Business and technology quick bites

Updated version at 8.46 am

The highlighted words in red are links to the news article.

April 1, 2021,

Business News

1. President Joe Biden unveiled a more than US$2 trillion infrastructure package on Wednesday as his administration shifts its focus to bolstering the post-pandemic economy.
2. Bank Negara has announced five new measures to further liberalise the foreign exchange policy (FEP) to allow greater flexibility for businesses and foster a conducive environment in attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) to Malaysia.
3. Dagang NeXchange Bhd (DNeX) and partners Beijing Integrated Circuit Advanced Manufacturing and High-End Equipment Equity Investment Fund Centre (CGP Fund) is acquiring SilTerra Malaysia Sdn Bhd for RM273 million cash.
4. Compass Inc, the US real estate technology firm backed by SoftBank Group, slashed the target price for its initial public offering on Wednesday and cut the number of shares on offer.
5. FGV Holdings Bhd continues to enhance its labour practices to address the Withhold Release Order (WRO) issued by the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Sept 30, 2020 against palm oil and palm oil products made by FGV and its subsidiaries and joint ventures.
6. Contracts on the S&P 500 hugged the flat line, after the blue-chip index reached a record intraday high during the regular session, and closed out its best monthly gain since November. Nasdaq futures edged up after technology stocks lifted the index higher by more than 1.5%.
7. Agri-Business firm Olam International has secured a US$1.45 billion loan linked to its AtSource agricultural supply chain platform, the mainboard-listed firm said in a Singapore Exchange filing on Wednesday night.
8. Website-hosting service Squarespace Inc., a US$10 billion company that has confidentially filed for an initial public offering, is buying restaurant-services provider Tock for more than US$400 million.
9. A dismal London stock market debut for Deliveroo, coming on the heels of other lukewarm listings, may be a sign that investors are becoming more discerning when it comes to buying shares in companies that have yet to turn a profit.
10. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq rose on Wednesday, boosted by gains in technology shares, and the three major Wall Street indexes registered their fourth straight quarterly rise as investors looked forward to details of President Joe Biden’s massive infrastructure plan.

Technology News 

1. Polestar, the electric-carmaker controlled by Volvo Car AB and its owner Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co, is exploring options for going public as soon as this year, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
2.  PayPal began allowing people in the United States to use cryptocurrency to make purchases from millions of merchants that use the financial platform for online transactions.
3. Hitachi said it will buy US software company GlobalLogic for US$9.6 billion, including repayment of debt, as the Japanese industrial conglomerate pivots from electronics hardware to digital services.
4. Global payments company Ripple announced it will acquire a 40% stake in Malaysia-based cross-border payments platform Tranglo for an undisclosed sum.
5.  Tencent-backed Chinese fintech firm Linklogis will price its shares at HK$17.58 (S$3.03) each – slightly above the flagged mid point – to raise up to US$1.02 billion in its initial public offering (IPO), according to two sources with direct knowledge of the matter.
6. In an attempt to step up its game in the Kirana-tech space, American ecommerce giant Amazon has acquired Bengaluru-based retail tech startup Perpule for INR 107.6 Cr (about US$14.5 million).
7. Facebook said it was revamping its main user feeds to give people more control over what they see on the leading social network, with less reliance on algorithms.