Saturday, April 19 2025 | ASIA TODAY INTERNATIONAL - Reporting the Business that Matters in Asia
HONG KONG - Ratings agency Standard and Poor's has downgraded Hong Kong major Li & Fung, saying its planned sale of LF Logistics is negative to the business strength of the global supply chain manager. The logistics arm of Li & Fung was likely to account for 50%-60% of full year EBITDA in 2022, S&P said.
SYDNEY -- The global law firm BakerMcKenzie has addressed the question of compulsory vaccination against COVID-19 in a special report authored by Michael Michalandos, the firm's Head of Employment and Compensation Group, Asia-Pacific. The report covers 11 countries across Asia-Pacific - Australia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.
BERLIN -- The Evergrande default and the China real estate crisis are currently causing around US$10 billion in losses at the 10 largest pension and investment funds specialising in Asia, with the largest Evergrande bond exposure of around US$1.2 billion, according to a new DMSA study just published.
MANILA-- A heightened pandemic risk in the third quarter had little impact on Q3 GDP growth in the Philippines, but both household consumption and services activity strengthened, ANZ says in an economic note.
HO CHI MINH CITY - ANZ Bank says its proprietary monthly activity tracker (AVAT) shows that Vietnam's economy expanded month-on-month in October, breaking a five-month long streak of declines.
TAIWAN -- President Tsai Ing-wen has vowed to shape central Taiwan's Taichung City, in Central Taiwan into a world-class smart machinery powerhouse, underscoring the Government's commitment to cementing the country's position in global supply chains.
HONG KONG -- S&P Global Ratings said today that contagion risks were rising in China's property market, driven by sentiment hits from news headlines of distressed developers, including China Evergrande, the country's largest.
JAKARTA -- Thiess has secured a three-year $A220 million contract renewal to continue providing mining services at PT Wahana Baratama Mining's (Wahana) coal mine in South Kalimantan, Indonesia.
JAKRATA -- Indonesia's economy lost momentum in Q3, reflecting the setback from the delta virus wave, particularly in the earlier half of the quarter. However, higher frequency data suggests that economic activity has started to recover following the easing of virus curbs in the latter part of Q3.
Taiwan was committed to deepening its partnership with Europe while safeguarding freedom and democracy for the people of both sides, President Tsai Ing-wen told a seven-member delegation of EP lawmakers led by Raphael Glucksmann of France, chair of the EP Special Committee on Foreign Interference in all Democratic Processes in the European Union, including Disinformation (INGE).
HONG KONG -- S&P Global Ratings today said China's toughening operating environment is a modest credit negative for the country's largest e-retailer, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. "We anticipate Alibaba's revenue growth will slow further over the next few quarters and its net cash position could shrink more than our earlier expectations." S&P said.
HONG KONG -- The negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on passenger travel will likely weigh on Airport Authority Hong Kong's (AAHK) revenue and leverage over the next 12-24 months, according to ratings agency Standarfd and Poors. It says AAHK's passenger traffic recovery will lag behind global peers due to the HKSAR's sustained stringent quarantine measures and the absence of domestic flight operations.
HONG KONG - The Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) and Hang Seng Bank will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on December 1 seeking to co-create a one-stop platform to support innovation in Hong Kong.
MELBOURNE - The Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) has signed a strategic partnership with Infinite Learning in Nongsa Digital Park, a high-profile tech hub supported by the Indonesian and Singapore Governments.
SEOUL -- The Bank of Korea (BoK) on Thursday hiked its policy rate by 25 basis points to 1.00%, as widely expected. While it kept its growth forecasts for 2021 and 2022 unchanged, there was a notable upward revision to the bank's inflation forecasts.
TAIPEI - US President Joe Biden has issued an invitation to Taiwan to participate in the Summit for Democracy, a virtual event to take place on December 9 to 10. The event will brings together leaders of government, civil society and the private sector from more than 100 countries and territories to discuss issues such as resisting authoritarianism, fighting corruption and promoting human rights.