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☆ China's Huawei reports modest revenue growth for first three quarters
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-27 | by ( David Kirton | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Huawei posted revenues of 456.6 billion yuan ($62.4 billion)for the first three quarters of the year, up 2.4% from a year earlier. In contrast to the modest rise in revenue, profit rose 177.8% in the period to 73.05 billion yuan, according to Reuters calculations. For the third quarter, revenue rose 1.5% to 145.7 billion yuan, according to Reuters calculations. Counterpoint said Huawei ranked as the sixth-largest smartphone brand in China during the quarter with a share of 12.9%, up from 9.1% from the same period a year ago. However, the Huawei spokesperson attributed the third-quarter revenue growth to increases in the digital power, cloud and auto parts businesses, while the Mate 60 series was released relatively late in the quarter.

Persons: Ken Hu, Richard Yu, Huawei's, David Kirton, Christian Schmollinger, Simon Cameron, Moore Organizations: Huawei Technologies, Huawei, Research, U.S, Huawei's Smart, Thomson Locations: SHENZHEN, China

☆ United States takes gold medal breather at Pan Am Games
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-27 | by ( Steve Keating | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Paul, who had Trinidad and Tobago's only gold at the 2019 Pan Am Games in Lima, successfully defended his title beating training partner Jair Tjon En Fa of Suriname in two consecutive races in the best-of-three final. Mexico had a productive day picking up four gold medals to leap frog Canada and move back into second on the table. The Mexicans continued their domination of the modern pentathlon winning the women's relay event to claim their fourth gold medal of the competition. There were also gold medals taken in the racquetball women's team event while Alejandra Zavala topped the podium in the women's 10 metre air pistol and Yareli Acevedo Mendoza won on the cycling track in the women's Omnium. Editing by Christian SchmollingerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Penaloen, Tobago's Nicholas Lee Paul, Silver, Suriname's Jair, Colombia's Kevin, Nicholas Paul, James Hall, Alexis Lagan, Rachel Tozier, Paul, Jair, Alejandra Zavala, Yareli Acevedo Mendoza, Steve Keating, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: Trinidad, United, United States Pan American Games, Games, Pan Am, Thomson Locations: Santiago, Chile, SANTIAGO, United States, Trinidad and Tobago, U.S, Mexico, Canada, Trinidad, Lima, Fa, Suriname

SINGAPORE, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Oil prices rose by over $1 on Friday as reports that the U.S military struck Iranian targets in Syria raised concerns of a widening of the Israel-Hamas conflict that could impact supply from the key Middle East producing region. Though the strike did not directly impact supply, it increases fears that the conflict in the Gaza Strip between Israel, backed by the U.S., and Hamas may spread and disrupt supply from major crude producer Iran, which backs Hamas. A wider war could also impact shipments from Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter, and other large producers in the Gulf. Both Brent and WTI are on track to post their first weekly drop in three weeks as the geopolitical premium built on these fears has ebbed as there has been no disruption of oil supply outside of the immediate region of the fighting. Israeli forces carried out their biggest Gaza ground attack in their 20-day-old war with Hamas overnight, angering the Arab world.

Persons: Brent, WTI, Kelvin Yew, Benjamin Netanyahu, Helima Croft, Goldman Sachs, Florence Tan, Sam Holmes, Christian Organizations: U.S, Brent, U.S . West Texas Intermediate, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Pentagon, Ocean, Investments, RBC Capital, Thomson Locations: SINGAPORE, Syria, Israel, U.S, Iraq, Gaza, Iran, Saudi Arabia, United States, Hormuz, Russia

[1/2] The logo of Temu, an e-commerce platform owned by PDD Holdings, is seen on a mobile phone displayed in front of its website, in this illustration picture taken April 26, 2023. Shein's lawsuit against Temu, filed last December in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, alleged that Temu told social media influencers to make disparaging remarks about the fast-fashion retailer, and tricked customers into downloading the Temu app using "imposter" social media accounts. In July, Temu filed its own lawsuit in Boston federal court, accusing Shein of violating U.S. antitrust law in its dealings with clothing manufacturers. Temu's complaint alleged Shein "forces manufacturers to sign loyalty oaths certifying that they will not do business with Temu." Temu, whose parent company PDD Holdings also owns Chinese shopping platform Pinduoduo, similarly sells low-priced clothing but is equally well known for stocking cheap headphones and home appliances.

