Reuters Asia Business

By Jane Lanhee Lee OAKLAND, California(Reuters) – Silicon Valley-based AI chip startup SiMa.ai on Tuesday said it raised an additional $13 million from investors including a key fund in Taiwan called VentureTech Alliance, which has a strong strategic partnership with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. This is at least the third investment in U.S. chip startups …

Silicon Valley AI chip startup SiMa.ai hooks key investors Read More »

BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s new bank loans picked up in May from the previous month, as the central bank kept policy accommodative to support the economy, but signs of growth losing steam have raised expectations that more stimulus may be needed. New bank lending rose to 1.36 trillion yuan ($190.18 billion) in May, data from …

China’s May new loans miss expectations, more stimulus likely Read More »

By Rocky Swift TOKYO – Japan’s benchmark Nikkei gauge surged on Tuesday, closing over 33,000 for the first time in 33 years, led by technology shares on expectations of a flood of investment in chip-related companies. SoftBank Group Corp jumped 5.25% on reports it may team up on an AI venture with ChatGPT operator OpenAI …

Nikkei closes above 33,000 for the first time in 33 years Read More »

SEOUL (Reuters) – Most Bank of Korea monetary policy board members said at their latest policy meeting on May 25 it was not yet time to be complacent over slowing inflation, minutes from the meeting showed on Tuesday. “Even though consumer price inflation has peaked and entered a cooling phase, we can’t yet afford to …

Bank of Korea board members: Too early to be complacent on inflation Read More »

By Daniel Leussink TOKYO (Reuters) -Toyota will introduce high-performance, solid-state batteries and other technologies to improve the driving range and cut costs of future electric vehicles (EVs), the automaker said on Tuesday, a strategic pivot that sent its shares higher. The Japanese giant’s technology roadmap, covering aspects as varied as next-generation battery development and a …

Toyota unveils sweeping plans for new battery tech, EV innovation Read More »

By Winni Zhou and Tom Westbrook SHANGHAI/SINGAPORE (Reuters) -China’s central bank lowered a short-term lending rate for the first time in 10 months on Tuesday, to help restore market confidence and prop up a stalling post-pandemic recovery in the world’s second-largest economy. The cut to the lending rate signals possible easing for longer-term rates over …

China cuts short-term borrowing costs to support recovery Read More »

(Reuters) – Japanese investors turned into net sellers of foreign equities in May for the first time in three months, as global stocks faced a decline due to a delay in raising U.S. debt ceiling, which sparked fears of a potential default. They sold 1.08 trillion yen ($7.74 billion) of overseas equities on a net …

Japanese investors were net sellers of foreign equities in May Read More »

TOKYO (Reuters) – Toyota Motor has unveiled a range of technologies to improve the range, performance and cost of electric vehicles (EVs) that it plans to introduce in the second half of the decade. The Japanese automaker, which has been criticised by some investors for being slow to roll out battery electric models, said it …

Factbox – Toyota unveils battery, production innovations for new EVs Read More »