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☆ Madeleine Albright’s Washington, D.C., Home Is Up for Sale
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-09 | by ( E.B. Solomont | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

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Persons: Dow Jones Locations: madeleine, albrights, washington

☆ Companies like Nvidia want clarity on U.S. chip export controls on China, advisory firm says
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-06 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailCompanies like Nvidia want clarity on U.S. chip export controls on China, advisory firm saysPaul Triolo, associate partner for China and technology policy lead at advisory firm Albright Stonebridge Group, says companies like Nvidia are "bearing the brunt" of the recent controls around graphics processing units.

Persons: Paul Triolo, Albright Organizations: Companies, Nvidia Locations: China

☆ Republicans have temporarily played themselves out of the presidential line of succession after McCarthy's historic ouster
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

House Republicans have temporarily forced themselves out of the presidential line of succession. As a result, House Republicans for the time being would be skipped over entirely. Never before in history has the line of succession gone past the vice president, meaning most of this discussion is purely academic. Still, House Republicans are currently risking what they would be rightfully entitled to thanks to their slim majority following the 2022 midterm elections. Many legal scholars have long had issues with the Truman-era law governing presidential succession.

Persons: Kevin McCarthy's, —, Kevin McCarthy, Patrick McHenry of, McHenry, tempore, He's, he's, Brian Kalt, Patty Murray, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Democratic Sen, Antony Blinken, Sen, Dianne Feinstein, Feinstein, Kalt, McCarthy, Madeline Albright, Clinton, Biden, Harris, Murray, Truman Organizations: Republicans, Service, Michigan State University, Democratic, Pro Tempore, House Republicans Locations: Patrick McHenry of North Carolina, United States

☆ Rifle, fur hat, drones: North Korea's Kim returns with gifts from Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un waves as he boards his train at a railway station in the town of Artyom outside Vladivostok in the Primorsky region, Russia, September 17, 2023. Following are some of the items he is bringing back to the "friendship" museum, where gifts received by the North's three generations of leaders are kept. GIFTS FROM RUSSIAAfter his summit with Russian President Putin, Kim received a Russian-made rifle "of the highest quality," according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. Kim received a fur hat from Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu in Vladivostok, where he inspected Russian nuclear bombers, fighter jets equipped with hypersonic missiles and a warship. And Comrade Kim Jong Un liked it,” Matsegora said.

Persons: Kim Jong, Putin, Kim, Dmitry Peskov, Oleg Kozhemyako, Sergei Shoigu, Alexander Matsegora, It’s, Kim Jong Un, ” Matsegora, Yuri Gagarin, Kim Il Sung, Jimmy Carter, Francois Mitterrand, Michael Jordan, Madeleine Albright, Fidel Castro, Propaganda, Kim Dae, Kim Jong Il, Chung, yung, Jack Kim, Lidia Kelly, Gerry Doyle Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Russian, North, TASS, Moscow, WHO, U.S, Hyundai, Hyundai Group, Thomson Locations: Artyom, Vladivostok, Primorsky, Russia, Russia's Primorsky Krai, Rights SEOUL, Russian, Ukraine, Pyongyang, Russia's, Khasan, North Korea, Paris, North, Cuban, South, North Korean, Seoul, Melbourne

☆ Professor Hillary Clinton Goes Back to School
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( Katherine Rosman | More About Katherine Rosman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

The class is offered through Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs, a graduate school where tuition is more than $65,000 per year. The spokeswoman declined to share details of Mrs. Clinton’s compensation or how it compared to that of other faculty members. More than 800 students applied to take the class, submitting essays for consideration; about 370 graduate and undergraduate students were accepted. Lectures will focus on topics like whether groups make better decisions than individuals and how public opinion influences foreign policy. Among the assigned readings: “How to Stand Up to a Dictator” by Maria Ressa, and sections from Mrs. Clinton’s 2014 memoir “Hard Choices,” in which she recounted her years as secretary of state during the Obama administration.

