Year: 2020

(Bloomberg) — Apple Inc. removed more than 30,000 apps, 90% of them games, from its iPhone App Store in China on Saturday, Qimai Research Institute said.The crackdown, which began in June and escalated in July, ends the unofficial practice of allowing games to be published while awaiting approval from Beijing’s censors, which all titles that are paid or offer in-app purchases must obtain. The loophole existed only on the iPhone, as local Chinese Android vendors already adhered to the rule without exception. After the Saturday purge, there were about 179,000 games remaining in Apple’s China store, of which 160,000 were …read more […]

China’s factory activity expanded at the fastest pace in nearly a decade in July as domestic demand continued to improve after the coronavirus crisis, though export orders and employment remained weak, a private business survey showed on Monday. The Caixin survey is believed to focus more on smaller exporters than the larger official survey. …read more […]

Aug.02 — Kiersten Todt, managing director at the Cyber Readiness Institute and a former Obama administration official, discusses the prospects for music video app TikTok, which is owned by one of China’s largest tech companies, ByteDance Ltd. Microsoft Corp. Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella spoke with President Donald Trump on Sunday to salvage the company’s effort to buy TikTok’s operations in the U.S. and several other countries. Todt speaks on “Bloomberg Markets: China Open.” …read more […]

Aug.02 — Eliza Lee. professor at the department of politics and public administration at Hong Kong University, talks about the government’s decision to delay a key Legislative Council election scheduled for September for one year. She speaks with Shery Ahn and Haidi Stroud-Watts on “Bloomberg Daybreak: Asia.” …read more […]

(Bloomberg) — Gold’s spot and futures prices opened the week by hitting records, with metal for immediate delivery closing in on $2,000 an ounce as the search for haven assets continued amid the coronavirus pandemic.Spot bullion surged 11% in July, the biggest monthly gain since 2012, as investors weighed a weaker dollar and record low U.S. real yields. Strategists are now considering alternatives to government debt, such as cash, credit, dividend shares and gold.The health crisis has prompted unprecedented amounts of stimulus being unleashed to shore up economies including lower rates, which are a boon for non-interest-yielding gold. Simmering geopolitical …read more […]

The company made the statement following a conversation between is CEO Satya Nadella and U.S. President Donald Trump. It said it would ensure that all private data of TikTok’s American users is transferred to and remains in the United States. …read more […]

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Aug.02 — U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo says the Trump administration will announce measures shortly against “a broad array” of Chinese-owned software deemed to pose national-security risks. Meanwhile, Microsoft Corp. and Bytedance Ltd. have put acquisition talks for TikTok on hold after President Donald Trump said Friday he would oppose the deal, Dow Jones reported, citing people familiar with the matter who weren’t identified. Ros Krasny reports on “Bloomberg Daybreak: Australia.” …read more […]

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(Bloomberg) — Seven & i Holdings Co., the world’s largest convenience store franchiser, agreed to buy Marathon Petroleum Corp.’s Speedway gas-stations for $21 billion, forging ahead with a deal-fueled expansion in the U.S.Seven & i, which operates internationally through its U.S.-based 7-Eleven Inc. unit, said in a statement it expects the all-cash transaction to close in the first quarter of next year. The company will hold a press conference at 9 a.m. Tokyo time Monday.The deal is the largest yet for Tokyo-based Seven & i, a retail giant with 69,000 stores worldwide including 7-Eleven outlets and Ito-Yokado supermarkets in Japan. …read more […]

After-tax proceeds from the sale, which has been approved by the boards of both companies, are estimated at $16.5 billion, Marathon said, adding it will use the proceeds to pay existing debt. The deal, which is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021, includes a 15-year fuel supply agreement for about 7.7 billion gallons per year associated with the Speedway business, said Marathon, the largest U.S. refiner by volume. The agreement takes 7-Eleven’s store count to about 14,000 locations in the United States and Canada. …read more […]

Stock futures struggled for direction Sunday evening, pointing to a mixed start to the first session of August as investors awaited another set of corporate earnings reports this week and a slew of data on the state of the labor market as parts of the country continue to grapple with a rise in coronavirus cases. …read more […]

What are the largest technology ETFs? Technology companies are dominating the stock market, and of course, the world. With the rise of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and other futuristic technologies, tech companies are expected to play an even bigger role in our lives. If you are bullish on the tech sector, technology ETFs are one […] …read more […]

(Bloomberg) — Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Bank of America Corp. were left off Ant Group’s upcoming stock sale in Hong Kong because of their past work with rivals of its affiliate Alibaba, according to people familiar with the matter.Bankers have been told by senior executives at Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., which owns a third of Ant, that they should refrain from doing deals for its competitors if they want business from Jack Ma’s sprawling empire, the people said. Ant filed last month to go public in Hong Kong and Shanghai in offerings that could top Saudi Aramco’s record $29 …read more […]