China, the world's biggest tobacco market, is considering a draft regulation that would ban indoor smoking, limit outdoor smoking and end tobacco advertising, the state-run Xinhua news agency has reported.
Legal & Regulatory
French regulator approves Numericable-Virgin deal
France's competition watchdog said on Thursday it had given its go-ahead to Numericable's purchase of Virgin Mobile France.Numericable, which is also in the process of buying number 2 mobile operator SFR, agreed in June to buy Virgin Mobile France from owners Britain's Carphone
British lawmakers urge EU to stop Sri Lanka trade perks if UN probe not given access
Leading British lawmakers urged the European Union on Thursday to remove preferential trade tariffs from Sri Lanka if it fails to address human rights concerns.
Ackman's Pershing Square sees big payoff from Allergan deal
Hedge fund mogul William Ackman told investors they could see a $6 billion payday when he closes the chapter on Allergan Inc., his firm's biggest bet of 2014.
U.S. House to hold hearing on oil export ban
A House of Representatives panel will hold a hearing on Dec. 11 to explore whether a decades-old law that prohibits the export of crude oil makes sense in an era of domestic energy abundance.
Latest News
The European Union's top official for digital markets said on Monday he was concerned that big tech companies may be abusing dominant positions, but he also said investigations into Google must not be rushed.
An advanced malicious software application has been uncovered that since 2008 was used to spy on private companies, governments, research institutes and individuals in 10 countries, anti virus software maker Symantec Corp said in a report on Sunday.
Last month the Bank of Japan announced aggressive easing of its monetary policy and shocked the global financial markets.This led to the yen hitting fresh lows against the dollar. The weakening of the yen is believed to reverberate through the Asian markets.
China's leadership and central bank are ready to cut interest rates again and also loosen lending restrictions, concerned that falling prices could trigger a surge in debt defaults, business failures and job losses, said sources involved in policy-making.
Recently released Chinese data suggest a grim economic outlook for the country. Foreign direct investment has been consistently declining; consumer price index showed some stability this month but remained below 2 percent, flash manufacturing PMI also declined in November and gross domestic product fell to its slowest pace since the global financial crisis, registering 7.3 percent year-on-year expansion in the third quarter.
While the fall in the oil prices is generally regarded as positive for many businesses, it has a major influence on inflation expectations, interest rates and bond prices at the global level.
Singapore said on Friday it plans to regulate fast-growing third-party taxi booking services like Uber and GrabTaxi for the first time, capping fees and requiring them to dispatch only licensed cabs and drivers.
The top U.S. housing finance regulator said on Wednesday his agency would unveil a new framework in early 2015 for how government-controlled Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will set mortgage guarantee fees.
Today, the minutes of the MPC meeting held on 5th and 6th November was released. The Committee set monetary policy to meet the 2% inflation target in the medium term, and in a way that helped to sustain growth and employment.
