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☆ Hollywood strike, Yellow bankruptcy likely restrained US job growth in August
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-01 | by ( Lucia Mutikani | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

As such, economists are cautioning against reading too much into any sharp deceleration in job gains when the Labor Department's publishes its closely watched employment report on Friday. Nonfarm payrolls likely increased by 170,000 jobs last month after rising 187,000 in July, according to a Reuters survey of economists. Still, employment growth would be more than the roughly 100,000 jobs per month needed to keep up with the increase in the working age population. Yellow Corp trucking filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in early August, leaving about 30,000 workers unemployed. "This (job growth) would be one more piece of evidence that would be consistent with that, but that also depends a lot on the upcoming inflation data."

Persons: Elizabeth Frantz, it's, Brian Bethune, Nonfarm, payrolls, Conrad DeQuadros, Dean Maki, Ellen Zentner, Morgan Stanley, Lucia Mutikani, Nick Zieminski Organizations: REUTERS, Labor, Boston College, Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics, American Federation of Television, Radio Artists, Yellow Corp, Brean, Point72, Management, Thomson Locations: Arlington , Virginia, U.S, WASHINGTON, New York, Stamford , Connecticut

A Toyota logo is seen during the New York International Auto Show, in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., April 5, 2023. Toyota, which restarted operations at its Japanese assembly plants on Wednesday, has seen production recovering this year. The company said its global sales had risen 8% in July from the same month a year earlier to a record 859,506 vehicles. It also reported a 15% increase in global production in that month. Toyota's global production is likely to reach around 10.2 million vehicles this year, topping 10 million for the first time, Nikkei reported late on Wednesday.

Persons: David, Dee, Delgado, Maki Shiraki, Daniel Leussink, David Dolan, Christopher Cushing, David Holmes Organizations: New York, REUTERS, Rights, Toyota Motor Corp, Toyota, Lexus, Nikkei, Thomson Locations: Manhattan , New York City, U.S, Japan, China, United States, Europe

☆ Explainer: Japan's moon landing: When is it and why is it important?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Japan aims to launch the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) into space by mid-September with a lunar landing seen starting as early as January 2024. Japan would become the fifth country to achieve a moon landing after the United States, the former USSR, China and now India. The success of India's Chandrayaan-3 moon exploration mission this month contrasts with recent setbacks in Japan's space missions. WHAT IS JAPAN'S LUNAR MISSION? WHY IS JAPAN'S SPACE PROGRAMME IMPORTANT?

Persons: India's, SLIM, Kantaro Komiya, Maki Shiraki, David Dolan, Nick Macfie Organizations: Smart, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, JAXA, Soviet Union, Epsilon, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Japan, United States, USSR, China, India, U.S, Russia

☆ Powell's concerns about growth and the labor market being too strong are new, says Point72's Maki
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-25 | 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 EmailPowell's concerns about growth and the labor market being too strong are new, says Point72's MakiDean Maki, Point72 Asset Management chief economist, joins 'Squawk on the Street' to discuss his main takeaway from Powell's comments at Jackson Hole, whether investors will be looking for signs of deceleration in the economy, and more.

Persons: Point72, Maki Dean Maki, Jackson Organizations: Point72 Asset Management

☆ Moderate US economic growth expected in second quarter
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( Lucia Mutikani | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

According to a Reuters survey of economists, GDP growth likely increased at a 1.8% annualized rate last quarter after rising at a 2.0% pace in the first quarter. Consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity, likely remained a pillar of support, although the pace of growth slowed from the second quarter's robust 4.2% rate. Further contribution to GDP growth was expected from government spending. Inventory investment is a wild card, though most economists are penciling in a contribution to GDP growth of at least five tenths of a percentage point. Business sharply reduced inventory accumulation in the January-March quarter in anticipation of weaker domestic demand, slicing 2.14 percentage points off GDP growth that period.

