January, 2021

• 4 January

  After ECB dividend cap flouted, Finnish FSA considers next step

  

  Bloomberg Finland’s financial watchdog is trying to figure out how to respond after a lender it oversees explicitly disregarded European Central Bank’s (ECB) guidelines on shareholder rewards. The decision by Alandsbanken Abp, announced on January 1, to pay almost four times the dividend cap set by the ECB is “unfortunate,” Jyri Helenius, head of banking supervision at the Finnish Financial …

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• 4 January

  Polish central bank intervenes to weaken zloty

  

  Bloomberg Poland’s central bank moved to weaken the zloty for the first time in a decade, delivering on a warning that it won’t tolerate a stronger currency as the economy tries to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic. Sales by the bank helped push the zloty down by as much as 1.7% against the euro in low-volume trading. The step comes …

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• 4 January

  Egypt central bank extends two debt relief initiatives

  

  Bloomberg Egypt’s central bank has extended two debt relief initiatives for another 6 months which were launched earlier to help companies and tourism firms struggling as a result of the coronavirus’ impact on the economy. In a statement, the regulator said the move affects companies with bank debt of less than 10 million Egyptian pounds and tourism firms with debts …

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• 4 January

  Rupiah’s year-end recovery indicates further gains in the offing

  

  Bloomberg The Indonesian rupiah may be on the cusp of a rally. Its rebound from the worst-performing Asian currency to second best in the final three months of 2020 signals potential for further gains. The removal of US election risk and supportive coronavirus vaccine developments aided the rupiah’s rise to near resistance at 13,873, its June 8 high, before it …

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• 4 January

  China’s three big telcos slide on NYSE move to delist shares

  

  Bloomberg China’s state-owned telecommunications companies declined in Hong Kong after the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) said it’s delisting them to comply with a US executive order that sanctioned companies identified as affiliated with the Chinese military. Shares of China Mobile Ltd., the largest of the three, falls as much as 4.5% on Monday to their lowest level since 2006, …

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• 4 January

  European stocks rise as crude oil, gold advance

  

  Bloomberg European stocks jumped, with miners and energy firms among the biggest gainers as commodities get a boost from the weakest dollar since 2018. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rises at the open, led higher by cyclical shares, as crude oil futures in New York approached $50 a barrel. Gold climbed more than 1% to the highest in almost two …

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• 3 January

  Iraq picks Chinese firm for $2bn oil prepayment deal

  

  Bloomberg Iraq has selected a Chinese company for a multibillion-dollar oil-supply deal, as the nation seeks funds to bolster an economy reeling from the coronavirus-triggered collapse in energy prices. SOMO, which oversees Iraq’s petroleum exports, picked a Chinese firm after receiving bids from several traders, the official Iraqi News Agency(INA) reported, citing an interview with the head of SOMO, Alaa …

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• 3 January

  Saudi Arabia lifts entry ban, keeps some virus restrictions

  

  RIYADH / WAM Entry to Saudi Arabia by sea, land and air resumed following a two week entry ban over fears of a new coronavirus variant, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported. In a statement, the Ministry of Interior said that non-citizens entering from the UK, South Africa or any other countries where the new variant spread, will require to …

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• 3 January

  China averts cash squeeze that was wreaking havoc on bonds

  

  Bloomberg China’s central bank has pumped enough cash into the banking system to convince government bond investors that the worst is finally over. Over the past month, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) has had to work especially hard to rein in borrowing costs after a surge in credit defaults damped commercial lenders’ enthusiasm to make loans. The central bank …

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• 3 January

  Deutsche Bank should play key role in banking consolidation, says CEO

  

  Bloomberg Deutsche Bank AG Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Christian Sewing wants Germany’s largest lender to play an active role in a possible consolidation of Europe’s financial services industry, he told Welt am Sonntag in an interview. The performance of the Frankfurt-based bank has been steadily improving, and that’s why the company isn’t willing to be a junior partner if mergers …

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