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Asian and European markets advanced on Friday, in line with a global equity rally ahead of a US jobs report that will give insight about the Federal Reserve’s next move on interest rates.A frenzied selloff of Chinese stocks meanwhile slowed over reports of a regulatory clampdown.The global bond market also eased after yields had jumped this week on concerns over mounting government debt.London, Paris and Frankfurt were having a fair time of it, trading up at the open on Friday.Across the pond, investors will be looking to US government jobs data due on Friday to cement rate-cut bets.”All eyes will be on Friday’s nonfarm payrolls report with bad news likely to be interpreted as good news as it will raise the market probability that the Fed cuts rates,” said Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor.Weekly data released on Thursday showed more first-time claims for unemployment benefits in the United States than analysts had expected, while figures from payroll firm ADP showed slowing private sector hiring in August.”Investors now look for final confirmation that the weakening trend is entrenched and justifies a Fed cut –- or two,” said Ipek Ozkardeskaya of Swissquote bank.In Asia, an August rally in Chinese stocks, fuelled by surging shares in semiconductor firms, ground to a halt this week, with Cambricon Technologies crashing 14 percent on Thursday, as investors weighed potential regulations.China’s blue-chip CSI 300 benchmark recovered on Friday after falling 2.1 percent the previous day — the largest drop since early April, when US President Donald Trump’s tariff threats caused the index to drop more than seven percent in one day.Tokyo, Hong Kong and Taiwan all closed up on Friday. Shanghai’s benchmark index, which had been tracking down in early trading, clawed its way back up to end 1.2 percent up.Analysts said earlier falls had followed a Bloomberg report that China’s financial regulators might implement measures to cool the pace of the selloff in stocks.”The selloff is more than a blip; it’s the first crack in the facade of a $1.2 trillion melt-up that had traders whispering about deja-vu and a speculative frenzy reminiscent of the 2015 ‘crazy bull’,” said Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management.Gold remained a refuge for investors, who have been turning away from long-term bonds once considered safe assets.Bullion consolidated near its all-time high, while oil prices extended losses on Friday in anticipation of excess supply in the coming months, as OPEC+ nations are expected to further unwind production cuts.”Geopolitical risks… remain elevated, with mounting fears of further Russian attacks on Ukraine. That keeps downside potential in oil limited, likely into the $60–62 range,” Swissquote’s Ozkardeskaya said.Oil has tumbled 12 percent this year as global producers outside OPEC+ ramp up and tariffs curb demand.- Key figures at 0830 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 1.03 percent at 43,018.75 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 1.43 percent at 25,417.98 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 1.24 percent at 3,812.51 (close) London – FTSE 100: UP 0.3 percent at 9,246.86Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.1 percent at 7,708.80Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.2 percent at 23,816.61Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1681 from $1.1649 on ThursdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3470 from $1.3437Dollar/yen: DOWN at 148.13 yen from 148.45 yenEuro/pound: FLAT at 86.72 penceWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.5 percent at $63.14 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.4 percent at $66.69 per barrelNew York – Dow: UP 0.8 percent at 45,621.29 (close)

Anthropic is barring Chinese-run companies and organizations from using its artificial intelligence services, the US tech giant said, as it toughened restrictions on “authoritarian regions.”The startup, heavily backed by Amazon, is known for its Claude chatbot and positions itself as focused on AI safety and responsible development.Companies based in China, as well as in countries including Russia, North Korea and Iran, are already unable to access Anthropic’s commercial services over legal and security concerns.ChatGPT and other products from US competitor OpenAI are also unavailable within China — spurring the growth of homegrown AI models from Chinese companies such as Alibaba and Baidu.Anthropic said in a statement dated Friday that it was going a step further in an update to its terms of service.Despite current restrictions, some groups “continue accessing our services in various ways, such as through subsidiaries incorporated in other countries,” the US firm said.So “this update prohibits companies or organizations whose ownership structures subject them to control from jurisdictions where our products are not permitted, like China, regardless of where they operate.”Anthropic — valued at $183 billion — said that the change would affect entities more than 50 percent owned, directly or indirectly, by companies in unsupported regions.”This is the first time a major US AI company has imposed a formal, public prohibition of this kind,” said Nicholas Cook, a lawyer focused on the AI industry with 15 years of experience at international law firms in China.”The immediate commercial effect may be modest, since US AI providers already face barriers to operating in this market and relevant groups have been self-selecting for their own locally developed AI tech,” he told AFP.But “taking a stance like this will inevitably lead to questions as to whether others will or should take a similar approach.”An Anthropic executive told the Financial Times that the move would have an impact on revenues in the “low hundreds of millions of dollars”.The San Francisco-headquartered company was founded in 2021 by former executives from OpenAI.It announced this week it had raised $13 billion in its latest funding round, saying it now has more than 300,000 business customers.And the number of accounts on pace to generate more than $100,000 annually is nearly seven times larger than a year ago, Anthropic said Tuesday.Some users in China do access US generative AI chatbots such as ChatGPT or Claude by using VPN services.Assumptions that the US was far ahead of China in the fast-moving AI sector were upended this year when Chinese start-up DeepSeek unveiled a chatbot that matched top American systems for an apparent fraction of the cost.

