Banking

PBOC slashes interest for one year loans to support banks

Bloomberg China’s central bank provided medium-term funding to commercial lenders and cut the interest rate it charges for the money, a move widely anticipated by analysts to cushion the economy from the virus epidemic. The People’s Bank of China offered 200 billion yuan ($29 billion) of one-year medium-term loans on Monday. The rate was lowered by 10 basis points to ...

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Lagarde confronts political cost of ECB’s subzero rate policy

Bloomberg “Nobody trusts you,” lawmaker Joerg Meuthen told European Central Bank (ECB) chief Christine Lagarde, switching briefly to English during a tirade in his native German. “You should be aware of that.” The far-right Alternative for Germany representative was railing about negative interest rates — and while enduring bluster is par for the course for ECB presidents, the February 6 ...

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Singapore cuts growth outlook, plans stimulus amid virus threat

Bloomberg Singapore downgraded its forecast for economic growth for this year and plans to deliver a strong budget this week to counter the threat of the coronavirus outbreak on tourism and trade. The Ministry of Trade & Industry on Monday projected growth in a range of -0.5% to 1.5% in 2020, compared with a previous estimate of 0.5% to 2.5%. ...

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Bundesbank warns of virus hit to exporters

Bloomberg German exporters are likely to suffer from the coronavirus outbreak in China that’s threatening to disrupt global supply chains, according to the Bundesbank. In its monthly report presented on Monday, the central bank painted a dire picture of the country’s state of affairs, arguing there are currently no signs that growth momentum will pick up in the first quarter. ...

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HSBC staffer in quarantine tests negative for virus

Bloomberg An HSBC Holdings Plc employee in Hong Kong being held in quarantine tested negative for the deadly virus spreading out of mainland China. The staffer and their nuclear family members all tested negative for the coronavirus, according to an internal memo, confirmed by a company spokeswoman in Hong Kong. The virus has killed more than 1,700 people and infected ...

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In two weeks, India debt turns favourite from loser for funds

Bloomberg Just a month ago, global funds couldn’t wait to dump India’s sovereign bonds. Now, they’re rushing back at the fastest pace in more than two years. Foreigners bought 136.7 billion rupees ($1.9 billion) of the debt in the first two weeks of February, set for the highest monthly inflow since June 2017, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. They ...

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Global economic policy now hinges on China’s next move

Bloomberg The broad policy direction for many of the world’s central banks and governments now hinges on one question: how will the Chinese government respond to the economic shock caused by the coronavirus? The Communist Party’s elite Politburo has urged the nation to meet its economic targets this year, an imperative that could shake the government’s recent reluctance to fire ...

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UBS seeks return of bank-owned private jets seized by Russia

Bloomberg Switzerland’s biggest bank wants its airplanes back. For several months, UBS Group AG has sought to reverse a Moscow court decision allowing the seizure of two Bombardier Challenger 650 jets leased to brothers Dmitry and Alexey Ananiev, the former co-owners of Promsvyazbank PJSC. UBS faces powerful opponents: the Russian central bank, which spent 113.4 billion rubles ($1.8 billion) in ...

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Deutsche Bank’s debt decision loses bite

Bloomberg Deutsche Bank AG may have defused a potential land mine in its still-fragile turnaround. A once-treacherous decision about whether to retire one of the bank’s riskiest bonds in April has almost become a nonevent amid signs of progress in the overhaul and overwhelming evidence of the lender’s ability to sell Additional Tier 1 notes in a red-hot market. The ...

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GOP lawmakers target Trump’s Fed nominee

Bloomberg President Donald Trump’s pick for the Federal Reserve Board, Judy Shelton, came under fire from Republican lawmakers, signalling trouble ahead for her nomination. Speaking to reporters after a Senate Banking Committee hearing on her appointment, Senators Richard Shelby from Alabama, Patrick Toomey from Pennsylvania and John Kennedy from Louisiana all said they had not decided if they would vote ...

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