SYDNEY (Reuters) – The U.S. Federal Reserve and its global counterparts moved aggressively with sweeping emergency rate cuts and offers of cheap dollars to help combat the coronavirus pandemic that has jolted markets and paralyzed large parts of the world econ... More »
(Reuters) – The Bank of Japan eased monetary policy on Monday by pledging to buy risky assets such as exchange-traded funds (ETF) at double the current pace, joining global central banks in combating the widening economic fallout from the coronavirus epidemic.... More »
SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia is considering a second round of economic stimulus, three sources familiar with the deliberations told Reuters, as Canberra accelerated efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus that has now killed five people in the country... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Investors pulled out of most asset classes, with stocks and bond funds seeing a combined $36 billion of outflows in the week to Wednesday, BofA said, amid fears of economic damage from the coronavirus epidemic. Stock markets have been sellin... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – When Kristin Tassi bought her house in Chicago two years ago, she was disappointed to get an interest rate of 4% on her mortgage. All of her friends had lower rates. Experts said rates were on the way up from that point forward, but Tassi ... More »
VIENNA (Reuters) – European Central Bank policymaker Robert Holzmann said he would not support an interest rate cut to insulate the euro zone from the effects of the coronavirus epidemic but he could consider giving firms ultra cheap loans. When asked if targe... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – The Bank of England said it was working with Britain’s finance ministry and international partners to protect the banking system and Britain’s economy from the impact of the spread of coronavirus. Investors globally have priced in more stimu... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said on Monday the central bank will take necessary steps to stabilize markets jolted by the coronavirus outbreak, bolstering speculation about coordinated global policy action. Kuroda’s comments, made i... More »
PARIS (Reuters) – The European Central Bank is prepared to support the economy if needed in the face of the coronavirus outbreak, although more action is not yet needed, ECB policymaker Francois Villeroy de Galhau said on Monday. Villeroy, who is also head of ... More »
PARIS (Reuters) – G7 countries will take “concerted action” to limit the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on economic growth and their finance ministers will discuss by phone this week how best to act, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on Monday. “... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – The hit to U.S. corporate earnings from the coronavirus epidemic is getting harder and messier to predict. Wall Street strategists have been slashing forecasts as the impact from the virus is set to be felt far further than the first quart... More »
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Italy and other euro zone countries hit by the coronavirus outbreak are expected to benefit from waivers under EU fiscal rules that will allow them to spend more to tackle the emergency, the bloc’s economics commissioner said on Wednesday.... More »
OSLO (Reuters) – Eight candidates have applied to head Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, the country’s central bank said on Tuesday, as its board prepares to decide who should steer the global portfolio of assets worth $1.1 trillion through a time of transition.... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Some asset prices are moving together in unusual ways, an indication that investors may be preparing their portfolios for a coronavirus-led global slowdown. U.S. stocks, gold, Treasuries and the dollar have all surged in 2020, a climb that... More »
RIYADH/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Central bankers from the United States, Japan and the euro zone meeting in the desert kingdom of Saudi Arabia this weekend had their own shifting sands to cross – those of elusive inflation. The problem facing all three is that pr... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – German economic growth will remain weak in the first quarter of 2020, weighed down by weak exports and the coronavirus outbreak in China, the Bundesbank said in a regular economic report on Monday. Europe’s largest economy stagnated in th... More »
(Reuters) – 1/CHINA ON SICK LEAVE A leap in coronavirus cases in Hubei gave markets pause, for all of 24 hours. Then attention shifted back to the global case-count and the rally resumed. But while investors are focused on containment, the world’s second-bigge... More »
OSLO (Reuters) – Norwegian headline inflation rate is forecast to ease in 2020 to 1.5 percent for the year from 2.2% in 2019, a publicly appointed commission said on Monday. With members from labor unions, employers’ federations and Statistics Norway, the comm... More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – Workers began trickling back to offices and factories around China on Monday as the government eased some restrictions on working during a coronavirus epidemic that has killed more than 900 people, most of them on the mainland. The death to... More »
OSLO (Reuters) – Norway’s consumer prices rose sharply in January from a year earlier, official data showed on Monday, strengthening the crown currency ahead of a major policy speech by the central bank governor on Thursday. Core inflation, a key measure for m... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Gathered in a German mountain castle last November for an evening retreat that ended with a whiskey-tasting, rebel European Central Bank policymakers and Christine Lagarde, their newly confirmed president, made a pact. Lagarde pledged to ... More »
