By Steven Scheer JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel’s competition watchdog sought more data on Sunday from the country’s banks relating to an investigation, saying they were enjoying huge profits from higher interest rates on loans but weren’t adequately sharing the benefits with customers. The investigation, which began in 2022, wasn’t made public prior to Sunday. In…
By Nicoco Chan and Ellen Zhang SHANGHAI/BEIJING (Reuters) – Wang Chunxiang pushes a cart around busy areas of Shanghai, playing cat and mouse with the authorities as she tries to sell pastries. The jobs she could get do not pay enough for her to make ends meet. “Salaries are too low,” said the 43-year-old, after…
SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea will cut tariffs from June on higher priced edible products, including pork and sugar, to help ease people’s living costs, the finance ministry said on Tuesday. The tariffs on seven food items will be lowered to 0% from as high as 10% currently, in response to short-term supply shortages, the…
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japanese Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki on Tuesday said he must guide fiscal policy based on common international understanding as global economic and financial situations change greatly. Suzuki told reporters the finance minister’s advisory panel argued on Monday that economic fundamentals that have backed the yen’s credibility are no longer considered absolute and…
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s jobless rate fell to 2.6% in April from 2.8% in the previous month, government data showed on Tuesday. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was below economists’ median forecast of 2.7% in a Reuters poll. The jobs-to-applicants ratio stood at 1.32, unchanged from March, labour ministry data showed. For a table on…
By Andy Bruce LONDON (Reuters) – British shop price inflation picked up this month to reach its highest rate since industry records began in 2005, although growth in food prices cooled slightly, a survey showed on Tuesday. The British Retail Consortium said prices in supermarkets and retail chains rose 9.0% in the year to May,…
By Jamie McGeever (Reuters) – A look at the day ahead in Asian markets from Jamie McGeever. Global trading volumes return to more normal levels on Tuesday as U.S. and UK markets re-open after their one-day holidays, with optimism over a U.S. debt ceiling agreement set to support risk assets and lift bond yields and…
OTTAWA (Reuters) – Canada’s federal government and the Quebec province will each provide about C$150 million ($112 million) for a General Motors-POSCO Chemical battery materials facility that is expected create about 200 jobs in the country, the Canadian industry ministry said on Monday. The U.S. carmaker and South Korea’s POSCO outlined their plan last year…
By Allison Lampert MONTREAL (Reuters) -Air Canada’s pilots have ended a decade-long contract framework, opening the door to “full bargaining this summer,” their union leadership said on Monday in a note to members seen by Reuters. Air Canada pilots have previously said they are pressing for “historic” gains to narrow the earnings gap with higher-paid…
By Arathy Somasekhar HOUSTON (Reuters) – Oil prices edged higher in choppy trading on Monday, as markets weighed a tentative U.S. debt ceiling deal that would avert a default by the world’s top oil consumer against further Federal Reserve interest rate hikes that could curb energy demand. Brent crude futures settled up 12 cents, or…
