March, 2019

• 16 March

  Indonesia’s anti-graft agency names key Joko Widodo ally as suspect

  

  Bloomberg The head of an Indonesian political party backing President Joko Widodo’s bid for a second term has been named a suspect in a graft case involving job postings at the Religious Affairs Ministry. A politician only identified by his initials RMY, and two ministry officials are suspects, said Laode Muhammad Syarif, deputy of the Corruption Eradication Commission, in a ...

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• 16 March

  Trump issues first veto on bill to block border emergency

  

  Bloomberg President Donald Trump issued his first veto, rejecting Congress’s effort to cancel his declaration of a national emergency to pay for a wall on the US-Mexico border, a centerpiece of his 2016 campaign. “Congress passed a dangerous resolution that, if signed into law, would put countless Americans in danger,” Trump said just before signing the veto in the Oval ...

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• 16 March

  Europe’s populists set for slap in Slovak vote

  

  Bloomberg An election in the heart of the European Union’s increasing populist eastern wing is poised to deliver a different kind of anti-establishment triumph. Sandwiched between Poland and Hungary — perennial thorns in the side of Brussels officials —Slovakia is set to pick as president an NGO lawyer who backs EU integration, vows to fight nationalism and wants to rebuild ...

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• 16 March

  Democratic hopefuls push past Iowa with early primaries in mind

  Bloomberg Democratic presidential contenders are already making strategic decisions about where to dedicate campaign resources, putting heavy focus on select states because of a compressed primary calendar and an unusually crowded field. A cross-country sprint through 14 states to sort out winners and losers earlier than in past years. Democrats are making the first four states their top priority and ...

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• 16 March

  May prepares Britain’s next great Brexit mistake

  

  Britain’s government will soon begin pleading for a delay in the country’s exit from the European Union (EU). Without this, Brexit would go ahead on March 29 with no agreement in place to manage the disruption that would follow. The House of Commons has already rejected (twice, and by huge margins) the withdrawal agreement negotiated by Prime Minister Theresa May, ...

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• 16 March

  If Cathay goes budget, the trend is clear

  

  There’s always been something grimly appropriate about the world’s most unequal rich society being home to one of its least affordable aviation sectors. Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. has historically been so resistant to the idea of budget airlines that the city’s dominant carrier once fought (and won) a three-year regulatory battle to stop Qantas Airways Ltd. from setting ...

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• 16 March

  Sometimes, a Bentley just can’t compare to a Skoda

  Tesla drivers are fond of the electric vehicle’s giant touchscreen display, but for more conservative buyers of luxury cars such digital systems might seem a tad unrefined. Thankfully, Britain’s Bentley has solved this very first-world problem on its new Continental GT model by offering a revolving panel that will spin around to show analogue gauges instead of the screen, when ...

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• 16 March

  Why Japan’s massive stimulus isn’t enough

  The Bank of Japan (BOJ) risks being stranded. The pioneer of zero interest rates and quantitative easing has the most accommodative monetary policy of any major central bank. Rather than being positioned comfortably during this global slowdown, the Bank of Japan must be feeling pretty anxious. There’s little advantage to being the first mover. Others learn your tricks. They may start ...

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• 16 March

  Boeing should thank China for grounding 737 Max fleet

  

  China didn’t waste any time reacting to the tragic crash of a Boeing Co. 737 Max operated by Ethiopian Airlines Group on Sunday. Less than 24 hours after the accident, it became the first country to ground the plane. In the hours and days that followed, Ethiopia, Europe and — finally, on March 13 — the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ...

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• 16 March

  SingTel’s giveaway deserves a reward

  

  Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. should ask for a tax refund. After all, here’s a telco that got the chance to maintain its stake in an overseas business on the cusp of something new at a steep discount to the market price. And what did it do? SingTel renounced a part of those rights in favour of Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund for ...

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