Bloomberg France’s civil aviation authority told airlines to cut half of their flights due to a planned strike by air-traffic controllers, bringing disruption back to the country’s airports after a difficult summer. The DGAC’s guidance came in response to a walkout called for September 16 by the SNCTA union, the authority said in an emailed statement. Minimum service rules ...
Read More »Xi unlikely to throw Putin a lifeline in Ukraine quagmire
Bloomberg Shortly before invading Ukraine in February, Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping declared a “no limits†friendship. Yet even as his forces suffer humiliating losses on the battlefield, Russia’s president shouldn’t expect much help at his first meeting with his Chinese counterpart since then. Xi and Putin meet face-to-face in Uzbekistan on Thursday in their first sitdown since a ...
Read More »US seeks to sidestep Taliban in $3.5 billion Afghan aid plan
Bloomberg The US will put $3.5 billion in Afghanistan’s central bank reserves under the control of a Swiss-based oversight board to pay for limited financial services in the country while ensuring the Taliban regime doesn’t get access to the money, the US Treasury Department said. The funds, which the US froze after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan last year, will ...
Read More »Zelenskiy visits largest city reclaimed from Russia
Bloomberg Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy visited the newly recaptured city of Izyum on Wednesday, an appearance that underlined the stunning success of a counteroffensive against Russian forces in the country’s northeast. The unannounced visit appeared to belie claims from Moscow that parts of Izyum, which had been a critical staging post for Russian weapons and troops fighting in the eastern ...
Read More »Yen rallies on reports of Bank of Japan’s intervention plan
Bloomberg The yen rebounded from near a 24-year low on signs the Bank of Japan is preparing an intervention to prop up the currency. The central bank conducted a so-called rate check in the currency market, meaning officials called asking for an indicative price at which it could intervene, according to a person with direct knowledge of the events. The ...
Read More »UBA raises loan costs to protect profit margins
Bloomberg United Bank for Africa (UBA), a Nigerian lender with operations in 20 African countries, plans to increase lending rates by as much as 400 basis points to protect its profit margins. The repricing of loans will affect all corporate, commercial and personal banking credits, Chief Executive Officer Oliver Alawuba said on an investor call in Lagos, the nation’s commercial ...
Read More »China sets yuan fix at strongest bias on record to lift currency
Bloomberg China extended its currency defense by setting its reference rate for the yuan with the strongest bias on record. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) set the fix at 6.9116 per dollar, 598 pips stronger than the average estimate in a Bloomberg survey of analysts and traders. The strong bias exceeded the previous record of 454 pips seen and ...
Read More »Bank of East Asia China senior executive detained on suspicion of accepting bribe
Bloomberg A senior executive of Bank of East Asia Ltd’s China unit has been detained on suspicion of accepting bribes, according to a report by Cailian. Bank of East Asia (China) executive vice president and head of Northern China, Chen Zhiren was detained and is being held in Beijing, according to the report, which said the investigation is related ...
Read More »Citigroup hires JPMorgan banker Weir for UK deals
Bloomberg Citigroup has hired veteran JPMorgan Chase & Co dealmaker Barry Weir as it seeks to beef up its senior ranks in London. Weir, who’s known for his work on natural resources deals, will join Citigroup as a managing director on the UK investment banking team in September, according to a memo. He has more than 22 years of ...
Read More »Citizens Financial buys Planning-services firm
Bloomberg Citizens Financial Group Inc agreed to buy College Raptor, a firm that helps connect prospective students with colleges based on their academic and financial compatibility. The acquisition will bolster the bank’s exposure to college-age customers, Chris Ebeling, executive vice president and head of student lending at Providence, Rhode Island-based Citizens, said. The deal, for which terms weren’t disclosed, ...
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