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkey has reduced the range and the levels of fees and commissions that banks can charge clients, according to central bank and banking watchdog regulations announced on Monday. The measures will cut the various charges banks can charge f... More »
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkey’s consumer price inflation rose a bit more than expected to 12.15% year-on-year in January, official data showed on Monday, climbing for the third consecutive month after a dramatic drop last year. A currency crisis in 2018 sent inf... More »
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – The impact from a virus epidemic on China’s economy will be limited and temporary, and the country’s financial markets will return to normal in the long run, a commentary in a newspaper owned by the central bank said on Monday afternoon. T... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The euro zone’s top bank supervisor blamed a “mess” of diverging laws across the bloc on Tuesday for the European Central Bank’s failure to stop Angolan billionaire Isabel dos Santos, who is suspected of fraud, from controlling a bank in ... More »
ZURICH (Reuters) – The Swiss National Bank appeared to remain on the sidelines as the Swiss franc surged to its highest level in nearly three years on Monday, driven by concerns about the spread of the coronavirus. The franc fell to 1.069 versus the euro EURCH... More »
PARIS (Reuters) – Digital currency could be useful as cash transactions dwindle in some countries but central banks should be in charge of issuing it, not private companies, Bank of France Governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau said on Saturday. Spurred by the r... More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – Chinese firms implemented 1.4 trillion yuan ($203 billion) in debt-to-equity swaps and disposed of 2 trillion yuan in soured debt last year as they moved to allay financial risk, the country’s banking and insurance regulator said on Monday.... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Consumer lending is expected to propel profits for big U.S. banks when they unveil fourth-quarter results this week, though stress in corporate lending and uneven capital markets may cast a shadow over results. Balances for individual borr... More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s central bank said on Thursday that it has signed a currency agreement with Laos, allowing direct local currency settlement for transactions under the current and capital accounts. The agreement was aimed at boosting financial cooper... More »
MILAN (Reuters) – The Bank of Italy “positively” fulfilled its supervision duties and is ready to account for its actions on failing lender Banca Popolare di Bari, Governor Ignazio Visco told Corriere della Sera daily in an interview published on Monday. Prose... More »
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand’s central bank has not shut the door to further monetary policy easing should the economy worsen, the governor said on Monday, after two rate cuts this year to support flagging growth. The Bank of Thailand (BOT) last week left its ... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – From Harley Davidson to Colgate-Palmolive, U.S. companies are flocking to borrow in euros and their record issuance is breathing life into a market where yields have been hammered by the European Central Bank’s renewed stimulus push. Offshor... More »
(Reuters) – The $2.2 trillion repurchase agreement market – part of the inner workings of the U.S. financial system – is facing what could be another strain as the year comes to a close. That could have wider implications than just Wall Street. WHAT IS THE WOR... More »
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Interest rates in the euro zone could remain historically low for years, but the European Central Bank’s (ECB) ultra-loose monetary policy risks becoming counterproductive, ECB governing council member Klaas Knot said in an interview publ... More »
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Tear gas engulfed central Beirut as security forces chased protesters near Lebanon’s parliament on Sunday in a second night of street clashes that wounded dozens of people. Protesters had returned despite a fierce crackdown by security force... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – 1/AFTER PHASE ONE COMES PHASE TWO U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese officials have agreed to a “phase one” trade deal that includes cutting U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods. Washington has agreed to suspend tariffs on $160 billion in Chin... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Two U.S. banking regulators unveiled a proposed overhaul to community lending standards on Thursday, kicking off a contentious policy fight over the proper way to ensure banks are supporting lower-income borrowers where they do business.... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The European Central Bank left policy unchanged at new ECB President Christine Lagarde’s first meeting on Thursday, keeping money taps wide open and further stimulus ready as the euro zone economy continues to suffer from broader global t... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Turnover on some of the world’s biggest currency-trading venues has dropped as falling market volatility prompts some global banks to route more volumes onto their internal platforms, the Bank for International Settlements said in a quarterl... