Bloomberg Hong Kong’s dominant broadcaster cut a current affairs program that had satirised the police amid a citywide shortage of protective gear against the coronavirus, prompting fresh warnings about press freedoms in the former British colony. The broadcaster, Television Broadcasts Ltd, cut local media outlet RTHK’s controversial satire programme “Headliner” — which had earlier prompted a complaint from Hong Kong’s ...

Bloomberg A group of economists have cautioned India’s government against clubbing data collection for its controversial citizens’ register with the census exercise, saying it could have implications for the nation’s statistical system. The census is a basic household and population list based on anonymous data, whereas there are fears the National Population Register could be used to question a person’s ...

Bloomberg China’s exports fell more than expected in the first two months of this year as the coronavirus outbreak led to extended holidays, depressed factory output, and blocked transport and movement across the country. Imports also declined, although increases in commodities purchases offset some of that. The drop in exports was a bigger-than-expected 17.2% in dollar terms, while imports declined ...

Bloomberg India is seeking preliminary bids for the privatisation of state-run refiner Bharat Petroleum Corp as Prime Minister Narendra Modi speeds up asset sales to help plug the budget gap. The government plans to sell about 1.15 billion shares, its entire stake of roughly 53%, according to a memorandum. It’s inviting both domestic and foreign suitors in the private or ...

Bloomberg Thailand is hindering Chinese tourists because of the novel coronavirus outbreak, normally an unthinkable step for a country that relies on their spending for economic growth. The government signalled that it prefers arrivals from China, Hong Kong, Macau, South Korea, Iran and Italy to self-quarantine for 14 days to prevent the spread of the Covid-19 disease. They also have ...

Bloomberg The US trade deficit narrowed by more than expected at the start of the year ahead of broader supply-chain disruptions from the coronavirus that have since hit businesses dependent on shipments from China. The overall US deficit in goods and services trade shrank to $45.3 billion in January, from $48.6 billion in the prior month, according to data released ...

Bloomberg Prime Minister Boris Johnson might be about to go after Britain’s “staggeringly rich.” There’s no full-scale attack of wealth coming, but the country’s myriad tax breaks — some of which mainly benefit the rich — could be targeted in next week’s budget by a government that needs every penny to fund the biggest spending spree in years. Local media ...

Bloomberg German factories saw a rebound in demand just before China became engulfed by the coronavirus outbreak that has since spread across the globe. Orders gained 5.5% in January, suggesting manufacturers were starting to recover from a slump that has lasted more than a year. Since then, numerous companies have reported supply chain disruptions and plummeting export demand as the ...

Bloomberg The Trump administration granted exemptions from tariffs for a range of medical products imported from China, including face masks and medical gloves. Among the products that won an exemption are medical masks by Medegen Medical Products, LLC., Cardinal Health exam gloves, and Medline Industries Inc.’s patient cleansing wipes. In its request to exclude masks from the 7.5% duty, Medegen ...

Bloomberg Apple Inc. is encouraging employees in Silicon Valley to work from home as an “additional precaution” against the outbreak of coronavirus, joining other major technology companies, including Alphabet Inc. and Microsoft Corp. The iPhone maker has two main headquarters in Cupertino, California, — the Apple Park campus and its original Infinite Loop set of buildings — in addition to ...