- Nepal earthquake toll crosses 3700 (Reuters [22])
- Greeks Add Pressure on Tsipras to Compromise as Talks Resume (BBG [23])
- With No Deal on Greek Bailout Aid in Sight, Some in Europe Suggest ‘Plan B’ (WSJ [24])
- BOJ Shouldn’t Ease Further; Yen Fell Enough: Business Lobby Head (BBG [25])
- Clinton Foundation admits making mistakes on taxes (Reuters [26])
- Here’s the Old Nemesis Starting to Spook Bond Traders Again (BBG [27])
- Deutsche Bank to Trim Investment Banking (WSJ [28])
- China’s Stocks Rise to Seven-Year High on SOE Merger Speculation (BBG [29])
- Set to begin, U.S. plan for Syrian rebels already mired in doubt (Reuters [30])
- ECB Seen Going All the Way on QE as Economists Doubt Taper (BBG [31])
- War Haunts Russia’s Southern Fringe, Threatening Pipelines (BBG [32])
- Scottish nationalists eye 'enormous clout' in next UK government (Reuters [33])
- China Inc. Finds Cure to Debt Hangover in Stock-Market Boom (BBG [34])
- Israel Says It Carried Out Airstrike on Syrian Border (WSJ [35])
Overnight Media Digest
WSJ
* Rescuers in Nepal struggled to reach remote areas hit by Nepal's most devastating earthquake in roughly 80 years. (http://on.wsj.com/1IdhbEU [36])
* President Barack Obama tightened rules for the U.S. drone program in 2013, but secretly approved a waiver giving the Central Intelligence Agency more flexibility in Pakistan than anywhere else to strike suspected militants, according to current and former U.S. officials. (http://on.wsj.com/1IdhbVm [37])
* With Ferdinand Piech's departure Saturday, Volkswagen AG faces two weeks of uncertainty before its annual meeting on May 5, as the automotive giant faces big challenges getting back in gear amid slumping sales in the U.S. and China and high costs in Europe. (http://on.wsj.com/1GyyIIk [38])
* Investigators overlooked evidence given to them just hours after the 2010 "flash crash" that could have enabled them to uncover the strategies of Navinder Sarao, the trader now accused of helping cause the violent selloff in stocks that day, according to members of a committee that oversaw the investigation. (http://on.wsj.com/1IdhC2a [39])
* Pharmaceutical companies such as Valeant are buying drugs that they see as undervalued, then raising their prices.(http://on.wsj.com/1IdhEqH [40])
* The world's largest advertiser, Procter & Gamble Co , plans deep cuts in the number of ad agencies it works with in hopes of big savings on fees.(http://on.wsj.com/1IdhMXd [41])
FT
EU diplomats and politicians fear that the UK's neck-and-neck general elections will result in a fragile government and even set a course for a British exit from the bloc just as Europe faces a renewed Russian threat and a lingering economic crisis.
Nepal has turned to its two Asian neighbours, India and China, and the rest of the international community to assist with the aftermath of a devastating weekend earthquake, as the death toll from the disaster rose to 2,800.
The British government has told BP Plc it would oppose any potential takeover of the company. The vulnerability of BP to a takeover has been discussed at a senior level in Whitehall since the Deepwater Horizon disaster, when an explosion on a rig working under contract for the company killed 11 men and triggered the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history.
The resignation of Ferdinand Piëch, the dominant force at Volkswagen for more than two decades, leaves a void at the top of the German carmaker.
Ebay Inc' chief executive, John Donahoe, said in an interview with the Financial Times that barriers were breaking down between different areas of online commerce. The auction website chief's comments support arguments already made by Google Inc in its first response to the European Commission's landmark competition case.
NYT
* Regulators are considering whether to reopen an investigation into Jeeps with rear gas tanks, despite Fiat Chrysler's agreement two years ago to recall some of the affected models. (http://nyti.ms/1bv3CUk [42])
* As soon as Comcast Corp withdrew, Charter Communications Inc was reported to be exploring a new bid for Time Warner Cable Inc, but some predict consumers will lose no matter who buys whom. (http://nyti.ms/1Gn9W8O [43])
* Computer industry mainstays are rolling out technology to block surveillance, including by the National Security Agency, which fears "going dark" on terror threats. (http://nyti.ms/1GnaHP9 [44])
* Jay Z took to Twitter on Sunday to defend his new streaming music service Tidal, after news reports suggested that the app was slipping into early oblivion. (http://nyti.ms/1HMgu6H [45])
Canada
THE GLOBE AND MAIL
** Prime Minister Stephen Harper signalled last week that Canada will set a less ambitious emissions-reduction goal for 2025 than the one announced by President Barack Obama, which aims to reduce greenhouse gases by 26 percent from 2005 levels. (bit.ly/1Dsst1t)
** Canada's energy industry is bracing for more budget cuts and possibly another wave of layoffs even as crude prices edge up from multiyear lows. (bit.ly/1Gxioow)
** The federal government and Canadian aid groups are marshalling resources to help in the aftermath of the Nepal earthquake, dispatching doctors, medical supplies and a military response team to the country. (bit.ly/1KmYQ7L)
NATIONAL POST
** Toronto's outgoing police chief, Bill Blair, has confirmed he will be running for the federal Liberals in the fall election. Blair tweeted Sunday morning that he is "excited to continue my public service by working to earn the support of people in Scarborough Southwest." (bit.ly/1JK0Rtz)
** Pittsburgh Penguins superstar Sidney Crosby has been added to Canada's roster for the upcoming world hockey championship, giving the Canadian team a huge boost as it seeks to win its first gold medal since 2007. (bit.ly/1PLgWDe)
Hong Kong
SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
-- Hong Kong is set to play a more active role in Southeast Asia with the likely conclusion next year of an ASEAN-Hong Kong free-trade pact, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying told the ASEAN Leadership Forum in Kuala Lumpur. (bit.ly/1Ju3dju)
-- Cathay Pacific Airways chief executive Ivan Chu Kwok-leung told the South China Morning Post that he thinks his airline may have returned to a period of long-term steady profit delivery for shareholders, four years after the last decade-long run ended. (bit.ly/1bIO5RE)
-- Moving HSBC's headquarters to Hong Kong from Britain could unlock at least $14 billion in value for the banking giant's shareholders, analysts say. HSBC said at its annual general meeting with investors last Friday that it would review the future of its British headquarters. (bit.ly/1DOukhw)
THE STANDARD
-- Pan-democratic lawmakers kicked off their publicity against the government's political reform package in Wan Chai, vowing to talk to residents up close. The launch of the two-month "anti-pocketing" campaign, comprising seminars, bicycle parades, distributing leaflets and postcards, was attended by 17 out of 23 pan-democratic lawmakers. (bit.ly/1Fpp9Kp)
-- Hong Kong's stock market is neither irrational nor becoming another A-share market, Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Ceajer Chan Ka-keung says, after money from the mainland has boosted local stocks for a month. Participation of mainland investors makes local share prices more indicative of their real value, he said. (bit.ly/1OtYzFP)
HONG KONG ECONOMIC JOURNAL
-- The Hong Kong Travel Agent Owners Association forecast that travel agents would serve 40-50 percent fewer mainland tourists during the upcoming Labour Day golden week holiday beginning May 1, compared with the same period last year. Some hotels are cutting room rates by 40 percent to lure travellers, according to Simon Yuen, the association's vice chairman.
-- Maoye International Holdings Ltd said its wholly-owned unit, Shenzhen Maoye Trade Building Co Ltd, would buy 3.48 million of Ping An Insurance's Shanghai-listed A shares at 87.6 yuan apiece for 304.4 million yuan.
Britain
The Times
* HSBC mulls splitting off Midland if it moves to Asia
HSBC Plc Holdings may spin off its UK division into a separate business, reviving the old Midland Bank. The move could be considered as part of the far-reaching review by Britain's largest bank, announced on Friday, into whether to move its headquarters to Asia amid rising costs and increasingly onerous regulations in the UK. (http://thetim.es/1PIEx7w [46])
* Record fine halves Deutsche profits
First-quarter profits at Deutsche Bank AG have halved after the bank was hit by a record fine, and comes in advance of a long-awaited restructuring that could lead to job losses among City traders in London. (http://thetim.es/1DOrRDR [47])
The Guardian
* Slow GDP growth in first quarter puts pressure on Osborne
George Osborne's stewardship of the economy is expected to take a dent on Tuesday when the latest official figures show last year's healthy growth has lost momentum. With just over a week until the election, the chancellor will come under pressure from critics following a run of poor figures from the manufacturing and construction sectors that City economists predict have slowed growth in the first quarter. (http://bit.ly/1HLsSni [48])
* BP and Shell to report 60 pct collapse in first-quarter profits
BP Plc and Royal Shell Plc will this week report a collapse in first-quarter profits of around 60 percent on the same period of 2014, underlining the financial damage being inflicted by low oil and gas prices. Analysts predict BP will be hit the hardest, putting further pressure on chief executive, Bob Dudley, as he tries to steer the company back to full health amid continuing fallout from the Deepwater Horizon accident. (http://bit.ly/1GxPxDm [49])
The Telegraph
* Number 10 warns of opposition to potential BP bid
The Government has met with BP Plc in recent days to express its opposition to any potential takeover of the oil major. The move by Downing Street comes on the back of speculation that BP could be the next company to be caught up in the wave of consolidation in the energy sector. (http://bit.ly/1EH4we2 [50])
* Lloyds takes 640 mln pounds hit from TSB's Spanish sale
Lloyds Banking Group Plc will this week take a 640 million pounds ($972 million) hit to profits from the sale of TSB Banking Group Plc to Spain's Banco Sabadell . The taxpayer-backed bank is due to recognise the loss at its first-quarter results, sending profits falling despite an improvement in underlying performance. (http://bit.ly/1buP9YK [51])
Sky News
* Car-leasing giant revs up 100 mln pounds windfall
Investors in the UK's biggest independent car-leasing group are toasting a 100 million pounds windfall just a year after the merger of two smaller rivals created an industry powerhouse. (http://bit.ly/1J1tJ0g [52])
* Labour to cap rents to help 'generation rent'
Labour plans to bar private landlords from raising rents faster than inflation over a three-year period if it wins power after the General Election. Party leader Ed Miliband described Labour's blueprint as "a plan for a stable, decent, prosperous private rental market where landlords and tenants can succeed together". (http://bit.ly/1EH503N [53])