Asia Economy
Asia-Pacific stocks trade mixed as Tokyo inflation runs hotter than expected
Pedestrians walking across a crowded traffic at Shibuya crossing square in Tokyo, Japan. Jaczhou | E+ | Getty Images Asia-Pacific markets were mixed Friday as U.S. stock futures remained flat over Thanksgiving Day, with the Nasdaq Composite on track to end a seven-month winning streak. Traders in Asia are assessing inflation data from Tokyo, a […]
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Chinese firms rush to pledge millions in fire rescue as Hong Kong fire death toll climbs to 55
Firefighters walk near residential buildings that continue to burn at Wang Fuk Court in the Tai Po district on Nov. 27, 2025 in Hong Kong, China. Isaac Lawrence | Getty Images News | Getty Images Chinese private firms pledged tens of millions of dollars to support rescue and relief efforts after a deadly residential fire […]
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China industrial profits drop 5.5% in October, worst performance in five months
QINGDAO, CHINA – FEBRUARY 05 2025: Workers assemble cars at a car plant of SAIC-GM-Wuling in Qingdao city in east China’s Shandong province Wednesday, Feb. 05, 2025. ZHANG JINGANG | Future Publishing | Getty Images Profits at industrial firms in China declined in October, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Thursday, as manufacturers navigated […]
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Asia-Pacific markets track Wall Street gains as tech extends rebound
The Sydney Opera House Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Gallo Images | Brand X Pictures | Getty Images Asia-Pacific markets advanced Thursday after Wall Street gained overnight as Fed rate-cut hopes rose and tech stocks rebounded. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index rose 1.42%, led by tech stocks, while the Topix index added 0.64%. Among the […]
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South Korea keeps rates steady as FX risks limit easing scope
South Korea’s central bank kept interest rates unchanged as widely expected on Thursday as a tumbling won reduced the scope for further easing and policymakers waited to see how the government’s steps to cool Seoul’s property market play out. The Bank of Korea’s monetary policy board voted to keep the benchmark interest rate unchanged at 2.50%, in line […]
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Taiwan’s President Lai lashes out against Beijing, pledges $40 billion in additional defense budget
TAIPEI, TAIWAN – OCTOBER 10: Taiwan President Lai Ching-te (William Lai) delivers a national day address, during the National Day Ceremony, outside the Presidential Office in Taipei, Taiwan, on October 10, 2025. Daniel Ceng | Anadolu | Getty Images Taiwan will introduce a supplementary defense budget of 1.25 trillion Taiwanese dollars ($40 billion) as Beijing […]
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Asia-Pacific markets track Wall Street gains on rising Fed rate-cut expectations
SHANGHAI, CHINA – JUNE 08: Aerial view of skyscrapers standing at the Lujiazui Financial District at sunrise on June 8, 2022 in Shanghai, China. Vcg | Visual China Group | Getty Images Asia-Pacific markets opened higher Wednesday, tracking Wall Street gains on hopes that the U.S. Federal Reserve could cut benchmark interest rates in December. […]
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BOJ preps markets for near-term hike as weak yen overshadows politics
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo on May 30, 2024. Kazuhiro Nogi | Afp | Getty Images The Bank of Japan is preparing markets for a possible interest rate hike as soon as next month, sources say, reviving previous hawkish language as worries about sharp yen declines return and political pressure for the bank to keep rates low fades. A […]
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Australia’s consumer inflation accelerates to 3.8% in October, beating estimates
Pedestrians at Pitt Street Mall in Sydney, Australia, on Thursday, July 24, 2025. Brendon Thorne | Bloomberg | Getty Images Australia’s inflation accelerated in October, beating analysts’ estimates and rising at its fastest pace in seven months, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said Wednesday. The consumer price index rose 3.8% in October, year on year, […]
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‘Takaichi cannot retract her statement and Beijing knows that’: Why China-Japan spat unlikely to be resolved soon
Japanese national flag flies before the National Emblem of China in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China. China Photos | Getty Images News | Getty Images Back-to-back calls between U.S. President Donald Trump and the leaders of Japan and China have so far done little to defuse the diplomatic spat occurring between Beijing and Tokyo, as […]
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