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Taiwan marks crackdown anniversary amid China tensions

  TAIPEI / AP Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen said on Tuesday the island’s democracy is mature enough to handle a thorough investigation into a bloody crackdown on anti-government protesters 70 years ago, an event seen as a rallying point by those who reject China’s claim to the self-governing island. Tsai, speaking at a gathering in Taipei, pledged to take a “rigorous ...

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No end in sight to India’s slow-motion bank crisis

  India’s slow-moving banking crisis continues to drag on, as ponderous and unstoppable as the state-controlled banking sector itself. A recent study found that the gross “non-performing assets” of state banks rose 56% in 2016, and 135% in the last two years. They now account for 11% of all state bank loans. These are hardly reassuring numbers. Yet the government—which, ...

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For Thailand, the future draws nearer

  An aging, fading, military-controlled Thai economy is on the cusp of its long-delayed infrastructure revolution, but you wouldn’t know it from the share prices of the big four in the nation’s construction industry. Ch. Karnchang Pcl, the largest by market value, fell to a four-month low last Friday after tepid results at its power and transportation units. While rising ...

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Snapchat IPO offers investors reasons to fear or cheer

  Perhaps even more than in the typical debate over tech company IPOs, opinions are split on whether Snapchat’s shares are worth buying in its initial public offering and whether it will prove a fit and lasting public company. The answer to the first question will come on Wednesday, when Snapchat is expected to close its first stock sale to ...

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Samsung’s big deals, decisions on hold as Lee faces indictment

  Bloomberg The indictment of Samsung Electronics Co. de facto chief Jay Y. Lee and four other top executives on bribery and embezzlement charges threatens the company’s ability to make major strategic decisions, including acquisitions and management changes. While the world’s biggest maker of mobile devices has capable managers who will, as before, continue to roll out new products and ...

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Hyperloop One pitches to operate carrier in India

  Bloomberg Hyperloop Technologies Inc., which is building a super-fast transportation solution based on an idea by billionaire Elon Musk, is in initial talks with the Indian government and companies to partially build and operate the vehicle on some routes, its chief executive officer said. The Los Angeles-based company, known as Hyperloop One, will decide by end of this year ...

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Hong Kong’s biggest developer sees 57% profit rise

  Bloomberg Sun Hung Kai Properties Ltd., Hong Kong’s largest developer by market value, said half-year underlying earnings rose 57 percent, as sales benefited from a surging home market. Profit excluding property revaluations climbed to HK$14.6 billion ($1.9 billion) in the six months ended December 31, compared with HK$9.3 billion a year earlier, the firm said in a statement to ...

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Singapore’s GLP shortlists at least 3 bidder groups

  Bloomberg Global Logistic Properties Ltd. has shortlisted at least three groups in the bidding for the Singapore-based warehouse operator, people with knowledge of the matter said. GLP invited a management-backed consortium that includes Chinese investment firms Hillhouse Capital Management and Hopu Investment Management to study detailed information on the business, the people said, asking not to be identified as ...

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Japan’s industrial output falls for first time in 6 months

  Bloomberg Japan’s industrial production fell for the first time in six months in January, raising questions about the sustainability of Japan’s export-driven growth in the second half of 2016. Retail sales rose. Industrial production fell 0.8 percent in January from a month earlier (forecast +0.4 percent). Output is forecast to rise 3.5 percent in February and drop 5 percent ...

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