US President Donald Trump signed an order Thursday to lower tariffs on Japanese autos, as Washington moves to implement a trade pact negotiated with Tokyo.Japanese autos will face a 15 percent tariff instead of the current 27.5 percent, while the level for many other goods will similarly be capped at 15 percent, according to the text of the executive order published by the White House.The outcome marks a win for Japan, after Tokyo’s tariff envoy headed to Washington on Thursday to press Trump to sign the document for the changes — weeks after both sides announced their agreement.Top government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi said Japan welcomed the executive order, which marked “the steadfast implementation” of the deal.While the two countries had initially unveiled a trade pact in late July, they appeared to diverge in its details.When Trump in early August implemented higher tariffs on Japan — as part of a flurry targeting dozens of economies — its 15 percent rate stacked on existing levels for many products.Japan’s tariffs envoy Ryosei Akazawa had earlier told reporters that Washington was expected to revise the rule.According to the new order, the 15 percent cap for many products will apply retroactively to goods shipped from August 7 — the date that the higher duties on dozens of economies took effect.The modifications are to be made within seven days of the rule being published on the Federal Register.- ‘Still cause damage’-Apart from Washington’s country-specific tariff levels, Trump has also imposed separate sector-specific tariff rates, including a 25 percent duty on autos and parts.This, coupled with an existing 2.5 percent tariff the Japanese auto industry faced, took the overall level to 27.5 percent.The hefty duties had marked a heavy blow to Japan and its crucial auto sector, which accounts for around eight percent of the country’s jobs.Japan’s deal wins it a similar reprieve to the European Union, which also has a 15 percent maximum tariff on many products.But speaking in Washington, Akazawa told Japanese media Friday that the 15 percent tariff would “still cause damage to our nation’s industries”.”The Japanese government will take swift and necessary measures, like financing assistance,” he added.Akazawa was also expected to engage in further discussions during his US trip about Trump’s assertion that Japan would make investments worth $550 billion in the United States.According to Trump’s order, the investments “will be selected by the United States Government,” but the document did not go into detail.Ishiba said Friday that Tokyo had sent a letter to Washington saying “we would like to build a golden age for Japan and the United States together with President Trump, and that we would like to invite him to Japan”.Trump has said the United States will keep 90 percent of the profits from the investments, which Japan has said will mostly consist of loans and loan guarantees.Akazawa had cancelled an earlier visit after Washington said that it was considering including a reduction in Japanese tariffs on agricultural products in the presidential order, the Nikkei business daily reported.Trump has long pressed Japan to import more American rice.burs-aph/fox

The Australian government said Thursday it will fork out hundreds of millions of dollars to settle the country’s largest class action in history over a scheme that sent false debt repayment demands to welfare recipients.The “robodebt” scandal, which ran from 2015 to 2019, caused such distress to job seekers, pensioners, students and carers that some considered suicide. It also allegedly pushed two young men to take their own lives.Thursday’s settlement, subject to approval by the Federal Court, will pay Aus$475 million (US$310 million) in compensation to those affected by the scheme.It would be the largest class action settlement in Australian history, the Attorney-General’s office said in a statement.”Settling this claim is the just and fair thing to do,” Attorney-General Michelle Rowland said.”The Royal Commission described Robodebt as a ‘crude and cruel mechanism, neither fair nor legal’.””It found that ‘people were traumatised on the off chance they might owe money’ and that Robodebt was ‘a costly failure of public administration, in both human and economic terms’,” she said.The settlement will be paid on top of a 2020 class action settlement, when the government agreed to pay Aus$112 million in compensation to around 400,000 people.The “robodebt” scheme used income averaging — comparing a person’s reported income with their income as measured by the Australian Tax Office — to automatically issue notices to welfare recipients saying they would have to repay some of the benefits they had received.But the system was faulty, resulting in hundreds of thousands of people receiving demands to pay back money they did not owe.

