Stock Market & Investment News

MELBOURNE: Asia’s share markets were mostly higher on Tuesday even as global investor attention remains fixed on the prospect of U.S interest rate hikes in the next few months, after two years of unprecedented pandemic-induced policy easing. Read full story

HONG KONG: A SPAC backed by China Merchants Bank applied to list in Hong Kong late on Monday, the first company to do so since new rules allowing such listings took effect at the start of this year. Read full story

MELBOURNE: Oil prices rose on Tuesday to a more than seven-year high on worries about possible supply disruptions after Yemen’s Houthi group attacked the United Arab Emirates, escalating hostilities between the Iran-aligned group and a Saudi Arabian-led coalition. Read full story

SYDNEY: U.S. Treasury yields rose along the curve in Asia on Tuesday, lifting the shorter end to new pandemic highs as traders braced for the possibility of a hawkish surprise from the Federal Reserve. Read full story

TOKYO: The Bank of Japan upgraded its inflation forecasts on Tuesday and said risks to the price outlook were evenly balanced, in a nod to signs the recent commodity-driven rise in inflation was broadening. Read full story

 AUSTRALIAN stocks closed slightly lower on Tuesday, as shares of export-focussed healthcare companies slid due to a softer U.S. dollar, and banks weakened after data showed a spurt in COVID-19 cases battered consumer confidence. Read full story

BEIJING: China has “relatively plenty” policy tools in reserve to cope with a challenging year ahead and will roll out these measures in a timely manner to stabilise growth, the country’s state planner said on Tuesday. Read full story

BEIJING: Starbucks, which has seen sales slow in China due to COVID-19’s fallout, is attempting to widen its reach in its second-biggest market globally by distributing its coffees through the country’s dominant food delivery firm, Meituan. Read full story

LONDON: British employers added a record 184,000 staff to their payrolls in December, showing little sign of a hit from the Omicron variant of coronavirus, taking total staff numbers to 1.4% above their level in February 2020 before the pandemic. Read full story