Toyota to build 3 India plants, tripling output in country
Toyota unveils an Urban Cruiser electric SUV for the Indian market in Mumbai on April 20. (Photo by Takanori Okabe)
· Staff Writer
Follow the story
Economy & Finance
A focused view of neutral reporting on Economy & Finance, brought together across publishers.
Explore all topics →
Neutral reports only
Newest first · UTC+11:00The Million Dollar wake-up call
Sri Lanka’s fragile journey back to economic stability has suffered several damaging blows over US$2.5 million (SL Rs 800 million) payment due as loan payment to Australia remitted to unknown bank accounts . The revelation that US$2.5 million earmarked for an official debt repayment to Australia was diverted to cybe…
· Gayan Abeykoon
Treasury Secretary briefs CoPF of cyber theft - DailyNews
Following summons issued by the Committee on Public Finance (CoPF) to examine the alleged misdirection of US$ 2.5 million, Treasury Secretary Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma appeared before the Committee on Public Finance (CoPF) with several senior officials of the Finance Ministry and Central Bank in Parliament yesterday.
· Gayan Abeykoon
Four suspects in missing Rs.13 Bn bank case further remanded - DailyNews
Colombo Chief Magistrate Asanga Bodaragama yesterday (30) ordered the further remand of four suspects, including an assistant manager of a private bank, until May 14 in connection with the disappearance of Rs. 13 billion.
· Gayan Abeykoon
India hit by US$ 25 Bn digital fraud surge as Central Bank plans crackdown - DailyNews
A sharp rise in cybercrime has shaken India, where nearly 2.5 million people lost an estimated US$ 25 billion to digital fraud in 2025, highlighting growing risks in the country’s fast-expanding online payment ecosystem.
· Gayan Abeykoon
ASX set to surge as Wall Street rises, oil retreats; Meta tumbles; $A jumps
Oil prices whipsawed and surged toward their highest levels since the war with Iran began, only for the leaps to quickly vanish. The US stock market, meanwhile, is rising following strong profit reports from big companies like Alphabet.
· Stan Choe
Housing isn’t just a young people problem. We know how this story ends
You have reached your maximum number of saved items.
· Millie Muroi
Skipping Girl building’s Little Audrey lights up property market. Her price: $20m
The iconic Skipping Girl neon sign in Abbotsford sat down, glued to her phone, last month, part of a health campaign funded by the dairy industry to highlight the dangers of our obsession with technology.
· Nicole Lindsay
Senate bans its own members and staff from betting in prediction markets
An advertisement for prediction market platform Kalshi hangs at 13th and L Streets in northwest Washington, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert, File)
· Mary Clare Jalonick
Albanese to override sceptics and plough billions into Suburban Rail Loop
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will override scepticism among his own MPs and plough billions into the Suburban Rail Loop even as inflation fears and war-fuelled building costs force the Albanese government to pull back on road and rail projects.
· Paul Sakkal, Kieran Rooney
Aging Hawaiʻi: 60,000 More Housing Units Needed By 2050
Hawaiʻi will need nearly 60,000 additional housing units by 2050 to meet future demand driven largely by an aging population and to prevent younger residents from getting squeezed out of the housing market.
· Jeremy Hay Honolulu Civil Beat
Sternlicht's Starwood Real Estate Fund Gates Redemptions
Earlier this month, when much of the attention was largely focused on private credit, we warned that one of the old, familiar credit market time-bombs, commercial real estate which for many years had been penned as the "Next Big Short", was deteriorating rapidly: according to the latest TREPP CMBS monthly report, Ma…
· Tyler Durden
Federal Reserve faces unorthodox leadership change: Warsh enters, Powell remains
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell speaks at a news conference at the Federal Reserve, following the Federal Open Market Committee meeting, in Washington, Wednesday, April 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)
· Christopher Rugaber
Apple's stock has gone nowhere for 6 months. Traders expect a wild ride Thursday night
For a stock that's gone nowhere for six months, Apple sure has options traders excited.
