Asia stocks hit 17-month low on higher US bond yields, trade war concerns

Asian shares hit 17-month lows on Tuesday as investors fretted about everything from the Chinese economy, to trade wars, higher US bond yields and political dysfunction in Europe.

"Risk sentiment is in a foul mood and stocks aare sinking everywhere," said analysts at JPMorgan in a note. "The reasons are myriad and many are a continuation of recent overhangs."

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan eased another 0.15 per cent after ending Monday at its lowest point since May last year.

Japan's Nikkei fell 1.1 per cent as it resumed from a one-day holiday, hurt in part by a rise in the safe-harbour yen.

Eyes were again on China, where blue chips shed 4.3 per cent on Monday in the largest daily drop since early 2016. While the stock market in China is far from a reliable gauge of economic activity, sharp falls do spill over into sentiment across the region.

Facebook-Cambridge Analytica row: Zuckerberg brings apology ads; updates

Facebook's problems after the Cambridge Analytica scandal broke out refuse to fade. Now, the social media giant's founder and chief ececutive officer Mark Zuckerberg has issued a full-page advertisement in seven newspapers across the United Kingdom and three across the United States apologising for the data breach. "We have a responsibility to protect your information. If we can't, we don't deserve it," he said. Meanwhile, the social media giant also dismissed claims of having collected users' text and call data without their consent.

Amid the ongoing privacy scandal surrounding Facebook and Cambridge Analytica, Zuckerberg, in the advertisement, reiterated that the social media platform had already stopped third-party apps from "getting so much information" and that Facebook had started "limiting the data apps get when you sign up", The Verge reported. Zuckerberg also clarified that Facebook users would now be aware of which apps had access to their information and which did not, so that they could make an informed decision.

The Facebook ads ran in prominent positions in British nationals, including the best-selling Mail on Sunday, The Sunday Times, and The Observer -- which helped break the story -- as well as the US' New York Times, Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal. The advertisement reflected the public statements Zuckerberg made last week after the Cambridge Analytica data breach row prompted investigations in Europe and the US, and sent Facebook's share price plunging.

Trump has a very honest view of things, I like such people: Vladimir Putin

The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, on Thursday praised the US President Donald Trump and said he was exactly the kind of person he liked most.

Putin said he had never met Trump but that he agreed relations between their countries had to improve and he was willing to talk with the US leader.

"I have to recognize that I love that kind of person. They are simple, direct, they have a very honest view of things and that can be very advantageous," Efe quoted him as saying.

He said he had a lot in common with the US leader as he considered that neither were professional politicians and highlighted that he himself had never been a member of a party.

Nonetheless, records show that Putin entered the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1970 while attending St. Petersburg State University, and remained a member until December 1991.

Putin insisted that whether he liked Trump or not was irrelevant, as the important thing was to establish a good personal and political relationship regardless.

"I don't know if this will be possible, but we are patient and we will wait to see what happens," he said.

In response to a question on what advice he would give to the White House's new occupant, Putin said a person like Trump did not need tips and especially not from a counterpart such as himself, as the advice was always misinterpreted and thus counter-productive.

The Russian leader said that what Moscow perceived to be growing global Russophobic sentiments were caused by the country's defense of its legitimate interests in the international arena.

Putin said some countries had started to try to hold Russia back using actions that went against international rights, including economic restrictions.

"The fight that Russia leads is for legitimate interests and I emphasize that," said the Russian president, insisting that several nations were trying to create reasons to aggravate the situation with Moscow and, in order to achieve that endeavor, were pulling excuses from thin air.

Putin also acknowledged that there may be Russian hackers "who consider themselves patriots" and decide to "make their contribution, as they see fit, to fight against those who speak ill of Russia."

"Theoretically, that's possible," said Putin, who also dismissed as "fictional" accusations that Russian computer attacks influenced the results of France's election of its new president, Emmanuel Macron.
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Aussie media calls Virat the Donald Trump of sports: Thank you, says Big B

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan has slammed Australian media for comparing Indian skipper Virat Kohli to US President Donald Trump.

The Daily Telegraph on Tuesday had compared Kohli to Trump, saying "Kohli has become the Donald Trump of world sport".

"Aussie media calls Virat, Donald Trump of sports !!... Thank you Aussie media for accepting that he is a winner and the PRESIDENT," Bachchan, 74, tweeted.

The comparison comes after Kohli accused the Australian players of trolling Team India physio Patrick Farhart during the Ranchi Test.

Australian daily also alleged that Kohli launched an attack on skipper Steve Smith and the Australian team where he accused of them being systematic cheats, but refused to apologise or provide any concrete evidence. (READ MORE)

Narendra Modi, Donald Trump to speak over phone tonight

Breaking news - US President Donald Trump will speak to Prime Minister Narendra Modi tonight over phone, the has White House said.

