June, 2019

• 22 June

  BOJ stands pat as Fed, ECB signal rate cuts amid global growth risks

  

  Bloomberg The Bank of Japan (BOJ) kept monetary policy unchanged, just hours after the Federal Reserve became the latest central bank to signal a willingness to cut interest rates in the face of rising threats to global growth. The BOJ maintained its interest rates and asset purchases, it said in a statement. All 50 economists surveyed by Bloomberg had predicted ...

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• 22 June

  Brazil holds interest rate at a record low

  

  Bloomberg Brazil held its benchmark interest rate at a record low and signaled it can cut borrowing costs to help a frail economy once a key austerity measure advances further in Congress. The bank’s board, led by its President Roberto Campos Neto, kept the Selic unchanged at 6.50 percent in a decision expected by all but one of the 39 ...

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• 22 June

  StanChart makes ‘digital fray’ in Ivory Coast

  

  Bloomberg In the Ivory Coast, Standard Chartered Plc may have found its template for the future of banking. Didier Drogba, the retired Ivorian soccer star, was drafted as a “digital bank ambassador” on social media. Fifteen months later, more than 18,000 of his compatriots have signed up for digital-only accounts, outstripping the London-based lender’s early targets. Ivory Coast is just ...

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• 22 June

  Lloyds fined $58mn by FCA over HBOS scandal

  

  Bloomberg Lloyds Banking Group Plc’s Bank of Scotland unit was fined $58 million by UK’s finance regulator over a scandal at the bank’s Reading division that siphoned millions from failing businesses a decade ago. The company “failed to alert the regulator and the police about suspicions of fraud at its Reading branch when those suspicions first became apparent,” the Financial ...

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• 22 June

  Pilots’ union appeals to Boeing chief for Max simulator time

  

  Bloomberg The union for American Airlines Group pilots is redoubling its push for time in a Boeing 737 Max simulator, saying aviators should be given access before the grounded plane returns to service. Dan Carey, a veteran American pilot and head of the Allied Pilots Association (APA), appealed to Boeing Chief Executive Officer Dennis Muilenburg a day after testifying before ...

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• 22 June

  Airlines avoid Strait of Hormuz amid ‘Iran-US tensions’

  

  Bloomberg Airlines worldwide are diverting flights away from southern Iran, lengthening travel times, after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an edict barring American operators from the region amid escalating tensions with the Persian Gulf country. Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Dutch carrier KLM and Qantas Airways Ltd of Australia are among carriers re-routing long-haul services to avoid the Strait of Hormuz, ...

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• 22 June

  Amazon’s US online market share estimate cut to 38pct

  

  Bloomberg A closely watched researcher has cut its estimate of Amazon.com Inc’s share of the US e-commerce market after incorporating new figures from the company. EMarketer Inc, among the most widely cited sources for estimates of US online retail sales, says it now expects Amazon to account for 37.7 percent of online commerce this year, down from a prior estimate ...

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• 22 June

  Shake Shack is staying away from vegan burgers

  Bloomberg Shake Shack is staying away from vegan burgers, at least for now. The fast-food chain, known for its Pat LaFrieda beef and fries, is watching the vegan-burger trend that’s been turbocharged by Beyond Meat Inc’s massive post-IPO stock rally. But Shake Shack isn’t ready to get on board, according to CEO Randy Garutti. First, the chain, which made its name ...

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• 22 June

  Toys ‘R’ Us, back from the dead, to open US stores in 2019

  

  Bloomberg Maybe American kids will only have to live through one Christmas without Toys ‘R’ Us. About a year after shuttering US operations, the remnant of the defunct toy chain is set to return this holiday season by opening about a half dozen US stores and an e-commerce site, according to people familiar with the matter. Richard Barry, a former ...

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• 19 June

  More than 70m people fleeing war, persecution worldwide: UNHCR

  GENEVA / WAM The number of people fleeing war, persecution, and conflict exceeded 70 million in 2018. This is the highest level that UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, has seen in its almost 70 years. Data from UNHCR’s annual Global Trends report, released on Wednesday, shows almost 70.8 million people are now forcibly displaced. To put this in perspective, this ...

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