The Japanese government lodged a protest with China over its work to build a new structure in the East China Sea, as tensions between the two Asian nations simmer amid ongoing military drills. The Japanese government identified Chinese activity to install a new structure on the western side of the Japan–China median line in the East China Sea, according to a statement released Monday by Japan’s Fo...
The Japanese government lodged a protest with China over its work to build a new structure in the East China Sea, as tensions between the two Asian nations simmer amid ongoing military drills. The Japanese government identified Chinese activity to install a new structure on the western side of the Japan–China median line in the East China Sea, according to a statement released Monday by Japan’s Foreign Ministry. “In a situation where there is no clear border laid down in the Exclusive Economic Zones or continental shelves of the East China Sea, it is deeply regrettable that the Chinese side is unilaterally developing the area, and that we have identified movements to install a new structure,” the statement said. Masaaki Kanai, a senior Foreign Ministry official, lodged a protest with Shi Yong, the Chinese Charge d’Affaires ad interim in Japan, and called on China to restart international negotiations regarding the development of the area, according to the statement. Read more: Japan Lowers View of China Relations Amid Tension Over Taiwan Relations between Japan and China have been tense in recent months after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said in November that a Chinese invasion of Taiwan might constitute a legal justification for Japan to deploy troops. China has since retaliated with economic measures that include trade curbs and travel warnings, and accused Japan of reviving militarism. China said on Friday that the presence of a Japanese Self-Defense Forces vessel in the Taiwan Strait is provocative and has sent a group of warships to hold drills in the western Pacific Ocean. That move comes as Japan for the first time joins massive exercises underway in the Philippines that also include US forces. Read more: China Warships to Hold Pacific Drills as Japan Tensions Rise Japan issued a similar protest at the start of the year after it detected that China had deployed a mobile drilling vessel in an area in the East China Sea known for gas reserves.
Narrow pockets of strength in analyst earnings revisions have powered the S&P 500 Index’s rally to a record high, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc. strategists. While consensus earnings-per-share estimates for this year and next are 4% above where they were in January, energy and information technology stocks account for almost all of the increase, the strategists led by Ben Snider said. The I...
Narrow pockets of strength in analyst earnings revisions have powered the S&P 500 Index’s rally to a record high, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc. strategists. While consensus earnings-per-share estimates for this year and next are 4% above where they were in January, energy and information technology stocks account for almost all of the increase, the strategists led by Ben Snider said. The Iran war has triggered a surge in energy prices, while tech stocks are benefiting from renewed optimism around artificial intelligence investment. Only two names — Micron Technology Inc. and Exxon Mobil Corp. — together account for more than 60% of the consensus increase in 2026 S&P 500 EPS estimates since the conflict began, the strategists wrote. The median company in the index has seen no revision to 2026 earnings estimates in the past few months, they said. “Just a handful of stocks has driven the vast majority of the upward revisions to S&P 500 earnings estimates in recent weeks,” Snider said. The US equity benchmark index closed at a record high on Friday, wrapping up its strongest week of 2026. But the Goldman strategists said the gains, like the bullish earnings revisions, weren’t broad-based. The team’s preferred measure of market breadth has dropped to its lowest levels in recent decades, aside from the Dot Com bubble and mid-2023. The test now is to see whether the heart of the first-quarter earnings season will lead to a broadening in upward profit revisions and in market strength, the Goldman team said. Progress in the potential reopening of the Strait of Hormuz is particularly key for economy-linked cyclical names. The earnings season has started strongly for large-cap US companies, with about 81% beating EPS estimates so far, according to data compiled by Bloomberg Intelligence. Banks dominated last week’s reporting, with JPMorgan Chase & Co., Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc. and Goldman notching record stock-trading revenue. Goldman projects S&P 500 EPS ...