French economy’s virus slump to exceed 10%

Bloomberg French economic output will take two years to recover from the virus-related slump that that will inflict even longer lasting damage on the labour market, the country’s central bank said. The Bank of France report shows that even with robust growth in the next two years, unemployment will continue rising to reach a record high close to 12% in ...

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UK’s latest debt sale may be another blockbuster

Bloomberg Demand for government bonds is showing no signs of letup, with Ireland securing record investor demand despite a host of countries, including the UK, selling debt. Ireland racked up more than 50 billion euros for its sale of 10-year debt, trumping the 33 billion euros secured in April. The UK meanwhile is selling 30-year bonds via banks against a ...

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German exports witness record plunge in April

Bloomberg German exports plunged at a record pace in April when economies around the world shut down to contain the coronavirus. Sales abroad were down 31.1% from a year earlier, an unprecedented slump in the series that reaches back to 1950. Imports fell the most since the financial crisis a decade ago. German manufacturers were already suffering from weak demand ...

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Greece sees biggest drop in financial wellbeing

Bloomberg The fallout from Covid-19 is hurting the financial wellbeing of Greek and Romanian consumers the most in Europe, while those in Scandinavia are least affected. Swedish debt collector Intrum AB surveyed European consumers on their financial security and nearly half of the respondents said their wellbeing has declined today compared with six months ago. “The survey clearly shows that ...

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UK supports 11.5m jobs through pandemic

Bloomberg The UK government’s pandemic programs are now supporting 11.5 million jobs at a cost of 27 billion pounds ($34 billion), according to figures released on Tuesday. Meanwhile, separate data from the Department of Work and Pensions showed the number of individuals making declarations for Universal Credit benefit claims fell to 96,510 in the week of May 25, the first ...

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Euro’s path to global prominence leads via green finance

Bloomberg The euro has carved out a dominant position in the fast-growing market for green-bond financing, accounting for almost half of all new issuances last year, according to the European Central Bank (ECB). The development dovetails with European Union ambitions to make the continent the first climate-neutral region by 2050. ECB President Christine Lagarde has promised to reflect on how ...

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European stocks, futures slip after historic rally; dollar rises

Bloomberg European stocks and US futures dropped as momentum in risk assets stalled after a historic rally. Treasuries advanced. Banks dragged the Stoxx Europe 600 Index lower. The dollar rose for the first time in nine days, while the euro weakened. Government bonds in the European periphery slipped. A gauge of European junk-grade credit risk increased. Brent crude oil slid ...

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Short-sellers set their sights on surging Asia biotech stocks

Bloomberg Short sellers across Asia are being drawn to the health care sector, betting the region’s best-performing industry this year is poised for a retreat. The daily average amount of short interest among 324 biotechnology and pharmaceutical stocks across Asia’s major equity benchmarks has more than doubled so far this year from 2019, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Australian ...

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National banks net foreign assets reach AED 79.8bn in four months

ABU DHABI / WAM The net foreign assets held by the UAE national banks grew 17.5 percent to AED79.8 billion during the first fourth months of this year as compared to December 2019, statistics by the central bank of the UAE shows. The growth stems from the increase in the total balance of foreign assets of these banks to AED684.8 ...

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Abu Dhabi’s trade in precious metals hits AED5.42bn in Q1

ABU DHABI / WAM The value of Abu Dhabi trading in precious metals and gemstone increased to AED5.42 billion within the first quarter of the current year 2020 with a rate of 34.4 percent compared to the same interval of 2019 estimated at AED4.03 billion according to Abu Dhabi General Administration of Customs. Such increase in Abu Dhabi trading in ...

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