Flight records of Ghosn escape falsified to hide auto exec's travel, jet firm says - Fox Business

George Mason University National Security Institute director Jamil Jaffer discusses whether Lebanon will extradite former Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn.

ANKARA, Turkey — A Turkish airline company whose jets were used to fly former Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn from Japan to Lebanon said an employee falsified records and that Ghosn's name did not appear on any documentation related to the flights.

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Ghosn earlier this week jumped bail in Japan and fled to Lebanon rather than face trial on financial misconduct charges in a dramatic escape that has confounded and embarrassed authorities.

How he was able to flee Japan, avoiding the tight surveillance he was under while free on 1.5 billion yen ($14 million) bail, is still a mystery, though Lebanese authorities have said he entered the country legally on a French passport.

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Ghosn's daring escape spanned three continents and involved private planes, multiple passports and international intrigue. Turkey detained seven people Thursday as part of an investigation into how he passed through the country, and they were appearing in court Friday. The private DHA news agency reported that those detained were four pilots, a cargo company manager and two airport workers.

Also Friday, Istanbul-based MNG Jet said it had filed a criminal complaint in Turkey concerning the illegal use of its jet charter services.

It did not say who the complaint was against, but it said one company employee, who was under investigation by the Turkish authorities, admitted to falsifying records and "confirmed that he acted in his individual capacity" without MNG Jet's knowledge.

The company said it had leased two separate private jets: one private jet from Dubai to Osaka , Japan, and Osaka to Istanbul and another private jet from Istanbul to Beirut.

Former Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn is driven through Tokyo after posting 1 billion yen ($8.9 million) in bail in March 2019. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko. File)

"The two leases were seemingly not connected to each other. The name of Mr Ghosn did not appear in the official documentation of any of the flights," MNG Jet said in a statement. The statement did not say who the jets were leased to.

NISSAN DIRECTORS: WHO HELPED CARLOS GHOSN?

On Thursday, Interpol issued a wanted notice for Ghosn. Lebanese Justice Minister Albert Serhan told The Associated Press in an interview that Lebanon “will carry out its duties,” suggesting for the first time that the automotive titan may be brought in for questioning. But he said Ghosn entered the country on a legal passport, and he appeared to cast doubt on the possibility Lebanon would hand Ghosn over to Japan.

Shortly after the Interpol notice, Ghosn issued a statement — his second this week — seeking to distance his Lebanese wife and family from any role in his escape.

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“The allegations in the media that my wife, Carole, and other members of my family played a role in my departure from Japan are false and misleading. I alone organized my departure. My family played no role,” he said.

Ghosn, who is Lebanese and also holds French and Brazilian passports, was set to go on trial in Japan in April. He arrived in Lebanon on Monday via Turkey and hasn't been seen in public since. In a statement Tuesday, he said he fled to avoid “political persecution” by a “rigged Japanese justice system.”

CARLOS GHOSN ON JAPAN ESCAPE: 'MY FAMILY HAD NO ROLE'

His lawyer in France, Francois Zimeray, told Japanese public broadcaster NHK TV that he was in frequent contact with Ghosn since he arrived in Lebanon, and Ghosn appeared to be filled with “a fighting spirit." Ghosn was eager to start clearing his name at a news conference next week, Zimeray said.

Ghosn, who grew up in Beirut and frequently visited, is a national hero to many in this Mediterranean country with close ties to senior politicians and business stakes in a number of companies. People take special pride in the auto industry executive, who is credited with leading a spectacular turnaround at Nissan beginning in the late 1990s and rescuing the automaker from near-bankruptcy.

Ghosn, who is charged in Japan with under-reporting his future compensation and breach of trust, has repeatedly asserted his innocence, saying authorities trumped up charges to prevent a possible fuller merger between Nissan Motor Co. and Renault.

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2020-01-03 11:20:43Z
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U.S. Stock Futures Fall After Airstrike Kills Iranian Commander - Yahoo Finance

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock-index futures fell after an American airstrike in Iraq killed a top Iranian commander.

S&P 500 Index futures contracts expiring in March were down 1.1% as of 10:19 a.m. in London after the attack that killed Qassem Soleimani, the Iranian general who led the Revolutionary Guards’ Quds force. Dow Jones Industrial Average contracts and those on the Nasdaq 100 also fell.

Oil spiked, with futures in New York and London surging 4% or more, as Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed “severe retaliation” after the death of one of his country’s top commanders. Gold also surged. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index dropped 0.7%.

