bhp said the report's biggest profits in years under renewed pressure. and president trump offers support for limited gun checks, that in the wake of the florida school massacre. >> hello from sydney, where our where in the., and opening the market spread. had to theke you asia-pacific trading, but today markets were closed because of the presidents' day holiday, so i will send it over to you. heidi: european stocks faltering and futures looking at low bit low, but look at the set up here in new zealand where we are seeing trading under way and had output and input prices coming in, pretty much banking on expectations. seeing a flat session when it comes to kiwi stocks and the kiwi dollar trading at 7371 with the u.s. dollar a little bit weaker overnight. futures in australia, ahead of four pointspen -- is the downside, and the aussie dollar -- also a touch weaker against the euro and the yen, and the aussie kiwi is at 1.0737. down,o have gold futures and crude seeing gains, wti -- let's get you to first world news. the reason may is preparing to set up

it will be interesting to see how bhp opens. bhp really flat. hsbc trading lower.hat is the picture. that is the set up into europe. let's take a look that dmx talk about asian trade is going. hong kong dominated by what happened with hsbc. korea, indonesia trading softer. europe generally a little bit softer. the dollar is trading higher. that is something to pay attention to. this is what some of the asian currencies are doing right now. interesting. is iron ore is where the weakness lay in the numbers. copper is well bid. you got some of the agricultural prices coming back. they have been on a great run. we are going to talk with mark cudmore shortly. let's talk about the treasury market. he comes back. the story is going to be about supply. we are stopping at the front end of the curve. what will demand look like? what will pricing look like? will we see that 10 year moving towards 3%? today in europe, a big day for earnings. intercontinental hotels group is looking to acquire small luxury brands. iag said no additional capital return will be paid this year. jo

bhp said the costs and risks of collapsing its dual structure outweigh benefits. the mine has been under pressure from elliott advisers to rethink that dual listing. the ceo said he was keeping an open mind ahead of a meeting with the activist investor >> there's a wide range of estimates to the value of coming under a unified structure. we're open to all ideas which can simplify our business. we have driven cost savings with most to come with the way we simplified the portfolio and the ways in which we operate and created a culture of simplicity. so it's on strategy for us to have this debate i've been looking at the dual listed structure since i became ceo and trying to find a way i could do it for value, but not take undue risk in unifying the two structures into one. the issue with the calculations is they're silent on a couple of significant downside risks one are the real costs of unification which result from us losing the tax cover on some of the plc revenue streams. that's about $1 billion the much bigger source of uncertainty is when you unify the compan

adjusted profit rose 25%, slightly below analysts forecast bhp is pushing back against a renewed call by elliott advisers to drop its dual listing in london and australia here's the ceo earlier this morning on cnbc addressing that topic. >> there's a wide range of estimates to the value of coming under a unified structure. we're open to all ideas which can simplify our business. >> bhp also plans to raise its mid year dividend by 38% as a rebound in commodity prices boosted cash flow. as we say, it did disappoint a bit in terms of analyst estimates. down 4% in london trade. hsbc posting a jump in full-year pretax profit but results missed forecasts. they plan to raise up to $7 billion over the next four months less capital being returned than expected some regulatory questions as well down 4%. those losses in the london trade of hsbc have extended. >>> samsung will slash production of its oled panels n response to apple's decision to cut output of the iphone x amid weak demand. samsung is down some 2% this morning. >>> it was a big weekend for "black panther" at the box office landon

bhp.- to the earnings season not too shabby so far.he aussie he much trading water ahead of rba minutes this morning. the aussie 10 year yields at 2.90%. futures in japan .2 moderate losses at the open. back monday of 2% on the nikkei 225. dollar-yen is less strength from the moment-- yen at after the nomination of governor kuroda. a lot ahead of the boj meeting in march, so lots to watch. inflation also coming out on friday. let's get to first word news now. theresa may's brexit team is said to have secret plans to withhold eu payments to force brussels to give the u.k. the trade deal it wants. officials have discussed the idea in case of failure to clinch a free-trade agreement. will set out her post-brexit vision next week and laying out a path for negotiations themselves. singapore has announced a range of tax increases, including a surprise hike and property levies. properties worth more than one million singapore dollars goes from 3% to 4% on tuesday. the government plans to raise the goods and services tax to 9% from 2021-2025.