Colombia’s coal exports fell by almost half in July compared to the same month last year, official figures showed Wednesday, amid a global price crisis and days after President Gustavo Petro’s ban on sales to Israel.Colombia is Latin America’s leading coal producer but the sector has contracted for five consecutive quarters due to the collapse of international prices and domestic policies. The country exported $479.8 million worth of coal in July, a 45.8 percent drop from the $885.8 million sold during July 2024, according to the National Administrative Department of Statistics.Local mining unions blame increased production in Indonesia that has driven down global prices.Last month, Petro issued a second decree for Colombia to halt coal exports to Israel in protest against its deadly war in Gaza, renewing a June 2024 edict. Colombia was previously Israel’s top coal supplier. In a broader push for sustainability, the leftist president has imposed higher taxes on coal with a view to moving his country toward renewable energies.  Since coming to power in 2022, Petro has also halted several mining projects and instead promoted agriculture and tourism as alternative sectors for the roughly 350,000 people employed in mineral exploration. But some miners have told AFP they fear losing their jobs, while towns whose economies depend on the industry are also feeling the impact.”The government wants to end mining … but they don’t think about us,” said Jorge Noriega, a 60-year-old worker at a coal mine in Tausa, a town about 50 miles (80 kilometers) from capital Bogota. El Cerrejon, Colombia’s largest coal mine operated by Anglo-Swiss firm Glencore, said in March it would reduce its production by 50 percent due to high operating costs. 

European and US equities mostly rebounded Wednesday as a global bond selloff eased, with shares in Google parent Alphabet jumping after a favorable court ruling.Nevertheless gold struck a new record high as investors continued to worry over mounting government debt, with Japanese bond yields hitting a new high.Wall Street stocks were mostly higher, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index finishing up around one percent after a US judge refrained from requiring Google to sell its Chrome web browser in an antitrust case.Shares in Google parent Alphabet rose around nine percent, while Apple — whose lucrative deal to make Google search the default on iPhones was also spared in the court ruling — rose nearly four percent.”Overall, investors saw the outcome as supportive for big tech, showing that while regulatory scrutiny is ongoing, the business models of major players remain largely intact,” said David Morrison, senior market analyst at financial services provider Trade Nation.Meanwhile, a soft US labor market report helped boost investor confidence the US Federal Reserve will cut interest rates, a positive for equities.European equities also firmed, but Asia’s major stock markets were in the red.The selloff in Japanese debt mirrored similar moves in the United States and Europe on Tuesday, with investors spooked over substantial piles of government debt globally.”Government bond yields have jumped sharply in recent days, largely because investors are demanding a higher return to lend to countries with heavy borrowing needs,” said Richard Carter, head of fixed interest research at Quilter Cheviot. It has been fueled by “ballooning sovereign debt, political hurdles to fiscal tightening… and structurally higher inflation following the Covid disruptions and the ongoing trade war”, said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank.Investors in Japan reacted also to concerns that Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba might soon be forced to step down.In the United States, the 30-year government bond yield eased back, having come close to hitting the five-percent mark, reflecting concerns over the country’s deficit and the impact of a court ruling against President Donald Trump’s tariffs.Bonds of leading European nations also showed signs of stabilizing, a day after the yield on Britain’s 30-year gilts hit levels not seen since 1998. Investors are “choosing to hold gold as protection against a host of uncertainties including President Trump’s tariffs, fiscal policy across major economies and rising bond yields,” said Trade Nation’s Morrison.Investors have also grown nervous about the US Federal Reserve’s future after Trump attempted to fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook.Trump’s intervention “raises questions about the long-term independence of US monetary policy — a concern that gold naturally absorbs as a hedge against political interference”, said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo bank.Oil prices dropped back amid expectations of excess supply in the coming months as OPEC+ nations are expected to further unwind production cuts.