Persons: Florence Lo, Shein, Temu, Casey Hall, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: PDD Holdings, REUTERS, Rights, Northern, Northern District of, Temu, HSBC, Thomson Locations: U.S, Chicago, Boston, Northern District, Northern District of Illinois, China, Europe, Asia

☆ Exclusive: ConocoPhillips weighs CrownRock bid to challenge rivals
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-26 | by ( David French | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

CrownRock's investment bankers have asked interested parties to submit initial offers next week, two of the sources added. Diamondback Energy (FANG.O), Devon Energy (DVN.N), Marathon Oil (MRO.N) and Continental Resources are also studying potential bids for CrownRock, the sources said. The company is led by Texas billionaire businessman Timothy Dunn and backed by private equity firm Lime Rock Partners. Bloomberg News reported last week that Devon was considering a bid for CrownRock, and that Devon has also held preliminary talks about a tie-up with Marathon. Reporting by David French in New York; Editing by Greg Roumeliotis and Christian SchmollingerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Chris Helgren, CrownRock, Timothy Dunn, Conoco, Devon, David French, Greg Roumeliotis Organizations: ConocoPhillips, REUTERS, Houston, Exxon Mobil Corp, Chevron Corp, Diamondback Energy, Devon Energy, Continental Resources, CrownRock, Marathon Oil, Continental, Diamondback, Exxon, Natural Resources, Chevron, Hess Corp, Lime Rock Partners, EOG Resources, Devon, Bloomberg News, Marathon, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Vancouver , British Columbia, Canada, Texas, Conoco, Devon, Midland, Marathon, New York

☆ Springbok hooker Mbonambi cleared to play in World Cup final
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

World Rugby were subsequently asked to review a similar incident in a match between the two teams in London last year. "Any allegation of discrimination is taken extremely seriously by World Rugby...," it said in a statement. World Rugby added that it accepted that Curry made the allegation in good faith, "and that there is no suggestion that the allegation was deliberately false or malicious." "World Rugby is also concerned by the social media abuse that both players have been subjected to this week. There is no place in rugby or society for discrimination, abuse or hate speech, and World Rugby urges fans to embrace the sport’s values of respect, integrity and solidarity."

Persons: Rassie Erasmus, Lorraine O'sullivan, Bongi Mbonambi, Tom Curry, Mbonambi, Curry, Tom Curry’s, Siya Kolisi, Kolisi, Nick Said, Jason Neely, John Stonestreet Organizations: Aviva, REUTERS, Rights, Saturday’s Rugby, Rugby, England, Springbok, New Zealand, South Africa, World Rugby, Rugby Football Union, RFU, Springboks, Twickenham, Thomson Locations: Africa, Ireland, South Africa, Dublin, New, Paris, London, Mbonambi

Customers seen in the self-service checkout area of a Coles supermarket in Sydney, Australia, June 17, 2020. REUTERS/Loren Elliott/File Photo/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsOct 26 (Reuters) - Australian retailers are ramping up their tech security initiatives, including placing cameras at self-checkouts and body-worn cameras on staff, to combat a surge in stock theft and customer aggression aggravated by the cost of living crisis. "Unfortunately the data suggests it's continuing to occur," added Thomson, whose firm counts Coles and Woolworths as clients. Reports of store theft surged 23% in Australia's three largest states of New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland, home to three-quarters of the population, in the year to March 2023, according to the latest available government statistics, as COVID-related restrictions ended. Reports of threatening behaviour by shoppers rose to 17% of all security reports logged by Australian store staff in 2023, from 10% three years earlier, according to Auror data reviewed by Reuters.

