January 20, 2021 - Biz in 60

Business in 60 Seconds

International Energy Agency cuts outlook for oil demand The International Energy Agency has cut its global oil demand forecast for the year. That's due to a coronavirus resurgence that's prompted the return of lockdown measures around the world. The Paris-based agency now expects daily demand for oil to recover by 5.5-million barrels per day, down 300-thousand from last month's assessment. Goldman Sachs, Bank of America post upbeat Q4 results Net income at Goldman Sachs more than doubled to 4-and- a-half billion dollars in the fourth quarter, the highest in more than a decade.. with the firm's stock traders delivering a 40-percent revenue increase. Meanwhile, a drop in interest income at Bank of America helped drag down its earnings by 22-percent last quarter. America's second-largest bank says its profit totaled almost 5-and- a-half- billion dollars. Hong Kong's jobless rate rises to 16-year high in Q4 Hong Kong's unemployment rate has jumped to a 16-year high, as a resurgence of COVID-19 hit economic activity. The jobless rate rose to 6-point-6 percent in the final three months of 2020, up from 6-point-3 percent in the third quarter. Unemployment in the consumption and tourism-related sectors remained above 10-percent.