In a remarkable turn of events, Grab, the Southeast Asian ride-hailing giant, announced its first-ever profitable quarter, reporting a profit of $11 million in its fourth-quarter earnings report. This impressive feat comes on the heels of a $391 million loss recorded during the same period a year ago. The company attributed this remarkable turnaround to
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The Nikkei 225, Japan’s primary stock index, hit a record high on Thursday, driven by the strong performance of banking, electronics, and consumer stocks. This surge in Japanese equities is a result of both robust earnings and investor-friendly measures that have contributed to a blistering rally throughout the year. The index jumped nearly 2% to
Nvidia recently reported its fourth fiscal quarter earnings, surprising Wall Street analysts with earnings and sales that exceeded expectations. The company’s earnings per share came in at $5.16, adjusted, compared to the $4.64 that was expected. Additionally, the revenue was reported at $22.10 billion, surpassing the expected $20.62 billion. This strong performance led to Nvidia’s
China’s recent decision to cut the benchmark five-year loan prime rate marks a significant move by the country’s lenders to stimulate the sluggish property market. While the one-year loan prime rate remained unchanged at 3.45%, the five-year rate, which serves as the benchmark for most mortgages, was reduced by 25 basis points to 3.95%. This
The U.S. Federal Reserve’s decision to potentially cut interest rates later this year is expected to have a significant impact on global currencies, especially in Asia. While a rate cut may not bode well for the dollar, it could benefit some Asian currencies due to higher interest rates boosting a country’s currency value. This increase
The tourism revenues in China during the recent eight-day Lunar New Year holidays saw a substantial increase of 47.3% year-on-year, surpassing the pre-COVID 2019 levels. This surge was primarily driven by a boom in domestic travel, providing a temporary relief to policymakers in the midst of deflationary risks. During the holiday period, domestic tourism spending
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a bold statement at the Munich Security Conference, expressing his willingness to take U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump to the front lines of Ukraine. Zelenskyy’s offer to accompany Trump to witness the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine demonstrates a strong stance on the ongoing conflict. Despite Zelenskyy extending the
Japan’s central bank, known as the Bank of Japan (BOJ), has been facing significant challenges in recent years. With sluggish growth and a depreciating yen, the BOJ is expected to exit its negative interest rate regime this spring. However, this move may not be enough to alleviate the depreciation pressure on the yen. In this
Japan’s economy was hit hard as it unexpectedly contracted once again in the October-December period, pushing the country into a technical recession. The provisional government data revealed that high inflation has crimped domestic demand and private consumption, posing a significant challenge for Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda in normalizing interest rates and for Japanese
Inflation concerns continue to rattle global markets as the Asia-Pacific region witnessed a downturn following Wall Street’s losses. The U.S. January inflation exceeded expectations, with the consumer price index (CPI) climbing 3.1% on a 12-month basis and 0.3% for the month. This article explores the repercussions of higher inflation on Asia-Pacific markets, highlighting the decline