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By Agence France Presse A rapidly growing gap between rich and poor in many developing East Asian nations is threatening the foundation for the region’s economic success, the World Bank said Monday. “The whole basis for East Asia’s success was this sense that everything was fair — you worked hard, you got ahead — but that is beginning to unravel a little bit,” said Sudhir Shetty, the bank’s chief economist for East Asia and […]
by Michael Mathes © Agence France-Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US Senate Republicans narrowly passed landmark tax reform early Saturday, a critical step toward delivering a monumental legislative victory for President Donald Trump in his first year in office. After a marathon session that stretched overnight, the chamber voted 51 to 49 in favor of the nation’s largest tax overhaul in 31 years, overcoming stubborn internal Republican resistance and dismissing Democrats angry over the last-minute revisions to […]
By Daphne Rousseau Agence France Presse BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — From raising $30 million in 30 seconds to being endorsed by Paris Hilton or vanishing into thin air: anything is possible in the risky new world of cryptocurrency fundraising, but regulators are lurking. Bypassing oversight of any kind, Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) have sprung from nowhere to become a hugely popular way for start-ups to raise funds online, offering self-created digital “tokens” or coins […]
SINGAPORE, Singapore (AFP) — Singapore’s economy beat expectations to grow at its fastest pace in nearly four years during the third quarter, data showed Thursday, boosted by a surge in global demand that has buoyed Asia in the face of brewing protectionist fears. The forecast-beating performance for the island-state follows similarly strong readings from the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, South Korea and Taiwan, all of which have benefited from a pick-up in world trade. The trade […]
MANILA, Philippines (Eagle News) — Senator Ralph Recto proposed that starting January 2018, those who have a yearly wage of Php 250,000 should be exempted from income tax. Recto said that the government will not lose money if those earning Php 250, 000 yearly were exempted from taxes.
NAY PYI TAW, Myanmar (Reuters) — President U Htin Kyaw of Myanmar met with Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi on Sunday in Nay Pyi Taw and both sides pledged to further promote bilateral ties and cooperation. U Htin Kyaw asked Wang Yi to convey his greetings to President Xi Jinping and congratulated Xi on his re-election as general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC). U Htin Kyaw said that […]
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan notched up its seventh straight quarter of economic growth, official data showed on Wednesday, although the rate of expansion in the world’s third-biggest economy is slowing. Japanese gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 0.3 percent in the third quarter of the year, marking the longest string of gains for more than 16 years. However, the figure represented a slowdown from the second quarter, when the economy grew by 0.6 percent, as […]
CARACAS, Venezuela (AFP) — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro insisted on Sunday that his cash-strapped country would “never” default, as he prepared to meet with creditors in Caracas to discuss rescheduling part of the country’s massive $150 billion debt. “Never, default will never reach Venezuela,” he declared on his weekly television show. “Our strategy is to renegotiate and refinance all the debt.” Maduro pointed to ongoing negotiations with his allies China and Russia, to which Venezuela […]
SAO PAULO, Brazil (AFP) — Several thousand Brazilians demonstrated on Friday as part of a day of national mobilization against government austerity measures, including a labor law that will soon come into effect. Demonstrators were also protesting against a highly-unpopular pension reform project and the wave of privatization recently announced by President Michel Temer’s government. “We must prevent the destruction of our country, the loss of social gains and the threats against democracy,” said Telma de Barros, […]
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — Saudi Aramco on Thursday signed agreements worth nearly $4.5 billion with multinational oil and gas contractors, in what the company dubbed as an effort to diversify the economy. The deals were signed with companies including Spain’s Tecnicas Reunidas, Italy’s Saipem, China Petroleum Pipeline and Abu Dhabi’s National Petroleum Construction. The investments “reflect our concerted effort… to diversify our economy, promote local manufacturing, support a sustainable environment and strengthen our business […]
SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Australia’s sharemarket Tuesday broke above 6,000 points for the first time since the global financial crisis, pushing past a psychological barrier amid optimism about the world economy. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 briefly passed 6,000 in mid-day trading, after failing to breach the level in several attempts over recent years. The market plunged below 6,000 in 2008 as the financial crisis sent shock waves through global markets. “We are going through this […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Jerome “Jay” Powell, the Republican former investment banker tapped by President Donald Trump to replace Janet Yellen at the helm of the US Federal Reserve, could be the richest person to ever fill the role. Trump’s choice of Powell — who is not a trained economist — represents a departure from longstanding precedent, but also sends a signal to markets that the White House intends to maintain a measure of continuity with […]
