On Monday, oil prices fell to a 15-month low amid fears that turmoil in the global banking sector could lead to a recession that would dampen demand for oil, as well as fears of a possible hike in interest rates in the United States this week. Brent crude futures for …
Read More »Yen is recovering as fears of contagion from banking crisis grow
The safe-haven yen rebounded after early sharp declines and the risk-sensitive Australian and New Zealand dollars turned losses as early optimism about global authorities’ efforts to contain a banking crisis ebbed. The Japanese currency, which is particularly sensitive to long-term Treasury bond yields, recovered from sharp losses of 0.6 percent …
Read More »Nikkei index closed at a two-month low
Japan’s Nikkei index closed at its lowest level in two months on Monday, as fears of a recession and a possible crisis in the global banking sector led to the sale of risky assets despite a deal reached over the weekend to save the Swiss Bank Credit Suisse. The Nikkei …
Read More »Gold is trying to climb as concerns about the banking sector return
Gold prices regained some gains on Monday, erasing part of earlier losses, as concerns about the global banking sector returned to the fore, despite UBS’ rescue efforts to acquire rival Credit Suisse to stabilize financial markets more broadly. . Spot gold rose 0.1% to $1,988.89 an ounce by 0624 GMT, …
Read More »Asian stocks drop as bank crisis fears offset liquidity support
Most Asian stocks fell on Monday as emergency liquidity measures and bank consolidations in U.S. and Europe did little to stem fears of a potential banking crisis, with markets now awaiting more cues on monetary policy from a Federal Reserve meeting this week. Bank-heavy indexes once again saw steep losses, …
Read More »UBS’s takeover of Credit Suisse: What you need to know
In an emergency rescue agreement intended to quell the fear that the bankruptcy of two American banks earlier this month had sparked on the financial markets, Switzerland’s largest bank, UBS, has agreed to purchase its struggling rival Credit Suisse. “UBS today announced the takeover of Credit Suisse,” the Swiss National …
Read More »Financial Markets’ Weekly Recap, March 13-17
Wall Street finished lower on Friday, capping off a turbulent week marked by an evolving banking crisis and the gathering storm clouds of a possible recession. All three indexes finished the session in the red, with financial stocks falling the most of the S&P 500’s major sectors. All three indexes …
Read More »US UoM Consumer Confidence Index drops to 63.4 in March
Consumer sentiment in the US weakened in early March with the University of Michigan’s (UoM) Consumer Confidence Index declining to 63.4 from 67 in February. This reading came in worse than the market expectation of 67. “Year-ahead inflation expectations receded from 4.1% in February to 3.8%, the lowest reading since …
Read More »SVB Financial seeks bankruptcy protection for reorganization
SVB Financial Group filed for a court-supervised restructuring under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Friday to seek purchasers for its assets, only days after its former affiliate Silicon Valley Bank was taken over by US regulators. The decision to seek bankruptcy protection comes after the company announced on March 13 …
Read More »China cuts reserve requirement ratio by 25 basis points amid lacklustre rebound
The Chinese central bank eased a key monetary policy instrument on Friday, attempting to boost an economy facing hurdles from a slowdown in its largest export markets. The People’s Bank of China announced a 25 basis point reduction in the reserve requirement ratio for major banks, which specifies how much …
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