Persons: Clinton, Yarhi, Milo, Marie Yovanovitch, Stacey Abrams, Eric Schmidt, Madeleine Albright, Maria Ressa, Clinton’s, Obama Organizations: Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs, of Global, Google, White, Secret Service Locations: Ukraine, Georgia

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Criminal charges were dropped Thursday against Las Vegas Aces player Riquna Williams after the alleged victim in a July domestic violence incident at their home stopped cooperating with prosecutors ahead of a preliminary hearing to determine if the case should go to trial. Williams’ attorney, Brandon Albright, told reporters that Williams hopes to rejoin the team for WNBA playoffs that begin next week. “It’s our hope that in short order she’ll be able to join her team,” Albright said. Williams played for the University of Miami before she was drafted into the WNBA in 2012 by the Tulsa Shock. ____Associated Press sports writer Mark Anderson in Las Vegas contributed to this report.

Persons: Riquna Williams, Williams, Brandon Albright, “, she’ll, ” Albright, hasn’t, Albright, Taylor Reeves, Amy Wilson, ” Reeves, Wilson, Reeves, Mark Anderson Organizations: LAS VEGAS, Las Vegas Aces, WNBA, Aces, Western Division, Clark, Las Vegas Justice, Police, University of Miami, Tulsa, Los Angeles Sparks, Associated Press Locations: Florida, Las Vegas

☆ Bill Richardson, Champion of Americans Held Overseas, Dies at 75
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-02 | by ( Sam Roberts | More About Sam Roberts | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Bill Richardson, who served two terms as governor of New Mexico and 14 years as a congressman before devoting himself to the cause of Americans who were being held hostage or who he believed were being wrongfully detained overseas, died on Friday at his summer home in Chatham, Mass., on Cape Cod. His death was announced by the Richardson Center for Global Engagement, which he founded. The cause was not given. Under President Bill Clinton, Mr. Richardson was ambassador to the United Nations, succeeding Madeleine Albright in early 1997, and then secretary of energy, beginning in August 1998. He served in the House of Representatives, as a member of the New Mexico delegation, from January 1983 to February 1997 and as the chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.

Persons: Bill Richardson, Bill Clinton, Richardson, Madeleine Albright, William Brewster Organizations: Richardson Center, Global, United Nations, Representatives, New, Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Mayflower Locations: New Mexico, Chatham , Mass, Cape Cod, California, Pasadena, Mexico City

Samsung's 11-year-old investment in ASML has been hugely lucrative. Over the past decade, ASML shares have delivered a whopping 25% annualised return to its shareholders. It's part of Samsung's ambitious $230 billion commitment to bolster South Korea's semiconductor and high-tech sectors over the next 20 years. Moreover, Samsung's cash is probably held in overseas affiliates and subsidiaries across different jurisdictions; its annual report lists hundreds of entities abroad. That should help ease Samsung’s vexing cash bind, but the company may still need to come up with some creative funding choices.

Persons: Taiwan's TSMC, ASML, Antony Currie, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Samsung Electronics, Korean Economic, Intel, Samsung, HK, SFA Engineering, Apple, Korea Economic, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, KS, ASML, United States, Korea

A child plays the game "Honour of Kings" by Tencent at home in Dezhou, Shandong province, China July 2, 2017. REUTERS/Stringer Acquire Licensing RightsHONG KONG, Aug 17 (Reuters Breakingviews) - China's economic woes have gifted Tencent (0700.HK) an unexpected silver lining. Revenue rose a decent 11% to 149 billion yuan ($20.4 billion), but fell slightly short of the average analyst forecast compiled by Refinitiv. That compares to the 151.7 billion yuan average analyst forecast of 21 analysts compiled by Refinitiv. Adjusted net profit, after excluding certain one-time and non-cash items, rose 33% to 37.5 billion yuan.

Persons: Tencent, Stringer, HONG KONG, Refinitiv, James Mitchell, pare, Alibaba, Antony Currie, Thomas Shum Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, HK, Revenue, Tencent, Citi, Refinitiv, Thomson Locations: Dezhou, Shandong province, China, HONG, Tencent, Hong Kong

☆ One Family’s Toxic Train Wreck Ordeal: Illness, Exile and Debt
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-16 | by ( Emily Baumgaertner | Brian Kaiser | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

When Jessica Albright returned with her family to their home in East Palestine, Ohio, last month after four months away, she opened the car door and took a deep breath — then stopped and thought: Maybe not too deep. Hauling suitcases up the steps, she tried to discern whether the acrid scent in the air had lessened. The mother of three could not be certain — of the smell, of its effects or of the correct next steps for her family. Now, they were back, not because their health issues had resolved, or because the house had been proven free of contaminants. They were back because they had $41 left in their savings account and felt they had no other choice.

