January, 2020

• 27 January

  UAE, India discuss ways to enhance cooperation

  ABU DHABI / WAM Mohammed bin Ahmed Al Bowardi, Minister of State for Defence Affairs, received Pavan Kapoor, Ambassador of India to UAE, to discuss ways of promoting bilateral ties between UAE and India. The two sides explored ways of enhancing cooperation relations across various fields. They also reviewed issues of mutual interest and exchanged views on regional, international developments. …

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• 27 January

  Oil falls to 3-month low over coronavirus fears

  

  Bloomberg Oil tumbled to the lowest in more than three months on fears China’s deadly coronavirus will hit demand in a market that already has plentiful supply. Futures plunged more than 3% as China reported an increase in fatalities and infections. While the country extended the Lunar New Year holiday to control the outbreak, more cases have been reported in …

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• 27 January

  Deadly coronavirus fears drive sell-off in stocks, oil, yuan

  

  Bloomberg Intensifying concern about the economic and human impact of the coronavirus sent stocks, oil and China’s yuan tumbling on Monday while spurring haven assets. Treasuries gained and Italian bonds jumped after regional elections. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index headed for its worst decline since October, with miners dropping by more than 4%. Contracts on the main US equity benchmarks …

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• 27 January

  Thai stocks drop most since 2016 on ‘tour ban’

  

  Bloomberg Thailand’s stock market tumbled on the prospect of economic turbulence after China banned outbound group tours to fight the spread of the novel coronavirus that’s sickened thousands of people. The SET index slid 2.9% on Monday, the most since 2016, with tourism shares among those bearing the brunt of the drop. The baht weakened in line with emerging-market currencies …

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• 27 January

  Abe’s first pick in BOJ board rejig to test inflation resolve

  

  Bloomberg Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s upcoming choice of candidate to join the Bank of Japan (BOJ) board could shed light on the leader’s current thinking on the importance of achieving a stubbornly difficult inflation goal. Abe’s nomination to replace Yutaka Harada is scheduled to take place on Tuesday morning, according to a document seen by Bloomberg. The choice will …

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• 27 January

  Switzerland’s central bank is stomaching stronger franc for now

  

  Bloomberg Sight deposits at the Swiss National Bank increased only marginally last week, suggesting President Thomas Jordan and his colleagues aren’t taking much action to counter the strengthening franc. Iran-US tensions and fears about the spreading Coronavirus has lifted the haven franc this year. Earlier on Monday, it breached the 1.07 per euro mark to touch a fresh three-year high. …

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• 27 January

  ‘Demand for Treasuries will prove short-lived’

  

  Bloomberg JPMorgan Chase & Co strategists are betting that the surge in demand for Treasuries thanks to fears about the deadly coronavirus will prove short-lived, sticking with a call to sell longer-dated bonds. Among the Wall Street bank’s other takeaways from the latest market-outlook reports: the outbreak of the disease is a “clear negative” for emerging Asian currencies, while for …

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• 27 January

  Credit Suisse orders HK staff  to work from home

  

  Bloomberg Credit Suisse Group SA has told its staff in Hong Kong not to come into the office for at least 14 days if they’ve just visited mainland China, according to a memo seen by Bloomberg News. Employees who’ve visited the mainland in the past two weeks should discuss with their division manager and HR before returning to work after …

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• 27 January

  Thai baht is brought back to earth after winning year in Asia

  

  Bloomberg The Thai baht has gone from being Asia’s top-performing currency in 2019 to dead last in January. Finishing in the middle of the pack may be the best that can be expected this year as the central bank and a host of other forces line up against it. The currency’s 9% surge in the 12 months through December was …

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• 27 January

  Changing weather to push Rwanda inflation: Central bank

  Bloomberg Changing weather patterns are pushing up food prices and will drive inflation in Rwanda for the first few months of this year, central bank Governor John Rwangombwa said. Unexpectedly heavy rains in the second half of 2019 caused some crop damage and food inflation reached 23.8% in December, the highest in almost three years. “Because of the bad rains …

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