Bloomberg European Union leaders agreed to pursue a partial ban on Russian oil, paving the way for a sixth package of sanctions to punish Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin, for the invasion of Ukraine. The sanctions would forbid the purchase of crude oil and petroleum products from Russia delivered to member states by sea but include a temporary exemption ...
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Hong Kong faces challenges opening China border: Lee
Bloomberg Hong Kong’s next leader John Lee said the financial hub faces difficulties before it can reopen the border with mainland China, after returning from his first meeting with President Xi Jinping since being selected to run the financial hub earlier this month. Lee said he told Premier Li Keqiang there are “a lot of challenges and difficulties†to ...
Read More »Colombia businessman turns table on Petro in polls
Bloomberg Gustavo Petro ceded his front-runner status for Colombia’s presidency to a little known 77-year-old construction magnate, in a sign of how voters are increasingly willing to gamble on untested leaders who promise change. Rodolfo Hernandez’s surprise surge to place second in the election sets up a June 19 runoff with Petro, a former mayor of Bogota whose program ...
Read More »Japan’s Kishida seeks fresh growth through ‘new capitalism’ plan
Bloomberg Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the country needed to focus on new areas of growth as a panel laid out proposals for his “new form of capitalism†aimed at reducing social disparities and driving the economy. “We’ve put together a grand design for a new capitalism,†Kishida said at a meeting of the panel. “We’ll seek new growth, ...
Read More »Chinese banks overflow with cash no one wants to borrow
Bloomberg Chinese authorities are facing an uphill battle convincing companies and households to boost borrowing as long as Covid outbreaks and lockdowns continue to crush confidence. After loan growth weakened in April to the worst level in almost five years, several indicators suggest the data for May won’t be much better. Housing sales have continued to slump, indicating a ...
Read More »Russia’s biggest lender targeted in EU sanctions plan
Bloomberg European Union (EU) countries are set to cut Russia’s largest lender Sberbank off the SWIFT international payments system, as the bloc readies a sixth package of sanctions against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. The proposed restrictions also target Credit Bank of Moscow and the Russian Agricultural Bank, according to people familiar with the discussions. The EU, the US ...
Read More »Credit Suisse weighs options to boost capital, says Reuters
Bloomberg Credit Suisse Group AG is in the early stages of considering its options to strengthen capital, Reuters reported, citing two people with knowledge of the matter. The size of the increase would likely exceed 1 billion Swiss francs, but this has not yet been determined, one of the people told Reuters. A sale of a unit, such as ...
Read More »BNP Paribas to recruit 7,000 people in France
Bloomberg BNP Paribas SA announced a plan to hire as many as 7,000 people in France this year, as the lender implements a strategy to drive growth through technology and sustainable finance. The recruitment effort will focus on retail and corporate services, IT and support functions, as part of its strategy through 2025, the bank said in a statement ...
Read More »National Bank sees 40% rise in trading revenue
Bloomberg National Bank of Canada’s fiscal second-quarter results got a boost from a surge in trading as recession fears roiled the markets. Revenue in the financial-markets unit rose 7.7% to C$632 million ($496 million) in the three months through April, the Montreal-based lender said. That beat analysts’ C$524.4 million average projection. Overall profit also topped estimates. Escalating concerns that ...
Read More »Crypto shows all signs of financial stability risk: ECB
Bloomberg A dramatic increase in the size and complexity of crypto markets means the sector is on track to become a risk for financial stability that must urgently be regulated, the European Central Bank (ECB) said. While recent volatility has not proved contagious to the rest of the global financial system, the threat is increasing with institutional investors increasingly ...
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