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Chinese generative artificial intelligence start-up MiniMax Group has kicked off its Hong Kong initial public offering (IPO), seeking to raise up to HK$4.19 billion (US$538 million) to support its growth as competition intensifies in China’s fast-moving AI sector.The Shanghai-based company would offer 25.39 million shares globally, with about 5 per cent allocated to Hong Kong retail investors and the rest to international investors, according to a stock exchange filing on Wednesday.Shares were priced at up to HK$165 each, implying a maximum fundraising size of HK$4.19 billion before any greenshoe option, the filing showed.The company said it would start trading under…

European aviation giant Airbus won another two major orders from Chinese clients for a total of 90 A320neo aircraft on Tuesday, just a day after receiving orders for 55 passenger jets of the same model from two other Chinese airlines.The orders came weeks after Airbus’ CEO accompanied French President Emmanuel Macron on a state visit to China and mark a big win for the European manufacturer over its American competitor Boeing in one of the world’s biggest aviation markets.Air China, Beijing’s state-owned flag carrier airline, announced in a statement that it would purchase 60 A320neo narrowbody passenger jets from Airbus…

LONDON: Oil prices crept higher on Wednesday, while heading for a fall of more than 15% over the course of 2025, as expectations of oversupply increased in a year marked by wars, higher tariffs, increased OPEC+ output and sanctions on Russia, Iran and Venezuela. Brent crude futures, down nearly 18% – the most substantial annual percentage decline since 2020 – are on track for a third straight year of losses, their longest losing streak to date. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude headed for a 19% annual decline. BNP Paribas commodities analyst Jason Ying anticipates Brent will dip to $55 a…

Sitting on the pavement outside the emergency ward of the National Institute of Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases in South Delhi’s Mehrauli, Asha promised her son she would not leave his side.Nineteen-year-old Nitish was reluctant to be admitted to a government hospital, even after doctors said he needed further tests to understand the cause of his sudden breathlessness.He had been struggling to breathe for two or three days – something he had never experienced before – and his family believes Delhi’s hazardous air played a role.“He never complained of breathing issues. I don’t know what is wrong, it must be the…

Hong Kong and mainland Chinese stocks are set to close out 2025 with annual gains for the second year in a row, as a tariff truce between Beijing and Washington mitigated geopolitical risks and China’s growth held up.The Hang Seng Index has risen 28 per cent this year, putting the 89-member benchmark on track for its best yearly performance since 2017, when it gained 36 per cent. The CSI 300 Index of the mainland’s yuan-denominated stocks has climbed 18 per cent, heading for the biggest gain since 2020.The blistering gains caught most market participants flat-footed, with many global money managers…

Hong Kong and mainland Chinese stocks are set to close out 2025 with annual gains for the second year in a row, as a tariff truce between Beijing and Washington mitigated geopolitical risks and China’s growth held up.The Hang Seng Index has risen 28 per cent this year, putting the 89-member benchmark on track for its best yearly performance since 2017, when it gained 36 per cent. The CSI 300 Index of the mainland’s yuan-denominated stocks has climbed 18 per cent, heading for the biggest gain since 2020.The blistering gains caught most market participants flat-footed, with many global money managers…

ByteDance plans to spend about 100 billion yuan (US$14 billion) on artificial intelligence chips from Nvidia in 2026, a hefty increase from roughly 85 billion yuan in 2025, if the US company is allowed to sell its H200 graphic processing units in China, according to people familiar with the matter.The budget, which could change, is part of the Beijing-based unicorn’s ambitious capital spending plan in AI for 2026. The company, with a private market capitalisation of US$500 billion, has built up a chip design unit that employed around 1,000 staff, one of the people briefed on the situation said.ByteDance’s internal…

The US Federal Reserve on Tuesday released the minutes of its sharply divided meeting earlier this month, which concluded with a vote to cut interest rates again — a decision that appears to have been far closer than the final vote suggested.   The minutes, published a day earlier than usual due to the New Year holiday, showed that officials expressed a wide range of views during the December 9–10 meeting.   Ultimately, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) voted 9–3 to cut the policy rate by a quarter of a percentage point, marking the largest number of dissenting votes…

President Xi Jinping has issued a mandate to expand grain production as China moves to shield its food supply from global volatility, calling for renewed efforts to modernise agriculture and rural areas over the coming year.Speaking at a two-day work conference in Beijing that ended on Tuesday, Xi urged a “no-relaxation” approach to grain output and called for higher overall production capacity and efficiency by integrating high-quality land, seeds, machinery and farming techniques.“We must improve the effectiveness of policies to strengthen agriculture, benefit rural areas and enrich farmers, and promote the maintenance of grain and other key agricultural products at…

ISLAMABAD: The Cabinet Committee on Privatization (CCoP) on Tuesday approved the Rs 135 billion bid of the Arif Habib-led consortium for acquiring 75 percent shares of PIA and recommended its approval by the Cabinet. The CCoP met here with Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar in the chair. The Secretary, Ministry of Privatisation, provided a detailed briefing on the future course of action of PIACL’s Privatization. The Deputy Prime Minister urged all concerned to take timely action to ensure early finalisation of the privatisation, with the hope and desire that this will lead to PIA regaining its past…