Persons: Jessica Albright, Albright, Chris Organizations: Environmental Protection Agency, ” Schools Locations: East Palestine , Ohio, Pennsylvania, East Palestine, Ohio

HONG KONG, Aug 15 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Hong Kong has lost some permanent appeal. The introduction of two sets of approvals was mandated three decades ago when foreign investors wanted additional protections to invest in the first wave of Chinese firms listing in Hong Kong. China's domestic securities laws have since developed and global investors can now directly buy shares onshore through various channels. That could lead to more onshore shares being issued relative to offshore shares, further diluting minority owners in Hong Kong. In 2020, Hong Kong shareholders vetoed the Bank of Zhengzhou's proposal to avoid such an outcome.

Persons: Hong Kong, HKEX, Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Hong Kong Exchanges, HK, China Securities Regulatory Commission, Asia Securities Industry, Financial Markets Association, Corporate Governance Association, China Life Insurance, Wall, Hong, Bank of, Companies, Global, Hang Seng China Enterprise Index, Graphics Global, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, Hong Kong, China, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hong

HONG KONG, Aug 3 (Reuters Breakingviews) - South Korea’s dealmaking skeletons are back to haunt. Paul Singer's Elliott opposed a $9 billion union eight years ago of Samsung C&T (028260.KS) and Chiel Industries. South Korea’s successful prosecution of Lee, Park and a former minister that oversaw NPS, provided cause for Elliott to demand payback. Elliott sued in 2018 and the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague in June awarded the U.S. fund over $100 million. Far from being the end of it though, President Yoon Suk Yeol’s government is contesting that award in a British arbitration court.

Persons: Samsung's Lee, Paul Singer's Elliott, Elliott, Jay Y, Lee, Park Geun, Yoon Suk, Hague, Yoon, Taiwan's TSMC, Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Korea Inc, Samsung, Chiel Industries, National Pension Service, NPS, U.S ., Korea, Trade, Global, Samsung Electronics, Apple, Tokyo, Korea's Ministry, Justice, Elliott Investment, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, U.S, Hague, Seoul, Korea, China, Beijing, Washington, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, United States

E-commerce app Temu is taking on the larger Shein by selling cheap Chinese-made goods to Western consumers. The company owned by $119 billion PDD (PDD.O) is more like an online dollar store. Moreover, Temu offers generous discounts and free or subsidised shipping to users. Parent company PDD, whose Pinduoduo e-commerce unit competes with Alibaba (9988.HK) and JD.com (9618.HK) in China, discloses little about its overseas business. Temu offers everything from home appliances to electronics to toys, making it more of a direct competitor to Amazon.

Persons: Shein, Breakingviews, Temu, PDD, Bernstein, Peter Thal Larsen, Aditya Munjuluru, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, United States, Wall Street, Temu, Bloomberg, HK, PDD, Thomson, & $ Locations: HONG KONG, Western, China, U.S, United States, Shein

“In the age of AI, where data is the new oil, China is the new Saudi Arabia”, venture capitalist Lee Kai-fu declared in 2018. Washington may soon tighten export restrictions to China by targeting AI semiconductors, according to the Wall Street Journal. A slowing economy and brutal price war in the fiercely competitive cloud market will only make monetising AI products harder. China’s AI moment has arrived, only with far less promise than initially hoped. China wants to become a world leader in AI by 2030, according to a 2017 roadmap released by the State Council.

