The rapid de-escalation in the U.S.-China trade war after the Geneva talks has helped Beijing avoid a nightmare scenario: mass job losses that could have endangered social stability - what the ruling Communist Party sees as its top-most priority, Reuters reported. But this year's U.S. tariff hikes of 145% left lasting economic damage and even after the Geneva talks remain high enough to continue to hurt the job market and slow Chinese growth, say economists and policy advisers.

Japan's economy shrank for the first time in a year and at a faster pace than expected, data for the March quarter showed on Friday, underscoring the fragile nature of its recovery now under threat from U.S. President Donald Trump's trade policies, Reuters reported. The data highlights the challenge policymakers face as steep U.S. tariffs cloud the outlook for the export-heavy economy, particularly for the mainstay automobiles sector.

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Ahmedabad, on Friday issued a notice to Gensol Engineering, directing it to file a reply over the insolvency plea filed by public sector Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA), IndianExpress.com reported. The IREDA plea came before a two-member bench of the NCLT which posted it for hearing on June 3. The bench refused the PSU’s request to appoint an Interim Resolution Professional (IRP) to take charge of the company as the top leadership had exited in the wake of the ban order passed by the market regulator Sebi.

Japan's economy shrank for the first time in a year and at a faster pace than expected, data for the March quarter showed on Friday, underscoring the fragile nature of its recovery now under threat from U.S. President Donald Trump's trade policies, Reuters reported. Real gross domestic product (GDP) contracted an annualised 0.7% in January-March, preliminary government data showed, much bigger than a median market forecast for a 0.2% drop.

Chinese worker Liu Shengzun lost two jobs in just one month as U.S. import tariffs shot up to triple digits in April, forcing a Guangdong lighting products factory, and then a footwear maker, to reduce output, Reuters reported. Tariffs came down dramatically this week, but Liu has given up on factory jobs and is now back farming in his hometown in southern China. "It's been extremely difficult this year to find steady employment," said the 42-year-old, who used to earn 5,000 - 6,000 yuan ($693-$832) a month as a factory worker and now doesn't have a steady source of income.

South Korea's Minister of Trade and Industry Ahn Duk-geun said on Friday that Seoul would try to reach a deal with Washington on tariffs by the July deadline previously agreed, but warned that the target could be missed due to domestic politics, Reuters reported. The countries will hold technical consultations next week to proceed with tariff negotiations and expect to have another ministerial meeting in June, Ahn said, after meeting with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.

State-owned Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency said on Wednesday that it has filed a bankruptcy application against Gensol Engineering marking the first instance of a creditor taking the embattled firm to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Reuters reported. Gensol, a solar energy firm that also procured electric vehicles on behalf of ride-hailing service BluSmart, owes IREDA 5.10 billion rupees ($59.73 million).

South Korea will double the deposit insurance limit to 100 million won (US$71,174 or RM307,643) per client from September, raising the cap for the first time in nearly a quarter of a century to boost confidence in the banking system, Bloomberg News reported. The change will partially affect money markets as consumers may move their funds to high-interest paying institutions, such as savings banks, from commercial banks, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) said in an emailed statement on Thursday.