SWEDEN
PM touts sturdy economy
The economy is robust enough to withstand the effects of the energy crunch that has gripped Europe and filtered into Scandinavia, Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said. “We have a very, very strong economy,” Lofven said in an interview in New York on Sunday. “If we have dramatically higher prices in the long term, that will affect consumption, but I don’t think we’re there.” Sweden’s debt to GDP ratio has held below 40 percent even during the COVID-19 crisis and remains one of the lowest in Europe. That measure is set to fall to about 35 percent, Lofven said.
AIRLINES
Lufthansa to issue shares
Europe’s largest airline group, Deutsche Lufthansa AG, hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, said on Sunday that it would seek to raise more than 2 billion euros (US$2.34 billion) with a capital increase. The German company said its executive board had agreed to a share issue from tomorrow and “the gross proceeds are expected to amount to 2.140 billion euros.” The transaction, intended to improve its equity position and help repay state aid provided in the course of the pandemic, was underwritten by a syndicate of 14 banks, Lufthansa said.
ELECTRONICS
Merck to invest 3bn euros
Merck KGaA plans to spend more than 3 billion euros through 2025 on its electronics business to capitalize on rising demand for semiconductor and display panel materials. The German company would expand production capacity, bolster research and development spending and is also considering bolt-on acquisitions, it said in a statement yesterday. The company makes materials and technologies for computer chips and display screens, as well as effect pigments — products that are sold to the automotive, printing and cosmetics industries. A global semiconductor shortage has been devastating vehicle production this year.
BANKING
JPMorgan begins expansion
JPMorgan Chase & Co this week plans to launch a digital retail bank in the UK, the first step in the its strategy to expand its consumer business overseas. The operation, called Chase, is today to start with current accounts, a person familiar with the matter said. The product offering would broaden over time with the bank planning to invest “hundreds of millions” in the venture, Sanoke Viswanathan, head of JPMorgan’s International Consumer division, said in an interview with the Financial Times. The US bank agreed to buy UK digital wealth manager Nutmeg Saving and Investment in June, and Viswanathan told the Financial Times that more acquisitions might be considered.
CRYPTOCURRENCIES
Bitcoin ‘threatens’ the planet
Mining for bitcoin generates substantial electronic waste that “represents a growing threat to the environment,” a study said. The average life cycle of the powerful computers used to unearth the units of the world’s leading cryptocurrency is only 1.3 years, report coauthor Alex de Vries said on Friday. De Vries said that this was “extremely short compared to any” other electronic devices such as iPhones. At 30,700 tonnes, the amount of electronic waste generated by bitcoin mining in the 12 months to May was “comparable to the amount of small IT and telecommunication equipment waste produced by a country like the Netherlands,” the report said.
South Korea’s equity benchmark yesterday crossed a new milestone just a month after surpassing the once-unthinkable 5,000 mark as surging global memory demand powers the country’s biggest chipmakers. The KOSPI advanced as much as 2.6 percent to a record 6,123, with Samsung Electronics Co and SK Hynix Inc each gaining more than 2 percent. With the benchmark now up 45 percent this year, South Korea’s stock market capitalization has also moved past France’s, following last month’s overtaking of Germany’s. Long overlooked by foreign funds, despite being undervalued, South Korean stocks have now emerged as clear winners in the global market. The so-called “artificial intelligence
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.
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