Bloomberg Japan’s measures for encouraging the spread of cashless payments will likely need more funding beyond the end of March and could be extended as part of a planned government stimulus package. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recommended that Japan consider lengthening the time frame of its measures to support consumption after an October sales tax increase to support the ...

Bloomberg The earliest-available indicators of China’s economic performance point to a continued slowdown in November. Economic growth was already the slowest in almost three decades in the third quarter, and Bloomberg Economics’ gauge aggregating the earliest data from financial markets and businesses shows that continuing, with a worsening picture for trade, sales manager sentiment, and factory prices. While tensions with ...

Bloomberg Thailand backed down on a plan to prohibit three pesticides from December 1 after coming under pressure from farmers, the US government and lobbyists for chemicals companies. The ban on paraquat and chlorpyrifos will be delayed until June 1 next year, industry minister Suriya Juangroongruangkit said in a briefing. Glyphosate — commonly sold as weedkiller Roundup — won’t be ...

Bloomberg Equinor ASA will reduce its focus on the frontier areas of the Barents Sea in another blow to Norway’s ambition to build a new big oil province in its Arctic region. “Our focus going forward will be on the more prolific areas of the Barents Sea,” Tim Dodson, the company’s executive vice president for exploration, said. That means drilling ...

Bloomberg Sasol, South Africa’s second-biggest producer of greenhouse gases after Eskom Holdings SOC, pledged more clarity on plans to reduce its impact on the environment. The company, which together with Eskom also produces pollutants such as sulfur dioxide and particulate emissions, said its long-term strategy will be released in November next year. Sasol has already promised to reduce greenhouse gas ...

Bloomberg It’s been about two years since Kim Jong-un launched a missile capable of hitting the entire US, declared his nuclear weapons programme “complete” and halted all ICBM tests. In that time, the North Korean leader has also become an even bigger threat to America. Kim’s testing freeze ushered in unprecedented diplomacy with US President Donald Trump, leading to historic ...

Bloomberg A trial court sentenced seven people to death for their roles in Bangladesh’s worst terrorist attack, which killed 20 diners, most of them foreigners, in a cafe in 2016. Judge Mojibur Rahman pronounced the verdict in a packed Dhaka courtroom on Wednesday, Dhaka Metropolitan Chief Public Prosecutor Abdullah Abu said at a briefing. The decision brings to a close ...

Bloomberg Kenya should re-introduce the position of prime minister and name the runner up in presidential contests the leader of the opposition, a panel recommended in a bid to end violent disputes that have marred past ballots. The proposed establishment of the posts are part of a raft of suggestions by the so-called Building Bridges Initiative, which was established by ...

Bloomberg German chancellor Angela Merkel made a spirited defense of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), saying Europe is currently too weak to defend itself without the support of the US-led military alliance. Merkel’s comments in a speech to the Bundestag were clearly directed at French President Emmanuel Macron, who has cast doubt on NATO’s future by suggesting the 29-nation ...

Bloomberg Jeremy Corbyn accused Boris Johnson’s government of secretly negotiating with the US over the National Health Service (NHS) as he sought to shift the focus from a spat over antisemitism that has embroiled his campaign. “This election is now a fight for the survival of our National Health Service,” Corbyn said as he unveiled previously redacted documents about the ...