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☆ Google says court order on Disney app fee in India temporary
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Disney in India has gone to court in what is the latest and most high-profile challenge to Google's policy of imposing a "service fee" of 11-26% on in-app payments. The service charge was introduced after an antitrust directive ruled against Google's earlier 15-30% fee and forced Google to allow third-party payments. An Indian court on Tuesday said Google should receive a lower 4% fee for in-app purchases from Disney+ Hotstar, and cannot remove Disney's app from its India app store, in what is a significant challenge to Google's payments business model. Disney, which runs the popular Disney+ Hotstar streaming app in India, has challenged Google's new billing system in a court in India's Tamil Nadu state. Its lawyers had argued Google was threatening to remove the Hotstar app if it didn't comply with new payments system.

Persons: Aditya Kalra, Tanvi Mehta, Rama Venkat, Nivedita Bhattacharjee Organizations: NEW, Google, Disney, Thomson Locations: NEW DELHI, BENGALURU, India, India's Tamil Nadu, New Delhi, Bengaluru

Bank of America (BAC.N) rose marginally in premarket trading after the lender posted a 20% surge in second-quarter profit, while Morgan Stanley's (MS.N) shares pared early gains after the bank's profit slipped 18%, hurt by a deal-making drought. The S&P 500 banks index (.SPXBK) has fallen 5.2% so far this year, underperforming the S&P 500 index (.SPX) which has notched a 17.8% gain after the biggest banking crisis since 2008 earlier this year took down three lenders and pummeled the sector. Overall earnings across industries are expected to decline 8.1% for the quarter, according to Refinitiv data. ET, Dow e-minis were down 18 points, or 0.05%, S&P 500 e-minis were down 3.75 points, or 0.08%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 26.25 points, or 0.17%. Pinterest (PINS.N) gained 3.3% as Evercore ISI upgraded its rating on the stock to "outperform" and Marvell Technology (MRVL.O) climbed 1.1% after Bank of America added the chipmaker to its U.S. No.1 list.

Persons: Morgan Stanley, Morgan Stanley's, Sam Stovall, Wells, Lockheed Martin, Bansari Mayur Kamdar, Johann M, Nivedita Bhattacharjee Organizations: Bank of America, Dow, Nasdaq, CFRA Research, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of New York Mellon, PNC Financial Services, Lockheed, Dow e, Federal Reserve, ISI, Marvell Technology, U.S, Thomson Locations: New York, Bengaluru

Speaking at the Adani Enterprises' annual general meeting, Adani said the Hindenburg short-seller report was a "deliberate and malicious attempt aimed at damaging our reputation and generating profits through a short-term drive-down of our stock prices." "While the Securities and Exchange Board of India is still to submit its report, we remain confident of our governance and disclosure standards," billionaire Adani said. The short-seller report had also forced Adani Enterprises to shelve its key $2.5 billion share sale in February. Adani Enterprises shares climbed over 4% on Tuesday, while Adani Transmission (ADAI.NS) and Adani Green Energy (ADNA.NS) rose 4.7% and 5.7%, respectively. He also added that Adani Ports (APSE.NS), in the next 12-24 months, will commission India's largest transshipment hub.

Persons: Gautam Adani, Adani, Chris Thomas, Nallur, Savio D'Souza, Nivedita Organizations: U.S, Adani Enterprises, Securities and Exchange Board, Green Energy, Thomson Locations: BENGALURU, India, Bengaluru

Shares of Charles Schwab jumped 13.2%, leading gains on the S&P 500 (.SPX), and those of PNC rose 2.6%. The S&P 500 banks index (.SPXBK) has fallen 3.9% so far this year, in the aftermath of a banking crisis that took down three lenders and pummeled the sector, underperforming the S&P 500 index (.SPX) that has notched a 17.8% gain in the same period. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) was up 141.63 points, or 0.41%, at 34,726.98, the S&P 500 (.SPX) was up 3.12 points, or 0.07%, at 4,525.91, and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) was down 43.61 points, or 0.31%, at 14,201.34. Eight of the top 11 S&P 500 sectors advanced with industrials (.SPLRCI) leading gains, while technology stocks (.SPLRCT) fell 0.6%. The S&P index recorded 20 new 52-week highs and no new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 65 new highs and 33 new lows.

