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☆ Billy Joel Will End Madison Square Garden Residency in 2024
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Ben Sisario | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The roster of special guests has included Bruce Springsteen, Tony Bennett, Olivia Rodrigo and Joel’s daughter Alexa Ray Joel. The residency has continued on a roughly monthly schedule since its inception, aside from an 18-month break during the Covid-19 pandemic, returning in November 2021. According to the trade publication Pollstar, Joel’s residency has played to nearly 1.7 million people through its 89th performance in April, and sold $207 million in tickets. The idea for the residency came about following Celine Dion’s two record-breaking runs in Las Vegas, which started in 2003 and ultimately sold about $660 million in tickets. Last year, for example, Harry Styles played 15 dates at the Garden and, in late 2022 and 2023, another 15 at the Kia Forum in Inglewood, Calif.

Persons: ”, Bruce Springsteen, Tony Bennett, Olivia Rodrigo, Joel’s, Alexa Ray Joel, Celine Dion’s, Joel, “, ” Dennis Arfa, Harry Styles Organizations: MSG, York State, New York Times, Kia Locations: “ Allentown, “, York, Las Vegas, Vegas, ”, Inglewood , Calif

☆ Chile's Boric to insist on shelved tax reform bill by end of July
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/10] Chile's President Gabriel Boric gestures on the day of his annual speech at the National Congress, in Valparaiso, Chile June 1, 2023. REUTERS/Rodrigo GarridoSANTIAGO, June 1 (Reuters) - Chilean President Gabriel Boric said on Thursday his government will insist on pushing through a tax reform bill that was shelved by Congress earlier this year. "Everyone in this room knows, that neither this government or any other, can advance responsibly in making these rights a reality without tax reform." The government has also seen key parts of its agenda, like tax reform bill shelved by Congress in March, stalled by a divided legislature. During his speech, Boric also announced that the government will send a bill to Congress this year seeking bids for large scale energy storage requiring $2 billion in investments.

Persons: Gabriel Boric, Rodrigo Garrido SANTIAGO, Boric, We've, Alexander Villegas, Fabian Cambero, Alistair Bell Organizations: National Congress, REUTERS, Thomson Locations: Valparaiso, Chile, Latin America

☆ Dollar sags versus yen after Japan warning; Aussie slides on China data
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Japanese 10,000 yen and U.S. 100 dollar banknotes are arranged for a photograph in Tokyo, Japan, on Sept. 7, 2017. The dollar languished below the psychological 140 yen level on Wednesday after getting knocked back from a six-month high after Japanese officials met on Tuesday to discuss their currency. The Aussie was last down 0.15% at $0.6507, heading back toward last week's 6 1/2-month low of $0.6490. The New Zealand dollar sank as much as 0.5% to a 6 1/2-month trough at $0.60125. Against the Chinese yuan, the U.S. dollar climbed as much as 0.38% to 7.1171 for the first time since Nov. 30.

Persons: Rodrigo Catril, Bart Wakabayashi, Sterling Organizations: Australian, National Australia Bank, Reserve Bank of Australia, New Zealand, U.S, State Locations: Tokyo, Japan, China, United States, Tuesday's

☆ The 7-page media kit a TikToker and singer with 14 million followers uses to land brand deals and music gigs
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( Nhari Djan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Here is the 7-page media kit she uses to land gigs like a performance on "Tamron Hall." When TikTok took over in 2020 during the pandemic, Spinn started making point-of-view videos and went viral by acting out mini dramatized skits. Instead of going to TikTok where she has the largest following (14 million followers), Spinn started teasing music on a YouTube channel a year ago. She said her YouTube audience has been very receptive of her transition to music, more than her much larger TikTok following. Here's the media kit Spinn's team uses to pitch her as a content creator and a singer.

☆ Philippines, U.S., Japan to hold first-ever joint coast guard exercise
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Karen Lema | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MANILA, May 29 (Reuters) - The coast guard of the United States, Japan and the Philippines will hold trilateral maritime exercise in the South China Sea this week, the first such manoeuvres between them as a time of growing concern about China's moves in the region. The June 1 to 7 exercise in waters off Bataan province was as initiative of the United States and Japan, while Australia would join as an observer, said Philippine coast guard spokesman Armand Balilo said on Monday. Four Philippine vessels and one each from the United States and Japan will participate in exercises designed to improve search and rescue collaboration and law enforcement, Balilo said. "This is a usual routine activity among coast guard agencies," Balilo told a press conference. China maintains the actions of its coast guard are legal and in its waters.

