REAL ESTATE
UK house prices stagnate
House prices in the UK stagnated last month after strong growth in June, cooled by tougher checks on mortgage lending, a survey from lender Nationwide Building Society showed yesterday. House prices gained just 0.1 percent month-on-month, the slowest rate since April last year and down from 1 percent in June. A separate survey on Tuesday showed consumer sentiment in the UK fell last month for the first time in six months, the latest survey that suggests Britons are feeling less upbeat about the economic recovery.
MACROECONOMICS
Spanish economy grows
Spain’s economic growth picked up in the second quarter, official data showed on Wednesday, as the country is climbing out of a deep recession triggered by the global financial crisis. The Spanish economy expanded by a better-than-expected 0.6 percent, up from growth of 0.4 percent in the first quarter, according to preliminary figures from the National Statistics Institute. In a separate statement, the statistics institute reported that Spanish consumer prices fell by 0.3 percent last month on an annual basis, mainly on the back a drop in fuel, food and drink prices.
BANKING
Bank of America fined
US federal judge Jed Rakoff imposed a US$1.3 billion civil penalty against Bank of America Corp on Wednesday for its role in selling risky mortgages to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that were advertised as safe investments. The fine was against Countrywide Financial Corp, which Bank of America purchased in 2008 as the financial crisis was unfolding. It is the latest legal ruling against Wall Street. A spokesman for Bank of America said the bank is exploring its legal options following the decision, including an appeal.
TECHNOLOGY
Sony profits surge eight-fold
Sony Corp reported a surprise eightfold jump in quarterly profit as sales got a boost from the cheap yen and its bottom line was helped by gains from buildings and its stake in a video-game maker. The company said yesterday that profit for the April to June quarter rose to ¥26.8 billion (US$261 million) from ¥3.1 billion a year earlier. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast a loss. Quarterly sales climbed nearly 6 percent to ¥1.81 trillion.
MACROECONOMICS
China expands ‘hukou’
China is to scrap the distinction between its urban and rural household registration systems. The country is to implement a single household registration — or hukou — system, China’s State Council said. The move would address a decades-long divide that denies rural dwellers equal access to services such as healthcare and education if they move to cities. However, a system of “residence permits” is to be introduced and the population of China’s major cities is still to be “strictly controlled,” the State Council said in Wednesday’s statement, ruling out automatic benefits for all.
INTERNET
Internet.org hits Zambia
Facebook’s Internet.org project is taking another step toward its goal of bringing the Internet to people who are not yet online with an app launched yesterday in Zambia. The Internet.org app gives subscribers to Zambia’s Airtel phone company access to a set of basic Internet services for free. Users of the app will not incur data charges, which can be prohibitive for many users in developing nations.
Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but first the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he has other concerns. The cost is one deterrent, but Garrett is more worried about restrictions on academic freedom and the personal risk of being stranded in China. He is not alone. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of nearly 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at US schools. Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see
MAJOR DROP: CEO Tim Cook, who is visiting Hanoi, pledged the firm was committed to Vietnam after its smartphone shipments declined 9.6% annually in the first quarter Apple Inc yesterday said it would increase spending on suppliers in Vietnam, a key production hub, as CEO Tim Cook arrived in the country for a two-day visit. The iPhone maker announced the news in a statement on its Web site, but gave no details of how much it would spend or where the money would go. Cook is expected to meet programmers, content creators and students during his visit, online newspaper VnExpress reported. The visit comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to ramp up Vietnam’s role in the global tech supply chain to reduce the US’ dependence on China. Images on
New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last
US CONSCULTANT: The US Department of Commerce’s Ursula Burns is a rarely seen US government consultant to be put forward to sit on the board, nominated as an independent director Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday nominated 10 candidates for its new board of directors, including Ursula Burns from the US Department of Commerce. It is rare that TSMC has nominated a US government consultant to sit on its board. Burns was nominated as one of seven independent directors. She is vice chair of the department’s Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness. Burns is to stand for election at TSMC’s annual shareholders’ meeting on June 4 along with the rest of the candidates. TSMC chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) was not on the list after in December last