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    Tuesday, August 25
    Business

    Alibaba secures HK$80 billion to expand AI investment

    Alibaba said it will direct 100% of the net proceeds toward its full-stack AI capabilities. The spending will include expansion and upgrades across its artificial intelligence infrastructure. The company has built an AI ecosystem spanning cloud computing, models, chips and applications. Its Qwen model family and Alibaba Cloud services form major parts of that technology platform. The placement targets non-U.S. investors outside the United States through offshore transactions. The HK$112.70 offering price sits 8.4% below Alibaba’s HK$123 closing price on Friday. Hong Kong-listed shares fell as much as 10% to HK$110.10 in early Monday trading. Alibaba also trades in New York through American depositary shares under the BABA ticker.

    South Korea launches Arctic container ship trial to Europe

    South Korea has begun its first container ship trial through the Arctic to Europe. The 2,758-TEU PanStar Acro left Busan New Port at about 9 p.m. on August 22. The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries confirmed the departure and published the voyage schedule. The ship will use the Northern Sea Route before calling at three European ports. The 45-day round trip is scheduled to end in Busan on October 5.

    News

    Business

    Alibaba secures HK$80 billion to expand AI investment

    Alibaba said it will direct 100% of the net proceeds toward its full-stack AI capabilities. The spending will include expansion and upgrades across its artificial intelligence infrastructure. The company has built an AI ecosystem spanning cloud computing, models, chips and applications. Its Qwen model family and Alibaba Cloud services form major parts of that technology platform. The placement targets non-U.S. investors outside the United States through offshore transactions. The HK$112.70 offering price sits 8.4% below Alibaba’s HK$123 closing price on Friday. Hong Kong-listed shares fell as much as 10% to HK$110.10 in early Monday trading. Alibaba also trades in New York through American depositary shares under the BABA ticker.

    South Korea launches Arctic container ship trial to Europe

    South Korea has begun its first container ship trial through the Arctic to Europe. The 2,758-TEU PanStar Acro left Busan New Port at about 9 p.m. on August 22. The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries confirmed the departure and published the voyage schedule. The ship will use the Northern Sea Route before calling at three European ports. The 45-day round trip is scheduled to end in Busan on October 5.

    Japan posts record July trade as imports outpace exports

    July marked the second consecutive monthly record for imports by value. Crude oil played a major role in the increase as Japan faced higher energy costs. Crude import volumes rose 5.5% from July 2025, ending three months of year-on-year declines. The value of those crude shipments jumped 87.8% over the same period. Japan remains heavily dependent on imported energy, making changes in oil prices and exchange rates important factors in its merchandise trade figures.

    Wall Street rises after Treasury expands debt buybacks

    U.S. stocks ended modestly higher Wednesday as long-term Treasury yields fell sharply. The S&P 500 rose 16.22 points, or 0.21%, to 7,707.98, ending a three-session losing streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 119.65 points, or 0.22%, to close at 53,463.05. The Nasdaq Composite added 41.38 points, or 0.16%, finishing at 26,331.09. Falling government bond yields helped major indexes recover after several sessions of pressure from rising borrowing costs. Bond prices climbed after the U.S. Treasury Department announced larger liquidity support buybacks for longer-dated government debt.

    South Korea auto exports reach $6.24 billion in July

    Eco-friendly vehicles provided the strongest lift to South Korea’s auto exports during the month. Their export value increased 25.5% from a year earlier to US$2.59 billion. Electric and hydrogen vehicle exports rose 31.9% to US$940 million. Hybrid exports advanced 22.2% to US$1.65 billion. By contrast, exports of internal combustion engine vehicles fell 3.1% to US$3.65 billion. Eco-friendly models accounted for about 41.5% of the country’s total automobile export value in July.

    Business

    Alibaba secures HK$80 billion to expand AI investment

    Business

    Alibaba said it will direct 100% of the net proceeds toward its full-stack AI capabilities. The spending will include expansion and upgrades across its artificial intelligence infrastructure. The company has built an AI ecosystem spanning cloud computing, models, chips and applications. Its Qwen model family and Alibaba Cloud services form major parts of that technology platform. The placement targets non-U.S. investors outside the United States through offshore transactions. The HK$112.70 offering price sits 8.4% below Alibaba’s HK$123 closing price on Friday. Hong Kong-listed shares fell as much as 10% to HK$110.10 in early Monday trading. Alibaba also trades in New York through American depositary shares under the BABA ticker.

    Japan posts record July trade as imports outpace exports

    July marked the second consecutive monthly record for imports by value. Crude oil played a major role in the increase as Japan faced higher energy costs. Crude import volumes rose 5.5% from July 2025, ending three months of year-on-year declines. The value of those crude shipments jumped 87.8% over the same period. Japan remains heavily dependent on imported energy, making changes in oil prices and exchange rates important factors in its merchandise trade figures.

