Business

Popular Line messaging app starts crypto trading spinoff

TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan’s biggest messaging app Line said Wednesday it was launching a financial services spinoff to allow users to exchange and trade virtual currencies. Line said its new business would “provide a variety of financial services, including a place to exchange and transact virtual currencies, loans, and insurance.” The transactions will be made inside the messaging app, which already incorporates a mobile payment system. Line has a relatively small presence in the US and Europe, […]

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Nintendo ups profit forecast on strong Switch sales

TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Nintendo hiked its annual net profit forecast by more than 40 percent Wednesday after its popular Switch console flew off shelves during the holiday season, fuelled by a cheaper yen. The Kyoto-based video game giant said it now expects annual net profit of 120 billion yen ($1.1 billion), a 41.2-percent rise from the previous forecast issued in October, while also raising its annual sales and operating profit projections. Nintendo now expects to sell 15 […]

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Blackstone agrees to stake in Thomson Reuters finance unit

NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — US private equity giant Blackstone has agreed to pay $17 billion for a majority stake in the financial services unit of Thomson Reuters, according to a joint statement issued Tuesday. The deal would give Blackstone a controlling stake in the unit that delivers financial research and other tools to market professionals through dedicated terminals and subscription services. Blackstone would get a 55 percent stake in the Finance & Risk […]

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Samsung Electronics reports record Q4 and full year profits

SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — Samsung Electronics reported a 73 percent jump in its fourth-quarter net profit on Wednesday, setting a record for any three-month period, mainly driven by demand for its memory chips and display panels. Net profit for the October to December period rose to 12.26 trillion won ($11.4 billion), up from 7.09 trillion won a year earlier, the South Korean tech giant said in a statement. Samsung Electronics, the flagship subsidiary of […]

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US investigating iPhone slowing Apple software: report

SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Apple’s move to slow down older iPhones as batteries weaken is under scrutiny by US prosecutors and stock market regulators, according to a report Tuesday by Bloomberg. The US Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission are investigating whether Apple broke the law by failing to disclose a software update that made older iPhone models function slower, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed people familiar with the matter. It […]

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Asian markets surge following Wall Street records

HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Asian markets surged Monday as investors tracked last week’s record-breaking end on Wall Street, where the three major indices all hit fresh highs. The rally comes during a strong earnings season, with major companies signalling higher profits in the wake of the tax cuts recently enacted in the United States. With more data from top companies including Alibaba and Google’s parent company Alphabet expected in the coming week, analysts say […]

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Dominguez: Massive infra program, comprehensive tax reform to drive PHL inclusive growth

(Eagle News) – Department of Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III has said the administration’s “massive infrastructure program” and comprehensive tax reform package would drive the inclusive growth of the country. According to Dominguez, the first element was indispensable as the Philippines for decades has lagged behind its neighbors in economic investments, grappling with a debt overhang. Dominguez was apparently referring to the Build, Build, Build program of the Duterte administration. Under the program, the government […]

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Intel gets lift from earnings, investors look past chip flaw

SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — A stronger-than expected earnings report Thursday lifted Intel shares as investors looked past a troubling computer chip flaw weighing on the US tech giant. Intel shares climbed more than four percent to $47.13 in after-market trades that followed release of its earnings figures, despite its warning of lawsuits, claims, and negative publicity from security vulnerabilities including recently disclosed Spectre and Meltdown flaws. For the fourth quarter, Intel posted a […]

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PHL rejects Php 380 million aid from EU; another P2.4 billion in EU aid for renewable energy to be turned down next

QUEZON CITY, Philippines (Eagle News) — The Philippine has formally rejected P380 million or 6.1 million euros worth of aid from the European Union. This was confirmed by European Union Ambassador Franz Jessen who said that the Philippines rejected the EU-Philippine Trade-Related Technical Assistance (TRTA) worth 6.1 million euros when it returned the agreement unsigned. “It was formalized after they returned the financial agreements of the TRTA that should be signed by end of the […]

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Macron ‘completely changed’ France’s image, says tech billionaire

by Clare Byrne Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) m– President Emmanuel Macron has “completely changed” France’s image, telecoms billionaire Xavier Niel said Wednesday, crediting the youthful, pro-business politician with attracting an influx of tech talent. “He has given France a pro-startup, pro-entrepreneur image abroad that we did not really have before,” said Niel, who bankrolled a giant startup incubator on the banks of the Seine river in Paris that opened a month after Macron’s election […]

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LG will increase washing machine prices due to US tariffs

NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — The US subsidiary of South Korea’s LG Electronics warned retailers on Wednesday that it will raise prices of its washing machines following import duties imposed by the Trump administration this week. It was the first concrete reaction to the trade measures announced this week that have angered US trading partners. “As a result of the trade situation, we will be initiating pricing actions,” Thomas Yoon, executive vice president of […]

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World Bank chief economist resigns amid Chile uproar

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The World Bank’s chief economist resigned on Wednesday amid a scandal that erupted when he raised questions about how the institution was ranking countries — especially Chile — in a key report. World Bank President Jim Kim announced that Paul Romer was stepping down immediately from the post he had held since October 2016, but did not specify the reason for his exit. In his only reference to the recent […]

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