Reuters Asia Business

JAKARTA (Reuters) – Indonesia’s state-owned energy company Pertamina on Monday publicly apologised and pledged to improve the firm’s governance after five executives at its units were arrested over alleged corruption involving oil imports. The Attorney General’s Office last week arrested five executives at three units of Pertamina on charges of alleged corruption related to oil …

Indonesia’s Pertamina pledges to improve transparency following corruption allegations Read More »

JAKARTA (Reuters) – Indonesia’s consumer price index fell for the first time in more than two decades in February, official data showed on Monday, after the government gave a substantial discount on electricity bills to support economic growth. The consumer price index fell 0.09% year-on-year last month, the first annual measure of deflation since March …

Indonesia sees first deflation reading in more than two decades Read More »

BEIJING (Reuters) – Chinese artificial intelligence startup Zhipu AI has raised more than 1 billion yuan ($137.22 million) in fresh funding, months after securing a 3 billion yuan investment. The funding round comes amid intensifying competition in China’s AI sector, particularly after rival DeepSeek’s emergence with its large language models that claim to match Western …

China’s Zhipu AI raises $137 million as state funds bet on AI race Read More »

BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s factory activity grew at a faster pace in February, driven by stronger supply and demand, including a rebound in export orders, a private-sector survey showed on Monday, partly due to seasonal factors related to the holiday period. The Caixin/S&P Global manufacturing PMI rose to 50.8 in February from 50.1 the previous …

China’s factory activity picks up but trade uncertainties weigh Read More »

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s factory activity shrank for an eighth consecutive month in February, while worries about U.S. protectionist trade policies weighed on firms’ outlook, a private-sector survey showed on Monday. The final au Jibun Bank Japan manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) rose slightly to 49.0 from 48.7 in January, indicating the softest contraction in …

Japan’s factory activity shrinks, US polices dog outlook, PMI shows Read More »

SHENZHEN, China(Reuters) – Chinese smartphone maker Honor will spend $10 billion over the next five years on developing AI for its devices as the former Huawei unit prepares for a public listing, its CEO James Li said on Sunday. The Shenzhen-based company aims to expand from being primarily a smartphone company and develop a system …

China’s Honor announces $10 billion investment in AI devices Read More »

BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s central bank and financial regulators held a meeting with private enterprises and financial institutions, vowing to increase lending to private enterprises and expand their fundraising channels, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) said on Sunday. The meeting was held on Friday to study Chinese President Xi Jinping’s speech at a symposium …

China’s central bank, regulators vow financial support for private companies Read More »

(Reuters) – SoftBank Group CEO Masayoshi Son plans to borrow $16 billion to invest in AI, the company’s executives told banks last week, The Information tech news website reported on Saturday, citing people familiar with the matter. The Japanese technology investor might borrow another $8 billion in early 2026, the report added. Reuters reported in …

SoftBank in talks to borrow $16 billion to fund AI, The Information reports Read More »