TOKYO (Reuters) -Japanese Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki on Friday refrained from commenting on the possibility of government intervention in the foreign exchange market to stem a weak yen, while maintaining his warning against any rapid fluctuations.

South Korean truckers embarked on broader and more aggressive strike action on Friday, threatening to severely curtail shipments of raw materials for semiconductors and petrochemical products.

BEIJING (Reuters) -China's factory-gate inflation cooled to its slowest pace in 14 months in May, depressed by weak demand for steel, aluminium and other key industrial commodities due to tight COVID-19 curbs and bucking the global trend of rapidly accelerating prices.

TOKYO (Reuters) -Japan's business community issued a joint statement on Friday seeking further relaxation of border controls, as the country begins a gradual easing of COVID-19 travel restrictions.

Tesla Inc has cancelled three online recruitment events for China scheduled this month, the latest development after Chief Executive Elon Musk threatened job cuts at the electric car maker, saying it was "overstaffed" in some areas.

China's factory-gate inflation cooled to its slowest pace in 14 months in May, official data showed on Friday, depressed by weak demand for steel, aluminium and other key industrial commodities due to tight COVID-19 curbs.