The UK government is threatening to give its post-Brexit economy a shot in the arm by reducing corporate taxes to become a sort of “Singapore-on-Thames,” a tax haven on the perimeter of the European Union. EU officials are dismissive of the idea; but they may be whistling past a graveyard. At a rate of 20 percent, the UK currently ...
Read More »Snapchat prepares for its close-up
Snapchat isn’t a public company yet, but it is already making its first smart move to divert the scrutiny of pesky public stockholders. Sure, there’s parent company Snap Inc.’s decision to bring in a new set of stock owners that won’t have even the appearance of a say in how the company operates. A potentially bigger deal is Snapchat’s ...
Read More »China’s middlemen aren’t dead yet
This could be Li & Fung Ltd.’s (very slim) chance to shine. Donald Trump on Monday officially quashed the Asia-Pacific free trade pact that would have made it cheaper for US companies to import goods from countries such as Vietnam and Japan. He has also threatened to institute a 45 percent tariff on goods imported from China. Conventional wisdom ...
Read More »China raises medium-term loan rate to tighten policy
Bloomberg China’s central bank increased the interest rates on medium-term loans that it uses to manage liquidity, a move analysts say signals its intent to keep a tight rein on leverage in the financial system. The one year Medium-term Lending Facility (MLF) rate was raised to 3.1 percent from 3 percent and the six-month rate to 2.95 percent from ...
Read More »Beijing urged to tighten monetary policy
Bloomberg China should tighten monetary policy as signs of overheating emerge amid quickening inflation, according to the top-ranked forecaster for the nation’s economy. With policy makers torn between reining in price gains and stabilizing growth, corporate lending has become too cheap, said Song Yu, chief China economist at Beijing Gao Hua Securities Co. The real interest rate for companies ...
Read More »Lloyds suffers cyber-attack on bank’s UK systems
Bloomberg Lloyds Banking Group Plc was hit by a cyber attack that disrupted online services for customers two weeks ago, a person with knowledge of the matter said, amid mounting concern over the threat hackers pose to major banks. Britain’s largest mortgage lender was targeted by a denial-of-service attack, which aims to cripple an online system by flooding it ...
Read More »Kenyan banks face new salvo with state-loan proposals
Bloomberg A new row is brewing between Kenyan banks and parliament after a lawmaker proposed placing restrictions on deposits by state-owned companies, months after the state imposed a cap on lending rates. Kimani Ichungw’a, vice chairman of the Public Investments Committee, drafted a bill seeking to bar state-owned corporations from investing or depositing public funds with lenders in which ...
Read More »Lira trades sideways ahead of critical central bank meet
Reuters Turkey’s lira was little changed on Tuesday, with investors holding back from taking big bets ahead of a central bank meeting later in the day seen as a critical test of its monetary policy credibility. The lira has fallen some 8 percent so far this year, making it one of the worst performing major emerging market currencies. Investors ...
Read More »Bond buyers grab disappearing bank debt ahead of Canada bail-in
Bloomberg Bond investors are snapping up Canadian bank debt that’s likely to start disappearing under new government rules expected early this year to protect taxpayers from having to bail out a failing financial firm. About C$100 billion ($75 billion) in deposit notes outstanding — senior unsecured bank debt valued for its credit quality, liquidity, and widespread inclusion in portfolios ...
Read More »Ribbons running out for India’s typewriters
NEW DELHI / AP The end is coming, though admittedly it may not look that way at 10 a.m. on a Tuesday morning, when dozens of young Indians have arrived for morning classes at Anand Type, Shorthand and Keypunch College, and every battered Remington is clattering away. Looking around the cramped classrooms, you might think that the typewriter still ...
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