April, 2023

• 2 April

  Australian prime minister wins by-election

  

  BLOOMBERG Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese won a historic victory at a by-election in the state of Victoria, becoming the first government in more than 100 years to take a district off the opposition outside a national vote. The ruling Labor party’s candidate, Mary Doyle, was set to win the district of Aston in eastern Melbourne, according to Australian Broadcasting ...

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• 2 April

  Bulgarians vote to end deadlock, mounting crises as war weighs in

  

  BLOOMBERG Bulgarians are voting in their fifth election in two years, seeking to end turmoil that has paralysed the political system and put at risk European Union (EU) unity over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Balkan country has been grappling with a political stalemate after a series of inconclusive votes — most recently in October — has given no political ...

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• 2 April

  North Korea close to completing new nuclear reactor, says 38 North

  

  BLOOMBERG Satellite images indicate North Korea may be close to completing a new reactor in its major nuclear complex in Yongbyon, according to 38 North, a Washington-based website that tracks events in the country. Construction crews are working on a support building at the site’s Experimental Light Water Reactor (ELWR) development and water discharges have been spotted near the ELWR’s ...

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• 2 April

  China ready to speed up talks with Asean on South China Sea

  

  BLOOMBERG China is ready to work with Malaysia and other Southeast Asian nations to speed up consultation for a South China Sea code of conduct, Xinhua reported, citing Premier Li Qiang. Beijing is prepared to collaborate to jointly maintain peace and stability of the area, Li was cited as saying during a meeting with visiting Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. ...

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• 2 April

  ICICI plans to double wealth bankers, eyes $60b of assets

  

  BLOOMBERG ICICI Securities Ltd aims to double its wealth managers and boost the assets from rich clients to $60 billion in the next two years, as competition ramps up in India’s rapidly growing wealth industry. The current crisis at Credit Suisse Group AG and the uncertainty around its wealth business in India could provide some hiring opportunities, said Anupam Guha, ...

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• 2 April

  UBS to slash workforce by 20-30% after CS takeover

  

  BLOOMBERG UBS Group AG will cut its workforce by between 20% and 30% after completing its takeover of Credit Suisse Group AG, slashing as many as 36,000 jobs worldwide,  SonntagsZeitung reported, citing a senior manager at UBS. As many as 11,000 employees will be laid off in Switzerland, the Swiss newspaper said. The two lenders together employed almost 125,000 people ...

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• 2 April

  US bank deposits, lending drop sharply in two years amid turmoil

  

  BLOOMBERG Deposits at US banks fell sharply and lending declined by the most in nearly two years amid financial turmoil triggered by the collapse of several banks in March. Commercial bank deposits dropped by $125.7 billion in the week ended on March 22, marking the ninth-straight period of declines, according to data by the Federal Reserve. At domestically chartered banks, ...

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• 2 April

  ‘Central banks alone can’t fight inflation’

  

  BLOOMBERG Italian Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said monetary-policy measures alone can’t tame inflation. “Fighting inflation with monetary policy is not enough, and recession can’t be the price to pay for fighting inflation,” Giorgetti said at the Ambrosetti workshop in Cernobbio, Italy. Faced with the biggest cost-of-living crisis in a generation in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, governments across ...

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• 2 April

  China’s big banks face tough year after posting profit gains

  

  BLOOMBERG China’s biggest state-owned banks warned of a tough 2023 as uncertain economic conditions may squeeze earnings after most delivered better-than-estimated profit growth for last year. China’s tightly controlled $54 trillion banking industry was pushed to extend more credit in 2022 to help cushion the economy from a slowdown triggered by the nation’s strict pursuit of Covid zero, which helped ...

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• 2 April

  EVs, high-end models to offset weakening demand, says BMW

  

  BLOOMBERG BMW AG expects 2023 profit margins around last year’s level as sales of its most expensive vehicles like the 7-Series offset weaker pricing for entry-level luxury models. Automaking returns are expected to stay between 8% and 10% this year, in line with long term targets, the Munich-based carmaker said. BMW said deliveries will likely tick higher after dropping nearly ...

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