World

BEIJING: A record fine, public penitence from a tech giant and a "who's who" of digital firms warned to "rectify" their ambitions within a month - state regulators are showing no one is bigger than Beijing in Xi Jinping's China. E-commerce titan Alibaba absorbed the massive US$2.78 billion penalty from China's market watchdog last Saturday, after a months-long investigation found it had been abusing its dominant market position. Analysts say the chastening was part of Beijing's plan to force a diet on tech giants - from Alibaba to Tencent to Baidu - who have grown fat on the data and personal finances of the Chinese public. After being hit with China's biggest ever corporate fine - the equivalent of four percent of annual sales - Alibaba said it would "fully comply" and drop an excl...

The slate of candidates vying to succeed Angela Merkel is now clear — and so is the unenviable pile of global problems the eventual winner will inherit. Merkel’s impending departure after some 16 years as German chancellor brings into play not simply the direction of Europe’s biggest economy, but the balance of power on the continent. With the world increasingly defined by a great power rivalry reminiscent of the 19th century, the winner of September’s federal election will face international demands from the get-go. The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden is already seeking a clear line from Berlin on issues from China and Russia to the tussle for control of key technologies. Germany is faced with questions of how closely to cleave to Washington as the European Union tries to car...

Two years after opening his garment factory in Myanmar, Li Dongliang is on the verge of closing down and laying off his 800 remaining workers. Business had been struggling because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but after a Feb. 1 coup that sparked mass protests and a deadly crackdown, during which his factory was set alight amid a surge of anti-Chinese sentiment, orders stopped. His story is emblematic of the perilous situation facing a sector critical to Myanmar's economy, which accounts for a third of its exports and employs 700,000 low-income workers, according to U.N. data. "We would have no choice but to give up on Myanmar if there are no new orders in the next few months," said Li, adding he has been operating at about 20% capacity, surviving only on orders placed before the coup, and ...

BEIRUT: Protesters burned tyres and blocked roads in Beirut on Tuesday as the Lebanese currency crashed past a new milestone. Market dealers said the Lebanese pound was trading at around 15,000 to the dollar, having lost a third of its value in the last two week to stand at barely a 10th of what it was worth in late 2019, when Lebanon's economic and financial crisis erupted. Banks have blocked access to dollar deposits, and poverty is spreading - but fractious politicians have yet to launch a rescue plan that could unlock foreign aid. "Let them wake up now. Please have mercy on us, we're begging you!" said one protester, Hussein Makieh. "Look at us, we're starving. We're dying. The middle class is gone. There's 3% of the country, the thieves, living off it." Parliamentary committee...

Protesters in Myanmar clapped together on Monday (Apr 5) in the latest show of dissent against the military junta, as a regional bloc prepared for talks on the crisis that has killed nearly 600 people. Clapping began in various parts of the main city Yangon at 5pm (6.30pm, Singapore time) in response to a call by protest organisers, residents said. The gesture would honour "Ethnic Armed Organisations and Gen Z defence youths from Myanmar including Yangon who are fighting in the revolution ... on behalf of us," Ei Thinzar Maung, a protest leader, wrote on Facebook. Despite the killing of at least 564 people by the security forces since the Feb 1 coup, protesters have been coming out every day, often in small groups in small towns, to voice opposition to the overthrow of an elected go...

Struggling tour operator Air Transat is in talks with the federal government on aid but may not reach a deal by an April debt deadline, a source close to the situation said, putting pressure on Quebec to ride to the rescue of another troubled aerospace brand in the province. OTTAWA/MONTREAL: Struggling tour operator Air Transat is in talks with the federal government on aid but may not reach a deal by an April debt deadline, a source close to the situation said, putting pressure on Quebec to ride to the rescue of another troubled aerospace brand in the province. Air Canada dropped its merger plans with Transat on Friday, saying European regulators had signaled it was unlikely to pass antitrust concerns. Canada’s largest carrier first bid for Transat in 2019 and discounted its offer ...

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq dropped on Wednesday as U.S. bond yields spiked ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy statement which could provide hints on whether the central bank would raise interest rates sooner than expected. REUTERS: Wall Street ended higher on Wednesday after the Fed predicted a fast economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic and said it would maintain its interest rate at close to zero. In its statement following its two-day policy meeting, the Federal Reserve projected a rapid jump in U.S. economic growth and inflation this year as the COVID-19 crisis winds down, and repeated its pledge to keep its target interest rate near zero for years to come. Wall Street extended gains after Fed Chair Jerome Powell said during a news conference that it is too early to ...

YANGON: Anti-coup protesters in Myanmar sloshed red paint in the streets on Wednesday (Apr 14) to symbolise the blood spilled and more than 700 lives lost in a brutal military crackdown. The country is barely functioning, and the economy has stalled since the military seized power from civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Feb 1. The military junta has sought to quell mass protests with lethal force, and a local monitoring group has verified at least 714 civilian deaths but warns the toll is likely to be even higher. The military junta has sought to quell mass protests with lethal force, and a local monitoring group has verified at least 714 civilian deaths. (Photo: AFP/Handout) This week is Myanmar's New Year festival of Thingyan, but normal holiday festivities such as public water ...