“The support of the left is not a problem for him,” says Bart van den Braak, professor in public law at Maastricht University and a researcher at the Montesquieu Institute think tank. “His own party [the Liberal VVD] used to be rather pro-European but is now more sceptical, partly because its […]
exit
SoftBank seeks to sell T-Mobile stake, paving exit from US telecoms
TOKYO — SoftBank Group has begun preparations to unload the bulk of its stake in U.S. mobile carrier T-Mobile as part of the Japanese tech conglomerate’s 4.5 trillion yen ($41.9 billion) asset sale plan to fund share buybacks and debt reduction. SoftBank owns about 300 million T-Mobile shares, or 24%, with a market […]
Qantas to exit Vietnam joint venture amid coronavirus slump
HANOI — Australian flag carrier Qantas Airways said Monday that it is leaving its joint venture with Vietnam Airlines amid growing headwinds from the coronavirus outbreak. Qantas currently owns 30% of Vietnamese budget carrier Jetstar Pacific Airlines. Sources familiar with the matter say the Australian carrier is in talks to sell the […]
Hong Kong hedge funds eye exit as national security law looms
HONG KONG (Financial Times) — Hong Kong-based hedge funds are considering uprooting their operations as China prepares to impose sweeping national security legislation on the Asian financial hub. Fund managers and traders in the former British colony are expressing concerns that the industry could find itself in Beijing’s crosshairs, after […]
Indian automakers rev up factories and incentives to exit slump
TOKYO — India’s major automakers have restarted factories that had been shut down since late March, taking a step toward rousing Asia’s third-largest economy out of its coronavirus-induced stupor. Tata Motors says it recently resumed production at its plant in the eastern state of Jharkhand. The automotive arm of Tata Group, one of India’s […]
In Depth: How Chinese companies can exit social credit blacklists
Authorities in eastern China’s Wenzhou caught a pet products store selling veterinary drugs in October 2018 without a license. They fined the owner 10,000 yuan ($1,405) and added his company to an online government list of businesses recently cited for illegal activities. The online listing was part of China’s six-year-old […]
Hongkongers plot exit under shadow of security law
HONG KONG/TAIPEI — A growing number of Hongkongers look to pack their bags and leave after China’s passage of national security legislation for the territory, raising concern over whether it can remain a financial hub if it cannot attract top talent. “Inquiries have tripled or quadrupled since the national security […]
Taiwan tech companies’ China exit fuels $25bn investment drive
TAIPEI — The rumble of construction rings out in the northern Taiwanese city of Taoyuan, a sound that has become more common on the self-ruled island — and one that heralds change in mainland China. Dozens of workers in masks scurry across the site as two cranes hoist beams high […]
Cautious East, wild West: Nations diverge on right way to exit lockdown
SEOUL/HONG KONG/TOKYO — Hanging on a guardrail along a walkway at Yangjae Stream, a large public park in southern Seoul, a massive banner politely asks locals to stay away. Earlier in the spring, the park was closed for weeks as South Korea struggled to rein in what once was the […]
Asia and world seek different paths to exit coronavirus crisis
TOKYO — Japan, its Asian neighbors, European countries and the U.S. are all looking to carve their own unique paths toward the same destination — an exit from the coronavirus crisis that has hammered their economies. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Thursday evening announced he would lift the state […]