Hong Kong economic growth misses forecast in third quarter: data

Hong Kong’s economic growth in the third quarter missed analyst estimates as private consumption weakened, according to government figures released Thursday.Real gross domestic product (GDP) between July and September grew by 1.8 percent year-on-year, well down from a forecast of 3.1 percent growth from economists surveyed by Bloomberg.Hong Kong’s economic recovery after the pandemic has largely mirrored China’s trajectory, which has also saw slowing growth over the past year.For the first three quarters, Hong Kong’s real GDP increased by 2.6 percent on-year, according to advance estimates from the Census and Statistics Department.Hong Kong’s economy “continued to expand, though at a moderated pace, in the third quarter”, a government spokesperson said.The city’s economy should continue to grow in the remainder of the year, even though global economic uncertainties and trade conflicts may affect exports, the spokesperson said.”Monetary easing across major central banks and an improved outlook for the Mainland (Chinese) economy following the recent introduction of a wide range of stimulus measures would help support sentiment and activities in the domestic market.”Private consumption decreased by 1.4 percent in the third quarter, which authorities attributed to “the change in residents’ consumption patterns”.Total export of goods increased by 3.9 percent in the same period, which the government described as “decelerated year-on-year growth alongside softening economic growth in some major markets”.Increasing cross-border activities between Hong Kong and China contributed to a “mild increase” of 2.4 percent in export of services.Hong Kong leader John Lee announced a range of policies to bolster the city’s lacklustre economy this month, including a proposal to enhance international gold trading.Lee also slashed the import duty on strong liquor and laid out plans to attract foreign capital to Hong Kong.

Partenariat Sciences-Po Strasbourg/université israélienne suspendu: “décision affligeante” (Barrot)

La suspension par Sciences-Po Strasbourg de son partenariat avec une université israélienne est une “décision affligeante”, a réagi jeudi le ministre des Affaires étrangères Jean-Noël Barrot.”C’est une décision qui est affligeante, qui me désole profondément”, a déclaré M. Barrot sur BMFTV/RMC, interrogé sur la suspension par l’Institut d’études politiques de Strasbourg de ses liens avec l’université Reichman, près de Tel-Aviv, en raison de “positions bellicistes” concernant la guerre à Gaza.”L’université, c’est le lieu du débat, de la tolérance, c’est le temple de l’esprit critique”, a déclaré M. Barrot.”Ce n’est pas cette université qui aujourd’hui bombarde au Liban ou à Gaza. Je rappelle que c’est d’ailleurs dans les universités israéliennes que l’on trouve les plus fervents partisans de la paix et de la solution à deux Etats”, a-t-il dit.”Je déplore cette décision adoptée à des fins de prise de position politique par le conseil d’administration d’un établissement public et en désaccord avec la direction de l’établissement”, a commenté le ministre (LR) de l’Enseignement supérieur et de la Recherche, Patrick Hetzel dans un message posté mercredi sur X (ex-twitter).En France, un mouvement étudiant propalestinien s’est développé en 2024 dans certains établissements d’enseignement supérieur et en particulier les instituts d’études politiques, avec à la clef des manifestations et parfois des occupations de bâtiments.M. Hetzel avait mis en garde début octobre les présidents d’université sur leur responsabilité dans le “maintien de l’ordre” avant l’anniversaire de l’attaque du Hamas en Israël le 7 octobre 2023. En retour, le leader de La France insoumise Jean-Luc Mélenchon avait appelé à “mettre des drapeaux palestiniens partout où c’est possible”.   La décision de Sciences-Po Strasbourg a été prise en juin mais révélée mercredi par le quotidien régional Les dernières Nouvelles d’Alsace (DNA).Tout en condamnant “sans réserve l’attaque terroriste subie par la population israélienne le 7 octobre 2023”, les auteurs de la motion ont dénoncé les “positions de l’université en question, profondément bellicistes et dénuées de toute perspective humaniste, pacifiste et critique au regard de la guerre en cours à Gaza”.La motion avait été soumise par la liste Solidarit’Etudiants, qui dispose de huit des 10 sièges des représentants étudiants au conseil d’administration, et a également été soutenue par certains enseignants.Le directeur de l’IEP, Jean-Philippe Heurtin, a exprimé à l’AFP sa “forte hostilité” à cette motion.

