October, 2018

• 2 October

  Abe keeps core economic team

  

  Bloomberg Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe kept his economic team including Finance Minister Taro Aso and added several first-time cabinet members in a reshuffle following his election last month to a third-straight term as ruling party leader. The Japanese prime minister, who’s in position to become Japan’s longest-serving premier, has said he would prioritize a divisive effort to change the ...

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• 2 October

  Rupiah weakens past 15,000 per dollar

  

  Bloomberg Indonesia’s rupiah weakened past 15,000 per dollar for the first time in 20 years as sentiment towards emerging-nation assets soured and oil prices jumped. The currency has tumbled almost 10 percent this year as rising US interest rates have boosted the dollar and Indonesia’s current-account deficit has left the economy exposed to the financial turmoil that afflicted Turkey and ...

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• 2 October

  New Nafta deal: Trump opens door to metal tariff accord

  

  Bloomberg With a Nafta deal on the table — and a bullet dodged for the auto sector — the clock is ticking for the next key trade talks for Canada’s steel and aluminum industries. After a marathon weekend of discussions, negotiators secured a deal to replace the 24-year-old Nafta agreement just before the deadline. However, the steel and aluminum tariffs ...

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• 2 October

  Clouds part for US farmers as new deal secures exports

  

  Bloomberg After months of negative news, American farmers rejoiced as the US finally secured a trade deal with both Canada and Mexico. The pact comes just as US growers are harvesting mammoth corn and soybean crops and domestic meat production balloons. The outlook for big supplies combined with trade tensions, especially with China, had sparked a prolonged rout for agriculture ...

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• 2 October

  UK sees post-Brexit immigration system tied to trade pacts

  

  Bloomberg The UK government envisages a post-Brexit immigration system that treats all nations equally, but gives ministers the flexibility to tailor rules for countries striking trade deals. High-skilled workers will be prioritised and low-skilled immigration curbed under new rules announced by Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday, a day before her leader’s speech at the Conservative Party annual conference. May ...

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• 2 October

  BMW’s new 3-Series sedan comes with tech array to battle Mercedes

  

  Bloomberg BMW AG has packed its revamped 3-Series sedan with tech gadgetry like smartphone entry, auto-reverse and an in-car assistant that learns drivers’ routines, aimed at delivering a crucial sales bump after growth slowed. The best-selling model, unveiled at the Paris car show and available in March, demonstrates how manufacturers have moved away from luring customers with luxurious trimmings and ...

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• 2 October

  San Francisco leads US in wage growth

  Bloomberg America’s tech hub is leading the country in wage growth, according to a new report. San Francisco saw wages rise 3.9 percent since last September, bringing median base pay to $70,361 per year, according to Glassdoor Inc.’s Local Pay Report, which tracks wage growth for certain full-time employees in 10 cities thro-ugh an analysis of anony- mous salary data. ...

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• 2 October

  China’s beltway bubble makes trade truce harder

  

  Beyond retaliating with more tariffs and ads in Iowa newspapers, Chinese leaders have yet to devise a coherent strategy for contending with US President Donald Trump’s escalating trade war. Perhaps they can’t figure out what his divided and erratic administration actually wants. Or maybe they’re so dead set on pursuing their own economic agenda that they just don’t care. There ...

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• 2 October

  IMF’s new chief economist a great choice

  

  Having followed Gita Gopinath’s work closely for several years, I am delighted the International Monetary Fund appointed her to head its influential research department as chief economist. Gopinath, a professor of International Studies and Economics at Harvard University and co-director of the International Finance and Macroeconomics program at the National Bureau of Economic Research, brings expertise, insights and cognitive diversity ...

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• 2 October

  Central banks can’t save you in the next recession

  EWarning: Steep grade ahead. When the US economic expansion reverses, and when emerging markets start to slip faster, the world’s central banks may not be able to help. Of course, the next recession may not be another “great recession.” And I’m not predicting it’s imminent. For now the Federal Reserve is continuing to raise interest rates on schedule, and Europe ...

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