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Economy in Asia

  • Africa: G20 Should Build Digital Economy Friendly to Growth, Jobs - Xi

    CHINA, 2017/07/10 Chinese President Xi Jinping says the Group of 20 (G20) members should build a digital economy that is friendly to increase and employment. He made the remarks while attending the two-day G20 summit in the German port city of Hamburg. "We should actively adapt ourselves to digital evolution, foster new economic drives, advance structural reforms and promote integrated development of digital and real economy," said President Xi.
  • Indian economic diplomacy in the Belt and Road era

    CHINA, 2017/07/10 In May 2017, India curtly and publicly declined to attend Chinese President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Forum (BRF) in Beijing. India’s snub was both uncharacteristic and controversial, although not unexpected. On 13 May 2017, a day before the BRF plenary, a spokesperson for the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) provided a formal explanation for India’s absence from the forum. From the statement it seems clear that there is a wide gap between the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) as it was understood by a lot of participants at the BRF, and as interpreted by India’s MEA and much of India’s policy elite.
  • PremjiInvest writes to Snapdeal again for sale clarity

    INDIA, 2017/06/23 Personal investment arm of Azim Premji wants to know how rights of minority shareholders will be protected in the event of the sale being finalised PremjiInvest, the personal investment arm of Wipro chairman Azim Premji that owns a minor stake in online marketplace Snapdeal, is once again seeking better clarity on the terms at which the troubled company is being sold to market leader Flipkart, according to three people aware of the development. This is the second query, in as a lot of months, from the investment firm asking how the rights of minority shareholders will be protected in the event of the sale being finalised, the sources said, signalling further delay in the process, which is being steered by Japanese telecom and internet major SoftBank.
  • Shanghai's GDP up 6.8 percent in Q1

    CHINA, 2017/06/20   SHANGHAI'S economy was off to a better-than-expected start with gross domestic product expanding 6.8 % from a year before to 692.28 billion yuan (US$100.39 billion) in the initial quarter, Shanghai Statistics Bureau said today. The pace was 0.1 % point faster than the same period of last year but 0.1 % point slower than the national average. "The city's economy grew steadily in the initial three months of this year, mainly fuelled by notable recovery in industrial output, robust domestic request inclunding improved export," said Ruan Qin, deputy director of Shanghai Development and Reform Commission.
  • Central SOEs do Belt and Road projects

    CHINA, 2017/06/20 NEARLY half of China’s centrally administered national-owned enterprises have participated in the Belt and Road initiative since it was launched in 2014, said Xiao Yaqing, chief of the National-owned Assets Supervision and Government Commission. Since the initiative was launched three years ago, 47 of the 102 central SOEs have invested in or built 1,676 projects in the nations and regions along the Belt and Road, Xiao said yesterday.
  • OECD: global growth too weak to trim inequalities

    WORLD, 2017/06/20 THE small pick-up in world increase expected this year is not enough to trim inequalities around the world, the OECD said yesterday as it called on nations to launch reforms to remedy the situation. “We need a additional inclusive, rules-based globalization that works for all, centered on people’s well-being” said OECD chief Angel Gurria, as the body released updated economic forecasts. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, which provides analysis and policy advice to advanced economies, increased its estimate for world increase this year by two tenths of a % point to 3.5 % on a recovery in world trade, even if remains below the levels before the onset of the world economic crisis.
  • Corporate costs to be further reduced

    CHINA, 2017/06/20 CHINA’S National Council yesterday announced further measures to reduce corporate burden and vowed additional support for the country’s “Made in China 2025” plan. China plans to cut annual corporate costs by 120 billion yuan (US$17.4 billion) through measures such as lowering logistics costs and cutting business fees, according to a statement released following the National Council conference presided by Premier Li Keqiang.
  • Japan’s growth falls below expectations

    JAPAN, 2017/06/20 JAPAN yesterday posted lower-than-expected increase in the initial quarter, but official data still confirmed that the country saw its longest economic expansion in over a decade. The world’s number three economy grew 0.3 % between January and March — or 1.0 % at an annualized rate — which was down from a preliminary 0.5 % increase estimate.
  • China’s drive to cut overcapacity advancing well

    CHINA, 2017/06/20 CHINA’S top economic planner announced yesterday that the country’s drive to cut overcapacity in steel and coal has progressed well. As of the end of May, 42.39 million tons of crude steel capacity and 97 million tons of coal capacity had been cut, accounting for 84.8 % and 65 % of the annual goals, respectively, said the National Development and Reform Commission. China will phase out about 50 million tons of crude steel capacity and over 150 million tons of coal capacity this year, according to the NDRC. By the end of June, all facilities producing inferior-quality steel bars will be dismantled, the NDRC said in May.
  • BRICS continues to drive global economy

    WORLD, 2017/06/20 BRICS will continue to be a increase engine of the world economy despite difficulties and challenges, Chinese Finance Minister Xiao Jie said Monday. "We firmly believe the economic condition of BRICS will be better under our joint effort," said Xiao in an interview on the sidelines of the second BRICS Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Conference. Slower-than-expected world economic recovery, policy uncertainties in developed nations, de-globalization and world protectionism caused a complex economic environment for BRICS, Xiao said.