World

U.S. Customs placed a detention order on imports of products made by subsidiaries of the world's largest medical glove maker, Malaysia's Top Glove Corp Bhd on Wednesday, an action taken against firms suspected of using forced labor. KUALA LUMPUR: U.S. Customs placed a detention order on imports of products made by subsidiaries of the world's largest medical glove maker, Malaysia's Top Glove Corp Bhd on Wednesday, an action taken against firms suspected of using forced labor. The bar on Top Glove products comes at a time when demand for the medical gloves and protective gear has skyrocketed due to the coronavirus pandemic, which has hit the United States harder than any other country. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) website showed Top Glove Sdn Bhd and TG Medical Sdn Bhd...

Daimler said on Thursday it will stop building Mercedes-Benz sedans in the United States and Mexico as part of cost-cutting measures to streamline production, after saying it will post a smaller-than-expected operating loss in the second quarter. The company said it will post an operating loss of 1.68 billion euros ($1.91 billion) in the second quarter, pre-releasing earnings ahead of July 23. "Daimler pre-released better than consensus second-quarter numbers," Jefferies analyst Philippe Houchois said in a note late on Thursday. A slump in demand forced by dealership closures and lockdowns due to the coronavirus crisis pushed Daimler to report an adjusted second-quarter loss before interest and taxes (EBIT) of 708 million euros during the same period. At its Mercedes-Benz Cars & Vans u...

LONDON: Britain will suffer the sharpest peak-to-trough economic slump of any major economy this year, rating agency Moody's warned on Friday (Jul 10), while its debts as a share of GDP will surge by 24 percentage points. Moody's said the UK government's latest stimulus package, announced this week, would aid a gradual economic recovery but add further pressure to the UK's fiscal position. "The UK’s public debt ratio will likely rise by 24 percentage points of GDP or more relative to 2019 levels," a group of Moody's top analysts wrote in a note. "We forecast a contraction of 10.1 per cent in the UK's GDP for this year, but expect a gradual subsequent recovery on the back of the easing in lockdown measures, with growth rebounding to 7.1 per cent next year". Moody's rates Britain Aa2...

There's just one week remaining before federal income taxes are due this year on July 15, a three-month extension from the typical Tax Day deadline the IRS granted in light of the coronavirus pandemic. When the IRS pushed back the tax filing deadline to July 15, the agency also pushed back the cut off to put money into individual retirement accounts. While you can make contributions to your IRA year-round, any money added to these accounts counts toward a specific tax year. That's because these accounts are tax advantaged, which means that, depending on the type of account, you could receive a break on your tax bill by contributing. In this case, you can still make 2019 contributions of up to $6,000 ($7,000 if you're 50 or older) until July 15, 2020. This is an important opportunity any re...

NEW YORK: The US economy is showing signs of a turnaround as businesses reopen, but the pace of the recovery is being slowed by large-scale outbreaks in some states and it could be years before the economy is back at full strength, New York Federal Reserve Bank President John Williams said on Tuesday (Jun 30). Increases in consumer spending and in building permits suggest that economic activity is improving in some areas and that the "low point" of the downturn may have passed, Williams said. Manufacturing activity and small business revenues in hard-hit areas such as New York are picking up, he said. "People have been getting back to work and the unemployment rate has started to edge down," Williams said according to remarks prepared for a virtual event focused on central banking du...

Contracts to buy U.S. previously owned homes rebounded by the most on record in May, suggesting the housing market was starting to turn around after being hammered by the COVID-19 pandemic along with the rest of the economy. WASHINGTON: Contracts to buy U.S. previously owned homes rebounded by the most on record in May, suggesting the housing market was starting to turn around after being hammered by the COVID-19 pandemic along with the rest of the economy. Other data on Monday showed an improvement in manufacturing activity in Texas in June after three months of record or near-record declines in output. But surging infections of the respiratory illness in many regions, including the densely populated Texas, Florida and California, pose a risk to the nascent recovery. The economy fell in...