Reuters Asia Business

By Rishav Chatterjee (Reuters) -The parent company of Malaysian budget airline AirAsia, Capital A, on Thursday, reported a loss for the final quarter of 2023, reflecting higher operating and financing costs while logging its first annual net profit since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Net loss attributable for the three months ended December came …

AirAsia operator Capital A records loss in Q4 as higher costs weigh Read More »

BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s housing and financial regulators on Thursday urged prefecture-level and above cities to establish a financing coordination mechanism before March 15 in a bid to support the country’s struggling property sector. Financial institutions need to prevent loans from being misappropriated and safeguard the safety of credit funds, the Chinese housing ministry’s newspaper …

China sets deadline for cities to set up financing coordination mechanism for property projects Read More »

TAIPEI (Reuters) – Taiwan’s trade-based economy is expected to grow at a faster clip in 2024 than previously forecast, as export demand for the island’s high-tech products begins to recover, the statistics office said on Thursday. Taiwan is a key link in the global technology supply chain for companies such as Apple Inc and Nvidia, …

Taiwan revises up 2024 GDP growth forecast to 3.43% as exports recover Read More »

By Ellen Zhang, Xiaoyu Yin and Marius Zaharia BEIJING/HONG KONG (Reuters) – Chinese university graduate Zhang Baichuan travels hundreds of kilometres from one job fair to another in a final push to find a better offer than the unappealing one he received after more than 1,000 applications. He hopes the post-Lunar New Year recruiting season …

Chinese firms step up hiring, but tight-fisted on pay Read More »

By Hyonhee Shin and Joyce Lee SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol met Meta’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Thursday for talks to explore ways to increase cooperation with the U.S. company in artificial intelligence (AI) and digital ecosystems, Yoon’s office said. Yoon said South Korea’s portfolio of smart home appliances, wearable devices and …

South Korea’s Yoon, Meta’s Zuckerberg discuss AI, digital ecosystems Read More »

(Reuters) – Japanese stocks experienced a slight outflow of foreign capital last week, following a series of robust purchases in previous weeks. According to exchange data, in the holiday-shortened week ended Feb. 22, foreigners withdrew a net 2.83 billion yen (about $19 million) out of Japanese stocks, marking their first weekly sale in three weeks. …

Foreign investors withdraw from Japanese stocks amid record highs Read More »

By Clare Jim and Edward Cho HONG KONG (Reuters) – Hong Kong’s property market immediately celebrated the removal of decade-long curbs with a jump in transactions, property agents said on Thursday, as authorities made a concerted bid to boost the city’s depressed real estate market. Hong Kong, long among the world’s most expensive housing markets, …

Hong Kong agents say property deals jump after big policy moves Read More »

BENGALURU (Reuters) -Japan’s SoftBank Group has further reduced its stake in beleaguered Indian payments firm Paytm to 2.83% from 5.01%, an exchange filing showed on Thursday. The conglomerate, which held 17.5% stake in Paytm in September 2022, has trimmed its ownership for more than a year through multiple open market deals, with its most recent …

Japan’s SoftBank cuts stake in India’s Paytm to under 3% Read More »

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Frenetic activity in bitcoin put it on course for its biggest monthly gain in more than three years on Thursday and it is within range of a record high as cash rushing to listed bitcoin funds propels a sweeping rally. The largest cryptocurrency by market capitalisation was steady in Asia morning trade …

Soaring bitcoin set for biggest monthly jump since 2020 Read More »

By Tetsushi Kajimoto TOKYO (Reuters) -Bank of Japan board member Hajime Takata said the central bank must consider overhauling its ultra-loose monetary policy, including an exit from negative interest rates and bond yield control. Measures that should be under consideration include an exit from yield curve control, negative interest rates and a tweak to the …

BOJ policymaker calls for overhaul of ultra-loose monetary policy Read More »