Posts by Stephanie Irvin
US Fed expected to pause cuts again and wait for clarity on tariffs
[WASHINGTON] The US Federal Reserve is widely expected to extend a recent pause in rate cuts this week as it waits to see how US President Donald Trump’s stop-start tariff rollout affects the health of the world’s largest economy. Trump has imposed steep levies on China, and lower “baseline” levies of 10 per cent on…
Read MoreMalaysia prime minister confident on resolving Petronas-Petros dispute
Published Sun, May 4, 2025 · 01:48 PM [KUALA LUMPUR] Malaysia’s prime minister said on Sunday (May 4) he was confident that a dispute between energy company Petronas, owned by the federal government, and Petros, owned by the state of Sarawak, will be resolved through discussions with the Sarawak premier. The two companies’ long-running dispute…
Read MoreChina’s early dividend payouts to help ease yuan’s price swings
[NEW YORK] Chinese companies listed in Hong Kong are bringing forward dividend payments to the second quarter, a move that may smooth out yuan volatility over the year. The payments, which require the firms to convert yuan into Hong Kong dollars, are set to rise to US$36.1 billion for the April-to-June period, almost double the…
Read MoreGoogle can train search AI with web content even after opt-out
[NEW YORK] Google can train its search-specific artificial intelligence (AI) products, such as AI Overviews, on content across the web even when the publishers have chosen to opt out of training Google’s AI products, a vice-president of product at the company testified in court on Friday. That’s because Google’s controls for publishers to opt out…
Read MoreBen & Jerry’s cites investor Peltz’s growing influence over parent company Unilever
[NEW YORK] Ice cream maker Ben & Jerry’s said late on Friday (May 2) that billionaire activist investor Nelson Peltz, who is on its parent company Unilever’s board, has increased his influence over the consumer goods conglomerate, including on political issues. Unilever and the unit have been locked in a bitter legal dispute since last…
Read MoreApple, Anthropic team up to build AI-powered ‘vibe-coding’ platform
[LOS ANGELES] Apple is teaming up with startup Anthropic on a new “vibe-coding” software platform that will use artificial intelligence (AI) to write, edit and test code on behalf of programmers. The system is a new version of Xcode, Apple’s programming software, that will integrate Anthropic’s Claude Sonnet model, according to people with knowledge of…
Read MoreJetZero’s triangle-shaped jet on track to fly by late 2027
[LOS ANGELES] JetZero, the startup aiming to take on planemakers Airbus and Boeing, is on track to fly the first full-scale model of its manta ray-shaped jetliner by late 2027, executives said on Friday (May 2). The company is about halfway through the key milestones in its development process for the so-called “demonstrator aircraft”, and…
Read MoreHong Kong buys US dollars to maintain FX peg in first since 2020
Published Sat, May 3, 2025 · 10:29 AM [HONG KONG] The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) bought US dollars to cap the gains of the city’s currency, the first such intervention since 2020. An official at the HKMA’s New York Representative Office confirmed to Bloomberg it had bought around US$6 billion in US dollars when…
Read MoreCyberattacks blight Britain’s retailers as M&S, Co-op’s systems’ breached
[LONDON] Britain’s Marks & Spencer (M&S) entered a second week unable to take online orders on Friday (May 2) following a major cyberattack, while food retailer the Co-op Group said hackers had stolen customer data. Some £700 million (S$1.2 billion) has been wiped off the stock market value of M&S since the hack was revealed…
Read MoreOil posts biggest weekly loss in a month ahead of Opec+ meeting
[NEW YORK] Oil prices fell more than 1 per cent lower on Friday (May 2) and recorded their biggest weekly losses since the end of March, as traders turned cautious ahead of an Opec+ meeting to decide the group’s output policy for June. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures settled 95 US cents or…
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