Persons: Loren Elliott, Phil Thomson, Thomson, Coles, Leah Weckert, Weckert, Brad Banducci, Gerard Dwyer, Rishav Chatterjee, Byron Kaye, Praveen Menon, Christian Organizations: Coles, REUTERS, Woolworths, New, Reuters, National, of, Allied Employees Association, Thomson Locations: Sydney, Australia, New Zealand, Australia's, New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Bengaluru

Investors were also excited by Tuesday's approval of an additional 1 trillion yuan ($136.76 billion) of sovereign bond issuance. Drawing investors back into China's $10.5 trillion stock market, particularly the foreign buyers that have fled in droves this year, would stem further slides in a market which fell to its lowest since 2019 earlier this week. "China's central government is endorsing the stock market," said Qi Wang, chief investment officer of UOB Kay Hian's wealth management division in Hong Kong. Huijin last bought ETFs during the 2015 stock market crash, and during the money market liquidity crunch in 2013. Still, China's stock markets have to overcome earlier heavy selling from foreigners, burnt by Xi's previous crackdowns on internet companies and other sectors, and its earlier stringent zero-COVID policy.

Persons: China's, Huang Yan, QiuYang, Huang, Pan Gongsheng, Qi Wang, UOB Kay, Huijin, Fabiana Fedeli, Fedeli, Goldman Sachs, Samuel Shen, Ankur Banerjee, Brigid Riley, Vidya Ranganathan Organizations: Central Huijin Investment, Shanghai QiuYang, People's Bank of China, Sino, CSI, Huijin, China Asset Management Co, Singapore's United Overseas Bank, G Investments, Thomson Locations: SHANGHAI, SINGAPORE, Shanghai, China, Hong Kong, Tokyo

☆ China passes patriotic education law for children, families -state media
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Students stand at a school during a flag-lowering ceremony on the first day of the new academic year in Shanghai, China, September 1, 2021. REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsHONG KONG, Oct 25 (Reuters) - China's national legislature on Tuesday passed a law to strengthen patriotic education for children and families, state media reported, to counter challenges such as "historical nihilism" and safeguard "national unity". The Patriotic Education Law provides a legal guarantee for carrying out patriotic education, state-backed Xinhua news agency reported, adding that some people "are at a loss about what is patriotism." The law mandates that patriotic education respects the "history and cultural traditions of other countries and draws inspiration from all of human civilization's outstanding achievements," it said. The law also has targeted measures for different groups of people, including government officials, employees, villagers and residents in special administrative regions Hong Kong and Macau, as well as Taiwan, state-backed China Daily said.

Persons: Aly, Farah Master, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: REUTERS, Patriotic Education, Xinhua, China Daily, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, HONG KONG, Xinhua, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Officials from the United States and China on Monday held a two-hour long virtual meeting to discuss domestic and global macroeconomic developments, the U.S. Treasury Department said, calling the meeting "productive and substantive". U.S. and Chinese officials also raised "areas of concern," statements from the two sides said, without elaborating. The meeting was led by senior officials from the U.S. Treasury Department and China's finance ministry. The EWG was launched last month following U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen's trip to Beijing in July. China's top diplomat will travel to the United States later this week to meet Blinken.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, Janet Yellen's, Antony Blinken, Gina Raimondo, Blinken, Han Zheng, Jake Sullivan, Wang Yi, Kanishka Singh, Liz Lee, Ethan Wang, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, U.S . Treasury Department, Economic, Treasury Department, Treasury, U.S . National, Thomson Locations: United States, China, Taiwan, San Francisco, People's Republic of China, U.S, Beijing, Yellen, New York, Malta, China's, Washington

