World

Singapore, US agree on importance of COVID-19 vaccines being made available globally: MFA
4Aug By Desk TeamNo Comments
Singapore, World

Singapore, US agree on importance of COVID-19 vaccines being made available globally: MFA

SINGAPORE: Minister for Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday (Aug 4) agreed on the importance of ensuring that COVID-19 vaccines will be made available globally. Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said, in a telephone call that Dr Balakrishnan received from Mr Pompeo, the two discussed collaboration in the research and development, manufacturing, and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. They also talked about the possibility of leveraging the strong US commercial presence in Singapore, including in pharmaceuticals, said MFA in a press statement. The statement added: “Both sides welcome the new areas of bilateral cooperation in infrastructure and trade as well as customs facilitation which will increase bilateral trade and st...
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China’s economy seen growing 2.5per cent in second quarter as lockdowns end, stimulus kicks in: Reuters poll
4Aug By Desk TeamNo Comments
China, World

China’s economy seen growing 2.5per cent in second quarter as lockdowns end, stimulus kicks in: Reuters poll

China's economy likely returned to modest growth in the second quarter after a record contraction, as lockdown measures ended and policymakers announced more stimulus to combat the shock from the coronavirus crisis, according to a Reuters poll. BEIJING: China's economy likely returned to modest growth in the second quarter after a record contraction, as lockdown measures ended and policymakers announced more stimulus to combat the shock from the coronavirus crisis, according to a Reuters poll. The world's second-largest economy likely grew 2.5per cent in April-June from a year earlier, reversing a 6.8per cent decline in the first quarter - the first contraction since at least 1992 when official quarterly gross domestic product (GDP) records started, the poll showed. But the expected...
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Oil rises after surprise drop in US inventories offsets demand concerns
4Aug By Desk TeamNo Comments
World

Oil rises after surprise drop in US inventories offsets demand concerns

Oil prices rose on Wednesday after an industry report showed that crude inventories in the United States increased against expectations, giving the market a boost amid record increases of coronavirus infections in the U.S. and elsewhere. TOKYO: Oil prices rose on Wednesday after an industry report showed that crude inventories in the United States decreased against expectations, giving the market a boost amid record increases of coronavirus infections in the U.S. and elsewhere. Brent crude was up by 24 cents, or 0.6per cent, at US$43.46 a barrel by 0041 GMT, after dropping 0.4per cent on Tuesday. U.S. oil gained 14 cents, or 0.3per cent, to US$41.18 a barrel, having dropped 1.4per cent in the previous session. Inventories of crude oil in the U.S. dropped by 6.8 million barrels last...
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China reports 5 new COVID-19 cases on Jul 2
3Aug By Desk TeamNo Comments
China, World

China reports 5 new COVID-19 cases on Jul 2

SHANGHAI: China on Friday (Jul 3) reported five new coronavirus cases in the mainland for Jul 2, compared with three cases a day earlier, the health authority said. Three of the new infections were imported cases, the National Health Commission said in a statement, while the capital city of Beijing reported two new cases. There were no new deaths. China also reported four new asymptomatic patients, down from two a day earlier. As of Jul 2, mainland China had a total of 83,542confirmed coronavirus cases, it said. China's death toll from the coronavirus remained at 4,634.
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Alphabet’s Google commits US$10 billion to accelerate digitization in India
3Aug By Desk TeamNo Comments
World

Alphabet’s Google commits US$10 billion to accelerate digitization in India

Alphabet Inc's Google on Monday said it would spend around US$10 billion in India over the next five to seven years through equity investments and tie-ups, marking its biggest commitment to a key growth market. NEW DELHI: Alphabet Inc's Google on Monday said it would spend around US$10 billion in India over the next five to seven years through equity investments and tie-ups, marking its biggest commitment to a key growth market. The investments will be done through a so-called digitization fund, highlighting Google's focus on the rapid pace of growth of apps and software platforms in India, one of the world's biggest internet services markets. "We'll do this through a mix of equity investments, partnerships, and operational, infrastructure and ecosystem investments," Sundar Pichai, ...
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Option traders are bracing for big post-earnings moves from Amazon, Apple and Facebook
3Aug By Desk TeamNo Comments
World