“The ‘severe retaliation’ aspect is possibly what is scaring the markets as it could mean that there will be a counter-attack versus American diplomats,” said Alberto Tocchio, chief investment officer at Colombo Wealth in Lugano, Switzerland. “Markets could use this excuse to take some profits as sentiment and positioning are possibly too high.”

The S&P 500 Index climbed 0.8% to a fresh record in New York on Thursday, boosted by tech shares including Apple and Alphabet. The gain extended the benchmark gauge’s 29% advance for 2019.

In addition to the Middle East situation, investors are keeping an eye on geopolitical tension surrounding North Korea, where Kim Jong Un said he was no longer bound by his pledge to halt major missile tests and would soon debut a “new strategic weapon.”

“We are only into the third day of the new year, and a big fat dollop of geopolitical uncertainty has landed on investors’ desks already,” Jeffrey Halley, a senior market analyst at Oanda in Singapore, wrote in a note. “Readers now know why I am reluctant to look past 1Q of the new year at this stage,” Halley said, adding that the holiday-shortened week shifts the focus to “the real start of the trading year” on Monday.

MARKETS:

E-Mini futures on S&P down 1.1%E-Mini futures on Dow Jones down 0.9%E-Mini futures on Nasdaq 1.3% lowerVIX Index trading 23% higherWTI crude futures up 3.7% to $63.43/bblBloomberg spot dollar index up 0.2%

ECONOMIC DATA:

10:00 - Nov. Construction Spending MoM est. 0.4% (prior -0.8%)10:00 - Dec. ISM Manufacturing est. 48.9 (prior 48.1)10:00 - Dec. ISM New Orders (prior 47.2)10:00 - Dec. ISM Prices Paid est. 48.1 (prior 46.7)10:00 - Dec. ISM Employment (prior 46.6)14:00 - Dec 11 FOMC Meeting Minutes15:00 - Dec. Wards Total Vehicle Sales est. 17.00m (prior 17.09m)

EARNINGS:

Companies reporting earnings include Lamb Weston

--With assistance from Ksenia Galouchko.

To contact the reporters on this story: Jackie Edwards in Sydney at jedwards160@bloomberg.net;Namitha Jagadeesh in London at njagadeesh@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Lianting Tu at ltu4@bloomberg.net, Kurt Schussler, Paul Jarvis

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

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2020-01-03 10:36:00Z
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Oil prices 'could make a run at $80' if US-Iran conflict intensifies, analysts say - CNBC

Oil prices could surge toward $80 a barrel if escalating geopolitical tensions disrupt Middle East crude supplies, analysts told CNBC on Friday, with energy market participants "on tenterhooks" after a U.S. airstrike killed key Iranian and Iraqi military personnel.

International benchmark Brent crude traded at $68.65 Friday morning, up more than 3.6%, having earlier spiked to an intraday high of $69.16.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) stood at $63.38, over 3.5% higher, paring some of its gains after climbing to $63.84 earlier in the session.

Iran's General Qasem Soleimani, who led a special forces unit of the Islamic Republic's elite Revolutionary Guards, was killed in an airstrike at the Baghdad International Airport early on Friday.

The same attack was thought to have killed Iraq's Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy commander of Iran-backed militias known as the Popular Mobilization Forces, Reuters reported, citing an Iraqi military spokesperson.

One thing is clear: Iran will respond.

Henry Rome & Cliff Kupchan

Analysts at Eurasia Group

The airstrike, which the Pentagon said was issued at the direction of President Donald Trump, has exacerbated already-high tensions between the U.S. and Iran — and sparked concerns of retaliatory action.

In the hours after Soleimani's death, "one thing is clear: Iran will respond," analysts at political risk consultancy Eurasia Group said in a research note published Friday.

"We expect moderate to low-level clashes to last for at least a month and likely be confined to Iraq. Iranian-backed militias will attack U.S. bases and some U.S. soldiers will be killed; the U.S. will retaliate with strikes inside of Iraq."

Oil prices "will likely hold" around $70 a barrel, "but could make a run at $80 if the conflict spreads to the oil fields of southern Iraq or if Iranian harassment of commercial shipping intensifies," they added.

Oil price spike 'may continue'

The U.S. Department of Defense said in a statement overnight it had taken "defensive action to protect U.S. personnel abroad" by killing Soleimani, before adding the strike was "aimed at deterring future Iranian attack plans."

