SINGAPORE -- China's capabilities in artificial intelligence are "much closer than I thought" to catching up to the U.S., former Google CEO Eric Schmidt told Nikkei Asia, stressing that America will not succeed without a "very strong partnership with our Asian friends."

In an online interview, Schmidt, now chair of the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, said China is closing in on the U.S. in certain areas of AI and quantum computing -- faster than his previous estimate of

TOKYO -- Corporate debt defaults in China have soared to record levels as Beijing allows companies choking on excessive debt to go belly up.

Chinese corporate bond issuers defaulted on about 116 billion yuan ($18 billion) in the first six months of 2021, the highest figure for any January-June period.

The missed payments are alarming foreign investors and driving up the average yield on foreign currency-denominated Chinese corporate bonds with low credit ratings to above 10%.

The government of President

JAKARTA -- Bukalapak, one of Indonesia's leading e-commerce platforms, has kicked off a $1.5 billion initial public offering that could value the company as high as $6 billion.

The startup on Friday announced it plans to offer new shares representing 25% of the post-IPO company at a price range of 750 rupiah (5 cents) to 850 rupiah (almost 6 cents).

If priced at the top of its range, Bukalapak would fetch 21.

MUMBAI -- JSW Steel and Tata Steel plan to spend around 850 billion rupees ($11.4 billion) on projects over the next few years, expecting global demand to pick up as the pandemic recedes.

India appears to be emerging from a second wave of infections that has killed thousands and stymied business activity. Despite the disaster, the country's steelmakers have been buoyed by demand from the U.S. and Europe. There is also hope that a government investment focus on infrastructure will bring

TOKYO -- China Baowu Steel Group became the world's largest steelmaker by volume in 2020, making it the first company to overtake ArcelorMittal in 19 years and the first Chinese player to climb to the top of the list.

China's steelmakers have undergone major streamlining drives to curb overcapacity even as domestic demand remained strong. With seven of the world's top 10 producers now based in China, the country has emerged as a powerhouse in steel over veteran industry leaders like Japan.

Baowu

TOKYO -- Tokyo 2020's sponsors are running out of opportunities to recoup their Olympic investments, after organizers decided that the postponed games will be held without fans in almost all venues.

The decision deprives the event's corporate backers of what were expected to be important platforms to pitch to the public.

For example, sportswear brand Asics expected that 70% of an Olympic-led boost to sales would occur in the two months before and during the games. As part of its marketing push,

TOKYO -- The Japanese government decided on Thursday to place Tokyo under a state of emergency as Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga tries to pull off hosting the Olympics without sparking a COVID-19 crisis amid a steady rise in infections in the capital and surrounding areas.

Tokyo thus joins Okinawa, the southernmost island prefecture that has been under a state of emergency since May 23.

The move comes less than three weeks after Tokyo emerged from a state of emergency, on June 20, and marks the fourth time for the

MUMBAI -- Indian food delivery unicorn Zomato is hoping to raise $1.25 billion in an initial public offering of shares at a range of 72-76 rupees each next week.

The company is planning to sell 90 billion rupees ($1.2 billion) worth of new shares, while majority shareholder Info Edge India is hoping to offload 3.75 billion rupees of shares it holds. The offer period is July 14 to July 16.

Info Edge has an 18

BANGKOK/YANGON -- Norwegian telecoms operator Telenor has announced on Thursday the sale of its mobile operations in Myanmar to M1 Group, a Lebanese company, for $105 million.

The move was foreshadowed by Telenor's decision to write off its Myanmar unit in May, when it booked a loss of 6.5 billion Norwegian crowns ($752 million), amid increasingly severe restrictions on businesses following the military takeover Feb. 1.

The prominent Norwegian company said "the transaction corresponds to an