The declining economic outlook and increasing political pressure are pushing central banks into more aggressive unconventional monetary policies. Simultaneously, fears are growing that such steps, especially negative interest rates, actually threaten the stability of the financial system. They risk setting off dangerous feedback loops in credit markets and the real economy, where the second and third-order effects are difficult to ...

Donald Trump’s persistent attacks on the Federal Reserve raise an important question: What should and shouldn’t presidents say about the central bank? The key is to understand the difference between the concepts of independence and accountability. It’s crucial that the Fed enjoy independence from elected officials in deciding how to pursue the goals that Congress set out for it — ...

Mario Draghi’s public scolding of Europe’s lenders this week matters more than what he did for them. Banks in the region have long complained of the squeeze negative interest rates are putting on their profits — upending their traditional business model of borrowing money for the short term to lend to clients in the long run. But there’s little they ...

President Donald Trump would love nothing more than to announce an end to the trade war with China and relief for the country’s farmers, who have been hit especially hard. But history is likely to get in the way for reasons well beyond his control. In the past century, American agriculture sustained two big boom-and-bust cycles. The current downturn features ...

Homebuilding has been a better bet than the wider construction business in the UK — the former benefits from government subsidies, while the latter is plagued by intense competition for long-run, hard-to-value contracts. Being in both markets has become a headache for Galliford Try Plc. It is now artfully dealing its way out of the problem. Last week, the company ...

Apple is finally getting real. With its most important product category not growing anymore, Apple Inc. confronted its changing circumstances by doing two unusual things: hustling hard and displaying a willingness to change its business model. The hustle is all about Apple’s willingness to do something against its nature: go wide in the number of devices and internet-tethered products it ...

Bloomberg US stocks slipped, oil surged and assets considered to be havens in times of trouble climbed after a strike on Saudi Arabia’s crude production heightened geopolitical risk. A drop in automaker shares helped drag the S&P 500 Index down the most in almost two weeks, even as energy producers climbed. Treasuries advanced with precious metals and the yen. Brent ...

Bloomberg India’s rupee halted a seven-day rally and bonds declined after a drone attack on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities sent global crude prices soaring by the most on record. The currency fell 0.9 percent to close at 71.5963 per dollar and the benchmark 2029 bond yields rose eight basis points to 6.72 percent. The S&P BSE Sensex gauge of equities ...

Bloomberg Andre Esteves once joked that Banco BTG Pactual SA, the Latin American investment bank powerhouse he helped create, would one day become “better than Goldman” — a play on the firm’s name. Now, BTG is chasing Goldman Sachs Group Inc down another path, looking to build a digital retail bank for the masses. The firm, under the BTG Digital ...

Bloomberg Banks in Denmark have seen their aggregate profits sink this year, according to calculations by the industry’s main lobby group, which has repeatedly urged monetary policy makers to provide relief from long-term negative interest rates. Industry profits fell 20 percent in the first half of this year, Finans Danmark said. Denmark’s 17 biggest banks and mortgage lenders reported after-tax ...