Social platforms down in Mozambique ahead of protests: internet watchdogThu, 31 Oct 2024 09:21:52 GMT

Access to social media in Mozambique was restricted for the second time in a week Thursday, a global internet watchdog said, as the opposition called for strikes over a disputed presidential election.”We can confirm social media restrictions have been imposed in Mozambique,” London-based internet watchdog NetBlocks said, adding it affected Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.Mozambique’s opposition …

Social platforms down in Mozambique ahead of protests: internet watchdogThu, 31 Oct 2024 09:21:52 GMT Read More »

Samsung Q3 operating profits soar to $6.6 bn, miss forecast

South Korea’s Samsung Electronics said Thursday that its operating profits soared 277 percent on-year to $6.6 billion but missed expectations as it struggled to leverage demand for chips used in artificial intelligence servers.The world’s largest memory chip maker posted an operating profit of 9.18 trillion won ($6.6 billion) “largely due to one-off costs”.It also warned in a statement that “the strength of the Korean won against the US dollar resulted in a negative impact on company-wide operating profit”.Although operating profit nearly tripled compared with a year ago, it fell short of market expectations and was down 12 percent compared with the previous quarter. Revenue rose 17.35 percent to 79.1 trillion won ($57.2 billion), its highest quarterly record, Samsung said.The firm is the flagship subsidiary of South Korean giant Samsung Group, by far the biggest of the family-controlled conglomerates that dominate business in Asia’s fourth-largest economy.Semiconductors are the lifeblood of the global economy, used in everything from kitchen appliances and mobile phones to cars and weapons.The company’s semiconductor division reported 3.86 trillion won in operating profit, a 40 percent decrease from last quarter.Samsung said its performance had decreased due to “a reduced reversal of inventory valuation loss compared to the previous quarter, one-off expenses such as the provision of incentives, and currency effects due to a weak dollar”.Samsung’s third quarter results “were weak although the company has maintained a strong balance sheet,” Gloria Tsuen, Moody’s Ratings vice president and senior credit officer told AFP. “The key for its earnings in the next 12 to 18 months will be progress and growth in high value-added products for AI, including HBM3E and high-density server memory chip products,” she said.  – Rare apology -Samsung has been lagging behind South Korean giant SK hynix when it comes to high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips used in AI chipsets, which experts have blamed for the lacklustre results.Earlier this month, Samsung management issued a rare apology, acknowledging the company was facing a “crisis”.”Due to results that fell short of market expectations, concerns have arisen about our fundamental technological competitiveness and the future of the company, said the statement, which was signed by Jun Young-hyun, vice chairman of the company’s device solutions division.”Our management will take the lead in overcoming the crisis… We will make the serious situation we are currently facing an opportunity for a resurgence.”The apology came about a week after the tech giant said it intended to reduce staff in some of its Asia operations, describing the move as “routine workforce adjustments”.Bloomberg reported the layoffs could affect about 10 percent of the workforce in those markets.Samsung shares have dropped by 33 percent since their peak in July, and the company has lost over $120 billion in market value during that time.The market capitalization gap between Samsung Electronics and SK hynix reached its narrowest level in 13 years last week.Samsung Electronics shares rose 0.17 percent on Thursday, outperforming the benchmark KOSPI index, which fell by 1.45 percent.- Robust AI demand -For the next quarter, Samsung expects current demand for the memory business to continue and aims to “strengthen its business fundamentals” by normalising inventory levels.”In the fourth quarter, while memory demand for mobile and PC may encounter softness, growth in AI will keep demand at robust levels,” it added.Experts said falling prices in the memory sector could affect Samsung. However, Samsung is expected to increase shipments of its most advanced chips next quarter, according to Avril Wu, senior research vice president at TrendForce. “The company’s fourth-quarter profits will be sustainable,” she said.But if Samsung does not get the certification of its high-capacity HBM3E chips in time, “it will pressure Samsung’s gross profit performance”, she added. 

