Posts by Stephanie Irvin
China’s Shandong Port, entry point for most sanctioned oil, bans US-designated vessels
SHANDONG Port Group has banned US-sanctioned tankers from calling into its ports in the eastern Chinese province, home to many independent refiners that are the biggest importers of oil from countries under US embargo, three traders said. The province imported about 1.74 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil from Iran, Russia and Venezuela last…
Read MoreHong Kong eases investment thresholds to attract family offices
HONG Kong is easing the requirement of its capital investment entrant scheme, bolstering efforts to attract family offices and lift the city’s status as a global wealth hub. Investments made through an eligible private company wholly owned by an applicant will be counted towards the programme starting Mar 1, according to a government statement on…
Read MoreDBS upgrades PropNex to ‘buy’, lifts target price by 21% on positive earnings outlook
DBS Group Research on Monday (Jan 6) upgraded its call for real estate agency PropNex to “buy” and raised its target price on the counter by 21.1 per cent to S$1.15 from S$0.95 previously. This comes as the research team forecasts a positive earnings outlook for PropNex in 2025 amid a “strong pipeline of new…
Read MoreChina’s WuXi Biologics to sell vaccine facility to Merck for US$500 million
WUXI Biologics Cayman will sell a vaccine facility in Ireland to Merck for about US$500 million as the Chinese company seeks to enhance its margins while continuing to navigate geopolitical tensions. The site at Dundalk, Ireland, which has been under construction since 2019, was designed as a dedicated facility to meet Merck’s commercial manufacturing needs,…
Read MoreThe downfall of Hin Leong over 4 years
ONCE a giant in Singapore’s oil trading industry, the collapse of Hin Leong Trading (HLT) unveiled a web of fraud, forgery and financial mismanagement. Here’s how it all went south for the once-iconic oil trader: December 2024: HLT founder Lim Oon Kuin, along with his two children, was declared bankrupt. November 2024: Lim Oon Kuin…
Read MoreStocks to watch: Straits Trading
THE following company saw new developments that may affect trading of its securities on Tuesday (Jan 7): The Straits Trading Company: The investment company has launched the second series of its three-month commercial paper in digital securities on Singapore’s Digital Assets Exchange. The issuance is expected to raise between S$5 million and S$10 million, which…
Read MoreDell unveils Apple-like rebrand in bid to make PCs cool again
DELL Technologies is re-branding its personal computers (PCs) in a manner reminiscent of Apple’s naming conventions in an effort by the computer maker to spur demand. Decades-old product names for PCs such as “XPS” and “Inspiron” will be killed in favour of simplified branding around the word Dell in its new generation of devices, the…
Read MoreQualcomm’s new chips will bring AI to US$600 personal computers
QUALCOMM introduced new chips designed to power personal computers (PCs) capable of running the latest artificial intelligence (AI) software yet cost as little as US$600. The Snapdragon X Platform, which consists of an 8-core Oryon central processor, a graphics component and dedicated AI chip, will run Microsoft’s Copilot+ software, Qualcomm announced at the CES show…
Read MoreAsia-Pacific loans set to recover in 2025 from three-year drop
ASIA-PACIFIC loan volume outside Japan is gearing up for a rebound in 2025 driven by merger and acquisition activity and favourable rates environment, after falling for three years straight. The region’s loan volumes reached US$164 billion in the final three months of 2024 – the strongest fourth quarter performance in three years, according to Bloomberg-compiled…
Read MoreChinese exchanges ask big fund managers to restrict stock selling: sources
CHINA’S main stock exchanges asked some large mutual funds to restrict stock selling at the start of the year, three sources familiar with the matter said, as authorities sought to calm markets heading into a tricky period for the world’s second-largest economy. At least four large mutual funds received calls from the Shanghai and Shenzhen…
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