Persons: Morgan Stanley, Lockheed Martin, MS.N, Robert Pavlik, Wells, Charles Schwab, Bansari Mayur Kamdar, Johann M, Nivedita Bhattacharjee Organizations: Bank of America, Lockheed, Dow, Nasdaq, Dakota Wealth ., . Federal, JPMorgan Chase, PNC Financial Services, PNC, Dow Jones, industrials, Wall, U.S . Federal Reserve, ISI, NYSE, Thomson Locations: ., Bengaluru

☆ Disney approaches Indian court in Google in-app billing dispute - source
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] A screen shows the logo and a ticker symbol for The Walt Disney Company on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., December 14, 2017. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File PhotoNEW DELHI, July 18 (Reuters) - Walt Disney (DIS.N) has approached a state court in India in an ongoing legal challenge against Google's (GOOGL.O) in-app billing system, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday. In May, India's competition watchdog started an inquiry into Google after some companies alleged the service fee the U.S. firm charges for in-app payments breaches an earlier antitrust directive. Google, which counts India as a key growth market, had earlier said the service fee supports investments in Google Play app store and the Android mobile operating system, ensuring it distributes it for free, and covers developer tools and analytic services. Reporting by Arpan Chaturvedi in New Delhi and Indranil Sarkar in Bengaluru ; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Nivedita BhattacharjeeOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Brendan McDermid, Walt Disney, Google's, Arpan Chaturvedi, Indranil Sarkar, Savio D'Souza, Nivedita Organizations: Walt Disney Company, New York Stock Exchange, REUTERS, Reuters, Google, Android, Thomson Locations: New York, U.S, DELHI, India, New Delhi, Bengaluru

OTTAWA, July 18 (Reuters) - Canada's annual inflation rate dropped more than expected to a 27-month low of 2.8% in June, data showed on Tuesday, led by lower energy prices while food and shelter cost increases persisted. Month-over-month, the consumer price index was up 0.1%, Statistics Canada said, which was also lower than the 0.3% forecast. "Inflation is definitely moving in the right direction, but we're seeing stickier and more persistent core measures," said Michael Greenberg, senior vice president and portfolio manager at Franklin Templeton Investment Solutions. The average of two of the Bank of Canada's (BoC) core measures of underlying inflation, CPI-median and CPI-trim, came in at 3.8% compared with 3.9% in May. "The Bank of Canada's preferred measures of core inflation, which exclude significant moves in individual categories, show that underlying price pressures remain sticky," said Royce Mendes, head of macro strategy at Desjardins Group.

Persons: stickier, Michael Greenberg, Royce Mendes, Mendes, We're, Jules Boudreau, Ismail Shakil, Steve Scherer, Fergal Smith, Nivedita Balu, Dale Smith, Will Dunham, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: OTTAWA, Reuters, Statistics, Bank of Canada's, Franklin Templeton Investment Solutions, Canada's, Desjardins Group, The Bank of Canada, Mackenzie Investments, Canadian, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: Statistics Canada, Mackenzie, China, Ottawa, Toronto

☆ India's Infosys signs five-year AI deal with $2 bln target spend
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, July 18 (Reuters) - India's second-largest software services exporter Infosys (INFY.NS) said on Monday it has signed a deal with an existing client to provide artificial intelligence (AI) and automation services that will span over five years, with a target spend estimated at $2 billion. AI and automation-related development, modernization and maintenance services are included in the agreement, the company said in an exchange filing. Infosys' move comes after rival Tata Consultancy Services (TCS.NS) said it planned to train 25,000 engineers to get them certified on Microsoft's (MSFT.O) Azure Open AI. Other rival Wipro (WIPR.NS) has plans to invest $1 billion into artificial intelligence (AI) over the next three years. Bengaluru-based Infosys launched a platform called Infosys Topaz for generative artificial intelligence (AI) in late May.

