Business

BLOOMBERG The global palm oil market is expected to tighten this year as floods and older trees constrain production in the world’s second-biggest supplier, according to a major Malaysian growers group. Indonesia and Malaysia may only see a marginal increase in output this year of less than 3%, respectively, Joseph Tek, the chief executive of the Malaysian Palm Oil Association, ...

BLOOMBERG FWD Group Holdings Ltd, the pan-Asian insurance company owned by Hong Kong billionaire Richard Li, has filed for a third time for an initial public offering (IPO) in the financial hub. The company resubmitted listing documents with updated financial data, confirming an earlier Bloomberg News report, after its September application lapsed. The insurer is still seeking to raise about ...

BLOOMBERG Consumer spending in China has picked up rapidly in recent weeks, especially on eating out and travel, giving a boost to an economic recovery that’s become increasingly reliant on local demand. High-frequency indicators of spending in some sectors have shown double-digit growth from a year ago, while leading travel companies and retailers have reported a strong increase in sales ...

CAIRO / WAM Egyptian exports to China rose by 20.8% to $1.7 billion in the first 11 months of 2022, up from $1.4 billion in the same period in 2021, according to a statement released by Egypt’s Central Agency for Public Mobilisation and Statistics (Capmas). The trade exchange between Egypt and China increased by 2.6% during the first 11 months ...

BLOOMBERG Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt will hand business a three-year tax break worth about £11 billion by replacing the UK’s most generous ever investment allowance with a temporary measure in next week’s budget, according a government official with knowledge of the matter. Corporation tax rises from 19% to 25% in April, when the so-called super-deduction also expires, a ...

BLOOMBERG Before this year, Dan Boardman-Weston hadn’t bought UK government bonds in more than a decade. Now yields close to 4% are putting short-dated gilts on his radar. New investors like Boardman-Weston, who runs BRI Wealth Management, are a boon for Chancellor Jeremy Hunt. He’s expected to focus the UK government’s bond sales on closer maturities when he unveils the ...

BLOOMBERG Rome’s mayor is betting an unprecedented investment surge will help the Eternal City present a more modern face to the world. Roberto Gualtieri, a former finance minister, has secured €13 billion ($13.8 billion) in national and European funding over four years to spruce up the Italian capital, after it lost ground to Milan and other European centers in terms ...

BLOOMBERG The unpredictable behavior of Germany’s ruling coalition is becoming a disruptive influence in Europe and raising hackles across the continent. A last-ditch move this month to block a European Union push to phase out combustion-engine vehicles was only the latest example. On issues ranging from financial aid for Ukraine to reform of state-aid and budget rules, Germany’s EU partners ...

BLOOMBERG Sea Ltd and GoTo Group, two of Southeast Asia’s largest internet companies, are embarking on fresh layoffs as the region’s once high-flying tech leaders retrench to focus on profitability over growth. Singapore’s Sea is cutting fewer than 500 jobs at e-commerce unit Shopee in Indonesia, a person with direct knowledge of the matter said, days after the company reported ...

BLOOMBERG Indonesia lowered taxes on some investments and sweetened land acquisition terms as part of efforts to attract funds for its $34 billion new capital project that’s struggling to take off. The government will provide up to 100% corporate tax holiday for companies investing at least 10 billion rupiah ($650,745) in the new capital in Borneo, according to a new ...