In recent years, Wall Street banks have dominated their European counterparts in most areas of global finance. But there’s one hot corner of the capital markets where European firms are staying ahead of their US rivals: the soaring market for green bonds. Overall, Europe’s banks have been laggards, even in their own backyard. In European mergers and acquisitions, for example, ...
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Putin warns of retaliation for crossing Russia’s red line
Bloomberg President Vladimir Putin warned rival nations not to cross Russia’s “red line†in their actions or face a tough reaction. “Russia’s response will be asymmetric, quick and harsh,†Putin said in his annual state-of-the-nation speech on Wednesday. “They will regret it more than ever before.†Putin didn’t single out any rivals for criticism, saying Russia would decide where its ...
Read More »Joe Biden calls on lawmakers to honour Floyd with ‘reform bill’
Bloomberg President Joe Biden said the conviction of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was “a giant step forward in the march towards justice in America,†and called on lawmakers to ensure the legacy of George Floyd wasn’t his murder, but lasting law-enforcement reform. “No one should be above the law and today’s verdict sends that message, but it’s not ...
Read More »Hungary agrees to tweak laws as EU frustration intensifies with Orban
Bloomberg Hungary’s government submitted legislation to tweak laws that underpinned its attacks against foreign-funded universities and civil society groups that the European Union’s top court struck down for violating the bloc’s rules. Prime Minister Viktor Orban has waged campaigns against dissenting voices during a decade of consolidating power, including against academia and non-governmental organisations. EU leaders in December adopted tougher ...
Read More »German Greens get early edge to succeed Merkel
Bloomberg Germany’s Greens are in position to make history, surging past Angela Merkel’s conservative bloc in the race to replace the four-term chancellor after September’s election. The party that’s vowing to increase spending and tighten controls on the finance industry — which finished a distant sixth in the last national vote in 2017 — held a seven percentage-point lead in ...
Read More »Toronto orders workplaces shut to ‘slam brakes’ on outbreaks
Bloomberg Toronto health authorities will order workplaces across Canada’s biggest city to close if they have more than five confirmed cases of Covid-19. The decision overrides less stringent provincial orders, and follows a similar move by Peel Region, a western suburb. It comes as the city struggles to contain a surge in variant cases that threatens to collapse the local ...
Read More »Canada M&A triples to $184b as railroad bidding heats up
Bloomberg Canadian dealmaking is extending its boom, as a bidding war between two railway operators contributes to a tripling in mergers and acquisitions volumes. Companies from Canada have been involved in $184 billion of transactions this year, including agreed deals and more preliminary proposals, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That’s up 198% on the same point in 2020 and ...
Read More »US faces security ‘crisis’ on chips: Commerce secretary
Bloomberg The US faces a national security “crisis†due to its lack of semiconductor production, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told senators in a hearing on President Joe Biden’s infrastructure plan. “It is not an exaggeration to say at the moment that we have a crisis in our supply chain,†Raimondo said Tuesday, calling the production deficiencies “a national security risk ...
Read More »Italy targets mid-May opening for tourism in bid to save sector
Bloomberg Italy is aiming to open the country to tourists in mid-May, pledging a range of measures to protect visitors from the coronavirus as it scrambles to rescue a sector devastated by lockdowns and restrictions on movement. As part of the race to get the industry back on its feet, the Rome-based government will introduce so-called vaccine passports earlier than ...
Read More »â€˜Brazil needs more caution on inflation’
Bloomberg Brazilian policy makers should have been more cautious when cutting interest rates last year and now need to stress they will raise them as needed to bring inflation to target, according to former central bank President Ilan Goldfajn. Rather than committing to a “partial adjustment†of monetary stimulus, the bank needs to show it’s ready to do whatever is ...
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