EXCHANGE
Singapore trading halted
Singapore Exchange Ltd (SGX) said its stocks would not trade for the rest of the day after a technical malfunction yesterday. The bourse said the suspension, which began at 11:38am, was caused by duplicated trade confirmation messages. SGX failed in two attempts to reopen the market after saying it would restart trading at 2pm and then 4pm. It is at least the second system malfunction at SGX in the past year. There was a near two-hour disruption in derivatives trading in August last year after a technical fault. Singapore is home to Southeast Asia’s largest stock market, with total market capitalization of US$494 billion, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
UNITED STATES
Economy expanding: Fed
The economy and hiring continued to expand modestly from mid-May until the end of last month, leaving some firms unable to find skilled workers, the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday. In its latest survey of business conditions, the Fed found modest growth in 11 of 12 regions. Cleveland reported “little change” in growth. In its previous survey, the Fed reported modest growth in half of the regions. The energy sector, hard hit by low crude oil prices, remains weak. The report, known as the Beige Book, is to be discussed at the Fed’s upcoming meeting on July 26 and July 27.
OIL
Woodside invests in Senegal
Woodside Petroleum Ltd agreed to buy ConocoPhillips’ assets in Senegal for US$350 million to gain a stake in exploration blocks off the west African nation. ConocoPhillips holds 35 percent of a contract with the Senegalese government covering three offshore blocks, Rufisque Offshore, Sangomar Offshore and Sangomar Deep Offshore, Perth, Australia-based Woodside said in a statement yesterday. Woodside also agreed to pay about US$80 million on the deal’s completion. The acquisition includes the option for Woodside to operate the development of any resource, the company said.
AUTOMAKERS
Tesla ends resale guarantee
Tesla Motors Inc has ended its resale guarantee program in North America. The program — which began in 2013 — guaranteed that Tesla vehicles would have a higher resale value after three years than premium sedans from manufacturers such as BMW and Mercedes. A Tesla spokesperson on Wednesday said that the program reassured customers in Tesla’s early years when its cars did not have a track record, but Tesla sedans are now holding their value even better than the resale value guarantees, so the program is no longer necessary. The resale guarantee will still be available in some international markets.
FAST FOOD
Yum Brands beats forecast
Yum Brands Inc, the parent company of Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut, on Wednesday reported better-than-expected profit for the second quarter, despite soft sales at some of its brands. The results came as Louisville, Kentucky-based Yum prepares to split off its China unit into a separate company later this year. Yum on Wednesday said the separation process remains on track and it expects to complete it on about Oct. 31. The company earned US$339 million, or US$0.81 per share, for the period. Earnings, adjusted for non-recurring gains, were US$0.75 per share. Yum’s revenue fell 3 percent to US$3.01 billion, just short of market expectations of US$3.1 billion.
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