- Key figures at around 2030 GMT -New York – Dow: DOWN 0.1 percent at 45,271.23 (close)New York – S&P 500: UP 0.5 percent at 6,448.26 (close)New York – Nasdaq Composite: UP 1.0 percent at 21,497.73 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.7 percent at 9,177.99 (close)Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.9 percent at 7,719.71 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.5 percent at 23,594.80 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.9 percent at 41,938.89 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.6 percent at 25,343.43 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.2 percent at 3,813.56 (close)Euro/dollar: UP at 1.1663 from $1.1640 on TuesdayPound/dollar: UP at 1.3445 at from $1.3394Dollar/yen: DOWN at 148.12 yen from 148.36 yen Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.75 pence from 86.90 penceBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 2.3 percent at $67.55 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 2.5 percent at $63.97 per barrelburs-jmb/md

A Swiss court on Wednesday weighed up whether to hear a landmark climate case pitting residents of a tiny Indonesian island being swallowed by rising sea levels against cement giant Holcim.”It is like a David versus Goliath struggle,” one of the plaintiffs, Asmania, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, told AFP after the hearing.The case is part of a wider international movement seeking to assign to major companies responsibility for the climate damage hurting the livelihoods of millions of people, especially in developing countries.Oil companies have typically been the biggest targets, but climate activists are hoping the suit against Holcim will highlight the role of a lesser-known but highly polluting industry, which is responsible for around eight percent of carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted into the atmosphere each year.Four residents of Pari island filed a suit demanding compensation from the world’s largest cement firm for the damage wrought by climate change and help to fund protection measures on the island.Asmania and another plaintiff travelled to Switzerland to take part in Wednesday’s hearing at the court in Zug, where Holcim is headquartered, to determine whether or not it will consider the complaint.It was not clear when the court would give its decision.- ‘Climate justice’ -“I feel very moved,” Asmania, a 42-year-old mother-of-three, told AFP.”I believe the judges will stand for us, so we will win.” Before the hearing, Holcim maintained that “the question of who is allowed to emit how much CO2” should be “a matter for the legislature and not a question for a civil court”. But it said Wednesday that “we await the court’s decision”, insisting that it was “fully committed to reaching net zero by 2050 with sustainability at the core of our strategy”. The company has not owned any cement plants in Indonesia since 2019, but the plaintiffs maintain it “shares responsibility for rising temperatures and thus rising sea levels”, explained Yvan Maillard-Ardenti of the Swiss Church Aid (HEKS) NGO helping the islanders.  Environmentalists say Holcim ranks among the world’s 100 biggest corporate CO2 emitters, and so bears significant responsibility for climate-related loss and damage.The case illustrates the new face of the climate fight, as activists use the courts rather than rely on political action in the fight against global warming.If accepted, it could be a milestone for plaintiffs from developing countries who take on industrial giants.- ‘Inspirational’ -Environmentalists have said 11 percent of the 42-hectare (104-acre) island of Pari has already disappeared in recent years, and it could be completely under water by 2050 due to rising sea levels.The islanders say saltwater floods have surged in scale and frequency, battering homes and damaging livelihoods.Asmania has already lost her seaweed farm because of flooding, which has also blighted her fish farm.”We are the climate victims, but we are not contributing to big emissions,” she said.”It is our survival that is at stake.”The four plaintiffs are seeking 3,600 Swiss francs ($4,500) each from Holcim for damages and for protection measures such as planting mangroves and constructing breakwater barriers.HEKS stressed that the amount was only equivalent to 0.42 percent of the actual costs — in line with estimates that Holcim is responsible for 0.42 percent of global industrial CO2 emissions since 1750.In addition, the plaintiffs are demanding a 43 percent reduction in Holcim’s greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and a 69 percent reduction by 2040.”The contrast is enormous between this island, which is disappearing, and the wealth we have here in Zug,” Maillard-Ardenti said.”This wealth comes from large multinationals like Holcim, (which) have never paid a single franc in climate compensation,” he said, stressing that the total 14,000 francs requested by the plaintiffs was “less than an hour’s salary for the chairman of Holcim’s board”.

