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☆ 'New scenario' opens for Argentina with BRICS invitation, Fernandez says
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Argentina's President Alberto Fernandez speaks during a news conference at the Itamaraty Palace in Brasilia, Brazil, June 26, 2023. REUTERS/Adriano Machado/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsAug 24 (Reuters) - A "new scenario" opens for Argentina with the invitation for the South American country to join the BRICS group of developing nations, President Alberto Fernandez said on Thursday. Argentina wanted to join BRICS - a group currently made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - because of the bloc's geopolitical and financial importance during a difficult global context, Fernandez said in a speech. Argentina was invited to join BRICS along with Saudi Arabia, Iran, Ethiopia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, as the group convenes in South Africa this week. By joining BRICS, Argentina will act as an important interlocutor and potential broker for consensus with other nations, Fernandez added.

Persons: Alberto Fernandez, Adriano Machado, Fernandez, Gabriel Araujo, Kylie Madry, Christina Fincher, Chizu Organizations: REUTERS, South, BRICS, United Arab, Thomson Locations: Brasilia, Brazil, Argentina, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Ethiopia, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, BRICS

The surprise move leaves the policy rate at its highest level since 2019, and sent the Turkish currency to its strongest level since mid-July. The bank has raised its one-week repo rate (TRINT=ECI) by 1,650 basis points since June. The lira had touched new all-time lows almost daily in recent weeks, including in the minutes before the policy decision. The central bank said that rising oil prices and a deterioration in inflation expectations suggests that inflation will end the year at the upper bound of its forecasts. The central bank has also selectively tightened credit.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Piotr Matys, Dado Ruvic, Erdogan, Hafize Gaye Erkan, Osman Cevdet Akcay, Fatih Karahan, Hatice, Ezgi Erkoyun, Christina Fincher, Angus MacSwan Organizations: Analysts, Istanbul bourse, Touch, Turkey Lira, REUTERS, Wall Street, Thomson Locations: ISTANBUL, Istanbul, Ankara

REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsZURICH, Aug 24 (Reuters) - GAM (GAMH.S) has entered into discussions with French billionaire Xavier Niel's NewGAMe shareholder group after a takeover offer from Britain's Liontrust failed to gain the required level of support. "The GAM Board acknowledges that the majority of our shareholders have not found the Liontrust Offer compelling. GAM shares fell 5.08% shortly after market open, whereas Liontrust recorded a 10.37% gain. Liontrust had made its offer conditional on winning the backing of two-thirds of GAM's shareholders in a prospectus it published in June. The investor group, led by Niel's NewGAMe and asset manager Bruellan, have vehemently opposed the all-share offer, saying in July that it "grossly undervalues GAM".

Persons: Arnd, Xavier Niel's, Britain's Liontrust, Liontrust, GAM's, David Jacob, Niel's NewGAMe, Bruellan, Brenna Hughes, Friederike Heine, Jason Neely, Christina Fincher Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, GAM, Thomson Locations: Zurich, Switzerland, British, Liontrust

Pheu Thai's Srettha Thavisin attends a press conference, after Thailand's parliament voted in favour of his prime ministerial candidacy, in Bangkok, Thailand August 22, 2023. "The picture is not all wine and roses," Thailand's central bank chief Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput said in recorded remarks played on Wednesday. Tourism, a major driver of the Thai economy, has managed a robust recovery, although arrivals and tourist spending are still below pre-pandemic levels, data shows. $96 BLN BUDGETIn this first address since winning office, Srettha on Wednesday vowed to provide solutions to fix Thailand's economy, among other measures, and manage the budget transparently. But its ability to execute will depend on the military backers that Pheu Thai has allied with to be able to form a government.

