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☆ Argentina and Brazil are discussing plans for a common currency — analysts can scarcely believe it
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Argentina President Alberto Fernandez (R) and Brazil President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (L) greet each other after signing a series of agreements during a news conference in Buenos Aires. Argentina and Brazil, the two largest economies in South America, are in early talks to create a common currency, as part of a coordinated bid to reduce reliance on the U.S. dollar. Speaking on his first international visit since taking office, Lula said that the currency would initially be designed for trade and transactions between Brazil and Argentina. Brazil's Finance Minister Fernando Haddad said that the adoption of a common currency was not designed to replace the Brazilian real and the Argentine peso. "Developing and implementing a common South American currency is, therefore, pie in the sky."

☆ Expansionist dreams threaten ECB digital euro plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Rebecca Christie | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The idea of a digital euro with the same reserve backing as its physical equivalent is thus partly about Frankfurt controlling the process. At best, a digital euro could bring more citizens into the banking system, particularly those who don’t have enough money for traditional financial services products. That jars with central bankers’ preference to limit the digital euro to the EU at first. The euro does not need a digital currency, but its members have signalled they want one. Reuters GraphicsFollow @rebeccawire on TwitterCONTEXT NEWSEuro area finance ministers issued a statement on the so-called digital euro on Jan. 16, calling for political oversight and an international approach of a European central bank digital currency (CBDC).

☆ Morning bid: Dodging a downturn
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

A look at the day ahead in U.S. and global markets from Mike Dolan. Global investors have fretted endlessly about a 2023 recession for the major global economies for more than six months. And Tuesday's latest economic healthcheck showed that the severe hit to Chinese economic activity from the draconian lockdown policies was actually much less than feared. The survey showed that investors' recession expectations peaked at a net 77% of respondents in November but have fallen to 68% in January. The BofA survey showed fund managers may have already repositioned, however, as their allocation to U.S. equities dived in January and a net 39% said they were underweight while preferring euro zone stocks.

☆ Portugal wants EU green tech package to ensure level playing field
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LISBON, Jan 17 (Reuters) - The European Union's response to the United States' stimulus package for green tech investments should use financing instruments that ensure equality between all members instead of favouring the bloc's most industrialised nations, Portugal's finance minister said on Tuesday. Brussels is concerned that European companies will increasingly move to the United States, which has a $369 billion scheme to subsidise green production. "But it has to be implemented through European mechanisms that ensure equality within the European space," he added. "The smaller European countries cannot lose to the larger countries in an internal competition that would not make sense to open at this moment," he said. Reporting by Sergio Goncalves; Editing by David Latona and Bernadette BaumOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Davos 2023: The World Economic Forum explained
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Siddharth K | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 16 (Reuters) - The World Economic Forum (WEF) returns to its snowy winter residency in the Swiss Alps this week with a record attendance of business and government leaders. The WEF's roots stretch back to 1971 when its founder Klaus Schwab invited executives from European companies to the then tiny ski resort of Davos, high in the Swiss Alps. With climate change top of the agenda, chiefs of major energy companies are back after a COVID-related hiatus. Others include IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, European Central Bank chief Christine Lagarde, NATO General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and Chinese Vice-Premier Liu He. Climate change topped the WEF's survey of global risk and energy company executives will mix with climate activists and environment ministers at the forum.

☆ European shares edge up on pharma boost, UK's FTSE 100 nears record-high
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Bansari Mayur Kamdar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The pan-European STOXX 600 (.STOXX) gained 0.1% in early trading, boosted by a 0.8% rise in healthcare stocks (.SXDP). UK's FTSE 100 (.FTSE) rose 0.1% to 7,852.84, inching closer to a record 7,903.50. "Investors appear to have fallen back in love with UK assets, after a difficult period when FTSE 100 was the wallflower among global indices," said Susannah Streeter, senior investment and markets analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. Weakness in luxury heavyweights such as LVMH (LVMH.PA) and Hermes International (HRMS.PA) weighed on Europe's STOXX 600 on Monday. German arms maker Rheinmetall (RHMG.DE) gained 2.9% on acquiring a stake in Dutch IT hardware specialist Incooling B.V.

