Bloomberg Members of Venezuela’s opposition said they are open to a new round of political negotiations with President Nicolas Maduro’s government ahead of upcoming local elections, but cautioned that agreement on the terms of the talks has not been reached. The two sides appeared to be moving closer to planning to hold meetings in Mexico, after Maduro declared the government ...

Bloomberg The Japanese and French governments have agreed to “actively” maintain defense cooperation to secure a free and open Indo-Pacific, according to a joint statement following a summit meeting between PM Yoshihide Suga and President Emmanuel Macron. Japan welcomed France’s intention, as presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2022, to reinforce the group’s ...

Bloomberg The European Central Bank (ECB) said it will lift a cap on how much lenders can return to shareholders with dividends and share buybacks, while urging them to remain cautious given uncertainty in pandemic. The ECB “decided not to extend beyond September 2021 its recommendation that all banks limit dividends,” the central bank said in a statement. “Instead, supervisors ...