[1/2] A Mitsubishi Motors logo is displayed at the 89th Geneva International Motor Show in Geneva, Switzerland March 5, 2019. REUTERS/Pierre Albouy/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsTOKYO/PARIS, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Japanese automaker Mitsubishi Motors (7211.T) will invest up to 200 million euros ($214 million) in the new electric vehicle unit of French counterpart Renault (RENA.PA), Mitsubishi said on Tuesday. Mitsubishi said in a statement it seeks to improve its EV development technology and expand its lineup of battery-powered vehicles with the investment in the Renault EV unit, named Ampere. The decision to invest in Ampere comes after Mitsubishi's partners, Renault and Nissan Motor (7201.T), finalised a restructured alliance in July. Shortly before the announcement, the Nikkei newspaper reported Mitsubishi's investment into Ampere was expected to be about 20 billion yen ($133.85 million).

Persons: Pierre Albouy, Jean, Dominique Senard, Mitsubishi, Ampere, Renault's Senard, Daniel Leussink, Gilles Guillaume, Jacqueline Wong, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: Mitsubishi Motors, 89th Geneva, REUTERS, Rights, French, Renault, Mitsubishi, Renault EV, Nissan, Nikkei, Thomson Locations: Geneva, Switzerland, PARIS, Paris, Ampere, Japan, China, Tokyo

☆ China says outlook worrisome as conflict spreads in Middle East, state media report
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A view shows illumination flares in the sky by Israel's border with Lebanon, in northern Israel, as seen from its Israeli side October 21, 2023. The envoy Zhai Jun, who is visiting the Middle East, said spillover effects in the region and internationally are widening, as conflict along the Israeli-Lebanese and Israeli-Syrian borders spread, "making the outlook worrisome". Zhai also said China is willing to do "whatever is conducive" to promote dialogue, achieve ceasefire and restore peace, as well as to promote the two-state solution and a just and lasting resolution to the conflict, China Central Television said. China has provided and will continue to provide emergency humanitarian assistance to Palestinians through the United Nations and via bilateral channels to help alleviate the humanitarian crisis, Zhai added. Reporting by Liz Lee and Shanghai newsroom; Editing by Christian SchmollingerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Lisi Niesner, Zhai Jun, Zhai, Liz Lee, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Lebanese, China Central Television, United Arab, United Nations, European, Thomson Locations: Lebanon, Israel, Rights BEIJING, China, Gaza, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Norway, European Union, Shanghai

☆ Hamilton and Leclerc disqualified from U.S. Grand Prix
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Oct 22, 2023; Austin, Texas, USA; Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport driver Lewis Hamilton (44) of Team Great Britain drives during the 2023 United States Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports Acquire Licensing RightsAUSTIN, Texas, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Mercedes accepted their punishment after Formula One stewards disqualified Lewis Hamilton from second place in Sunday's U.S. Grand Prix along with sixth-placed Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc. Mercedes had brought an upgraded car to Texas and Hamilton, whose team mate George Russell moved up to fifth, had looked more competitive. "We can take a lot of positives from the car performance today," said Wolff. Reporting by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Christian Schmollinger and Michael PerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Lewis Hamilton, Jerome Miron, Mercedes, Charles Leclerc, COTA, Toto Wolff, Red Bull's Max Verstappen, George Russell, Wolff, Carlos Sainz, Alan Baldwin, Christian Schmollinger, Michael Perry Organizations: Mercedes, Petronas Motorsport, Great, Prix, Circuit, Ferrari, FIA, Austin's Circuit, Thomson Locations: Austin , Texas, USA, Americas, , Texas, Sunday's U.S, Texas, Hamilton, London

☆ China Says Outlook Worrisome as Conflict Spreads in Middle East - State Media
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-22 | by ( Oct. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