☆ BoE sceptical over digital pound as euro zone backs work on digital euro
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Huw Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey questioned the need for a digital pound on Monday just as euro zone finance ministers backed further preparatory work on a digital euro. Bailey told parliament's Treasury Select Committee on Monday that he was not sure if a digital pound was needed for now. "I think it's an open question whether a wholesale digital central bank currency is needed because we've got a wholesale central bank money settlement system with a major upgrade," Bailey said. Meanwhile, euro zone finance ministers on Monday said they backed continued preparatory work for a potential digital euro, now being studied by the European Central Bank. The EU is due to publish a draft law this year on how a digital euro would fit into the bloc's laws.

☆ Morning Bid: Let it go
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Anshuman DagaThe land of rising yields is the No. 1 focus of investors on Monday, as Japan's central bank may again let its bond-market peg go higher. Global inflation data due this week could underscore investors' expectations that the worst of the global price squeeze is over. A final read of euro zone inflation for December, as well as readings from Britain, Canada and Japan are due. Core inflation in all four regions is mostly rising and above target but the worst may have passed.

☆ South Korea flags economic slump deepening for while
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-18 | by ( Choonsik Yoo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

FILE PHOTO: South Korea Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho attends the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, 16 July 2022. South Korea’s economy, the fourth-largest in Asia, relies heavily on exports ranging from cars and ships to chips and smartphones. The central bank last month cut its projection for next year’s economic growth to 1.7% from the previous 2.1% in its scheduled revision, citing falling exports and the resultant reduction likely in corporate investment. The ministry is due to unveil its 2023 economic projections and strategies on Wednesday. President Yoon, struggling against low approval ratings, says exports are the best choice for the manufacturing-heavy country to overcome its slump.

☆ South Korea's economic slump to bottom in H1 2023 - finance minister
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-18 | by ( Reuters Staff | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

FILE PHOTO: South Korea Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho attends the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, 16 July 2022. Made Nagi/Pool via REUTERSSEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea’s finance minister said on Monday the economy is slowing at a more rapid pace than previously expected and would bottom in the first half of next year. “Our economy’s growth is expected to slow next year due to the effects from a global economic slump, and the difficulty will be focused on the first half,” Minister Choo Kyung-ho said at the opening of a meeting with the ruling party leadership. The meeting was held ahead of the government’s announcement later this week of its economic policy strategies for next year, which will be the first full-year statement for President Yoon Suk-yeol’s administration since its launch in May.

☆ Morning Bid: Five Alive
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

And given that investors are overwhelmingly positioning for peak rates by mid year and Fed rate cuts after that, the 'good news is bad news' reactions re-emerged on Monday. Futures markets pushed their implied Fed 'terminal rate' next May back above 5% - from as low as 4.85% shortly after Fed Chair Jerome's peculiarly dovish speech last week. There were further signs that China's COVID restrictions are being lifted gradually - though that's ambiguous for global inflation outlooks more generally. There will also be attention later on the U.S. Senate runoff in Georgia - although Democrats have control of the Senate regardless. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ Hungary Blocks EU Plan to Raise Over $18 Billion in Funding for Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Laurence Norman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The government of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has been embroiled in a spat with Brussels over funding. European Union finance ministers failed to agree Tuesday on providing more than $18 billion of vital economic assistance for Ukraine next year, with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government stymying for now efforts to secure the loan through common EU debt issuance. The promised assistance of 18 billion euros, equivalent to $18.9 billion, is envisioned as a critical part of the West’s contribution to help Kyiv pay for basic services next year. It comes after the EU came under U.S. and Ukrainian pressure to increase its economic assistance for Ukraine and ensure the consistency of its help.

At an EU economics and finance ministers' meeting in Brussels, Hungarian minister Mihaly Varga confirmed his government's opposition to supporting Ukraine with the loan. Hungary has said it would not take part in joint EU borrowing for Ukraine, though Budapest has said it would provide bilateral assistance. But this is not how Hungary's decision to block the EU loan has been received by all. Locked in a tug-of-war with Hungary, the ministers decided to take off their agenda on Tuesday any decision about 7.5 billion euros in EU funds earmarked for Hungary, according to EU officials. International watchdogs say he has channelled EU funds to his inner circle over the years, entrenching himself in power.

