It lies just to the north of Australia, but the tiny and impoverished country of Timor Leste is strengthening ties with China as it faces a looming fiscal crisis – a move that comes after decades of mistreatment by Canberra and raises difficult questions for its leaders. Timor-Leste, which is situated 680km from Darwin and has massive and untapped undersea resources, surprised the region last week when it formally upgraded bilateral relations with China. A joint statement included plans to enhance military cooperation and explore developments of Timor-Leste’s oil and…
Month: September 2023
Vietnamese activist sentenced to 3 years in prison
Updated Sept. 28, 2023, 01:05 am ET. A Vietnamese court sentenced climate activist Hoang Thi Minh Hong to three years in prison for tax evasion on Thursday, a state newswire reported Thursday. The court also fined her the equivalent of US$,4,000 and told her to pay back more than $274,000 in taxes. The charge carries a maximum seven years jail term plus a fine. “This conviction is a total sham, nobody should be fooled by it,” said Ben Swanton, co-director of The 88 Project. “The trial bore all the hallmarks…
South-east Asian conglomerates’ returns fall at end of ‘golden age’
Receive free Asia-Pacific companies updates We’ll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest Asia-Pacific companies news every morning. The returns of south-east Asia’s conglomerates have plummeted, marking the end of a golden age for the sprawling businesses that are among the biggest drivers of the region’s $3.6tn economy. After decades of outperforming global peers, conglomerates from countries including Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines have “lost their edge”, according to research by management consultancy Bain & Company. Bain said for roughly 100 conglomerates in the region…
South-east Asian conglomerates’ returns fall to record lows
Receive free Asia-Pacific companies updates We’ll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest Asia-Pacific companies news every morning. The returns of south-east Asia’s conglomerates have plummeted to record lows, marking the end of a golden age for the sprawling businesses that are among the biggest drivers of the region’s $3.6tn economy. After decades of outperforming global peers, conglomerates from countries including Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and the Philippines have “lost their edge”, according to research by management consultancy Bain & Company. Bain said for roughly 100 conglomerates…
Chinese Hackers Stole 60,000 State Dept. Emails in Breach Reported in July
Chinese hackers who gained access to the email accounts of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and other government officials this year stole 60,000 emails from the State Department alone, according to two people familiar with a briefing Senate staff members received on the matter Wednesday. The emails came from 10 State Department email accounts, department officials told Senate staff members, according to the people familiar with the briefing, one of whom is a staff member for Senator Eric Schmitt, Republican of Missouri. Nine of the 10 email accounts belonged to people…
What does China ‘de-risking’ actually mean?
Global dealmaking is languishing at a 10-year low, western companies are insulating their China operations, and Chinese battery groups are avoiding or delaying direct investments in the US and Europe because of geopolitics. Mentioned in this podcast: Dealmaking languishes at decade low on private equity drought Chinese battery groups invest in Morocco to serve western markets Western companies take slow steps towards China ‘de-risking’ Vote for FT podcasts in the Lovie Awards! The FT News Briefing is produced by Fiona Symon, Sonja Hutson, Kasia Broussalian and Marc Filippino. Additional help…
Adani switches UK auditor to firm with four partners
Receive free Adani Group updates We’ll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest Adani Group news every morning. Adani Group, the Indian conglomerate accused of accounting fraud by a US short seller, has changed the auditor of its main UK subsidiaries to a firm with four partners. It is the latest audit shake-up in Indian billionaire Gautam Adani’s business empire since Hindenburg Research accused the group of stock price manipulation and fraud in January, triggering a stock market sell-off that wiped billions from the conglomerate’s value. …
A trade reprieve won’t fix the EU’s failures on electric vehicles
Receive free Trade Secrets updates We’ll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest Trade Secrets news every morning. Every 10 years or so, it seems, another industry is nominated to be the new primary combat theatre for trade wars involving China. (This is distinct from eternal wars of attrition such as the steel sector.) In the 2000s, it was clothes and shoes. In the 2010s, it was solar panels. The 2020s looked set to be the decade of wrangling over semiconductors, but electric vehicles are, as…
China-US ties: ambassador to US calls for ‘concrete, small steps’ in relations but silent on whether Xi will attend Apec
“Our focus is to be a better self,” he added. “We have no intention to challenge, out-compete or displace anyone else.” US President Joe Biden greets Ambassador Xie in the Oval Office of the White House on June 30. Photo: Xinhua Xie made his comments as speculation rises over whether Xi will attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) leaders summit in San Francisco less than two months away. A meeting is increasingly seen as the most important step in halting the steady deterioration in bilateral relations in recent years on…
IBM’s former IT services group plans to separate its China business
Receive free Kyndryl Inc updates We’ll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest Kyndryl Inc news every morning. IBM’s former IT services unit is planning to split off its China business in the latest sign of how geopolitical tensions and Chinese data laws are forcing multinationals to rethink their global footprint. US-based Kyndryl, which was spun out of IBM in 2021 and says it is the world’s largest provider of IT infrastructure services by revenue, has told some employees about the decision to split, according to…