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A whistle-blower claims Trump’s team sought to conceal his Ukraine call. Hong Kong’s Carrie Lam explains why the government won’t meet protesters’ demands. Japan’s biggest bank cuts jobs across Asia Pacific. Here are some of the things people in markets are talking about today.
Trump Call Concealed?
President Donald Trump’s July 25 phone call with the president of Ukraine so alarmed White House officials that they allegedly concealed records of the conversation. An extraordinary whistle-blower’s complaint made public on Thursday, deemed “credible” by the inspector general for the U.S. intelligence community, claims that White House officials “were deeply disturbed” by the call and attempted to “lock down” a transcript by placing it in a system normally used for sensitive classified information. Trump insisted again on Thursday that he had not done anything wrong. “My call was perfect,” he told reporters. “The president, yesterday, of Ukraine said there was no pressure put on him whatsoever, none whatsoever.”
Mixed-Up Markets
Stocks in Asia looked set for a mixed start after a dip in U.S. equities and gains in Treasuries. Impeachment and trade headlines continued to hit markets already on edge over signs of slowing global economic growth. The S&P 500 ended modestly lower after the release of a whistle-blower complaint central to the latest political drama and reports the U.S. is unlikely to extend a waiver allowing American firms to supply China’s Huawei Technologies. Defensive shares rose as Treasury yields fell. Meantime, in a surprise move, FTSE Russell opted not to add Chinese bonds into its flagship World Government Bond Index.
‘A Bottom Line’
Hong Kong’s embattled leader Carrie Lam held her first public dialogue event Thursday in front a skeptical crowd. She vowed that her government would shoulder the responsibility of finding a way out of the unrest that continues to rock the city. “In the past three-plus months, no matter what stance you take, everyone is very heart-broken, upset or even angry. The entire unrest is caused by the government’s work in amending the extradition law,” Lam said, referring to the controversial bill that first triggered protests. Most members of the public who asked questions urged Lam to meet protesters’ list of five demands. “We want to make it clear there is a bottom line. You have to take the consequences after breaking the law,” Lam said. “That’s why we say we can’t accept some of the five demands.”
Job Cuts
Japan’s biggest bank is making widespread job cuts in Hong Kong, Singapore and Sydney, a person with knowledge of the matter said. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. will lay off about 60 people from its Asia-Pacific securities business. Other employees may also leave if they turn down offers to relocate, and the bank is also paring jobs in London, saying in July that it plans to cut 50 managerial positions in the city. MUFG is just the latest bank to announce redundancies. Lenders around the world have announced almost 60,000 job cuts in total this year as rock-bottom interest rates and slowing economic growth curtail profitability.
China Celebrates
This year, China’s National Day holiday is a special one, marking 70 years of Communist Party rule. That’s one year longer than the Soviet Union lasted. Next Tuesday — Oct. 1 — some 30,000 onlookers are expected to turn out in Beijing for an 80-minute military parade featuring new, advanced hardware, a reflection of Xi’s drive to modernize the armed forces to rival those of the U.S. Xi is also set to attend a “grand evening gala” in Tiananmen Square, with performances and a fireworks display. All up, at least 100,000 people will take part in “mass pageantry,” according to Chinese state media. But the event is also freighted with potential challenges. Hong Kong’s protesters plan to demonstrate on both Oct. 1 and Sept. 28, the anniversary of 2014’s Occupy protests — the city’s last pro-democracy movement. Meanwhile, the ongoing U.S.-China trade war threatens to cast a shadow over celebrations.
What We’ve Been Reading
This is what’s caught our eye over the past 24 hours.
- Here’s how Congress could impeach Trump.
- Battered emerging market stocks could see a turnaround soon.
- Huawei is ready to license its 5G technology to a U.S. company.
- Tesla’s Elon Musk says the company could deliver 100,000 cars this quarter.
- Violent protests signal a tough road ahead for Jokowi.
- Venezuela doesn’t know what to do with its stash of Bitcoin.
- Salmon farmers fight to protect your dinner from climate change.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Alex Millson at amillson@bloomberg.net
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