we're also looking at bhp just after its half results. we're seeing those shares down and that % right now 289, e 10-year yield at yields slightly on-bid. n japan and korea, checking futures in chicago, we're expecting just a little bit of a 1% drop here after if we saw yesterday. a lar, yen, we're seeing little pickup with the greenback strengthening, 107.31. that we have lows seen, 105, we saw just a couple of days. meantime, we'll get you in new p with jessica york. >> thanks. theresa may is under even more hard lineners her party set out their brexit demands. letter from 62 tories challenging the transition deal deal ys the and says the uk must not bow to e.u. regulations. opposition leader jeremy corbyn announces labor will campaign to eep the uk inside the customs union with the e.u. saying it's necessary for trade and to border with d ireland. are being questioned as part of the inquiry into an alleged $2 billion fraud. the center bureau of investigation says five bank staff and an employee at celebrity -- have been arrested for co

bhp's half-yearit

they should come out with robust numbers like bhp billiton and others have done so far.e future? we mention some of the challenges facing glencore. at the challenges facing glencore. at the same time, they are in a sweet spot. they can afford to reinvest and look at capital expenditure after yea rs of not and look at capital expenditure after years of not feel to do so. you make that is right. across the mining space, we see an increase in mining space, we see an increase in mining investment. but to put it in context, we have had a protracted period of investment destruction. context, we have had a protracted period of investment destructionm has been one of the longest and most deepest periods of destruction since the early 1990s. and i don't think we will go back to the 1990s levels of investment again, just because the large countries like china are no longer growing to the same extent. so i think miners will be cautious in terms of how much investment they will put back in. but now is a good time to invest, evenif but now is a good time to invest, even if the cycles

still ahead, we will be talking about bhp.e: the ceo is discussing interest for the company and plans. this is bloomberg. ♪ ♪ live from london, i am nejra cehic. vonnie: i am vonnie quinn. the bhp billiton shares taking the hit after missing investments, divesting from its shale unit. the bhp ceo spoke with bloomberg. >> we are pleased with's the day results -- with the day's results. we have produced a strong operating performance to deliver increase.-- 25% we have pay down debt, but equally important, increase dividends by 38%. that is an indication we have a lot of discipline plans in place and we continue to deliver against them. in our case, we have worked hard in being clear with shareholders on how we allocate every dollar capital, called capital allocation trade mark. jonathan: let's talk about assets, a better crude drop trade you are looking at other options in the oil and gas portfolio to sell down things, is that on the horizon? not in a major way. our focus now is to push on from our shale business from volume, an

the latest news also says bhp billiton has come out with earnings as well.time look at the stories that are making the headlines in media across the world. we begin with the new york times, and a un report that has found iran is in violation of a united nations weapons embargo and in defiance of security council resolutions that could endanger the iran nuclear deal. the guardian leads with comments from uk brexit secretary, david davis, who said fears the conservatives will plunge britain into a "mad max—style world borrowed from dystopian fiction"

francine: now, bhp also has investors on their tail.ey will meet with activist elliot. what is elliott demanding? reporter: there was a slight difference in linkage between the statement at the start of the day and what mckenzie, the bhp ceo, said on the call. in the statement, they rebuffed this key demand that elliott avent, that they and this dualisti focus and australia.on but he did say they would meet management, and take the temperature of the shareholders. it does seem there will be a shift there. they have already exceeded one of elliott's key demand, to sell the shale business in the u.s. francine: thank you, will kennedy. up next, flying high. if you have ever wanted a private plane, we hear why now might be the time to buy. this is bloomberg. ♪ francine: economics, markets and finance and politics. this is bloomberg surveillance and i am francine lacqua in lonodon. here's nejra cehic. nejra: hsbc has adjusted fourth-quarter pretax profit of $3.6 billion, missing the surveyedamong analysts by bloomberg. it was a rare failure