Persons: Lee Kai, OpenAI's, Xi Jinping, Goldman Sachs, Robin Li, Baidu’s, Bernstein, SenseTime, Xi, Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Saudi Arabia ”, OpenAI's ChatGPT, European Union, Baidu, HK, Nasdaq, Washington, Wall Street, Nvidia, AMD, Microsoft, CloudWalk Technology, Cyberspace Administration, China, State, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, China, Republic, Saudi Arabia, United States, Beijing, York, Shanghai

Risk factors usually flag uncertainties in how Chinese laws are interpreted and enforced as well as the government's "substantial oversight and influence" over businesses. Chinese regulators want those boilerplate disclosures dropped; if not, offshore listing applications could be denied approval. Trying to appease both American and Chinese regulators will get tougher. On Friday, Chinese regulators held a rare meeting with KKR (KKR.N), Blackstone (BX.N), Carlyle (CG.O) and others to ensure they can continue to invest in the country. China's new offshore listing rules came into effect on March 31.

Persons: Didi Global, underwriters Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase, Carlyle, Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Global, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, underwriters, JPMorgan, KKR, Blackstone, Bloomberg, Communist Party, China Securities Regulatory Commission, SEC, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, Beijing, Hong Kong, United States, New York, China

☆ China taking 'careful and measured' approach with metal curbs: advisory firm
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-06 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailChina taking 'a careful and measured' approach with metal curbs: advisory firmPaul Triolo of Albright Stonebridge Group said China's export curbs on chipmaking metals is a way of giving itself a "tool" to fight back against the U.S. and Europe which have blocked its access to advanced chip technology.

Persons: Paul Triolo Organizations: China, Albright, U.S Locations: Europe

HONG KONG, June 29 (Reuters Breakingviews) - There's plenty to like about Swire Pacific's (0019.HK) Coca-Cola sale. Little wonder Swire's Hong Kong shares rallied as much as 8% on Thursday morning. The Coke sale is refreshing for investors, but only until the rest of Swire Pacific regains its fizz. Upon completion of the sale, Swire Pacific will distribute HK$11.7 billion in special dividends to its shareholders. The company also plans to enter into a 13-year agreement to provide management services to Swire Coca-Cola USA and receive an annual fee of at least HK$117 million.

Persons: Swire Pacific's, Swire, John Swire, Antony Currie, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, HK, Cathay Pacific, Swire, Cola, John Swire & Sons, Cola Europacific Partners, Citi, Cathay, Swire Pacific, Hong Kong, Cola USA, Hong, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, Hong Kong, China, Cathay Pacific

HONG KONG, June 27 (Reuters Breakingviews) - A government-led buyout signals more uncertainty ahead for a chip industry grappling with oversupply and geopolitics. The state-backed Japan Investment Corp will take over JSR (4185.T), which makes light-sensitive chemicals vital to manufacturing semiconductors, among other things. In recent years, the conglomerate has pivoted from a low-margin business of selling synthetic rubber used to make tyres to focus on semiconductor materials - primarily photoresists - and biopharmaceuticals. Yet JIC's mandate to boost the country’s global competitiveness and its focus on consolidating industries helps to justify the hefty premium. Either way, the government's focus on elevating national chipmaking champions creates fresh uncertainty for JSR's foreign customers like South Korea's Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (2330.TW).

Persons: Sharp, Eric Johnson, Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: Reuters, Japan Investment Corp, Renesas Electronics, chipmakers, Samsung Electronics, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, Japan Investment Corporation, Mizuho Bank, Development Bank of Japan, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, Tokyo, Taiwan, Japan, United States, South Korea, South

☆ U.S.-China tech battle entering its 'primetime' — and generative A.I. could be the next frontier
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

AI, which is seen as a critical technology by both nations, will likely be dragged into the battle between the two sides. Washington's attention is now likely to turn to generative AI. Generative AI relates to applications such as ChatGPT which are able to generate content when prompted by users. Generative AI is based on so-called large language models, meaning it is trained on huge amount of language in order to be able to understand and respond to prompts from users. China's generative A.I.

Persons: Xi Jinping, Antony Blinken, Leah Millis, Abishur Prakash, Donald Trump, Paul Triolo, Albright Stonebridge, Biden, Triolo, China hasn't, Blinken, China's Xi Organizations: U.S, AFP, CNBC, Chips, Science, Nvidia, Microsoft, Baidu, Alibaba, Washington, Micron Locations: U.S, China, Washington, Toronto, Beijing

HONG KONG, June 5 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Shein is threading the world’s trickiest geopolitical needle. But rising American pressure is forcing it to tweak its business model right as it tries to list there. Last year, its top line surged 46% to $23 billion, per the Wall Street Journal, surpassing $22 billion at H&M and outpacing the 18% growth at Inditex. A Boston Consulting Group report notes that this model allows Shein to keep inventory turnover at just 40 days. That will be expensive; the company's net profit margin was a razor-thin 3.5% last year, according to the Wall Street Journal, far below bricks and mortar rival Inditex's 13%.