Persons: Pheu, Srettha Thavisin, Chalinee, Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput, Kobsidthi Silpachai, Srettha, Goldman Sachs, Poon Panichpibool, Sanan Angubolkul, Orathai Sriring, Christina Fincher Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Tourism, Krung Thai Bank, Thai Chamber of Commerce, Thomson Locations: Bangkok, Thailand, Rights BANGKOK, Asia's, China, Thai

☆ FIFA opens disciplinary proceedings against Spanish FA chief Rubiales
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"The FIFA Disciplinary Committee informed Luis Rubiales, President of the Spanish Football Association, today that it is opening disciplinary proceedings against him based on the events that occurred during the final of the Women's World Cup," it said in a statement. "The events may constitute violations of article 13 paragraphs 1 and 2 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code." Rubiales, who initially called his critics "idiots", issued a video apology late on Monday, but it failed to quell the uproar . Acting Second Deputy Prime Minister Yolanda Diaz called for Rubiales' resignation because "without any doubt (he) attacked a woman". Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru; editing by Christina Fincher and Ken FerrisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Pedro Sanchez, Royal Spanish Football Federation Luis Rubiales, Juan Medina, Luis Rubiales, Jenni Hermoso, Rubiales, Yolanda Diaz, Hermoso, FUTPRO, TMJ, Rohith Nair, Christina Fincher, Ken Ferris Organizations: Soccer Football, FIFA, Spain's, Moncloa, Royal Spanish Football Federation, Spanish, England, Spanish Football Association, Liga, National Sports Council, Thomson Locations: New Zealand, Madrid, Spain, Bengaluru

☆ Morning Bid: World markets bounce at last
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., August 15, 2023. The onshore yuan steadied amid supportive action by China's state banks in the swaps market, and Chinese stocks (.CSI300) perked up from the year's lows. Overall, MSCI's all-country index (.MIWD00000PUS) was on course on Tuesday for its first back-to-back daily gains of August so far. There were background concerns about the impact on U.S. banks of this latest hit to bond prices and borrowing rates. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Persons: Brendan McDermid, Mike Dolan, Xi Jinping, MSCI's, Jackson, Jerome Powell's, Moody's, Thomas Barkin, Austan Goolsbee, Michelle Bowman, Cyril Ramaphosa, Christina Fincher Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, REUTERS, Treasury, Federal Reserve, Nasdaq, P, Activision, Ubisoft Entertainment, Microsoft, Richmond Fed, Philadelphia Fed, Richmond Federal, Chicago Fed, China's, Reuters Graphics, Thomson, Reuters Locations: New York City, U.S, Wyoming, Jackson, China, South Africa, Asia, Johannesburg, Pretoria

☆ Lucy Letby: Who is the killer British nurse jailed for whole life?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Cheshire Constabulary/Handout via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Aug 21 (Reuters) - British nurse Lucy Letby was jailed for life on Monday, with no prospect of release, for murdering seven babies and trying to kill another six at the hospital where she worked in northwest England. Here are details about Letby, one of the country's worst serial child killers, and the case:WHO IS LUCY LETBY? WHAT IS THE LUCY LETBY CASE ABOUT? Other babies, who suddenly collapsed and did not die, recovered, with both their collapse and recovery defying usual medical norms. The police and medical experts were called in and as they looked for a cause, they eventually focused on one common factor -- Lucy Letby.

Persons: Lucy Letby, LUCY LETBY, Countess, Chester, Prosecutors, Letby, Paul Hughes, James Goss, Nicola Evans, Evans, Hughes, Michael Holden, Christina Fincher, William James Our Organizations: Cheshire Police, Manchester Crown, Reuters, . Cheshire Constabulary, REUTERS Acquire, WHO, Chester University, Chester Hospital, Chester Hospital ., Police, Liverpool Women's Hospital, Thomson Locations: Manchester, Britain, England, Hereford

☆ Factbox: Russia's Luna-25 moon mission fails: what you need to know
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LUNA-25It was Russia's first moon mission since the Soviet Union's Luna-24 returned with samples from the moon in 1976. The lander was boosted out of Earth's orbit toward the moon a little over an hour later. Russia had not attempted a moon mission since Luna-24 in 1976, when Leonid Brezhnev ruled the Kremlin. Luna-25 was supposed to execute a soft landing on the south pole of the moon on Aug. 21, according to Russian space officials. Eventually, in the early 2010s, Russia settled upon the idea of the Luna-25 mission to the south pole of the moon.