Persons: ChatGPT, Navamya Ganesh, Nivedita Organizations: Infosys, Microsoft, Tata Consultancy Services, Wipro, Thomson Locations: BENGALURU, Bengaluru

Of the 30 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported earnings as of Friday, 80% beat analyst expectations, according to Refinitiv data. Tesla (TSLA.O) gained 1.9% after the company said on Sunday it had built its first Cybertruck, after two years of delays. New York Fed Manufacturing data showed the general business conditions index fell to 1.1 from 6.6 in June, indicating activity changed little during the month. Elsewhere, data showed the Chinese economy grew at a frail pace in the second quarter. The S&P index recorded 44 new 52-week highs and four new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 104 new highs and 50 new lows.

Persons: Ford, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Chris Zaccarelli, JPMorgan Chase, Bansari Mayur Kamdar, Johann M, Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Maju Samuel Organizations: Citi, Dow, Nasdaq, Apple, Tesla, Bank of America, Netflix, Independent, Alliance, Ford, General Motors, Dow Jones, Federal Reserve, New York Fed, JPMorgan, Citigroup, Activision, Microsoft, PlayStation, Federal Trade, NYSE, Thomson Locations: Wells Fargo, U.S, Bengaluru

Second-quarter earnings are gathering momentum, with Tesla (TSLA.O) due to report on Wednesday, while Bank of America (BAC.N), Morgan Stanley (MS.N), Goldman Sachs (GS.N) and Netflix (NFLX.O) are also lined up through the rest of the week. Of the 30 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported earnings as of Friday, 80% beat analyst expectations, according to Refinitiv data. In trading before the bell, Tesla <TSLA.O> gained 1.6% after the company said on Sunday it had built its first Cybertruck, after two years of delays. Lackluster Chinese economic data weighed on investors' minds on Monday as the world's second largest economy grew at a frail pace in the second quarter. During the week, investors also await retail sales and new homes figures for June.

Persons: Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Danni Hewson, AJ Bell, Bansari Mayur, Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Maju Samuel Organizations: Dow, Nasdaq, Bank of America, Netflix, Dow e, Federal Reserve, JPMorgan, Citigroup, Activision, Microsoft, PlayStation, Federal Trade, Meta, Thomson Locations: Norway, Wells Fargo, U.S, Bengaluru

☆ BridgeBio's heart disease drug meets late-stage study goal, shares soar
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( Khushi Mandowara | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

July 17 (Reuters) - BridgeBio Pharma Inc's (BBIO.O) experimental drug for a rare heart disease showed significant improvement in patients in a late-stage study, sending its shares surging 65% on Monday. BridgeBio's drug improved survival by 81% in the study patients compared to 74% on the placebo, and also reduced frequency of heart disease-related hospitalization by 50%. The California-based company also provided additional data comparing it with Pfizer's drug. Acoramidis showed 92% improvement on heart failure test, compared to patients on placebo and Pfizer's drug at 30 months. The additional data suggests that BridgeBio's drug was better than tafamidis in controlling the disease, said TD Cowen analyst Tyler Van Buren.

