Bloomberg Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi made a bold call for more economic stimulus in European countries to help bring growth back to pre-pandemic levels. “Protracted uncertainty means that the case for monetary and fiscal expansion remains compelling,” the former European Central Bank (ECB) chief said in speech in Barcelona. “We will not reach this objective without additional effort. So ...

Bloomberg The International Monetary Fund (IMF) privately estimates that a deal allowing Argentina to reschedule payments on $45 billion owed to the lender will be pushed into 2022 as President Alberto Fernandez has little incentive to quickly agree on the basis of a new program. While the IMF has said it’s constructively engaging with Fernandez’s administration, negotiations entailing fiscal austerity ...

Bloomberg The outlook for the UK’s sovereign debt score has been upgraded to stable by Fitch Ratings, which said that the country’s economy and public finances have proved more resilient to the pandemic shock than the credit assessor had anticipated. Fitch previously had a negative outlook on the UK, but the country avoided being downgraded, with the firm keeping its ...

Bloomberg Polish wages are growing at the fastest pace since 2008, raising concern over a spike in inflation that the central bank said is temporary. Average wages in industrial sector jumped 10.1% in May compared with a year earlier, the Statistical Office said. When Poland last had double-digit wage growth, the central bank’s benchmark interest rate stood at 6%, compared ...

Bloomberg US retail sales declined in May, after a stimulus-related splurge in the prior two months, suggesting consumers are starting to shift more of their spending to services as economy reopens. The total value of retail purchases fall 1.3% in May following an upwardly revised 0.9% gain in April, Commerce Department figures showed. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey ...

Bloomberg With European stocks only just off record-highs, investors have to look harder than ever to find pockets of value. Companies that can absorb an inflation spike are in hot demand, while many think so-called value stocks are still cheap relative to growth, even after a huge rally. Others see upside potential in laggard sectors like energy and health care, ...

Bloomberg The thought of central bank policy makers easing off their campaign to liquefy bond markets has hung like a sword over equity investors for years. At least at the earnings level, there may be less reason for anguish than is usually recognised. Research from UBS Group AG says that should the Federal Reserve turn off the spigot on its ...

Abu Dhabi / WAM The UAE will remain a staunch supporter and advocate of refugee issues across the world, affirmed HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Ruler’s Representative in Al Dhafra Region, and Chairman of the Emirates Red Crescent (ERC), in a statement ahead of the World Refugee Day. HH Sheikh Hamdan said that contributing to innovative and appropriate ...

DUBAI / WAM DP World, UAE Region’s Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza) witnessed a 12 percent growth in its healthcare and pharmaceuticals customer base between 2019-2020. To showcase their commitment to promote the growth of healthcare and pharmaceutical companies, DP World, UAE Region and Jafza will participate in Arab Health 2021, one of the leading medical equipment exhibitions in the ...

Bloomberg China’s Silk Road Fund and Saudi Arabia’s Hassana Investment Co joined a group investing $12.4 billion in Saudi Aramco’s oil pipelines. The consortium, led by US firm EIG Global Energy Partners LLC, has now closed a deal to acquire a 49% equity stake in Aramco Oil Pipelines Co, a new subsidiary, according to an emailed statement. The group includes ...