Bloomberg India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi appealed to protesting farmers to call off their agitation and rejoin talks while reiterating his government’s commitment to continue purchasing crops at an administered price. Tens of thousands of farmers have been camping at Delhi’s borders since November in protest against three agriculture laws that they say will hurt farm incomes and leave them ...

Bloomberg A socialist economist who rejects fiscal austerity demanded by the IMF won the first round of Ecuador’s presidential election, and may face an indigenous anti-mining candidate in a runoff after an unexpectedly close fight for second place. Andres Arauz, the candidate most feared by bond investors, led with 32.2% of votes, with 79% of ballots counted, the electoral authority ...

Bloomberg German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz stepped up his bid to return the Social Democrats to the chancellery after Angela Merkel leaves this fall, presenting a fiscally expansive platform to finance a sweeping shift to cleaner energy and better digital infrastructure. Scholz, the SPD’s candidate for chancellor in Germany’s September 26 election, and his party are betting on a spending ...

Bloomberg The volume of goods going through British ports to the European Union has fallen by as much as 68% since Brexit, according to the Road Haulage Association, as the UK grapples with its new trading relationship with the bloc. The number of customs brokers need to be increased fivefold to help firms with extra checks, Richard Burnett, chief executive ...

Bloomberg By the end of this decade, more than 80% of all vehicles sold by Dr Ing hcF Porsche AG will be electric, CEO Oliver Blume told Bild am Sonntag in an interview. This will include fully electric and hybrid variants, while Porsche will continue to offer its 911 model with internal combustion engines, albeit able to handle synthetic fuels, ...

Bloomberg President Alberto Fernandez of Argentina, one of the world’s powerhouse food suppliers, is threatening farmers with a tax hike or quota for exports as he seeks relief for families grappling with inflation that’s forecast to reach 47% this year. If the farm industry continues to sell food at home for the same prices at which it exports, the government ...

Bloomberg The French government said it will provide another 300 million euros for projects to quickly increase the production of vaccines and treatments for Covid, extending its previous pledges of state aid for the pharmaceutical sector. Last year, the French government picked 17 projects for a total of 160 million euros of aid covering both mature and innovative medicines. Those ...

Bloomberg Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the US can return to full employment in 2022 if it enacts a robust enough coronavirus stimulus package, but otherwise risks a slower rebound in jobs and the economy. “I’m afraid that the job market is stalling,” she said on CBS’s “Face the Nation,” in one of two interviews. Yellen said that low-wage earners, ...

Bloomberg Hong Kong’s stock traders are about to find out whether the $7.3 trillion market can hold its own without its biggest source of flows. Starting Tuesday, trading links via Hong Kong’s exchange operator allowing mainland traders to buy domestic stocks will halt through February 17 due to the Lunar New Year holiday. The stock connect closure will slam the ...

Bloomberg Global stocks rise to a record on reflation bets after Janet Yellen pushed for rapid US stimulus and coronavirus infections slowed across the globe. Brent oil advanced above $60 a barrel for this first time in more than a year. US equity futures received a boost from comments by Treasury Secretary Yellen that the US can return to full ...