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Iran has acknowledged sending drones to Russia but said they were sent before Russia's February 2022 invasion on Ukraine. Moscow has denied its forces used Iranian drones in Ukraine. The U.S. move on Thursday comes after the United States has accused China of considering supplying arms to Russia and warned Beijing against such a move. Moscow and Tehran have moved to forge closer relations after Russia invaded Ukraine a year ago, prompting sweeping Western sanctions. Russia and Iran, which is also under Western sanctions, are among the world's largest oil exporters.

Reuters reported last week that the United States and EU were working to make European minerals eligible for tax credits under the $430 billion U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), citing a senior EU official. That law requires rising percentages of battery minerals to come from the United States or a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) partner. Working with allies to reduce U.S. reliance on China for critical minerals would aid U.S. energy and economic security, the spokesperson added. The EU, South Korea, Japan and other U.S. allies have harshly criticized the IRA's provision requiring EVs to be assembled in North America to qualify for consumer EV tax credits. But the EU in December praised a U.S. Treasury Department decision to allow EVs leased by consumers to qualify for up to $7,500 in commercial clean vehicle tax credits.

☆ Putin's cellist friend moved millions through Swiss bank accounts - prosecutors
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( John Revill | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

ZURICH, March 8 (Reuters) - A concert cellist linked to Vladimir Putin moved millions through Swiss bank accounts without any proper checks, prosecutors will allege on Wednesday, in a case that highlights the murky financial dealings of Russia's ruling elite. Four bankers are accused of helping Sergey Roldugin, a close friend of the Russian president according to the indictment, deposit millions of Swiss francs in Switzerland. The bankers - three Russians who worked in Zurich and one Swiss - will deny the allegations against them, one of their lawyers said. Roldugin was named the owner of two accounts opened at Gazprombank Switzerland GZPRI.MM in 2014, into which flowed millions of francs from Russia. There is little trace of Putin's assets.

☆ Fed's Powell sees long-term damage if US debt ceiling not raised
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Michael S. Derby | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW YORK, March 7 (Reuters) - The United States risks long-term damage if Congress does not raise the national debt ceiling, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Tuesday. Republicans, who control the U.S. House of Representatives, want to withhold a debt limit increase until Democrats agree to deep spending cuts. Democrats say the debt limit should not be "held hostage" to Republican tactics over federal spending. A debt ceiling showdown in 2011 roiled markets and led to a downgrade by credit ratings agency Standard & Poor's. Reporting by Michael S. Derby; Additional reporting by Lindsay Dunsmuir; Editing by and Paul SimaoOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Economists, activists warn lawmakers of looming debt default if Congress cannot agree to raise the debt ceiling
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's, said an impending default would "be a catastrophic blow to the already fragile economy." "Given the dramatic reduction in government spending in this scenario and the already fragile economy, the economy suffers a recession in 2024. "Bond investors, unsure of how this legal uncertainty would be resolved would demand a much higher interest rate in compensation. In his opening remarks, Holtz-Eakin also said that skirting default would have "serious and adverse economic effects." "House Republicans don't seem concerned about the upcoming debt limit deadline," Warren said in her opening remarks.

☆ US Treasury puts cost of outbound investment risk program at $10 million
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, March 4 (Reuters) - A program to address the risks of outbound U.S. investment in areas with sensitive technology potentially harmful to national security would cost $10 million if set up this fiscal year, according to a U.S. Treasury Department report obtained by Reuters. Congress sought the analysis from the Treasury Department, which would lead any such program's implementation, as well as a review by the U.S. Commerce Department, which would coordinate with Treasury. She added that she would seek to support any executive action on outbound investment through legislation. The Treasury report did not cite China specifically. We're talking to industry, talking to stakeholders, talking to Treasury whose going to have to administer this."

WASHINGTON, March 3 (Reuters) - The United States and European Union are working toward agreement in principle on a deal to make European minerals eligible for tax credits, a senior EU official said Friday. The EU official said an agreement could come as early as next week, in time for a visit by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to Washington, on a deal that would give the EU "free trade agreement-like status." The EU official said it was critical to reach an agreement soon, given moves by some European companies to shift production to the United States. This would be very reduced and certainly not a free trade agreement in the classical way," the official said. But the EU in December praised a U.S. Treasury Department decision to allow EVs leased by consumers to qualify for up to $7,500 in commercial clean vehicle tax credits.

