to the street across the country, keeping up their three-week-long movement against a political class regarded as inefficient and corrupt. 

“The petrol stations that opened today are the ones that still have reserves. They will close down as soon as supply runs out,” said Sami Brax, the head of the Syndicate of Gas Station Owners.

He said if officials do not facilitate access to dollars by Tuesday, “we will be forced to stop imports and close down all petrol stations.”

Petrol stations receive payment from customers in Lebanese pounds but have to pay importers and suppliers in dollars. 

For two decades, the Lebanese pound has been pegged to the US dollar, with both currencies used interchangeably in daily life.

But banks have been reducing access to dollars since the end of the summer, following fears of a shortage in central bank dollar reserves.

In recent days, banks halted all ATM withdrawals in dollars and severely restricted conversions from Lebanese pounds.

Many Lebanese have had to instead buy dollars from money changers at a higher exchange rate, in what amounts to a de-facto devaluation of the local currency that has sparked price hikes.

The official exchange rate has remained fixed at 1,507 Lebanese pounds to the dollar, but the rate in the parallel market has surpassed 1,800.

“The banks are under pressure from people, both inside Lebanon and abroad,” said economist Naseeb Ghabreel, after many rushed to withdraw their dollar savings or convert Lebanese pound accounts.

Since September, petrol station owners have accused banks of failing to provide them with the dollars they need and threatened strikes. 

In response, the central bank last month pledged to facilitate access to the greenback for importers of petroleum products, wheat and medicine.

But the measure has not yet gone into effect. 

Lebanon has since October 17 witnessed an unprecedented popular uprising against everything from power cuts and poor social security to alleged state corruption.

The government yielded to popular pressure and stepped down last month, with the World Bank urging for the quick formation of a new Cabinet to prevent the economy from further deteriorating.

BERLIN — German industrial Company Siemens on Thursday reported a drop in annual net profits but said it had met its targets, and warned that geopolitical risks and a cooling economy would weigh on its performance in 2020.

The group — which makes products from wind turbines to trains and medical scanners — booked a net profit of 5.6 billion euros ($6.2 billion) in its 2018/2019 fiscal year, down nearly 8 per cent on the previous year.

The group mainly blamed accounting effects, noting that it had benefited last year from selling its shares in IT services firm Atos and lightbulb maker Osram.

Operating profit climbed slightly to 8.9 billion euros, thanks to a jump in large orders.

Revenues added 5 per cent to hit 86.8 billion euros.

"The weakening of the global economy accelerated clearly during fiscal 2019," CEO Joe Kaeser said in a statement. 

Nevertheless, "we fully achieved our fiscal-year guidance in all aspects", he added.

The company said it had seen an uptick in orders across most of its divisions, including an order for a large gas power plant in France and strong demand for its medical imagery machines.

Siemens' factory automation division, however, suffered a drop in demand in the final months of the year, as it felt the pinch from the global slowdown in the car and machine-building industries.

Looking ahead to its 2019/2020 fiscal year, Siemens said it expected "to again achieve moderate growth" in revenues despite a "subdued" global economic outlook.

Given the "risks particularly related to geopolitical and geoeconomic uncertainties", Siemens added that it was bracing for "a moderate decline" in market volume in the auto and factory equipment industry.

LONDON — Irish airline Ryanair indicated on Wednesday that three of its Boeing 737NG aircraft were taken out of service due to cracks, a problem that has grounded dozens of the jets globally.

“Ryanair has already inspected over 70 of its oldest aircraft in full compliance with the Airworthiness Directive [of the US Federal Aviation Authority], and our rate of findings is less than the industry wide 5 per cent confirmed by Boeing recently,” the Irish airline said in a statement e-mailed to AFP.

“Boeing are carrying out these repairs on behalf of Ryanair currently,” the low-cost carrier added, after The Guardian newspaper reported that cracks had been found on three Ryanair jets between the wing and fuselage.

The Dublin-based airline — which is the world’s biggest operator of Boeing’s popular 737NG aircraft — added that the repairs would have no impact on its flight schedules.

“Ryanair will continue to inspect the remainder of its fleet, in full compliance with the Airworthiness Directive, and we are confident that the tiny number of pickle fork cracks, if any, will not affect either Ryanair’s fleet, its flights, or its schedules,” the carrier said.

Boeing had previously reported a problem with the model’s “pickle fork” — a part which helps bind the wing to the fuselage.

The US aerospace giant had announced on October 31 that dozens of 737NG planes had been taken out of service after the cracks were detected, marking another setback for the crisis-stricken US aircraft maker.

