UK shopper numbers boosted by state-funded dining scheme

LONDON, Sept 1 (Reuters) – Shopper numbers across all British retail destinations rose 6% in the week to Aug. 29 versus the week before, helped by the final full week of the government’s “Eat Out to Help Out” subsidy scheme, researcher Springboard said on Tuesday.

It said all three destination types benefited from a rise in footfall, with shopping centres seeing an increase of 9.1%, high streets up 4.8% and retail parks up 5%.

Springboard said the rise led to an annual decline of 26.1% – an improvement on the year-on-year drop of 30.7% in the week before.

Thai Finance Minister Predee Daochai submits resignation: Govt sources

BANGKOK (REUTERS) – Thailand’s recently appointed Finance Minister Predee Daochai has submitted his resignation, but the prime minister has not yet accepted it, two government sources said on Tuesday (Sept 1).

The banking veteran took office last month in a major economic team shake-up.

“The minister wanted to resign but it’s unclear if the prime minister will allow him to,” said a finance ministry source, who requested anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to media.

Gold price climbs ₹418 on global trends

The precious metal had closed at ₹52,545 per 10 grams in the previous trade

Gold price rose by ₹418 to ₹52,963 per 10 grams in the national capital on Tuesday following a rally in the yellow metal in the international market, according to HDFC Securities.

The precious metal had closed at ₹52,545 per 10 grams in the previous trade.

Silver also attracted heavy buying interest as it jumped ₹2,246 to ₹72,793 per kilogram. It had closed at ₹70,547 per kilogram on Monday.

“Spot gold prices for 24 carat in Delhi were higher by ₹418 with rally in international prices. However, the upside in gold prices in India was capped with gains in rupee,” HDFC Securities Senior Analyst (Commodities) Tapan Patel said.

The rupee strengthened 73 paise and crossed the crucial 73-mark against the U.S. Dollar on Tuesday on the back of a weak American currency and positive domestic equities.

In the global market, gold was trading with gains at $1,988 per ounce and silver was marginally up at $28.77 per ounce.

“Gold prices extended gains with dollar decline,” Mr. Patel said.

Trump’s Fox News Meltdown Over ‘People In Dark Shadows’ Lights Up Twitter

President Donald Trump sat down with Laura Ingraham for a lengthy interview on Fox News Monday and his critics couldn’t decide on the wildest part.

Trump attacked Black Lives Matter, saying the name alone was “bad for Black people” and compared the police officer who shot a Black man in the back seven times to a golfer who missed an easy putt. 

He also presented a series of conspiracy theories, claiming “people that are in the dark shadows” control both “the streets” and former Vice President Joe Biden. And he spun a conspiracy theory about an airplane: 

“We had somebody get on a plane from a certain city this weekend. And in the plane, it was almost completely loaded with thugs, wearing these dark uniforms, black uniforms, with gear and this and that.”

Trump claimed the people on the plane wanted to “do big damage” to the Republican National Convention, yet offered no other details. 

The president’s claims were so wild that Ingraham jumped in to try and save him several times. 

The strange interview was all the talk on Twitter: 

Oil Prices Rise Over 1% On Weaker Dollar

Oil prices rose over 1 percent on Tuesday as a weaker U.S. dollar lifted prices across commodities.

Benchmark Brent crude jumped 55 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $45.83 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were up 45 cents, or 1.1 percent, at $43.06 a barrel.

Both benchmark contracts fell about 1 percent in the previous session on concerns about oversupply, with global demand stuck below pre-Covid levels.

The dollar sank to more than two-year lows, hit by fears about the pace of economic recovery, uncertainty ahead of the U.S. presidential election in November and speculation that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates very low for years.

A lower U.S. currency makes dollar-denominated commodities cheaper for consumers in other currencies.

Strong Chinese manufacturing data also lifted oil prices. A private survey showed China’s factory activity expanded at the fastest clip in nearly a decade in August.

The Caixin/Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index rose to 53.1 from 52.8 in July amid the sharpest increase in output and new orders since 2011.

New export work rose for the first time this year, while employment moved closer to stabilization.

Investors await U.S. stockpile data from the American Petroleum Institute later today for further direction.

Tesla to raise up to $5 bln in share offering

Sept 1 (Reuters) – Tesla Inc said on Tuesday it plans to raise up to $5 billion through a share offering. (Reporting by Akanksha Rana in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)

Fortive To Spin-off 80.1% Of Vontier Corp. To Shareholders – Quick Facts

Fortive Corp. (FTV) announced Tuesday its intention to separate Vontier Corp. through a spin-off of 80.1% of the outstanding shares of Vontier common stock to Fortive shareholders. When completed, the transaction will result in two independent, publicly traded companies – Fortive and Vontier.

Upon completion of the spin-off, Fortive will retain a 19.9% stake in Vontier, which is anticipated to be divested in a tax-efficient manner at a future date.

The transaction is anticipated to be tax efficient for Fortive shareholders, and completed in the fourth quarter of 2020, subject to obtaining final approval from the Fortive Board of Directors and market, regulatory and other customary conditions.

Fortive currently plans to divest its 19.9% retained shares in Vontier after the spin-off in a tax-efficient manner.