BEIJING (Reuters) -China views the situation in Gaza as "very serious" with the risk of a large-scale ground conflict rising and the spread of armed conflicts along neighbouring borders, Chinese state media said on Monday, citing the country's Middle East special envoy. The envoy Zhai Jun, who is visiting the Middle East, said spillover effects in the region and internationally are widening, as conflict along the Israeli-Lebanese and Israeli-Syrian borders spread, "making the outlook worrisome". Zhai called on the international community to be "highly vigilant in this regard" and to take immediate action urging parties concerned to strictly abide by international humanitarian law and avoid a serious humanitarian disaster while putting in "joint efforts to control the situation". Zhai also said China is willing to do "whatever is conducive" to promote dialogue, achieve ceasefire and restore peace, as well as to promote the two-state solution and a just and lasting resolution to the conflict, China Central Television said. China has provided and will continue to provide emergency humanitarian assistance to Palestinians through the United Nations and via bilateral channels to help alleviate the humanitarian crisis, Zhai added.

Persons: Zhai Jun, Zhai, Liz Lee, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: Lebanese, China Central Television, United Arab, United Nations, European Locations: BEIJING, China, Gaza, Israel, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Norway, European Union, Shanghai

☆ China curbs graphite exports in latest critical minerals squeeze
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Here are key details on graphite and China's limits on exports of strategic minerals. That's about double the amount of lithium in an EV battery. China also refines more than 90% of the world's graphite into material used in virtually all EV battery anodes. Top buyers of graphite from China include Japan, the U.S., India and South Korea, according to Chinese customs data. OTHER CHINESE MINERAL EXPORT CURBSIn July, China announced export restrictions on eight gallium and six germanium products starting on Aug. 1.

Persons: Tony Munroe, Amy Lv, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, . Geological Survey, EV, Mercedes, Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, Thomson Locations: Qingdao, Shandong province, China, Rights SINGAPORE, Mozambique, Madagascar, Brazil, Japan, U.S, India, South Korea

☆ Canada's Conservative leader urges rejection of RBC's offer for HSBC Canada -media
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

A sign for the Royal Bank of Canada in Toronto, Ontario, Canada December 13, 2021. REUTERS/Carlos Osorio/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsOct 19 (Reuters) - Pierre Poilievre, Canada's Conservative party leader, called for the federal government to reject Royal Bank of Canada's (RY.TO) C$13.5 billion ($9.84 billion) offer to buy HSBC's (HSBA.L) domestic unit, the Globe and Mail reported on Thursday. "If the biggest bank in Canada simply buys up a growing smaller player, then there's no hope of ever having more competition in Canadian banking," he told the newspaper. Last month, Canada's Competition Bureau said that RBC's takeover of HSBC Canada was unlikely to hurt competition, clearing the way for the country's largest bank to push ahead with its biggest acquisition. Still, the regulator found that the deal would "result in a loss of rivalry between Canada's largest and seventh-largest banks."

Persons: Carlos Osorio, Pierre Poilievre, Poilievre, Gnaneshwar Rajan, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: Royal Bank of Canada, REUTERS, Conservative, Royal Bank of Canada's, Globe and Mail, HSBC, HSBC Canada, Thomson Locations: Toronto , Ontario, Canada

☆ Inquiry into New Zealand's deadliest shooting to start on Tuesday
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( Lucy Craymer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Farid Ahmed, survivor of the Christchurch shootings where her wife Husna was killed, is joined in prayer with his neighbours, during his visit to offer thanks for their support, in Christchurch, New Zealand, March 24, 2019. REUTERS/Edgar Su/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsWELLINGTON, Oct 20 (Reuters) - A coroner's inquiry into the death of 51 Muslim worshippers in 2019 in New Zealand’s deadliest shooting will start on Tuesday, hoping to establish what happened after the attack started and make recommendations to prevent deaths in the future. Armed with high-capacity semi-automatic weapons, Australian Brenton Tarrant, 32, killed 51 people and injured dozens when he opened fire on Muslim worshippers on March 15, 2019, in Christchurch. Tarrant released a racist manifesto shortly before the attack and streamed the shootings live on Facebook. A Royal Commission of Inquiry in 2020 found that security agencies were almost exclusively focused on the perceived threat of Islamist terrorism before the massacre.

