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☆ After ASEAN and G-20, diplomats make last push on Ukraine crisis at APEC
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Sri Jegarajah | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A possible spillover of the war in Ukraine into Europe's eastern flank, which risks sparking a new phase of the conflict, will overshadow the agenda at this week's APEC Summit in Bangkok. Nurphoto | Getty ImagesBANGKOK — A possible spillover of the war in Ukraine into Europe's eastern flank, which risks sparking a new phase of the conflict, will overshadow the agenda at this week's APEC Summit in Bangkok. The latest developments in Europe are likely to eclipse the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum as business leaders, heads of state and diplomats try to find a way out of the conflict in Ukraine. The war has led to a stubbornly high global inflation that's challenged policymakers and caused a crippling cost of living crisis. Thailand has shown exceptional leadership in steering APEC through a challenging time," he said.

☆ Analysis: India power binges on coal, outpaces Asia
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Sudarshan Varadhan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

But the increase in India's coal-fired power output has outstripped its regional peers, data from the government and analysts showed. India's power ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Reuters GraphicsCLEAN ENERGY EFFORTSState-run Coal India, the country’s dominant coal miner, ramped up production to meet the utility demand. It reported a 13.5% year-on-year increase in its coal output in March-October to a record high of 432 million tonnes. Consultancy Wood Mackenzie expects India's coal-fired power output to grow 10% in 2022 compared to the previous year.

☆ Japan’s Leader Seeks Steady China Ties in First Meeting With Xi Jinping
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Alastair Gale | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida sought to steady ties with Beijing in his first meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping , reflecting the importance to Japan of economic links with China and Tokyo’s worries of being drawn into a conflict over nearby Taiwan. “Both countries are great powers with important responsibilities for the peace and prosperity of the international community. It is important that both sides accelerate their efforts to build constructive and stable Japan-China relations,” Mr. Kishida said at the start of a meeting with Mr. Xi in Bangkok that lasted around 45 minutes. The meeting took place ahead of a summit of leaders of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation group in Thailand, following a Group of 20 meeting in Indonesia.

☆ Singapore minister says country won't take sides as there's no win-win scenario in fractured world
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Su-Lin Tan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

"Global businesses have a voice and need to make their voice heard, that you prefer an integrated world, and not a fragmented world," Singapore's Education Minister Chan Chun Sing (pictured here in 2019) said. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images"It's important to remember that a more interdependent world is a safer world. He cited Russia's war in Ukraine and the World Trade Organization dispute settlement crisis as some of the cracks in the system. "Global businesses have a voice and need to make their voice heard, that you prefer an integrated world, and not a fragmented world," Chan said. "World trade as a percent of GDP had in the past been going up very fast, which contributed to the very low rate of inflation.

☆ Asian stocks shaken by blast in Poland, dollar gains
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Xie Yu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

HONG KONG, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Asian stocks dropped and the dollar gained on Wednesday after blasts in Poland that Ukraine and Polish authorities said were caused by Russian-made missiles. The potential for a further ratcheting up of geopolitical tensions saw MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) lose 0.6%. Australian shares (.AXJO) fell 0.5%, while Japan's Nikkei stock index (.N225) dropped 0.76%. NATO member Poland said on Wednesday that a Russian-made rocket killed two people in eastern Poland near Ukraine, and it summoned Russia's ambassador to Warsaw for an explanation after Moscow denied it was responsible. read moreThe dollar rose against major peers, led by a 0.3% advance versus the yen .

☆ The G-20 summit kicks off Tuesday. Here's what to expect.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Jihye Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Indonesian Finance Minister Sri Mulyani (C front) attends the G20 Finance Ministers Meeting in Nusa Dua, on Indonesia's resort island of Bali, on July 16, 2022. Nineteen countries and one economic region, the European Union, will attend this year's two-day G-20 meeting. This year's in-person attendee list has been in the spotlight as Russian President Vladimir Putin continues his unprovoked war in Ukraine. U.S. President Joe Biden is also scheduled to hold a bilateral meeting with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping ahead of the G-20. He highlighted China's stance on the war in Ukraine as one of many signs of eroding relations between the U.S. and China.

