JAPAN
Inflation stuck at zero
Consumer inflation stuck at zero last month for the second straight month, offering fresh evidence of the challenges faced by the government and the central bank, which said its forecast 2 percent inflation rate will not be reached until next year. The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications announced that core consumer prices, which exclude volatile fresh food prices, were unchanged last month from a year ago. The data came on the heels of the same number in January, and rises of 0.1 percent in both December last year and November last year.
SOUTH KOREA
Economic growth slips
Revised GDP data released yesterday confirmed that economic growth rate slipped from a five-year high in the fourth quarter of last year as a surge in property transactions faded in the quarter. GDP rose 0.7 percent from the previous three months, when it jumped by 1.2 percent, according to data released by the Bank of Korea. The economy expanded 2.6 percent last year from a year earlier, the slowest pace since 2012.
UNITED STATES
Durable goods orders fall
New orders for durable goods fell last month, dragged down by a one-month slump in sales of new aircraft, the Commerce Department reported on Thursday. Durable goods orders lost 2.8 percent last month to US$229.3 billion, with a US$3.8 billion decline in orders for new aircraft — frequently a highly volatile component of the data — the main reason. For the first two months of this year, new durable goods orders were up 2.6 percent from a year ago.
UNITED KINGDOM
Retail sales decline
Retail sales in the nation fell 0.4 percent last month after surging the most in more than two years the previous month during post-Christmas sales. Clothing and shoes fell 0.4 percent, with poor weather delaying purchases of spring and summer attire, the Office for National Statistics said in a report on Thursday. While the figures show a decline on the month, sales were up 3.8 percent compared with a year earlier. There have been some signs that Britain’s economy slowed early this year and the government’s official budget forecasters last week cut estimates for growth until the end of the decade.
FASHION
Versace revenues up 17.5%
Luxury fashion house Versace on Thursday said its revenues grew 17.5 percent last year, thanks largely to sales of its accessories and its cheekier second line, Versus. While the brand’s revenues grew by 645 million euros (US$720 million), its retail sales were 28.9 percent higher at 400.7 million euros and income from e-commerce was up 31.2 percent. This year Versace said it will invest up to 50 million euros for new store openings and major store refurbishments.
RESTAURANTS
Yum Brands to sell stakes
Yum Brands Inc, owner of KFC and Pizza Hut, is in talks with private equity firms including KKR & Co LP and Hopu Investments to sell a minority stake in its China operations as it prepares to spin off the once booming unit, two sources familiar with the plans said on Thursday. The chain plans to spin off its 6,900 restaurants in China, which account for about half of the company’s total sales, by the end of this year. Yum China will list on the New York Stock Exchange and possibly in Hong Kong.
Zhang Yazhou was sitting in the passenger seat of her Tesla Model 3 when she said she heard her father’s panicked voice: The brakes do not work. Approaching a red light, her father swerved around two cars before plowing into a sport utility vehicle and a sedan, and crashing into a large concrete barrier. Stunned, Zhang gazed at the deflating airbag in front of her. She could never have imagined what was to come: Tesla Inc sued her for defamation for complaining publicly about the vehicles brakes — and won. A Chinese court ordered Zhang to pay more than US$23,000 in
‘LEGACY CHIPS’: Chinese companies have dramatically increased mature chip production capacity, but the West’s drive for secure supply chains offers a lifeline for Taiwan When Powerchip Technology Corp (力晶科技) entered a deal with the eastern Chinese city of Hefei in 2015 to set up a new chip foundry, it hoped the move would help provide better access to the promising Chinese market. However, nine years later, that Chinese foundry, Nexchip Semiconductor Corp (合晶集成), has become one of its biggest rivals in the legacy chip space, leveraging steep discounts after Beijing’s localization call forced Powerchip to give up the once-lucrative business making integrated circuits for Chinese flat panels. Nexchip is among Chinese foundries quickly winning market share in the crucial US$56.3 billion industry of so-called legacy
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday held its first board of directors meeting in the US, at which it did not unveil any new US investments despite mounting tariff threats from US President Donald Trump. Trump has threatened to impose 100 percent tariffs on Taiwan-made chips, prompting market speculation that TSMC might consider boosting its chip capacity in the US or ramping up production of advanced chips such as those using a 2-nanometer technology process at its Arizona fabs ahead of schedule. Speculation also swirled that the chipmaker might consider building its own advanced packaging capacity in the US as part
‘NO DISRUPTION’: A US trade association said that it was ready to work with the US administration to streamline the program’s requirements and achieve shared goals The White House is seeking to renegotiate US CHIPS and Science Act awards and has signaled delays to some upcoming semiconductor disbursements, two sources familiar with the matter told reporters. The people, along with a third source, said that the new US administration is reviewing the projects awarded under the 2022 law, meant to boost US domestic semiconductor output with US$39 billion in subsidies. Washington plans to renegotiate some of the deals after assessing and changing current requirements, the sources said. The extent of the possible changes and how they would affect agreements already finalized was not immediately clear. It was not known