EQUITIES
MSCI drops Chinese stocks
MSCI Inc became the third index provider to delete some Chinese stocks from its benchmarks, after US President Donald Trump’s administration banned US investments in companies with links to the Chinese military. The firms include China Railway Construction Corp (中國鐵建), China Spacesat Co (中國東方紅衛星), China Communications Construction Co (中國交建), CRRC Corp (中國中車), Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Co (海康威視), Dawning Information Industry Co (曙光資訊) and Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (中芯國際), it said in a statement late on Tuesday. The deletions are to take effect at the Jan. 5 close. MSCI’s decision follows similar moves by FTSE Russell and S&P Dow Jones this month.
GARMENTS
Shandong Ruyi defaults
A troubled Chinese clothing company has defaulted on two domestic bonds in 24 hours, in the latest sign of financial stress among the nation’s weaker private firms. Shandong Ruyi Technology Group Co (山東如意集團) has not wired funds for coupon payment on a 1 billion yuan (US$153 million) bond due on Tuesday, it said in a filing to the Shanghai Clearing House. The company cited tight liquidity for missing the payment. It failed to repay principal and interest on a separate 1 billion yuan note due on Monday.
JAPAN
Exports slump 4 percent
Exports fell more than 4 percent from a year earlier last month, despite an uptick in trade with China, customs data released yesterday showed. Outbound shipments of vehicles, semiconductors and other manufactured items showed the biggest declines. Imports fell by a larger margin of 11 percent, led by plunges in purchases of food, oil, coal and gas. That left a global trade surplus of ￥366.77 billion (US$3.55 billion). Exports to China rose 3.8 percent, which was weaker than the 10 percent jump in October. Imports from China climbed nearly 7 percent. Exports to the US fell 2.5 percent, while imports sank 14 percent.
SAUDI ARABIA
Nation plans spending cuts
The kingdom said its spending plans for next year would be expansionary, as it leans more heavily on government-controlled funds to make up for cuts to a Ministry of Finance budget battered by a decline in oil prices and the COVID-19 pandemic. It would stick to its plan to cut spending by 7.3 percent next year after its deficit widened dramatically this year, an annual budget statement released on Tuesday showed. Spending is projected at 990 billion riyals (US$264 billion). Revenue is expected to rise to 849 billion riyals. The budget deficit is expected to narrow to 141 billion riyals, or 4.9 percent of economic output, from nearly 300 billion riyals, or 12 percent of GDP, this year.
PHARMACEUTICALS
Eli Lilly upbeat on revenue
Shares of Eli Lilly & Co rose on Tuesday after the drugmaker laid out a better-than-expected revenue forecast and plans to buy a young firm developing a potential Parkinson’s disease treatment. The maker of diabetes treatments expects revenue ranging from US$26.5 billion to US$28 billion next year. That is due partially to an expected US$1 billion to US$2 billion in sales from COVID-19 treatments, one of which received government approval for emergency use last month. It also expects sales from products like the diabetes treatment Trulicity and the cancer treatment Verzenio to help sales growth.
Greek tourism student Katerina quit within a month of starting work at a five-star hotel in Halkidiki, one of the country’s top destinations, because she said conditions were so dire. Beyond the bad pay, the 22-year-old said that her working and living conditions were “miserable and unacceptable.” Millions holiday in Greece every year, but its vital tourism industry is finding it harder and harder to recruit Greeks to look after them. “I was asked to work in any department of the hotel where there was a need, from service to cleaning,” said Katerina, a tourism and marketing student, who would
i Gasoline and diesel prices at fuel stations are this week to rise NT$0.1 per liter, as tensions in the Middle East pushed crude oil prices higher last week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said yesterday. International crude oil prices last week rose for the third consecutive week due to an escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, as the market is concerned that the situation in the Middle East might affect crude oil supply, CPC and Formosa said in separate statements. Front-month Brent crude oil futures — the international oil benchmark — rose 3.75 percent to settle at US$77.01
Merida Industry Co (美利達) has seen signs of recovery in the US and European markets this year, as customers are gradually depleting their inventories, the bicycle maker told shareholders yesterday. Given robust growth in new orders at its Taiwanese factory, coupled with its subsidiaries’ improving performance, Merida said it remains confident about the bicycle market’s prospects and expects steady growth in its core business this year. CAUTION ON CHINA However, the company must handle the Chinese market with great caution, as sales of road bikes there have declined significantly, affecting its revenue and profitability, Merida said in a statement, adding that it would
UNCERTAINTIES: The world’s biggest chip packager and tester is closely monitoring the US’ tariff policy before making any capacity adjustments, a company official said ASE Technology Holding Inc (日月光投控), the world’s biggest chip packager and tester, yesterday said it is cautiously evaluating new advanced packaging capacity expansion in the US in response to customers’ requests amid uncertainties about the US’ tariff policy. Compared with its semiconductor peers, ASE has been relatively prudent about building new capacity in the US. However, the company is adjusting its global manufacturing footprint expansion after US President Donald Trump announced “reciprocal” tariffs in April, and new import duties targeting semiconductors and other items that are vital to national security. ASE subsidiary Siliconware Precision Industries Co (SPIL, 矽品精密) is participating in Nvidia
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