Persons: Dean Maki, they're, Mike Skordeles, Joe Biden's, Sean Snaith, Richard de Chazal, William Blair, Lucia Mutikani, Andrea Ricci Organizations: Federal Reserve, Point72, Management, Labor Department, Truist Advisory Services, Investment, University of Central Florida's Institute, Economic, Fed, Thomson Locations: WASHINGTON, U.S, Stamford , Connecticut, Atlanta, United States, London

Nissan has been working to define a lower threshold for its pledged, strategic investment in Renault's electric vehicle unit, Ampere, below the 15% maximum target it announced in February, two of the people said. The automakers announced a framework agreement in February and had aimed to finalise the deal as early as March. Under the framework, the Japanese automaker would take the as much as 15% of Ampere and Renault would reduce its 43% stake in Nissan. "Nissan and Renault are engaged in constructive and ongoing negotiations. The board has not heard the final report on the surveillance claim, according to the three people.

Persons: Ampere, Makoto Uchida, Ashwani Gupta, Gupta, Nissan's, Maki Shiraki, Daniel Leussink, Kevin Krolicki, David Dolan Organizations: Nissan, Renault, Reuters, Thomson Locations: TOKYO

Under the framework, the Japanese automaker would take as much as 15% of Renault's new electric vehicle unit, Ampere, while Renault would reduce its 43% stake in Nissan. That timeline was extended when senior Nissan executives and some directors challenged detailed provisions of deal, citing the need to better protect Nissan's intellectual property, Reuters has reported. Nissan executives sought to rebalance the alliance built by former Chairman Carlos Ghosn after his ouster sent the automaker into turmoil. While the size of the investment ultimately hinges on the value of Ampere, Nissan is likely to take less than 10%, one of them said. By closing out the restructured Renault deal, Nissan executives have the opportunity to pivot to other challenges, including a medium-term strategy update and a change in approach to China, where Nissan's sales, and those of other global automakers, are in decline.

Persons: Ampere, Carlos Ghosn, Makoto Uchida, Ashwani Gupta, Gupta, Maki Shiraki, Daniel Leussink, Kevin Krolicki, David Dolan, Christian Schmollinger, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Renault, Nissan finalise, Nissan, TOKYO, Reuters, Mitsubishi Motors, Qualcomm, Mitsubishi, Thomson Locations: U.S, China

Under the framework, the Japanese automaker would take as much as 15% of Renault's new electric vehicle unit, Ampere, while Renault would reduce its 43% stake in Nissan. The delay shows how the latest tension at the top of the Japanese automaker has complicated a drive to bring the decades-long relationship with Renault to a more equal footing. After the automaker was pitched into turmoil by the ouster of former Chairman Carlos Ghosn, Nissan executives sought to rebalance the alliance he built. We will make a statement in due course when the agreements are concluded," the Japanese automaker said in a statement. Nissan and Renault's junior partner, Mitsubishi Motors, has also indicated it may invest in the company.

Persons: Ampere, Carlos Ghosn, Makoto Uchida, Ashwani Gupta, Gupta, Maki Shiraki, Daniel Leussink, Kevin Krolicki, David Dolan Organizations: Nissan, Renault, Reuters, Mitsubishi Motors, Qualcomm, Mitsubishi, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, U.S

☆ HRT use by younger women linked to dementia, study says. Experts disagree
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( Sandee Lamotte | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

However, experts who treat and study menopause say the study is unable to draw a direct connection to later-life dementia and that the overall benefits of hormone replacement therapy, or HRT, far outweigh the risks for many patients. “One finding in the study was a link between dementia and the use of HRT for a very short time span, under a year. Researchers compared people with dementia who had used hormone therapy, even briefly, with those from the larger group who had not. The chance of being diagnosed with dementia went up with years spent on HRT, the study found. When women used 12 or more years of hormone therapy, the association with a diagnosis of dementia rose to 74%, Pourhadi said.

Persons: ”, Nelsan, Pauline Maki, David Curtis, Kejal, Kantarci, Andrea Lenzi, University of Rome La Sapienza, ” Pourhadi, Pourhadi, Maki, ” Maki, Susan Davis, Amanda Heslegrave, ” Heslegrave Organizations: CNN, Danish Dementia Research, Copenhagen University Hospital Rigshospitalet, University of Illinois, UCL Genetics Institute, University College London, Mayo Clinic, University of Rome La, University of Illinois’s Center for Research, Women’s, Monash University, Dementia Research Locations: Danish, Denmark, Chicago, neuroradiology, Rochester , Minnesota, Taiwan, Melbourne, Australia, London

The preliminary report said Nissan had installed two sets of security cameras at the entrance to Gupta's house in Tokyo's Shibuya ward, the people said. Uchida and Gupta, who was still a Nissan director and chief operating officer on June 20, were recused from the board meeting. In his letter, Nada asked for an international law firm to be brought in to investigate the surveillance of Gupta. Reuters was unable to determine if either law firm had made any finding about the harassment claim itself, beyond how it was handled. Nada said in his letter he understood that Japanese law firm Anderson Mori & Tomotsune had investigated the claim.

