MARKETS - Page 31

China halved the stamp duty on stock trading effective Monday in the latest attempt to boost the struggling market as a recovery sputters in the world’s second-biggest economy. The finance ministry said in a brief statement on Sunday that it was reducing the 0.1% duty on stock trades “to invigorate the capital market and boost investor confidence.” The move comes after China’s leaders vowed late last month to jolt the world’s second-largest equity market, which has been reeling as the

On Monday, Chinese electric car company Xpeng (9868. HK) said it will acquire ride-hailing giant Didi’s intelligent electric vehicle (EV) development unit in a deal worth as much as $744 million, and the two companies will form a strategic partnership. Xpeng’s shares surged around 13% in Monday’s trade. The company said this partnership will allow Xpeng to further leverage Didi’s user base and resources as it develops its EV business. The two partners are set to explore cooperation in marketing,

Monday after Beijing rolled out more measures to support the market. Among other steps, the government halved the stamp duty on stock trading to “invigorate the capital market and boost investor confidence,” according to the Ministry of Finance and State Taxation Administration. The move was the latest effort to bolster China’s stuttering economy. The country’s leaders have vowed to help boost investor confidence and support the housing and property industries, which support millions of jobs. But the economy has sputtered

Hopes for a late August bloom in world markets were put on hold as investors hunkered down for a sobering assessment of the long-term interest rate trajectory from the Federal Reserve boss later on Friday — sending the dollar soaring again in the process. Fed Chair Jerome Powell will deliver a keynote address to the annual Central Banking symposium in Jackson Hole at 1405 GMT. Trepidation about the speech largely stemmed from fresh evidence that the U.S. economy is losing

One of the world’s most beloved food chains has reportedly agreed to sell itself. The Wall Street Journal reports that Subway has agreed to be acquired by Roark Capital. This private equity firm also owns other popular restaurant brands, including Cinnabon, Sonic, and Baskin-Robbins. The deal would value the sandwich chain at more than $9 billion. According to the Journal, the agreement could be finalized this week. The company, which boasts 37,000 franchise-run locations in more than 100 countries, first

The euro zone’s dominant service sector declined far more than thought in August, with the slide in Germany particularly fast and some inflationary pressures returning, surveys showed. Wednesday’s purchasing managers’ indexes complicate matters for the European Central Bank, which wants to control still rampant price rises without causing a recession. The Flash Eurozone Services PMI slumped to 49.1 in August, the lowest since November 2020 and well below a preliminary reading 48.1. That matched the weakness in manufacturing, which posted

The dollar held steady on Monday following five straight weeks of gains, as investors looked ahead to the Federal Reserve’s Jackson Hole symposium for guidance on where rates might settle when the dust of this hiking cycle clears. The greenback gained 0.7% on the euro last week, inched ahead versus the yen, and surged by more than 1% against the Antipodean currencies as U.S. Treasury yields leaped in anticipation of interest rates staying higher for longer. Investors are also waiting

Leading cryptocurrency Bitcoin, hit a new two-month low on Friday, breaking out of its recent tight range as a wave of risk-averse sentiment swept through world markets. On Thursday, it fell 7.2% in its most significant one-day drop since November 2022, when top exchange FTX collapsed. It then slipped to a two-month low of $26,172 during Asian trading hours on Friday – its lowest since June 16 – before recovering slightly. The latest sell-off coincided with sharp falls in global

Cryptocurrency trading platform Coinbase Global said on Wednesday it had secured approval to offer regulated bitcoin futures trading to U.S. retail customers, scoring a major regulatory win even as it battles a lawsuit from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The approval by the National Futures Association allows Coinbase to officer bitcoin and ether futures directly to eligible U.S. customers, enabling them to speculate on price movements without owning the underlying asset. Futures are contracts that give the holder the

With China at risk of tipping into prolonged stagnation and a spiralling property crisis threatening financial stability, there is growing unease over why its leaders are not rushing to revive the world’s second-largest economy. With consumer spending slowing, shaky property prices and flagging exports amid the US drive for de-risking weighing on growth, the country is facing a perfect storm of challenges. Many investors, analysts and diplomats point to signs that Beijing seems hesitant to deliver the bold policies needed