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Google, Alibaba and other “Big Tech” companies could be forced to share data on financial services customers with banks and financial technology firms to prevent unfair competition. As Facebook’s plan for its Libra “stablecoin” faces scrutin... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Friday’s booming U.S. jobs report should give the Federal Reserve all it needs to stick to its plan not to cut interest rates further in the near future, so when U.S. central bankers meet this week, most of the focus will be on their out... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. banking regulators said on Tuesday that lenders must have robust compliance tools in place to ensure “responsible use” of non-traditional sources of financial data to help determine whether a potential customer is credit worthy. In ... More »
BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Euro zone inflation accelerated faster than expected in November on a rise in food and services prices, likely comforting European Central Bank policymakers even if some factors pushing up prices may be only temporary. The ECB ha... More »
ROME (Reuters) – Matteo Salvini has recently dropped threats to take Italy out of the euro zone but the hard-right leader is now alarming European authorities with a new target for his eurosceptic anger: a planned reform of the region’s bailout fund. Euro zone... More »
RIYADH (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia’s central bank is monitoring banking indicators on a daily basis and is not seeing any impact on liquidity from oil giant Aramco’s initial public offering (IPO), its governor said on Sunday. Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority gove... More »
RIYADH (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia’s banking sector has a high level of liquidity, its central bank governor said on Sunday, as banks in the Gulf state offer leverage to Saudi investors for shares in Saudi Aramco’s approaching initial public offering. “The Saudi ... More »
MILAN (Reuters) – Italy should use ongoing talks over the reform of the euro zone bailout fund, the ESM, to secure something for itself such as the appointment of an Italian to head the fund, Bank of Italy Deputy governor Fabio Panetta said on Saturday. Panett... More »
ROME (Reuters) – Proposals to reform the euro zone’s bailout fund are creating a political storm in Italy, where parties and institutions are battling over whether Rome should try to block the reform at the EU level. A draft of the reform was agreed by euro zo... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – World shares were close to a record high on Monday, after Beijing surprised markets by trimming a key interest rate for the first time since 2015. In the latest show of support for its economy, China’s central bank cut rates on seven-day rev... More »
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Demonstrations against Lebanon’s ruling elite have plunged the country into political turmoil at a time of acute economic crisis, driven by deepening anger at sectarian politicians who have dominated the government since the 1975-90 civil wa... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – Almost a fifth of Japanese households use electronic money for small purchases, a survey by a central bank-affilated research institute showed, up from a year ago and a sign the country’s cash-hoarding culture is changing. In the survey publi... More »
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China’s central bank unexpectedly trimmed a closely watched lending rate on Monday, the first such cut in more than four years and a signal to markets that policymakers are ready to act to prop up slowing growth. The People’s Bank of China... More »
ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkey said on Monday it had deported two Islamic State militants — a German and an American — beginning a programme to repatriate fighters that has caused friction with its NATO allies since it launched an offensive in northern Syria. Allie... More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – New bank loans in China fell more than expected to the lowest in 22 months in October, but the drop was likely due to seasonal factors and policymakers are still expected to ramp up support for the cooling economy in coming months. Chinese ... More »
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s central bank sees some room to further cut its key rate, First Deputy Governor Ksenia Yudayeva said on Monday. “…in principle, we currently see certain room for a further reduction, but we have to follow the situation very closely, ... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – European Union banks have put in place all the plans for Brexit but execution is lagging as lenders await the outcome of negotiations between Britain and the EU, European Central Bank banking supervisor Andrea Enria said on Monday. Some b... More »
BEIRUT (Reuters) – A Lebanese bank employees’ union called on bank staff to go on strike from Tuesday because of safety concerns, the president of the Federation of Syndicates of Banks Employees said. George al Hajj said the decision had been taken on Monday a... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – The euro edged down on Monday as investors awaited Christine Lagarde’s first speech as European Central Bank president, but hopes that the United States may choose not to impose tariffs on auto imports kept it near its highest level in weeks... More »
MANILA (Reuters) – Philippine annual inflation likely eased for a fifth straight month in October due to high base effects from the previous year as well as lower fuel and rice prices, a Reuters poll showed. The median forecast in a poll of 10 economists was f... More »
