TTE TotalEnergies SE

By Imani Moise 

Sign up:With one click, get this newsletter delivered to your inbox.

French oil giant Total SA is setting its sights on electricity as the commodity firm seeks to transform itself into an energy company. Total sees electricity as a hedge against oil's eventual decline and is assembling a new business around it, WSJ's Russell Gold writes. Total Chairman and Chief Executive Patrick Pouyanné wants to turn the company into one of the world's largest suppliers of electricity, or what he often calls "the energy of the 21st century." Already a large producer of natural gas, Total is diversifying, snapping up a French maker of industrial batteries, a utility supplier in Belgium and a stake in a U.S. maker of solar panels. It's a big change from Total's core business since power grids tend to be regional while oil can be shipped globally. Even as Total doubles down on electricity, the International Energy Agency says consumer demand for oil will keep growing for another two decades unless governments move faster to curb emissions.

Saudi Arabia is slashing its U.S. oil exports in a bid to reduce a global supply glut that has been hammering crude prices. The reductions could be a step to ensure production cuts by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Companies work as intended, WSJ's Alison Sider Summer Said and Timothy Puko report. The November deal to rein in oil output was supposed to reduce bloated global inventories, but U.S. companies have rushed in to fill the void. State-owned Saudi Arabian Oil Co. is the world's largest oil producer and crude exporter, and the projected July drop in exports would amount to a near three-decade low for this time of year. Analysts say Aramco's plans show Saudi Arabia is getting serious about addressing the supply glut, although some investors remain skeptical.

Panama cut ties with Taiwan in favor of Beijing, citing China's importance as a user of the Panama Canal and its role as the No. 1 supplier of goods in the Colon free-trade zone. The move gives China another victory in its efforts to isolate the island, which could be crippling to Taiwan's economy, WSJ's Eva Dou and Jenny W. Hsu write. Taiwan remains a key link in the global technology supply chain, but its exports have fallen in recent years, displaced in part by Chinese competitors. China's maritime power is growing, meanwhile, and plays a major role at the Panama Canal and at the country's burgeoning free trade zone. China's growing economic heft has pushed more of Taiwan's allies to switch their diplomatic recognition to Beijing, .

E-COMMERCE

Chinese online retailer JD.com Inc. plans to use artificial intelligence and robots to cut costs and "create a business model that is almost totally out of human control," Chief Executive Richard Liu tells WSJ's Li Yuan. China's second-largest online retailer after Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., JD.com has assembled an Amazon-like distribution network to deliver goods to its customers, and is now testing 30-minute delivery windows in some areas. The company is already experimenting with heavy-duty drones and smart warehouses, and sees automation as essential for clamping down on logistics costs and maximizing efficiency. JD.com also has ambitions to expand into the U.S., but says it needs to ease its reliance on small sellers and suppliers in order to appeal to foreign shoppers.

QUOTABLE

IN OTHER NEWS

Logistics startup ShipBob raised $17.5 million to help it open e-commerce distribution centers in more cities. (WSJ)

Uber Technologies Inc. Chief Executive Travis Kalanick is taking an indefinite leave, extending the management turmoil at the ride-hailing giant. (WSJ)

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross says the Trump administration can reach better trade terms through diplomacy than through tariffs. (WSJ)

Italy's Alitalia SpA airline filed for bankruptcy in the U.S., where it faced the threat of losing access to New York over unpaid bills. (WSJ)

J. Crew Group Inc. is asking lenders for more time to pay off some $567 million in debt as the retailer copes with slumping sales. (WSJ)

Luxury retailer Neiman Marcus Group Ltd. is abandoning efforts to sell itself and plans to go it alone and focus on e-commerce. (WSJ)

Container shipping firm CMA CGM SA will acquire Brazil's Mercosul Line from global market leader Maersk Line. (Business Times)

Japan's delivery giant Yamato Transport is raising base rates for the first time in 27 years because it has to pay more to hire and retain drivers. (Bloomberg)

Spanish dockworkers and port employers are in talks to avert a two-day strike. (Journal of Commerce)

U.S. lawmakers are pushing for a fix to the Highway Trust Fund. (The Hill)

Rail bottlenecks in North Dakota have eased since the 2015 oil bust. (Grand Forks Herald)

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association says it will still fight the electronic logging devices mandate despite the rejection of its appeal by the Supreme Court. (Truckinginfo)

Los Angeles and Long Beach signed a pact setting zero-emissions goals at their neighboring ports. (Los Angeles Times)

Malaysia's palm oil inventory fell after a 17% surge in exports in May. (Nikkei Asian Review)

Chinese air carriers are stepping up flights to Latin America, including new scheduled and charter all-cargo operations. (The Loadstar)

Hong Kong-based Kerry Logistics took a stake in Kazakhstan-based Globalink Logistics DWC to expand services across central Asia. (Air Cargo News)

IKEA designers are training with engineers at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to learn advanced methods of compact storage. (Quartz)

ABOUT US

Imani Moise is a reporter for WSJ Logistics Report. Follow the entire WSJ Logistics Report team: @brianjbaskin , @PaulPage @jensmithWSJ and @EEPhillips_WSJ and follow the WSJ Logistics Report on Twitter at @WSJLogistics.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 14, 2017 06:42 ET (10:42 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.