METALS
Silver falls 3.9 percent
Silver tumbled after posting its biggest two-day advance in five years, with precious metals declining as the US dollar snapped five days of losses. Silver for immediate delivery lost as much as 3.9 percent to US$19.5325 an ounce and traded at US$19.975 by 10:42am in Singapore, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. The metal rose 8.6 percent in the two days through Monday, the most since May 2011, briefly topping US$21 for the first time in two years. Gold dropped 0.5 percent to US$1,344.11 an ounce after a four-day advance. Palladium lost as much as 4.1 percent and platinum fell 1.3 percent following an 11 percent jump in the seven days to Monday. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot index was 0.1 percent higher, making commodities denominated in the greenback more expensive in other currencies.
MOROCCO
Investment deals signed
King Mohammed VI has presided over the signing of new international investment agreements worth 7.5 billion dirhams (US$770 million) as the kingdom seeks to capitalize on its reputation as a safe market in a volatile region. The 30 investment contracts signed on Monday are due to provide 39,000 jobs, according to the government, a welcome boost for the economy. Minister of Industry, Commerce, Investment and Digital Economy Moulay Hafid Elalamy highlighted the increase in investments in industry from Brazil, China, Russia and India. During the ceremony in the royal palace in Casablanca, investment contracts were signed between the government and a number of international companies, including UK-based automotive manufacturer Delphi and Canadian manufacturer Linamar.
BANKING
BNP expects Visa windfall
BNP Paribas SA said it expects to recognize a 565 million euro (US$630 million) after-tax gain in the second quarter from the disposal of its stake in Visa Europe. The transaction will probably have a “negligible” impact on the bank’s common equity Tier 1 ratio, a key capital indicator, the Paris-based company said in a statement on Monday. Visa Inc last month won EU antitrust approval to take over Visa Europe, which was owned by more than 3,000 banks.
THE PHILIPPINES
Economy likely grew 7%
The economy might have grown as much as 7 percent in the second quarter on an annual basis, Secretary of Socio-economic Planning Ernesto Pernia said yesterday. That compares with first-quarter growth of 6.9 percent, which was partly boosted by election-related spending. Second-quarter GDP data is to be released on Aug. 18. President Rodrigo Duterte’s economic team cut the government’s economic growth targets for this year and next, citing weak farm output due to El Nino and external headwinds.
PHARMACEUTICALS
Aurobindo eyes Teva drugs
Indian drugmaker Aurobindo Pharma Ltd is among companies considering bids for Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd’s portfolio of drugs in the UK, Ireland and Iceland, people familiar with the matter said. Aurobindo would finance the deal with a loan of more than US$1 billion, according to one of the people, who asked not to be identified because the deliberations are private. No final decision has been made and the company could still decide against a bid, the people said. The sale could fetch about US$1.5 billion, people familiar with the matter have said previously.
Among the rows of vibrators, rubber torsos and leather harnesses at a Chinese sex toys exhibition in Shanghai this weekend, the beginnings of an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven shift in the industry quietly pulsed. China manufactures about 70 percent of the world’s sex toys, most of it the “hardware” on display at the fair — whether that be technicolor tentacled dildos or hyper-realistic personalized silicone dolls. Yet smart toys have been rising in popularity for some time. Many major European and US brands already offer tech-enhanced products that can enable long-distance love, monitor well-being and even bring people one step closer to
Malaysia’s leader yesterday announced plans to build a massive semiconductor design park, aiming to boost the Southeast Asian nation’s role in the global chip industry. A prominent player in the semiconductor industry for decades, Malaysia accounts for an estimated 13 percent of global back-end manufacturing, according to German tech giant Bosch. Now it wants to go beyond production and emerge as a chip design powerhouse too, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said. “I am pleased to announce the largest IC (integrated circuit) Design Park in Southeast Asia, that will house world-class anchor tenants and collaborate with global companies such as Arm [Holdings PLC],”
Thousands of parents in Singapore are furious after a Cordlife Group Ltd (康盛人生集團), a major operator of cord blood banks in Asia, irreparably damaged their children’s samples through improper handling, with some now pursuing legal action. The ongoing case, one of the worst to hit the largely untested industry, has renewed concerns over companies marketing themselves to anxious parents with mostly unproven assurances. This has implications across the region, given Cordlife’s operations in Hong Kong, Macau, Indonesia, the Philippines and India. The parents paid for years to have their infants’ cord blood stored, with the understanding that the stem cells they contained
Sales in the retail, and food and beverage sectors last month continued to rise, increasing 0.7 percent and 13.6 percent respectively from a year earlier, setting record highs for the month of March, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said yesterday. Sales in the wholesale sector also grew last month by 4.6 annually, mainly due to the business opportunities for emerging applications related to artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing technologies, the ministry said in a report. The ministry forecast that retail, and food and beverage sales this month would retain their growth momentum as the former would benefit from Tomb Sweeping Day