Persons: acoramidis, Acoramidis, Cowen, Tyler Van, Luca Issi, BridgeBio, BridgeBio's, Khushi, Nivedita Bhattacharjee Organizations: BridgeBio Pharma, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Ionis Pharmaceutical, RBC Capital, U.S . Food, Drug Administration, Thomson Locations: U.S, California, Tyler Van Buren, Bengaluru

☆ Cathay Pacific expects up to $576 mln first-half profit as demand jumps
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Cathay Pacific booked record losses in the last three years as it parked much of its fleet during the pandemic amid COVID-related flight cancellations and drastic headcount cuts. As a result, its passenger load factor was 87.2% for the first half, compared with 59.2% last year. "Turning to July and August, on the travel side the outlook is encouraging," Cathay Pacific said. For fiscal 2023, Cathay Pacific is expected to log profit of HK$3.92 billion, according to a Refinitiv estimate, a huge swing from a HK$7.16 billion loss last year. ($1 = 7.8146 Hong Kong dollars)Reporting by Sameer Manekar in Bengaluru, additional reporting by Donny Kwok in Hong Kong; Editing by Sohini Goswami, Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Tom Hogue and Jan HarveyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Hong, Sameer Manekar, Donny Kwok, Sohini Goswami, Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Tom Hogue, Jan Harvey Organizations: Cathay Pacific Airways, HK, Cathay Pacific, Cathay, Hong Kong, Association, Airlines, Hong Kong's, Thomson Locations: North America, Australasia, Hong Kong, Air China, Cathay Pacific, Bengaluru

☆ India readies takeoff for mission to land spacecraft on moon's south pole
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-14 | by ( Nivedita Bhattacharjee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BENGALURU, July 14 (Reuters) - India's space agency made final preparations on Friday for the launch of a rocket that will attempt to land a robotic rover on the moon's south pole, a first in space exploration. The Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft would also be the first to land at the lunar south pole, an area of special interest for space agencies and private space companies because of the presence of water ice that could support a future space station. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said it had completed a review of the mission readiness ahead of Friday's scheduled launch. India's much-awaited moon mission Chandrayaan-3 has been scheduled for launch on July 14, 2023. "Joining a billion Indians in wishing great luck for #Chandrayaan3 mission!"

Persons: ISRO's, Narendra Modi's, Pawan Chandana, Nivedita, Kevin Krolicki, Jamie Freed Organizations: Soviet, Indian Space Research Organisation, ISRO, Skyroot Aerospace, Thomson Locations: BENGALURU, India, United States, Soviet Union, China, Andhra Pradesh, Bengaluru

☆ India blasts Chandrayaan-3 lander toward moon's south pole
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-14 | by ( Nivedita Bhattacharjee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

About 16 minutes later, ISRO's mission control announced that the rocket had succeeded in putting the Chandrayaan-3 lander into an Earth orbit that will send it looping toward a moon landing next month. India's much-awaited moon mission Chandrayaan-3 has been scheduled for launch on July 14, 2023. [1/5]India's LVM3-M4 lifts off carrying the Chandrayaan-3 lander from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota, India, July 14, 2023. The lunar landing is expected on Aug. 23, ISRO has said. Modi had earlier said on Twitter that the moon mission "will carry the hopes and dreams of our nation".

Persons: Jai Hind, Satish, Space, Stringer, ISRO's, Narendra Modi's, Modi, India, Technology Jitendra Singh, Nivedita, Kevin Krolicki, Jamie Freed, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Indian Space Research, Soviet, YouTube, REUTERS, ISRO, Twitter, State for Science, Technology, Skyroot Aerospace, Thomson Locations: BENGALURU, Andhra Pradesh, India, United States, Soviet Union, China, Sriharikota, Bengaluru

☆ US FTC opens investigation into OpenAI over misleading statements -document
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The FTC this week sent a 20-page demand for records about how OpenAI - the maker of generative artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT - addresses risks tied to its AI models. The agency is probing if OpenAI engaged in unfair practices that resulted in "reputational harm" to consumers. According to the FTC's demand for information sent to OpenAI, one of the questions has to do with steps OpenAI has taken to address its products' potential to "generate statements about real individuals that are false, misleading, or disparaging." The FTC declined comment, while OpenAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment. OpenAI in March also ran into trouble in Italy, where the regulator had ChatGPT taken offline over accusations OpenAI violated the European Union's GDPR - a wide-ranging privacy regime enacted in 2018.