A global bond selloff extended on Wednesday, sending yields in Japan to record levels, and gold reached a new peak, as investors fret over mounting government debt.European equities firmed while Asia’s major stock markets were in the red.”Government bond yields have jumped sharply in recent days, largely because investors are demanding a higher return to lend to countries with heavy borrowing needs,” said Richard Carter, head of fixed interest research at Quilter Cheviot. Yields on 30-year Japanese government bonds rose to an all-time high of 3.29 percent on Wednesday, while 20-year yields reached their highest since 1999.The selloff in Japanese debt mirrors widespread moves in the United States and Europe, with investors spooked over substantial piles of government debt globally.It has been fuelled by “ballooning sovereign debt, political hurdles to fiscal tightening… and structurally higher inflation following the Covid disruptions and the ongoing trade war”, said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank.Investors in Japan reacted also to concerns that Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba might soon be forced to step down.Ishiba, 68, took the helm of the long-dominant Liberal Democratic Party last year and has since lost his majority in both houses of parliament, most recently in upper chamber elections in July.In the United States, the 30-year government bond yield hovered around the five-percent mark, reflecting concerns over the country’s deficit and President Donald Trump’s fiscal policiesBritain’s selloff pushed on, albeit at a slower pace, after 30-year gilt yields on Tuesday hit levels not seen since 1998. French and German bonds, meanwhile, showed signs of stabilising.  Traders have turned to traditional safe havens, pushing gold to a fresh high of $3,546.96 an ounce Wednesday.Prices have risen five percent over the last six days, with investors nervous over the US Federal Reserve’s future after Trump attempted to fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook.She is accused of claiming two primary residences on mortgage documents in 2021 — a move that tends to result in better loan terms for an individual property.Cook has not been charged with a crime, while the alleged incidents occurred before she took office as a Fed governor in 2022.Trump’s intervention “raises questions about the long-term independence of US monetary policy — a concern that gold naturally absorbs as a hedge against political interference”, said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo bank.Oil prices dropped back amid expectations of excess supply in the coming months.In company news, shares in Google parent Alphabet surged in after-hours trading Tuesday after a US judge rejected the government’s bid to force the company to sell its Chrome web browser.- Key figures at around 1100 GMT -London – FTSE 100: UP 0.5 percent at 9,162.59 pointsParis – CAC 40: UP 0.9 percent at 7,723.75Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.7 percent at 23,659.63Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.9 percent at 41,938.89 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.6 percent at 25,343.43 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.2 percent at 3,813.56 (close)New York – Dow: DOWN 0.6 percent at 45,295.81 (close)Euro/dollar: UP at 1.1645 from $1.1640 on TuesdayPound/dollar: UP at 1.3404 at from $1.3394Dollar/yen: UP at 148.69 from 148.37 yen Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.87 pence from 86.92 penceBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 2.0 percent at $67.75 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 2.3 percent at $64.07 per barrel

A global bond selloff extended into Asia on Wednesday with yields in Japan hitting record levels, while gold reached a new peak as investors fret about public finances in countries from Japan to the United States.Investors in Japan are also reacting to concerns that Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba might soon be forced to step down after the number two in his ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) offered to quit on Tuesday over July’s disastrous upper house election.Asian indexes were largely in the red, with Tokyo down 0.9 percent and Shanghai more than one percent lower at the close.European markets opened higher.Yields on 30-year Japanese government bonds rose to an all-time high of 3.29 percent, while 20-year yields reached 2.69 percent — their highest since 1999.”The Japanese 30-year yield’s breach of 3.25 percent may prove far more destabilising than local politics,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management wrote in a note.”A clean break above that threshold doesn’t just unsettle Japanese savers; it forces insurers, pensions, and reserve managers worldwide to recalibrate their models. Once those rebalancing dominoes start to fall, equity markets everywhere