"The President speaks with Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi," the White House said as it released Trump's schedule for today.

Trump is scheduled to speak with Modi over phone at 1 PM Washington DC time, which is 11:30 PM IST.

With this Narendra Modi, would be the fifth foreign leader Trump would have spoken with over phone after being sworn-in as the US President on January 20.

On January 21, Trump spoke with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican Premier Pena Nieto.

On Sunday, Trump spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and yesterday he had a telephonic conversation with the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.

After Trump surprised the world with his historic victory in the November 8 general elections, Modi was among the first five world leaders to have congratulated Trump.

During his gruelling election campaign, India is among the few countries in addition to Israel with whom Trump spoke of strengthening ties if elected to power.

At a charity event organised by the Republican Hindu Coalition for the Kashmiri Pandit terror victims and the Bangladeshi Hindu victims in Edison on October 15, Trump, as the then Republican presidential nominee, had praised India's fast growth rate and Modi's bureaucratic and economic reforms.

"Under a Trump Administration, we are going to become even better friends, in fact I would take the term better out and we would be best friend," Trump had told a cheering crowd of Indian-Americans in Edison, New Jersey.(Read More)

Even Donald Trump building isn't immune to India's real estate woes

Latest Business News - After trying for four months to sell his apartment in a western suburb of Mumbai, Meher Verma decided to cut the price by 10 per cent. With property demand plummeting in the wake of November’s sudden ban on high-denomination notes, he’s not sure the reduction will do the trick.

“I was hoping to sell my house soon,” said Verma, who put his two-bedroom property in Andheri on the market for $400,000 in September. “Now it looks like I might have to cut my price or wait much longer for the market to improve.”

Real estate has long been a place where Indians have parked cash, often using money on which taxes haven’t been paid. Now, with the crackdown on so-called black money and the underground economy, real estate is taking a hit. The rate of home sales has fallen by about half since the government acted in early November, according to an estimate from Khushru Jijina, managing director of Piramal Fund Management. Home prices may decline 20 per cent and land prices could plummet as much as 25 per cent, according to analysts’ projections. 

“Those who were looking to buy property as an investment vanished overnight from the market after the cash ban,” said Aubrey Carvallo, a Mumbai broker who has never seen demand in Mumbai so low in his two decades of working in the industry. He’s been unsuccessfully seeking buyers for eight apartments with prices starting at Rs 1.5 crore. “They are thinking of moving to stock markets and other financial assets, as real estate prices are set to correct in the coming years with the government crackdown on unaccounted money.”(Read More)

Toyota shares fall after Donald Trump's customs duties threat

Latest Business News - he shares of Toyota Motor fell on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) on Friday after US President-elect Donald Trump threatened the Japanese car manufacturer with customs duties if it continues the construction of its new vehicle assembly plant in Mexico.

The Japanese company's share price fell 3.1 per cent in the first few minutes of trading to 6,830 yen ($59) after investors at the TSE saw Trump's threat with scepticism, Efe news reported.

Toyota, in November 2016, started building a new plant in Guanajuato, Mexico, where it plans to manufacture, from 2019, 2,00,000 units a year of its Corolla model, the second-most popular car in the US in the category of compact sedans. It is currently produced in plants in Mississippi, US and Cambridge, Canada.

"Toyota Motor said will build a new plant in Baja (California), Mexico, to build Corolla cars for US No Way! Build plant in US or pay big border tax," Trump tweeted on Thursday.

Toyota announced plans to build a new facility in Mexico in April 2015 and said that production volumes or employment in the US will not be reduced and that the company "looks forward to collaborating with the Trump administration to serve in the best interests of consumers and the automotive industry."

Trump on Tuesday threatened General Motors (GM) with duties if it maintains its production in Mexico for the compact Chevrolet Cruze Hatchback.

Trump's attacks on GM and Toyota came after Ford announced on Tuesday the cancellation of a $1.6 billion investment in Mexico.(Read More)

Trump appoints Indian-American Raj Shah to key White House position

Breaking News - US President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday appointed young Indian-American Raj Shah, who played a leading role in the Republican party's anti-Clinton campaign during polls, to a key White House position.

Shah, whose parents immigrated to the US from Gujarat, has been appointed as Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Communication Director and Research Director, according to an announcement made by the Presidential Transition Team.

Shah, who is in his early 30s, is currently head of Opposition Research in the Republican National Committee.

In this position, he led a team of experts to carry out research against Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidential candidate. Shah was behind all the anti-Clinton campaign during the presidential elections.

The announcement of Shah's appointment to this key White House position was made by incoming White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus along with other appointments.(Read More)