August, 2020

• 23 August

  Amazon India partner faces ‘deadline’

  Bloomberg Amazon.com Inc’s India brick and mortar retail partner Future Retail Ltd is in talks with banks to help fund a missed interest payment before a deadline. The company failed to pay $14 million of interest due July 22 on its 5.6% 2025 dollar notes, and is in a 30-day grace period that expired last week. If payment were not ...

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• 23 August

  Opposition gathers as Belarus leader tries to subdue protests

  

  Bloomberg Protesters gathered in Minsk as opposition forces try to keep up pressure on Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, while his security apparatus makes a show of force in the country’s capital. Police patrols on main highways leading to Minsk are slowing incoming traffic and making it harder for protesters from other parts of the country to reach the capital. Rainy ...

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• 23 August

  Beijing urges Manila to halt ‘provocations’ at sea

  

  Bloomberg China’s patrols in the South China Sea are “beyond reproach” and air patrols by the Philippines infringe on its sovereignty, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said. Zhao, at a briefing, defended the China Coast Guard’s activities and urged the Philippines to “immediately stop” what he described as “illegal provocations.” The Philippines’ Department of Foreign Affairs said in a ...

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• 23 August

  Philippines sees no call for revolutionary govt

  Bloomberg The Philippines said there is no overwhelming call for a revolutionary government, in response to a private group’s push to create one. About 300 people, including supporters who participated online, assembled at the Clark Freeport to support a revolutionary government to be led by President Rodrigo Duterte until the end of his term in 2022, the Philippine Daily Inquirer ...

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• 23 August

  China vows continued support for HK as financial hub

  

  Bloomberg China’s banking regulator pledged its backing for Hong Kong as a finance hub and reiterated a commitment to opening up the Chinese financial sector amid a deepening standoff with the US. China will provide support for its financial institutions who are doing business in Hong Kong while complying with regulations and offering services to residents and companies, the China ...

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• 23 August

  South Korea warns of ‘massive’ virus risk

  

  Bloomberg The South Korean government is studying the need to raise social-distancing restrictions to the highest level as officials warn the country is at the risk of a “massive nationwide outbreak.” An additional 397 new virus cases were reported, the highest number since March 7. A quarter of those cases were reported outside of Seoul’s metropolitan area. Infections have exceeded ...

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• 23 August

  Cause of Navalny illness may be unknown for days

  

  Bloomberg Alexei Navalny, the Russian anti-corruption campaigner who has been in a coma since last week, is being examined at a German hospital and it may be days before officials can confirm or reject accusations that he was poisoned. Navalny was in “very critical” but stable condition according to an ally who helped organise his evacuation from Russia to Berlin’s ...

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• 23 August

  Goldman plans to raise about $2bn for a new venture fund

  

  Bloomberg Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is considering raising a venture and growth fund of around $2 billion, a move that would make it a bigger player in the competitive world of technology investing, according to people familiar with the matter. A $2 billion fund for investing in growth- and venture-stage companies would be one of larger ones in the industry ...

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• 23 August

  Thai banks strong, able to deal with impact of virus

  

  Bloomberg Thailand’s commercial banks are financially sound and are able to withstand any economic impact from the pandemic, Bank of Thailand Deputy Governor Ronadol Numnonda said in a statement on Sunday. The banking system’s capital fund is strong with an adequacy ratio, or BIS ratio, at the “high level” of 19.2% by the end of June. Lenders are profitable and ...

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• 23 August

  Fed used only a fraction of Main Street lending facility: Report

  

  Bloomberg The Federal Reserve has used only a fraction of the $600 billion in an emergency lending program for small and medium businesses struggling with the Covid pandemic, according to a congressional watchdog report. Eligible lenders participating in the Main Street program have issued $496.8 million in loans, of which $472 million is Federal Reserve money, or about 0.07% of ...

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