October 1, 2021 SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korean Internet service provider SK Broadband has sued Netflix to pay for costs from increased network traffic and maintenance work because of a surge of viewers to the U.S. firm’s content, an SK spokesperson said on Friday. The move comes after a Seoul court said Netflix should “reasonably” […]
News
Nobel Peace Prize: Is this Greta Thunberg’s year?
October 1, 2021 By Nora Buli and Gwladys Fouche OSLO (Reuters) – The Nobel Peace Prize will be announced just three weeks before world leaders gather for a climate summit that scientists say could determine the future of the planet, one reason why prize watchers say this could be the year of Greta Thunberg. The […]
Analysis-Japan may sell more bonds to fund next premier Kishida’s stimulus package
October 1, 2021 By Tetsushi Kajimoto and Leika Kihara TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s next Prime Minister Fumio Kishida may have little choice but to sell more government bonds to fund his pandemic-relief package worth hundreds of billions of dollars, even if it scrapes together money left over from previous stimulus programmes. A former foreign minister […]
Analysis-‘Perfect storm’ lifts dollar over unsettled markets
October 1, 2021 By Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss and Saqib Iqbal Ahmed NEW YORK (Reuters) – A grinding rally in the dollar is picking up speed, fueled by a hawkish tilt from the Federal Reserve, rising Treasury yields and concerns over the possibility of a drawn-out battle to raise the U.S. debt ceiling. (https://ift.tt/3FgSA4v) The greenback is […]
Japan’s Takeda says ‘human error’ caused contamination of Moderna vaccines
October 1, 2021 By Rocky Swift TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd said on Friday that “human error” caused metal contaminants to get into Moderna Inc COVID-19 vaccine doses, leading to a recall. Takeda, which imports and distributes the vaccine in Japan, and Moderna said in a new report that a Spanish manufacturer […]
S.Korea extends social distancing curbs as COVID-19 cases rise in Seoul
October 1, 2021 By Hyonhee Shin SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea extended social distancing curbs to combat the coronavirus pandemic on Friday for two weeks, offering more incentives to people to get vaccinated as it battles thousands of new cases each day, particularly in the capital. The rapid resurgence in the greater Seoul area prompted […]
SoftBank-backed Oyo files for $1.16 billion IPO
Oyo is ready to explore the public markets. The eight-year-old Indian budget hotel giant has filed the paperworks with the local market regulator for an initial public offering, in which it is seeking to raise about $1.16 billion. The company is seeking to issue new shares worth $940 million (primary) and offer sale of about […]
Japan Aug household spending seen falling on pandemic hit: Reuters poll
October 1, 2021 TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s household spending likely slipped back into contraction in August, when the government expanded emergency curbs to contain the coronavirus, a Reuters poll showed on Friday. The government this week ended a state of emergency it had imposed to combat the pandemic, as the number of new cases and […]
Philippines loosens coronavirus curbs in capital region
October 1, 2021 MANILA (Reuters) – The Philippines further loosened coronavirus restrictions in the capital region on Friday, allowing restaurants to accept more guests and gyms to reopen after recording a decline in daily COVID 19 cases. The Philippines, which is battling one of the worst COVID-19 outbreaks in Asia, is gradually relaxing curbs to […]
New Zealand’s Auckland logs more Delta cases ahead of key decision on restrictions
October 1, 2021 By Praveen Menon WELLINGTON (Reuters) – New Zealand logged 19 more cases of the highly infectious Delta coronavirus variant on Friday – all in Auckland, making it highly likely that the country’s biggest city will continue to be sealed off even if some restrictions are eased next week. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern […]
Australian NSW Premier resigns after corruption watchdog launches probe
October 1, 2021 SYDNEY (Reuters) -New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian resigned on Friday, shortly after the state’s corruption watchdog said it was investigating whether Berejiklian was involved in conduct that “constituted or involved a breach of public trust”. Berejiklian at a news conference said the issues being investigated were “historical matters”. “I state categorically […]
Malaysia posts record monthly COVID-19 deaths as authorities cite backlog
October 1, 2021 By Rozanna Latiff KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) – Malaysia recorded 9,671 deaths due to COVID-19 in September, the deadliest month since the pandemic began, government data showed on Friday, though authorities have said the increase was mostly due to the delayed inclusion of fatalities from previous months. The spike has pushed Malaysia’s […]
China gorges on American grain-fed beef amid shrinking supplies from Down Under
October 1, 2021 By Dominique Patton and Tom Polansek BEIJING/CHICAGO (Reuters) – As Australian beef exports to China wither amid diplomatic tensions, demand there for U.S. grain-fed beef has soared, fuelled by the appetites of a growing Chinese middle class. Hotpot restaurants, Japanese barbecue chains and steakhouses, all expanding in the world’s No. 2 economy, […]
Pacquiao makes Philippines presidential run official
October 1, 2021 By Karen Lema MANILA (Reuters) – Newly retired boxing icon Manny Pacquiao was the first to file his candidacy to be the next president of the Philippines at the start of registration for thousands of political posts in what is expected to be a hotly contested election in May next year. The […]
Taiwan says resolving chip shortages needs Malaysia’s help
October 1, 2021 TAIPEI (Reuters) – Resolving the global shortage of auto semiconductors needs Malaysia’s help, especially when it comes to packaging, a sector affected by the country’s COVID-19 curbs, Taiwan Economy Minister Wang Mei-hua said. Taiwan, as a major chip producer, has been front and centre of efforts to resolve the shortage, which has […]
Asian factories stagnate as China’s slowdown, supply constraints hit
October 1, 2021 By Leika Kihara TOKYO (Reuters) – Asia’s manufacturing activity was lacklustre in September as signs of slowing Chinese growth and factory shutdowns caused by the coronavirus pandemic weighed on the region’s economies, surveys showed on Friday. Factory activity in September shrank in Malaysia and Vietnam, and grew in Japan at the slowest […]
U.S. trade chief Tai to unveil Biden’s China trade strategy on Monday
October 1, 2021 By David Lawder WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai will unveil the Biden administration’s long-awaited strategy for the troubled U.S.-China trade relationship in a speech on Monday at a Washington think tank, her office said. Tai will deliver remarks on her review of China trade policy at the Center for […]
Australia to ease international travel curbs – sources
October 1, 2021 By Colin Packham and Jamie Freed CANBERRA/SYDNEY (Reuters) – Prime Minister Scott Morrison will announce detailed plans on Friday to allow Australians to travel overseas, two sources told Reuters, easing some of the toughest COVID-19 restrictions imposed globally. Lifting the ban on international travel will be linked to the establishment of home […]
Taiwan questions China’s suitability for Pacific trade pact, fears ‘obstruction’
October 1, 2021 By Ben Blanchard, Yimou Lee and Jeanny Kao TAIPEI (Reuters) – China’s restrictive practices present fundamental problems for its application to join a major pan-Pacific free trade pact, and if it joins before Taiwan there is a risk it could block their application, the island’s economy minister said. Taiwan and China both […]
Evoking Mao, China likens Taiwan foreign minister to a ‘shrilling’ fly
October 1, 2021 TAIPEI (Reuters) – China has launched a vituperative attack on Taiwan’s foreign minister, evoking the words of revolutionary leader Mao Zedong to denounce him as a “shrilling” fly for his efforts to promote Taiwan internationally. Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu, a fluent English speaker, is an outspoken supporter of the island’s efforts […]