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Argentina’s central bank announced early Monday morning it would sharply cut the amount of dollars individuals could buy, amid concerns over outflows of foreign exchange reserves accelerating after President Mauricio Macri was voted ou... More »
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – Commercial banks should step up their application of blockchain technology to embrace digital finance, a Chinese central bank official said on Monday. Li Wei, head of the People’s Bank of China’s technology department, made the comments at... More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s largely rubber stamp parliament has passed a new law on cryptography as the country gears up to launch its own digital currency, state media reported late on Saturday. China’s central bank set up a research team in 2014 to explore l... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Christine Lagarde will ensure European Central Bank policymakers climb down from their “ivory tower” and face the political realities of the euro zone, the ECB’s vice president, Luis de Guindos, said in an interview published on Saturday.... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – European Central Bank President Mario Draghi told his successor on Thursday to “never give up” on propping up the euro zone economy in the face of a worsening outlook and little help from governments. At the last press conference of his e... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s major financial institutions are set to undergo a stress test to prepare for any major shakeout in financial markets in light of worries about a global recession and a protracted Sino-U.S. trade war, sources with direct knowledge of t... More »
BEIJING (Reuters) – New home prices in China grew at a steady pace in September, with fewer cities reporting price gains, a relief for policymakers who remain wary of high debt and bubble risk and are refraining from stimulating the sector as the economy cools... More »
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China on Monday unexpectedly kept unchanged its new benchmark lending rate, suggesting Beijing is keen to avoid overly loosening monetary policy for fear it may push up already-high debt levels across the economy. The one-year Loan Prime R... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The collateral damage of the United States’ trade wars is being felt from the fjords of Iceland to the auto factories of Japan. Central bank governors and finance ministers traded grim tales of suffering economies at the International Mo... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – China’s top central banker said on Saturday that potential escalation of trade tensions and policy uncertainty were the major risk factors facing the world economy, and market forces were keeping China’s yuan at an appropriate level. Yi ... More »
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – The Dutch central bank said on Tuesday it would require banks to retain 3 billion euros ($3.31 billion) in additional capital to compensate for risks posed by mortgage portfolios. In its autumn report on financial stability, De Nederlands... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – UBS Wealth Management said on Friday it still expects the UK government to ask for an extension to the deadline for exiting the European Union and to hold a general election, though it acknowledged that chances of a Brexit deal have increase... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. Treasury yields rose on Wednesday, a day that saw a flood of supply and on optimism for progress in U.S.-China trade negotiations that begin in Washington on Thursday. On Wednesday, the market absorbed a $24 billion reopening of 10-ye... More »
BOSTON (Reuters) – Boston Federal Reserve officials have a pretty good idea what helped the ailing industrial town of Lawrence, Massachusetts, start to make a turnaround, including a state takeover of the public school system and a focused effort to lift job o... More »
WARSAW (Reuters) – Polish banks will face costs of 20 billion to 30 billion zlotys ($5.1-$7.6 billion) due to the European Court of Justice’s (ECJ) ruling on Swiss-franc mortgages, Polish rate-setter Eugeniusz Gatnar told news agency PAP in comments published ... More »
OSLO (Reuters) – Norway plans to spend less money next year from its $1.1 trillion sovereign wealth fund, the world’s largest, as economic growth remains strong and unemployment declines, the center-right majority government said on Monday. “The Norwegian econ... More »
DENVER (Reuters) – Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank President Esther George on Sunday rejected the notion that the U.S. central bank should cut interest rates to try to boost low inflation, which she said is largely a result of global forces that U.S. monetary... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Deutsche Bank said on Wednesday it still sees a 50% chance that Britain will leave the European Union without a deal by the end of the year following a general election, but said there’s a 20% chance of a “surprise” agreement later this mont... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Euro zone governments must reform their economies and use appropriate fiscal policies to ensure that the European Central Bank is not overburdened, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday. Speaking at an event in Frankfurt, home ... More »
HONG KONG (Reuters) – Hong Kong’s businesses and underground rail stations re-opened as usual on Monday morning, after a chaotic Sunday that saw police fire water cannon, tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters who blocked roads and threw petrol bombs outsid... More »
