International News

  Bloomberg Singapore’s core inflation, the gauge closely-watched by the central bank, rose to a 14-year high, even after the central bank has tightened policy five times since October 2021. The measure, which excludes private transport and accommodation, rose 5.5% in January from a year earlier, the fastest pace since November 2008 according to a statement. That compares with a ...

  Bloomberg Grab Holdings Ltd brought forward its profitability target after posting a narrower quarterly loss, helped by reduced spending by the Southeast Asian ride-hailing and food-delivery provider. The stock jumped 8% in pre-market trading after Grab said it expects to reach positive adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation in the final quarter of 2023. It previously expected ...

  Bloomberg Vietnam’s property debt crisis is intensifying as the country’s second-largest developer joined the ranks of peers seeking debt extensions after failing to repay a bond on time. No Va Land Investment Group said it will delay repayment of a 1 trillion dong ($42 million) note originally due on February 12 and asked holders for an extension or to ...

  Bloomberg Private power producers in Bangladesh have sought $1 billion of foreign currency from the country’s central bank to import heavy fuel oil to avert a looming energy crisis this summer. The companies are seeking the greenback supply to banks to allow opening letters of credit for purchasing the fuel from overseas, the Bangladesh Independent Power Producers’ Association, the ...

Bloomberg India is set to use this week’s meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of 20 nations to try to amplify its influence over developing economies in Asia, Africa and Latin America called the Global South. Without the cash to dole out billions in loans like China did under President Xi Jinping’s Belt-and-Road Initiative, India ...

  Bloomberg Stride Ventures, one of India’s leading debt venture fund, sees consumer, business-to-business companies and electric vehicle sectors as the most attractive for financing this year. “Fintech has taken a slight backseat because Reserve Bank of India has recently come up with digital lending guidelines, and a lot of companies in the fintech sector are trying to understand the ...

  Bloomberg China’s internet firms are revving up efforts to outdo each other since Beijing began to wind back its bruising crackdown on the tech sector, spurring an abrupt surge in competition that’s threatening margins and spooking investors. A battle is brewing as companies that laid low or sought to limit expansion during the years-long crackdown now feel the shackles ...

  Bloomberg Baidu Inc announced a $5 billion share buyback after reporting better-than-expected revenue, reflecting how its cloud computing service is offsetting an advertising lull during China’s economic downturn. Its shares gained 6% in pre-market US trading. Sales held steady at 33.1 billion yuan ($4.8 billion) for the three months ended December, compared with expectations for 32.1 billion yuan. Net ...

  Bloomberg India and Singapore linked their systems that enable real-time money transfers between the two nations, as countries in the region seek to bring down barriers to the quick movement of funds. Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das initiated the first transaction with his counterpart Managing Director Ravi Menon, according to a statement by the Monetary Authority ...

Bloomberg UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt has as much as £30 billion ($36 billion) for short-term giveaways in next month’s budget after the public finances came in far better than expected in January. Borrowing since the fiscal year that began in April is running £22 billion below the level forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility in November, ...