By Gaurav Dogra (Reuters) – Chinese companies are expected to report their highest earnings growth in five years, Refinitiv data shows, as economic reopening after COVID lockdowns and accommodative monetary policy raise hopes for higher profits. According to Refinitiv IBES data, China’s large and mid-cap companies’ profits are seen rising 16.2% in 2023, the fastest…
By Summer Zhen Hong Kong (Reuters) – Hedge funds that bet on a swift shift in the country’s zero-COVID and regulatory policies in late 2022 while the stock market was tumbling and political uncertainty was intense were rewarded handsomely, according to sources and fund documents. The MSCI China index plunged by 17% in October as…
By Melanie Burton and Sonali Paul MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Australia’s most populous state is set to require coal miners to reserve up to 10% of production for the domestic market, as part of a national move to cap soaring energy prices, government officials said on Thursday. Australia’s Labor government led by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese…
(Reuters) – Citigroup Inc has discriminated against the firearms sector, the office of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said, making a decision that “has the effect” of halting the bank’s ability to underwrite most municipal bond offerings in Texas. Republicans have been ramping up pressure on the finance industry over what they say are their…
By Rocky Swift TOKYO (Reuters) – More than half of big Japanese companies are planning to raise wages this year, according to a Reuters monthly poll, meeting a key request from Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to help workers cope with surging consumer prices. Kishida’s administration has repeatedly urged companies to make maximum efforts to lift…
By Rocky Swift TOKYO (Reuters) – More than half of big Japanese companies are planning to raise wages this year, according to a Reuters monthly poll, meeting a key request from Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to help workers cope with surging consumer prices. Kishida’s administration has repeatedly urged companies to make maximum efforts to lift…
By Tetsushi Kajimoto TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s export growth slowed sharply in December as China-bound shipments fell for the first time in seven months, stoking fears of further slowdown in the global economy and external demand for Japanese shipments. Exports rose 11.5% year-on-year in December after a 20% gain in November, marking the slowest growth…
By Leika Kihara and Takaya Yamaguchi TOKYO (Reuters) – The Bank of Japan (BOJ) may raise a cap set around its 10-year bond yield target to 0.75% or double it to 1.0% by around mid-year if inflation overshoots its expectations, Columbia University academic Takatoshi Ito said on Thursday. Any such move would not happen at…
By Rae Wee SINGAPORE (Reuters) – The dollar rose broadly on Thursday as growth concerns about the U.S. economy drove demand for the safe-haven greenback, while the yen renewed its ascent as investors doubled down on bets that the Bank of Japan would shift away from its yield curve control policy. Weak U.S. data released…
By Michael S. Derby NEW YORK (Reuters) -Philadelphia Federal Reserve President Patrick Harker reiterated on Wednesday that he is ready for the U.S. central bank to move to a slower pace of interest rate rises amid some signs that hot inflation is cooling. “High inflation is a scourge, leading to economic inefficiencies and hurting Americans…