Persons: Luna, Roskosmos, Yuri Gagarin, Leonid Brezhnev, Vladimir Putin, Guy Faulconbridge, Philippa Fletcher, Christina Fincher Organizations: 2.1b, Vostochny, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Soyuz, Luna, Kremlin, Thomson Locations: Amur, Russia, Soviet, Vostochny cosmodrome, Moscow, RUSSIA, Soviet Union

SummaryCompanies Russia moon mission failsLuna-25 crashes into the moonFailure is a blow to Russian space prestigeSoviet space veteran: Luna-25 was my last hopeMOSCOW, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Russia's first moon mission in 47 years failed when its Luna-25 space craft spun out of control and crashed into the moon after a problem preparing for pre-landing orbit, underscoring the post-Soviet decline of a once mighty space programme. Russia's state space corporation, Roskosmos, said it had lost contact with the craft at 11:57 GMT on Saturday after a problem as the craft was shunted into pre-landing orbit. Though moon missions are fiendishly difficult, and many U.S. and Soviet attempts have failed, Russia had not attempted a moon mission since Luna-24 in 1976, when Communist leader Leonid Brezhnev ruled the Kremlin. Russian officials had hoped that the Luna-25 mission would show Russia can compete with the superpowers in space despite its post-Soviet decline and the vast cost of the Ukraine war. "This was perhaps the last hope for me to see a revival of our lunar program," he said.

Persons: Luna, Roskosmos, Yuri Gagarin, Leonid Brezhnev, Anatoly Zak, Zak, Mikhail Marov, Marov, Guy Faulconbridge, Christina Fincher, Frances Kerry Organizations: Kremlin, India, Indian Space Research Organisation, ISRO, YP Rajesh, Thomson Locations: Russia, MOSCOW, Moscow, Soviet, Europe, Tenerife, China, United States, Handout, Ukraine, Soviet Union, India, Delhi

☆ New find throws light on life of slaves in Ancient Rome's Pompeii
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

ROME, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Archaeologists have discovered a small bedroom in a Roman villa near Pompeii that was almost certainly used by slaves, throwing light on their lowly status in the ancient world, the culture ministry said on Sunday. The room was found at the Civita Giuliana villa, some 600 metres (2,000 ft) north of the walls of Pompeii, which was wiped out by a volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius nearly 2,000 years ago. Archaeologists said part of one of the beds had been destroyed by a tunnel used by robbers to access another part of the villa. Pompeii and the surrounding countryside was submerged by volcanic ash when Mount Vesuvius exploded in AD 79, killing thousands of Romans who had no idea they were living beneath one of Europe's biggest volcanoes. The eruption buried the city in a thick layer of ash, preserving many of its residents and buildings.

Persons: Gabriel Zuchtriegel, Gennaro Sangiuliano, Crispian Balmer, Christina Fincher Organizations: EU, Culture, Thomson Locations: Vesuvius

Russia's state space corporation, Roskosmos, said an "abnormal situation" occurred as mission control tried to move the craft into a pre-landing orbit at 11:10 GMT on Saturday, ahead of a planned touchdown slated for Monday. "During the operation, an abnormal situation occurred on board the automatic station, which did not allow the manoeuvre to be performed with the specified parameters," Roskosmos said in a short statement. Russia has not attempted a moon mission since Luna-24 in 1976, when Leonid Brezhnev ruled the Kremlin. Luna-25 was supposed to execute a soft landing on the south pole of the moon on Aug. 21, according to Russian space officials. It was not immediately clear from official sources how serious the "abnormal situation" was - and whether or not Moscow could save the situation.