☆ Germany's BioNTech says to set up mRNA vaccine facility in Singapore
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Test tubes are seen in front of a displayed Biontech logo in this illustration taken, May 21, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationNov 14 (Reuters) - BioNTech SE (22UAy.DE), the German biotech that developed a widely used COVID-19 vaccine with Pfizer Inc (PFE.N), acquired a manufacturing facility in Singapore, its first in Asia, the company said on Monday. The facility, bought from a Novartis (NOVN.S) unit, will be its first messenger ribonucleic acid, or mRNA, facility in Singapore and support its vaccines production for the Asia Pacific region, BioNTech said in a statement, without disclosing financial details. The aim is to eventually expand production to other drug classes such as cell therapies, said BioNTech, which also plans to set up research and manufacturing centres in Australia. The Singapore facility is expected to be fully operational by 2023 and create more than 100 jobs by 2024.

☆ UBS says disinflation is on the way — and shares 8 global stocks to play it
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

After a year of double-digit inflation in many countries, UBS is now forecasting "sharp" disinflation in 2023. The bank screened for stocks it expects to be positively impacted in such an environment. The table below shows two stocks across four regions that UBS says will benefit the most from disinflation. British healthcare companies Genus and Hikma Pharmaceuticals ranked highly among the stocks UBS says will benefit from disinflation in the United Kingdom. "The negative payoff from getting our disinflation call wrong is large," strategists led by Arend Kapteyn warned.

The maker of IWC and Piaget watches surprised to the upside by reporting sales and operating profit from continuing operations rising by a quarter during the six months to the end of September. Jewellery sales rose by 24% in the period, with customers snapping up collections such as Cartier's Clash and Trinity rings and necklaces. The figures also showed the quality of the group's brands, "particularly its best in class jewellery business", Cox added. But from continuing operations, which removed the impact of the write-down and YNAP's losses, Richemont's profit increased by 40% to 2.1 billion euros. The latest results showed "excellent sales growth, profit and cash flow results", he added.

☆ Luxury group Richemont sounds cautious note on cost-of-living pressures
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( John Revill | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Still, from its continuing operations, which removed the impact of the write-down and the contribution from YNAP, Richemont's profit increased by 40% to 2.1 billion euros and profit margins improved. Sales increased by 24% to 9.67 billion euros, helped by a recovery in the Asia Pacific region and double-digit percentage sales growth in all other regions as previously locked-down customers returned to its luxury boutiques. Chairman Johann Rupert described the figures as "another set of strong results," but added a note of caution about the future. "Richemont is well known for giving cautious guidance, which this time is to the point, considering the ongoing tough environment," Bertschy said. ($1 = 0.9785 euros)Reporting by John Revill, Editing by Miranda Murray & Shri NavaratnamOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Alibaba's Singles Day shopping event set to end with subdued sales and no fanfare
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Casey Hall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/4] A delivery worker sorts parcels at a makeshift logistics station ahead of Alibaba's Singles' Day shopping festival, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Shanghai, China, November 10, 2022. The Singles Day shopping festival, which despite its name has evolved into a multi-week event, is a key barometer of Chinese retail demand. But Citi predicts rival e-commerce giant JD.com (9618.HK), which also holds a Singles Day shopping event, to fare somewhat better as it is strong in consumer electronics and home appliance offerings which are expected to remain popular. Singles Day has also had contend with the absence of one its two live-streaming mega sales gurus, Viya, who has been offline since being fined for tax evasion. "Alibaba has tried to make (the event) less about just dropping prices," said Mark Tanner, chief executive of Shanghai-based consultancy, China Skinny.

☆ Biden to attend summit of Southeast Asian leaders as Myanmar looms
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

BANGKOK — Southeast Asian leaders convene in the Cambodian capital Thursday, faced with the challenge of trying to curtail escalating violence in Myanmar while the country’s military-led government shows no signs of complying with the group’s peace plan. U.S. President Joe Biden will be on hand for the Phnom Penh summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which comes as Washington and Beijing are increasingly jockeying for influence in the Asia-Pacific region. In addition to Myanmar, the four-day meetings are expected to focus on ongoing disputes in the South China Sea, pandemic recovery issues, regional trade and climate change. Neither Xi nor Putin is expected to attend the ASEAN talks or the parallel East Asia Summit, though both China and Russia are thought to be sending high-level delegations. “For Southeast Asia it’s really important to physically show up, and I think the Americans are very aware of this,” Daniel said.

☆ Twitter layoffs in India, Africa could weaken the company in its biggest growth markets
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Diksha Madhok | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Twitter laid off thousands of employees across the company on Friday, including staff in India and Africa. Under siege in critical marketsEven before the layoffs, Twitter was going through a tough time in both India and Africa. Tech experts now fear that the company will find it even harder to navigate new laws in emerging markets. Twitter does not share user numbers, but according to India, the platform has 17.5 million users in the country. “Content moderation has to be specific to geography,” said Vivan Sharan, partner at Delhi-based tech policy consulting firm Koan Advisory Group.