Persons: Ashwani Gupta, Makoto Uchida, Davis Polk, Gupta, Uchida, Nissan, Akira Takeuchi, Hari Nada, Nada, Iwata Godo, Motoo Nagai, Nagai, Anderson Mori, Tomotsune, Daniel Leussink, Maki Shiraki, Kevin Krolicki, David Clarke Organizations: Nissan, Renault, Reuters, NEW, Senior Renault, Thomson Locations: Yokohama, Tokyo's Shibuya, Tokyo, French, Austin , Texas

TOKYO, June 27 (Reuters) - Nissan Motor (7201.T) shareholders on Tuesday backed Chief Executive Makoto Uchida and other board nominees at its first annual general meeting since reaching a new deal with alliance partner Renault (RENA.PA). The shareholder meeting has taken place amid new ructions for the automaker's management. Nissan is investigating claims that Uchida carried out surveillance of deputy Ashwani Gupta, sources have said. There were no questions by shareholders about the claims at the shareholder meeting. Shareholders on Tuesday also rejected a proposal by an individual investor for higher dividends this financial year that was opposed by the company's board.

Persons: Makoto Uchida, Uchida, Ashwani Gupta, Gupta, Brenda Harvey, Maki Shiraki, Daniel Leussink, Chang, Ran Kim, David Dolan, Edwina Gibbs Organizations: Nissan, Renault, IBM, Reuters, Thomson Locations: TOKYO

TOKYO, June 24 (Reuters) - Nissan (7201.T) has launched an investigation into claims by a senior adviser that Chief Executive Makoto Uchida carried out surveillance of his deputy Ashwani Gupta, four people with direct knowledge of the matter said. In the letter, Nada said Uchida carried out surveillance over a long period. Asked to comment on the surveillance investigation, Nissan said in response to Reuters: "Independent third parties have been retained to verify facts and carry out appropriate actions." Nada did not detail in the letter how he knew of the alleged surveillance of Gupta. Nada is a member of two executive committees established by Nissan in 2019 as part of a governance reform after the Ghosn scandal.

Persons: Makoto Uchida, Ashwani Gupta, Hari Nada, Nada, Uchida, Renault, Gupta, Nissan, Akira Takeuchi, Anderson Mori, Tomotsune, Carlos Ghosn, Ghosn, Jean, Dominique Senard, Luca de Meo, de Meo, Greg Kelly, Nissan's, Ampere, David Dolan, Gilles Guillaume, Kevin Krolicki, David Clarke Organizations: Nissan, Financial Times, Reuters, Renault, NISSAN, RENAULT, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Tokyo, Lebanon, Japan, Paris

TOKYO, June 13 (Reuters) - Toyota (7203.T) faces an unprecedented challenge at its annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday, with some pension funds voting against Chairman Akio Toyoda on governance issues, while seeking more disclosures on the Japanese automaker's climate lobbying. Two prominent U.S. proxy advisers have flagged concern about Toyota's board independence. The step comes as companies across Japan face more pressure from investors, especially on environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues. The strong financial performance has meant concerns about board independence have largely been shrugged off, said Kazunori Suzuki of Waseda Business School. He enjoys strong support from individual investors and the many suppliers and Toyota group companies among its shareholders.