The new difficulties compound troubles facing the US manufacturer, which has faced tumbling profits, federal scrutiny and calls for its CEO to resign after deadly crashes involving the 737 MAX, the plane that succeeded the 737NG.

HONG KONG — Asian markets rose again on Tuesday, tracking a record lead from Wall Street as trade optimism was given another lift by a report saying the US was considering cutting some tariffs on Chinese goods.

The rally built on Monday's advance with global equities buoyed by expectations the economic superpowers are close to a mini trade deal, strong earnings and lower interest rates.

A forecast-busting US jobs report on Friday and signs the American economy is stabilising added to the upbeat mood.

The Financial Times said on Tuesday that the White House is considering dropping existing tariffs on more than $100 billion of imports in a bid to seal the deal with China.

It cited unnamed sources as saying officials were looking at rolling back levies on a range of imports including clothing, appliances, and flatscreen monitors, which have been subject to 15 per cent rates since September 1.

The US has imposed duties on Chinese goods worth hundreds of billions and the removal of some of these is said to be a key demand of Beijing in any trade agreement.

Meanwhile, a Bloomberg News article said Chinese officials were considering locations in the United States that Xi Jinping and Donald Trump could hold a signing ceremony as early as this month.

Jeffrey Halley, senior market analyst for Asia-Pacific at OANDA, said: "It could be interpreted as the US blinking first as the presidential impeachment hearings gather momentum, and we approach the holiday season and then an election year."

AxiTrader senior market analyst Stephen Innes said that while shares have enjoyed a long run on the back of the trade deal hopes, investors appeared willing to press on with their buying for now.

"The question is whether the market has now priced in the... phase one trade deal," he said in a note.

"And for the time being it appears, risk markets are in benefit-of-the-doubt mode, preferring to look through any fragility in macro data, while applying a higher weight to comments on trade."

Tokyo led gainers as it reopened after a long weekend to play catch-up with Monday's rally.

The Nikkei ended 1.8 per cent higher, while Shanghai rose 0.5 per cent, Sydney added 0.2 per cent and Singapore put on 0.4 per cent. Seoul climbed 0.6 per cent, with Taipei rallying 0.8 per cent.

Hong Kong rose 0.5 per cent as investors there brushed off data showing a key measure of business confidence fell to its lowest level in more than a decade as the city reels from global trade woes and violent democracy protests.

The Purchasing Managers Index — which measures the health of the private sector — dropped to 39.3 in October, its worst reading since 2008 during the global financial crisis, heaping fresh misery on the unrest-plagued city.

LONDON — Irish no-frills airline Ryanair said on Monday that first-half net profit flattened on lower ticket prices, weak British demand, fierce competition elsewhere in Europe and a soaring fuel bill.

The Dublin-based carrier, famed for promoting knock-down ticket prices, said in a results statement that profit after taxation was unchanged at 1.15 billion euros ($1.28 billion) in the six months to September from a year earlier.

Average air fares fell 5 per cent "due to the weaker consumer demand in the UK and overcapacity in Germany and Austria", it added.

Revenues nevertheless rose 11 per cent to 5.39 billion euros, but jet fuel costs surged 22 per cent to 1.59 billion euros while staff costs also grew.

Ryanair also issued cautious guidance for the full-year, with the outlook clouded by Britain's looming departure from the European Union at the end of January.

"We expect a slightly better fare environment than last winter, although we have limited visibility," the airline added.

"This however remains sensitive to any market uncertainty such as a no-deal Brexit."

The airline also tightened its annual profit forecast to between 800 and 900 million euros. 

That compared with prior guidance of between 750 and 950 million euros.

"This guidance is heavily dependent on... fares, Brexit and the absence of any security events," it noted.

Ryanair's four divisions comprise its main Irish operations, Austrian-based Lauda, Polish unit Buzz, and Malta Air.

DHAHRAN, Saudi Arabia — Saudi Arabia announced on Sunday the stock market debut of energy giant Aramco in what could be the world’s biggest IPO, underpinning Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’s ambitions to overhaul the kingdom’s oil-reliant economy.

After years of delay, Aramco said it plans to sell an unspecified number of shares on the Riyadh stock exchange, calling it a “historic” milestone for the world’s most profitable company which pumps 10 per cent of the world’s oil.

However, the state firm said there were no current plans for an international listing, indicating that the long-discussed goal for a second offering on a foreign bourse had been put aside.

