LONDON: The world’s second-biggest fashion retailer, H&M, has decided to gradually stop sourcing from Myanmar, it told Reuters on Thursday (Aug 17), as reports of labour abuses in garment factories in the country increase. H&M became the latest brand to cut ties with suppliers in the country after Zara ownerContinue Reading
Local government could tighten more the escrow accounts where presale funds are kept in order to ensure homes can be completed and delivered – a top priority set by Beijing. These would in turn squeeze the sector more and lead to additional defaults even among state-backed developers. How is thisContinue Reading
HONG KONG: China’s economic activity data for July, including retail sales, industrial output and investment failed to match expectations, fuelling concern over a deeper, longer-lasting slowdown in growth. Activity data has been missing forecasts since the beginning of the second quarter, with the weakness raising worries that China’s economy isContinue Reading
Sri Lanka’s economy has stabilised over the past nine months after the country secured a US$2.9 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), brought inflation levels under control and embarked on rebuilding its foreign exchange reserves. Sri Lanka’s reserves grew 26 per cent to a 19-month high of US$3.8Continue Reading
TOKYO: As the yen slid past 145 per dollar with barely a murmur from Japanese policymakers during recent days, suspicion grew that they won’t be as quick to order intervention as they were last year as they now reap some benefits from a weaker currency. Surging exports helped economic growthContinue Reading
BEIJING: Shares in Chinese property giant Country Garden plunged on Monday (Aug 14) after it missed bond payments and warned of billions of dollars in losses, deepening fears about the country’s heavily indebted real estate sector. Like its troubled competitor Evergrande, any collapse of Country Garden would have catastrophic repercussionsContinue Reading
SYDNEY: Asian shares struggled on Monday (Aug 14) ahead of China data that is likely to amplify the case for serious stimulus even as Beijing seems deaf to the calls, while rising Treasury yields lifted the dollar to a 2023 peak on the embattled yen. Geopolitics was an added worryContinue Reading
BEIJING: China’s State Council issued guidelines on Sunday (Aug 13) that it said would further optimise the country’s foreign investment environment and attract more foreign investment. The State Council said in a document containing 24 guidelines that authorities should increase protection of the rights and interests of foreign investors, includingContinue Reading
SHANGHAI: In an unassuming industrial park on the outskirts of Shanghai, an unusual taste test was happening. As part of an event on Wednesday (Aug 9) for government, investors and media, the cultivated meat company CellX served up meat developed in a laboratory from animal cells. The offerings included lab-grownContinue Reading
BEIJING: China’s manufacturing activity fell for a fourth straight month in July while the services and construction sectors teetered on the brink of contraction, official surveys showed on Monday (Jul 31), threatening growth prospects for the third quarter. Construction sector activity for July was its weakest since COVID-19-related workplace disruptionsContinue Reading