March, 2023

• 13 March

  Xi urges focus on security amid simmering US tensions

  

  BLOOMBERG Xi Jinping started an unprecedented third term as China’s president with fresh vows to ensure stability and strengthen party leadership, as he faces a future of slower growth and greater confrontation with the US. “Security is the foundation for development, and stability is the precondition for prosperity,” Xi said on Monday to close out the annual National People’s Congress ...

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• 13 March

  Pakistan’s former PM Imran Khan seeks more security at court hearings

  

  BLOOMBERG Pakistan’s former premier Imran Khan is requesting the courts to hear his cases in a high-security judicial complex in the country’s capital after he skipped a lower court proceeding where he would have been formally indicted. The legal tussles over Khan’s appearance in various court cases adds to the political turmoil that has gripped the South Asian nation since ...

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• 13 March

  Xi to call Ukraine’s Zelenskiy after Russia visit next week

  

  BLOOMBERG Chinese President Xi Jinping and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskiy plan to speak by video link in what would be their first conversation since Russia’s invasion, a Ukrainian official familiar with the preparations said. No date has yet been set for the conversation, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss matters that aren’t yet public. There was ...

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• 13 March

  UAE’s ‘Bridges of Goodness’ campaign launches in Latakia

  

  LATAKIA / WAM The UAE’s “Bridges of Goodness” relief campaign launched on Monday in Latakia, Syria, in support for the quake victims as part of the Operation “The Gallant Knight 2”. The campaign is organised by the Emirates Red Crescent (ERC) in collaboration with the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC). Engineer Amer Ismael Hilal, Governor of Latakia, along with a ...

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• 13 March

  GE jumps most since 2021 on upbeat aerospace margins

  

  BLOOMBERG General Electric (GE) Co jumped the most in more than two years after forecasting continued expansion of profit margins at its aviation division as an independent business. The GE Aerospace business, which now primarily makes and services jet engines, should also see revenue growth at a mid- to high-single-digit rate and generate free cash flow “in line with net ...

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• 13 March

  Gap tumbles as downbeat forecast follows sales miss

  

  BLOOMBERG Gap Inc shares tumbled after the retailer reported quarterly sales that missed Wall Street’s estimates, an indication that it struggled to attract shoppers during the holiday season despite deep discounts. Comparable sales, a key gauge for retailers, fell 5% in the fourth quarter ended on January 28, compared with analysts’ average estimate of a 2.7% decline. Gap expects the ...

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• 13 March

  Asia-Pacific travellers return with different tastes in 2023

  

  BLOOMBERG Travellers are set to come out in fuller force across the Asia-Pacific region this year, though still-high inflation and structural hurdles likely will leave the critical industry still far from pre-Covid levels. Tourist arrivals across the region should reach about half of their 2019 levels, with a full recovery to pre-pandemic norms pushed back to 2025 or 2026, according ...

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• 13 March

  Biden scraps Trump’s Air Force One fleet update, selects its iconic look

  

  BLOOMBERG The US president’s plane is getting a new paint job — and it looks a lot like the old one. President Joe Biden has selected a white, light blue and yellow scheme for a modern update to the fleet of Air Force One planes, which are specially modified Boeing Co 747s. The decision scraps plans by former President Donald ...

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• 13 March

  Credit Suisse default swaps hit record over SVB failure

  

  BLOOMBERG The cost of insuring the bonds of Credit Suisse Group AG against default climbed to the highest on record as the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank sparked concern about broader contagion in the banking industry. Five-year credit default swaps for the Zurich-based lender jumped as much as 44 basis points 446 basis points, data compiled by Bloomberg show. They ...

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• 13 March

  US regional banks remain under pressure as First Republic sinks

  

  BLOOMBERG The positive effect from the American regulators’ overnight support actions in the banking system quickly evaporated, with stocks signalling that fallout from the incident is far from over. S&P 500 futures erased most earlier gains and traded little changed, while Nasdaq futures trimmed their advance and the Cboe Volatility Index spiked, set for the highest since end-October. Turmoil continued ...

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