Top story by morning: India has raised billions, US-Indonesia deal in jeopardy

Microsoft announced a record investment of $17.5 billion in India's cloud and AI infrastructure, and Amazon announced investments of over $35 billion in digitalization, exports and job creation in the country. These and other topics are covered in our review of key events for the morning of December 10.

Amazon has announced an investment of more than $35 billion to develop cloud and AI technologies in India by 2030 - on top of the nearly $40 billion already invested, CNBC reported. The company expects to accelerate digitalization, export growth and job creation, and plans to support the formation of a local AI ecosystem. Amazon estimates that by 2030, the project will create about 1 million jobs, boost exports to $80 billion and help 15 million small businesses.

The investment underscores Amazon's bet on India's fast-growing digital economy and follows Microsoft's recent announcement of a $17.5 billion investment in the country's AI infrastructure, the channel points out. Amazon, in turn, says it intends to "continue to play a key role in India's digital transformation and expand access to AI."

Meesho, India's e-commerce platform, soared 54% on its first day of trading in Mumbai after its $603 million IPO at a valuation of $8.4 billion, Bloomberg reports. The success of the offering reflects strong demand for tech startups amid record activity in the Indian primary market, despite the volatility of individual offerings and the fact that about half of the new companies are trading below their IPO price, the agency points out.

The platform, which connects small producers with small-town shoppers, intends to use some of the funds raised to further penetrate the regions. Despite a large loss last year, investors are betting on growth: Meesho attracts a mass audience with products at extremely low prices and aims to strengthen its position in one of the world's largest consumer markets, India, notes Bloomberg.

Negotiations on a trade deal between the United States and Indonesia are in danger of collapsing, the Financial Times reported. According to the newspaper, Washington believes that Jakarta is reneging on earlier commitments. The US accuses Indonesia of "backtracking on the removal of non-tariff barriers and the fulfillment of digital trade promises." Whereas the Indonesian side claims that tariff negotiations continue without major problems. The deal announced by Trump in July included large purchases of U.S. energy, agro-products and aircraft, as well as a promise of free access for U.S. exports to Indonesia.

According to the FT's sources, Indonesia is now pushing for a softening of commitments, a move that is strongly resented by the US and threatens the future of the agreement. This is not the first such case of friction: previously, Indonesia rejected the "poison pill" - a condition that allows the US to cancel a deal when a country enters into competing agreements. Similar disputes have arisen with other Asian partners in Trump's deals, who have also refused to comply with the most stringent requirements.

Microsoft has announced a $17.5 billion investment in India's cloud and AI infrastructure, the company's largest investment in Asia, CNBC reports. The funds will be used to expand data centers, integrate AI into government platforms and train staff over four years - up to 20 million people by 2030.

The decision followed a meeting between Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and was part of India's attempts to catch up in AI by bringing in big tech companies, the channel points out.

- Japan's broad Topix index was little changed, with the Nikkei 225 down 0.35% in Dec. 10 trading.

- Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was little changed, while mainland China's CSI 300 index fell 0.2 percent.

- In South Korea, the Kospi index was down 0.35% and the Kosdaq added 0.32%.

- Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was little changed.

- S&P 500 futures, Nasdaq Composite futures and Dow Jones Industrial Average exchange-traded contracts were little changed.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor