February, 2019

• 24 February

  Europe’s junk bonds head for an accident

  What happened to Europe’s high-yield bond market? It has been a banner year so far for bond issuance for investment grade companies and governments. But for those with weaker credit ratings, sales are about 60 percent down from the same time last year. This is a worrying sign that financing is shutting off for the borrowers that are most vulnerable ...

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• 24 February

  Donald Trump’s car tariffs would hit Eastern Europe

  

  Germany may be the biggest likely victim of any punitive US tariffs on car imports, but the industry’s complex geography means other European countries would also be hurt – and in relative terms, some may take an even bigger hit. Two of them, Italy and Hungary, are run by populist governments with leaders well-disposed towards President Donald Trump. Eight of ...

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• 24 February

  Sainsbury should scrap Asda deal

  

  Sasda is looking more like Sad-sda after UK regulators said they could block the proposed combination of J Sainsbury Plc and Walmart Inc.’s British subsidiary, Asda. The Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA) findings are more onerous than even the worst case scenarios that the two companies or financial analysts had mapped out. But they do have a silver lining for ...

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• 24 February

  Brexiters should give up Singapore-on-Thames fantasy

  

  Many pro-Brexit Brits are taken with the idea that the UK doesn’t need to belong to a large bloc any more than its tiny former colony Singapore does. The Southeast Asian city-state, they argue, has flourished by lowering taxes and opening up its economy to trade and investment, and so can a post-Europe Britain. Those excited about the prospects for ...

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• 24 February

  From best to worst, India’s stock market is setting off alarm bells

  

  Bloomberg Two months ago, it was Asia’s hottest stock market. Now, investors are shunning it. India has wiped out $113 billion in value this year after winning the regional equity crown in 2018. Uncertainty surrounding upcoming elections, an ongoing debt issue, a government that’s making greater demands on the central bank and high valuations have kept investors on the sidelines. ...

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• 24 February

  Traders hitch fortunes to yuan, with fixation over currency pact

  

  Bloomberg Traders are likely to return to work on Monday with a little less angst as the world’s biggest economies edge towards a trade deal. All eyes will be on the yuan as the US and China discuss the critical issue of enforcement in a proposed agreement that would ensure Beijing lives up to its promise to not depreciate the ...

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• 24 February

  ECB loans ripe for rethink amid economic slowdown in region

  

  Bloomberg European Central Bank (ECB) officials poised to debate the need for new long-term loans for banks might have some even bigger thinking to do. With less than two weeks to go before the Governing Council meets, policy makers are gearing up to discuss whether their response to the region’s economic slowdown should include an update to its targeted lending ...

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• 24 February

  Fed must do more to boost diversity in ranks: Brainard

  

  Bloomberg Federal Reserve Governor Lael Brainard said the US central bank must improve its recruitment of women and people from minority backgrounds because greater diversity leads to better policy decisions. Noting that it was more than a century after the Fed’s creation that the one of its 12 regional banks was headed by an African American — Raphael Bostic, who ...

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• 24 February

  Singapore lenders flag risks from trade war, slowing world economy

  

  Bloomberg After being stung by the market turmoil at the end of last year, Singapore’s banks are bracing for fresh challenges from China-US trade tensions and a slowing world economy. “We expect ongoing global uncertainties to continue to weigh on business sentiment in the near term,” United Overseas Bank Ltd. Chief Executive Officer Wee Ee Cheong told reporters in Singapore ...

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• 24 February

  South Africa sees CPI target staying as range

  

  Bloomberg South Africa’s central bank is unlikely to officially pursue a single point-inflation target soon even though it prefers to anchor price growth close to the 4.5 percent mid-point of its goal range, an adviser to Governor Lesetja Kganyago said. The target range of 3 percent to 6 percent allows for flexibility in protecting the economy from price shocks, Fundi ...

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