Classic Layout

China exports nose-dive more than a quarter in February

Beijing / Bloomberg China’s exports saw their heaviest fall in nearly seven years in February, diving more than a quarter as feeble global trade offset the weaker yuan and raised pressure on Beijing to ramp up domestic demand. The below-forecast reading is the latest data to raise fears of a “hard landing” in China and comes days after Beijing cut ...

Read More »

‘Poor working conditions’ force 5,803 foreigners to flee Japan in 2015

Tokyo / DPA The number of foreign technical intern trainees who fled from workplaces last year reached the highest level ever at 5,803, greatly surpassing the previous year’s figure, according to a Justice Ministry survey. The government believes that poor working conditions have resulted in the incidents in many cases. To counter this situation, the government plans to take legislative ...

Read More »

BoJ fails to hire more women in management

Tokyo / Bloomberg The Bank of Japan (BoJ) has made no progress in increasing the proportion of women in management positions in the past two years. Women held 4 percent of management posts in 2015, which was unchanged from 2013, according to a comparison of a statement released Tuesday and one from 2014. The central bank, in the statements, said ...

Read More »

500 Startups to inject US$10mn in Vietnam fund

Hanoi / Bloomberg 500 Startups is starting a $10 million fund dedicated to Vietnam as the Silicon Valley venture capital firm founded by Dave McClure backs more of the country’s technology startups. Growing Internet use by its young population, where the number of mobile phones exceeds the number of residents, provides an attractive bet in the nation that gave rise ...

Read More »

Carney’s ‘Brexit’ stance comes under fire

Bloomberg Mark Carney was accused of jeopardizing the Bank of England’s credibility in the European Union debate as he faced a fiery line of questioning from U.K. ­legislators. While the BOE governor has spent months trying to avoid the political battle — a task lawmaker Andrew Tyrie compared to bomb disposal — some members of the Treasury Committee said BOE ...

Read More »

VW woos workers in restructuring spat

Bloomberg Volkswagen AG Chief Executive Officer Matthias Mueller sought to win over workers to restructuring measures aimed at lifting margins at the embattled German carmaker’s namesake brand and helping weather the emissions-cheating scandal. After nearly six months of crisis and recent revelations that senior managers missed warning signs, workers are fighting to avoid footing the bill. That put Herbert Diess, ...

Read More »

France votes on bill that could make Apple unlock terrorist data

Bloomberg France’s lawmakers will vote on a plan to impose penalties and jail time on technology executives who deny access to encrypted data during a terrorist investigation, helping security services and prosecutors force companies such as Apple Inc. into cooperation. The amendment was submitted by the opposition party The Republicans and, while the government hasn’t officially supported the measure, it ...

Read More »

Private consumption, investment help drive Euro-area growth

Bloomberg Higher spending by households and governments helped propel the euro-area to its 11th successive quarter of growth even as net trade suffered amid a slowdown in China and other emerging markets. Consumption in the private sector rose 0.2 percent in the three months through December, while that of the public sector expanded 0.6 percent, the European Union’s statistics office ...

Read More »

4 Takeaways from China’s economic blueprint

The annual meeting of China’s National People’s Congress kicked off in Beijing this weekend, highlighted by Premier Li Keqiang’s government work report on Saturday. The NPC always finalizes China’s targets, goals, and areas of emphasis for the coming year. This year’s session, however, will see the final adoption of China’s next Five Year Plan, which will cover the period from ...

Read More »
Send this to a friend