Emerging Asian central banks are expected to cut interest rates again in the coming months, but economists polled by Reuters are doubtful the moves will significantly boost growth or inflation.
Investors
China plans to cut number of big state firms to 40: state media
China will likely cut the number of its central government-owned conglomerates to 40 through massive mergers, as Beijing pushes forward a sweeping plan to overhaul the country's underperforming state sector, state media reported on Monday.
All eyes on Fed as dollar halt reaches seven weeks
The dollar steadied in the lower half of an increasingly intransigent range on Monday, after sliding late last week following another round of disappointing U.S. economic data.
Investors seek protection against healthcare stock decline
Healthcare companies on a seven-year tear have been top performers so far in 2015, helping to push broad stock indexes to record levels, but traders are now looking to protect themselves from a selloff as they await major earnings reports in the sector.
UBS chairman says Greek default increasingly seen by IMF as controllable
UBS's (UBSG.VX) chairman said a default by Greece is seen by the International Monetary Fund as "systemically controllable" and he believed it would have a negligible impact on the Swiss bank itself, according to a newspaper interview published on Saturday.
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The euro hit a two-week high against a soft dollar on Friday, supported by a rise in a key German business sentiment survey and hopes that cash-strapped Greece was making tentative progress toward securing fresh funding.
Starbucks Corp said on Thursday sales at its coffee shops in the Americas region grew more than expected, boosted by sales of breakfast sandwiches, lunch and new drinks, such as Flat White.
Global equity markets rode to new all-time highs on Friday, with positive corporate updates in Europe and a post-dotcom-boom peak for the U.S. Nasdaq stoking investor optimism.
Most U.S. companies so far this earnings season have managed to beat Wall Street profit forecasts despite weak sales, but investors hoping corporate headwinds have died down may need to temper their enthusiasm.
Asian shares weathered a soft reading on Chinese manufacturing on Thursday as it only whetted expectations for more policy stimulus there, while a sharp rise in British and German bond yields rippled through global debt markets.
U.S. stocks ended stronger on Wednesday as Visa's potential expansion into China and talk of a turnaround at McDonald's helped investors look beyond a mixed bag of quarterly earnings.
Japan's Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd (BTMU) has invested $100 million to become the first foreign lender in decades to open a branch in Myanmar on Wednesday, said Chief Executive Officer Go Watanabe.
European stocks fell on Wednesday, failing to extend an overnight rally in Asia as investors looked to Greece's debt crisis and lurch towards possible default as an excuse to cash in gains chalked up earlier in the week.
Major U.S. stock indexes lost ground on lackluster earnings reports on Tuesday, while oil fell on concerns about U.S. crude stockpiles and Saudi Arabia's announcement that it ended its military campaign in Yemen.