Persons: Luna, Roskosmos, Yuri Gagarin, Leonid Brezhnev, Alexander Ivanov, Guy Faulconbridge, Christina Fincher Organizations: REUTERS, Kremlin, India, Thomson Locations: Handout, MOSCOW, Moscow, Soviet, Russia, China, United States, Ukraine

☆ Italy to propose ex-minister Franco for ECB board, source says
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Italy's Economy Minister Daniele Franco addresses a news conference after the G7 Summit in Koenigswinter, near Bonn, Germany May 20, 2022. REUTERS/Benjamin Westhoff/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsROME, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Italy will put forward former economy minister Daniele Franco as its candidate for the executive board of the European Central Bank (ECB), a source close to the matter said on Sunday. He was appointed economy minister in 2021 in Mario Draghi's unity government, helping Italy navigate the COVID-19 crisis and the turbulence caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. However, in a surprise move, Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti decided instead to propose his predecessor, a source close to the matter told Reuters, confirming a report in Il Sole 24 Ore newspaper. The government had initially put Franco forward as the Italian candidate to lead the European Union's lending arm, the European Investment Bank (EIB).

Persons: Daniele Franco, Benjamin Westhoff, Fabio Panetta, Franco, Mario Draghi's, Piero Cipollone, Giancarlo Giorgetti, Giorgia Meloni, Crispian Balmer, Giuseppe Fonte, Christina Fincher, David Holmes Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, European Central Bank, ECB, Bank of Italy, European Investment Bank, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Koenigswinter, Bonn, Germany, Italy, Ukraine, France, Rome, Italian, Franco

☆ Factbox: Who is killer British nurse Lucy Letby?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Here are details about her and the case:WHO IS LUCY LETBY? She completed a nursing degree at Chester University in northwest England and after qualifying, she began to work in the neonatal unit of the city's Countess of Chester Hospital. WHAT IS THE LUCY LETBY CASE ABOUT? Other babies, who suddenly collapsed and did not die, recovered, with both their collapse and recovery defying usual medical norms. The police and medical experts were called in and as they looked for a cause, they eventually focused on one common factor - Lucy Letby.

Persons: Lucy Letby, LUCY LETBY, Countess, Chester, Prosecutors, Letby, Paul Hughes, Nicola Evans, Evans, Hughes, Michael Holden, Christina Fincher, William James Our Organizations: Cheshire Police, Manchester Crown, Reuters, . Cheshire Constabulary, REUTERS Acquire, WHO, Chester University, Chester Hospital, Chester Hospital ., Police, Liverpool Women's Hospital, Thomson Locations: Manchester, Britain, England, Hereford

An aerial view shows a crude oil tanker at an oil terminal off Waidiao island in Zhoushan, Zhejiang province, China January 4, 2023. Weekly products supplied, a proxy for demand, rose to the highest since December. Higher interest rates increase borrowing costs, which could slow economic growth and reduce oil demand. On a bullish note, China made a rare draw on crude oil inventories in July, the first time in 33 months it has dipped into storage. Data released on Wednesday showed that U.S. crude oil inventories fell by nearly 6 million barrels last week on strong exports and refining run rates.

Persons: Dennis Kissler, Naeem Aslam, OANDA's Moya, Arathy Somasekhar, Natalie Grover, Katya Golubkova, David Goodman, Christina Fincher, David Gregorio Our Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Brent, . West Texas, BOK Financial, Travel, Energy, Zaye, Markets, Thomson Locations: Zhoushan, Zhejiang province, China, Independence, U.S, China's, Houston, London, Singapore

TENERIFE, Canary Islands, Spain, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Firefighters on Thursday struggled to contain a wildfire that broke out in a mountainous national park on the Spanish island of Tenerife, prompting authorities to evacuate at least 3,800 people. "The night has been very tough...This is the most complex fire we've had in the Canary Islands in the last 40 years," the region's leader, Fernando Clavijo, told a news conference. [1/5]EIRIF forest firefighters work during the extinction of the forest fire in Arafo on the island of Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain August 16, 2023. Last week, a heatwave in the Canary Islands left many areas bone dry, heightening the risk of wildfires. This summer, firefighters have extinguished a series of forest fires on the islands of Gran Canaria and La Palma, which form part of the Canary Islands archipelago.

