JAPAN
Machinery orders down
Machinery orders in May fell for the first time since January and at a faster rate than expected, casting doubt on the strength of capital investment over the coming months amid a global economic slowdown. Core machinery orders, a leading indicator of capital expenditure, in May fell 7.8 percent from April, its biggest fall in eight months, Cabinet Office data showed yesterday. Orders slipped 3.7 percent from the previous year. The latest data show that machine orders fell in both the manufacturing and non-manufacturing sectors.
CHINA
Forex holdings increase
Foreign-currency holdings rose for a second month amid potential capital inflows and positive valuation effects, hitting the highest level in more than a year. Reserves last month climbed to US$3.119 trillion from US$3.101 trillion in May, the People’s Bank of China said yesterday. The value of reserves rose due to a weaker US dollar and higher international financial asset prices, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange said in a statement.
TECHNOLOGY
Broadcom prepared to buy
Broadcom Inc has secured financing and identified cost savings for the acquisition of Symantec Corp in an all-cash deal, people familiar with the matter said. The chipmaker received lending commitments from several banks and sees annual synergy potential of about US$1.5 billion, the people said. Separately, Symantec has drawn interest from its former chief executive officer Greg Clark, who has teamed up with buyout firms Advent International and Permira Holdings in an attempt to muster a competing offer, the people said.
INDIA
Effect of tax hike negligible
The government’s decision to raise duties on gasoline and diesel is unlikely to threaten the inflation outlook, keeping alive expectations of more interest rate cuts from the central bank. Minister of Finance Nirmala Sitharaman’s decision on Friday to increase federal taxes on transport fuels by 2 rupees ($US0.17) a liter would have an impact of less than 10 basis points on headline inflation, Nirmal Bang Equities Pvt economist Teresa John said. The second-round effects could push up the inflation rate by slightly more than 10 basis points.
CHINA
Vehicle sales recover
Passenger-vehicle sales showed signs of recovery from a historic rut as dealers offered discounts to clear inventory before new emissions rules kicked in. Retail sales of sedans, sport utility vehicles, minivans and multipurpose vehicles last month rose 4.9 percent to 1.8 million units from a year earlier, according to preliminary numbers from the China Passenger Car Association yesterday. That is the first increase since May last year for the world’s biggest market.
AVIATION
Flyadeal scraps MAX deal
Saudi Arabian budget carrier Flyadeal reversed a commitment to buy as many as 50 Boeing Co 737 MAX jets, becoming the first airline to officially drop the aircraft since its grounding following two deadly crashes. Flyadeal would operate an entirely Airbus SE fleet, the company said in a statment on Sunday, taking as many as 50 A320neo-family airplanes from Boeing’s European rival. Flyadeal is to take delivery starting 2021 of 30 Airbus A320neo aircraft, with an option for an additional 20 aircraft from the A320neo family.
The EU and US are nearing an agreement to coordinate on producing and securing critical minerals, part of a push to break reliance on Chinese supplies. The potential deal would create incentives, such as minimum prices, that could advantage non-Chinese suppliers, according to a draft of an “action plan” seen by Bloomberg. The EU and US would also cooperate on standards, investments and joint projects, as well as coordinate on any supply disruptions by countries like China. The two sides are additionally seeking other “like-minded partners” to join a multicountry accord to help create these new critical mineral supply chains, which feed into
For weeks now, the global tech industry has been waiting for a major artificial intelligence (AI) launch from DeepSeek (深度求索), seen as a benchmark for China’s progress in the fast-moving field. More than a year has passed since the start-up put Chinese AI on the map in early last year with a low-cost chatbot that performed at a similar level to US rivals. However, despite reports and rumors about its imminent release, DeepSeek’s next-generation “V4” model is nowhere in sight. Speculation is also swirling over the geopolitical implications of which computer chips were chosen to train and power the new
Elon Musk’s lieutenants have reached out to chip industry suppliers, including Applied Materials Inc, Tokyo Electron Ltd and Lam Research Corp, for his envisioned Terafab, early steps in an audacious and likely arduous attempt to break into the production of cutting-edge chips. Staff working for the joint venture between Tesla Inc and Space Exploration Technologies Corp (SpaceX) have sought price quotes and delivery times for an array of chipmaking gear, people familiar with the matter said. In past weeks, they’ve contacted makers of photomasks, substrates, etchers, depositors, cleaning devices, testers and other tools, according to the people, who asked not to
Japan approved ￥631.5 billion (US$3.97 billion) in additional subsidies to hasten Rapidus Corp’s entry into the high-stakes artificial intelligence (AI) chipmaking arena, ramping up support for a project widely regarded as a long shot. The capital is intended to bankroll Rapidus’ work for information technology firm Fujitsu Ltd, one of the initial customers that Tokyo hopes would get the signature endeavor off the ground. The new money raises the fees and investments that the government is injecting into the start-up to ￥2.6 trillion by the end of the current fiscal year to March next year, the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and
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