Asian stocks mostly down after weak Wall Street lead

Asian stocks were mostly down on Thursday following a weak lead from Wall Street, though better-than-expected manufacturing data from China provided a glimmer of good news for local markets.The three main US stock indices lost ground on Wednesday, and Asian investors appeared to be in a risk-averse mood ahead of a coin-toss US election and after a widely expected decision by the Bank of Japan to leave its main interest rate unchanged.Tokyo fell by half a percent, weighed down by a stronger yen and a drop in stocks linked to the semiconductor industry, which also dipped on Wall Street.The Bank of Japan said in an outlook report accompanying its rate announcement that there were “high uncertainties surrounding Japan’s economic activities and prices”.Its decision to stand pat came after an election that saw the ruling coalition lose its majority in the lower house for the first time since 2009.Businesses and economists worry that Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba will offer tax cuts and higher spending, and go slow on reforms needed to improve Japan’s competitiveness as he courts support from other parties.There are also concerns that the government may pressure the BoJ to take a break from its gradual normalisation of its ultra-loose monetary policy, even if it leads to a weaker yen.The bank raised borrowing costs in March for the first time since 2007, and did so again in July.It signalled Thursday that it would raise rates yet again if inflation developed as it expected, and noted it was paying “due attention” to other economies, particularly the United States, where the presidential election takes place on November 5.Seoul was well down on Thursday, with Hong Kong, Sydney, Wellington, Mumbai and Manila in the red as well.Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management attributed Asian markets’ wobble to pre-vote “jitters”, saying traders were “wary of taking on new risk as the US election countdown begins”.”The fear? A Trump win could trigger fresh tariffs on Asian exports, sending ripples across the region,” he wrote.Paris, London and Frankfurt also began the day with losses.Mainland Chinese markets, however, bucked the trend, with healthy gains in Shanghai and Shenzhen following a forecast-beating manufacturing report from China.Factory output expanded this month for the first time since April, official data showed Thursday, rare good news for leaders struggling to boost activity in the world’s second-largest economy.The country is battling sluggish domestic consumption, a persistent crisis in the property sector and soaring government debt — all of which threaten Beijing’s official growth target of five percent for this year.”The PMIs have overstated the weakness in China’s economy during the past year,” Julian Evans-Pritchard of Capital Economics said in a note.”The good news is that, after turning a corner in September, the official surveys point to a further improvement in October, with an acceleration in manufacturing and services activity more than offsetting a further slowdown in construction.”Jakarta and Bangkok were also up, while Taipei was closed due to a typhoon.Uncertainty over the outcome of the upcoming US elections, meanwhile, buoyed safe haven gold, which touched a fresh high just shy of $2,790 an ounce on Thursday. And oil prices continued their rebound in Asian trade, fuelled by good news on demand from the United States, as well as by press reports that OPEC countries are considering postponing an increase in crude supply.- Key figures around 0820 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.5 percent at 39,081.25 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.3 percent at 20,317.33 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.4 percent at 3,279.82 (close)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.6 percent at 8,109.11Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0859 from $1.0861 on WednesdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.2988 from $1.2969Dollar/yen: DOWN at 152.05 yen from 153.35 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 83.61 from 83.75 penceBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.1 percent at $72.63 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.1 percent at $68.66 per barrelNew York – Dow: DOWN 0.2 percent at 42,141.54 points (close)