· Oliver Renick
Belgium to ban flavored vapes from 2028
Belgium’s federal government on Thursday approved a ban on flavored vapes, with only tobacco-flavored and unflavored e-cigarettes allowed on the market from September 2028.
· Milena Wälde
One of Brooklyn’s widest townhouses — spanning more than 30 feet — asks a grand $16M
A rare, double-wide Gilded Age mansion by Prospect Park in Brooklyn is on the market for $16 million, Gimme Shelter can reveal.
· Jennifer Gould
Fed’s preferred inflation gauge hits 3-year high as gas prices spiked on Iran war
US inflation accelerated in March as the Iran war raised gasoline prices, bolstering financial market expectations that the Federal Reserve could keep interest rates unchanged well into next year.
· Reuters
Tax refunds and AI boom have offset some US economic pain from Iran war and high gas prices, so far
Gasoline prices are displayed at a Mobil gas station on Wednesday, April 29, 2026, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)
· Paul Wiseman
Who are the main individuals in UAE’s Sudan arms smuggling case? | The National
Thirteen individuals have been referred to the Abu Dhabi Federal Court of Appeal over a multimillion-dollar scheme to illegally procure military equipment for Sudan’s Armed Forces (SAF) through UAE-based companies and financial channels.
· Vanessa Ghanem
‘Selling Sunset’ fan favorites are back on the market years after shocking exits
Christine Quinn and Heather Rae El Moussa are sold on Season 10.
· Alexandra Bellusci
US economy grew 2% despite Iran war — but Americans’ spending slowed
The US economy accelerated at the start of 2026, expanding at a modest 2% pace from January through March after recovering from last fall’s 43-day federal government shutdown. But the outlook is clouded by the Iran war.
· Associated Press
Thirteen to face trial in UAE over $13m plot to smuggle weapons to Sudan's army | The National
Thirteen suspects are to stand trial over a multimillion-dollar plot to buy military equipment and weapons through the UAE's financial system and send them to the Sudanese Armed Forces for use in the country's civil war.
· The National
Average US long-term mortgage rate rises to 6.3%, ending a 3-week slide
A for sale sign is posted outside a home, Feb. 10, 2026, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV, file)
· Alex Veiga
Veterans Bank, BARMM ink agreement for financial assistance service
ERROR 404 page not found Click here to go to the home page
· The Manila Times
Inflation could have breached 6% in April
ERROR 404 page not found Click here to go to the home page
· Niña Myka Pauline Arceo
A seismic shift in the global oil market
THE United Arab Emirates (UAE) has opted out of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the cartel that controls the ebb and flow of oil in the global market.
· The Editorial Board
Faisal Islam: Bank of England is trying to manage expectations
No interest rate rise is going to force an oil tanker through the Strait of Hormuz, or clear the "hazardous area" of mines.
· Faisal Islam
Vatican court deadline passes in financial trial
A view of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican, March 11, 2020. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini, File)
· Nicole Winfield
UAE-South Korean Cepa takes effect in boost to economic ties | The National
The UAE and South Korea have formally enacted their Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, the first of its kind Seoul has signed with a country in the Middle East and North Africa.
· Alvin R Cabral
Bank of England faces the 'most difficult combination,' says governor Bailey as energy prices soar
Bank of England policymakers must contend with the "most difficult combination" of economic effects, according to governor Andrew Bailey, as the U.K. faces the consequences of an energy price shock.
· Joseph Wilkins
The chips are down: pizza, fried chicken and doughnut shares plunge on ASX as living costs bite budgets
Shares in Domino’s Pizza, KFC operator Collins Foods and multi-brand food franchise owner Retail Food Group have all suffered double-digit falls
· Jonathan Barrett
Is China’s Manus block a warning for other AI firms with global ambitions?
State media has cast the deal as a security concern, while stressing Beijing remains open to foreign investment
· Kandy Wong
Is China’s Manus block a warning for other AI firms with global ambitions?
