International News

  Tehran / AFP India is to open a $500-million line of credit to develop Iran’s Chabahar port into a regional trading hub, visiting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday in Tehran. “The bilateral agreement to develop the Chabahar port and related infrastructure, and availability of about $500 million from India for this purpose, is an important milestone,” ...

  Tokyo / AFP The yen picked up on Monday after the G7 wagged its finger at Japan over threats to weaken its currency, reminding Tokyo of previous commitments not to intervene in forex markets. The currency clash was in the spotlight as finance ministers from the club of rich nations met in northern Japan at the weekend for two ...

  Beijing/ Bloomberg A group of Chinese investors agreed to buy Aixtron SE, a German supplier of semiconductor equipment, for about 670 million euros ($752 million), giving the manufacturer a chance to boost sales by expanding in Asia. The deal values Aixtron at 6 euros a share, the equipment maker said Monday in a statement. That’s 25 percent more than ...

  Shanghai / AFP The controversial boss of Chinese solar energy firm Hanergy Thin Film Power Group has stepped down as chairman and executive director, the company said, almost a year after its shares imploded. Li Hejun stepped down “for the reason of strengthening corporate governance”, Hanergy said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange, where its shares ...

  Beijing / AFP Chinese authorities are exploring new ways of imposing controls on the Internet, state-run media cited experts as saying on Monday, after reports said state-owned enterprises may be encouraged to take stakes in video streaming websites. The Communist country restricts access to foreign websites including Google, Facebook and Twitter with a vast control network dubbed the Great ...

  Taipei / AFP Taipei-listed Apple suppliers got a boost on Monday after a report the smartphone maker has placed a bullish order for its iPhone 7 series, telling suppliers to kickstart production. The unveiling of the next-generation iPhone, expected in September, will be a key moment for the Silicon Valley giant as questions swirl over whether it can keep ...

  Bloomberg Greek lawmakers have approved additional austerity measures required to unlock more emergency loans from the euro area, ahead of a meeting of finance ministers that will assess the country’s compliance with its bailout program and determine the scope for debt relief. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras secured backing for a series of measures ranging from the taxation of clothing ...

  Paris / AFP EU Economic Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici on Monday hailed a new batch of Greek austerity measures as “key” to unlocking bailout funds. “A key step has been taken… towards the conclusion of the first stage of the Greek programme,” Moscovici said in Paris, a day after Greek lawmakers voted in favour of spending cuts and tax ...

  Bloomberg Bayer AG made an unsolicited $62 billion all-cash offer to acquire Monsanto Co. and create the world’s biggest supplier of farm chemicals and genetically modified seeds, disclosing the terms of its bid amid investors’ growing concern that it might overpay. Bayer offered $122 per share in an all-cash bid in its May 10 written proposal, the Leverkusen-based company ...

  BLOOMBERG Growth in France’s private-sector economy accelerated more than analysts anticipated in May, despite a continued contraction in manufacturing, as services expanded at the fastest rate in seven months. A Purchasing Managers Index for both industries rose to 51.1 from 50.2 in April, London-based Markit Economics said on Monday. That compares with a median forecast of 50.4 in a ...