New Trump Statements, Company Reviews & News, and Geopolitical Events
Stock market news
• In the US, 327 CEOs will resign in 2024 in anticipation of Trump coming to power - Financial Times, citing data from the consulting company Challenger Gray.
• Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda avoided giving a clear signal that he might raise interest rates next month, noting the need to continue monitoring risks to the economy in comments that sent the yen lower.
Japan will set its initial debt service rate for fiscal 2025 at 2%.
• Taiwan Blocks Uber's (UBER) $950 Million Foodpanda Deal on Competition Concerns - Bloomberg
Toyota's (TM) global production fell for the 10th straight month despite rising sales. Its global sales rose for the second straight month, thanks to robust demand in the U.S. and China.
• Lyft Inc. (LYFT) has filed a lawsuit accusing the city of San Francisco of overcharging it by $100 million over five years, which it says it does by unfairly treating compensation received by drivers who use its app as company income.
• Jeff Bezos Saved Nearly $1 Billion in Taxes Just by Moving to Florida - FORTUNE.
• Japan's budget to hit record, but new bond issuance to decline
• Finance Minister says Russia to use Bitcoin in foreign trade
• China extends EU anti-dumping investigation into brandy by three months.
• Chinese scammers are taking a cue from the game "Squid" to profit from debtors.
• Nippon Steel's chief executive says US Steel's takeover plan has support in the steel industry.
• Toyota's global production falls for 10th straight month despite rising sales.
• Japanese comedian-turned-investor launches fund with former Goldman 'equity agent'
• American Airlines resumes flights after brief suspension ahead of busy Christmas season
Amicorp Group to fight $1bn fraud claim from Malaysian bank 1MDB
• US Federal Reserve makes significant changes to bank stress tests in light of court rulings.
• Sources say Italy is demanding full disclosure from UniCredit about BPM's bid.
• Japanese company Daiwa plans to raise wages by at least 5% next year to attract talent.
• Become more frugal: Use financial solutions to manage your money wisely.
• Malaysian company 1MDB has filed a lawsuit against Amicorp Group, seeking more than $1 billion for alleged fraud.
• Westpac admits to overcharging more than 24,000 customers in New Zealand.
• A US consumer watchdog has sued major banks over "widespread" fraud on the payment app Zelle.
• NASA spacecraft attempts to get as close to the Sun as possible.
• Toyota's global production falls for 10th straight month despite rising sales.
• Apple tries to defend Google's billion-dollar payout in search case.
• Iran has lifted the ban on WhatsApp and Google Play, state media reported.
• Chinese company WuXi to sell Advanced Therapies division amid US restrictions.
• Microsoft is working to add non-OpenAI models to 365 Copilot products.
• India's bid to create its own satellite constellation has 30 bidders.
• Chinese company CATL is launching production of chassis for electric vehicles, citing safety as a key selling point.
• US judge finds Israeli NSO Group liable for hacking WhatsApp lawsuit
• Talen Energy to appeal FERC's rejection of Amazon data center deal
Fundamental news
• Trump's Greenland purchase could be the largest US territorial acquisition - NYP
For comparison:
- Greenland: 2,166,000 km²
- Louisiana Purchase (1803): 2,144,000 km²
- Alaska Purchase (1867): 1,518,000 km²
The president-elect previously said that control of the largest island on the planet was necessary for "national security".
/ China has been trying to enter Greenland for years, and Greenland is seeking to increase its independence from Denmark. It's a fight over natural resources and the Arctic.
• The new Syrian administration has entered into a defense alliance with Turkey. In this context, Turkish armed forces will be withdrawn from all points in Idlib. Turkey will establish two large military bases in the Homs desert region, north of Damascus.
• Investigation into South Korea's failed martial law bid reveals plans to 'provoke' North Korea into attack - Yonhap News. According to South Korean police, such detailed plans were kept in a notebook belonging to a former military intelligence chief. He, too, was later arrested as part of an investigation launched after President Yoon Seok-yol declared martial law on the night of December 3.
• China plans to issue a record number of special treasury bonds next year, triple the volume this year (1 trillion yuan in 2024 versus 3 trillion yuan in 2025 - $400 billion).
Beijing is trying to find money to stimulate the depressed economy.
China has refrained from cutting interest rates and pumped out the most cash since 2014.
The People's Bank of China left the interest rate on its one-year medium-term credit line at 2%. The authorities have also used this tool to withdraw 1.15 trillion yuan ($158 billion) from the financial system, the largest amount since 2014.
• New French prime minister seeks budget cuts. Francois Bayrou has promised to reduce the government deficit to around 5% of GDP. The issue led to a vote of no confidence in the previous government.
• Indian state refineries consider buying oil in the Middle East due to reduced supplies from Russia - Reuters
“Three large refineries Indian Oil Corp, Bharat Petroleum Corp and Hindustan Petroleum are short of 8-10 million barrels of Russian oil to operate in January.