Persons: Akio Toyoda, Toyoda, Kentaro Shibata, Kazunori Suzuki, Anders Schelde, Denmark's, AkademikerPension, AkademikerPension's Schelde, Nicholas Benes, Benes, that's, Makiko Yamazaki, Maki Shiraki, Daniel Leussink, David Dolan, William Mallard, Clarence Fernandez Organizations: Toyota, Nikkei, Waseda Business School, Tokyo, Exchange, Services, International Paralympic Committee, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Training, of Japan, Nissan, Honda, Reuters, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, New York, Japan, Toyota

Toyota shares closed up 3.4%, outperforming the 1.2% gain in the Nikkei index (.N225). BOARD INDEPENDENCENew York City Comptroller Brad Lander said in a statement the Toyota board was not adequately independent. The New York comptroller's office oversees a pension system with $243 billion in assets under management. Those funds held 6.7 million shares in Toyota Group companies, including Toyota Boshoku (3116.T) and Toyota Tsusho (8015.T) as of end March. The New York pension system has also urged both Ford (F.N) and General Motors (GM.N) to move rapidly toward electrification and to disclose more about their lobbying on vehicle standards.

Persons: Akio Toyoda, Glass Lewis, Toyoda, CalPERS, Brad Lander, Daniel Leussink, David Dolan, Maki Shiraki, Kevin Krolicki, Jamie Freed, Christopher Cushing, Leslie Adler Organizations: Toyota Motor Corp, California Public Employees, New York, Toyota, Tokyo Stock Exchange, Nikkei, The, Toyota Group, Ford, General Motors, Lexus, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, New York City, York, Tokyo

One of them, Glass Lewis, recommended shareholders vote against re-electing Toyoda, citing what it said was his responsibility for the lack of a sufficiently independent board. Toyota on Friday did not immediately comment on the votes against the re-election of Toyoda. The New York comptroller's office oversees a pension system with $243 billion in assets under management. BOARD INDEPENDENCENew York City Comptroller Brad Lander said the Toyota board was not adequately independent, in a statement explaining the vote by the funds it oversees. The New York pension system has also urged both Ford (F.N) and General Motors (GM.N) to move rapidly toward electrification and to disclose more about their lobbying on vehicle standards.

Persons: Akio Toyoda, Glass Lewis, Toyoda, CalPERS, Brad Lander, Elon, Daniel Leussink, David Dolan, Maki Shiraki, Kevin Krolicki, Jamie Freed Organizations: Toyota Motor Corp, California Public Employees, New York, Toyota, Tokyo Stock Exchange, The, New, Ford, General Motors, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, New York City, York, New York, Tokyo

One of them, Glass Lewis, recommended shareholders vote against re-electing Toyoda, citing what it said was his responsibility for the lack of a sufficiently independent board. CalPERS, which declined to comment, is the largest U.S. public pension fund with some $450 billion in assets under management. The New York City pension funds held 6.7 million shares in Toyota Group companies, including Toyota Boshoku (3116.T) and Toyota Tsusho (8015.T) as of end March. BOARD INDEPENDENCENew York City Comptroller Brad Lander said the Toyota board was not adequately independent, in a statement explaining the vote by the funds it oversees. The New York pension system has also urged both Ford (F.N) and General Motors (GM.N) to move rapidly toward electrification and to disclose more about their lobbying on vehicle standards.

Persons: Akio Toyoda, Glass Lewis, Toyoda, CalPERS, Brad Lander, Daniel Leussink, David Dolan, Maki Shiraki, Kevin Krolicki, Jamie Freed, Christopher Cushing Organizations: Toyota Motor Corp, California Public Employees, New York, Toyota, Tokyo Stock Exchange, The, New, Toyota Group, Nikkei, Ford, General Motors, Lexus, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, New York City, York, Tokyo