briefly, bhp billington‘s share price fell after is results were out, prices seem to be rising acrossale operations with it wants to sell so that has been a disappointment for investors, absolutely. another crypto currency on the horizon, am i overstating it? on the horizon is the right way of putting it. venezuela has been conducting what it calls a presale ofa conducting what it calls a presale of a new currency to be called the petro, which it says is backed by its oil reserves. there is a lot of scepticism out there amongst professionals, some people are very sceptical about the figure of $700 million, they say they have raised by this, there is also the us sanctions issue. one of the appeals for the venezuelan is that it might bea for the venezuelan is that it might be a way of getting around sanctions, and the us treasury has warned us nationals getting involved might be exposing themselves to risk because they say it appears to be an extension of credit to the venezuelan government and americans are not supposed to do that. a very quick example, the sense of the scale of the ec

the latest news also says bhp billiton has come out with earnings as well. the business page on line is all about for you as it breaks. —— has all of that. now it's time look at the stories that are making the headlines in media across the world. we begin with the new york times, and a un report that has found iran is in violation of a united nations weapons embargo and in defiance of security council resolutions that could endanger the iran nuclear deal. the guardian leads with comments from uk brexit secretary, david davis, who said fears the conservatives will plunge britain into a "mad max—style world borrowed from dystopian fiction" after leaving the eu are unfounded. the telegraph business pages focus on italy's upcoming march elections, carrying a warning from banks and hedge—funds that a late surge by anti—eu populist parties could threaten to shatter europe's brief political calm. the ft says deutsche bank is cutting 250 to 500 investment banking and trading jobs ahead of its 2017 bonus pay—outs in the latest round of restructuring under a five—year

and bhp billiton, will it produce strong results because of commodity prices?is result, should be a strong price performance. you have the likes of home depot and walmart announcing their results this week with the economy expanding in the us, will be retailers have good results ? us, will be retailers have good results? they will deliver strong results? they will deliver strong results and give a positive guidance into next year. what about the likes of hsbc? they had strong results the previous quarter, will it outperform this quarter? i think they should deliver a good result given its the last result for the current ceo and looking forward they will need to give advisers on the tax. it's a good company to be at the moment. it's been a crazy two weeks in the globalfinancial it's been a crazy two weeks in the global financial markets, are we likely to see a calmer mood among investors this week? will there be more volatility yet again? we think this week should be generally led by the results and we don't expect anything that is out of extraordinary to shake

bhp will report half-year results next year. >>> general motors is closing one of its four plants inouth korea as it restructures its unprofitable operations in the the automaker will decide the future of the its south korean operations in the coming weeks >>> barnes and noble is laying off staff after a weak holiday shopping season. the company is not specifying the number of cuts exactly last month barnes and noble said holiday sales fell 6%. barnes and noble's market cap is below 500 million making it a smaller cap company. >>> shares of vipshop are surging after the chinese e-commerce firm reported better than expected results. revenue jumped 30% the company signed a strategic partnership with tencent during the quarter. >>> molina healthcare posting a wider fourth quarter loss. they also posted their first annual loss in more than 15 years. molina attributes the loss to restrict sur restructuring costs. >>> fmc's fourth quarter results beat forecasts the profit from the lit yurm him business doubled thanks to expansion in china. >>> still ahead, crude realities. oil has tumbled

vonnie: bhp billiton shares are taking a hit today as results missed estimates. mining company is divesting from its from its $10 billion shale units. andrew: we have a lot interest from buyers. some want to buy the lot, others want to buy just one region or two regions. we will put all of these bits together and figure out how to go forward by the middle of the year. jonathan: once those asset sales go through, what proportion could investors expect to get returned to them? from the cash you get from the assets? andrew: i think it is too early to say. what we have been able to do is take the debt into safe haven territory, between $10 billion and $15 billion. we are just below $15 billion, and we will continue to pay it down to the lower level of that range. but once that is done, we have been clear that our capital for the next few years will not exceed $8 billion, and the rest can be returned to shareholders in some form or another. manus: anglo american assets pay an annual dividend of $1.02 a share. it is the first time since 2015 they put money back on the

