SHANGHAI: China’s Alibaba plans to launch an online video service that mimics that of US streaming giant Netflix, a report said today, marking the e-commerce giant’s latest move to expand its business scope. Alibaba will offer Tmall Box Office via its own set-top box and smart televisions that use its operating system in about two months, the President of Alibaba’s digital entertainment business Liu Chunning said, as per Bloomberg News. Alibaba did not respond to a request for comment

Indonesia’s surplus up

JAKARTA: Indonesia’s trade surplus grew to $950 million in May, official data showed Monday, as imports slid sharply in Southeast Asia’s largest economy. It was the sixth straight month that Indonesia has recorded a trade surplus and the figure was about double that forecast by economists. It compared to a $450 million excess in April. The widening surplus was driven by a sharp fall in imports to $11.61 billion, down 21.4 per cent from a year earlier.

Proton, Suzuki tie-up

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s struggling national carmaker Proton is joining forces with Japan’s Suzuki Motor Corp in its latest bid to boost sales. Proton on Monday inked a memorandum of understanding and licence agreement with Suzuki to ‘form a long term strategic collaboration and partnership’. Proton Chairman Mahathir Mohamad said partnership details will be ironed out by next year. He said Proton may initially sell rebranded Suzuki models before exploring the possibility of jointly developing new models.

Russia cuts rate

MOSCOW: Russia’s central bank on Monday cut its key interest by one point to 11.5 per cent as it tried to bolster an economy battered by western sanctions and lower oil prices. The rate cut is the fourth this year after authorities hiked interest rates dramatically in December to 17 per cent as the rouble nosedived.