☆ Japan's Nikkei hits highest since July 1990 on weak yen, US optimism
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Kevin Buckland | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, May 29 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average rose on Monday to its highest level since July 1990, buoyed by optimism over a U.S. debt ceiling deal and a weaker yen. "The Nikkei crossed the psychological 31,500 mark on Monday, but in the end that level proved a bit too heavy," she said. "This week, I expect the Nikkei to steadily advance, but with short-term retracements to check its speed." The broader Topix (.TOPX) rose as high as 2,175.13, but failed to get close to last week's 33-year high at 2,188.66. Reporting by Kevin Buckland; Editing by Himani Sarkar, Muralikumar Anantharaman, Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Sohini GoswamiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Japan's Nikkei share average rises to highest since July 1990
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Kevin Buckland | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, May 29 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average rose on Monday to its highest level since July 1990, buoyed by optimism over a U.S. debt ceiling deal and a weaker yen. "The Nikkei crossed the psychological 31,500 mark today, but in the end that level proved a bit too heavy," she said. "This week, I expect the Nikkei to steadily advance, but with short-term retracements to check its speed." The broader Topix (.TOPX) rose as high as 2,175.13, but failed to get close to last week's 33-year high at 2,188.66. Reporting by Kevin Buckland; Editing by Himani Sarkar, Muralikumar Anantharaman and Sherry Jacob-PhillipsOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Japan arranging subsidies for Samsung chip facility -source
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Maki Shiraki | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, May 17 (Reuters) - Japan is arranging subsidies that could be worth around 15 billion yen ($110 million) to South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co (005930.KS) for a chip facility it is considering setting up near Tokyo, a source with direct knowledge of the matter said. Samsung, the world's largest maker of memory chips, would construct the facility including its first chip packaging test line in Japan near its existing research and development centre in Yokohama, Reuters reported in late March. The facility could cost around 40 billion yen to set up, of which about a third would be subsidised by the Japanese government, said the source, who declined to be named because the information is not public. Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Thursday plans to meet with executives from leading chip firms including Samsung to strengthen multilateral cooperation. Japan said last month it would give 260 billion yen in subsidies to domestic chipmaker Rapidus, which is building a factory on the northern island of Hokkaido, in addition to 70 billion yen of government funding secured earlier.

Japan's Kioxia and U.S. chipmaker Western Digital have been hit hard by plunging market demand and oversupply. Combining their flash memory businesses could boost competitiveness against rivals like South Korea's Samsung Electronics (005930.KS). Western Digital did not respond immediately to a request for comment. Kioxia, previously Toshiba Memory, was sold by Toshiba Corp (6502.T) in 2018 to a consortium led by Bain Capital for $18 billion. Kioxia and Western Digital were in merger talks in 2021 before the negotiations stalled over a series of issues including valuation discrepancies.

Toyota's board on Wednesday recommended that shareholders vote against the resolution, to be put to the company's annual general meeting in June. On Wednesday Toyota said it expects a five-fold jump in pure electric vehicle (EV) sales this business year. "We need concrete policy changes and a better annual review drawing on independent data to calm international investors." LONG ENGAGEMENTIt will be the first time that Toyota faces such a climate-related resolution at its annual general meeting, the funds said. It first planned to submit a shareholder proposal in 2021, but withdrew that after it received assurances that Toyota would review its climate lobbying.

☆ Toyota-affiliate Daihatsu rigged safety test for 88,000 cars
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Toyota said it had not received any report of an accident or injury related to the rigged side-crash test. Daihatsu said it had discovered the rigged safety test after a whistleblower report. It said it had reported the issue to safety regulatory agencies and stopped shipment of affected models. The affected models include Toyota Yaris Ativs made in Thailand from last August, and Perodua Axias manufactured in Malaysia starting from February. Daihatsu said it would run new safety tests in the presence of regulators and confirm the safety of the models before resuming shipments.

☆ Japan's Honda, GS Yuasa to invest $3 bln for battery development, build plant -Nikkei
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, April 27 (Reuters) - Japanese automaker Honda Motor Co Ltd (7267.T) and battery maker GS Yuasa Corp (6674.T) will invest over 400 billion yen ($2.99 billion) and team up to produce batteries for electric vehicles (EVs) and homes, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Thursday. The companies will start by building a new plant in Japan, targeting a production capacity of at least 20 gigawatt hours (GWh), the Nikkei added, without citing sources. Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry would provide a subsidy of about 150 billion yen, the newspaper added, without specifying whether that would be only for building the factory. GS Yuasa could not be immediately reached outside of regular office hours. ($1 = 133.9700 yen)Reporting by Daniel Leussink, Maki Shiraki and Elaine Lies; Editing by Kirsten DonovanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Imbalance had long riled Nissan executives who complained Renault did not pay its fair share of costs for innovation and development. In a joint statement to Reuters, Nissan and Renault said they were working toward final partnership terms that would make them more competitive. Nissan will invest and provide technology for the venture but will limit its operational involvement, one of the people told Reuters. In rebalancing talks, Nissan has pushed for protection of its technology to limit any downside from continued partnership, people involved have said. Among technology Nissan wants to protect is its work on solid-state lithium-ion battery making and its e-Power electric hybrid powertrain, the people said.

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