BENGALURU, Jan 5 (Reuters) – Walmart Inc (WMT.N) late on Wednesday confirmed that it had already paid the Indian government most of the nearly $1 billion in tax owed after digital payments company PhonePe, which the U.S. retailer owns through Flipkart, shifted its headquarters from Singapore to India.
Walmart bought a controlling stake in Indian ecommerce giant Flipkart in 2018, giving it ownership of PhonePe. The company said last month it had completed the separation of PhonePe from Flipkart, adding that it would remain a majority stakeholder in both the companies.
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U.S. Inflation Has Not ‘Turned The Corner Yet’, IMF’s Gopinath Warns -FT
Jan 5 (Reuters) – Inflation in the United States has not “turned the corner yet” and it is too early for the Federal Reserve to declare victory in the fight on rising prices, a top IMF official said in an interview with the Financial Times on Thursday.
Gita Gopinath, a deputy managing director of the Fund, urged the U.S. central bank to press ahead with rate rises this year.
She said it was important for the Fed to “maintain restrictive monetary policy” until a “very definite, durable decline in inflation” was evident in wages and industries not related to food or energy.
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Dell Looks To Phase Out Chinese Chips By 2024 – Nikkei
Jan 5 (Reuters) – Dell Technologies Inc (DELL.N) plans to stop using China-made chips by 2024 and has told suppliers to reduce the amount of other made-in-China components in its products amid concerns over U.S.-Beijing tensions, Nikkei reported on Thursday.
The computer maker told suppliers late last year that it aims to meaningfully lower the amount of China-made chips it uses, including those produced at facilities owned by non-Chinese chipmakers, the report added, citing three people with direct knowledge of the matter.
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Oil Rebounds On Weaker Dollar; Economy Concerns Cap Upside
SINGAPORE, Jan 5 (Reuters) – Oil prices rebounded on Thursday amid dollar weakness and as investors emerged to buy dips after two sessions of steep losses, though economic concerns capped recovery.
Brent crude futures had climbed 89 cents, or 1.1%, to $78.73 a barrel by 0740 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 87 cents, or 1.2%, to $73.71 a barrel.
Big declines in the previous two days were driven by worries about a potential global recession, especially since short-term economic signs in the world’s two biggest oil consumers, the United States and China, appeared shaky.
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Morning Bid: Minutes Come, Minutes Go
A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Ankur Banerjee.
The eagerly-anticipated Fed minutes arrived and failed to surprise, with markets broadly shrugging off the hawkish tone and still pining for a rate cut sometime this year.
Asian shares continue their bright start to the year with investors pinning their hopes on a swift rebound of the world’s second-biggest economy after China dismantled much of its stringent COVID-related curbs. Now, how fast that recovery will be is something that remains to be seen, especially with rising infections taking a toll.
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