Turkey’s troubled lira fell to its lowest level since October on Thursday after its central bank scrapped a pledge to raise interest rates if needed. The monetary tightening pause, now in its seventh month, is repelling investors already worried about double-digit inflation, unorthodox policy, political influence over the central bank’s independence, and dramatic yet unexplained […]
Author: Alfonso Esparza
German hopes of creating a national banking champion able to challenge global competitors were dashed on Thursday when Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank ended merger talks due to the risks of doing a deal, restructuring costs and capital demands. Germany’s two largest banks announced that nearly six weeks of high-level negotiations about a tie-up had ended […]
New orders for U.S.-made capital goods increased by the most in eight months in March, but a drop in shipments suggested business spending on equipment slowed down in the first quarter. Other data on Thursday showed the number of Americans filing claims for unemployment benefits recorded its biggest increase in 19 months last week. The […]
The number of Americans filing applications for unemployment benefits increased by the most in 19 months last week, but the underlying trend continued to point to labor market strength. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits jumped 37,000 to a seasonally adjusted 230,000 for the week ended April 20, the Labor Department said on Thursday. The […]
Brent oil rose above $75 per barrel on Thursday for the first time this year as quality concerns forced the suspension of some Russian crude exports to Europe while the United States prepared to tighten sanctions on Iran. Brent crude futures were at $74.95 by 1344 GMT, up 38 cents. They earlier hit a session […]
Germany and Poland have suspended imports of Russian oil amid contamination concerns, prompting a rare crisis over supply from the world’s second-largest exporter. The sudden suspension of imports from the Soviet-built Druzhba pipeline, which runs from Russia via Belarus to central Europe, risks starving major European refineries of their major source of crude. German plants […]
The U.S. Federal Reserve is done raising interest rates until at least the end of next year, while about a third of economists polled by Reuters who had a view that far out predicted at least one rate cut by then. The latest results come just days after Wall Street stocks touched record highs in […]
The summer driving season may just have gotten more expensive. US and global crude oil prices are near six-month highs as the White House said Monday it would not extend exemptions to Iran’s oil sanctions that were set to end in May. The news triggered an immediate spike in oil prices and comes as gasoline […]
The euro fell against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday after data showing a surprise deterioration in business morale in Germany stoked fears of slowing global growth and weighed on a gauge of world equity markets. The decline in the Munich-based Ifo economic institute’s business climate index bucked expectations for a small improvement and sent U.S. […]
The energy sector in the Middle East and North Africa will amass almost $1 trillion in investment over the next five years, as countries build out energy capabilities and pivot to renewables, according to new research. The Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (Apicorp), a multilateral development bank with around $7 billion in total assets, provides an […]