Posts by Stephanie Irvin
ECB may wait until December to make final rate cut: survey
[FRANKFURT] The European Central Bank (ECB) can delay its final interest-rate cut until December without investors concluding in the meantime that easing is over, a Bloomberg survey of economists showed. A majority continues to expect the last quarter-point reduction in the deposit rate, to 1.75 per cent, will come in September after a pause next…
Read MoreTrump’s U-turn on Nvidia spurs talk of grand bargain with China
[BEIJING] Only a few years ago, the Biden administration declared export controls a “new strategic asset” to help the US maintain “as large a lead as possible” over China in advanced technology. US President Donald Trump is now upending that approach. In a reversal this week, the White House told chipmaker Nvidia it could soon…
Read MoreAsia: Markets on course to end week on a positive note
[HONG KONG] Asian markets headed into the weekend on a broadly positive note on Friday (Jul 18), as investors took up New York’s latest record highs sparked by healthy US retail data and upbeat earnings from some of Wall Street’s big names. The readings helped divert attention away from Donald Trump’s tariffs saga, with dozens…
Read MoreJapan, EU to explore joint rare earths procurement: Nikkei
[BENGALURU] Japan and the European Union will consider joint public-private partnerships as they look to reduce their reliance on China in areas such as the procurement of rare earths, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Thursday (Jul 17). As China, the dominant supplier of rare earths, tightens export controls, global manufacturers are concerned that Beijing’s decision…
Read MoreGold heads for weekly dip as strong dollar, US data weighs
[BENGALURU] Gold was flat in early Asian trade on Friday (Jul 18), heading for a weekly fall, weighed down by an overall stronger US dollar and solid US economic data. Spot gold was steady at US$3,339.22 per ounce, as at 0038 GMT. US gold futures were flat at US$3,344.70. Bullion is down 0.5 per cent…
Read MoreFood Empire partners AirAsia to launch ready-to-drink beverages
The tie-up kicks off with a Vietnamese iced-coffee product to be sold on board the airline’s flights [SINGAPORE] Mainboard-listed Food Empire will partner low-cost airline AirAsia to co-develop and launch a new range of ready-to-drink beverages. The memorandum of understanding was signed between Food Empire’s unit Empire International and AirAsia’s Santan Food Services, said the…
Read MoreStocks to watch: OCBC, Singtel, Wilmar, Food Empire, Telechoice
[SINGAPORE] The following companies saw new developments that may affect trading of their securities on Friday (Jul 18): OCBC, Singtel: The bank will partner the three local universities on research to develop quantum technology applications in derivative pricing, fraud detection and data security. On Thursday, it inked 12-month long collaboration agreements with the National University…
Read MoreWells Fargo suspends China travel after employee exit ban: source
[NEW YORK] Wells Fargo has suspended all travel to China after a banker was blocked from leaving the country, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Thursday (Jul 16), causing broader anxiety about the risks of travel in the country. The US banking giant’s Chenyue Mao was subjected to an exit ban after…
Read MoreOil jumps US$1 after further drone attacks on Iraq oil fields
[HOUSTON] Oil prices rose US$1 on Thursday (Jul 16) after drones struck Iraqi Kurdistan oil fields for a fourth day, pointing to continued risk in the volatile region. Brent crude futures settled at US$69.52 a barrel, up US$1.00, or 1.46 per cent. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures finished at US$67.54 a barrel, up US$1.16,…
Read MoreAmazon’s AWS cloud computing unit cuts jobs
Published Thu, Jul 17, 2025 · 11:57 PM [SAN FRANCISCO] Amazon cut jobs in its Amazon Web Services cloud computing unit on Thursday (Jul 17), a spokesperson confirmed following a Reuters inquiry. “We’ve made the difficult business decision to eliminate some roles across particular teams in AWS,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “These…
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