March, 2016

• 21 March

  Kazakhs vote as economy struggles amid oil slump

  

  Astana / Bloomberg Kazakhs are going to the polls in early parliamentary elections called after President Nursultan Nazarbayev warned of a “real crisis” facing the Central Asian nation because of the slump in oil prices. Six parties are competing for 98 elected seats in the 107-member parliament, which also has nine appointed delegates. Voting on Sunday begins at 7 a.m. ...

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• 21 March

  India jewellers call off strike against excise tax

  New Delhi / Bloomberg Jewellers in India, the world’s second-biggest gold consumer, ended a strike to protest against a new tax announced in the budget after the government assured them the charges won’t lead to harassment by authorities. The strike, which started on March 2, ended after the government agreed not to “trouble the industry” over the excise levy, Ketan ...

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• 21 March

  B’desh US$81mn heist exposes Philippine dirty money secrets

  

  Manila / AFP When mystery hackers launched a stunning raid on Bangladesh’s foreign reserves, a plot worthy of a John le Carre spy novel was sparked in the Philippines, exposing the Southeast Asian nation as a dirty money haven. The $81 million stolen from the Bangladesh central bank’s American accounts last month was immediately sent via electronic transfer to the ...

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• 21 March

  China minister brushes off concern over outlook cut

  Beijing / Bloomberg Chinese Finance Minister Lou Jiwei downplayed a decision by Moody’s Investors Service Inc. to cut his country’s credit-rating outlook, saying leaders “didn’t care that much” because the move had little market impact. The March 2 downgrade didn’t lead to irrational market behavior or aggressive short-selling, Lou said at the China Development Forum, a gathering of world business ...

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• 21 March

  Australia budget to focus on jobs, economic growth

  Sydney / Bloomberg The Australian government is focusing on boosting jobs and economic growth as it prepares for the annual budget, which is still scheduled to be delivered on May 10, according to Cabinet Secretary Arthur Sinodinos. “The overriding objective is how do various government policies contribute to higher jobs and growth, in other words how do we continue to ...

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• 21 March

  Rising gold price in Singapore helps burnish mining stocks

  Singapore / DPA The surging gold price has lifted gold mining stocks in Singapore. The precious metal has jumped almost 20 per cent in price since the end of last year to trade above US$1,250 per ounce in recent weeks. Of the three gold miners listed on the Singapore Exchange, two have bucked the bearish tide across the wider market ...

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• 21 March

  Corporates in line for ECB funding

  

  Paris / AFP The European Central Bank’s plan to buy corporate bonds to help the eurozone economy is boosting the private-sector debt market which promptly responded with a new record-sized company bond. With interest rates near or below zero and few other monetary policy tools left in its arsenal, the ECB announced earlier this month that it would begin buying ...

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• 21 March

  ‘I quit over welfare plan, not EU vote’

  

  Bloomberg Iain Duncan Smith, who resigned as U.K. work & pensions secretary last week, denied accusations that his move was aimed at undermining Prime Minister David Cameron amid Conservative Party divisions over the European Union. Duncan Smith told BBC Television’s “Andrew Marr Show” on Sunday he quit solely because the government’s tax and welfare changes are unfair. “This is not ...

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• 21 March

  Telecom Italia CEO Patuano to step down after Vivendi clash

  

  Bloomberg Telecom Italia SpA Chief Executive Officer Marco Patuano will resign after clashing with Vivendi SA, the company’s biggest investor, two officials at the carrier said, ending a 2 1/2-year tenure leading Italy’s former phone monopoly. Chairman Giuseppe Recchi will assume Patuano’s duties until a replacement is appointed, the officials said. They asked not to be named because Patuano, 51, ...

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• 21 March

  Czech CB candidate sees low probability of negative rates

  

  Bloomberg Czech policy makers will probably use negative interest rates only if they need another instrument to deter “excessive” capital inflows, according to Jiri Rusnok, the top candidate to become the next central bank governor. “We can’t give up that tool, but at the same time I think the probability of it being used is really low,” Rusnok, who joined ...

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