China weighs giving US total access to audits of most firms

Chinese authorities are preparing to give US regulators full access to auditing reports of the majority of the 200-plus companies listed in New York as soon as mid-this year, making a rare concession to prevent a further decoupling between the world’s two largest economies. The China Securities Regulatory Commission and other national regulators are in the process of drafting a framework that will allow most Chinese firms to keep their listings, people familiar with the process said. However, the government is prepared to accept that some state-owned enterprises and private companies that hold sensitive data will be delisted, they said. BLOOMBERG

Israel and UAE conclude free-trade agreement

Israel and the United Arab Emirates have concluded negotiations for a free trade agreement, Israel's Economy Ministry and the UAE foreign trade minister said on Friday, after formally establishing ties in 2020. The trade agreement includes 95 per cent of traded products, which will be customs free, immediately or gradually, including food, agriculture and cosmetic products, as well as medical equipment and medicine, the Israeli Economy Ministry said in a statement. The agreement will come into effect when signed by the countries’ economy ministers and ratified. REUTERS

Amazon’s NY union moves closer to win, vote continues

Organised laborr supporters at an Amazon.com facility in New York City's Staten Island on Friday moved closer to securing a victory by maintaining a lead of hundreds of votes in a contest to form a union.A win of the would mean Staten Island is Amazon's first U.S.facility to form a labor union. Counting continues. When voting concluded for the day on Thursday, those workers who favoured establishing the Amazon Labor Union (ALU) at the fulfilment center known as JFK8 maintained a 57-percent edge over those who voted against organising. REUTERS

Mid-air crash of S Korean trainer planes kills four

Two South Korean air force planes collided in mid-air on Friday during a training exercise, killing four pilots in the rare incident, authorities said. Some 130 troops, 95 police officers and 60 firefighters as well as three helicopters have begun a search at the crash site, the Yonhap news agency said, citing local government officials. The crash happened about 6 km (3.7 miles) south of the KT-1 airplanes’ base in the southeastern city of Sacheon, at about 1:37 p.m.(0437 GMT), the air force said. “Despite their attempts at an emergency escape ... all of the two student pilots and two flight instructors aboard the two planes died,” it said in a statement. REUTERS

Euro zone inflation soars to fresh record of 7.5% 

Inflation in Europe soared to another record, a fresh sign that rising energy prices fuelled by Russia’s war in Ukraine are squeezing consumers and adding pressure on the central bank to raise interest rates. Consumer prices in the 19 countries that use the euro currency rose by an annual rate of 7.5 per cent in March, according to the European Union statistics agency, Eurostat. The latest reading smashed the high set just last month, when it hit a revised 5.9 per cent. Inflation in the eurozone has been setting records for months and is at its highest level since recordkeeping for the euro began in 1997.

Spike in energy prices has been contributing to inflation. AP