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Switzerland’s biggest bank UBS AG has reported a fourth quarter net loss in 2012 of 1.9 billion francs ($2.08 billion) due to lawsuits and restructuring in the wake of a series of scandals. That compares with a net profit of 324 million francs in the fourth quarter of 2011 in the wake of a $2-billion rogue trading scandal. The Zurich-based bank attributed the fourth-quarter loss mainly to “net charges for provisions for litigation, regulatory and similar matters as well as net restructuring charges and an own credit loss”.

BP profit drops 80% in Q4 due to payouts

Oil and gas giant BP’s profit fell nearly 80% in the fourth quarter in results released on Tuesday, dragged down by payouts related to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. BP said net profit fell to $1.62 billion in the quarter ending on December 31, down from $7.69 billion in the same period the year before. BP took a loss of $3.85 billion for its settlement of all federal criminal charges with the US government. Underlying replacement cost profit for the period, which strips out the changes in the value of inventories, was down 20% on the same period last year at $3.98 billion.

Sinopec to sell $3.1 bn in new stock

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp (Sinopec), Asia’s largest refiner, said it plans to raise about $3.1 billion in a share offering to fund its business development, sending its shares sharply lower as investors fretted about the volume

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