China cut its holdings of US Treasuries by $66bn in November, reducing its position in the safe-haven debt to the lowest level since 2010 as the country battles to stabilise its currency. The acceleration in sales — the largest monthly decline since December 2011 — threatens a rise in US interest rates if it continues and follows an unwinding in October that saw China cede its position […]
New stock trading allegations are set to cast a shadow over Tom Price’s confirmation hearing as health secretary on Wednesday, as Senate Democrats prepare to do battle over Donald Trump’s latest cabinet picks. On Wednesday Senate Democrats and Republicans will question Mr Price, a sitting Republican congressman, over his fitness for the health role and his plans for repealing and replacing Obamacare — a key policy agenda […]
China’s currency was softer after its central bank fixed the renminbi’s trading band at its strongest level in two months in the wake of the dollar’s Tuesday fall against a host of major currencies. The onshore renminbi gained 0.8 per cent against the dollar at the close of trading yesterday as President-elect Donald Trump questioned the value of the dollar, but had weakened 0.3 per cent in […]
By Saikat Chatterjee | HONG KONG HONG KONG Asian stock markets held near three-month highs on Wednesday as investors scooped up exporter shares after U.S. President-elect Donald Trump expressed concerns over a stronger dollar. In Asia, MSCI’s ex-Japan Asia-Pacific shares index .MIAPJ0000PUS rose 0.3 percent, just shy of a three-month high hit last Thursday. Stock markets in Hong Kong .HSI and China .SSEC led the gains. “Trump’s […]
Wednesday 02:20 GMT Overview Currency movements once again dominated trading in Asia as markets reacted to UK Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit blueprint and unexpected criticism of the dollar’s strength from US president-elect Donald Trump. Hot topic The dollar index, which measures the US currency against a basket of peers, was up 0.1 per cent at 100.470. It fell 0.8 per cent on Tuesday after comments from […]
By Caroline Valetkevitch | NEW YORK NEW YORK U.S. stocks fell on Tuesday as financials and other big post-election gainers lost ground. Biotech and pharma stocks declined after President-elect Donald Trump said in a Washington Post interview over the weekend that he would target companies over drug pricing and that he was ready to unveil a plan to replace Obamacare. The Nasdaq biotech index .NBI was down […]
Donald Trump has threatened to overturn two decades of US economic policy by questioning the strong value of the dollar, raising fears that his presidency could set off a new round of currency wars between the world’s major economies. On Monday the president-elect appeared to break from the longstanding “strong dollar” policy of successive administrations, declaring that the currency was too high and that this was preventing […]
Before she spoke on Tuesday, Theresa May was gaining a reputation for talking sterling lower by spooking investors that Britain was headed to a disorganised exit from both the EU and its common market. Her Lancaster House speech was the first occasion the pound rallied to her Brexit views since becoming prime minister; it had risen nearly 3 per cent by the end of the London trading […]
Theresa May’s first big speech on Brexit since she became prime minister removed some of the political uncertainty that has dogged the pound. However, the messiness of the politics of Britain’s exit from the EU still tops the lost of reasons why sterling will remain under pressure. A list of the pound’s pros and cons quickly shows why it is languishing at levels last seen in the […]
The US dollar is weakening this morning after comments from president-elect Donald Trump that the greenback was “too strong” against the Chinese currency. “Our companies can’t compete with them [Chinese companies] now because our currency is too strong. And it’s killing us”, Mr Trump told the Wall Street Journal. His comments have helped soften the dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of its major […]
Theresa May will test the nerves of currency markets on Tuesday when she declares that Britain is making a clean break from the EU and will not seek a deal that leaves the country “half in and half out”. Mrs May’s comments will be seen as confirmation that Britain is leaving the single market — sometimes referred to as “a hard Brexit” — although she will leave […]
Tuesday 02.00 GMT Overview Stocks were putting in a mixed performance in Asia, while currencies fluctuated as markets braced for the impact of a speech by UK Prime Minister Theresa May laying out her administration’s Brexit blueprint. Hot topic The Japanese yen rallied as some traders initially sought havens, strengthening as much as 0.3 per cent before swinging back to be 0.1 per cent weaker at ¥114.26 […]
Asset price movements in the past few weeks have pointed both to the upside and a major risk for the global economy and markets under a Trump administration. Enthusiasm over higher US growth powering the global economy has been tempered at times by worries that certain elements of the president-elect’s “America First” approach could undermine longstanding trading relationships, opening up the risk of economic and financial disruptions. […]
“Dedication, that’s what you need, if you want to be a record breaker,” sang the TV entertainer Roy Castle on the long-running BBC programme dedicated to notable feats. London’s FTSE 100 has been on a dedicated record-breaking run all of its own, notching up an unprecedented 14 consecutive sessions of gains by the end of last week, a run which only ended on Monday, when the index […]
Canceling nearly 90% of cash in circulation cost India the mantle of world’s fastest-growing large economy in 2016, the International Monetary Fund said, though it categorized the slowdown as temporary. India’s growth slowed to 6.6% last year from 7.6% in 2015, according to the fund’s latest World Economic Outlook, which estimates that China’s economy grew by 6.7% in 2016. The fund expects India’s expansion to bounce back […]
By Nigel Stephenson | LONDON LONDON Investors sold sterling and stocks on Monday, seeking shelter in gold and the Japanese yen as uncertainty over Britain’s departure from the European Union and the policies of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump curbed appetite for risky assets. U.S. markets were closed for the Martin Luther King Day holiday, crimping market activity and potentially exacerbating price moves. The dollar .DXY rose, except […]
Traders are anticipating big swings in the pound, ratcheting up the cost of hedging against sterling volatility in preparation for fast-moving developments in the UK’s ever-more fractious relationship with the EU. Theresa May’s Brexit speech that she will deliver on Tuesday has already caused big shifts in the pound, following weekend media reports about its likely content. However, traders are now weighing up the impact of Donald […]
Turkey’s biggest headache, its crashing currency which the central banks appears unable to contain due to an Erdogan order not to hike rates, could soon translate into another major problem. According to two senior economy officials, Turkish inflation could reach double digits in the first quarter for the first time in almost five years as a result of the lira’s falls, putting more pressure on the central […]
By Noah Barkin | DAVOS, Switzerland DAVOS, Switzerland A trade war between the United States and China and a strengthening dollar are among the biggest threats to a brightening global economic outlook, according to leading economists at the World Economic Forum in Davos. As political leaders, businessmen and bankers converge on the resort in the Swiss Alps this week, they can draw hope from a more benign […]
The pound has fallen below the $1.20 mark for the first time since the October “flash crash”, ahead of a speech on Tuesday when UK prime minister Theresa May is expected to signal that Britain will fully break out of the EU’s common market after Brexit. The UK currency fell as much as 1.6 per cent to a low of $1.1986 against the dollar in early Asian […]
Monday 02.10 GMT Overview Asian markets were mostly lower despite bank-led gains for Wall Street on Friday but the spotlight was on the British pound as it tumbled to a four-month low amid heightened expectations of a “hard Brexit”. Hot topic Sterling was down 1.3 per cent at $1.2027 after falling as low as $1.1986 in early Asian trading, ahead of a speech on Tuesday in which […]
Dubai’s biggest bank, Emirates NBD, has expanded its disability-friendly branch network to include the Hamriya, Rashidya and Al Aweer branches, in addition to the Jumeirah and Jumeirah Emirates Towers branches. The bank said in a statement that it has also implemented the distribution of Braille currency in its Jumeirah branch for customers with vision disabilities. It added that it “will remain committed” to enabling financial inclusion for […]
KHARTOUM The Obama administration’s preliminary decision to ease sanctions on Sudan came with the full approval of the incoming Trump administration and after months of secret meetings, Sudan’s foreign minister said on Saturday. The United States said on Friday it would lift a 20-year-old trade embargo against Sudan, unfreeze assets and remove financial sanctions as a response to Khartoum’s cooperation in fighting Islamic State and other groups. […]
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal he would keep intact sanctions against Russia “at least for a period of time,” and also said he wouldn’t commit to the “one China” policy until he sees progress from Beijing in its currency and trade practices. In excerpts from an hourlong interview published by the Journal on Friday, Trump said: “If you get […]