bhp was also out with earnings. 4.8% drop.ch better word not for some of these big names dragging it down. it's a decent session right now. manus: yesterday, the u.s. itasury sold security as works to rebalance the cash balances. anna: there was decent the man a delusion of sales. paul, good to see you. welcome back to london. let's talk a little bit about will we are seeing in the u.s. market. concerns about the level of borrowing going on in the united states. how does that manifest in the dollar? >> people talk about dollar impact but i'm not sure it's that big. they need more inflows. that knee -- that means we need higher rates in the u.s. to attract those inflows. what is driving the dollar is the fact that balance sheets in , ecb,rope -- in europe japan, are extending at a slower place -- slower pace. it's undermining the dollar. it will continue to do so. the dollar hit extraordinary highs when the u.s. was the only growth game in town. even if we haven't seen hikes from the european central bank and the boj, we have s

is calling on bhp to review its structure hoping to create a unified company.hp currently operates as two entities, one in melbourne and the other in london. a new study shows that pension funds in us trillion have grown at the fastest pace in the world over the past 20 years. that is according to research -- compulsory retirement saving rules and riskier assets are among the key drivers of the growth. the minneapolis fed president kashkari said that the --eleration in wage growth he says it could be a blip and should not be ignored. growth sinceastest 2009. kashkari also says that wages must be balanced with inflation. >> we need to see what will happen with inflation. we have our 2% target and our maximum employment mandate. see inflation build back toward our 2% target. powell is veryy well equipped to take this on. i am jessica summers and this is bloomberg. >> we have breaking news. a house panel in fact the house intelligence committee voted on monday to release the democrat counter memo on the fbi. we just getting that news. republicans claimed that the

the world's biggest mining comapny bhp billiton says profits were up 25% in the six months to the enditjust over $4bn. its chief executive says the australian firm was helped by strong commodity prices and saw returns on its investment in new technology to improve productivity. it also increased its dividend to shareholders. the boss of uber, the ride hailing app, has said he see flying taxis as being commercially viable in five to ten years. dara khosrowshahi was speaking at an investor forum in tokyo. back in november uber said it was working with nasa to develop the technology but some experts have questioned whether it will ever get off the ground. i see what you did there! the social media giant facebook says it's to send postcards in the us mail in order to verify the location of people requesting to buy adverts for us election candidates. yes, snail mail! the postcard would contain a code which would be required to complete the booking. 13 russians have been charged with interfering in the 2016 presidential election. the indictment says they bought political advertising and set

it follows strong results from its rivals bhp billiton and anglo—american earlier this week. of them are benefitting from the improved global economy. glencore says its adjusted profits for 2017 came in at $14.76 billion that's 44% more than a year earlier. shareholders will be pleased to see that the company is recommending that they get $2.9bn in dividends. that's way above the minimum. and rising commmodity prices also helped net debt fall 31% to $10.67 billion. that puts the company in a stronger position for the future. but challenges lie ahead. the democratic republic of congo is key to gelncore's position as a key supplier of metals to the electric car industry. but the government is looking at new laws limiting how much of profit these firm can take out of the country. with me is paul renken, senior geologist and mining analyst for vsa capital ltd. well done for getting here. thank you for being on the programme. glenn caught coming out with a very familiartune, it glenn caught coming out with a very familiar tune, it would seem. a bit ofa familiar tune, it would seem

bhp ando and blue and yellow, a far cry.vidends total, which is three times as much as they thought folks would be at. also to the debt, g #btv 972. they are paying down their debt in a real great way. -- i want to point out free cash flow in white. this is that $2.3 billion for 2017. you can see the ceo predicts $10 billion, looking ahead. what is he going to do with that? one thing they want to do with m&a is get this agribusiness. we know glencore is in metals and mining. but they want to get into agricultural commodity trading. betty: after all this good news, what are analysts saying? ramy: analysts are very bullish on this. hop on over to this side of the screen and check out the function on your terminal. take a look at the green, that is the buy, hanging out at 21. last time it was that high was in 2013. and threeix holds, sells. they say glencore is one of our top picks in mining. they are back and red hot. betty: back and of strongly back. thank you so much, on those results. oil dipping in new york on concerns exp

