POLITICAL ECONOMY - POLICY DAILY

China takes step towards interest rate liberalisation

Feb 26, 2014 (AFP)

China has taken a step towards liberalising interest rates by allowing foreign currency deposit rates to be freely set in its new Shanghai free trade zone (FTZ)...

Bitcoin rebounds despite probes, calls for regulation

Feb 26, 2014 (AFP)

Bitcoin values rebounded Wednesday despite investigations into the collapse of a major exchange and a call by a US senator to ban the "highly unstable" virtual ...

Hong Kong forecasts fastest economic growth in three years

Feb 26, 2014 (AFP)

Hong Kong's economy is expected to expand at its fastest pace in three years in 2014, the government said Wednesday, while slashing public welfare spending as i...

Hong Kong replaced as APEC host over protest fears: media report

Feb 25, 2014 (AFP)

Planned summer demonstrations by democracy activists were behind China's decision to snub Hong Kong in favour of Beijing as host of a key Asia-Pacific Economic ...

One of China's richest women ousted from top political body

Feb 21, 2014 (AFP)

A businesswoman ranked as one of the 50 wealthiest in China has been ousted from a senior political organisation, with state media on Friday pointing to her lin...

Hard landing unlikely for 'poorly understood' China: IMF chief

Feb 20, 2014 (AFP)

IMF chief Christine Lagarde said Thursday that China was unlikely to suffer a hard landing, describing it as a "poorly understood and poorly interpreted" econom...

Dalai Lama, in US, seeks humane capitalism

Feb 20, 2014 (AFP)

Praising China's shift toward a market economy, the Dalai Lama called Thursday for a humane form of capitalism in an unlikely encounter with US free-market advo...

Greens alarmed as floodgates open for Indian industrialists

Feb 19, 2014 (AFP)

India's environment ministry, run by the oil and gas minister since late December, has issued approvals for industrial projects worth $40 billion in the last ei...

ATMs raise Bitcoin profile, concerns

Feb 19, 2014 (AFP)

Even if you aren't sure what a Bitcoin is, you may soon find them at a nearby machine. The first Bitcoin ATMs are cropping up in North America, enabling consume...

January foreign direct investment in China rises 16%: govt

Feb 18, 2014 (AFP)

Foreign direct investment (FDI) into China increased 16.1 percent in January, the government said Tuesday, with cash infusions from Asian economies and the Unit...

BoJ chief says lending moves like slapping on 'new car tyres'

Feb 18, 2014 (AFP)

The Bank of Japan on Tuesday held off fresh monetary easing measures but said it would tweak a loans scheme to stimulate borrowing, a move that sent Tokyo share...

Slowing Japan economy stokes tax-rise fears

Feb 17, 2014 (AFP)

Japan's economy slowed to a crawl in the last quarter of 2013, data showed Monday, exacerbating fears that an April sales tax rise will derail Prime Minister Sh...

China bank lending surges in January

Feb 16, 2014 (AFP)

China's bank lending surged in January from December, the central bank said, but analysts attributed the rise to seasonal factors. Loans by Chinese banks reache...

China $160 mln investment vehicle misses payments: report

Feb 14, 2014 (AFP)

A $160 million investment vehicle sold by China's second-largest bank has missed four scheduled payments, state media reported, as fears grow that potential fin...

Publicis reports record profit, luxury ad blow in China

Feb 13, 2014 (AFP)

Advertising group Publicis reported record profits for 2013 but said on Thursday that the steam went out of business in emerging markets, especially China, at t...

Pernod Ricard says knocked back by sales drop in China

Feb 13, 2014 (AFP)

Global drinks giant Pernod Ricard issued a profit warning on Thursday, blaming a 20-percent drop in thirst for its products in China, and announced cost-cutting...

China top buyer as world art sales hit new record

Feb 12, 2014 (AFP)

Global art sales hit a new record high of $12.05 billion (8.8 billion euros) in 2013 with China keeping its spot as the top buyer, a leading art market data fir...

Japan faced with gloomy data ahead of tax hike

Feb 10, 2014 (AFP)

Japan produced a gloomy batch of economic data Monday showing shoppers growing nervous and the trade deficit ballooning, as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe prepares t...

Google becomes number two in market value

Feb 10, 2014 (AFP)

Google overtook US oil giant ExxonMobil on Monday to become the world's number two company when rated by market value, behind its high-tech rival Apple. Even th...

World's richest man would still pick up a $100 bill

Feb 10, 2014 (AFP)

The world's wealthiest man Bill Gates would still pick up a $100 bill on the street, but he has no tips about how to get by on less than $100,000 a year. Oh, an...