Shell has abandoned its controversial drilling operations in the Alaskan Arctic in the face of mounting opposition. Its decision, which has been welcomed by environmental campaigners, follows disappointing results from an exploratory well drilled 80 miles off Alaska’s north-west coast. Source: The Guardian
Norway’s sovereign wealth fund hit $1 trillion for the first time on Tuesday, driven higher by climbing stock markets and a weaker U.S. dollar. Source: Bloomberg
The Federal Reserve has said that it will start to run down some of the investments it made to boost the US economy after the financial crisis. In October the Fed will start to reduce a $4.2trn portfolio of US Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities, it said. Source: BBC News
S&P Global Ratings downgraded China’s long-term sovereign credit rating by one notch on Thursday to A+ from AA-, citing increasing risks from the country’s rapid build-up of credit. Source: Reuters
