Business

Oil prices surge after suspected attacks on tankers

by Roland JACKSON NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — World oil prices rose Thursday following suspected attacks on two tankers in the Gulf of Oman, worsening frayed tensions in the crude-rich Middle East region. The rise in oil prices — jumping as much as 4.5 percent before pulling back somewhat — boosted share prices of energy companies, while global stock markets also won some support from the prospect of US interest rate cuts this year. […]

Hong Kong leads way again in fresh Asia market sell-off

HONG KONG, China (AFP ) — Asian markets fell again Thursday with Hong Kong suffering a second straight day of heavy losses as investors fret over the impact of protests in the city and plans to introduce a controversial law allowing extradition to China. Equities were once more deep in negative territory owing to uncertainty over the China-US trade saga and following a tepid inflation report out of Washington, while oil prices were wallowing at […]

Amazon dethrones Google as top global brand: survey

LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — US retail giant Amazon has moved past hi-tech titans Apple and Google to become the world’s most valuable brand, a key survey showed Tuesday. The brand value of Amazon surged by 52 percent to $315 billion, global market research agency Kantar said in its 2019 100 Top BrandZ report. Amazon jumped from third to first place to eclipse Google — which slid from first to third place with Apple holding […]

Asian markets enjoy fresh rally with focus on Trump-Xi meeting

HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Markets extended the previous day’s gains in Asia on Tuesday, with investors turning their attention back to the China-US trade row and a planned meeting between the countries’ leaders later this month. Donald Trump’s decision to drop threatened tariffs on Mexico after a last-minute immigration deal last week sparked relief across trading floors and led to hope that the row with Beijing could also end with some sort of agreement. […]

Asian markets climb on hopes of Mexico tariff delay

HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Asian markets rose Friday, tracking gains on Wall Street following a report that the United States could delay its plan to hit Mexico with tariffs. The threats against Mexico have intensified anxiety among investors, who were already rattled by the seemingly endless US-China trade war. But US stocks enjoyed a bounce Thursday after Bloomberg News reported that Washington could push back its plan to impose tariffs on Mexico on June […]

Asian markets tumble on trade tensions

HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Asian stocks largely fell Tuesday, reversing early gains on a bargain-hunting push by investors, as global trade tensions continued to weigh on markets. Fears of an economic slowdown have mounted in recent days as US President Donald Trump has threatened Mexico with tariffs, adding to anxieties over the US-China trade war, which shows no signs of a resolution. The market’s “assumption that the slowing global economy would recover later this […]

China’s Huawei to sell stake in undersea-cable unit

SHANGHAI, China (AFP) — Huawei will sell its majority share in a submarine cable unit, the stake’s buyer announced Monday, amid a US-led drive to isolate the Chinese telecom giant from global information networks over spying fears. US President Donald Trump has attacked Huawei in recent months, urging allies to boycott its products and blacklisting the Chinese firm from buying some US software. Undersea cables are vital to global internet traffic. The 51 percent stake […]

US ban has ‘no effect’ on Huawei’s aviation business: official

by Sunghee Hwang SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — US moves against Chinese tech titan Huawei have had “no effect” on the firm’s aviation business despite several countries taking steps to block its mobile services, a top company executive said Monday. Huawei has been caught in an intensifying trade war between the United States and China, with President Donald Trump moving to blacklist the Chinese manufacturer over national security concerns. But Eman Liu, president of Huawei’s […]

Asia markets fall after Trump announces Mexico tariffs

HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Asian stocks edged down Friday, despite modest gains on Wall Street overnight, as US President Donald Trump’s sudden announcement of tariffs on all Mexican imports saw Tokyo shares drop. Trump’s Twitter announcement of a five percent tariff on all goods from Mexico starting June 10 sent shares in automakers with plants in the North American country falling sharply. Trump said the duties would gradually increase until “illegal migrants” stop coming […]

Tokyo stocks down on US-China trade row, Italy flare-up

TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Tokyo stocks closed lower on Thursday as investors worried about mounting tensions in the US-China trade row and a political flare-up between Rome and Brussels. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell 0.29 percent, or 60.84 points, to 20,942.53 while the broader Topix index was also down 0.29 percent, or 4.43 points, at 1,531.98. Tokyo shares opened lower following a negative lead from Wall Street on growing concern about the trade spat. […]

China warns US not to politicize exchange rates

  BEIJING, China (AFP) — China warned the United States on Wednesday not to “politicize” the exchange rate of its currency amid a festering trade war between the two economic giants. The US Treasury declined to label China a currency manipulator in its latest semi-annual report but also called on Beijing to prevent the yuan from weakening. “We have always said here that we hope the US side will respect objective facts, market rules and […]

Asia stocks sink after losses in US, Europe

HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Asian stocks sank Wednesday, tracking losses in Europe and on Wall Street as investors grew anxious about a possible economic slowdown and the absence of any progress in resolving the US-China trade war. Economists say the trade dispute between the world’s top two economic superpowers will have grim implications for consumers, who will have to bear the costs of punitive tit-for-tat tariffs. Although an index of US consumer confidence on […]