Bloomberg Burkina Faso ended its military collaboration with France, the second West African nation to sever defense links that were forged to combat a decade-long insurgency in the region. The government on January 18 criticized a 2018 agreement that enabled the troops to operate in Burkina Faso, according to a letter sent by the nation’s Foreign Affairs Ministry to …

  Bloomberg French President Emmanuel Macron’s government formally presented its flagship pension reform at a cabinet meeting on Monday, paving the way for parliament to debate it as unions and opposition parties ready further strikes and protests against the plan. The bill, which raises the minimum retirement age to 64 from 62 and aims to erase deficits in the system …

Bloomberg Joe Biden’s deputy chief of staff, Jen O’Malley Dillon, has ruled out returning as campaign manager for the president’s planned 2024 reelection bid, people familiar with the matter say. O’Malley Dillon, who served as campaign manager for his 2020 effort, will stay at the White House rather than reprise the role, the people said. She’ll still be closely involved …

Bloomberg Former Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis, who is trailing in his bid to win the nation’s presidency this week, drew criticism for saying during a televised debate that he wouldn’t send troops to aid Nato allies. The billionaire ex-premier, who was voted out of power in 2021 and now leads the largest opposition party, backtracked after saying he wouldn’t …

  Bloomberg Slovakia took a step closer toward early general elections aimed at ending a year-long political deadlock that triggered the government’s collapse last month. The euro area country of 5.4 million people will probably hold the ballot on Sept. 30, interim Prime Minister Eduard Heger said, after negotiations with his former ruling partners in Bratislava on Sunday evening. Heger’s …

  Bloomberg The European Central Bank (ECB) should continue with half-point interest-rate increases at the next two meetings and the time to slow the pace of hikes is “still far away,” according to Governing Council member Klaas Knot. “We made a step down in December from 75 to 50 basis points — that will be the pace for a multiple …

Bloomberg Axis Bank Ltd.’s quarterly profit jumped 62% and topped estimates amid robust growth in lending and improved margins. Net income climbed to 58.5 billion rupees ($719 million) in the third quarter, compared with 36.1 billion rupees a year ago, according to a statement on Monday. That beat the average estimate of 53.4 billion rupees by analysts in a Bloomberg …

  Bloomberg Argentina and Brazil are in the preliminary stages of renewing discussions on forming a common currency for financial and commercial transactions, reviving an often-discussed plan that would face numerous political and economic hurdles. South America’s two largest economies have considered options to coordinate their currencies for decades, often to counter the influence of the dollar in the region. …

  Bloomberg India’s largest private lender is expecting a calmer year for bond yields in 2023, which will make it harder for traders to prosper after global volatility seen last year. With the end of the rate-hike cycle near, there should be much more stability in yields, with large volatility likely behind us and the amplitude of future swings much …

  Bloomberg Pakistan increased its benchmark interest rate by 100 basis points, to the highest in more than 24 years, as the economy grapples with raging inflation, supply shortages, dwindling currency reserves and stalled foreign financing. State Bank of Pakistan raised the target rate to 17%, a move expected by 25 of 43 economists in a Bloomberg survey. The majority …