Dealmakers optimistic on global M&A prospects despite sluggish growth
By Anirban Sen and Anousha Sakoui NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) - Global mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity grew at a sluggish pace in the second quarter, yet many dealmakers are upbeat, forecasting transactions will pick up in the second half of...
Jun 28, 2024
Column-Political risk aversion rubs its eyes: Mike Dolan
By Mike Dolan LONDON (Reuters) - If greater political uncertainty necessarily begets higher financial volatility, world markets are still half asleep - but the alarm clock may be set nonetheless. With a blizzard of political risks on the horizon, f...
Jun 28, 2024
Paris' La Defense seeks revival with smaller, greener offices
By Mathieu Rosemain PARIS (Reuters) - Paris's La Defense business district is betting that modernising more than 300,000 square metres (3.2 million sq. ft) of offices into greener and more flexible work space will lure back companies and ease recor...
Jun 28, 2024
Analysis-French bond market gets taste of euro zone 'periphery' turmoil
By Stefano Rebaudo (Reuters) - The recent turmoil in France's bond market could mark a new chapter for the euro zone's wealthiest economies, with emerging political and fiscal risks fuelling volatility earlier associated with its high-debt members ...
Jun 28, 2024
All roads lead to the dollar
A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Rae Wee Investors kept a close eye on the first U.S. presidential debate between Democratic President Joe Biden and his Republican rival Donald Trump in early Asian hours on Friday, as the two...
Jun 28, 2024
NTSB says Boeing could lose 737 MAX probe status if it violates rules again
By David Shepardson (Reuters) - The National Transportation Safety Board warned Boeing on Thursday it could lose its status as a party to the probe into a 737 MAX mid-air blowout after it violated rules by providing non-public information to media ...
Jun 28, 2024
Analysis-Election and Fed risks loom for US stocks after strong first half of 2024
By Saqib Iqbal Ahmed NEW YORK (Reuters) - As U.S. stocks lock in a solid first half, investors are speculating whether political uncertainty, potential Federal Reserve policy shifts and big tech's market dominance could make the rest of 2024 a toug...
Jun 28, 2024
Analysis-UK firms reassured by Labour's employment law proposals
By James Davey and Elizabeth Piper LONDON (Reuters) - When Keir Starmer's Labour pulled ahead in the polls in 2023, British business leaders started to fret that, if elected, the opposition party would impose strict laws around hiring, firing, pay ...
Jun 28, 2024
At least four companies launch Hong Kong IPOs to raise about $500 million
By Scott Murdoch SYDNEY (Reuters) -At least four companies ranging from a U.S.-based jet manufacturer to a Chinese generative AI firm launched Hong Kong initial public offerings on Friday to raise up to $500 million, according to their regulatory filin...
Jun 28, 2024
Exclusive-Firm making car that Putin gifted to Kim uses South Korean parts, data shows
By Gleb Stolyarov TBILISI (Reuters) - Laughing and joking, Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un cruised around Pyongyang last week in a Russian-made Aurus limousine to showcase their strengthened anti-Western allianc...
Jun 28, 2024
Japan's thrifty households to drag on recovery prospects: Reuters poll
By Tetsushi Kajimoto TOKYO (Reuters) - Growth in Japanese household spending probably slowed to a crawl in May, data will show next week, underscoring weak private consumption which could hamper a sustainable economic recovery. Internal affairs min...
Jun 28, 2024
Meta says it may block news from Facebook in Australia
SYDNEY (Reuters) - Facebook owner Meta is considering blocking news content from the platform in Australia if the government makes it pay licensing fees, a company representative told a parliamentary hearing on Friday. Meta's regional policy direct...
Jun 28, 2024
Japan 'deeply concerned' about rapid, one-sided forex moves, finance minister says
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said on Friday that the authorities were "deeply concerned" about the impact of "rapid and one-sided" foreign exchange moves on the economy, as the yen declined to 38-year lows past 161 pe...
Jun 28, 2024
Japan appoints Atsushi Mimura top FX diplomat, replacing Masato Kanda
By Makiko Yamazaki and Takaya Yamaguchi TOKYO (Reuters) -Japan's government appointed financial regulation expert Atsushi Mimura on Friday as its top currency diplomat, replacing Masato Kanda who battled sharp yen declines this year with the biggest cu...
Jun 28, 2024
India's GDP growth to slow modestly this fiscal year and next: Reuters poll
By Vivek Mishra BENGALURU (Reuters) - Forecasts for a mild slowdown in India's fast-growing economy held steady in the first Reuters poll of economists since the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lost its parliamentary majority in phased national...
Jun 28, 2024
Insurance Australia tops benchmark index on reinsurance deals
By Shivangi Lahiri (Reuters) - Shares of Insurance Australia Group rose 9% on Friday after the company bought reinsurance protection from a unit of Berkshire Hathaway and Canada Life Reinsurance in a bid to minimise financial fluctuations for the ...
Jun 28, 2024
Dollar barges past 161 yen and eyes quarterly rise
By Tom Westbrook SINGAPORE (Reuters) - The dollar was headed for a second straight quarterly gain and jumped to a near four-decade high on the battered yen in Asia trade on Friday, ahead of a crucial U.S. inflation reading. Neither an overnight dro...
Jun 28, 2024
Asia shares eye five-month winning streak; yen buckles under dollar strength
By Rae Wee SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Asian stocks were headed for a fifth straight month of gains on Friday, bolstered by the growing view that cooling inflation in the United States would allow the Federal Reserve to ease rates later this year. Friday...
Jun 28, 2024
Oil prices edge higher as supply risks mount
By Shariq Khan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices rose in early Asian trading hours on Friday, setting up a third straight weekly jump, as concerns about supply problems from escalating geopolitical tensions and weather-related disruptions offset sign...
Jun 28, 2024
South Korea May factory output -1.2% m/m, misses forecast
SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea's factory output fell in May, missing market expectations, on weaker production of machinery and automobiles, official data showed on Friday. The industrial output index fell 1.2% over the month on a seasonally adjuste...
Jun 28, 2024
Core inflation in Japan's capital accelerates in June
By Leika Kihara TOKYO (Reuters) - Core consumer prices in Japan's capital rose 2.1% in June from a year earlier, data showed on Friday, accelerating from the previous month as rising fuel bills and the boost to import costs from a weak yen weighed ...
Jun 28, 2024
Japan May jobless rate unchanged at 2.6%, job availability down
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's jobless rate in May was unchanged at 2.6% from the previous month, government data showed on Friday. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate compared with economists' median forecast for 2.6%. The jobs-to-applicants rati...
Jun 28, 2024
Tokyo June core CPI rises 2.1% yr/yr
TOKYO, June 28 (Reuters) - Core consumer prices in Tokyo rose 2.1% in June from a year earlier, government data showed on Friday. The core consumer price index for Japan's capital, which includes oil products but excludes fresh food prices, compared wi...
Jun 27, 2024
Fujifilm once struggled to sell cameras. Now, it can't keep up with demand
By Rocky Swift TOKYO (Reuters) - For years, Japan's Fujifilm pivoted away from its legacy camera business to focus on healthcare. But thanks in large part to the TikTok crowd, its retro-themed X100 digital cameras are a now a roaring success, boost...
Jun 27, 2024
Boeing woes will not erode workers' readiness to strike, union says
By Allison Lampert SEATTLE (Reuters) - Boeing's recent financial and production challenges following a January mid-air panel blow out will not change their workers' readiness to strike to make gains in bargaining, their union local president told R...
Jun 27, 2024