Persons: Farid Ahmed, Husna, Edgar Su, Brenton Tarrant, Tarrant, ” Tarrant, Lucy Craymer, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Facebook, New, Coroners, Royal Commission of, Thomson Locations: Christchurch, Christchurch , New Zealand, New, New Zealand

☆ JP Morgan, Nomura raise China's 2023 economic growth forecast
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

JP Morgan now expects China's gross domestic product (GDP) to grow 5.2% in 2023, up from their previous forecast and Beijing's official target of a 5% growth. Data on Wednesday showed China's GDP grew 4.9% in July-September from the year earlier, higher than a Reuters poll expectation for a 4.4% increase. Zhu warned, however, of weak links in the economy, such as private investment and a housing market correction. "Weak nominal GDP growth suggests that the earnings and profit outlook remains a hurdle in the path to the recovery in private investment," he noted. JPM sees China's potential growth coming down faster than initially expected in 2024 and 2025 to a range of 4%-4.5% and 3.5%-4%, respectively.

Persons: Thomas Peter, JP Morgan, Nomura, Haibin Zhu, JPM, Zhu, Albee Zhang, Susan Mathew, Christian Schmollinger, Eileen Soreng Organizations: REUTERS, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China

Sharing a stage at Foxconn's annual tech showcase in Taipei, Foxconn Chairman Liu Young-way and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said their companies would build these "AI factories" together. And the data centres that produce it are AI factories," Huang said, adding that Foxconn had the expertise and scale to build them globally. Showing a hand-drawn sketch, Huang - sporting his signature black leather jacket - explained how "AI factories" could continuously receive and process data from autonomous electric vehicles to make them smarter. The AI factory would improve the software and update the entire AI fleet," said the Taiwan-born Huang. "In the future, every company, every industry, will have AI factories."

Persons: Foxconn, Liu Young, Jensen Huang, Huang, Orin, Liu, Jun Seki, Terry Gou, Sarah Wu, Ben Blanchard, Christian Schmollinger, Jamie Freed Organizations: Nvidia, EV, Foxconn's Tech, Thomson Locations: TAIPEI, Taipei, Taiwan, China, Foxconn, India, Japan

Sharing a stage at Foxconn's annual Tech Day in Taipei, Foxconn Chairman Liu Young-way and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said their companies were building AI factories together. Huang showed a hand-drawn sketch of what the two companies are building, which he called an "AI factory". What Nvidia and Foxconn are building is an entire end-to-end AI system for autonomous electric vehicles, with the AI factory developing the car's software, Huang added. The data would go to the AI factory, the AI factory would improve the software and update the entire AI fleet," he said. "This entire end-to-end system, on the one hand AI factory, on the other end EV fleet, is what Nvidia and Foxconn are building."

Persons: Liu Young, Ann Wang, Foxconn, Jensen Huang, Huang, Liu, Sarah Wu, Ben Blanchard, Christian Schmollinger, Jamie Freed Organizations: Tech Day, REUTERS, Rights, Nvidia, Thomson Locations: Taipei, Taiwan, Rights TAIPEI

REUTERS/Jason Lee/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSummaryCompanies Property sales, investment fall at double-digit paceProperty slowdown remains drag on economic growthBEIJING, Oct 18 (Reuters) - China's property sales and investment posted double-digit declines as efforts to support big cities failed to bolster confidence in an industry struggling to emerged from crisis, although the pace of contraction slowed. Property investment fell 18.7% from a year earlier after a 19.1% drop in August, according to Reuters calculations. "S&P Global Ratings expects that the low number of construction starts, an inventory overhang in lower-tier cities, and ever-tightening escrow restrictions will keep property sales depressed," S&P's credit analysts said in a note on Monday. Property investment in the first nine months of 2023 fell by 9.1% from a year earlier, after slumping 8.8% in January-August, according to NBS data. Funds raised by China's property developers were down 13.5% year-on-year after a 12.9% slide in January-August.

