Banking

Bloomberg India’s central bank governor said he’s ready to act to shield the economy from the coronavirus and reiterated there’s room to cut interest rates if needed. Speaking in an interview with Bloomberg News in Mumbai hours before the Federal Reserve slashed interest rates by half a percentage point in an emergency move, Shaktikanta Das said “there is a strong ...

Bloomberg The Bank of Korea (BOK) said on Wednesday it will seek to monitor and stabilise markets, stopping short of following the Federal Reserve in easing policy to respond to the coronavirus epidemic. The BOK said it would consider changes in the policy environment, including the Fed’s 0.5% rate cut and a joint statement from Group of Seven finance chiefs ...

Bloomberg Cracks are starting to appear in rupee’s defences with new coronavirus cases being reported in India. The rupee slid as much as 0.4% to 73.6 per dollar on Wednesday to become the worst performing Asian currency. India has so far reported 28 positive cases, which includes 15 Italian tourists. The currency had stayed relatively stable earlier in the absence ...

Bloomberg European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde belatedly joined the crowd of leading central bankers pledging to take action if needed against the economic damage from the coronavirus outbreak. In a statement, Lagarde said the outbreak is a “fast-developing situation, which creates risks for the economic outlook and the functioning of financial markets.” That echoes communications by the US ...

Bloomberg Malaysia cut its benchmark interest rate on Tuesday, with analysts predicting more easing to come as global central banks boost stimulus to counter the coronavirus’s impact on economic growth. Bank Negara Malaysia reduced the overnight policy rate for a second time this year, lowering it by 25 basis points to 2.5%, as forecast by 15 of 24 economists surveyed ...

Bloomberg Australia kicked off an expected worldwide policy response to China’s slowdown and fallout from the coronavirus with an interest-rate cut that’s set to operate in tandem with fiscal measures to cushion the economic blow. Reserve Bank chief Philip Lowe reduced the cash rate by a quarter percentage point to 0.5%, a new record low, as expected by traders and ...

Bloomberg Visa Inc became the latest payments firm to face a hit from the spread of coronavirus. The company warned that cardholders’ spending overseas has slowed sharply, especially for travel related purchases, and that this quarter’s revenue growth will be about 2.5 to 3.5 percentage points lower than the outlook it shared on January 30. Visa said it won’t give ...

Bloomberg Several of the biggest US banks and the nation’s largest life insurer expanded their restrictions on employee travel, curbing all non-essential trips abroad as the coronavirus spreads across the globe. Citigroup Inc, Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo & Co told employees not to travel internationally without approval from top company executives, expanding earlier restrictions that targeted countries where the ...

Bloomberg The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said it’s ready to act to counter financial market volatility amid the coronavirus outbreak, reiterating comments from global central bankers in recent days. While spillovers into domestic financial markets have been relatively contained, the RBI said in a statement on Tuesday it “stands ready to take appropriate actions to ensure orderly functioning of ...

Bloomberg The Federal Reserve is now prepared to reduce interest rates this month even though it recognizes monetary policy cannot completely shelter a US economy increasingly threatened by the coronavirus. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell opened the door to a rate-cut at the Fed’s March 17-18 meeting by issuing a rare statement pledging to “act as appropriate” to support the economy. ...