The launch, which has been approved by regulators, forms the linchpin of Prince Mohammed’s ambitious plans to transform Saudi Arabia, with tens of billions of dollars needed to fund megaprojects and new industries.

With analysts saying that Aramco could be valued at up to $1.7 trillion, the initial public offering (IPO) is potentially the world’s biggest, depending on how much of the company it decides to sell.

“Today marks a significant milestone in the history of the company and important progress towards delivering Saudi Vision 2030, the kingdom’s blueprint for sustained economic diversification and growth,” Aramco chairman Yasir Al Rumayyan said.

The final offer price and the number of shares to be sold “will be determined at the end of the book-building period”, said the firm headquartered in the eastern city of Dhahran.

Aramco had initially been expected to sell a total of 5 per cent on two exchanges, with a first listing of 2 per cent on the Tadawul Saudi bourse followed by a 3 per cent listing on an overseas exchange.

“For the [international] listing part, we will let you know in due course. So far it’s only on Tadawul,” Rumayyan said amid reports it was struggling to get institutional investors on board due to questions over transparency and governance.

‘Market realities’ 

“An important function of the domestic IPO is to project confidence in the company towards the international market,” said Cinzia Bianco, Gulf research fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations.

“But doing it domestically encounters no meaningful obstacle. It allows Prince Mohammed to show he keeps his promises and gets things done.”

First suggested in 2016, the IPO was delayed several times, reportedly due to the prince’s dissatisfaction with the valuation of the firm, which fell short of the hoped-for $2 trillion.

Last week, Energy Intelligence cited sources as saying they expect the Saudis to settle on a valuation of $1.6 trillion to $1.7 trillion.

It remains to be seen whether Saudi authorities are able to find “a compromise between the crown prince’s stated preference and market realities in their valuation of Aramco”, said Kristian Ulrichsen, a fellow at Rice University’s Baker Institute in the United States.

“As the process has been delayed repeatedly and built up as such an integral component of the crown prince’s plan to transform Saudi Arabia, international investors will pay very close attention to how Aramco performs on the domestic exchange,” Ulrichsen told AFP.

Wooing investors 

Aramco, which makes Saudi Arabia the world’s top energy exporter, is seen as the kingdom’s crown jewel and the backbone of its economic and social stability.

Its 2018 net profit of $111.1 billion is higher than the profits of Apple, Google and Exxon Mobil — combined.

Aramco only began releasing interim financial results recently, but in its push for transparency, the secretive company also released on Sunday results for the nine months to September, saying net profits came in at $68 billion. 

The government is reportedly seeking to get wealthy Saudi families to invest in the IPO and to ease lending restrictions for ordinary citizens to buy a stake in the company. 

Some Saudi commentators have also sought to promote investment in the stock as a patriotic duty, although observers pointed to the perils of the strategy.

“Listing on the domestic market without firm plans to list internationally is risky for the Saudi stock market because it could completely overweight it,” Ellen Wald, author of the book “Saudi Inc.”, told AFP. 

“If oil prices drop or Aramco stock falls, it is such a large part of Tadawul, it could bring the entire stock market down.”

BANGKOK — Southeast Asian leaders met on Saturday in Thailand eyeing a breakthrough in talks over the world’s largest trade deal to help throw off the torpor which has gripped the global economy since the start of the US-China tariff war.

The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) opened their annual summit in Bangkok hoping to secure a China-backed free trade pact knitting together half of the world’s population and around 40 per cent of its commerce.

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) — a deal spanning India to New Zealand and wrangled over for several years — is now seen as an urgent counterpoint to US protectionism.

Washington’s trade rumble with Beijing has weighed on markets, with the IMF warning the spat could cut global growth to the lowest pace in more than a decade. 

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump’s protectionist rhetoric has spooked some ASEAN nations who fear their economies could fall under his crosshairs.

Trump has repeatedly warned of further intervention to protect American business and several Asian nations are waiting to find out if the US will put them on a watch list of “currency manipulators”. 

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad warned the regional bloc could hit back against any punitive trade measures, skirting over specifics.

“We will do exactly what Trump does,” he told a business forum ahead of the summit opening, calling the US leader “not a very nice man”. 

“If you go alone, you will be bullied. We don’t want to go into trade war but sometimes when they do things that are not nice to us, we have to be unnice to them,” he added. 

Earlier his Thai counterpart, Prayut Chan-O-Cha, echoed the theme of regional cooperation on the RCEP deal, while Philippines’ trade secretary Ramon Lopez said he hoped to have a “very positive report  [on RCEP] come Monday” when the summit ends.