Company Briefs: Honda Motor

Honda Motor said yesterday that it will slash production plans in Japan due to persistent supply chain and logistical issues.

Its assembly plant in Saitama prefecture, north of Tokyo, will cut production by about 40 per cent early next month. Two lines at its plant in Suzuka, Mie prefecture, will reduce production plans by about 30 per cent in early September.

Honda added that its plant in the Chinese city of Chongqing will remain closed this week as the local government extended an order to curb power use and shut factory operations.

REUTERS

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AIA 

AIA Group yesterday posted a 13 per cent drop in new business value for the first half as Covid-19 lockdowns in its main markets of China and Hong Kong hit product sales. The insurer's new business value, which measures expected profits from new premiums and is a key gauge for future growth, fell to US$1.54 billion (S$2.1 billion), from US$1.81 billion a year ago.

AIA's mainland China business posted a 24 per cent decline in value of new business in the period. But the company said value of new business had returned to growth in June as sales momentum improved after the initial Covid-19 wave subsided.

REUTERS

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PetroChina

PetroChina posted its best first-half earnings as the nation's top oil and gas driller benefited from soaring global energy prices, and said government stimulus is starting to lift Chinese oil demand.

The firm reported 82.39 billion yuan (S$16.7 billion) in net income for the first half of the year, up 55 per cent from the same period in 2021, according to an exchange filing yesterday. Revenue rose 35 per cent to 1.61 trillion yuan. Global crude prices averaged US$105 a barrel in the first six months, 62 per cent higher than last year, providing a windfall to producers.

BLOOMBERG