Company news in brief

Fiat Chrysler, Peugeot join forcesFiat Chrysler and Peugeot's owner PSA said yesterday they would join forces through a 50-50 share swap to create the world's fourth-largest automaker.The boards of the two groups have mandated their respective teams to finalise discussions and reach a binding memorandum of understanding in the coming weeks, the two automakers said in a joint statement.The deal comes at a time when car makers are grappling with a global downturn in demand and looking to develop technologically advanced, cleaner car models to meet ever more stringent anti-pollution rules.The merger, once completed, is expected to generate 3.7 billion euro (US$4.1 billion) in annual synergies, without any plant closures, they said.Prior to the completion of the deal, Fiat Chrysler (FCA) will pay its shareholders a 5.5 billion euro special dividend and hand them its shares in its robot-making unit Comau, they said. In addition, Peugeot will distribute to its shareholders its 46% stake in auto-part maker Faurecia. – Nampa/ReutersTotal undecided on Uganda projectTotal's chief finance officer Jean-Pierre Sbraire said on Wednesday that it was too early to say when a final investment decision on it Uganda oil project would be taken, potentially delaying the decision that was initially expected last year.Sbraire told analysts during a conference call after the French oil major's third-quarter result that Total was still committed to the project but there were still some issues holding back the decision."The project is technically mature. We are ready to launch but we recently faced some difficulties with the authorities," Sbraire said.Total had planned to buy some of Britain's Tullow Oil's stake in the 230 000 barrel-per-day project but that deal was called off due to a tax dispute with the Ugandan authorities."We remain fully committed to the development but we'll see, at present time it is a bit too early to assess when the final investment decision could be taken for the project," Sbraire said. – Nampa/ReutersBP says no decision yet on dividend hikeBP has yet to decide whether to boost its dividend by the end of the year, it said on Wednesday, after its shares fell sharply on the previous day on fears it would defer a decision to 2020.BP reported a 40% drop in third-quarter profits on Tuesday due to lower oil and gas prices, though its underlying performance and cashflow was strong."We'll certainly discuss it at 4Q, but it's more likely it will be beyond that," chief financial officer Brian Gilvary indicated in an analyst call.Investors have been piling pressure on oil companies to increase returns as they successfully slashed costs after years of weak performance in the wake of the 2014 industry downturn.In a sign of confidence, BP eliminated a scrip dividend for the quarter which allows investors to get shares instead of cash, a measure used during the industry downturn. – Nampa/ReutersSamsung flags smartphone profit fallSamsung Electronics warned of a smaller mobile business profit yesterday as its rival Apple gave a positive iPhone sales outlook, dampening hopes new models will help the world’s largest smartphone vendor finally get back on a growth track.Investors have pinned their hopes on a recovery in the mobile business that once made up over half of Samsung’s profit, as its chip operation remains in the doldrums due to over-supply and weak global demand.Strong sales of the Galaxy Note 10 smartphone helped the South Korean firm report its best mobile business profit in six quarters in the three months ended in September, as it recovers from a battery explosion scandal in late 2016 that hurt sales.The mobile business posted a 32% rise in operating profit to 2.9 trillion won (US$2.5 billion) in the third quarter, the highest since the first quarter of 2018.But Samsung warned that fourth-quarter mobile earnings would decline as marketing costs rise and sales of flagship models soften from their post-launch peaks. – Nampa/ReutersFacebook sales grow as users tick upFacebook Inc reported an uptick in users in lucrative markets and its third straight rise in quarterly sales growth on Wednesday, but the company’s controversial political ads stole the limelight when CEO Mark Zuckerberg spoke to analysts.Over the last three years, Facebook, the world’s largest social media company, has faced rising hostility from both users and lawmakers over its handling of user data and its inability to ensure the integrity of its popular news feeds.Zuckerberg opened his earnings conference call on Wednesday by defending the company’s policy to run ads from politicians containing false or misleading claims, saying that Facebook did not want to stifle political speech, even as rival Twitter Inc (TWTR.N) said earlier in the day that it was banning political ads around the globe.Facebook on Monday confirmed to Reuters that some employees had criticised its policy in an internal letter. Zuckerberg estimated ads from politicians would account for under 0.5% of Facebook’s revenue next year.“I expect that this is going to be a very tough year,” he said, adding that controversies over political content could lead to investigations. – Nampa/Reuters

Company news in brief

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