International News

Singapore’s planned political succession that would see Finance Minister Lawrence Wong become the country’s next leader will coincide with general elections due by 2025, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said. The political landscape is getting more competitive, and Lee told members of his People’s Action Party that it’s imperative for them to keep Singaporeans on their side to ensure a ...

J Sainsbury Plc’s profit is falling after the supermarket absorbed some of its own surging costs to limit price increases for cash-strapped consumers at a time when UK grocers are fighting to maintain market share. Britain’s second-largest supermarket chain said retail operating profit fell 9% in the first half as it invested in key product categories to keep prices competitive ...

Boeing Co.’s proposed sale of 36 new F-15 fighter jets and equipment to Indonesia has hit a snag over financing, according to people familiar with the matter. Executives from the US plane-maker flew to Jakarta this week to discuss the transaction with Indonesian officials on the sidelines of an annual defense exhibition, the people said, asking not to be identified ...

Starbucks Corp. reported sales that exceeded expectations as US consumers forked over more for their lattes amid higher economy-wide inflation, driving the shares higher in late trading. The key measure of same-store sales rise 7% in the quarter ended October 2 — above the average estimate for 4.1% global growth compiled by Bloomberg. Internationally, same-store sales shrank, but less than ...

Britons are paying more than £2 billion ($2.28 billion) to help people heat the country’s biggest houses because of the government’s decision to cap energy bills for everyone rather than target the aid. Subsidising the gas and electricity for homes with at least five bedrooms will cost approximately £1.62 billion between October 2022 and March 2023, according to Bloomberg calculations. ...

China’s central bank Deputy Governor Fan Yifei is under investigation by an anti-graft agency, the latest high-level finance official to be probed as President Xi Jinping cracks down on corruption. Fan is being investigated for “suspected severe violations of discipline and laws,” according to a statement from the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the Communist Party’s top graft buster. Fan ...

Riyadh / WAM    The real gross domestic product (GDP) of Saudi Arabia continued to grow by 8.6% in Q3 2022 compared to Q3 2021, according to flash estimates by the Saudi General Authority for Statistics. This growth is mainly due to the increase in oil activities by 14.5% in Q3 2022. Non-oil activities grew by 5.6% and government services activities ...

Oil jumped to the highest in more than three weeks as markets rallied over China easing its Covid restrictions. Brent crude futures surged more than 4% to near $99 a barrel, with China, the world’s biggest crude importer, said to be working on plans to scrap a system that penalises airlines for bringing virus cases into the country. Oil has ...

China has pledged to deliver water cannons to the Solomon Islands, just days after Australia provided rifles, underscoring the growing competition for influence in the Pacific nations. China and the Solomon Islands were to hold a ceremony Friday morning to hand over two water cannons and an undisclosed number of vehicles to police, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported, citing program ...

North Korea’s unprecedented barrage of missiles is underscoring the costs of Washington’s tensions with Beijing, since China has shown little appetite for additional sanctions over the country’s nuclear program. China, along with Russia, played a critical role in approving United Nations sanctions on their neighbor after Kim Jong Un tested an atomic bomb and launched a missile designed to carry ...