Asia Pacific

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has dismissed a petition filed by around 368 homebuyers who had purchased properties from Lavasa Corporation, the Economic Times of India reported. The petition had alleged misconduct in the corporate insolvency resolution process (CIRP) of the company and mistreatment of the homebuyers as a class of creditors.

A smaller-than-anticipated rate hike in Australia has fueled talk that global monetary tightening will slow as the growth outlook turns, Reuters reported. For some, the debate is premature with the likes of the U.S. Federal Reserve unlikely to ease up on the brakes until inflation shows clear signs of slowing.

Australia's central bank on Tuesday surprised markets by lifting interest rates by a smaller-than-expected 25 basis points (0.25%), saying they had already risen substantially, though it added that further tightening would still be needed, Reuters reported. Wrapping up its October policy meeting, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) raised its cash rate to a nine-year peak of 2.60%, the sixth hike in as many months, which included four outsize moves of 50 basis points. The bank had recently flagged a possible slowdown in the pace of hikes at some point.

Chinese refiners are likely to boost refined oil products exports in the last two months of 2022 and into early 2023 after receiving the biggest allocation from Beijing this year, trade sources and analysts said on Monday, Reuters reported. The increase in Chinese exports is likely to help stabilise global oil markets and partly replace supplies from Russia which will be hit by European Union embargoes in coming months. It also allows the world's No.

Japan spent a likely record daily amount to prop up the yen last week, leaving economists and investors wondering how many times the government could intervene again despite skepticism over the impact of such action, Bloomberg News reported. The Ministry of Finance disclosed Friday that it spent 2.84 trillion yen ($19.7 billion) in September to slow the yen’s slide in its first intervention to support the currency since 1998. Some private analysts had estimated the intervention at up to 3.6 trillion yen.

China’s central government offered a rare tax incentive for residential purchases, ramping up support for the country’s embattled real estate sector, Bloomberg News reported. Residents who buy new homes within one year after selling old homes will enjoy refunds for personal-income tax on the sale, according to a statement on the finance ministry website. The tax refunds will take effect from October till the end of 2023. The novel tax policy comes after a yearlong slump in the housing market.

Developing countries in Africa are losing a champion that for years allowed them to borrow at cheaper rates than they could find in capital markets, Bloomberg News reported. China, Africa’s largest bilateral creditor, has been scaling back lending in the region amid its worsening growth woes. That comes at a time of rising interest rates globally and shrinking liquidity, factors that have already sent bonds of the riskiest African borrowers such as Ghana and Zambia crashing, and currencies including South Africa’s rand to near pandemic lows.

Turkey began rounding up suspects in an investigation into alleged stock market fraud that led to a plunge in equities last month, according to state media, Bloomberg News reported. Istanbul’s chief prosecutor started the probe on suspicion of organized activity that violated Turkey’s capital markets law and issued a detention warrant for 10 people, two of whom remain at large, state news agency Anadolu said on Sunday. The arrests come after a sudden reversal in Turkey’s stock market, where banking equities dropped 39% in a three-week long rout that started on Sept.

Canara Bank has filed a fresh insolvency petition against Hyderabad-based engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) company Gayatri Projects, increasing pressure on the debt-laden borrower that owes lenders more than ₹6,000 crore, the Economic Times of India reported. A failed restructuring plan first initiated in 2015 and subsequent default have marked the account as a non- performing asset in the books of banks.

India's central bank is unlikely to extend a Friday deadline for businesses to set up an additional layer of security for consumers' credit card data even after some concerns remain over payments failing and revenue losses, say bankers and merchants, Reuters reported. Despite a demand by smaller merchants to delay the compliance date, there has been no indication so far by the central bank that there is likely to be an extension in deadline, three banking and merchant sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.