Baidu unveils $5 billion share buyback

  Bloomberg Baidu Inc announced a $5 billion share buyback after reporting better-than-expected revenue, reflecting how its cloud computing service is offsetting an advertising lull during China’s economic downturn. Its shares gained 6% in pre-market US trading. Sales held steady at 33.1 billion yuan ($4.8 billion) for the three months ended December, compared with expectations for 32.1 billion yuan. Net ...

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India, Singapore link systems for real-time money transfers

  Bloomberg India and Singapore linked their systems that enable real-time money transfers between the two nations, as countries in the region seek to bring down barriers to the quick movement of funds. Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das initiated the first transaction with his counterpart Managing Director Ravi Menon, according to a statement by the Monetary Authority ...

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Putin says Russia, China reach ‘new milestones’ on cooperation

Bloomberg President Vladimir Putin said he’s waiting for his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to visit Russia as he hailed deepening ties with Beijing at talks with China’s top diplomat. Cooperation between Russia and China is “very important for stabilising the international situation,” Putin told Chinese State Councilor Wang Yi at talks in Moscow, asking him to pass on greetings to ...

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Biden says Putin made ‘big mistake’ in suspending N-treaty

Bloomberg US President Joe Biden said Russian President Vladimir Putin made a “big mistake” in suspending participation in the New START nuclear treaty, his first direct response to the announcement. Biden made the brief remark in Warsaw, ahead of a meeting with a group of eastern-flank Nato allies known as the Bucharest Nine. In response to a shouted question from ...

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India doesn’t want to call Russia’s war a ‘war’ at G-20

  Bloomberg Indian officials hosting Group of 20 finance chiefs this week are seeking to avoid using the word “war” in any joint statement when referring to Russia’s war in Ukraine, a person familiar with the matter said. That would mark a divergence from a consensus reached by leaders in Bali last November. The person said using words like “crisis” ...

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‘Taiwan may survive initial China invasion’

  Bloomberg The chief of Taiwan’s military told a local magazine the island’s forces could repel an initial attack from China if they are well-prepared. “China is certainly strong enough to start a war, but it’s not so strong that it can successfully take Taiwan within one or two weeks,” Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng said in an interview with CommonWealth ...

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Australia, Philippines eye sea patrols amid China tensions

  Bloomberg Australia and the Philippines are considering joint patrols in the South China Sea, their defense ministers said, as the Southeast Asian nation reported continuing presence of suspected Chinese vessels in contested waters. Australia also wants to pursue more military exercises with the Philippines, Defense Minister Richard Marles said in a briefing after meeting with Filipino counterpart Carlito Galvez ...

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UK’s Sunak suggests he’ll seek Brexit treaty change from EU

Bloomberg UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak suggested a coming deal with the European Union over post-Brexit arrangements in Northern Ireland would involve legal changes to the existing treaty, something the bloc has previously opposed. In the House of Commons, Democratic Unionist Party leader Jeffrey Donaldson complained that under the existing “unacceptable” deal — known as the protocol — “EU laws ...

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Deutsche Bank rebuilds office in Mexico as others head for exit

Bloomberg Deutsche Bank AG sees opportunity in Mexico where other investment banks don’t. The German lender is expanding its operations in Latin America’s second-largest economy, with an eye to tapping into international interest in the country’s manufacturing base, according to Christiana Riley, chief executive officer of Deutsche Bank Americas. That means focusing on providing more foreign-exchange and fixed-income derivatives to ...

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Warjiyo tipped for 2nd term as Bank Indonesia governor

  Bloomberg Bank Indonesia Governor Perry Warjiyo has been nominated for another five-year term in a move that should solidify monetary policy continuity in Southeast Asia’s largest economy. President Joko Widodo has sent Warjiyo’s name to parliament as his sole candidate for the post, according to Said Abdullah, who heads the budget committee in parliament. Lawmakers will deliberate on the ...

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