International News

Bloomberg Economists raised their forecasts for China’s economic output after growth in the first half beat estimates. That robust activity is giving policy makers’ room to curb excessive and speculative borrowing. China’s gross domestic product will expand by 6.7 percent from a year ago in the third quarter and 6.6 percent in the fourth quarter, according to the median of ...

Bloomberg The rise of the machines is coming. In technology-proficient Singapore, their integration into the economy could help the domestic growth rate to almost double and significantly lift labor productivity, according to a report by consultancy Accenture. It found that artificial intelligence, once fully adopted, might lift Singapore’s annual growth rate to 5.4 percent in 18 years. That would be ...

Bloomberg India’s top court is considering whether privacy is a fundamental right of every citizen in a case that could have implications for the country’s biometric identity programme and a slew of global technology companies. Activists, lawyers and politicians have challenged the government over the legal basis of the programme known as Aadhaar, with the Supreme Court in New Delhi ...

Bloomberg A recurring challenge for bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies is how to make them work in the real world. A Singapore-based startup says the answer is its Visa card. TenX is pitching its debit card as an instant converter of multiple digital currencies into fiat money: the dollars, yen and euros that power most everyday commerce. The company said it ...

Bloomberg Tokyo’s commuters offered mixed reviews on Monday as the government launched a campaign to get more of them to work from home. July 24 marks the first dry run of a “Telework Day” encouraging people to work remotely as the city gears up to host the 2020 Summer Olympics. Authorities are seeking ways to make room for 920,000 spectators ...

Bloomberg WeWork Cos., the co-working space company that’s among the world’s most valuable startups, is in advanced talks to rent a building in Hong Kong’s popular nightlife district near the city’s business centre, according to people familiar with the matter. The New York-based firm is seeking to rent Hotel LKF by Rhombus on Wyndham Street, said the people, who asked ...

Bloomberg The world is leaning less on its biggest economy to sustain the global recovery, according to the International Monetary Fund. The fund left its forecast for global growth unchanged in the latest quarterly update to its World Economic Outlook, released on Monday in Kuala Lumpur. The world economy will expand 3.5 percent this year, up from 3.2 percent in ...

Bloomberg BMW AG sought to defuse concerns about possible collusion with other German automakers by rejecting allegations of cheating on diesel emissions and downplaying talks with rivals as being focused on promoting exhaust-treatment technology in Europe. With uncertainty clouding the German auto industry, BMW said it has gone farther than competitors to ensure its diesel cars meet regulatory guidelines while ...

Bloomberg There’s a risk of a global trade war should President Donald Trump decide to restrict imports of steel, according to Japan’s leading mills group, which warns any new US curbs on the metal may provoke a tit-for-tat response that could drag in other products. Concern would deepen about the potential spread of protectionism if Trump acts, Kosei Shindo, chairman ...

Bloomberg Anglo American Platinum Ltd. sees a surplus of platinum-group metals this year as demand from makers of jewelry and car catalytic converters drops, weighing on prices and adding to pressure on miners. Lower demand follows falling sales of diesel vehicles in Europe, which use platinum to cut pollution, and a slowing Chinese jewelry market, the Johannesburg-based company said in ...