International News

Bloomberg After seeing housing costs jump by more than 50 percent in the past five years, officials in Barcelona are moving to introduce Spain’s most aggressive rent controls. Under a decree, landlords will have to negotiate leases based on benchmark prices set for each property in those neighbourhoods tagged as most desirable. That regulation follows a national law implemented in ...

Bloomberg The European Commission is considering proposing a disciplinary procedure for Italy next week over its failure to rein in debt, which could pave the way for a 3.5 billion-euro ($4 billion) penalty, according to an official familiar with the matter. The step could come as part of the European Union’s regular budget monitoring process, most likely on June 5, ...

Bloomberg China is strong enough to withstand the effects of the trade war with the US, according to statements over the weekend from current and former officials, putting forward a confident view of an economy which has been showing signs of weakness in the past few months. A top financial regulatory official and a vice information technology minister said the ...

Bloomberg Trax, a Singapore-based startup serving the retail industry, is finalising a deal to raise $100 million at a pre-money valuation of about $1.1 billion, a price tag that could make it the second most valuable startup in the city-state. The company is talking with a few private equity firms and the new funding round is expected to close by ...

Bloomberg A major Chinese chipmaker surged in Hong Kong amid prospects that its decision to stop trading in New York will attract more volume to its main listing. Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp was Monday’s top gainer on the MSCI China Index as well as its Asia-Pacific gauge with a 10 percent rally. It was a different story for its American ...

Bloomberg One of Tencent Holdings Ltd.’s most valuable investments is sinking as China expands its crackdown on online content. China Literature Ltd, in which Tencent holds a controlling stake, tumbled as much as 10 percent before closing down 7.3 percent at a new low in Hong Kong, as another of its online sites was targeted for alleged violations. The stock ...

Bloomberg Global Switch, the UK data centre operator controlled by Chinese investors, is planning to file for a Hong Kong initial public offering as soon as this week, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The London-based company aims to raise more than $1 billion, Bloomberg News has reported in March. Deliberation is ongoing and timing of the deal ...

Bloomberg One of the biggest challenges facing Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as he begins his second term is ensuring clean air in a country that’s home to some of the most polluted cities in the world. The country is burning up more coal to supply cheap electricity to its 1.3 billion people, resulting in polluted air across vast stretches. ...

Bloomberg Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV proposed a merger with Renault SA to create the world’s third-biggest carmaker as manufacturers scramble for scale to tackle an expensive shift to electrification and autonomous driving. The transaction would be structured as a 50-50 ownership through a Dutch holding company, Fiat said on Monday. Renault shareholders, including the French government, would get an implied ...

Bloomberg First American Financial Corp., one of the largest US title insurers, may have allowed unauthorised access to more than 885 million records related to mortgage deals going back to 2003, according to a security researcher. The flaw was outlined in an article by Brian Krebs, a cybersecurity expert. Digitised records including “bank-account numbers and statements, mortgage and tax records, ...