In response, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered three days of mourning and vowed to deliver "severe revenge" to the killers of Soleimani.

Meanwhile, Iran's Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said on Twitter that the killing of Soleimani was "extremely dangerous and a foolish escalation."

"The U.S. bears responsibility for all consequences of its rogue adventurism," Zarif said.

Soleimani has long been a key figure in Iranian politics and was widely regarded as the second-most powerful figure in the country — behind Khamenei.

He was working as the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force — designated by the U.S. as a Foreign Terrorist Organization since April last year. Washington had blamed Soleimani for this week's attack of the U.S. embassy in Baghdad.

"It has been always lingering as a potential threat … But I guess the timing of it was certainly surprising for the market," Valentin Marinov, managing director and head of G10 FX research at Credit Agricole, told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" on Friday.

"Maybe it is a bit early to draw really finite conclusions here about the overall impact on oil. After all, we just had the OPEC meeting where they reaffirmed cutting production further."

"In addition, we also have expectations of oil output really peaking this year so chances are the move may continue," Marinov said.

OPEC and non-OPEC allies, sometimes referred to as OPEC+, agreed to cut oil production by an additional 500,000 barrels per day (b/d) from Jan. 1, further deepening their previous cut of 1.2 million b/d.

Energy market 'on tenterhooks'

"If we were to see a lack of escalation then potentially this initial spike is probably about enough for now," James Athey, senior investment manager at Aberdeen Standard Investments, told CNBC's "Capital Connection" on Friday.

"But it does appear to be a pretty serious escalation that has occurred and for that reason I think the market is going to be on tenterhooks for a good while just yet," he added.

Dock workers haul the mooring rope of a cargo ship onto the dockside at Bandar Imam Khomeini (BIK) port on Friday, May 24, 2019.

Ali Mohammadi | Bloomberg | Getty Images

President Trump tweeted a message of the U.S. flag shortly after the news prompted oil prices to skyrocket.

"I don't think that you will see a sustained rally in oil unless you get some surprise economic data that is stronger than people expect both in the U.S. and in particular Europe — which might be a swing factor here in terms of pushing that price up," Robert Horrocks, chief investment officer of Matthews Asia, told CNBC's "Capital Connection" on Friday.

"Other than that, I doubt this is the start of a severe spike in the oil price."

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2020-01-03 09:20:00Z
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New Clues Emerge in Carlos Ghosn’s Escape From Japan - The New York Times

TOKYO — New clues emerged on Friday on how Carlos Ghosn pulled off his audacious escape from Japan, as a Turkish charter jet company said its planes were used illegally to pull off the plan, while the Japanese news media reported that surveillance camera footage showed the disgraced auto industry mogul leaving his Tokyo home on Sunday by himself.

Taken together, the disclosures paint a picture of a dash across Japan to a waiting plane that swept Mr. Ghosn across Asia to Lebanon. Still, most of the details of Mr. Ghosn’s getaway remain murky and unconfirmed. The authorities in Japan and Turkey still appear to be investigating how he did it.

Mr. Ghosn — who has maintained his innocence — was facing four charges of financial wrongdoing in Japan and was set to go on trial sometime next year. But he escaped instead, saying that he did not trust what he called the “rigged” Japanese justice system to give him a fair trial. He built and once ran the Nissan-Renault auto alliance, one of the world’s biggest car-making empires, but was arrested after arriving in Tokyo in November 2018.

In Turkey on Friday, MNG Jet, an aircraft charter company, said one of its employees had falsified records to remove Mr. Ghosn’s name from the official documentation for two flights. The company said the employee confessed to acting alone, without management’s knowledge. MNG Jet did not disclose the employee’s name.

News outlets in Turkey reported this week that Mr. Ghosn left on a plane from Osaka, Japan, late Sunday aboard a business jet and landed at Istanbul Ataturk Airport. He then switched planes and flew to Beirut, the reports said.

The news accounts match the flight records of a Bombardier business aircraft operated by MNG Jet that took off from Osaka just after 11 p.m. local time and landed in Istanbul about 12 hours later, according to data from FlightAware, a flight tracking service.

MNG Jet said it had no indication the two flights were connected. It said it filed its criminal complaint in Turkey on Wednesday and that it “hopes that the people who illegally used and/or facilitated the use of the services of the company will be duly prosecuted.”

It is not clear how Mr. Ghosn, who was under heavy surveillance in Tokyo, could have eluded the authorities and make his way to Osaka, which is roughly 300 miles west of Tokyo.