    Oil prices swing after Brent tops $90 on supply strains

    Business

    The rally followed fresh U.S. and Saudi strikes against Iran-backed groups in Iraq. Officials linked the attacks to drone strikes on Saudi oil facilities. Iran said it fired on ships in the Strait of Hormuz and at U.S. bases in Jordan. Explosions also hit a natural gas loading port in Egypt. Maritime security firm Ambrey reported drone damage to a U.S.-owned floating storage tanker at the site. Commercial traffic remained limited in key Gulf and Red Sea shipping corridors during the week.

    UK solar capacity reaches 22.8 GW before plug-in launch

    UK solar capacity reached 22.8 gigawatts at the end of June 2026, extending a sharp rise in deployment. The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero recorded about 2.076 million installations nationwide. Developers added 27,391 systems during June, contributing 132 megawatts. The latest monthly figures remain provisional and may change as more projects enter the official dataset. The capacity total covers rooftop arrays, commercial systems and large solar farms. It also sets a baseline before new plug-in solar rules take effect.

    India commits 84084 crore rupees to offshore energy security

    The financial framework allocates capital across four principal program pillars to transform the upstream petroleum landscape. According to official disclosures issued by the Prime Minister’s Office, the government designated 28,534 crore rupees specifically for offshore seismic data acquisition, processing, and high-resolution interpretation. This data segment includes 12,000 crore rupees for basin-wide two-dimensional seismic surveys, 12,534 crore rupees for three-dimensional seismic coverage, and 4,000 crore rupees to modernize the National Data Repository using artificial intelligence tools. The structured allocation ensures comprehensive mapping of unexplored frontier basins and erstwhile restricted maritime zones across the eastern and western sea boards.

    Canadian economy grew 0.3% in May report

    The monthly economic expansion was led primarily by a 1.0 per cent rise in the mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction sector, marking its second straight month of sector-wide growth. Increased production across Alberta bitumen sites and deferred routine spring maintenance enabled higher crude oil extraction volumes throughout May. Support activities for oil and gas extraction surged by 9.8 per cent, recording its seventh consecutive monthly expansion. Additionally, transportation and warehousing output grew by 0.3 per cent, supported by increased pipeline throughput carrying natural gas to export markets and higher domestic freight movements.

    Gold prices fall on strong dollar ahead of central bank meeting

    Precious metal values declined during Tuesday trading sessions as a stronger United States dollar increased purchasing costs for international buyers while financial institutions awaited the outcome of a critical central bank meeting. Official market reports published by Emirates News Agency confirmed that gold slips as firm dollar weighs; focus turns to Fed meeting perspectives across global commodity exchanges. Spot gold values retreated 0.7 percent to reach $4,045.89 per ounce following a brief advance of up to 1 percent recorded during Monday sessions. United States gold futures contracts for August delivery experienced a downward adjustment of 0.8 percent to settle at $4,046.20 per ounce. Concurrently, broader precious metals experienced downward pressure as spot silver declined 2 percent to $57.23 per ounce, platinum dropped 0.9 percent to $1,605.93, and palladium slid 1.6 percent to $1,270.97.

    Senate crypto bill faces pushback over conflict of interest rules

    Ethics watchdogs and legal experts called on Congress on Monday to institute strict anti-corruption provisions in pending cryptocurrency legislation, warning that lawmakers must close the crypto conflict of interest loopholes or scrap the CLARITY Act entirely.

    Travel

    Etihad sets December start for Abu Dhabi Gothenburg flights

    Travel

    Etihad Airways will launch seasonal nonstop flights between Abu Dhabi and Gothenburg on December 17, 2026. The route will connect the UAE capital with Sweden’s second largest city during the winter travel period. The service will operate four times a week through March 21, 2027. The route will give Gothenburg its first direct air connection with the United Arab Emirates and create the city’s first nonstop link to the Middle East and Asia.

    Technology

    Technology

    Japan H3 rocket deploys Michibiki No. 7 into planned orbit

    Japan successfully launched its H3 rocket carrying the Michibiki No. 7 navigation satellite on Tuesday. H3 Flight No. 9 lifted off at 4:23:31 a.m. Japan time from the Tanegashima Space Center. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA, confirmed satellite separation about 29 minutes and four seconds after liftoff. The agency said the rocket followed its planned flight path and placed QZS-7 into its predetermined orbit.

    Automotive

    Porsche to cut 5000 more jobs under restructuring plan

    Automotive

    The restructuring strategy, formally named the Future Package, was negotiated between the executive leadership of Porsche and the General Works Council in coordination with the metalworkers union IG Metall and the employers association Südwestmetall. Executives emphasized that workforce reductions will be executed through socially responsible mechanisms, including expanded partial retirement programs, voluntary severance packages, and natural demographic attrition. Management explicitly ruled out compulsory redundancies through 2035, while extending existing site guarantees for five years. In exchange for labor concessions, the automaker committed 2.1 billion euros in capital investments dedicated to upgrading its assembly plant in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen and its research facility in Weissach.

    Japan new car sales rise 1.8% in first half of 2026

    TOKYO, JAPAN / MENA Newswire / – Japan’s new car sales rose 1.8% in the first half of 2026, marking a second straight first-half gain for the domestic auto market. Automakers sold 2,387,189 new vehicles from January through June, including minivehicles. The increase followed…

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