Persons: OpenAI, Lina Khan, Dado Ruvic, Chuck Schumer, ChatGPT, Diane Bartz, Mrinmay Dey, Samrhitha Arunasalam, Aditya Soni, Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Mark Porter, Maju Samuel Organizations: U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Microsoft, FTC, Activision Blizzard, Washington Post, REUTERS, Reuters, U.S ., Thomson Locations: United States, Italy, U.S, Washington, Bengaluru

Unlike the U.S., where home buyers can snag a 30-year mortgage, Canadian borrowers must renew their mortgages every five years at the prevailing interest rates. MORTGAGE DELINQUENCIES LOWLatest data released during the quarterly earnings showed mortgage delinquencies for all banks were low. Of the big six banks in Canada, Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS.TO) and National Bank of Canada (NA.TO) do not offer mortgage extensions, meaning the payment owed by the consumer goes up for each hike the BoC announces. Bank of Montreal (BMO.TO), CIBC (CM.TO) and TD Bank (TD.TO) each allow for negative amortization as rates rise. So it is working counter to what the Bank of Canada is trying to accomplish," Briggs added.

Persons: Greg Taylor, Desjardins, Mike Rizvanovic, Rizvanovic, Darcy Briggs, Briggs, Nivedita Balu, Josie Kao, David Gregorio Our Organizations: TORONTO, Bank, Purpose Investments, Bank of Nova, National Bank of Canada, BoC, RBC, Scotiabank, National Bank, Bank of Montreal, CIBC, TD Bank, Desjardins . Royal Bank of Canada, BMO, Franklin Templeton, Bank of Canada, Thomson Locations: U.S, Canada, Bank of Nova Scotia, Franklin Templeton Canada, Toronto

☆ US FTC opens investigation into OpenAI - Washington Post
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

July 13 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has opened an investigation into OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, on claims it has run afoul of consumer protection laws by putting personal reputations and data at risk, the Washington Post reported on Thursday. The FTC this week sent a 20-page demand for records about how OpenAI addresses risks related to its AI models, the Post said, citing a document. The FTC and OpenAI did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment. OpenAI had in March also run into trouble in Italy, where the regulator had ChatGPT taken offline over accusations that OpenAI violated the European Union's GDPR - a wide-ranging privacy regime enacted in 2018. Reporting by Mrinmay Dey and Samrhitha Arunasalam in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee and Maju SamuelOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: OpenAI, Chuck Schumer, ChatGPT, Mrinmay Dey, Samrhitha, Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Maju Samuel Organizations: U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Washington Post, Microsoft, FTC, Post, Global, Reuters, U.S ., Thomson Locations: OpenAI, United States, Italy, U.S, Bengaluru

☆ Amazon gets labor board complaint on failure to bargain with NY union
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Chandni Shah | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

July 13 (Reuters) - Amazon.com (AMZN.O) was hit with a complaint on Wednesday for refusing to bargain with a New York workers' union, a spokesperson for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) said. Workers at the facility, located in the New York City borough of Staten Island, voted to join the Amazon Labor Union (ALU) last year, a first for the company in the United States. However, the e-commerce giant has challenged the results before the labor board, delaying any discussions with the union until the matter is resolved. The company's challenge has already been struck down once by the labor board in January. Amazon has faced dozens of complaints from workers and the ALU as the union attempts to organize warehouses across the country.

Persons: Chris Smalls, Shubham Kalia, Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Sohini Organizations: National Labor Relations Board, NLRB, Workers, New, Amazon Labor Union, Thomson Locations: New York, New York City, Staten Island, United States

☆ UK's Domino's Pizza Group names new CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

July 13 (Reuters) - Domino's Pizza Group (DOM.L) said on Thursday Andrew Rennie, who has served as the Europe chief for a major franchise operator of the pizza chain, will join the UK firm in August as its chief executive. Rennie will take over from Elias Diaz Sese, who has been serving as Domino's Pizza Group's (DPG) interim CEO since October 2022. The group owns, operates and franchises Domino's stores in the UK and Ireland. Rennie has held several roles at Domino's Pizza Enterprises in over two decades, including being CEO of its European business from 2014 to 2020. The Sydney-listed company holds exclusive master franchise rights for the Domino's brand across 12 markets including Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, France, The Netherlands, Germany and Luxembourg.