In Japan on Friday, news outlets reported that Mr. Ghosn walked out of his Tokyo home alone on Sunday but never came back. The news reports cited anonymous sources with knowledge of footage of the cameras surrounding his rented house in a central district of the city.

Prosecutors are investigating whether Mr. Ghosn, after leaving his home, met up with a group that helped his escape to Lebanon, according to the national broadcaster NHK and the economic daily Nikkei Shimbun.

The footage described in the news reports was from security cameras installed in front of the two-story house in an upscale neighborhood in the city center, the outlets reported, citing sources close to the investigation. Three surveillance cameras had been installed above the doorway of Mr. Ghosn’s house as part of a bail agreement that placed tight restrictions on his movements and ability to communicate with the outside world.

The mystery has fed into some colorful theories. At least one Lebanese news media outlet had reported that Mr. Ghosn was smuggled out of his home in a musical instrument box. Lebanese officials have said Mr. Ghosn — who is a citizen of France, Lebanon and Brazil — arrived legally with a French passport, even though he had agreed to surrender three of his passports to his lawyers as a condition of his bail.

The Japanese authorities have stayed conspicuously silent about the escape of the country’s most high-profile criminal defendant. Prosecutors raided Mr. Ghosn’s Tokyo home on Thursday afternoon. Mr. Ghosn’s departure appeared to be timed for the eve of Japan’s weeklong New Year’s holiday, the country’s most important.

Still, signs are mounting that Japanese officials are responding. On Thursday, Albert Serhan, the Lebanese justice minister, said that the country’s public prosecutor had received a red notice from Interpol related to Mr. Ghosn’s case, according to the state-run National News Agency. Such a notice is issued for individuals wanted for prosecution or to serve a sentence.

Interpol’s online list of public red notices did not show an entry for Mr. Ghosn as of early Friday.

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2020-01-03 08:59:00Z
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Brent jumps nearly $3 after US air strike kills Iran, Iraq officials - CNBC

Jean-Paul Pelissier | Reuters

Brent crude futures jumped close to $3 on Friday to their highest since September after a U.S. air strike killed key Iranian and Iraqi military personnel, raising concerns that escalating Middle East tensions may disrupt oil supplies.

Brent crude futures jumped nearly $3 to hit a high of $69.16 a barrel, the highest since Sept. 17. The front-month Brent March contract was at $68.25 a barrel, up $2.00, or 3%, by 0258 GMT.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose $1.76, or 2.9%, to $62.94 a barrel. Earlier, it touched $63.84 a barrel, highest since May 1.

"The supply side risks remain elevated in the Middle East and we could see tensions continue to elevate between the U.S. and Iran-backed militia in Iraq," said Edward Moya, analyst at brokerage OANDA, in an e-mail to Reuters.

An air strike at the Baghdad International Airport early on Friday killed Iranian Major-General Qassem Soleimani, head of the elite Quds Force, and Iraqi militia commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, an Iraqi militia spokesman told Reuters.

The Pentagon later confirmed it was a U.S. air strike that killed Soleimani.

Oil prices were also lifted by China's central bank saying on Wednesday it was cutting the amount of cash that banks must hold in reserve, releasing around 800 billion yuan ($115 billion) in funds to shore up the slowing Chinese economy.

This came shortly after data showed China's production continued to grow at a solid pace and business confidence shot up.

"Oil prices still have room for further upside as many analysts are still having to upgrade their demand forecasts to include a rather calm period on the trade front," Moya said, referring to the warming trade relation between China and the United States.

"President Trump is likely to take a break on being 'tariff man' until we get beyond the presidential election in November."

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2020-01-03 02:45:00Z
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Carlos Ghosn's Tokyo home raided following escape from Japan - CBS News

Interpol issued a so-called "Red Notice" Thursday for former Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn, who jumped bail in Japan and fled to Lebanon rather than face trial on financial misconduct charges in an escape that has baffled and embarrassed authorities.

A Red Notice is a request to law enforcement agencies worldwide that they locate and provisionally arrest a fugitive. A Red Notice is not an arrest warrant and does not require Lebanon to arrest Ghosn.

Lebanese Justice Minister Albert Serhan told The Associated Press in an interview that Lebanon "will carry out its duties," suggesting for the first time that the automotive titan may be brought in for questioning. But he said Ghosn entered the country on a legal passport, and he appeared to cast doubt on the possibility Lebanon would hand Ghosn over to Japan.

