March, 2016

• 1 March

  Next USA recession may not be a biggie, but could be tardy

  

  NEW YORK / Bloomberg If the U.S. enters a recession this year, it may end up a lot like a boring conversation at a cocktail party: painfully long and shallow. The world’s largest economy has a host of strengths, from well-capitalized banks to financially-stable households, which should help limit the depth of a downturn should one happen. Yet with interest ...

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• 1 March

  Ex-prez Lula under probe in Brazil Carwash case

  Rio De Janeiro /Bloomberg A letter from the prosecutor-general’s office made public on Monday confirms that the federal task force in charge of Brazil’s sweeping corruption probe known as Carwash has been investigating former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva since late last year. The federal task force is probing Lula’s involvement during his time as president with construction companies ...

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• 1 March

  Argentina eyes $15bn bond sale

  

  Buenos Aires / Bloomberg Argentina’s deal to put a bitter 15-year creditor saga behind it won’t come cheap. The country agreed to terms with bondholders led by hedge fund billionaire Paul Singer over unpaid debts from its record $95 billion default in 2001. The settlement, which will let Argentina regain access to overseas bond markets, is the biggest, and arguably ...

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• 1 March

  Pemex halts deepwater projects to stem losses

  Bloomberg Mexico’s state-owned oil company is taking deepwater development off its plate for now. Driven to rip $5.5 billion out of its budget this year to cope with a lengthening market downturn, it makes sense that Petroleos Mexicanos would look first to its riskiest and most expensive operations. The company reported its 13th quarterly loss, bringing its total losses for ...

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• 1 March

  Sugar-cane fuel wins in Brazil as cheap ethanol beats gasoline

  

  BLOOMBERG Brazil’s economic and political crises are proving to be a boon to one of the nation’s most embattled sectors: ethanol producers. Drivers, who used to switch between ethanol and gas depending on the price gap, are now just going for the cheaper, less-efficient ethanol as they try to cut short-term spending amid a battle with inflation as high as ...

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• 1 March

  Banks must respond promptly to changes in working capital needs

  

  Bloomberg With liquidity in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region falling and economic growth cooling, companies want to maximise the efficiency of their cashflow and working capital finance. They are starting to look for more complex instruments, driving change in the banking sector. Traditionally, firms sourcing supplies from abroad simply used letters of credit (LCs). The LC then allowed the ...

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• 1 March

  Deutsche Bank buys back $740mn of dollar bonds

  

  Frankfurt / AFP Deutsche Bank has announced further results of the bond buyback scheme aimed at boosting confidence in its financial solidity, insisting that the low take-up was proof of investors’ trust in Germany’s biggest lender. Earlier this month, Deutsche Bank had announced plans to repurchase up to $2.0 billion of dollar-denominated securities, as well as 3.0 billion euros of ...

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• 1 March

  Barclays loss ups, to sell African bank unit stake

  London / Bloomberg British bank Barclays on Tuesday said net losses more than doubled last year and announced plans to gradually reduce its majority stake in the group’s African unit. Barclays also said it would split the company overall into two units, Barclays UK and Barclays Corporate and International, as it undergoes major restructuring under new chief chief executive Jes ...

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• 1 March

  Maybank’s investment banking head leaves

  

  Kuala Lumpur / Bloomberg Giles Ong, Malayan Banking Bhd.’s head of Asia investment banking, is leaving after building the advisory business beyond the lender’s home market during his four-year tenure. Ong, 46, tendered his resignation last week, according to an e-mail he sent to colleagues that was obtained by Bloomberg News. In a telephone interview Tuesday, he confirmed the contents ...

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• 1 March

  BOE defies EU on bonus cap for smaller firms

  

  London / Bloomberg The Bank of England (BOE) defied European Union regulators by retaining a bonus-cap exemption for smaller UK financial firms, as the bloc’s policy makers reassess remuneration rules that have been repeatedly blasted by British regulators. The BOE and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said that they will comply with all EU remuneration rules apart from applying the ...

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