CHINA
PBOC injects less cash
The government injected the least amount of medium-term cash into the banking system since November last year, a sign that policymakers are watching the effects of past easing steps as the nation’s economic recovery appears to be on track. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) offered 170 billion yuan (US$24.74 billion) of funds to banks through the medium-term lending facility. That resulted in a 20 billion yuan net injection this month, the smallest since November. It also left the interest rate unchanged at 2.75 percent, the eighth month for it to stand pat, as expected by a majority of economists and analysts in a Bloomberg survey.
UNITED KINGDOM
BOE reviews deposit scheme
The Bank of England (BOE) is considering an overhaul of its deposit guarantee scheme after the recent global banking crisis, the Financial Times reported, citing people briefed on the central bank’s plans. Reforms under consideration include raising the amount covered for businesses from the current ￡85,000 (US$105,250) limit, as well as forcing banks to pre-fund the system to a greater extent to speed up payouts, the newspaper reported. The report did not have details on what the new limit could be. The US Federal Deposit Insurance Corp guarantees deposits up to US$250,000.
INDIA
Adviser pushes back on ESG
The country needs to resist efforts by some western ratings companies to push environmental, social and governance (ESG) norms on emerging markets even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government is committed to zero emissions by 2070, a key economic adviser said. “The issue is not so much about the need for some norms, but about who will be monitoring these targets,” Sanjeev Sanyal, a member of Modi’s economic advisory council said in an interview. “The existing credit rating ones already have serious biases and failures. Allowing the emergence of a new bunch of exclusively western agencies to monitor ESG targets is problematic.”
SINGAPORE
Home sales rise
Home sales rose to a six-month high last month as appetite for homes remained strong. Purchases of new private apartments increased to 492 units last month, according to figures released yesterday by the Urban Redevelopment Authority. That is the third month of gains following the plunge to a 14-year-low in December last year when a lack of project launches held back buyers. “The general market view is still quite positive,” OrangeTee & Tie Pte (橙易產業) senior vice president of research and analytics Christine Sun (孫燕清) said. The lack of supply compared to demand will continue to support the market, Sun added.
AUTOMAKERS
Renault reviews EV pricing
French automaker Renault SA is reviewing its pricing policies of electric vehicles (EV0 worldwide to ensure it stays competitive after a wave of price cuts by US rival Tesla Inc, a top executive said yesterday. After slashing prices several times in the US, Tesla on Friday cut prices in Europe — including on Renault’s home turf of France — as well as Israel and Singapore, expanding a global discount drive it began in China in January. “We will analyze country by country, market by market, which level of competitiveness we need to have to stay in the game,” Renault chief executive Fabrice Cambolive said.
Semiconductor shares in China surged yesterday after Reuters reported the US had ordered chipmaking giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) to halt shipments of advanced chips to Chinese customers, which investors believe could accelerate Beijing’s self-reliance efforts. TSMC yesterday started to suspend shipments of certain sophisticated chips to some Chinese clients after receiving a letter from the US Department of Commerce imposing export restrictions on those products, Reuters reported on Sunday, citing an unnamed source. The US imposed export restrictions on TSMC’s 7-nanometer or more advanced designs, Reuters reported. Investors figured that would encourage authorities to support China’s industry and bought shares
TECH WAR CONTINUES: The suspension of TSMC AI chips and GPUs would be a heavy blow to China’s chip designers and would affect its competitive edge Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, is reportedly to halt supply of artificial intelligence (AI) chips and graphics processing units (GPUs) made on 7-nanometer or more advanced process technologies from next week in order to comply with US Department of Commerce rules. TSMC has sent e-mails to its Chinese AI customers, informing them about the suspension starting on Monday, Chinese online news outlet Ijiwei.com (愛集微) reported yesterday. The US Department of Commerce has not formally unveiled further semiconductor measures against China yet. “TSMC does not comment on market rumors. TSMC is a law-abiding company and we are
FLEXIBLE: Taiwan can develop its own ground station equipment, and has highly competitive manufacturers and suppliers with diversified production, the MOEA said The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) yesterday disputed reports that suppliers to US-based Space Exploration Technologies Corp (SpaceX) had been asked to move production out of Taiwan. Reuters had reported on Tuesday last week that Elon Musk-owned SpaceX had asked their manufacturers to produce outside of Taiwan given geopolitical risks and that at least one Taiwanese supplier had been pushed to relocate production to Vietnam. SpaceX’s requests place a renewed focus on the contentious relationship Musk has had with Taiwan, especially after he said last year that Taiwan is an “integral part” of China, sparking sharp criticism from Taiwanese authorities. The ministry said
US President Joe Biden’s administration is racing to complete CHIPS and Science Act agreements with companies such as Intel Corp and Samsung Electronics Co, aiming to shore up one of its signature initiatives before US president-elect Donald Trump enters the White House. The US Department of Commerce has allocated more than 90 percent of the US$39 billion in grants under the act, a landmark law enacted in 2022 designed to rebuild the domestic chip industry. However, the agency has only announced one binding agreement so far. The next two months would prove critical for more than 20 companies still in the process
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