☆ Italy urges EU subsidy package in response to U.S. IRA scheme
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ROME, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Italian Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti on Monday called for a common European Union approach to support competitiveness and protect strategic production, in response to the massive subsidies in the United States' Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). The EU fears that the $430 billion IRA scheme, with its generous tax breaks for domestic production of energy sector components, may lure away EU businesses and disadvantage European companies, from car manufacturers to makers of green technology. "We are in favour of a European IRA plan with the objective of reducing inflation," Giorgetti said in a statement issued on the sidelines of a meeting with fellow euro zone finance ministers in Brussels. Giorgetti said the EU should act in a united fashion rather than follow a country-by-country approach. Reporting by Giuseppe Fonte; Editing by Gavin Jones and Sandra MalerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ India tax panel may not reach consensus on taxing online gaming - source
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The panel has for weeks been deliberating how it should tax online gaming companies -- and whether federal tax should be imposed on only the profits of firms or on the value of the entire pool of money collected from participants. The panel is unlikely to reach a consensus this month, the official told reporters in New Delhi. Real-money online games have become hugely popular in India, prompting foreign investors like Tiger Global and Sequoia Capital to back local gaming startups Dream11 and Mobile Premier League, popular for their fantasy cricket games. India is also separately working on federal regulations for the gaming sector that research firm Redseeer estimates will be worth $7 billion by 2026, dominated by real-money games. A separate government panel tasked with rationalisation of GST rates is also discussing the 18% tax levied on health insurance, amid calls seeking a lower rate, said the official.

☆ Morning Bid: China reopening as volatility ebbs
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

What's more, Wall Street's 'fear index' is showing little if any trepidation about the final month of the year. Even though it backed up a bit today, the VIX index of implied S&P500 volatility (.VIX) closed at its lowest in 8 months on Friday. Morgan Stanley updated its China equity recommendation to overweight, citing "multiple positive developments alongside a clear path set towards reopening." China's yuan , surged past 7 to the dollar in onshore and offshore markets - its best levels in almost three months. The China re-opening optimism buoyed the oil price even as OPEC+ nations at the weekend held their targets steady despite last week's market speculation of another output cut.

☆ 'Immoral' for Hungary to hold up EU financing deal for Ukraine -Lithuania
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Jan Strupczewski | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BRUSSELS, Dec 5 (Reuters) - It is "immoral" for Hungary to hold up a European Union deal on 2023 financing for Ukraine to extract approval for Budapest's recovery plan and billions from the EU budget, Lithuanian Finance Minister Gintare Skaiste told Reuters on Monday. Hungary has been blocking an EU plan to provide 18 billion euros next year in financial help to war-torn Ukraine through the EU budget, which would make disbursements regular and predictable, allowing the Kyiv administration to plan ahead. EU officials say that to remove its veto, one of the things Budapest wants is EU approval for its plan (RRP) to spend 5.8 billion euros from the EU post-pandemic recovery fund. Another thing Budapest may want, EU diplomats and officials say, is for EU finance ministers to freeze a smaller amount of EU funds for Hungary than the 7.5 billion recommended by the Commission last week. She said that if Hungary continued to bloc financing for Ukraine through the EU budget, other EU governments could agree to provide the money in some other way, like they did this year.

☆ Explainer: India G20 presidency 2023: what does it mean and what can we expect
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Devjyot Ghoshal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

During and after the 2008 global financial crisis, the G20's coordinated efforts helped tamp down panic and restore economic growth. WHAT DOES G20 PRESIDENCY ENTAIL? After India, Brazil will take over the presidency of the G20, followed by South Africa in 2025. WHAT DOES THE G20 MEAN FOR INDIA AND MODI? "The country has not invested much in multilateral rule-making institutions like the G20, but it is never too late to start."

☆ Emerging market policymakers dare to hope for brighter 2023
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Roberto Samora | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

He also said a reopening of China could propel the South Korean economy in 2023. "Actually if China loosens zero-COVID policy and reopens their borders and economy that will be a tremendous stimulus for us. Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman forecast a "very good" economy ahead of 2024 national elections, fuelled by capital spending. State finance minister Shehan Semasinghe also said the nation was intent on meeting a December deadline to present plans to help unlock an International Monetary Fund bail-out. Zambia, which defaulted on its sovereign debt in 2020, aims to complete its restructuring of nearly $15 billion of external debt in the first quarter of 2023, Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane said.