☆ Fears of European industry exodus to U.S. may be overdone
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Philip Blenkinsop | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

However, the risks are offset not only by the substantial existing European incentives, but also other factors - such as proximity to European consumers - that many companies cite as critical in their decisions. Think tank Bruegel says EU support is already on a par with, or even larger than, IRA money. Moreover, well over half of the IRA support is for renewable energy production, with local content requirements playing a very limited role. Some executives say rather than providing more subsidies, Europe needs to simply improve the way they are given. The United States is not a panacea for European firms, not least due to questions about what approach the next U.S. administration might take.

☆ US sanctions three people for abuse of Russian opposition politician
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Katharine Jackson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, March 3 (Reuters) - The United States on Friday imposed sanctions on three Russians it accused of serious human rights abuses against Russian opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza, who was arrested last year after speaking out against the war in Ukraine. The U.S. Treasury Department said the sanctions target Elena Anatolievna Lenskaya, Andrei Andreevich Zadachin and Danila Yurievich Mikheev for abuses under the Global Magnitsky Act. Kara-Murza, who holds both British and Russian citizenship and was a pallbearer at the 2018 funeral of U.S. Senator John McCain, was a close aide to opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, who was shot dead in central Moscow in 2015. Kara-Murza has pushed for the U.S., Canada, European Union and Britain to use Magnitsky-style sanctions to target human rights abusers and corrupt actors in Russia, the Treasury Department said.

☆ Austria plays down concerns over U.S. scrutiny of RBI over Russia business
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Alexandra Schwarz-Goerlich | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

VIENNA, March 2 (Reuters) - Austria's finance ministry on Thursday played down concerns about U.S. sanctions officials scrutinising Raiffeisen Bank International (RBIV.VI) over its Russia business. "The inquiry from the U.S. sanctions authority is a normal process that gives no cause for concern, because sanctions authorities naturally keep informing themselves about Austrian companies doing business in Russia," Austria's finance ministry told Reuters in a statement. The Austrian finance ministry said it would in due course address questions from parliament about Raiffeisen, as the lender's activities drew more domestic political scrutiny. "A risky deal for the Austrian Raiffeisen, which instead of - like other European banks - ending its business in Russia, is focusing on intensifying business relations," Greens lawmaker Nina Tomaselli said in a parliamentary question. The finance ministry welcomed the prospect of such a deal, suggesting it could prevent losses to savers and deposit insurance of hundreds of millions of euros.

It was not clear what specific sanctions Washington will propose. Washington and its allies have said in recent weeks that China was considering providing weapons to Russia, which Beijing denies. Before that in New Delhi on Wednesday and Thursday, the war will be discussed by foreign ministers from dozens of countries, including Russia, China and the United States. The initial outreach by Washington on sanctions has not yet led to broad agreement on any specific measures, the sources said. Washington should make China choose between access to the U.S. financial system or aiding Russia's war, Ruggiero said, citing the sanctions approach to Iran and North Korea.

☆ Continuing Sanctions Against Russia Mark ‘Tectonic’ Shift
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Richard Vanderford | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +7 min

Hundreds of companies, though, decamped, calculating that the looming threat of sanctions ratcheting up and reputational risk warranted an exit. Prof. Sonnenfeld and Mr. Tannebaum both have been personally sanctioned by Russia, which has accused critics of engaging in a “Russophobic” campaign. “Countries continue to rely on those tools for foreign policy. The Russia sanctions have functioned as a “wake-up call” to the C-suite, Mr. Smith said. The use of coordinated sanctions, both in Russia and as a broader foreign policy tool, doesn’t seem to be going away, experts agreed.

☆ A Year After Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine, Tough Sanctions Linger
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Richard Vanderford | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +7 min

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine a year ago prompted a volley of tough sanctions from the U.S. and its allies, a historic use of economic measures that will likely have lasting implications for businesses. Hundreds of companies, though, decamped, calculating that the looming threat of sanctions ratcheting up and reputational risk warranted an exit. “Countries continue to rely on those tools for foreign policy. The Russia sanctions have functioned as a “wake-up call” to the C-suite, Mr. Smith said. The use of coordinated sanctions, both in Russia and as a broader foreign policy tool, doesn’t seem to be going away, experts agreed.

