WORLD
Red Sea chaos risks driving up price of goods for global economy
Shipping companies are diverting cargoes after Iran-backed Houthi militants attacked commercial vessels plying the Red Sea. The vessels will have to sail around Africa instead of taking the shorter route through the Suez Canal.
TECHNOLOGY
AI offers banks new ways to repeat old mistakes
In September, Morgan Stanley became one of the first major banks to roll out a true generative AI tool in its business — an internal chatbot for its financial advisers based on OpenAI’s technology.
TECHNOLOGY
Apple Watch ban is a cherry on top of Cook’s miserable year
Apple has found itself on the losing side of a patent dispute with a US medical technology company, Masimo Corp., which accused the tech giant of infringing patents related to its blood-oxygen sensors.
WORLD
US-led naval force might not end Houthi ship attacks
In recent weeks, the Houthis have conducted an escalating series of attacks against merchant shipping using drones, ballistic missiles and commandos on helicopters and speedboats.
BUSINESS
Paytm’s Vijay Shekhar Sharma bets on young wealth to hit profit sooner
Sharma is pushing his 10,000-strong technology, product and engineering teams to use Microsoft Corp. and Google AI tools, which has helped Paytm narrow product development to just days from weeks.
BUSINESS
Population growth in Canada hits 3.2%, among world’s fastest
While boosting economic growth, the rapid influx of people is worsening housing affordability, keeping a floor under home prices even with borrowing costs at two-decade highs.
WORLD
Trump disqualified from 2024 ballot in Colorado, court says
Colorado’s Supreme Court issued the ruling on December 19, but paused its effect to allow time for Trump to appeal to the US Supreme Court.
WORLD
Big tech’s year of partnering up with AI startups
In the wake of Microsoft Corp.’s $10 billion investment in OpenAI in January, other tech giants raced to partner with leading AI startups through funding and cloud computing deals. Salesforce Inc. led a round in Hugging Face at a $4.5 billion valuation.
WORLD
Apple loses one of the last remaining designers from Jony Ive era
The executive worked on hardware design for Apple’s main products and helped craft the look of its headquarters and retail stores.
BUSINESS
India share-sale frenzy is seen continuing in 2024, bankers say
Initial public offerings and follow on share sales in India this year exceeded Hong Kong for the first time in at least 30 years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
BUSINESS
Hindenburg’s Adani, Icahn calls mark year of prominent bets
The US firm kicked off 2023 with allegations of accounting fraud and stock manipulation against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani’s conglomerate that led to a market value erosion of more than $150 billion at one point.
WORLD
Apple plans rescue for $17 billion watch business in face of ban
Engineers at the company are racing to make changes to algorithms on the device that measure a user’s blood oxygen level — a feature that Masimo Corp. has argued infringes its patents.
WORLD
Gina Rinehart’s Hancock, SQM agree to buy Azure for $1.1 billion
SQM and the iron ore billionaire’s Hancock Prospecting Pty. have put forward a binding cash amount of A$3.70 per share for the Perth-based miner, an offer that’s been unanimously recommended by Azure’s board.
WORLD
China flows into new stock funds plunge to lowest in decade
Households have been reluctant to take on more risk this year as post-Covid uncertainties over employment and declining property prices push them to prioritize early mortgage repayments and cash savings.
WORLD
Wall Street forced by Fed to rethink 2024 bond yields
Bond-market projections for next year that looked pessimistic when they were published in November became untenable as yields slumped following the Fed’s pivot toward cutting interest rates next year. Some already upbeat calls were also completely overtaken by events.
TECHNOLOGY
SenseTime plunges after death of China AI firm’s Co-Founder
The Chinese firm’s growth has slowed dramatically in the face of rapidly intensifying competition. The US government blacklisted the company in 2019 on allegations related to human rights violations in Xinjiang.
WORLD
China should trim US Treasury holdings, Ex-PBOC adviser says
America’s debt levels may continue rising relative to the size of the US economy, Yu Yongding said in a speech in the southern city of Sanya on Sunday.
WORLD
Revival of winter travel turns jet fuel into oil’s bright spot
The post-pandemic recovery of air travel is gaining pace in China and India, while the US is expecting to see record travel demand during the holiday season.
BUSINESS
Oil boon will add extra zip to rally in emerging-market assets
Brent crude’s slide of more than 20 percent from its September peak suggests inflation is set to slow even further in developing nations in coming months, which will provide another reason to buy their bonds.
BUSINESS
Adani Group’s Ambuja Cements to invest $723 million in Green Energy projects
The Mumbai-based cement maker, which the Adani Group acquired from Holcim Ltd. last year, will be funding this investment through internal accruals, it said in an exchange filing Monday.
BUSINESS
Goldman ramps up credit business in India, targets rich diaspora
The investment bank wants to broaden the range of loans it offers through its shadow banking unit, according to Sonjoy Chatterjee, chairman and chief executive officer for Goldman in India.
BUSINESS
Goldman sees India to Australia easing policy earlier after Fed
They have now brought forward Indonesia and Taiwan’s first rate cut to the second quarter of next year and India, Australia and New Zealand’s to the third quarter, having previously anticipated a loosening at the end of 2024.
BUSINESS
Motorcycle icon Royal Enfield faces fresh challenge from Harley in India’s biker paradise
Rather than a Royal Enfield favored by her father and several million other riders in India, Sandhu opted for a slick roadster from UK-based Triumph.
TECHNOLOGY
Royal Enfield faces fresh challenge from Harley in India’s biker paradise
Like Triumph, US giant Harley-Davidson Inc. is also renewing efforts in India, where Royal Enfield is revered to a similar extent as Harley is in the US.