Option traders are bracing for big post-earnings moves from Amazon, Apple and Facebook

(This story is for CNBC Pro subscribers only.) The monster earnings day is here — Apple, Amazon, Alphabet and Facebook, worth nearly $5 trillion combined, are all on deck to report after the bell. In the absence of clear guidance, option traders are pricing in big moves in these high-fliers when they drop high-stakes quarterly results. The options market is now implying at least a 5% move either way for Amazon and Facebook post earnings, while the expected action for Apple and Alphabet is in the 4% range, up or down, according to data from Options AI. While these tech giants have led the sharp market rebound from the coronavirus sell-off, their first-quarter reports did reveal some of their weaknesses as advertising dried up and costs mounted amid the pandemic. The results also came a d...
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Japan to dial back entry restrictions on some foreign residents
3Aug By Desk TeamNo Comments
Singapore, World

Japan to dial back entry restrictions on some foreign residents

The Japanese government on Wednesday announced it will partially roll back entry restrictions as part of its coronavirus countermeasures on foreign nationals, allowing students and business workers with valid legal status to be gradually readmitted to the country. The rule change will affect just under 200,000 foreign nationals seeking to enter Japan. Those eligible will comprise about 103,000 permanent residents, long-term residents and spouses of Japanese nationals or permanent residents. Those permanent residents as well as long-term residents had been able to return to Japan if they had left the country before the ban was introduced or on humanitarian grounds, such as a relative’s death or a health emergency. But with this announcement, about 88,000 high-skilled workers and students ...
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Federal Reserve’s US$3 trillion virus rescue inflates market bubbles
3Aug By Desk TeamNo Comments
Market, World

Federal Reserve’s US$3 trillion virus rescue inflates market bubbles

NEW YORK: The Federal Reserve's US$3 trillion bid to stave off an economic crisis in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak is fuelling excesses across US capital markets. The US central bank has pledged unlimited financial asset purchases to sustain market liquidity, increasing its balance sheet from US$4.2 trillion in February to US$7 trillion today. While the vast majority of these purchases have been limited to US Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities, the Fed's pledge to bolster the corporate bond market has been enough to spur a frenzy among investors for bonds and stocks. "COVID-19 is now inversely related to the markets. The worse that COVID-19 gets, the better the markets do because the Fed will bring in stimulus. That is what has been driving markets," said Andrew Brenne...
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Asia’s garment workers say COVID-19 used as cover to smash unions
3Aug By Desk TeamNo Comments
Asia, USA, World

Asia’s garment workers say COVID-19 used as cover to smash unions

BANGKOK: From factory floors in India to the warehouses of Cambodia, garment workers for global brands say the collapse in demand triggered by COVID-19 is being used as a cover to break their unions. The crippling effect of the pandemic has seen orders worth billions of dollars cancelled across manufacturing hubs in China, Bangladesh, India, Cambodia and Myanmar. That has left hundreds of thousands out of work in some of Asia's poorest countries. But workers allege the financial turmoil has also provided an opportunity for bosses to target troublesome shop floors where unions have pressed for higher wages and better conditions. In southern India's Karnataka state - home to 20 per cent of India's massive garment manufacturing sector - union leader Padma has sat every day cross-legge...
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Stock market live Tuesday: Dow pops 500 points, best day in two weeks, bets on economy lead the way
2Aug By Desk TeamNo Comments
Market, World

Stock market live Tuesday: Dow pops 500 points, best day in two weeks, bets on economy lead the way

Wells Fargo chief financial officer John Shrewsberry said on "Closing Bell" that the asset cap imposed on the bank by the Federal Reserve is potentially costing the firm billions in revenue and earnings. He said working to satisfy the central bank enough to have the cap lifted is "the most important work that we're doing." "We've had to do a few things that have definitely cost us interest income at the margins to be able to navigate through that, and we'll continue to as long as the cap is in place," Shrewsberry said. "It's hard to put a number on it, but if our balance sheet as 10% bigger — call it $2.2 trillion versus of just under $2 trillion — there's a few billion dollars worth of revenue, most of which probably falls to the bottom line." Shrewsberry also said that the credit lines...
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