JAPAN
Industrial output rises
The nation’s industrial output last month rose the most in five months as exports rebounded sharply, pointing to an expected economic expansion in the fourth quarter. Industrial production last month increased 1.5 percent from a month earlier, beating a forecast of 1.7 percent growth. Output is forecast to rise 2 percent this month and 2.2 percent next month. Retail sales last month rose 1.7 percent from the same period last year, the first gain since February, outperforming an estimate of 0.8 percent growth. “Overseas demand, including from developing nations, is recovering and production is growing to meet their consumption needs,” Norinchukin Research Institute chief economist Takeshi Minami said. “Inventories are down and shipments are up, lifting production.”
AVIATION
Delta cancels Boeing order
Delta Air Lines Inc scrapped an order for 18 Boeing Co wide-body jets valued at US$4 billion at list prices. The 787-8 Dreamliners had been on Delta’s order book since its 2008 merger with Northwest Airlines Corp. The Atlanta, Georgia-based carrier said it had reached an agreement with Boeing on the cancelation, without disclosing the terms. It would continue orders already in progress for 120 narrow-body Boeing 737-900ER aircraft, Delta said in a statement on Tuesday. The cancelation furthers a trend of major US airlines either deferring or canceling orders of wide-body jets — long-haul aircraft that have two aisles. Delta earlier this year deferred taking four Airbus Group SE A350s until 2019 and 2020, instead of the originally scheduled 2018.
ENERGY
BP to buy Australia network
BP PLC is to pay A$1.785 billion (US$1.28 billion) for Woolworths Ltd’s network of Australian gas stations in a deal that will cement the London-based oil company as one of the nation’s biggest fuel providers. The British company is to acquire 527 fuel outlets that are currently supplied by rival Caltex Australia Ltd, as well as 16 development sites, according to a statement yesterday from Sydney-based supermarket operator Woolworths. BP already owns 350 retail locations across Australia and supplies fuel to an additional 1,000 outlets owned by independent business partners, according to a separate statement from the oil company. BP and Woolworths also agreed to a partnership that includes the continuation and expansion of a scheme to provide fuel discounts for supermarket customers.
RETAIL
US holiday sales increase
Holiday shoppers abandoned their early reluctance and boosted spending as the season wore on, pushing US sales to the biggest increase in more than a decade, according to research firm Customer Growth Partners LLC. On Tuesday, the firm raised its holiday sales estimate to a 4.9 percent gain from last year at US$637 billion. That would be the biggest increase since 2005. Customer Growth had previously forecast a 4.1 percent advance. Online sales grew an estimated 15 percent, up more than 1 percentage point from the firm’s previous forecast. Sellers of consumer electronics, home improvement goods, beauty products and toys saw robust sales and minimal markdowns, Customer Growth president Craig Johnson said. Low unemployment and fuel prices, as well as real disposable income gains, boosted spending. Then there was clothing. “You saw rampant discounting,” with 40 percent off required to even get customers in the door and half off to get them to buy, Johnson said.
NEW IDENTITY: Known for its software, India has expanded into hardware, with its semiconductor industry growing from US$38bn in 2023 to US$45bn to US$50bn India on Saturday inaugurated its first semiconductor assembly and test facility, a milestone in the government’s push to reduce dependence on foreign chipmakers and stake a claim in a sector dominated by China. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened US firm Micron Technology Inc’s semiconductor assembly, test and packaging unit in his home state of Gujarat, hailing the “dawn of a new era” for India’s technology ambitions. “When young Indians look back in the future, they will see this decade as the turning point in our tech future,” Modi told the event, which was broadcast on his YouTube channel. The plant would convert
‘SEISMIC SHIFT’: The researcher forecast there would be about 1.1 billion mobile shipments this year, down from 1.26 billion the prior year and erasing years of gains The global smartphone market is expected to contract 12.9 percent this year due to the unprecedented memorychip shortage, marking “a crisis like no other,” researcher International Data Corp (IDC) said. The new forecast, a dramatic revision down from earlier estimates, gives the latest accounting of the ongoing memory crunch that is affecting every corner of the electronics industry. The demand for advanced memory to power artificial intelligence (AI) tasks has drained global supply until well into next year and jeopardizes the business model of many smartphone makers. IDC forecast about 1.1 billion mobile shipments this year, down from 1.26 billion the prior
People stand in a Pokemon store in Tokyo on Thursday. One of the world highest-grossing franchises is celebrated its 30th anniversary yesterday.
Zimbabwe’s ban on raw lithium exports is forcing Chinese miners to rethink their strategy, speeding up plans to process the metal locally instead of shipping it to China’s vast rechargeable battery industry. The country is Africa’s largest lithium producer and has one of the world’s largest reserves, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS). Zimbabwe already banned the export of lithium ore in 2022 and last year announced it would halt exports of lithium concentrates from January next year. However, on Wednesday it imposed the ban with immediate effect, leaving unclear what the lithium mining sector would do in the
RSS