- China turmoil sends oil, stocks sliding (Reuters)
- China's Stock Traders Go Home After 29 Minutes (BBG)
- Yuan hits weakest since Feb 2011 on fresh low midpoint (Reuters)
- Stocks Extend Rout, Oil Slides on China as Soros Warns of Crisis (BBG)
- China's 29 Minutes of Chaos: Stunned Brokers and a Race to Sell (BBG)
- North Korea Uses Bomb Test to Boost Dictatorship (WSJ)
- Arab Shiites Are Caught in Iranian-Saudi Strife (WSJ)
- Oil slides below $33 to near 12-year low as China turmoil rattles investors (Reuters)
- Truck bomb kills 65 at Libyan police training center (Reuters)
- China Foreign-Exchange Reserves Extend Slump (BBG)
- Cameron upbeat but poll shows Britons tilting toward leaving EU (Reuters)
- Europe's Already Bleak Outlook Shields Bonds From Market Turmoil (BBG)
- Yahoo Said to Propose Job Cuts as Part of Mayer's Revival Plan (BBG)
- Tax-Trade Mess Lingers at Bank of America (WSJ)
- Barclays Plans to Close Most of Its Asia Cash Equities Unit (BBG)
- Ethanol Backers Mobilize Against Ted Cruz in Iowa Republican Race (WSJ)
- In besieged Syrian town, peace talks seen as pointless (Reuters)
- Apple's Top Five Aside From CEO Paid $25 Million Each for 2015 (BBG)
- Star Wars Shoots Past Avatar to Break U.S. Box Office Record (BBG)
Overnight Media Digest
FT
The UK's financial watchdog, Financial Conduct Authority, is looking at whether market for the government bonds was manipulated by a trader at Lloyds Banking Group.
Consultancy firm Wood Mackenzie sees a wave of oil and gas deals this year, following a collapse in crude prices and the slowest period for deals in more than a decade in 2015.
Finance minister George Osborne has said that Britain's economy was not immune from a "dangerous cocktail" of threats from abroad, and urged against complacency.
NYT
- The global Brent oil benchmark price fell to below $35 a barrel, the lowest level since the depths of the 2008 economic downturn, helping to push stock markets lower.(nyti.ms/22M3Ddp)
- Stocks sank on Thursday morning after the Chinese central bank lowered the reference rate for the renminbi to its lowest point in almost six years. Trading was halted for the day on China's stock market for the second time this week, after the main index in Shanghai tumbled more than 7 percent.(nyti.ms/1S5j78o)
- Macys Inc said on Wednesday that it would eliminate about 4,500 jobs, or about 3 percent of its work force, in a major restructuring drive. It said slumping holiday season sales had hurt its bottom line. (nyti.ms/1SBoiw0)
- TransCanada Corp said on Wednesday that it would seek $15 billion in damages over the Obama administration's decision to cancel the company's Keystone XL pipeline project. The company is taking the unusual step of suing through the North American Free Trade Agreement, calling the decision "arbitrary and unjustified." (nyti.ms/1MUKwSw)
- A prominent hedge fund that has long criticized Yahoo Inc's management, Starboard Value, on Wednesday called for changes to the web pioneer's board and management to go along with a shift in the company's strategy. Otherwise, the investment firm wrote, it may try to run its own slate of directors. (nyti.ms/22M4hrd)
Canada
THE GLOBE AND MAIL
** The federal cabinet is reviewing options to bolster Canada's role in the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State that run the gamut from maintaining surveillance and refuelling aircraft to clandestine operations, military and government officials say. (bit.ly/1ZPmbHh)
** North Korea's triumphal declaration that it detonated its first hydrogen bomb drew global condemnation and threats of new sanctions against the isolated nuclear power Wednesday. But it also raised skepticism from the White House and defense experts, who questioned Pyongyang's claim to a new and vastly more destructive weapon. (bit.ly/1PeQu2o)
** Calfrac Well Services Ltd shares dropped sharply on Wednesday following news that the oilfield service company's chief financial officer is departing. (bit.ly/1PgBl0z)
NATIONAL POST
** TransCanada Corp said Wednesday it intends to file a challenge under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) seeking $15 billion in damages from the United States government over President Barack Obama's denial of the Keystone XL pipeline. (bit.ly/1TGRIY0)
Britain
The Times
* Kath Harmeston, a former senior executive at the Co-operative Group, is today set to allege misconduct by Co-operative Group's management in a court battle that will put the mutual back in the public spotlight. (http://thetim.es/1S4WGQK)
* Kuoni confirmed on Tuesday that it had "received preliminary approaches from third parties regarding a potential offer" and was evaluating them in the context of "all other strategic possibilities". (http://thetim.es/1S4WD7q)
The Guardian
* Paul Kelly, a former Asda executive is facing jail after admitting to stealing 180,000 pounds ($263,322.00) from the retailer's charity fund for his partner's ballet company.(http://bit.ly/1S4WUaw)
* The UK government is preparing the sale of Bradford and Bingley mortgages worth about 17 billion pounds ($24.87 billion), according to The Guardian. (http://bit.ly/1S4X15Y)
The Telegraph
* Plans to build a tower taller than The Shard, Europe's highest building, are being considered for Dover, on the Kent coast. (bit.ly/22KLlsX)
* The capacity squeeze at Britain's overcrowded airports and need for a new runway in the South East has been highlighted by data from aviation analysts OAG. (bit.ly/1MUqUxY)
Sky News
* Donald Trump has threatened to withdraw 700 million pounds ($1.02 billion) of planned investment in Scotland if he is banned from entering the UK. (http://bit.ly/1S4XsND)
* HSBC has stressed that its personal and business banking services are "operating at full capacity" once again - even though some customers have been experiencing a third day of difficulty caused by an IT glitch. (http://bit.ly/1S4XzZy)
The Independent
* Diane Abbott, the shadow Secretary of State for international development, has called for a code of practice to stop banks from severing ties with Islamic charities without explanation. (http://ind.pn/1S4XBAN)
* The UK is one of the best countries in Europe in which to find job, according to a report from Glassdoor Economic Research. (http://ind.pn/1S4XFjQ)