Bloomberg Australia’s central bank raised interest rates by a half-percentage point for a fourth consecutive meeting and signalled further hikes ahead in its drive to rein in inflation. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) took the cash rate to 2.35%, the highest level since 2015, in a widely expected announcement on Tuesday. The tightening is Australia’s quickest in a …

Bloomberg France is considering changes to mortgage lending rules to ensure credit to households as the European Central Bank delivers sharp rate increases to counter surging inflation. At present, French regulations cap rates that banks can offer based on average rates in the past quarter plus an extra premium. Some banks have become reluctant to accept loan applications as rates …

  Bloomberg China has reduced the amount of foreign-exchange deposits banks need to set aside as reserves for the second time this year to boost the yuan after the currency hit a two-year low. Financial institutions will need to hold 6% of their foreign-currency deposits in reserves starting from September 15, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) said in a …

  Bloomberg The Malaysian ringgit tumbled to a 24-year low as a stronger dollar and domestic political risks damped sentiment. The ringgit falls as much as 0.2% to 4.5015 per dollar as it breached the 4.5002 mark reached in January 2017. The Malaysian currency is now at its weakest level since January 1998, during the Asian Financial Crisis. A resurgent …

Bloomberg The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is in the currency market almost everyday with the twin objective of curbing volatility and anchoring expectations for rupee depreciation, the central bank’s Governor Shaktikanta Das said. “Exchange rate stability is an intrinsic element of our overall macroeconomic and financial stability,” Das said in Mumbai. “Our endeavour, amidst the extraordinary events unfolding globally …

  Bloomberg US stock futures climbed, with dip buyers drawn to attractive valuations after three weeks of Wall Street declines. European stocks rose as investors assessed responses to the region’s energy crisis ahead of the European Central Bank’s policy meeting later this week. S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 contracts both advanced by more than 0.6%, with cash trading set to …

  Bloomberg Indonesia marketed a benchmark-sized dollar bond, joining a flurry of activity in Asia as issuers took advantage of a let-up in borrowing costs. The offer features three tenors, according to a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified because they’re not authorised to speak about the matter. Yields on the sovereign’s existing dollar bonds …

  Bloomberg Europe’s energy crisis is getting worse, piling pressure on the commodities industries that provide building blocks for the continent’s economy. Power- and gas-intensive sectors such as steel, fertilisers and aluminum — the most widely used base metal — are being forced to close factories or pass on soaring costs to customers. Even sugar makers are feeling the pinch. …

Bloomberg Lawmakers in Sweden and Finland are reviewing their $33 billion emergency backstop plans devised over the weekend to prevent utilities from defaulting after a fresh surge in energy prices. The two governments announced liquidity facilities made up of loans and credit guarantees to avoid some power companies going into technical defaults over climbing collateral requirements. The aim is to …

  Bloomberg Travellers alarmed at sky-high airfares this Christmas can add soaring fuel prices spurred in part by Russia’s weaponisation of its energy resources to the list of factors to blame. The price of jet fuel — which typically accounts for around a quarter of an airline’s total operational costs — is on a tear. The jump this year is …