☆ U.S. hits Chinese, Russian firms for aiding Russian military
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Feb 24 (Reuters) - The Biden administration on Friday added Chinese and Russian companies, including Russia's no. 2 mobile phone operator, to a trade blacklist for allegedly supporting the Russian military, deepening its crackdown on Moscow on the first anniversary of its invasion of Ukraine. The moves show President Joe Biden's administration is broadening its efforts to thwart Russia's military, targeting companies globally for helping Moscow evade export restrictions and access key technologies. The U.S. Commerce Department added Public Joint Stock Company Megafon, Russia's second largest mobile phone operator, to its entity list for allegedly "acquiring and attempting to acquire" U.S. technology to support Russia's military. Of the scores of new additions to its trade restriction list, 79 were Russia-based, five are listed under China, and two are based in Canada.

METALS AND MININGIn a significant widening of its Russia-related sanctions, Treasury announced a new determination by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) that allows sanctions on any individual or entity operating in Russia's metals and mining sector. On Friday, it hit four mining and metals sector companies, including TPZ-Rondol, a unit of Russia's largest ammunition maker, for producing weapons for the Russian military, including the navy, the Treasury said. Among other entities hit on Friday were more than a dozen Russian banks. Another bank hit was MTS Bank, which is located in Moscow and Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Brian Nelson, Treasury's top sanctions official raised concerns about UAE's decision to license the Russian bank during a visit to the country the week of Jan. 30.

☆ Raiffeisen stock slumps after U.S. sanctions authority asks about Russia business
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 20 (Reuters) - Shares in Raiffeisen Bank International fell more than 7% at the open on Monday after the Austrian Bank had said on Friday it had received a request for information from the United States' sanctions authority about its business related to Russia. Earlier in February, Raiffeisen reported it earned more than half of its 2022 profit from Russia, a market it is considering exiting after the country's invasion of Ukraine. RBI has operated in Russia since the collapse of the Soviet Union and is Russia's 10th-largest bank by assets. The bank's shares have fallen 19% since the start of the war in February last year. Reporting by Bartosz Dabrowski in Gdansk Editing by Paul CarrelOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

An Austrian official said that Austrian authorities were monitoring the situation at Raiffeisen and its business in Russia closely because of the bank's importance. Almost a year since Moscow launched what it calls a "special military operation" in Ukraine, Raiffeisen is among a handful of European banks that remain in Russia. Raiffeisen made a net profit of roughly 3.8 billion euros last year, thanks in large part to a 2 billion euro plus profit from its Russia business. Alternatively, OFAC can also resort to less stringent measures such as levying fines and sending warning letters over sanctions violations. OFAC has sanctioned five major Russian banks, including state-backed Sberbank (SBER.MM) part of a response to that country's invasion of Ukraine, as well as wealthy oligarchs.

☆ U.S. Forced Labor Crackdown Is Tough, But Opaque
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Richard Vanderford | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +7 min

The U.S. has mounted an aggressive crackdown on imports over concerns about Chinese forced labor, but the campaign is an opaque one, with little detailed data on which companies or sectors are being targeted. January alone saw 282 shipments stopped over forced labor concerns, according to Customs data. Luis C.deBaca helped lead the U.S. fight against forced labor in the Obama administration and now teaches law at the University of Michigan. Photo: Luis C.deBacaChina has rejected allegations that it uses forced labor in Xinjiang. The agency added that it is “committed to transparency” and is developing an interactive web-based tool to provide forced labor enforcement statistics.

REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin/File PhotoHOUSTON, Feb 16 (Reuters) - Russia's decision to cut crude oil production by 500,000 barrels per day reflects its inability to sell all of its oil, Ben Harris, a U.S. Treasury Department Assistant Secretary, said on Thursday. Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak last week said it would voluntarily cut production beginning next month following the start of Western price caps on Russian oil and oil products on Feb. 5. Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia have pushed for lowering the crude oil cap. There have been no American companies involved in trading Russian oil above the price cap, he said. Phillips 66's (PSX.N) Chief Executive Mark Lashier said the company's base assumption is that Russia's crude and oil products will find their way into the marketplace.

