Sunday, September 23 2018 | ASIA TODAY INTERNATIONAL - Reporting the Business that Matters in Asia
MELBOURNE – Australia’s Compumedics Limited (ASX: CMP) has negotiated new three-year distribution agreements with three of the Company’s long-standing distributors in China for Compumedics sleep and neuro-diagnostic and monitoring systems.
BEIJING - China and Germany have agreed to step up “win-win” co-operation, especially in emerging industries such as artificial intelligence and new energy vehicles, China’s State newsagency, Xinhua, reported. It said the agreement was made between Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and visiting German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
SEOUL - President Moon Jae-in says North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un, remains committed to holding a summit with U.S. President Donald Trump - and to the complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.
LAUSANNE – The United States has become the world’s most competitive economy in the 30th edition of rankings prepared by the IMD World Competitiveness Centre, a research group at IMD business school in Switzerland. The US edges out Hong Kong from top placing.
SINGAPORE -- The favourable macroeconomic environment in Asia-Pacific remains intact, but risks relating to capital flows and trade have increased, says S&P Global Ratings in a report published today. Cautious optimism on trade has faded somewhat in recent weeks.
SINGAPORE - CIMIC Group company Leighton Asia, as lead partner in a joint venture, has been selected by Singapore’s Land Transport Authority to deliver an A$540 million tunnel and infrastructure contract as part of Singapore’s North-South Transportation Corridor project.
BEIJING - The consensus reached during economic and trade consultations between China and the United States met the interests of the people of the two countries and whole world, Chinese Vice Premier Liu He said yesterday. Liu, just returned from the United States, referred to the talks as "positive, pragmatic, and productive" with some important consensuses reached, the State newsagency, Xinhua, reported.
WASHINGTON – ANZ Bank believes U.S. wariness about technology transfers is still the major hurdle to resolve differences between the U.S. and China – and, going forward, it expects the U.S. to continue to initiate other trade measures, with China reciprocating.
CANBERRA - Major investments in national research facilities announced by the Federal Government will help Australia win job-creating research races in high-performing computing, advanced manufacturing and medical technology, says Universities Australia’s Chief Executive Designate, Catriona Jackson.
BANGKOK - The breadth of the acceleration in growth was the most notable feature of Thailand’s Q1 GDP data. Apart from exports, which slightly moderated to 6% y/y from 7.4% y/y previously, all other components accelerated during the quarter.
HONG KONG - Rallying oil prices are a credit positive for most Asia-Pacific oil companies, boosting cash flows, but spending plans should remain relatively conservative, according to S&P Global Ratings.
WASHINGTON - The second round of negotiations in Washington between the U.S. and China to resolve a long standing trade dispute has yielded mixed results. With US Commerce Secretary, Wilbur Ross, expected to visit China next to continue the talks, investors will seek credible action from both sides to diffuse trade tensions further, says BBVA in a research note.
HONG KONG – An annual report card by the French banking group Natixis shows that the internationalisation of the RMB has stagnated. The bank’s RMB Internationalisation Monitor tracks the uses of Renminbi in both private and official domains.
JAKARTA - Bank Indonesia (BI) has shifted its policy focus to ensure exchange rate stability by raising its 7-day policy repo rate by 25bps to 4.50%.
The increase comes at a time when inflation is firmly nestled in BI’s target band of 2.5-4.5% and GDP growth lingers in a narrow range of 5-5.5%.
KUALA LUMPUR – The announcement by incoming Prime Minister Mohamed Mahathir that he will repeal the 6% goods and services (GST) tax effective June 1 and replace it with a sales and services tax (SST) is not causing undue concern in banking and financial circles.
BANGKOK - The Bank of Thailand (BoT) has maintained its policy rate at 1.50%, in a unanimous decision. The policy statement emphasised that, while the economy was projected to gain further traction on the back of external demand, the strength of domestic demand and private consumption would need to be monitored