Persons: Andrew Rennie, Rennie, Elias Diaz Sese, Sese, DPG, Chandini, Nivedita Organizations: Ireland, Pizza Enterprises, Thomson Locations: Europe, Sydney, Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, France, The Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, Bengaluru

☆ Amazon faces labor complaint over failure to bargain with union
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

July 12 (Reuters) - Amazon.com (AMZN.O) was hit with a complaint on Wednesday over allegedly refusing to bargain with a New York workers union, a spokesperson for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) said. Amazon and the union did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Workers at Amazon's JFK8 fulfillment center in Staten Island voted to join the Amazon Labor Union (ALU) last year, a first for the company in the United States. Amazon is still challenging the results before a U.S. labor board and has yet to engage in bargaining with the union. The NLRB complaint comes as dozens of Amazon warehouse workers in New York sued the union on Monday, alleging that top union officials were refusing to hold democratic elections to fill leadership posts.

Persons: Chandni Shah, Shubham, Urvi Dugar, Nivedita Organizations: National Labor Relations Board, NLRB, Amazon, New, Amazon Labor Union, Thomson Locations: New York, New York City, Staten Island, United States, U.S, Bengaluru

☆ FTC opens investigation into OpenAI over misleading statements
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The FTC this week sent a 20-page demand for records about how OpenAI addresses risks related to its AI models. The agency is investigating whether the company engaged in unfair or deceptive practices that resulted in "reputational harm" to consumers. One of the questions has to do with steps OpenAI has taken to address the potential for its products to "generate statements about real individuals that are false, misleading, or disparaging." Global regulators are aiming to apply existing rules covering everything from copyright and data privacy to two key issues: the data fed into models and the content they produce, Reuters reported in May. OpenAI in March also ran into trouble in Italy, where the regulator had ChatGPT taken offline over accusations OpenAI violated the European Union's GDPR - a wide-ranging privacy regime enacted in 2018.

Persons: OpenAI, Chuck Schumer, ChatGPT, Diane Bartz, Mrinmay Dey, Samrhitha, Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Maju Samuel, Mark Porter Organizations: U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Microsoft, FTC, Washington Post, Reuters, U.S ., Thomson Locations: OpenAI, United States, Italy, U.S, Washington, Bengaluru

☆ India readies moon mission aimed to stake claim as a space power
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Nivedita Bhattacharjee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Only the United States, the former Soviet Union and China have made successful lunar landings. India's much-awaited moon mission Chandrayaan-3 has been scheduled for launch on July 14, 2023. India's much-awaited moon mission Chandrayaan-3 has been scheduled for launch on July 14, 2023. The Soviet Union, the United States, and China are the only three countries that have successfully carried out soft landings on the moon. On a visit to the United States last month, Modi and U.S. President Joe Biden pledged to deepen collaboration in space.

Persons: Narendra Modi's, Ajey Lele, Modi, Joe Biden, Carla Filotico, Nivedita, Kevin Krolicki, Jamie Freed Organizations: Soviet, Indian Space Research Organisation, New, Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies, Soviet Union, Skyroot Aerospace, U.S, NASA, ISRO, SpaceTec Partners, Thomson Locations: BENGALURU, United States, Soviet Union, China, Andhra Pradesh, India, Soviet, Denver, Bengaluru

☆ UK announces in-depth probe of Adobe's $20 billion Figma deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

July 13 (Reuters) - Britain's antitrust regulator on Thursday announced an in-depth probe of Adobe's (ADBE.O) $20 billion bid for cloud-based designer platform Figma, after the Photoshop owner said it would not offer any remedies to ease the regulator's concerns. But on July 7, the U.S. company told the CMA it would not offer any remedies, the CMA said on Thursday. Figma and Adobe both directed Reuters to the companies' response in June, when the regulator had flagged these concerns. An in-depth, or phase two, probe by the CMA is conducted by an inquiry group selected from independent experts. It has said it expects to close the deal by end of this year, as U.S. and EU regulators also probe the deal.

