PHILIPPINES
GDP grew 6.7%: government
The country retained its position as one of the world’s fastest-growing economies after expansion exceeded 6 percent for a sixth consecutive year. GDP increased 6.7 percent last year, the Philippine Statistics Authority said in Manila yesterday, matching the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists. The economy grew 6.6 percent in the fourth quarter of last year from a year earlier, slightly less than the 6.7 percent median estimate, prompting the peso and stocks to drop. The country is expected to keep its momentum, with the World Bank predicting growth of more than 6 percent per year until next year. President Rodrigo Duterte has been reforming tax laws to boost the nation’s competitiveness and raise revenue, while pushing ahead with an ambitious US$180 billion infrastructure program that includes Manila’s first subway.
REAL ESTATE
Wynn Palace to expand
Wynn Resorts Ltd plans to expand its newest property on Macau’s Cotai Strip after the project helped the company report better-than-expected earnings last quarter. The next phase of the US$4.2 billion Wynn Palace, which opened in August 2016, is to be developed on 4.45 hectares, chairman Steve Wynn said on a conference call. He did not provide details of the plans. “The depth and the foundational strength of that market is real,” Wynn said on Monday. “We have been encouraged by the government in conversations with them to file our plans for phase two, which we’re working on now.” Wynn Macau Ltd (永利澳門), the company’s Chinese subsidiary, reported stronger-than-expected results for the fourth quarter. Property earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization totaled US$376 million, up 66 percent from a year earlier and beating the median analysts’ estimate of US$360 million.
INSURANCE
AIG plans to acquire Validus
Leading global insurer American International Group Inc (AIG) on Monday announced a US$5.6 billion deal to purchase Validus Holdings, expanding its portfolio of insurance services. AIG is to acquire all outstanding common shares of Validus, a leading provider of reinsurance, primary insurance and asset management services, the companies said. AIG said that in addition to those services, the deal would allow it to add “complementary capabilities in the US crop and excess and surplus markets.” Validus shareholders are to receive US$68 per share. “Validus is an excellent strategic fit for AIG, bringing new businesses and capabilities to our general insurance operation,” AIG CEO Brian Duperreault said.
ENTERTAINMENT
Meraas mulls stake sale
Dubai, United Arab Emirates-based property developer Meraas Holding LLC is weighing the sale of a significant minority stake in its Roxy Cinemas unit to raise funds for expansion, according to people familiar with the matter. Meraas is to start gauging interest from potential buyers shortly, the people said, asking not to be identified because the discussions are private. The company operates three cinemas in Dubai under the Roxy brand, according to its Web site. Meraas declined to comment. Merger and acquisition deals for movie theaters are increasing as investors seek consumer-facing businesses with growth potential. UK’s Cineworld Group PLC last year agreed to buy US theater operator Regal Entertainment Group for about US$3.6 billion to expand into the biggest movie market.
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],”
TRANSFORMATION: Taiwan is now home to the largest Google hardware research and development center outside of the US, thanks to the nation’s economic policies President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday attended an event marking the opening of Google’s second hardware research and development (R&D) office in Taiwan, which was held at New Taipei City’s Banciao District (板橋). This signals Taiwan’s transformation into the world’s largest Google hardware research and development center outside of the US, validating the nation’s economic policy in the past eight years, she said. The “five plus two” innovative industries policy, “six core strategic industries” initiative and infrastructure projects have grown the national industry and established resilient supply chains that withstood the COVID-19 pandemic, Tsai said. Taiwan has improved investment conditions of the domestic economy
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