Private equity firms are rethinking their strategies in China as a widening regulatory crackdown on some of the country's hottest sectors forces investors to scout for bets in other industries that they hope will be less vulnerable to sudden policy changes, Reuters reported. Private equity (PE) and venture capital (VC) funds are pivoting away from data-heavy, consumer-facing internet companies to sectors including semiconductors and renewable energy, industry executives said.

National Australia Bank will buy Citigroup's local consumer unit for about $882.24 million, the companies said Monday, as the American bank exits the region while buy-now, pay-later rivals challenge the old credit card business model, Reuters reported. The deal consolidates more than 90% of the country's credit cards industry into the hands of Australia's Big Four banks, with NAB adding a million customers through the deal to become the nation's second-largest credit card provider. "The proposed acquisition ...

The number of seats being offered by airline carriers in China dropped the most since early in the Covid-19 pandemic, as rising cases of the delta variant spurred fresh restrictions on movement, Bloomberg News reported. Seat capacity plunged 32% in one week, hastening a decline in the country that began at the end of July, based on data from aviation specialist OAG. China’s stumble sent global capacity on a weekly 6.5% slide, as travel comebacks also stagnated in Europe and North America.

Slow stimulus spending threatens Indonesia’s recovery as smaller businesses that are the backbone of the economy have been kept waiting for much-needed funds to weather an extended lockdown, Bloomberg News reported. Only about 30% of more than 186 trillion rupiah ($13 billion) of combined national and provincial government aid has yet been disbursed for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, Finance Ministry data show.

Future Group is fighting its final battle for existence. Supreme Court’s ruling that upheld Singapore Emergency Arbitrator’s award against Reliance Retail’s ₹24,713 crore takeover of Future group companies may have a bigger impact on Kishore Biyani’s retail chain as it is on the verge of bankruptcy, Fortune India reported. Most retail outlets are shut because of the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions. Vendors have stopped supplies as dues ballooned to more than ₹6,000 crore, say company sources.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has repatriated $452 million in misappropriated funds from 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB), it said in a statement on Thursday, bringing the total amount recovered from the corruption scandal to $1.2 billion, Reuters reported. The funds, which were repatriated to Malaysia, had been laundered through major financial institutions worldwide, including in the United States, Switzerland, Singapore, and Luxembourg, the statement said. "The funds include both funds finally forfeited and funds the Department assisted in recovering and returning.

The volume of mergers and acquisitions in Australia is already at its highest annual level on record with nearly five months of the year to go, the Wall Street Journal reported. More than $134 billion in pending and completed deals have been announced this year, according to data provider Dealogic. That already outpaces 2011, Australia’s previous busiest year on record, when just under $134 billion was announced for the entire year.

China’s factory inflation surged again in July, following a short-lived retreat in the previous month, as commodity prices remained high despite the government’s steps to rein in costs, Bloomberg News reported. The producer price index grew 9% in July from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics said Monday, quickening from 8.8% in the previous month and beating the median forecast of an 8.8% gain. Consumer prices rose 1% in July, easing for a second month but remaining above the median estimate of 0.8%.

In recent months, China has blown up what would have been the world’s largest initial public offering, launched probes into some of its biggest technology companies, and wiped out more than $1 trillion in market value while investors scramble for cover. There are many signs it isn’t over yet, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Container shipping rates from China to the United States have scaled fresh highs above $20,000 per 40-foot box as rising retailer orders ahead of the peak U.S. shopping season add strain to global supply chains, Reuters reported. The acceleration in Delta-variant COVID-19 outbreaks in several counties has slowed global container turnaround rates. Typhoons off China's busy southern coast in late July and this week have also contributed to the crisis gripping the world's most important method for moving everything from gym equipment and furniture to car parts and electronics.