Inflation in Tokyo accelerated for a second month in December while the labor market remained tight, results that largely keep the Bank of Japan on track for an interest rate hike next year, Bloomberg reported. Consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 2.4% in the capital, quickening from growth of 2.2% the previous month, the Ministry of Internal Affairs reported Friday. Tokyo’s figures serve as a leading indicator for national trends.
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Former tycoon Lim Oon Kuin has been declared bankrupt in Singapore, following the collapse of his oil trading empire, the South China Morning Post reported. The name of the founder of Hin Leong Trading Pte. and his children Lim Huey Ching and Lim Chee Meng were listed as having been issued a bankruptcy order on December 19, the government gazette showed. The younger Lims were both directors at the company. Leow Quek Shiong and Seah Roh Lin of BDO Advisory Pte. Ltd. are the trustees, according to the gazette.
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Japan's factory activity shrank at a slower pace in December as declines in production and new orders eased, a private-sector survey showed on Monday, edging closer to stabilisation after recent falls, Reuters reported. The final au Jibun Bank Japan manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) rose to 49.6 in December, indicating the softest contraction in three months. The index was slightly higher than 49.5 in the flash reading and 49.0 in November but stayed below the 50.0 threshold that separates growth from contraction for the sixth straight month.
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India is considering cutting income tax for individuals making up to 1.5 million rupees ($17,590) a year in February's budget to provide relief to the middle class and boost consumption as the economy slows, two government sources told Reuters. The move could benefit tens of millions of taxpayers, especially city dwellers burdened by high living costs, if they opt for a 2020 tax system that strips exemptions like housing rentals. Under that system, annual income of 300,000 rupees to 1.5 million rupees is taxed at between 5% to 20%. Higher income draws 30%.
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In China's take on the TV series “Squid Game,” fraudsters are preying on the financially distressed in a slumping economy with promises of prize money, debt restructuring and other schemes that are not always what is promised, Reuters reported. Unlike the dystopian South Korean TV series, which returns to the small screen for a second season on Thursday, Chinese players taking on "self-discipline" challenges do not risk their lives if they lose.
Efforts will continue in 2025 to stabilize and prevent further declines in China's real estate market, China Construction News reported, citing a work conference held by the housing regulator on Tuesday and Wednesday, according to Reuters. China will vigorously promote the reform of the commercial housing sales system, and expand the scope of urban village renovation beyond the addition of 1 million units, the report said.
The World Bank raised on Thursday its forecast for China’s economic growth in 2024 and 2025, but warned that subdued household and business confidence, along with headwinds in the property sector, would keep weighing it down next year, CNBC reported. The world’s second-biggest economy has struggled this year, mainly due to a property crisis and tepid domestic demand. An expected hike in U.S. tariffs on its goods when U.S. President-elect Donald Trump takes office in January may also hit growth.
Some 15,000 workers from PT Sri Rejeki Isman Textile, or Sritex Group, planned to take to the streets in Jakarta to protest the Supreme Court (MA) that rejected an appeal to revoke Sritex's bankruptcy status, which had previously been decided by the Semarang Commercial Court, Tempo.Co reported. Sritex Group Workers Union Advocacy Coordinator Slamet Kaswanto said the demonstration would be directed to the MA.