Persons: Jason Lee, Zhou Hao, Liangping Gao, Ella Cao, Ryan Woo, Christian Schmollinger, Sam Holmes Organizations: REUTERS, National Bureau of Statistics, Country Garden Holdings, HK, Monetary Fund, Property, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, BEIJING

☆ Australia central bank sees challenging economy, inflation risks
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

SYDNEY, Oct 18 (Reuters) - The head of Australia's central bank on Wednesday said the domestic economy was in a "challenging" situation with consumption slowing but inflation still elevated, and monetary policy was on a narrow path to balance these forces. Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) Governor Michele Bullock said there were signs that inflation might be difficult to suppress, particularly in services where it was proving to be sticky. She warned that the central bank was very alert to upside risks on inflation and, were it to remain higher than expected, the bank would have to respond with tighter monetary policy. Reporting by Wayne Cole; Editing by Christian SchmollingerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Michele Bullock, Wayne Cole, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: SYDNEY, Reserve Bank of Australia, Thomson

☆ US raises travel advisory for Lebanon to 'do not travel'
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Israeli soldiers stand near to a tank near Israel's border with Lebanon in northern Israel, October 16, 2023. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsOct 17 (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department on Tuesday raised its travel alert for Lebanon to "do not travel," citing the security situation related to rocket, missile, and artillery exchanges between Israel and Hezbollah. The State Department authorized the voluntary, temporary departure of family members of U.S. government personnel and some non-emergency personnel from the U.S. Embassy in Beirut because of the unpredictable security situation in Lebanon. The advisory comes as a Gaza health ministry spokesman said hundreds were killed in a blast at a Gaza City hospital, igniting protests in the West Bank and around the Middle East. Reporting by Eric Beech and Dan Whitcomb; Editing by Christian SchmollingerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Lisi Niesner, Eric Beech, Dan Whitcomb, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: REUTERS, U.S . State Department, Hezbollah, The State Department, U.S, Embassy, West Bank, Hamas, Thomson Locations: Lebanon, Israel, Beirut, Gaza, Gaza City, Israel's, U.S

SYDNEY, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Australia's top court on Wednesday quashed a levy on electric vehicles (EVs) by the state of Victoria, in a case that could make it more difficult for other states to pursue similar legislation. In 2021, Victoria introduced a levy of between A$0.02 ($0.013) and A$0.025 per km travelled in EVs, a tax that faced a wide range of opposition. After a case brought by two EV owners, the High Court ruled Victoria's excise duty can only be levied by the federal government. The states of New South Wales and Western Australia have previously announced plans to introduce similar legislation. Reporting by Alasdair Pal in Sydney; Editing by Christian SchmollingerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: David Hertzberg, Noah Schultz, Alasdair Pal, Christian Schmollinger Organizations: SYDNEY, EV, ABC, Australia Institute, Thomson Locations: Victoria, EVs, New South Wales, Western Australia, South Australian, Sydney

☆ Wall Street brokerages raise China's 2023 economic growth forecast
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-18 | by ( Susan Mathew | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Thomas Peter/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsOct 18 (Reuters) - JP Morgan, Citigroup and Nomura on Wednesday lifted their forecast for China's economic growth for the year following upbeat data, but highlighted the need for more stimulus. Citigroup now expects China's GDP to grow 5.3% in 2023 from 5% earlier, while JP Morgan and Nomura see it at 5.2% and 5.1%, respectively. JP Morgan expects the economic momentum to persist in the coming months. Since the 5% growth target looks achievable, policy space could be saved for next year, Zheng said. JP Morgan expects China's potential growth coming down faster than initially expected in 2024 and 2025 to a range of 4%-4.5% and 3.5%-4%, respectively.

Persons: Thomas Peter, JP Morgan, Nomura, Goldman Sachs, Haibin Zhu, Morgan Stanley, Jenny Zheng, Zheng, Albee Zhang, Susan Mathew, Christian Schmollinger, Eileen Soreng Organizations: REUTERS, Citigroup, Nomura, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China

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