under the value at bhp, the world's largest miner come on digging up profits and battling asset managementlose in two hours. let's check with taylor riggs. taylor: you mentioned the shaky grouwe

capital levels this as steward gulliver ends the seven-year tenure as ceo shares down more than 3% bhpliton down. missing on earnings despite reporting a 25% jump in profit and we finish with intercontinental hotels, down despite better than expected 2017 results this is a home of crown plaza and holiday inn saying no additional capital will be paid to investors this year citing the need to focus on growth plans and cost cutting this reflects the competitive land xap we' landscape we're seeing around the travel industry. >> when we return, we're live at the olympics this week he sat down with elizabeth swany who is creating a lot of buzz. as we go to break, the dow off the lows we were down 230 now down 95. "squawk alley" straight ahead. >>> welcome back here's your cnbc news update at this hour. syrian media reporting turkish troops were shelling the entrance to the northern enclave after scores of pro government fighters entered the area. turkey trying to oust the syrian militia considered a terrorist organization >>> guest ceo has relinquished the day to day responsibilities complet

that is boosting the likes of -- -- bhp and rio tinto. they sell a higher-quality product.rtescue. fortescue typically sells a product that is below the benchmark grade. there is an ever widening discount for those products. and we see the results translate into those first half profit results. >> reporting sales growth this morning for the fourth quarter at 2%. the u.k.-based maker of painkillers says it is time to take revenue growth to 13% or 14% for the year. is 2018 going to be better than 2017? >> absolutely. 2017 was a tough year. where we had macros. but during that year, we made two transformations. we sold our food business for a good price. and then we acquired me johnson d johnsonohnson -- mea last year, as a result of which 50% of our business comes from higher margins and higher growth in the health care categories. as i look forward to 2018, i think it is going to be a better year. and that is how we are guiding the market today. >> qantas -- giving more money to shareholders. the carrier will buy back as much as 378 million aussie dollars of shares. and has

elliott management calling on bhp to review its structure with a view to creating unified company.s is one company headquartered in australia. the hp carly operates as to entities, one based in melbourne, the other in london. global news, 24 hours a day, powered by more than 2600 journalists and analysts in more than 120 countries. i'm paul allen. this is bloomberg. that, justks for about an hour from the first cash rate decision of the year. economists are expecting no change for an 18 straight month. everyone is crying out about inflation being just around the corner. >> with mobile market turmoil around the world, it will be interesting to see it they can do anything but leave rates on hold today. the message we will get is one of continuity. inflation data has been well behaved in australia and pretty subdued. there's no are in the does for them to hike rates in the short-term. retail sales data was also on the weak side. the bubble in sydney and melbourne is starting to cool down. it really is no reason for the status quote to change for the rba, at least in the short-term. fo

elliott management had a renewed call for the bhp did to disk -- to dismantle its structure.erits of becoming a single company based in australia. they commissioned research that said that benefit upside could be as much as $22 billion for shareholders. the company had previously disputed that saying that the costs are likely to outweigh the benefit. plenty of market investors and analysts are looking for a response today. haidi: alright, asian metals and there, david springer. bhp boss andrew mackenzie will be with us on them but markets america's later on this evening. -- on number of markets america's later this evening. let us get you a quick check on the headlines. corp. has received an offer to double its stake in mitsubishi motors for more than 20%. the company will spend more than $1 billion to turn its carmaker into an equity affiliate. the boj is expected to tender shares. mitsubishi motors was rescued by nissan after a fuel efficiency scandal which cause shares to .rop the modern 20% this companies trying to tear down its report which says that engineers questioned

