OPEC to raise output

VIENNA: Under pressure to bring down stubbornly high oil prices, OPEC ministers opened a key meeting to try to lower costs and ease the brakes on the global economy. Key members were expected to raise the cartel’s production quota to get prices — which have hovered around $55 per barrel — back below $50. — AP

Textile exports rise

BEIJING: China’s industrial output in May rose by 16.6 per cent from a year earlier to $68.7 billion, helped by booming textile exports. The industrial output figure was up when production rose by 16 per cent. — AFP

B’desh invites Tatas

DHAKA: Bangladesh has sent an invitation letter to India’s Tata Group for initiating ‘conclusive negotiations’ from July 2 on a $2.5 billion investment deal to set up steel, power and fertiliser units. — HNS

More jobs in S’pore

SINGAPORE: Singapore’s economy generated fewer new jobs in the first quarter with the unemployment rate inching up to 3.9 per cent from 3.7 per cent at end-December amid slowing growth. — AFP

P’pines remittances

MANILA: Increased deployment of Filipino workers abroad helped raise their salary remittances to the Philippines by 19.1 per cent from a year earlier to $790 million in April. — AFP

Economic recovery

TOKYO: The Japanese economy is still on the recovery track despite stagnant growth in exports. Japan’s economy continues a recovery trend. Although the momentum of growth in exports remains weak, industrial production is increasing gradually as inventory adjustments in the IT-related sectors are progressing. — AFP

ECB rates on hold

FRANKFURT: The current level of interest rates in the 12-country eurozone is ‘appropriate,’ Bundesbank chief Axel Weber said, echoing comments a day earlier by his Greek colleague Nicholas Garganas. As the heads of the German and Greek central banks, both Weber and Garganas sit on the policy-making governing council of the ECB. — AFP

Chinese reform row

BEIJING: Central bank governor Zhou Xiaochuan has reiterated that China will maintain a prudent monetary policy and vigorously push forward financial reform. — AFP

Check on US inflation

WASHINGTON: Inflation appeared in check last month based on a key indicator of US prices at the wholesale level, while retail sales fell sharply. US producer prices fell by 0.6 per cent in May. Excluding food and energy costs, the core producer price index (PPI) rose by 0.1 per cent. — AFP

Intel eyes Vietnam

HANOI: Intel, the world’s largest chip maker, said it is considering building a factory in Vietnam amid soaring personal computer ownership and Internet usage in Vietnam. “It’s one of the sites that we are evaluating for an assembly plant at some point,” Intel’s president and CEO said. — AP