☆ Croatia, heading to enter euro zone, adopts first budget in euros
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SARAJEVO, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Croatia, which will enter the euro zone on Jan. 1, passed its first budget in euros on Tuesday, targeting a general deficit of 2.3% of gross domestic product based on the projection of 0.7% economic growth for 2023. The budget was adopted with 77 votes in favour and 50 against in the 151-seat parliament. "This is Croatia's first budget denominated in the euro," Finance Minister Marko Primorac said as he presented the budgetary plans. The total budget revenue is forecast at 24.9 billion euros ($25.86 billion), up 9% from this year and fuelled primarily by direct and indirect taxes projected at 13.3 billion euros. Expenditures are set at 26.7 billion euros, up 2.1 billion euros from this year, due to an increase in government social and development programmes.

☆ Brazil's Goldfajn elected to replace ousted IDB president
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, Nov 20 (Reuters) - The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) said on Sunday its board of governors has elected Brazil's Ilan Goldfajn as president of the financial institution, after Mauricio Claver-Carone, the first American to lead it, was ousted over ethics violations. Headquartered in Washington, the IDB is a key investor in Latin America and the Caribbean, responsible for $23.4 billion in financial commitments in 2021 and hundreds of infrastructure, health and tourism projects. In a statement, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen congratulated Goldfajn and said the United States stands by the IDB as the region's premier development finance institution. "We are counting on President Goldfajn to lead this organization to be an engine of change and progress for our neighbors across Latin America and the Caribbean," Yellen said. Brazil's outgoing President Jair Bolsonaro nominated Goldfajn, the former president of the country's central bank and currently the head of the International Monetary Fund's Western Hemisphere department.

☆ Brazil's Goldfajn elected to replace ousted IDB president, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Nov 20 (Reuters) - The governors of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) have elected Brazil's Ilan Goldfajn as president of the financial institution after Mauricio Claver-Carone, the first American to lead it, was ousted over ethics violations, two sources told Reuters. Headquartered in Washington, the IDB is a key investor in Latin America and the Caribbean, responsible for $23.4 billion in financial commitments in 2021 and hundreds of infrastructure, health and tourism projects. The scandalous ouster of Claver-Carone had made it more likely that the next candidate would hail from Latin America, following prior precedent. Brazil's outgoing President Jair Bolsonaro nominated Goldfajn, the former president of the country's central bank and currently the head of the International Monetary Fund's Western Hemisphere department. IDB shareholders have underscored the importance of rebuilding trust in the institution after Claver-Carone's rocky, nearly two-year tenure.

☆ Brazil's Lula seen favoring leftist Haddad for finance minister, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Lisandra Paraguassu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Mariana Greif/File PhotoBRASILIA, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Leftist former Sao Paulo Mayor Fernando Haddad is emerging as the front-runner to be Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's finance minister, three sources told Reuters, although they said no final decision has yet been made. Investors, already jittery over Lula's spending plans, are eager to learn who will be Brazil's next finance minister. Lula is not expected to announce any of his ministers until early December after he returns from Egypt and Portugal trips. Markets tumbled in Brazil last week on concerns that Lula was delaying the naming of his finance minister and disregarding fiscal discipline as he studied ways to bypass the budget spending ceiling. Haddad failed in his bid to be Sao Paulo governor in last month's election, losing out to Bolsonaro's pick for the job.

☆ The G-20 summit kicks off Tuesday. Here's what to expect.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Jihye Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Indonesian Finance Minister Sri Mulyani (C front) attends the G20 Finance Ministers Meeting in Nusa Dua, on Indonesia's resort island of Bali, on July 16, 2022. Nineteen countries and one economic region, the European Union, will attend this year's two-day G-20 meeting. This year's in-person attendee list has been in the spotlight as Russian President Vladimir Putin continues his unprovoked war in Ukraine. U.S. President Joe Biden is also scheduled to hold a bilateral meeting with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping ahead of the G-20. He highlighted China's stance on the war in Ukraine as one of many signs of eroding relations between the U.S. and China.

☆ Morning Bid: Congress unswept, crypto a mess
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

A look at the day ahead in U.S. and global markets from Mike Dolan. Incumbent Democrats enjoyed a stronger-than-expected showing, with a chance of retaining the Senate, limiting expected losses in the House of Representatives and taking important governors' races. Regardless of the poll results, problems in the crypto world deepened amid fears of widespread contagion and selling following the near collapse of a major exchange on Tuesday. Perhaps partly related to the crypto shakeout, shares in Tesla (TSLA.O) dropped as much as 5% on Tuesday after filings showed owner Elon Musk sold almost $4 billion Tesla shares before his Twitter takeover. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

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