Persons: Alba Gil, we've, Fernando Clavijo, Pedro Martinez, Borja Suarez, Clavijo, Teide, Aena, Andrei Khalip, Christina Fincher, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: REUTERS, Authorities, Gran Canaria, La, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: TENERIFE, Canary Islands, Spain, Tenerife, La Esperanza, Canary, Europe, Canada, Lahaina, Arafo, El Rosario, La Orotava, Spanish, Gran

☆ Michael Parkinson, UK's 'king of the chat show', dies aged 88
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( Kylie Maclellan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, Aug 17 (Reuters) - British broadcaster Michael Parkinson, best known for interviewing some of the world's biggest celebrities on his long-running eponymous chat show, has died aged 88. After moving into current affairs television in the late 1960s, he was given his own prime-time chat show 'Parkinson' by the BBC in 1971. "After a brief illness Sir Michael Parkinson passed away peacefully at home last night in the company of his family," a family statement said. Parkinson later said he regretted getting angry with the actress. While he listed U.S. film director Orson Welles as one of his favourite guests, Parkinson also acknowledged many would simply recall the show where he was attacked by comedian Rod Hull's puppet Emu.

Persons: Michael Parkinson, Parkinson, Muhammad Ali, Elton John, John Lennon, Michael Caine, Madonna, Michael, Tim Davie, Ali, Parkinson sparred, Nick Robinson, Mary, Sir Michael Parkinson, Helen Mirren, Meg Ryan, Mirren, Ryan, Orson Welles, Rod Hull's, Kylie MacLellan, Suban Abdulla, Kate Holton, William James, Michael Holden, Christina Fincher Organizations: BBC, National Service, ITV, U.S, Twitter, Thomson Locations: British, Yorkshire, England

☆ Accelerating US economy sideswipes markets
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

A sign is seen outside the 11 Wall St. entrance of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., March 1, 2021. That compares with the official estimates of second-quarter GDP growth at an annualised 2.4% - itself a significant upside surprise - and Wall St forecasters are re-drawing forecasts again. Deutsche Bank on Wednesday, for example, more than doubled its third quarter real GDP call to 3.1%. The implications of such resilience in U.S. activity in the face of more than five percentage points of interest rate rises in 18 months has forced many to rethink the sustainable interest rate level over the horizon and increase long-term projections. After another heavy loss on Wall St indices (.SPX), (.IXIC) on Wednesday, futures regained some ground ahead of the bell today.

Persons: Brendan McDermid, Mike Dolan, Jackson, Christina Fincher Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, REUTERS, Micron Technology, Atlanta Federal, Deutsche Bank, Walmart, Applied, Ross Stores, Philadelphia Fed, Treasury, Housing, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Reuters, Thomson Locations: New York, U.S, Asia, Europe

☆ Coe re-elected President of World Athletics for third time
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Athletics - Press conference for World Athletics Council election - Hungexpo Congress Centre, Budapest, Hungary - August 17, 2023 Sebastian Coe during a press conference after his re-election as World Athletics president REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo Acquire Licensing RightsAug 17 (Reuters) - Sebastian Coe was re-elected president of World Athletics for a third term, the governing body said in a statement after its 54th Congress in Budapest on Thursday. Raul Chapado, Adille Sumariwalla and Jackson Tuwei were elected vice-presidents, alongside Colombia's Ximena Restrepo, who was re-elected. The global body added that it had met its minimum gender target set out in 2016 of having 13 members of each gender elected to the World Athletics Council four years early. "But the job is not done yet and we need to keep pushing for gender parity throughout our representative bodies." World Athletics has until its 2027 Congress to meet the remaining requirement from its 2016 reform plan of having two vice presidents of each gender.