State media has cast the deal as a security concern, while stressing Beijing remains open to foreign investment
· Kandy Wong
Kalshi promo code NYPMAX: Trade $10, get $10 for Oilers vs. Ducks
With the Kalshi promo code NYPMAX, you can sign up for Oilers vs. Ducks — or any game in the NHL playoffs — and trade $10 to get $10 in prediction market bonuses.
· Sean Treppedi
Mortgages, bills and jobs: Five takeaways from the Bank of England meeting
The Bank of England has revealed some interesting details on the ways our finances might be affected as the conflict in the Middle East hits the economy.
· Kevin Peachey
UN chief warns Hormuz closure 'strangling' global economy
UN chief Antonio Guterres sounded the alarm on Thursday over the worsening global economic impacts of the Strait of Hormuz remaining effectively closed due to the Iran war.
· Middleeasteye
Macron appoints new chief of staff as ex-aide eyes Bank of France job
PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron has appointed ambassador to Australia Pierre-André Imbert as his new chief of staff. He will succeed Emmanuel Moulin, who is now free to run for governor of the Bank of France.
· Giorgio Leali
Oman to build dedicated AI zone in economic diversification push | The National
Oman plans to build a new economic area centred on developing its artificial intelligence capabilities, as the sultanate steps up its technology sector to boost its economy.
· Alvin R Cabral
Japan Intervened In FX Market To Buy Yen
With Brent surging to a new post war high overnight, rising as high as $125 on fear of an imminent resumption of hostilities in Iran, which dragged yields higher, and also pushed the USDJPY above 160 for the first time since late March, overnight Japan made clear - again - it wouldn't take it any more, with the usua…
· Tyler Durden
Thousands wiped from Sydney and Melbourne house values as rates and oil start to bite
The nation’s property market was slowing even before the Reserve Bank’s second interest rate rise started hitting home buyers, new figures show, with thousands of dollars wiped from the value of houses in Sydney and Melbourne.
· Shane Wright
US economy grows 2% in January–March; Iran war clouds outlook
The economy also recovered from last autumn’s 43-day federal shutdown
· Associated Press
US economy grows 2% in January–March; Iran war clouds outlook
The economy also recovered from last autumn’s 43-day federal shutdown
· Associated Press
"Low Hire, No Fire": Jobless Claims Unexpectedly Plunge To Record Low
We have gone from a "low hire, low fire" economy to "AI chatbot hire, no fire." We joke, but really there is no other way to explain what is going on here: this morning the Dept of Labor reported that in the week ended April 25, jobless claims fell 26k to 189k (from an upward revised 215k), compared with median est.…
· Tyler Durden
Israeli army major charged with smuggling goods into Gaza | The National
Israel has charged a military officer for smuggling goods and an Israeli citizen into Gaza. His arrest came as part of continuing investigations into a suspected widespread operation that brought items into the besieged strip throughout the course of the Gaza war, fuelling a boom in the black market.
· Thomas Helm
Palestinian teenager shot dead in occupied West Bank
HEBRON, West Bank (AP) — Mourners carried the body of a teenager killed by Israel’s military through the hills of the West Bank ’s largest city on Thursday, the latest victim in a surge of violence this month.
US economic growth rebounds 2% as consumer spending slows amid Iran war
First quarter output, driven by AI investment and government spending, rose as oil shock fuels inflation fears
· Lauren Aratani
Core PCE Rises Most In 3 Years; Savings Rate Tumbles As Spending Far Outpaces Income
The Fed's favorite inflation indicator - Core PCE - rose 0.3% MoM in January (as expected), a dip from the 0.4% sequential increase in February, with YoY rising by 3.2% (also as expected), slightly higher than the 3.0% in Feb. That is the highest annual increase in Core PCE since Nov 2023.
· Tyler Durden
Tai Po fire: tendering system can’t stop firms manipulating market, inquiry hears
Urban Renewal Authority officials tell hearing that body lacks resources to combat bid-rigging linked to estates’ renovation projects
· Brian Wong
Tai Po fire: tendering system can’t stop firms manipulating market, inquiry hears
Urban Renewal Authority officials tell hearing that body lacks resources to combat bid-rigging linked to estates’ renovation projects
· Brian Wong