International News

Bloomberg Malaysia’s economic growth is set to moderate this year from a three-year high in 2017, but still post a solid performance on the back of strong domestic demand. Gross domestic product rose 5.9 percent in the fourth quarter from a year earlier, the central bank said on Wednesday in Kuala Lumpur, slightly above the median estimate of 5.8 percent ...

Bloomberg Toshiba Corp. is bringing in an outsider to lead the Japanese electronics maker battered by accounting scandals, record losses and divestment of businesses. Nobuaki Kurumatani, 60, representative director of CVC Capital Partners Ltd. in Japan and former vice president at Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp., will become chief executive officer and chairman of Toshiba Corp., the Tokyo-based manufacturer said in ...

Bloomberg The surprise jailing of Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin on bribery charges has thrown one of South Korea’s biggest chaebols into further disarray. Now up in the air: a planned initial public offering for Lotte’s hotel unit; its hope of selling its network of stores in China; a restructuring plan for the group; and the family feud between Shin ...

Bloomberg Singapore’s economy lost some of its momentum in the fourth quarter and the government sees growth moderating slightly this year as an export boom in 2017 eases. Gross domestic product rose at a seasonally adjusted, annualized rate of 2.1 percent from prior three months, trade ministry said on Wednesday; Bloomberg survey median was 2 percent, while government’s previous projection ...

Bloomberg The Trump administration is signaling progress on Nafta talks, particularly with Mexico, as Republican lawmakers voice support for a trade deal President Donald Trump has threatened repeatedly to abandon. The US is making “headway” in its efforts to renegotiate the North American Free Trade agreement, Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said at a meeting with the president and a bipartisan ...

Bloomberg Germany’s robust economic upswing extended into the fourth quarter, buttressing growth in the euro area as policy makers prepare to wind down stimulus. Gross domestic product in Europe’s largest economy increased 0.6 percent from the third quarter, the Federal Statistics Office in Wiesbaden said on Wednesday. That’s in line with the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey. The economy ...

Bloomberg Businesses in the Czech Republic are fretting over a debate about a new referendum law, warning it has the potential to trigger a vote on a Brexit-style departure from the European Union that would devastate the economy. The pushback from business came after Prime Minister Andrej Babis’s ANO party held talks last week on introducing referendums with a far-right ...

Bloomberg The euro-area economy maintained its robust growth pace at the end of last year, setting the stage for another solid performance in 2018 that may sway European Central Bank policy makers into winding down unprecedented stimulus. Gross domestic product increased 0.6 percent from the previous three months, Eurostat reported on Wednesday, confirming a Jan. 30 estimate. Growth slowed in ...

Bloomberg With no let-up in sight for listed UK real estate agents, the companies could find themselves the targets of a wave of M&A activity. So say industry analysts and executives, who note that traditional high-street players like Foxtons Group Plc and Countrywide Plc face a stagnant housing market while losing market share to online competitors. Investors are running out ...

Bloomberg Lotte Group’s efforts to sell its China stores have stalled as buyers aren’t sure they will be able to run the outlets normally after government allegations of fire safety infractions, a company executive said. South Korea’s largest department store operator, Lotte Shopping Co., has taken a sales hit in China over the past year after the group provided land ...