Persons: Sebastian Coe, Bernadett Szabo, Raul Chapado, Adille Sumariwalla, Jackson Tuwei, Colombia's Ximena Restrepo, Coe, Simon Jennings, Christina Fincher Organizations: Press, World Athletics, Athletics, REUTERS, World Athletics Council, Thomson Locations: Budapest, Hungary, Bengaluru

☆ Spain's Princess Leonor starts military academy with 'excitement and nerves'
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( Vincent West | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] Spain's King Felipe, Queen Letizia, and Infanta Sofia accompany Princess Leonor as she begins her three-year military training at the General Military Academy in Zaragoza, Spain, August 17, 2023. REUTERS/Vincent West Acquire Licensing RightsZARAGOZA, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Spain's Princess Leonor, the heir presumptive to Spain's throne and anticipated future commander-in-chief of its armed forces, began three years of military training on Thursday, expressing a mixture of excitement and nervousness. Announcing Leonor's military training in March, Spain's Defence Minister Margarita Robles, said Leonor was one of many young women now signing up to the armed forces. "In due course, the commander-in-chief of the armed forces will be a woman, and in recent years we have been making a very important effort to incorporate women into the armed forces," Robles said. The government and the Royal House have agreed Leonor's "very intense" military training will precede her university studies, following in the footsteps of her father in the 1980s.

Persons: King Felipe, Queen Letizia, Infanta Sofia, Princess Leonor, Vincent West, Leonor, King Felipe VI's, Juan Sebastian de Elcano, Margarita Robles, Robles, Juan Carlos, Sofia, Elena Rodriguez, Aislinn Laing, Christina Fincher Organizations: General Military Academy, REUTERS, Rights, Army Military Academy, General Air Academy, Spain's, Royal, Atlantic College, Thomson Locations: Zaragoza, Spain, Sofia, Spanish, Wales

☆ Schumer: Gov't funding resolution agreement with McCarthy is 'good sign'
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), with Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), holds a press conference after the weekly Democratic caucus policy luncheon at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S. July 19, 2023. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Aug 16 (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Wednesday said he met with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy a few weeks ago and agreed to a resolution that could extend current federal government spending for a few months. Current government funding is due to expire Sept. 30 with the fiscal year beginning Oct 1, and no action to fund the federal government could trigger a shutdown. Any spending measures would have to pass both the Democratic-led Senate and the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. Reporting by Susan Heavey; editing by Christina FincherOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Chuck Schumer, Jack Reed, Tim Kaine, Catherine Cortez Masto, Jonathan Ernst, Kevin McCarthy, Schumer, McCarthy, Susan Heavey, Christina Fincher Organizations: Democratic, U.S, Capitol, REUTERS, Rights, Democrat, MSNBC, Republican, Senate, ., Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Ukraine

☆ Tumbling rouble claws back ground as central bank to meet
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Putin's economic adviser Maxim Oreshkin earlier said the central bank could ensure that the pace of lending drops to sustainable levels with higher rates. "The central bank has all the tools to normalise the situation in the near future." Asked earlier whether it might make an emergency hike from the current 8.5%, the central bank declined to comment. "The central bank is not fully in control," independent Moscow-based economist Ian Melkumov told Reuters. "The central bank doesn't want to kill the economy and businesses in the same way it had to last year," he said.

Persons: Rouble, Vladimir Putin's, rouble, Putin, Maxim Oreshkin, Oreshkin, Denis Popov, Popov, Matt Vogel, REUTERS Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina, Vladimir Solovyev, Ivan, Timothy Ash, Ian Melkumov, Alexander Marrow, Marc Jones, Gareth Jones, Philippa Fletcher, Christina Fincher Organizations: TASS, of Russia's, FIM, Moscow News Agency, Handout, REUTERS Central Bank Governor, Popular, Kremlin, Reuters, BlueBay Asset Management, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, Ukraine, Moscow, Russia, London

India's annual retail inflation (INCPIY=ECI) rose sharply to 7.44% in July from 4.87% the previous month. Reuters Graphics"The spurt in CPI inflation in July 2023 was on expected lines, however, 7.44% retail inflation was totally unexpected," said Devendra Pant, economist at India Ratings. Food inflation, which accounts for nearly half of the overall consumer price basket, hit a staggering 11.51% in June as compared with 4.49% in June. Retail food inflation was at its highest since January 2020. Even a moderate rise in food inflation tends to anger voters and Dhiraj Nim, economist at ANZ Research, said further measures may be required from the government.

