Tech News

UBS set to carve up Credit Suisse after takeover day

UBS is set to finalise the takeover of Credit Suisse on Monday, but the hardest part is yet to come: turning the arranged marriage of Switzerland's biggest banks into a success.. "From Monday onwards, UBS can start being proactive," Andreas Venditti, an analyst at Swiss investment manager Vontobel, told AFP. Switzerland's largest bank must already have an idea of what bits of Credit Suisse it wants to keep, close or sell, but "so far they were limited in what they could do," he said.

Sat, Jun 10, 2023 3 mins read

Tech News

Pakistan unveils $51 billion budget, with half to service debt

Pakistan's cash-strapped government unveiled a 14.5 trillion rupee (around $50.5 billion) budget Friday, with over half set aside to service 7.3 trillion rupees of debt.. Still, the latest budget sets aside 1.07 trillion rupees for subsidies.

Fri, Jun 9, 2023 3 mins read

Tech News

Turkey's 'genius' central banker faces high expectations

"Brilliant Turk" or "the genius": Turkish media are gushing over new central bank governor Hafize Gaye Erkan, who soared through the ranks of US financial firms but now faces the monumental task of curbing inflation and stabilising the falling lira.. While pro-government media such as CNN-Turk called her "brilliant" and Hurriyet saw her as a "genius", others said her role at First Republic was a blotch on her resume.

Fri, Jun 9, 2023 3 mins read

Tech News

Indonesia Indigenous group requests internet blackout

An Indigenous community in Indonesia has requested an internet blackout in their area to minimise the "negative impact" of the online world, officials said Friday.. The inner group asked authorities to shut down internet reception or divert nearby telecom towers so the signal would not reach them, according to a letter seen by AFP. "This request is a part of our efforts to minimise the negative impact of smartphones on our people," Baduy representatives wrote. 

Fri, Jun 9, 2023 1 mins read

Tech News

Former Wall Street exec named head of Turkey central bank

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan appointed former Wall Street executive Hafize Gaye Erkan as central bank governor on Friday, signalling a possible shift from his unconventional policies to fight soaring inflation.. Erdogan in the past sacked central bank governors after disagreements over interest rate policy, in a move that unsettled investors. 

Fri, Jun 9, 2023 3 mins read

Tech News

Asian markets rise on revived hopes for a Fed rate pause

Stocks rallied again in Asia on Friday, fired by renewed optimism that the Federal Reserve will hold off lifting interest rates next week as fresh data indicated further tightening in the US labour market.. Analysts said a pick-up in industrial stocks indicated a broadening of the rally while others said the United States could even avoid a recession, which many had feared would happen because of the surge in interest rates over the past year.

Thu, Jun 8, 2023 3 mins read

Tech News

Small shops boom as Cuban private sector takes hold

Like mushrooms after the rain, small stores are springing up all over Havana, many run from homes or garages as the private sector finally gains a foothold in communist Cuba.. He lost his work in a restaurant that closed during the pandemic, then opened a Hawaiian fast-food restaurant with two friends, which they run from a private home.

Thu, Jun 8, 2023 3 mins read

Tech News

QR code menus spark love-hate row in Rio, and beyond

Leafing through the leather-bound menu at a classic Rio de Janeiro restaurant, the tile-floored, wood-paneled Armazem Sao Thiago, 28-year-old Paula Cardoso says something that amounts to heresy in this establishment: "I prefer QR code menus.". They are "much more practical," says Cardoso, the trendy young marketing manager who found herself going vintage at Armazem Sao Thiago.

Thu, Jun 8, 2023 3 mins read

Tech News

Canada wildfires spark 'ecoterrorist' conspiracy theory

As Canada hurtles towards its worst wildfire season in history, a conspiracy theory has taken off online claiming environmentalists intentionally set some of the blazes. . In California in 2021, arsonists were behind several wildfires -- but there is no evidence they were pushing a climate change agenda, as some people claimed online. 

Thu, Jun 8, 2023 3 mins read

Tech News

Meta's Zuckerberg shakes off Apple Vision Pro: report

Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg on Thursday told employees that while Apple's mixed reality gear may be nice, it is not his vision of the future, according to US media reports.. "We innovate to make sure that our products are as accessible and affordable to everyone as possible," Zuckerberg was reported to tell employees.

Thu, Jun 8, 2023 2 mins read