feel the aftershocks,” Innes said.Japan is due to hold a 30-year bond auction on Thursday, though buyer interest has been muted.”The selloff in long-duration bonds is fuelled by several factors: concerns over ballooning sovereign debt, political hurdles to fiscal tightening… and structurally higher inflation,” said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank.The selloff in Japanese debt mirrors widespread moves in the United States and Europe, with investors spooked over substantial piles of government debt globally.The US 30-year yield flirted with the five-percent mark, while Britain’s 30-year gilt yield climbed to levels not seen since 1998. In France, the 30-year yield spiked to 4.5 percent for the first time since 2009 — highlighting concerns around a budget standoff in Paris.Traders have been turning to traditional safe havens, pushing gold to a record high of $3,546.96 an ounce.Prices have risen five percent over the last six days, with traders nervous over the US Federal Reserve’s future after President Donald Trump attempted to fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook.”President Trump’s return to the White House may have altered investor preference of safe havens,” said Carol Kong of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.”Gold outperformed, gaining more than 30 percent year‑to‑date. The risk is the USD further loses its safe haven appeal if President Trump continues to undermine the independence of key US institutions, particularly the Federal Reserve.”- Key figures at around 0830 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.9 percent at 41,938.89 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.6 percent at 25,343.43 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.2 percent at 3,813.56 (close) London – FTSE 100: UP 0.4 percent at 9,151.80Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.8 percent at 7,715.60Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.5 percent at 23,611.50New York – Dow: DOWN 0.6 percent at 45,295.81 (close)Euro/dollar: DOWN at 1.1632 from $1.1640 on TuesdayPound/dollar: DOWN at 1.3365 at from $1.3394Dollar/yen: UP at 148.78 from 148.37 yen Euro/pound: UP at 87.03 pence from 86.92 penceBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.3 at $68.91 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.3 percent at $65.39 per barrel

The CEO of Japanese spirits giant Suntory who resigned over a drugs probe said Wednesday he was innocent, and that he was recommended cannabidiol to cope with his hard travel schedule. Takeshi Niinami, one of Japan’s best-known business people, quit this week after he was put under investigation regarding his involvement in supplements sent from the United States to Japan. “I have not broken the law and consider myself innocent,” Niinami told a press conference. The 66-year-old said he believed he bought products with the active ingredient cannabidiol, or CBD, that do not break Japan’s strict drug law.   “I travel frequently for work, so I suffer terribly from jet lag,” said Niinami who has served as an economic adviser to Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.”That’s why my acquaintance… strongly recommended CBD.” Japan has strict drug laws and possession can result in jail time. The rule Japan introduced in 2023 leaves CBD products unregulated, but it targets THC — the psychoactive substance that makes people high.Niinami was suspected of importing products containing THC, local media reported. But he said he used to buy the same product in Japan, and believed those in the US were safe to purchase. Police searched his home last month after the arrest of the brother of an acquaintance who received a package containing supplements from the United States.Public broadcaster NHK said police learnt that the brother intended to send it to Niinami’s house in Tokyo.The former CEO, however, said he “was not informed of this at all, and it is unclear whether it is the supplements I purchased”. Suntory on Tuesday said the company had accepted Niinami’s resignation, saying authorities will determine whether the supplements are illegal.However, company president Nobuhiro Torii said the company concluded that Niinami’s actions “inevitably fall short of the qualities required” of a CEO.Niinami will refrain from activities as the head of business lobby Keizai Doyukai for the moment and leave the decision whether he will stay in the group. He joined Suntory Holdings in 2014, after serving as CEO of convenience store chain Lawson.Suntory is known for its internationally acclaimed whisky and has become one of the world’s biggest spirits makers after acquiring the US maker of Jim Beam, a few months before Niinami joined. In 2024, the German-born former CEO of optical equipment firm Olympus was found guilty of a drug charge.In 2017, a German executive working at Volkswagen’s Tokyo office was arrested on suspicion of drug use.