China Financial News

By Alex Lawler and Natalie Grover

Jinan, China, says all of its bus routes now accept digital yuan pay, and will incentivize adoption by granting discounts to central bank digital currency (CBDC)-paying passengers.

Investing.com — Most Asian currencies firmed on Monday as softer-than-expected U.S. inflation readings pushed up hopes that the Federal Reserve will taper its hawkish stance, with focus also turning to more U.S. economic cues this week.

Investing.com — Most Asian stocks surged on Monday as a drop in U.S. inflation ramped up hopes for a less hawkish Federal Reserve, while data showing improving sentiment towards the Japanese economy put the Nikkei index back at 33-year highs.

Investing.com — Shares of Chinese electric vehicle makers surged on Monday, amid increased optimism over the sector after the largest players in the country clocked a sizeable jump in vehicle deliveries through June

HDFC Bank, rallied over 3% to Rs 2,911 in Monday's early trade on BSE even as traders saw arbitrage opportunities ahead of the announcement of the delisting date. With investors raising a toast to the mega-merger deal that would lead to the creation of the world's fourth largest bank by market value behind only JP Morgan, ICBC of China and Bank of America, HDFC Bank shares also rallied over 2% to Rs 1,738. «The merger of HDFC Bank and HDFC Ltd will create a behemoth (FY24 loans at Rs 25 tn, 15.7% market share) that can deliver strong growth (~17% loan CAGR) and profitability (~2% RoA).

H-1B visas in the country. «I am honoured and happy to see this announcement by the White House Joint Statement and Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi himself making an announcement. The H-1B restamping in the USA will bring relief to over one million people on H-1B,” Ajay Bhutoria, a Silicon Valley technology executive, community leader, speaker and author, said in a statement. In the Joint Statement by Prime Minister Modi and President Biden, issued during the Indian leader's State Visit last month, the leaders welcomed an announcement by the State Department that it would launch a pilot to adjudicate domestic renewals of certain petition-based temporary work visas later this year, including for Indian nationals, with the intent to implement this for an expanded pool of H1B and L visa holders in 2024 and eventually broadening the program to include other eligible categories. The much-sought-after H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. Technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China. Until 2004, certain categories of non-immigrant visas, particularly the H-1B, could be renewed or stamped inside the US. After that, for the renewal of these visas, in particular, those on H-1B, the foreign tech workers have to go out of the country, mostly to their own country to get the H-1B extension stamped on their passport.

Manufacturing across most of Asia deteriorated further in June as a weak Chinese economy sapped demand for the region’s goods. Factory activity remained stuck in contraction in neighbouring economies South Korea, Japan and Taiwan, according to manufacturing purchasing managers’ indexes published Monday by S&P Global and au Jibun Bank. Much of Asia’s manufacturing sector had pinned its hopes on a strong Chinese post-pandemic rebound, only to see weaker-than-expected trade with the world’s second largest economy.

The BSE Sensex was trading 316 points or 0.49% higher at 65,034 while Nifty50 was trading at 19,274, up 85 points or 0.45% at around 9.21 am. From the Sensex pack, UltraTech Cement and M&M were the top gainers, rising over 2% each. HDFC, HDFC Bank, Tata Motors, SBI, Wipro and Tata Steel also opened higher.

Oil prices slipped in early Asian trade on Monday as global macroeconomic headwinds and possible further interest rate hikes from the U.S. Federal Reserves offset forecasts of tighter supplies amid OPEC+ cuts. Brent crude futures dropped 20 cents, or 0.3%, to $75.21 a barrel by 0044 GMT after settling up 0.8% on Friday.

China's recovery has so far disappointed high expectations and the Caixin manufacturing survey due later on Monday is forecast to dip to 50.2 in June, from 50.9, and may even slip into contraction. The central bank has promised more «forceful» action to support the economy and looks likely to soon get a new boss. Something major is needed given Chinese blue chips shed 5% last quarter while much of the developed world rallied.

BEIJING — The People's Bank of China announced Saturday that Pan Gongsheng, head of the country's foreign exchange regulator, would become the central bank's party secretary.

BEIJING (Reuters) — China's factory activity growth slowed in June, a private sector survey showed on Monday, with sentiment waning and recruitment cooling as firms grew increasingly concerned about sluggish market conditions.

Investing.com-- Chinese manufacturing activity edged past expectations in June, a private survey showed on Monday, but the pace of growth still slowed from May amid softening export demand and worsening optimism over the economy.

Investing.com-- Gold prices moved little in early trade on Monday as markets awaited more cues on the U.S. economy this week, while copper prices rose on data signaling some strength in the Chinese manufacturing sector.

By Andrea Shalal

TOKYO (Reuters) — Japan's factory activity contracted in June after expanding for the first time in 7 months in May, a private survey showed on Monday, dragged down by weak orders for cyclical goods amid a global economic slowdown.

(Reuters) -Tesla Inc on Sunday said it delivered a record number of vehicles in the second quarter, topping market estimates as price cuts and U.S. federal credits helped make its electric vehicles more affordable.

smartphone market, which is still dominated by Chinese brands, regardless of the price levels: sub or above ₹10,000. An ET survey, which constituted nearly 20 mobile retail shops in Delhi, found that none sold Indian mobile brands-firstly, shops had limited stock of sub-₹10,000 mobile phones-which used to drive volumes historically in India; and almost all the shops sold 2-3 times more ₹ 10,000-plus mobile phones than sub-₹10,000 handsets, with demand mostly for 5G phones over 4G phones.

US memory chip maker Micron’s recent announcement of setting up a semiconductor assembly, testing, marking, and packaging (ATMP) facility in India has given the country a long-awaited breakthrough in the business of chips that power almost every device in the modern world. India set up its first chip making unit in 1983 in Mohali but then made little progress in this segment, until the government launched a Rs 76,000 productivity linked incentive scheme for chip making last year.

China Information Technology Development Limited (CITD) (HKEX: 8178), a leading technology company specializing in AI and cloud technologies, has announced its plan to issue HK$100 million worth of Bonds using distributed ledger technology (DLT). The proposed issuance aims to revolutionize the bond market by leveraging blockchain and smart contract technologies.