☆ Escalatory spiral of rhetoric coming out of a divided US government should be a concern: J.P. Morgan
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | 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 EmailEscalatory spiral of rhetoric coming out of a divided US government should be a concern: J.P. MorganJames Sullivan, Head of Asia Pacific Equity Research at J.P. Morgan, discusses the market impact of the U.S. midterm elections.

Nov 10 (Reuters) - Origin Energy Ltd (ORG.AX), Australia's no.2 power producer and energy retailer, backed an A$18.4 billion ($11.8 billion) non-binding buyout offer from a consortium led by Canada's Brookfield Asset Management, the companies said on Thursday. The deal sent Origin's share price soaring nearly 40% in early trade to A$8.14. Origin opened its books to the consortium after it raised its offer to A$9 per share in cash, a near 55% premium to Origin's last close of A$5.81. The bid from Brookfield comes after it was rebuffed earlier this year when it led a $3.5 billion takeover offer for Australia's top power producer, AGL Energy (AGL.AX). Under the indicative proposal submitted on Thursday, Brookfield would acquire Origin's energy markets business, while MidOcean Energy, the other consortium partner, would take control of Origin's integrated gas business, including its 27.5% stake in Australia Pacific LNG (APLNG).

HONG KONG, Nov 8 (Reuters) - Asian shares rose on Tuesday as U.S. stocks increased overnight before midterm elections and investors clung on to hopes that China would eventually relax its strict pandemic curbs even after the government reaffirmed its commitment to the zero-COVID policy. Wall Street ended sharply higher Monday as investors focused on Tuesday's midterm elections that will determine control of Congress, while shares of Meta Platforms jumped on a report of job cuts at the Facebook parent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index (.HSI) and China's benchmark CSI300 Index (.CSI300) were up 0.3% and 0.14%, respectively. Investors are hoping China will gradually ease its zero-COVID policy and reopen to the world, even after health officials reiterated their commitment to the policy on Saturday at a press conference. Analysts said U.S. mid-term elections on Tuesday could impact markets.

☆ Asian stocks mixed as caution reigns ahead of U.S. midterms
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Kane Wu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

MSCI's gauge of Asia Pacific stocks outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) narrowed gains to rise 0.12% at 0517 GMT. "The thing to watch ... will be the U.S. midterms today and the CPI data tomorrow," said Redmond Wong, Saxo Markets' market strategist for Greater China, in a note on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 (.N225) gained as much as 1.44%, hitting an eight-week high, as investors scooped up chips and other technology stocks. Analysts said U.S. mid-term elections on Tuesday could impact markets. Brent crude fell 0.32% to $97.61 a barrel by 0526 GMT, while U.S. crude fell 0.38% to $91.44 a barrel.

Industry data show business travellers are taking longer trips than before COVID-19, leaving airlines adjusting flight plans. Qantas Airways Ltd (QAN.AX) and Virgin Australia say higher airfares have so far offset any revenue impact from fewer business trips. Ajit Chouhan, a Texas-based human resources executive, used to go on one-day business trips to San Francisco at least once a month before the pandemic. "If I'm on a business trip, do I want to stay an extra day if my partner's at home?" One-day journeys accounted for around 4% of domestic business trips globally in 2019, according to CWT data, versus 3% now.

☆ Holding on to your best people can be a mistake, says manufacturing CEO
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Cristy Garratt | Victor Loh | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

As a manager, it can be tempting to do everything within your power to hold on to your best people. But that kind of thinking can ultimately backfire on you as a leader, explained Dharmesh Arora, regional CEO for Asia Pacific at German manufacturer Schaeffler. Arora learned this lesson the hard way during his first managerial stint as a supply chain manager at General Motors. Within three years, he helped me fix some of the perennial demand management and supply chain challenges we had in our systems," Arora recalled. "We as managers, as leaders, are to empower and enable the best in our team members," Arora said.