Persons: Devendra Pant, Research's Gaura Sen Gupta, Pant, Narendra Modi's, Dhiraj Nim, Nikunj Ohri, Chizu Nomiyama, Christina Fincher Organizations: REUTERS, DELHI, Reuters, Reserve Bank of India, ANZ Research, Thomson Locations: Kolkata, India

☆ Over 50 killed in Indian Himalayas as rain triggers landslides
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( Shivam Patel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

NEW DELHI, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Torrential rain in India's Himalayas triggered landslides over the weekend that have killed over 50 people, with the death toll expected to rise as more than 20 remain trapped or missing, officials said on Monday. Television footage from India's Himachal Pradesh state showed houses flattened by landslides, buses and cars hanging on the edge of precipices after roads gave way, and hundreds of people at rescue sites as emergency workers struggled to clear debris. [1/3]Rescue workers remove the debris as they search for survivors after a landslide following torrential rain in Shimla in the northern state of Himachal Pradesh, India, August 14, 2023. Schools and other educational institutes were ordered to close in Himachal Pradesh and people in vulnerable areas were being moved to relief shelters, state officials said. Uttarakhand state authorities announced that the Char Dham pilgrimage route would be closed until Tuesday following landslides.

Persons: Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, Sukhu, Stringer, Praveen Bhardwaj, Bhardwaj, Shivam Patel, Saurabh Sharma, Sakshi Dayal, Robert Birsel, Christina Fincher, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Twitter, Reuters, REUTERS, Uttarakhand Disaster Management, India Meteorological Department, Thomson Locations: DELHI, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Himachal Pradesh, precipices, Shimla, Solan, Mandi district, Himachal, Uttarakhand, New Delhi, Lucknow

Official data on Friday showed the economy grew 0.2% in the second quarter, against the consensus for a flat reading in a Reuters poll of economists. The strong showing bolstered bets that the BoE would keep on raising interest rates, given the central bank stressed this month that resilience in the economy was one of the factors that would underpin its judgement. The central bank itself had pencilled in growth of 0.1% for the second quarter. "With much of the drag from higher interest rates still to come, we are sticking to our below-consensus forecast that the UK is heading for a mild recession later this year," said economist Ruth Gregory from consultancy Capital Economics. Reporting by Andy Bruce and David Milliken; editing by William James, Kate Holton and Christina FincherOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Sterling, BoE, Neil Birrell, Jeremy Hunt, Ruth Gregory, Andy Bruce, David Milliken, William James, Kate Holton, Christina Fincher Organizations: Bank of England, U.S ., Reuters, Bank of, Miton, National Statistics, Manufacturing, Reuters Graphics, Capital Economics, Thomson Locations: Bank of England, Britain, Germany, France, Italy, United States

☆ Analysis: ECB is on back foot and for once it's down to Germany
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-10 | by ( Francesco Canepa | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

The logo of the European Central Bank (ECB) is pictured outside its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, April 26, 2018. This is forcing a change of tune at the ECB -- from ruling out a pause in its steepest and longest streak of interest rate hikes to openly talking about one as soon as next month. Higher borrowing costs hurt manufacturers particularly hard because they depend on investment and no euro zone country has a larger industrial sector than Germany. "They've made a mistake in accentuating underlying inflation too much," said Carsten Brzeski, global head of macro for ING Research, said. And ECB board member Fabio Panetta then made the case for "persistence" in keeping rates high rather than raising them further.

Persons: Kai Pfaffenbach, Richard Portes, It's, Emperor Nicholas I of Russia, Ralph Solveen, Portes, They've, Carsten Brzeski, Ricardo Reis, Fabio Panetta, Francesco Canepa, Mark John, Christina Fincher Organizations: European Central Bank, REUTERS, ECB, London Business School, Berlin, ING Research, London School of Economics, ABN, AMRO, Thomson Locations: Frankfurt, Germany, FRANKFURT, Greece, Italy, China, Russia, United States, Portugal, Ireland, Spain, Cyprus, Europe, Ottoman Empire, Ukraine

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