Persons: Yadarisa, Chavi Mehta, Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Mark Potter Organizations: Markets Authority, U.S ., CMA, Adobe, Reuters, Zoom Video Communications, Figma, Thomson Locations: U.S, EU, Bengaluru

☆ Foxconn-Vedanta JV split credit negative for UK conglomerate- CreditSights
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A man walks past the logo of Vedanta outside its headquarters in Mumbai, India January 31, 2018. REUTERS/Danish Siddiqui/File PhotoCHENNAI, July 13 (Reuters) - A decision by Taiwan's Foxconn (2317.TW) to withdraw from a $19.5 billion semiconductor joint venture with Vedanta (VDAN.NS) is a "credit negative" for the Indian conglomerate's UK parent Vedanta Resources, debt research firm CreditSights said on Thursday. CreditSights had previously expected a "minimal credit impact" on Vedanta Resources based on the old arrangement, as Volcan, Vedanta's holding entity was undertaking the semiconductor investments. CreditSights also expects further strain on credit metrics and free cash flows for both Vedanta Resources and India's Vedanta with Foxconn's exit also resulting in a loss of a partner to split manufacturing costs. CreditSights maintained its "buy" rating on Vedanta Resources' bonds saying its refinancing outlook for some debt maturities have improved, helped by $1.3 billion of fresh loan fundraisings.

Persons: Danish Siddiqui, Taiwan's Foxconn, CreditSights, Foxconn, Praveen, Nivedita Organizations: Vedanta, REUTERS, Danish, Indian conglomerate's, Vedanta Resources, JV, Fitch, Thomson Locations: Mumbai, India, CHENNAI, Volcan, Chennai

☆ Rupee to climb near 82/USD on bets Fed will end rate hikes
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Nimesh Vora | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MUMBAI, July 13 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee is poised to rise on Thursday on expectations that cooling inflation in the United States will allow the Federal Reserve to pause interest rate hikes soon. Non-deliverable forwards indicate the rupee will open at around 82-82.05 to the U.S. dollar compared with 82.2475 in the previous session. "Having talked of an upside breakout (for USD/INR) last week, this has been quite a turnaround," a fx trader said. The larger-than-expected slowdown in the U.S. inflation fuelled expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve is close to halting rate hikes. "The Federal Reserve seems intent on pushing ahead with a July rate hike, but the need for additional tightening thereafter is questionable," ING Bank said in a note.

Persons: interbank, Nimesh Vora, Nivedita Organizations: Federal Reserve, U.S, Reserve Bank of, U.S . Federal, ING Bank, Korean, Brent, Thomson Locations: MUMBAI, United States, Reserve Bank of India, U.S, Malaysian

After a five-month pause, the BoC raised its overnight rate in June, saying monetary policy was not sufficiently restrictive. "If new information suggests we need to do more, we are prepared to increase our policy rate further," BoC Governor Tiff Macklem told reporters after the decision. The BoC's overnight target rate was last at 5.00% in March and April of 2001. Twenty of 24 economists surveyed by Reuters had expected the central bank to lift rates by a quarter of a percentage point. Money markets had seen a more than a 70% chance of a rate hike before the announcement.

Persons: Derek Holt, Andrew Kelvin, Steve Scherer, Ismail Shakil, Fergal Smith, Divya Rajogopal, Nivedita Balu, Paul Simao, Mark Porter Organizations: OTTAWA, Bank of Canada, Wednesday, BoC, Scotiabank, Reuters, TD Securities, Thomson Locations: Canada, Toronto

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