HONG KONG, Nov 3 (Reuters) - Wall Street major Morgan Stanley (MS.N) is expected to start a fresh round of layoffs globally in the coming weeks, three people with knowledge of the plan said, as dealmaking business takes a hit due to rising inflation and an economic downturn. One of the sources said the bank's 30-plus technology investment banking team in Asia Pacific will also be affected by the cuts. Morgan Stanley last month reported a 30% slump in third-quarter profit, missing analysts' estimate as a slowdown in global dealmaking hurt its investment bank business. Gorman is currently in Hong Kong at a high-profile financial summit aimed at re-opening the city to international investors after nearly three years of strict COVID restrictions. Reporting by Kane Wu and Julie Zhu in Hong Kong, Scott Murdoch in Sydney and Lananh Nguyen in New York; Editing by Sumeet Chatterjee and Richard PullinOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Bentley's profit gets a lift from niche, personalised cars
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Nick Carey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Luxury British carmaker Bentley said on Wednesday that its operating profit for the first nine months of 2022 more than doubled, as global economic uncertainty failed to dent customer interest for niche models and increased car customisation. The unit of German carmaker Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) posted an operating profit for the first three quarters of 2022 of 575 million euros ($568 million), more than the 275 million euros in the same period of last year. Bentley said global sales were up 3% at 11,316 units, while revenue jumped 28% to 2.49 billion euros from 1.95 billion a year earlier. Sales in the Americas, Bentley's biggest region by sales, were up 7%. ($1 = 1.0128 euros)Reporting By Nick Carey; editing by David EvansOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The macroeconomic environment is also not one that really favours aggressive investment at this point in time," Jaideep Khanna, who heads Barclays' Asia Pacific business told Reuters in an interview. We, as a business within the Barclays framework, are accretive to the firm and have delivered over the last three years," said Mumbai-based Khanna, who is also Barclays' India CEO. Khanna, the only regional CEO of a global bank to be based in India, took the role in 2017 after joining Barclays in 2001. The country is also home to Barclays' global services centre, where it employs more than 21,000 - its second-largest number of staff outside of Britain. In Australia, Khanna said Barclays would deepen its involvement with investment banking boutique firm Barrenjoey Capital Partners in which it nearly doubled its stake to 18.2% this year.

☆ Credit Suisse plans to push ahead with China expansion after overhaul
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Selena Li | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

As part of the global revamp, Credit Suisse is evaluating its presence in 13 locations in Asia Pacific with an aim to "simplify" operations in each location, Credit Suisse's Singapore-based Asia Pacific chief executive Edwin Low told Reuters, without elaborating. Low said China and Hong Kong, however, will remain brighter spots. A Credit Suisse report in September forecast the number of Chinese millionaires will double by 2026. As part of its China expansion plans, Credit Suisse struck a deal to buy out its Chinese partner in a local securities joint venture last month, at a time when plans of its global overhaul were being deliberated internally. "China will go through ups and downs, but we're giving the opportunity to acquire 100% of Credit Suisse Securities with our full commitment, knowing that the China recovery may not be immediate," Low said.

HONG KONG, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Hong Kong aims to restore its reputation as a global financial hub by playing host to a bevy of top Wall Street executives this week, defying critics who say a talent crunch and geopolitical tension will hobble its ambition. Alongside the main theme of "navigating through uncertainty", the summit is widely expected to focus on whether Hong Kong can remain a global financial centre after almost three years of border controls and pandemic restrictions. COVID-19 CONTROLSThe two-day summit, organised by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) - the de-facto central bank - has suffered at least two marquee participants dropping out after contracting COVID-19. Those who make it will look for reassurances of the city returning to pre-pandemic normalcy, making it easier for them to move talent to Hong Kong. Reporting by Scott Murdoch in Sydney and Kane Wu and Selena Li in Hong Kong; Editing by Sumeet Chatterjee and Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ EXCLUSIVE KKR raises $6 bln for biggest Asia infrastructure fund -sources
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Anshuman Daga | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

HOTBED FOR DEALSLike the debut infrastructure fund that made more than a dozen investments, KKR's latest one will target renewables, telecom towers, power, utilities and transportation infrastructure, among others, the sources said. This year alone, funds backed by the likes of KKR, Macquarie, infrastructure investors DigitalBridge (DBRG.N) and Stonepeak have struck deals for tens of thousands of telecom towers in the Philippines. Earlier this month, a top executive at Permodalan Nasional Bhd, Malaysia's largest asset manager, told Reuters that it plans to add infrastructure assets into its portfolio from 2023. Last year, 19 Asia Pacific-focused infrastructure funds raised a total of $10.3 billion, Preqin data showed. Last month, Neil Arora, a veteran infrastructure dealmaker from Macquarie, joined KKR as the head of its energy transition team for Asia Pacific.

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