Town Hall News

By Tim Kelly and Miho Uranaka TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan said on Friday it will restrict exports of 23 types of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, aligning its technology trade controls with a U.S. push to curb China’s ability to make advanced chips. Japan, home to major chip equipment makers such as Nikon Corp and Tokyo Electron Ltd, did not specify China as the target of the restrictions, saying manufacturers would need […]

By Anirban Sen and Andres Gonzalez NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) – Global mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity shrank to its lowest level in more than a decade in the first quarter of 2023, as rising interest rates, high inflation and fears of a recession soured the appetite of companies for dealmaking. M&A volumes during the first quarter slumped 48% to $575.1 billion as of March 30, compared to $1.1 trillion during […]

By Asif Shahzad ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistan’s finance minister, Ishaq Dar, said on Friday that China had rolled over a $2 billion loan that matured last week, providing relief during the South Asian nation’s acute balance of payment crisis. Locking in a rollover had been critical for Pakistan, where reserves have dipped to just four weeks’ worth of imports and talks over an IMF bailout tranche of $1.1 billion have […]

By Ian Ransom MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Formula One officials confirmed on Friday that teams can no longer touch their cars with jacks during penalty pitstops in the wake of the Fernando Alonso controversy at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Aston Martin driver Alonso was handed a five-second penalty for an error on the starting grid at Jeddah and then another for failing to serve it properly – the rear jack […]

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – Former South Africa paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius, jailed in 2016 for murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, will ask a parole board on Friday to release him early from prison, lawyers and prison officials said. Steenkamp’s family oppose his bid and will give verbal and written statements at the hearing on the impact the murder had on them, their lawyer Tania Koen told Reuters. “June is not looking […]

TAIPEI (Reuters) – Nine Chinese aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait on Friday carrying out combat readiness patrols, Taiwan’s defence ministry said, condemning what it called an “irrational” deployment. The rise in tension comes as Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen is in the United States stopping off on her way to Central America. She is expected to meet U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in Los Angeles on her […]

NUSA DUA, Indonesia (Reuters) – Talks between Southeast Asian central bank governors and finance ministers entered their final day on Friday, with the leaders focused on strengthening the region’s resilience against global risks. The gathering of finance leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) comes amid a backdrop of recent global banking turmoil after the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and the bailout and takeover of Credit Suisse. […]

NUSA DUA, Indonesia (Reuters) – Indonesia and Russia signed an extradition agreement on Friday, with the Southeast Asian country’s law minister welcoming a move that he said should strengthen efforts to combat cross-border crimes, ranging from money laundering to cybercrime. The treaty was signed by Indonesia’s law minister Yasonna Laoly and Russia’s justice minister Konstantin Chuychenko in an ceremony held on the resort island of Bali. “This is very important […]

By Sudarshan Varadhan BEIJING (Reuters) – Oil prices ticked down in Asian trade on Friday as bullish sentiment about Chinese demand and potential Middle Eastern supply disruptions was tempered by uncertainty over U.S. economic data to be released later in the day. Brent futures, which have risen nearly 6% this week, were down 33 cents, or -0.42%, at $78.94 a barrel at 0630 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude […]