September, 2022

• 27 September

  Colombia, Venezuela re-open border after years of hostility

  

    Bloomberg Colombia and Venezuela fully re-opened their border, potentially reactivating billions of dollars in trade that dried up during years of diplomatic tension. Trucks transporting metals and decorated in the colors of the Venezuelan flag was set to cross a bridge near Cucuta, Colombia, to start a day-long ceremony, which newly elected leftist President Gustavo Petro is expected to ...

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• 27 September

  EU warns Serbia against its ‘business as usual’ Russia policy

    Bloomberg Serbia, a candidate nation for European Union membership, should rethink continuing cooperation with the Kremlin as a recent bilateral deal with Russia raises serious questions, an official for the bloc said. Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Serbian counterpart Nikola Selakovic signed a two-year plan on mutual consultations last week. Some opposition groups in Serbia slammed the ...

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• 26 September

  Lula is near first-round win days before Brazil vote, poll shows

    Bloomberg Brazil’s Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva inched closer to an outright win in this weekend’s presidential elections, a new poll found. Front-runner Lula ticked upward, now claiming 48% of valid votes in the first round from 47% a week ago, according to a survey by FSB Pesquisa released on Monday. Incumbent President Jair Bolsonaro was unchanged at 37%. ...

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• 26 September

  Wall Street banks prep for grim China scenarios over Taiwan

  

    Bloomberg Global financial firms, still smarting from multi-billion dollar losses in Russia, are now reassessing the risks of doing business in Greater China after an escalation of tensions over Taiwan. Lenders including Societe Generale SA, JPMorgan Chase & Co, UBS Group have asked their staff to review contingency plans in the past few months to manage exposures, according to ...

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• 26 September

  Japan yen intervention was appropriate: BOJ’s Kuroda

  

  Bloomberg Bank of Japan (BOJ) Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said the government’s intervention in the foreign exchange market last week was appropriate given the recent volatility in the yen. The government’s action didn’t contradict with the BOJ’s ongoing monetary stimulus as the former is aimed at countering rapid, one-sided slide in the yen while the central bank’s monetary easing needs to ...

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• 26 September

  Naira’s gap with official rate widens to most since 2016

  

    Bloomberg A wide gap has emerged between Nigeria’s official and parallel market exchange rates of the naira, the widest since 2016, as central bank failure to meet increasing dollar demand puts pressure on the currency. The local currency unit weakened to 715 naira against the dollar in the unauthorised parallel market, according to Umar Salisu, a bureau de change ...

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• 26 September

  Swiss National Bank chief Jordan hints at further interest-rate hikes

  

    Bloomberg Further Swiss National Bank interest rate hikes can’t be excluded, central bank chief Thomas Jordan said, stressing his determination after his institution’s latest move fell short of market expectations. Although inflation in Switzerland is lower than elsewhere, “in this country, too, it has still increased much more than was generally expected”, Jordan said at the University of Lucerne, ...

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• 26 September

  ECB’s Simkus says half point is minimum hike for October

    Bloomberg The European Central Bank (ECB) will raise borrowing costs next month by at least a half-point as inflation pressures worsen, according to Governing Council member Gediminas Simkus. “Based on data I see now, the inflationary trends are intensifying,” the Lithuanian central bank chief told reporters on Monday in Vilnius. “There are a few options on the table” for ...

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• 26 September

  RBA’s digital currency pilot likely next year

    Bloomberg The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is working to identify business models and uses for a central bank digital currency, or eAUD, and is likely to conduct a pilot early next year. The project, which began in July, will help “further understanding of some of the technological, legal and regulatory considerations associated with a CBDC,” the RBA and ...

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• 26 September

  China’s CCB to set up $4.2 billion fund to buy properties

  

    Bloomberg China Construction Bank Corp (CCB) will set up a 30 billion yuan ($4.2 billion) fund to buy properties from developers, as policy makers beef up efforts to contain a real estate crisis that’s weighing on the economy. The fund will “invest in existing assets” of real estate companies and renovate the properties into rental housing, the lender said ...

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