Figma's stock slumped after the design software company issued an optimistic revenue forecast but signalled that rising costs from artificial intelligence development are pressuring profit margins, according to Channel NewsAsia.
The disconnect between the company's growth expectations and investor concerns over profitability reflects broader uncertainty in the tech sector about whether AI investments will eventually pay off or continue to erode near-term returns, Channel NewsAsia business reports.
Kea Aerospace, founded by Mark Rocket, has raised $17.5 million and opened a new manufacturing facility and mission control centre in Christchurch, the company announced. The facility will give the aerospace firm the capacity to build hundreds of aircraft.
The funding and infrastructure expansion come as Kea Aerospace scales operations in New Zealand. The company did not disclose further details about the funding round or timeline for production, Chris Keall reports for NZ Herald business.
Unemployed Filipinos increased to 2.59 million in June from 2.50 million in May, with the unemployment rate ticking up to 4.9 percent from 4.8 percent, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported Thursday.
Employed Filipinos rose to 50.66 million from 49.63 million, though the employment rate eased to 95.1 percent from 95.2 percent. The labor force participation rate improved to 65.1 percent, with 53.25 million Filipinos either employed or actively seeking work, up from 63.8 percent in May.
Underemployment—workers seeking additional work or longer hours—climbed to 6.11 million from 6.04 million, but the underemployment rate edged down to 12.1 percent from 12.2 percent, Inquirer business (PH) reports.
The Philippine Stock Exchange Index fell 0.16 percent, or 10.33 points, to close at 6,286.31 on Wednesday as investors locked in gains late in the session, according to Inquirer reporting. Local stocks initially gained on inflation data that slowed to 6.2 percent in July, raising hopes for a more accommodative monetary policy from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, but selling pressure intensified toward the close.
"Investors initially welcomed the softer inflation data, raising hopes for a more accommodative monetary policy outlook. However, selling pressure intensified toward the close as traders locked in recent gains, resulting in a weaker finish," said Luis Limlingan, head of sales at Regina Capital Development Corp.
The broader market showed relative resilience, with 102 advancing stocks outnumbering 84 decliners. Mining and oil was the only sector to finish higher, climbing 4.63 percent, while financials, industrials, properties, services and holdings all declined. Foreign investors were net sellers, unloading P585 million in local shares, Inquirer business (PH) reports.
Japan and the United States have conducted a rare coordinated intervention to buy yen, halting the Japanese currency's slide to 40-year lows, Reuters reports. US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that Washington was helping to prop up the yen as a sign of friendship and to support the global economy. "They have a weakening yen, and they wanted a little bit of help. And we're always there for Japan," Trump said.
The joint intervention is the first since 2011 and comes as Japan struggles with a relentless currency decline that pushes up import prices and stokes inflation. The dollar fell 0.2 percent to 157.07 yen after Trump's remarks, well off the 40-year high near 164 yen hit late last month. Japan's Finance Ministry said the intervention "countered excessive volatility and disorderly movements in the Japanese yen in recent months" and signalled it is willing to take further action if needed.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also confirmed the effort, stating that Washington "will not hesitate to participate in further joint intervention", Al Jazeera reports.
Council leaders say crumbling water infrastructure and severe drought across the south and east of England are jeopardizing the government's plan to build 1.5 million homes by the end of parliament, with half the country now in serious drought for the second consecutive year.
"We cannot magic up more water," said Paul Harvey, the Independent leader of Basingstoke and Deane council in Hampshire, which is being told to build more than 1,000 houses a year. A water cycle study found demands from new housing may exceed sustainable supply limits.
The Environment Agency's mapping shows roughly a third of the country has no additional river water available under normal conditions to serve new homes or industry. In some areas targeted for growth, fenlands face collapse from over-extraction and chalkstreams require artificial maintenance, according to the Guardian's reporting, Guardian business reports.
UK petrol prices have risen to 160p a litre, the highest level since November 2022, as renewed conflict in the Middle East pushes up global oil costs. The RAC said the cost of filling a family-size car with unleaded petrol has risen to £88, while diesel has jumped 14.5p to 179p and is forecast to reach 185p within weeks.
Fuel prices had fallen to 151p in early July after the US and Iran agreed a ceasefire in mid-June. However, Donald Trump has in recent weeks resumed strikes on Iran, prompting retaliation and raising tensions in the strait of Hormuz, a critical oil shipping route. Brent crude rose above $90 a barrel on Friday as Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had struck two tankers in the strait.
The price rise comes as 20.5 million UK drivers are expected to take to the roads during the peak holiday season. An AA spokesperson said the timing was "very bad", though fuel prices have been tracking wholesale costs more closely since the government introduced a mandatory fuel price reporting scheme in May, Zoe Wood reports for Guardian business.
The 'Lindsey O Graham Sanctioning Russia Act of 2026' cleared the US Senate on a vote of 86 to 12 this week, advancing to the House after summer recess. The bill authorises the president to impose tariffs of up to 100 percent on exports to the US from the top five purchasers of Russian energy, targeting countries including India and China that continue buying Moscow's oil, according to Al Jazeera.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, attending late Senator Graham's funeral in Washington, watched the vote from the gallery and called it "the first step towards implementing Lindsey's plans". However, President Donald Trump has ordered lawmakers to add Iran-related tariff provisions to the bill, a move analysts say could lose Democratic support and delay passage further.
HSBC is closing all 19 Australian branches over the next 18 months after selling its mortgage and personal loan portfolio to Blackstone, ending decades of retail banking in the country. The London-based bank will continue private and institutional banking services, with the sale expected to complete in the first half of 2027, subject to regulatory approval.
The bank's consumer loan book holds about $36bn in assets, mostly mortgages. Blackstone has appointed lending firm Pepper Money to service the loans after completion. HSBC has 2,000 employees in Australia; the bank said it was too early to detail job losses but would need most of its retail team during the wind-down period.
The exit reflects the difficulty foreign banks face competing in Australia's mortgage market, dominated by the big four domestic lenders and Macquarie, which together control about 80% of home loans. Citi and other overseas banks have previously withdrawn from Australian mortgage lending, Guardian business reports.
