PHILIPPINES
GDP growth slows in Q2
Economic growth slowed in the second quarter, officials said yesterday, warning that surging inflation and the COVID-19 pandemic would weigh on the outlook for the rest of the year. GDP rose 7.4 percent, slightly weaker than the 7.5 percent expected and down from 8.2 percent in the previous three months, National Economic and Development Authority Secretary Arsenio Balisacan told reporters. “We’re likely to face challenges indeed in sustaining that growth,” he said, with the pace seen easing further in the second half. However, the economy should still hit the official target of 6.5 to 7.5 percent expansion this year, he added.
HOUSING
US buying sentiment dips
Consumers have become the most pessimistic about housing since 2011, when home prices bottomed in the wake of the global financial crisis, data from the Federal National Mortgage Association showed on Monday. Fannie Mae’s Home Purchase Sentiment Index dropped to the lowest level in more than a decade, as consumers expressed pessimism about home-buying prospects. The index, which reflects consumers’ views on the housing market, fell from about 76 to 63 year-on-year. Four of the index’s six components dropped month-on-month, including views on buying and selling conditions, home-price outlook and job-loss concerns, Fannie Mae said, citing its national housing survey.
MEDIA
Cox to buy Axios
US news Web site Axios Media, which has shot to prominence since its 2016 founding, has agreed to a US$525 million deal to sell itself to US telecom group Cox Enterprises Inc, the firms said on Monday. Since Axios’ launch as a news source specializing in technology and politics, it has expanded into local news — and the buyout investment would help grow that expansion. The founders of Axios, built by long-time Washington journalists, will keep stakes in the company and continue to lead day-to-day editorial and business decisions, Cox said in a release.
CHEMICALS
SABIC profit rises 3.8%
Saudi Basic Industries Corp (SABIC) reported a 3.8 percent increase in quarterly earnings, but warned that profit margins would remain “under pressure” as costs climb. Prices of products such as polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride have jumped as economies recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, boosting demand. Yet a supply-chain squeeze has pushed up expenses for producers. SABIC said net income rose to 7.93 billion riyals (US$2.11 billion) in the second quarter from 7.64 billion riyals a year earlier. Revenue climbed 32 percent to 56 billion riyals, beating analysts’ estimates.
INSURANCE
Munich Re profit falls
German reinsurance giant Munich Re yesterday reported a drop in its second-quarter profit, as market volatility took a toll on investments, but the firm maintained its performance target for this year. The group’s preliminary net profit from April to June reached 768 million euros (US$786 million), down from 1.1 billion euros in the same period last year. Munich Re, whose business consists mostly in covering the risks taken on by insurers, said the value of its holdings had slumped by 908 million euros, mainly due to losses on equity investments. Its profit target of 3.3 billion euros for this year remains unchanged, it said.
EXTRATERRITORIAL REACH: China extended its legal jurisdiction to ban some dual-use goods of Chinese origin from being sold to the US, even by third countries Beijing has set out to extend its domestic laws across international borders with a ban on selling some goods to the US that applies to companies both inside and outside China. The new export control rules are China’s first attempt to replicate the extraterritorial reach of US and European sanctions by covering Chinese products or goods with Chinese parts in them. In an announcement this week, China declared it is banning the sale of dual-use items to the US military and also the export to the US of materials such as gallium and germanium. Companies and people overseas would be subject to
TECH COMPETITION: The US restricted sales of two dozen types of manufacturing equipment and three software tools, and blacklisted 140 more Chinese entities US President Joe Biden’s administration unveiled new restrictions on China’s access to vital components for chips and artificial intelligence (AI), escalating a campaign to contain Beijing’s technological ambitions. The US Department of Commerce slapped additional curbs on the sale of high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and chipmaking gear, including that produced by US firms at foreign facilities. It also blacklisted 140 more Chinese entities that it accused of acting on Beijing’s behalf, although it did not name them in an initial statement. Full details on the new sanctions and Entity List additions were to be published later yesterday, a US official said. The US “will
TENSE TIMES: Formosa Plastics sees uncertainty surrounding the incoming Trump administration in the US, geopolitical tensions and China’s faltering economy Formosa Plastics Group (台塑集團), Taiwan’s largest industrial conglomerate, yesterday posted overall revenue of NT$118.61 billion (US$3.66 billion) for last month, marking a 7.2 percent rise from October, but a 2.5 percent fall from one year earlier. The group has mixed views about its business outlook for the current quarter and beyond, as uncertainty builds over the US power transition and geopolitical tensions. Formosa Plastics Corp (台灣塑膠), a vertically integrated supplier of plastic resins and petrochemicals, reported a monthly uptick of 15.3 percent in its revenue to NT$18.15 billion, as Typhoon Kong-rey postponed partial shipments slated for October and last month, it said. The
COLLABORATION: The operations center shows the close partnership between Taiwan and Japan in the field of semiconductors, Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo said Tokyo Electron Ltd, Asia’s biggest semiconductor equipment supplier, yesterday launched a NT$2 billion (US$61.5 million) operations center in Tainan as it aims to expand capacity and meet growing demand. Its new Taiwan Operations Center is expected to help customers release their products faster, boost production efficiency and shorten equipment repair time in a cost-effective way, the company said. The center is about a five-minute drive from the factories of its major customers such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s (TSMC, 台積電) advanced 3-nanometer and 2-nanometer fabs. The operations center would have about 1,000 employees when it is fully utilized, the company
RSS