International stocks trading in New York closed lower on
Thursday.
The BNY Mellon index of American depositary receipts eased 0.28%
to 147.68. The European index decreased 0.2% to 146.22, the Asian
index edged down 0.26% to 155.34, the Latin American index fell
1.2% to 215.56 and the emerging markets index declined 0.62% to
263.43. Statoil ASA (STO, STL.OS) was among the companies with ADRs
that traded actively.
ADRs of Statoil fell 1.1% to $18.31, after the Norwegian oil
major said it plans to merge some business units to simplify its
structure and save money. The move comes a week after Statoil cut
as many as 1,500 permanent jobs. Global oil and gas companies have
been scrambling to reduce spending in response to a significant
drop in oil prices since last summer.
A financial affiliate of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group
Holding Ltd. (BABA) began operations of an online bank on Thursday,
though its limited services indicate the challenges it faces in
China's tightly regulated banking sector. ADRs rose seven cents to
$85.24.
U.K. advertising group WPP PLC (WPPGY, WPP.LN) Thursday said it
has acquired a majority stake in SET Management, LLC, a specialist
in marketing brands "through physical experiences in retail stores"
with annual revenue of roughly $38 million. ADRs rose 55 cents to
$116.91.
Write to Tess Stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com
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