Persons: Shein, Bernstein, Chris Xu, Xu, Mubadala, Pete Sweeney, Katrina Hamlin Organizations: Reuters, U.S ., Rivals, Street, Financial Times, Boston Consulting, Morningstar, Securities and Exchange Commission, Wall Street, ’, Singapore, Sequoia Capital, General Atlantic, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, Zara, China, Inditex, Guangdong, U.S, Xinjiang, Nanjing, Singapore, Mexico, Brazil, India

Rescue workers gather around damaged carriages during search for survivors at the accident site on Saturday. With the rail routes still blocked, family members of deceased passengers are having to find their way by other means to the crash site, to help identify the dead. India’s extensive rail network, one of the largest in the world, was built more than 160 years ago under British colonial rule. Decaying infrastructure is often cited as a cause for traffic delays and numerous train accidents in India. An ambitious National Rail Plan, announced in 2021, envisages that all major cities in north, west and south India should be connected by high-speed rail.

Persons: –, Ashwini Vaishnaw, ”, Dibyangshu Sarkar, Jaya Varma Sinha, ” Sinha, Mansukh Mandaviya, Mandaviya, Naveen Patnaik, Patnaik, “, Narenda Modi, Narendra Modi, Volodymyr Zelensky, Vladimir Putin, Joe Biden, Rishi Sunak, Fumio Kishida, Antonio Guterres, Pope Francis, Modi, Modi’s, Albright Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Howrah, Bangalore . Rescue, Getty, Jaya, India’s Health, Sunday, Odisha’s, Public Relations Department, Indian, Rapid, Force, British, United Nations, National Crime Records, Group, Rail Plan, Bharat Locations: New Delhi, London, Hong Kong, Balasore, Odisha, Indian, Kolkata, Chennai, Bazar, Bangalore, AFP, Tamil Nadu, Russian, India, Jammu, Kashmir

CNN —One of the worst train accidents in India’s history is raising questions over the safety of the country’s massive and outdated rail network, as the government invests in its modernization. India’s extensive rail network, one of the largest in the world, was built more than 160 years ago under British colonial rule. Decaying infrastructure is often cited as a cause for traffic delays and numerous train accidents in India. India has seen several similar deadly incidents involving train accidents in recent decades. The same year, Modi announced huge investments in India’s railway system aimed at improving safety and connectivity.

Persons: Rafiq Maqbool, Odisha, Narendra Modi, Modi’s, Albright, Modi, ” Mamata Banerjee Organizations: CNN, AP Authorities, Howrah, National Crime Records, Group, Indian, Rail Plan, India, Bharat Locations: Odisha, Shalimar, Chennai, Yesvantpur, India, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Jammu, Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh

Foxconn's turnaround efforts initially paid off: by 2018, Sharp was back in the black. Moreover, analysts estimate assembling iPhones and other Apple (AAPL.O) gadgets still brings in more than half of Foxconn’s annual sales. The troubled unit was once a joint venture between Sharp, Foxconn and an entity tied to Gou. The company attributed the slump to a non-operating loss of T$19.7 billion related to its 34% stake in Japanese electronics maker Sharp. Sharp reported a 220-billion-yen ($1.6 billion) impairment loss in the quarter, mostly from buildings, machinery and goodwill relating to display businesses.

The return of tourists to Southeast Asia, he says, bodes well for the group’s core mobility business in the second half. The next challenge is resetting investor expectations so that beats can shine through. Lower incentives helped it to cut its adjusted operating loss to $66 million from $287 million a year ago. It also narrowed its forecast for annual adjusted operating loss to $195 million-$235 million, from a previous forecast of $275 million-$325 million. China’s Alibaba on May 18 reported revenue of 208 billion yuan ($30.1 billion) in the three months to end-March, up 2% year-on-year.

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