Bloomberg The rapid speed at which researchers are developing coronavirus vaccines doesn’t mean that safety is being sacrificed, said Anthony Fauci, the US government’s top infectious-disease expert. “The rapidity with which we are moving relates more to technological advances with how you can make a vaccine even before you start testing it,” Fauci, the head of the National Institute of ...

Bloomberg Authorities lifted a curfew in the main city in India’s portion of Kashmir where sweeping movement and Internet curbs and a heavier than usual military presence marked a year since the revocation of seven decades of autonomy in the disputed Muslim-majority region. The two-day curfew was rolled back after widespread criticism, a government order said, but businesses and public ...

Bloomberg Three years after he survived an assassination attempt, Tanzania’s main opposition chose Tundu Lissu as its candidate to run for president. The 52-year-old human-rights lawyer will run against John Magufuli, who’s seeking a second term after five years in power that critics say has been marred by a crackdown on civil liberties and political dissent. While Magufuli is expected ...

Bloomberg Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov is considering stepping down after a month of anti-corruption protests but wants to keep his governing coalition intact until its term expires next year. Borissov, who’s resigned twice before in on-and-off stints as prime minister over the past decade, said he’ll discuss his possible withdrawal with coalition partners to preserve the government. Still, Bulgaria ...

Bloomberg China’s banks need about $500 billion in fresh liquidity this month to roll over existing debt and buy government bonds, complicating the People’s Bank of China’s efforts to exit crisis measures. Monetary policy makers have been signalling for weeks that abundant funding made available to tide the world’s second-largest economy through the coronavirus slump will soon be reined in, ...

Bloomberg It’s early days, but Japan’s biggest banks are broadly on course to meet their modest profit goals this fiscal year after bad-loan costs remained within their expectations in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. and Mizuho Financial Group Inc. all saw quarterly profit decline after increasing provisions for soured debts during Japan’s ...

Bloomberg The Bank of Thailand held its benchmark interest rate at an all-time low and said it was prepared to use “additional appropriate monetary policy tools” to support an economy suffering the biggest blow in Asia from the coronavirus pandemic. The central bank kept its policy rate at 0.5% in a unanimous decision Wednesday. All but two of the 26 ...

Bloomberg Australia’s central bank is returning to the government bond market after a three-month hiatus as it aims to re-anchor yields on the three-year security that it targets through its purchasing program. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) offered to purchase $359 million of federal government securities maturing in April 2023 on Wednesday, under its program to lower yields. Governor ...

Bloomberg The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) policy decision this week is a tricky one to call, with economists split over whether Governor Shaktikanta Das will lower interest rates again to support a fragile economy and banking sector in the face of above-target inflation. Of the 44 economists surveyed by Bloomberg, 22 expect a 25 basis-point rate cut on Thursday, ...

Bloomberg Commerzbank AG abandoned its goal for a full-year profit after losses tied to the failure of Wirecard AG added to surging costs for bad loans, underscoring the challenges as the lender seeks to emerge from a leadership crisis. The outlook revision was driven by a single case that cost the bank 175 million euros last quarter, it said in ...