Apple conference, Thaksin court case, Tokyo campaign starts
More data related to the ever-shifting trade war will be released Monday, when China publishes its trade figures for May.
In the political arena, parties and candidates will begin appealing to voters in Tokyo ahead of the Japanese capital's assembly election, while a court case involving former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra will have ramifications for the Southeast Asian nation's ruling party.
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MONDAY
Apple Worldwide Developers Conference
Apple's annual event for app developers will double as a chance for the iPhone maker to show off software updates for devices such as the MacBook, iPad and Apple Watch. Attendees will also be keen to hear what the tech giant has in store for artificial intelligence.
China trade and inflation data
China's trade data for May will be under scrutiny following the trade-war truce with the U.S. in the middle of the month, with both countries rolling back sky-high tariffs on one another. On the same day, the monthly consumer price index, which has been hovering in negative territory since February, will also be announced.
Earnings: VinFast
TUESDAY
Toyota Industries shareholder meeting
Toyota Industries holds its annual shareholders meeting. It is a key supplier to Toyota Motor, which has its own shareholder gathering on Thursday. These events will be an opportunity for investors to react to the Toyota group's recent announcement of a takeover bid for Toyota Industries.
THURSDAY
Hong Kong auto expo
Hong Kong hosts an auto and supply chain expo, organized by the mainland's China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, from Thursday through Sunday. The event aims to help at drive the global expansion of the Chinese automotive industry, which is currently gripped by a brutal price war between electric vehicle manufacturers.
India inflation
India will release data on inflation, which has been inching downward -- in April, it clocked 3.16%, well below the central bank's target of 4%. That trend has encouraged the central bank to cut key lending rates deemed crucial to spurring economic growth after a slowdown.
FRIDAY
Court rules on Thaksin hospitalization
The Thai Supreme Court will hand down a ruling on whether Thaksin's six-month hospitalization after returning from self-exile, which saw him avoid spending a single day in jail, undermined the enforcement of a prison sentence. In the worst-case scenario for Thaksin, he could be jailed if the court rules against him, according to political analysts.
Tokyo metropolitan assembly election campaign starts
Campaigning for Tokyo's metropolitan assembly election begins ahead of the June 22 vote to fill all 127 seats across 42 districts. The race is seen as a key political bellwether before Japan's upper house election later this summer.
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Like Japanese sake and whisky before it, this Kagoshima spirit is being rebranded for international palates as domestic alcohol consumption continues to decline. Brown sugar shochu's growth overseas is being driven by the end of pandemic-era restrictions, global interest in Japanese spirits, and the potential for food pairing. The company ships to the United States, Taiwan, Sweden, Thailand, Singapore, Poland and Britain. It sells about 600-1,200 bottles of brown sugar shochu overseas a year. Awamori, a similar distilled liquor made from long-grain rice, was produced on Amami Oshima and throughout the Ryukyu Islands. Due to the Satsuma Domain's restrictions on using local sugarcane, brown sugar shochu was produced secretly in the Amami Islands as early as the 19th century. In the desperate days of World War II, rice shortages led Amami producers to use brown sugar as a substitute. 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