(Reuters) – Global regulators will question Facebook on Monday about its Libra cryptocurrency, amid concerns from European Union governments over the threat the digital currency poses to financial stability, the Financial Times reported on Sunday. Officials fr... More »
HELSINKI (Reuters) – France and Germany said on Friday that Facebook Inc’s (FB.O) Libra currency posed risks to the financial sector that could block its authorization in Europe, and backed the development of an alternative public cryptocurrency. The criticism... More »
SAN FRANCISCO/NEW YORK (Reuters) – Facebook Inc (FB.O) revealed lofty plans to establish a cryptocurrency called Libra in June, but the project quickly ran into trouble with skeptical regulators around the world. Opposition deepened on Friday, when both France... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – European Central Bank chief Mario Draghi pledged indefinite stimulus on Thursday to revive an ailing euro zone economy, tying the hands of his successor for years to come and sparking an immediate conflict with U.S. President Donald Trump... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The European Central Bank is giving euro zone banks a small reprieve from a penalty charge on their idle cash but this is likely to prove too little, too late for a sector hurt by years of low interest rates. In its latest bid to shield t... More »
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The European Central Bank’s move to cut interest rates and restart a larger stimulus program drew fast reaction from the White House on Thursday, with President Donald Trump saying the ECB was undercutting the value of its currency and “... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The European Central Bank approved a fresh stimulus package as expected on Thursday, cutting interest rates and approving a new round of bond purchases to prop up euro zone growth and halt a worrisome drop in inflation expectations. Follo... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The European Central Bank approved a fresh stimulus package as expected on Thursday, cutting interest rates and approving a new round of bond purchases to prop up euro zone growth and halt a worrisome drop in inflation expectations. The E... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Euro zone banks will be exempted from paying the European Central Bank a penalty charge on idle cash worth six times their mandatory reserves, the ECB said on Thursday. “This decision aims to support the bank-based transmission of monetar... More »
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said on Thursday that the euro zone economy was in a period of “protracted” economic weakness, with inflation staying low and the balance of risks tilted toward the downside. “Incoming informat... More »
TOKYO (Reuters) – The bitter trade war between China and the United States kept Asian factory activity mostly in decline in August, business surveys showed, strengthening the case for policymakers to unleash fresh stimulus to fend off recession risks. In a sur... More »
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Argentina’s government authorized currency controls on Sunday in an about-face by President Mauricio Macri, who had previously lifted many protectionist practices of his predecessor, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner. The central bank is ... More »
SAN FRANCISCO/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A decline in economic activity in the U.S. Midwest, apparent in a little-noticed report on Friday from the Chicago Federal Reserve Bank, adds to evidence of slowing growth in factory-heavy corners of the country key to next... More »
LONDON (Reuters) – Bank of America Merrill Lynch said on Friday its market sentiment indicator has fallen to a level so bearish it has triggered a “contrarian” buy signal for assets considered more risky, such as equities, for the first time since January. The... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. money market fund assets fell this week, retreating from their highest level since October 2009, suggesting a pause in investors piling into these low-risk products amid trade and economic worries, a private survey released on Wednesd... More »
SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia’s central bank would consider unconventional monetary options if the cash rate was cut to 0.5%, Deputy Governor Guy Debelle said on Tuesday, though he hoped such heavy policy adjustments would not be needed. Debelle said the Reserv... More »
BIARRITZ, France (Reuters) – Iran has an opportunity to come back into compliance with the nuclear deal and resume dialogue about its nuclear activities, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Monday. U.S. President Donald Trump said earlier he would mee... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. interest rates futures rose on Friday as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank will do what it can to preserve the longest U.S. economic expansion on record, supporting bets on a further decline in key borrowing co... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. interest rates futures rallied on Friday as rising trade tensions between China and the United States revived bets the Federal Reserve may lower key borrowing costs by a bold half-point next month. Earlier Friday, Beijing said it will... More »
NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. interest rates futures rose on Friday, erasing their earlier losses after China announced retaliatory tariffs on about $75 billion of U.S. imports, rekindling bets the trade war between the world’s biggest economies would not end soon... More »
