Indonesia keeps benchmark rate unchanged amid currency slump

  Bloomberg Indonesia’s central bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged after six cuts this year, seeking to calm financial markets in the wake of Donald Trump’s upset victory in the US presidential election. Governor Agus Martowardojo and his board held the seven-day reverse repurchase rate at 4.75 percent on Thursday, in line with the forecasts of all but three ...

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India eases cash rules for weddings

  New Delhi / AFP India announced new measures on Thursday to allow farmers and marrying couples to withdraw more money from banks, as frustration mounted over a cash crisis triggered by the withdrawal of all high-value notes. The shock move last week, which saw 85 percent of the cash in circulation suddenly withdrawn, has led to huge queues forming ...

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ECB’s Mersch says stimulus should end as soon as possible

  Bloomberg The European Central Bank’s extraordinary stimulus measures are not intended to be permanent and should be withdrawn as soon as possible, Executive Board member Yves Mersch said. “The size of the purchase program means that will take some time, but a permanent commitment to our bond-buying, for example, would set the wrong incentives for government financing,” Mersch said ...

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Deutsche to claw back bonuses from ex-CEOs

  Frankfurt am Main / AFP Deutsche Bank intends to claw back millions in bonuses from six former top executives, a German newspaper said on Thursday, as the embattled lender seeks to cut costs and boost its capital cushion. The move would target former CEOs Anshu Jain, Juergen Fitschen and Josef Ackermann as well as three one-time board members, the ...

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SNB to keep low interest rate unchanged

  Bloomberg The Swiss National Bank (SNB), which has the lowest interest rate among the world’s major central banks, may be done cutting. SNB President Thomas Jordan and his fellow policy makers will keep the deposit rate unchanged at minus 0.75 percent until at least the end of the first quarter of 2019, according to the median forecast in Bloomberg’s ...

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BoE granted new powers over UK landlord mortgages

Bloomberg The Bank of England (BoE) has been granted the ability to limit borrowing by investors in rental housing, increasing the central bank’s control over the property market. The BoE’s Financial Policy Committee has been given new powers to cap buy-to-let mortgage lending by regulating loan-to-value and interest coverage ratios, the UK Treasury said in a statement. UK benchmark interest ...

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Draw the curtain on Democrats’ theater of pointless gestures

  Seventeen days before President Donald Trump, his spoken oath of office still lingering in the wintry air, lifts his left hand from Scripture (a leather-bound edition of “The Art of the Deal”), the Republican-controlled Congress will begin working. Fittingly, on Jan. 3 the First Branch of government will go first, flexing its somewhat atrophied Article I muscles. When Trump ...

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How working in VR could make you more productive

  If you’re willing to strap on a headset and headphones, virtual reality can immerse you in another world. This teleportation act is great for gaming, but it also got me thinking: Can the distraction-dimming effects of VR transport the typical office worker out of an open office and away from chatty co-workers, and perhaps help with focus and productivity ...

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Obama offers sound advice for the EU

  Visiting Europe this week, President Barack Obama urged leaders of the European Union to be more forgiving of Greece and its debts. No doubt reflecting on events back home, he said that economic stress and suspicion of unresponsive institutions were empowering populism. Addressing those worries needed to be a high priority, and supporting Greece’s flattened economy would help. He’s ...

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UAE on the right path towards green economy

  A dopting green economy is the best way to move towards sustainable development. The UAE has become the first member of World Green Economy Organisation (WGEO). It is a huge step to make the world realize the importance of transforming the business landscape and decarbonizing the economy. A green economy would need coordination between various financial institutions, the civil ...

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