☆ Foreign holdings of U.S. Treasurys increase for 2nd month in December, data shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

U.S. Treasurys held by foreigners increased for a second consecutive month in December, data from the U.S. Treasury Department showed on Wednesday, as yields started to decline from their peaks, becoming more attractive to offshore investors. Foreign holdings rose $7.314 trillion in December, up from $7.268 trillion in the previous month. Treasury holdings in December, however, were 5.5% lower from the December 2021 level of $7.740 trillion. "It's encouraging that foreign investors were starting to dip their toes in U.S. Treasury debt at the end of the year. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield started the month December at 3.527% and ended the month at 3.835%.

☆ Factbox: The U.S. debt ceiling and markets: Gauging the fallout
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

NEW YORK, Feb 16 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden is at odds with Republicans in Congress over raising the $31.4 trillion debt ceiling, a showdown that looms as a risk factor for markets. Many past debt-limit standoffs have been resolved without significant market fallout but that hasn't always been the case: a 2011 debt ceiling showdown roiled markets and led to a downgrade Standard & Poor's. Here is some background about the debt ceiling debate and its impact on markets:** Though months remain for lawmakers to reach an agreement, there are signs stock investors may already be pricing in risk around the debt ceiling debate. According to Goldman Sachs, while debt limit debates typically have had "limited" impact on the broad market, stocks exposed to government spending have commonly lagged in the weeks prior to the debt ceiling deadline. That led Deutsche Bank's head of global economics and thematic research Jim Reid to note that markets might be caught off guard by major fallout from a debt showdown.

☆ Morning Bid: Growth trumps rates
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

While there were some questions about seasonal adjustments in the data, economists were impressed that sales growth was pretty broad based and have scrambled to re-crunch first quarter U.S. output forecasts as a result. There may be a more mixed picture from Thursday's data slate on producer prices, housing starts and weekly jobless claims. Even though rates futures and Treasury yields ticked back a bit today, pricing now has Fed policy rates moving as high as 5.25% and staying above 5% all year. And while full-year earnings growth estimates for S&P500 companies have sunk to zero, consensus forecasts are now pencilling in a rebound of almost 12% next year. Uncertainty about the pace of growth and annual tax receipts in April makes it difficult for government officials to predict the exact "X-date", it said.

"If the debt limit is not raised or suspended before the extraordinary measures are exhausted, the government would be unable to pay its obligations fully," the CBO report said. "As a result, the government would have to delay making payments for some activities, default on its debt obligations, or both." CBO Director Phillip Swagel attributed the rise to higher interest rates that particularly are hitting the housing industry, coupled with slowing business investment. REUTERS/Elizabeth FrantzRepublicans, who control the House of Representatives, want to withhold a debt limit increase until Democrats agree to deep spending cuts. Democrats in turn say the debt limit should not be "held hostage" to Republican tactics over federal spending.

☆ Banking Group Asks Treasury to Withdraw Ownership Database Proposal
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Dylan Tokar | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +4 min

The American Bankers Association was one of the biggest proponents of a new corporate ownership registry, saying it hoped the project would help cut regulatory costs for its members. The legislation approved by Congress outlines a range of civil and criminal penalties for individuals or entities that fail to disclose ownership information, or that intentionally disclose inaccurate information. To use the database, banks would have to identify and correct discrepancies, which would require additional staff and resources, the group said. FinCEN’s proposal is its second related to the new ownership database. The Treasury bureau has said it would issue a third rule addressing banks’ due diligence obligations related to the database.

☆ U.S. Exempts Earthquake Aid to Syria From Sanctions
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Mengqi Sun | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +3 min

Funds sent to Syria for earthquake relief that might otherwise be barred by U.S. sanctions are exempted for about six months, the U.S. Treasury Department said. The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, which implements and enforces U.S. sanctions, issued a general license Thursday night allowing U.S. banks and money transmitters to process transactions to and from Syria if they are intended for earthquake aid. The language is seen as providing more protection to financial institutions processing the transactions, sanctions experts said. Paul Carroll, director of the Charity & Security Network, a resource and advocacy center for nonprofit organizations, said delivering aid to Syria also faces logistical challenges. “The obstacles to getting aid to Syria [for earthquake relief] is more about parties, the bad and good guys, than about the sanctions themselves,” Mr. Carroll said.

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