Posts by Stephanie Irvin
Maybank names Shafiq Abdul Jabbar as new group chief financial officer
He takes over from Khalijah Ismail, who was dismissed by the bank earlier this year following an internal inquiry [MALAYSIA] Maybank has appointed Shafiq Abdul Jabbar as its new group chief financial officer, with effect from Jul 7. He takes over the role from Khalijah Ismail, who was dismissed by the bank earlier this year…
Read MoreSingapore stocks rise on Wednesday, snapping four-day losing streak; STI up 0.7%
Across the broader market, gainers beat decliners 288 to 177, after 971.8 million securities worth S$1.4 billion change hands [SINGAPORE] Equities on the Singapore bourse rose on Wednesday (Apr 30), as four sessions of losses drew some bargain hunting. Sentiment across most of Asia was also more positive, after Japan’s top trade negotiator said he…
Read MoreThailand’s central bank cuts key rate by 25 bps
Published Wed, Apr 30, 2025 · 03:46 PM [BANGKOK] Thailand’s central bank cut its key interest rate by a quarter point for a second consecutive meeting on Wednesday (Apr 30), in a move to support an underperforming economy facing uncertainty over steep US tariffs. The Bank of Thailand’s monetary policy committee voted 5-2 to reduce…
Read MoreThailand’s central bank cuts rate again; economy could face recession as US tariffs loom
[BANGKOK] Thailand’s central bank cut its key interest rate by a quarter point for a second consecutive meeting on Wednesday (Apr 30), in a move to support an underperforming economy facing uncertainty over steep US tariffs. The Bank of Thailand’s (BOT) monetary policy committee voted 5-2 to reduce the one-day repurchase rate by 25 basis…
Read MoreChinese sovereign fund CIC to sell US$1 billion of US private equity investments: sources
[HONG KONG] Chinese sovereign investor China Investment Corporation (CIC) is selling about US$1 billion of its private equity (PE) investment portfolio in the secondary market, two sources with knowledge of the matter said. The assets are held in a number of funds managed by eight US fund managers, including Blackstone and Carlyle Group, said the…
Read MoreUBS Q1 profit tops forecasts but Trump tariff shock clouds outlook
[ZURICH] UBS on Wednesday (Apr 30) posted better than expected first-quarter net profit, but the Swiss bank warned of an uncertain outlook as US tariffs raise global growth fears even as the market tumult drove up earnings in its trading activity. Switzerland’s biggest bank reported net profit attributable to shareholders of US$1.7 billion in the…
Read MoreUBS Q1 profit tops expectations on tariff-driven volatility in markets
Published Wed, Apr 30, 2025 · 01:12 PM SWISS bank UBS on Wednesday posted better than expected first-quarter net profit, helped by stronger earnings in trading driven by market turbulence in the wake of US tariff turmoil, which it said could delay corporate deals. Switzerland’s biggest bank reported net profit attributable to shareholders of US$1.7…
Read MoreChinese solar losses deepen even before worst of trump tariffs
[NEW YORK] Chinese solar manufacturers continue to plunge deeper into the red, and the outlook is getting gloomier as sky-high tariffs on exports threaten to compound domestic oversupply. Five of the biggest names in the industry – JA Solar Technology, Jinko Solar, Longi Green Energy Technology, Tongwei and Trina Solar – published first-quarter earnings overnight,…
Read MorePop Mart holder sells US$101 million stake after shares hit record
The toy company is the top gainer in the MSCI China Index over the last 12 months, with its shares jumping more than 470 per cent Published Wed, Apr 30, 2025 · 11:15 AM [HONG KONG] An investor in Pop Mart International Group, whose fans include K-pop band Blackpink’s Lisa, raised US$101 million in a…
Read MoreMeta launches standalone AI app to compete with ChatGPT
[SAN FRANCISCO] Meta Platforms released a new standalone artificial intelligence (AI) app on Tuesday (Apr 29) in a bid to compete with other popular chatbots such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT. The AI assistant, called Meta AI, is built on the back of the company’s large language model technology, called Llama, and had been available across the…
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