Posts by Mark Darwin
EU takes aim at China’s Temu and Shein with proposed import duty: FT
THE European Union is drawing up plans to impose customs duties on cheap goods bought from Chinese online retailers including Temu and Shein, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing three people briefed on the matter. The European Commission later this month will suggest scrapping a current 150 euros (S$218) threshold under which items can…
Read MoreAmazon counts on ‘grit and innovation’ to meet AI surge
THE artificial intelligence (AI) revolution is upon us with companies around the world looking to jump headfirst into the technology made famous by ChatGPT. To satisfy their generative AI urge, firms need to secure state-of-the-art software and ramp up computing power, which quickly brings them knocking on the doors of the globe’s cloud computing giants,…
Read MoreAbout 90% of boxships arriving in Singapore are off-schedule: Transport Minister
The Maritime & Port Authority and port operator PSA are in discussions with all the major container lines to use MPA’s just-in-time system ABOUT 90 per cent of the containerships arriving in Singapore port are off-schedule as a result of the Red Sea diversion, compared to an average of 77 per cent in 2023. Minister…
Read MoreSkydance Media reaches preliminary Paramount merger agreement
INDEPENDENT film and TV producer Skydance Media has reached a preliminary agreement to buy Shari Redstone’s National Amusements and merge with Paramount Global, the parent of CBS and MTV, according to a source with knowledge of the matter. National Amusements, the family company that controls Paramount, will refer the deal to a special committee of…
Read MoreCanada to consider blocking factories in pushback on Chinese EVs
PRIME Minister Justin Trudeau’s government has published options it will consider for deterring Chinese-made electric vehicles (EVs) from accessing the Canadian market, including putting tariffs on imported and blocking Chinese investment in new Canadian factories. Trudeau’s government appears to only be considering tariffs on finished vehicles, based on the document released on Tuesday (Jul 2).…
Read MoreCorporate lenders are locking down protection against tough times from high rates
LENDERS to risky, debt-laden companies are increasingly demanding protection from financing manoeuvres used to undercut creditors when times get tough. A recent crop of leveraged loans demonstrates investors’ heightened concern with protecting their assets. In some recent deals, money managers have successfully closed loopholes borrowers might have tried to exploit if higher-for-longer interest rates overwhelmed…
Read MoreHSBC curbs hiring, reins in banker travel in cost-cutting push
HSBC Holdings is slowing down hiring and asking investment bankers to rein in their travel and entertainment expenses as outgoing chief executive officer Noel Quinn looks to curb costs at Europe’s largest lender. The bank in some cases is not replacing staff who have left or resigned in recent months, according to sources familiar with…
Read MoreAsia port snarls spread with ship delays looking to last into August
PORT congestion in some of Asia’s busiest trade hubs may persist into August, as ships diverting away from the region’s most clogged maritime gateways cause bottlenecks at others. Singapore, the world’s busiest transhipment centre, for weeks has dealt with longer-than-usual lines of vessels waiting for berth space. Among the reasons: ships sailing the long way…
Read MoreUS FDA warns website over unlawful sale of weight-loss drugs
THE US Food and Drug Administration said on Tuesday (Jul 2) it had warned a website called ozempen.com against unlawfully selling versions of Novo Nordisk’s weight-loss drugs. Surging demand has outpaced supply for Novo’s Ozempic, Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro and other GLP-1 drugs that promote weight loss, fueling a growing global market for counterfeit versions. The…
Read MoreUS Treasury yields boost greenback; yen weakens
RISING US yields supported the dollar on Tuesday (Jul 2), with low-yielding currencies such as Japan’s yen and China’s yuan feeling the pressure ahead of a speech by Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell. Benchmark 10-year Treasury yields rose nearly 14 basis points to 4.479 per cent overnight, with analysts linking the rise to expectations that…
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