how will you not be like bhp billiton? what is the religion so you don't buy it to be bigger?aid, for us, it is about in the most profitable. we are clear that, to be profitable, we have to run better. we have committed $5 billion in the next five years within each group. we are going through the permitting process. in the u.s., it is complicated and slow. we are progressing slowly. i am confident. is rio tinto ceo speaking with bloomberg today. tesla is set to return -- report earnings after the bell. elon musk had a pretty good day with the launch of the rocket. a legendary day. this is bloomberg. ♪ ♪ this is bloomberg markets. julia: it's time to look at stocks. weight watchers shares are among the best performance in the russell 2000. apologize for laughing. julie: i think you have the right idea. huge growth. you are talking about maybe they need to change their name. a kind of sounds antiquated. pachulia, your idea -- but, julia, your idea. the revenue goal is not surprising. oprah did speak at the event. let's hop into the bloomberg. this is really extraordinary. i am n

we spoke with the ceos of bhp billiton. >> debt is the most important priority. 93% reduction last yearave been able to do is take our debt within safe haven territory. we are just below 15. we will continue to pay it down to the lower level of that range. >> secondly, paying dividends, we have delivered on that promise six months early. we have a 13% increase. expect a significant proportion to find its way back to shareholders relatively quickly. the: the view on debt and payoff to shareholders from the mining sector. by eddie from blackrock. let us talk about this earnings season and what you have made of it so far. we heard those comments are around the return of cash to shareholders. you said that was quite the priority. >> good morning and thank you for having us on again. the results have been exactly what we needed. the last time we spoke we spoke of the need of the companies to come out and continue to rebuild trust with the investor base and in doing so, they had to stick with the messages they had been giving the last 12-18 months. some results have been better than expected,

under the value at bhp, the world's largest miner come on digging up profits and battling asset management. the u.s. markets close in two hours. let's check with taylor riggs. taylor: you mentioned the shaky ground -- we are all over the place today. some of the averages with the dow and s&p are a little bit lower. the nasdaq is higher. nxp semiconductors is pushing tech stocks a little higher today. i want to focus on some of the weighing downe some of the major averages. i'm going to start with merck off almost 2%. federal judge tossed out the verdict that merck had previously won. merck is a little bit lower. walmart and procter & gamble are all. -- off. dragging down all of the staples including procter & gamble. i want to take a step back and look at the broader macro picture by looking at the dollar. we're having the first three-day rally so far this year. doesn't sound like much, but for a year that i see no weaker up three-dayout 9%, so far this year isn't a terribly bad story. you would not expect the dollar to appreciate, but we have a lot about rates rising. focusing on the trea

bhp billiton is one of the biggest followers.ad some fines and other problems la st had some fines and other problems last year which it has put behind them now, but also seeing some growth in the far east, and it is strongly exposed to dollars in the us economy, so these have been good areas. what has happened to the rbs shower price following the publication of the report into the mistreatment of small businesses?m has been widely known, so not a lot today. rbs, although it has yet to report a profit since the crisis, has been a strong shower price performer over the last year. it may report a profit this week. and that may be important for the taxpayer? and it may not be far from paying dividends if it gets a resolution with us problems. walmart has put some figures out today, the owners of asda. it is looking good, 23% rise in e—commerce, but investors are not impressed. now, for walmart the most important thing to remember is that online sales are very small pa rt is that online sales are very small part of the group total,

that is boosting bhp and rio tinto. they sell a higher quality product.ically sell a product below the benchmark grade. there is a widening discount for those products. we are seeing that in the first half profit result from fortescue. it is really a story of grade, of quality, and the question is, will that trend reverse? the new ceo here, what should her priorities be? what are analysts asking her, and what are her answers on the way they go forward? >> elizabeth, she had been the chief financial officer for the past four years. she's now transitioned into the role as ceo. the key priority is going to be this issue with quality. can fortescue change its product mix? can it deliver products of a higher quality that are more appealing to those chinese steel mills? it will require them to bring on new replacement mines. she also has several other things to manage. most significantly, she's been picked to lead a project to diversify the company, to add materials that are not iron ore. the company is searching for things like copper and lithium across austra