A l’Assemblée, avis de sagesse sur LFI

Les vagues Insoumises du bruit et de la fureur sont-elles en train de s’échouer sur le rivage de l’institutionnalisation? En ayant gagné en responsabilités à l’Assemblée, le groupe LFI, longtemps critiqué pour son style conflictuel, présente dorénavant une image plus lisse dans l’hémicycle. Créée en 2016, La France insoumise compte dorénavant, parmi ses 71 élus à l’Assemblée, deux des huit présidents de commission permanente et deux des six postes de vice-présidents.Parmi ces derniers, l’élue du Val-de-Marne, Clémence Guetté, cadre du mouvement de gauche radicale, garante de son programme de rupture, et proche de Jean-Luc Mélenchon.Et un des premiers moments marquants à ce poste a été, lors d’une séance qu’elle dirigeait, de recadrer depuis le perchoir son collègue LFI Louis Boyard.”Quand je préside l’Assemblée nationale, je m’applique à le faire avec le plus d’impartialité possible”, a-t-elle expliqué par la suite, précisant que son style, calme, était “une façon de démontrer que les Insoumis ne (…) peuvent pas être réduits aux caricatures qui en sont faites”.”Ce qui est sûr, c’est que la vice-présidence vous oblige. C’est assez étonnant de voir le contraste entre Guetté dans l’hémicycle et à la tribune”, note un cadre RN de l’Assemblée, même si la députée du Val-de-Marne n’est pas la première Insoumise vice-présidente – Caroline Fiat l’a été entre 2022 et 2024.”Les Insoumis ont changé leur stratégie en partie. Ce qui est plutôt flatteur parce qu’ils reprendraient la nôtre”, ajoute-t-il, en référence à la stratégie de dédiabolisation de l’extrême droite à l’Assemblée, longtemps comparée, par contraste, à celle de la conflictualisation des Insoumis. – “Jeu de rôles” -Autre figure d’apaisement du camp LFI, le président de la commission des Finances Eric Coquerel assure que lui et ses collègues sont “capables de compromis, si c’est pour faire avancer nos idées”. “Il y a la volonté de montrer qu’on n’est pas isolé. On n’est pas ce groupe mis en dehors de l’arc républicain, rejeté par tout le monde. Il y a une volonté de rappeler pourquoi on s’est créé et c’est pour gouverner ce pays. Je pense que c’est une volonté forte de Jean-Luc Mélenchon”, appuie l’élu de Seine-Saint-Denis. “C’est un jeu de rôles”, nuance cependant un député écologiste. “Je les entends quand même bien gueuler derrière moi dans l’hémicycle”, appuie-t-il.Mais à quoi attribuer ce changement – partiel – d’attitude? Simple poids des institutions républicaines qui se fait ressentir sur les épaules des troupes mélenchonistes, ou nécessité électorale?  – “Nouvelles responsabilités” -Ce que La France insoumise a gagné comme électorat d’un côté via les coups d’éclat au Palais Bourbon – comme le drapeau palestinien brandi par Sébastien Delogu – elle a pu le perdre de l’autre.”Tout le monde a vu qu’on est passé de 75 à 72 députés élus (entre 2022 et 2024, ndlr) et qu’on a eu une dizaine de camarades battus. Le diagnostic est dressé en interne”, assure un député LFI.”On apprend, on est dans un nouveau mandat, avec de nouvelles responsabilités”, explique pour sa part l’élu de Loire-Atlantique Matthias Tavel. “Quand vous êtes le premier groupe de la coalition arrivée en tête aux législatives et que l’extrême droite est aussi puissante, il faut chercher à être compris”, ajoute-t-il.Ironiquement, ce nouveau style qui se tient à l’écart des outrances correspond à celui réclamé – en vain – pendant des mois par les anciens “frondeurs” Insoumis, qui appelaient à un discours apaisé et resserré autour des questions économiques et sociales. “Ils nous ont purgés puis ils ont pris notre ligne”, grimace un ancien frondeur.”Depuis qu’ils nous ont exclus, ils sont unitaires, impeccables sur les violences sexistes et sexuelles et parlent de +terroristes+ pour le Hamas. C’est ce qu’on demandait”, ajoute un autre.Une référence à l’exclusion du groupe LFI du député Hugo Prevost, accusé de violences sexistes et sexuelles, qui tranchait avec la manière dont les Insoumis avaient géré l’affaire Quatennens.parl-leo/jmt/ dch  Â