AGRICULTURE
Some US-PRC sales still on
US soybean exporters sold several cargoes to Chinese state-run buyers, according to people familiar with the matter, showing that some transactions are still going through even after officials in Beijing ordered a pause in some purchases. Shippers sold as many as four cargoes of US soybeans from the new crop, said the people, who asked not to be named because the information is private. State-run stockpiler China Grain Reserves Corp Group Ltd (中儲糧集團) was bidding earlier for Pacific Northwest cargoes, the people said.
BANKING
ANZ selling USD Finance
Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) yesterday agreed to sell its New Zealand-based asset finance unit for NZ$762 million (US$479 million) to Japanese financial institution Shinsei Bank Ltd. Australia’s fourth-largest lender said the sale of UDC Finance provides about A$439 million (US$298.08 million) of Level 2 Group CET1 capital. Shinsei Bank said that its consolidated capital adequacy ratio is expected to decline about 0.4 percentage points once it acquires UDC Finance. The sale is expected to be sealed in the second half of the year.
AUSTRALIA
RBA holds rates steady
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) yesterday kept its interest rate and yield objectives unchanged as an abatement of COVID-19 outbreak allows the economy to begin reopening. Bank Governor Philip Lowe maintained both the cash rate and three-year yield targets at 0.25 percent, as expected. The bank sharply tapered bond buying last month as financial markets calmed and COVID-19 infections dwindled. Meantime, a gauge of consumer confidence advanced yesterday for a ninth straight week.
REAL ESTATE
UK house prices plunge
Britain’s house prices last month fell by the most in more than 11 years as the COVID-19 pandemic hammered the market, mortgage lender Nationwide said yesterday. Prices fell by 1.7 percent last month from April, the biggest monthly decline since February 2009, it said. In annual terms, prices rose by 1.8 percent, slowing from 3.7 percent in April. A Reuters poll of economists had pointed to a monthly fall of 1 percent and an annual rise of 2.8 percent.
INDIA
Moody’s downgrades rating
The nation’s credit rating moved one step closer to junk after Moody’s Investors Service yesterday downgraded it to the lowest investment grade level and surprised economists by keeping it on a negative watch. Moody’s reduced the long-term foreign-currency credit rating from “Baa2” to “Baa3,” with the outlook implying it could cut the rating further. The nation’s growth and credit profile were deteriorating even before the pandemic and those risks would become more pronounced, Moody’s said. The negative outlook reflects strong downside risks from deeper stresses in the economy and financial system, it said.
VIETNAM
Power plant sales planned
Hanoi plans to sell some state-owned power plants to foreign investors to raise funds for urgently needed new projects and ease pressure on public debt, local media reported yesterday. State-owned Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) and the Commission for the Management of State Capital at Enterprises are drafting the plans for the sales, the Kinh Te Saigon reported.
Nvidia Corp CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) today announced that his company has selected "Beitou Shilin" in Taipei for its new Taiwan office, called Nvidia Constellation, putting an end to months of speculation. Industry sources have said that the tech giant has been eyeing the Beitou Shilin Science Park as the site of its new overseas headquarters, and speculated that the new headquarters would be built on two plots of land designated as "T17" and "T18," which span 3.89 hectares in the park. "I think it's time for us to reveal one of the largest products we've ever built," Huang said near the
China yesterday announced anti-dumping duties as high as 74.9 percent on imports of polyoxymethylene (POM) copolymers, a type of engineering plastic, from Taiwan, the US, the EU and Japan. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce’s findings conclude a probe launched in May last year, shortly after the US sharply increased tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, computer chips and other imports. POM copolymers can partially replace metals such as copper and zinc, and have various applications, including in auto parts, electronics and medical equipment, the Chinese ministry has said. In January, it said initial investigations had determined that dumping was taking place, and implemented preliminary
Intel Corp yesterday reinforced its determination to strengthen its partnerships with Taiwan’s ecosystem partners including original-electronic-manufacturing (OEM) companies such as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co (鴻海精密) and chipmaker United Microelectronics Corp (UMC, 聯電). “Tonight marks a new beginning. We renew our new partnership with Taiwan ecosystem,” Intel new chief executive officer Tan Lip-bu (陳立武) said at a dinner with representatives from the company’s local partners, celebrating the 40th anniversary of the US chip giant’s presence in Taiwan. Tan took the reins at Intel six weeks ago aiming to reform the chipmaker and revive its past glory. This is the first time Tan
CUSTOMERS’ BURDEN: TSMC already has operations in the US and is a foundry, so any tariff increase would mostly affect US customers, not the company, the minister said Taiwanese manufacturers are “not afraid” of US tariffs, but are concerned about being affected more heavily than regional economic competitors Japan and South Korea, Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) said. “Taiwan has many advantages that other countries do not have, the most notable of which is its semiconductor ecosystem,” Kuo said. The US “must rely on Taiwan” to boost its microchip manufacturing capacities, Kuo said in an interview ahead of his one-year anniversary in office tomorrow. Taiwan has submitted a position paper under Section 232 of the US Trade Expansion Act to explain the “complementary relationship” between Taiwan and the US
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