However, the World Bank warned that regional economies must now navigate a changing global landscape, including rising trade tensions, rapidly ageing populations and climate risks.Continue Reading
KARACHI, Pakistan: Pakistan on Monday (Mar 27) deferred a decision on a request by pharmaceutical firms to raise the prices of more than 100 medicines, prolonging a stand-off with an industry struggling to stem losses from soaring inflation and a weakened currency. The request was discussed during a meeting ofContinue Reading
TOKYO: A group of Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) lawmakers plans to compile a proposal next month urging the government to ban social networking services such as TikTok if they are used for disinformation campaigns, an LDP lawmaker said on Monday (Mar 26). Many US lawmakers are calling onContinue Reading
BEIJING: Profits at industrial firms in China declined 22.9 per cent in the first two months of 2023 from the year before, official data showed on Monday (Mar 27), as the factory sector struggles to claw its way out of the slump caused by COVID-related disruptions. The contraction followed aContinue Reading
SHANGHAI: Apple CEO Tim Cook on Saturday (Mar 25) used his first public remarks on his visit to China to praise the country for its rapid innovation and its long ties with the US iPhone maker, according to local media reports. Cook is in Beijing to attend the China DevelopmentContinue Reading
HONG KONG: Hong Kong needs to watch carefully for any further “spillover” from US regional banks, although the city has very little exposure to the situation in European and US financial institutions, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority said on Friday (Mar 24). The failure of two US banks and aContinue Reading
“FEAR INDEX” DROPS The US and European rally filtered through to Asia, where banks were among the big gainers with tech firms. Hong Kong led the way, riding more than 2 per cent thanks to a bump in lenders HSBC and Standard Chartered as well as e-commerce titans Alibaba andContinue Reading
China is facilitating easier access to subsidies and more control over state-backed research for a handful of its chip companies, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday (Mar 21). Chipmakers such as Semiconductor Manufacturing International (SMIC), Hua Hong Semiconductor and Huawei, as well as equipment suppliers like Naura and Advanced Micro-FabricationContinue Reading
BEIJING: China is launching an annual recruitment of college graduates in large and midsize cities, the official Xinhua news agency said on Sunday (Mar 19), as authorities double down on efforts to meet a more ambitious job creation goal this year. The recruitment drive, hosted by the Ministry of HumanContinue Reading
BEIJING: China will step up financing support for private micro and small enterprises, its central bank said on Wednesday (Mar 15), as the country aims to build on a recovery from COVID-19 disruptions while facing weaker demand abroad and a domestic property downturn. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) willContinue Reading