Ukraine is Putin’s ‘tool’ to put Europe on its knees, says Albanian premier

Bloomberg A key motivation for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine was to sow turmoil more broadly in Europe, and he’s now seeking to make the entire continent suffer, according to Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama. Speaking in an interview at his office in the capital, Tirana, Rama described Ukraine as “the tool to fulfill the ambition of Vladimir ...

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Malaysia expects budget talks soon

  Bloomberg Malaysia’s lawmakers are expected to discuss the budget of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim in one or two months, his economy minister said. Under Anwar, the Southeast Asia nation will seek to strengthen industries that will enable it to become a high-income nation over the medium term, Economy Minister Rafizi Ramli said in Kuala Lumpur. Anwar named himself finance ...

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Finland kicks off national process in Nato accession

  Bloomberg Finland took a step towards the national ratification of its entry into Nato even as Turkey and Hungary are yet to approve the step. The government in Helsinki submitted the accession proposal to the parliament in a bid to ensure it can complete the process swiftly once the remaining ratifications are received. “We have to be ready with ...

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ECB likely to raise borrowing costs by half-point: Makhlouf

Bloomberg The European Central Bank (ECB) will probably lift borrowing costs by a half-point this month, according to Governing Council member Gabriel Makhlouf, slowing the pace of its increases after inflation moderated for the first time in 1 1/2 years. A rise of 50 basis points “is about where we’ll end up,” Makhlouf told reporters in Dublin, saying that if ...

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Swiss say its $8b of frozen Russian assets is ‘only a fraction’ of total amount

Bloomberg A group of about 100 Russians and businesses reported nearly $50 billion in Swiss deposits, the government said in its most detailed disclosure yet of Russian wealth stashed in the country’s banks. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Switzerland banned banks from taking more than 100,000 Swiss francs ($106,000) from Russians and said all existing deposits must be reported to ...

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ECB’s Villeroy calls on banks to remain cautious on buybacks

  Bloomberg Bank of France Governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau urged commercial banks to exercise caution on share buybacks — raising the pressure on lenders as they prepare their shareholder-payout plans for 2022. Addressing a conference in Paris, Villeroy reiterated that while French banks remain solid and should benefit from rising interest rates, heightened volatility and slower economy growth in ...

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Bitcoin sinks 70% more in StanChart list of ’23 upsets

  Bloomberg Speculators cleaving to the view that the crypto rout is mostly over are at risk of a rude awakening in 2023, according to Standard Chartered. A further Bitcoin plunge of about 70% to $5,000 next year is among the “surprise” scenarios that markets may be “under-pricing,” the bank’s Global Head of Research Eric Robertsen wrote in a note. ...

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Vietnam PM orders raising loan quotas for some banks

  Bloomberg Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh directed the central bank and credit organisations to immediately raise loan limits for banks and to businesses in good health to boost economic growth, job creation and inflation control, the government website reported. The State Bank of Vietnam, which currently limits the credit growth of the banking system to 14% and has said ...

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Australia to raise rates when tightening cycle ends

Bloomberg Australia is set to raise interest rates as it closes in on the end of its tightening cycle, while nearby New Zealand just delivered a record hike and is poised to move higher, underscoring different central bank outlooks at year’s end. All-but one economist sees the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) hiking by a quarter-percentage point to 3.1%, with ...

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China stocks climb, yuan jumps past key level on reopening shift

  Bloomberg Chinese equities rallied and the yuan strengthened past a key level, as the authorities accelerated a shift towards reopening the economy and more investors turned bullish. The yuan breached the 7-per-dollar level, while a gauge of Chinese tech stocks in Hong Kong surged 9.3% in a fifth day of gains. The dollar bonds of developers also rise as ...

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