Trending News

Former Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn's flight from Japan has sparked a search of his Tokyo home, while Turkish authorities have reportedly detained seven people as part of an investigation into how he was able to flee to Lebanon via Istanbul.

Ghosn, who grew up in Beirut and frequently visited, is a national hero to many in this Mediterranean country with close ties to senior politicians and business stakes in a number of companies. People take special pride in the auto industry icon, who is credited with leading a spectacular turnaround at Nissan beginning in the late 1990s and rescuing the automaker from near-bankruptcy.

How did Ghosn escape?

Ghosn skipped bail and fled to Lebanon on a private plane before his trial in Japan on financial misconduct charges. While the details of his flight aren't yet known, there are reports that he hid in a box designed for musical equipment, according to The New York Times. It's also unclear how Ghosn avoided 24-hour surveillance in Tokyo. 

Japanese media showed investigators entering the home, which was Ghosn's third residence in Tokyo since he was first arrested a year ago. Authorities have now searched each one. Tokyo prosecutors and police did not immediately comment. Government offices in Japan are closed this week for the New Year's holidays.

Ghosn said Tuesday in a statement that he left for Lebanon because he thought the Japanese judicial system was unjust, and he wanted to avoid "political persecution." He said he would talk to reporters next week.

Lebanon, which doesn't have an extradition treaty with Japan, has said Ghosn entered the country legally, and there was no reason to take action against him.

Ghosn, who was charged with under-reporting his future compensation and a breach of trust, has repeatedly asserted his innocence. He says Japanese authorities trumped up the charges to prevent a possible fuller merger between Nissan Motor Co. and alliance partner Renault SA. Before his arrest, Ghosn was chairman of both Nissan and Renault.

His 1.5 billion yen ($14 million) bail that Ghosn posted on two separate instances to get out of detention is being revoked.

Legal entry

The Lebanese minister for presidential affairs, Selim Jreissati, told the An-Nahar newspaper that Ghosn entered legally at the airport with a French passport and Lebanese ID.

Ghosn's lawyers in Japan said they had no knowledge of the escape and they had all his passports. Ghosn has French, Lebanese and Brazilian citizenship.

Japanese public broadcaster NHK TV, without identifying sources, reported Thursday that Ghosn had two French passports.

Earlier Japanese reports said there were no official records in Japan of Ghosn's departure, but a private jet had left from a regional airport to Turkey.

Turkish investigation

Turkish state-run Anadolu Agency said Thursday that Turkish authorities had detained seven people as part of an investigation into how Ghosn fled to Lebanon via Istanbul.

The private DHA news agency reported that those detained are 4 pilots, a cargo company manager and two airport workers.

The Hurriyet newspaper said the plane carrying Ghosn landed at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport at 05:30 on Dec. 29. Ghosn was not registered upon landing and was smuggled on board another plane that left for Lebanon, the paper reported.

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2020-01-02 16:20:00Z
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US jobless claims edge lower but trend points to uptick in filings - CNBC

The number of Americans filing claims for jobless benefits edged lower last week, a positive signal for the U.S. labor market amid recent signs that new claims may be trending slightly higher.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits decreased 2,000 to a seasonally adjusted 222,000 for the week ended Dec. 28, the Labor Department said on Thursday.

Economists polled by Reuters had expected 225,000 new claims last week.

While claims have been volatile in recent weeks around the U.S. holiday season and end of the year, longer-term averages point to a slight increase in new claims.

The four-week moving average of initial claims rose by 4,750 to 233,250, the highest level since January 2018.

Still, the underlying trend in claims remains consistent with a labor market that is resisting signs of weakness in other parts of the economy, such as a slowdown in U.S. manufacturing and lackluster business investment. Economists have attributed the weakness to uncertainty around a U.S.-China trade war launched under U.S. President Donald Trump.

In November, the U.S. unemployment rate fell back to 3.5%, the lowest in nearly half a century.

The drop in claims in the latest week unwound a surge in new claims three weeks earlier that appeared to reflect a late Thanksgiving Day this year compared to 2018. By the end of the latest week, the number of new claims was at its lowest since the Nov. 30 week.

Labor market strength is underpinning consumer spending, keeping the economy on a moderate growth path despite headwinds from trade tensions and slowing global growth that have weighed on manufacturing.

Thursday's claims report also showed the number of people receiving benefits after an initial week of aid rose 5,000 to 1.73 million for the week ended Dec. 21.

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2020-01-02 13:32:00Z
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