China is close to Taiwan. After a record loss, SoftBank reflected. Today is what you need to know.
Donald Trump said FBI agents are raiding his house.
Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan has been seized upon by China to create a "new normal" for the island. Air-to-sea strikes and anti-submarine operations were practiced by the military on Monday. Beijing wants Washington to stop boosting ties with Taiwan and restore the diplomatic understanding that discouraged House speakers from visiting for 25 years. Taiwan's freedom could be restricted by China if not. The finance ministry official in Taiwan said that China's economic measures are unlikely to have a major impact on trade between the two economies.
Masayoshi Son, the CEO of SoftBank, took responsibility for buying into the stock market plunge and said he would cut costs. The results were described as disappointing by him.
International travelers in Hong Kong will no longer have to stay in a hotel for seven days after the city took a step to reduce the requirement. It was seen as insufficient to revive a sinking economy and halt an exodus of residents, despite the reduction being welcomed by business groups and analysts. They have to contend with a new China-inspired health code when they leave their hotel room. This is how that works. Thailand lowered Covid to the same level as flu and BioNTech said an omicron-adapted vaccine would be ready by October.
After the S&P 500 gained more than other assets, investors should trim stock holdings and shift their money to commodities. The strategists who don't expect stocks to fall say that the performance gap allows investors to shuffle holdings while maintaining a risk-on tilt. One of China's leading strategists doesn't like the idea of a rebound in Chinese stocks.
After a dip in US shares on disappointing corporate earnings and a climb in Treasuries, Asian stocks look set for a soft start. For Australia and Hong Kong, futures fell. The S&P 500 and theNasdaq 100 ended lower. Sentiment took a hit after the revenue missed expectations. US contracts rose in early Asian trading. Steady progress this week has led to a near $24,000 price tag for the virtual currency.
China's property sector is struggling in and out of Covids, policy changes and common prosperity pledges. There was a time when there were concerns that the Asian giant was piling up troubles due to the rapid pace of construction. China's version of Japan's bridges to nowhere was seen as a ghost town.
China faces a very tough battle to turn around its real estate industry, even though the jury is out on that theme. The junk bonds are back near a record low because of the sector's troubles. With the US economy faltering, the potential that China will be weighed down by a crippled property sector is a new burden for global risk assets.
Garfield Reynolds is based in Australia.
Garfield Clinton Reynolds helped with the project.
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