☆ Turkey stocks rally, lira slips to record low after Erdogan victory
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

The nation is grappling with a cost of living crisis, a plunging currency and depleted foreign reserves. MARKET REACTION:LIRA: The Turkish currency touched a fresh record low of 20.105 on Monday. "In a scenario where Turkey ran out of foreign currency, lira’s value would likely collapse, inflation would explode and goods shortages could occur. A painful crisis affecting all assets is on the way, with very high inflation, very low interest rates and no net foreign reserves. Only the most optimistic would hope that Erdogan now feels sufficiently secure politically to revert to orthodox economic policy."

"Inflation expectations are still very high," Campos Neto told a seminar hosted by newspaper Folha de S.Paulo on Monday, highlighting elevated long-term forecasts as particularly problematic. "Long-term forecasts remained little changed," the central bank chief said. "And we have a problem that are long-term inflation expectations persistently stuck around 4%". In the minutes of its May meeting, the central bank expressed concerns about inflation expectations, saying it continued "to assess that de-anchored expectations raise the cost of bringing inflation back to the target". Campos Neto acknowledged that headline inflation has been slowing down in Brazil, but noted that the core index remains "high" and "well above target".

☆ Dollar on defensive after dovish Powell, debt ceiling setback
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Kevin Buckland | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

TOKYO, May 22 (Reuters) - The dollar nursed losses against the yen and euro on Monday following a surprise breakdown in U.S. debt ceiling negotiations and after Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell indicated a preference to slow rate hikes. Investors now await a key meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and House Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy to discuss the debt ceiling on Monday. The dollar index, which measures the U.S. currency against six major peers, edged 0.04% lower to 103.00, after reaching 103.63 last week for the first time since March 20. European Central Bank president Christine Lagarde said Friday officials need to "buckle up" for "sustainably high interest rates" in order to achieve its inflation target. The Australian dollar ticked up 0.06% to $0.6655, while the New Zealand dollar advanced 0.13% to $0.62835.

☆ Bowen inspires West Ham to victory over struggling Leeds
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Soccer Football - Premier League - West Ham United v Leeds United - London Stadium, London, Britain - May 21, 2023 West Ham United's Jarrod Bowen celebrates scoring their second goal Action Images... Read moreLONDON, May 21 (Reuters) - West Ham United forward Jarrod Bowen set up one goal and scored another to inspire his side to a 3-1 Premier League victory at the London Stadium on Sunday and deepen the relegation crisis at Leeds United. Leeds remain in the relegation zone with 31 points from 37 games, two points behind 17th-placed Everton with the home visit of Tottenham Hotspur on the final day of the season next Sunday. Leeds took the lead in the 17th minute when Weston McKennie’s long throw was volleyed into the net from 12-yards by Rodrigo, a sublime finish against a static West Ham defence. The home side responded when Declan Rice, in what could be his final home game for West Ham before a summer move, produced a neat finish at the back post from Bowen’s cross. The points were sealed for West Ham during injury-time when some brilliant footwork from Lucas Paqueta on the right wing saw him beat several defenders before laying on a tap-in for substitute Manuel Lanzini.

☆ Asian stocks follow Wall Street higher amid debt ceiling optimism
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Kevin Buckland | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

As investors drew comfort from that reassurance, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares (.MIAP00000PUS) pushed 0.78% higher. "Markets have chosen to be optimistic," Rodrigo Catril, senior FX strategist at National Australia Bank, wrote in a client note. Any advance above 30,795.78 would take it to the highest since 1990, when Japan's bubble economy had still to burst. Long-term U.S. Treasury yields eased back in Tokyo after rising to the highest since March 1 at 3.589% in New York. Against the Japanese currency, the dollar surged the most in three weeks to 137.72 yen , just 0.06 yen below its highest since March 8.

[1/2] A logo of Brazil's state-run Petrobras oil company is seen at its headquarters in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil October 16, 2019. REUTERS/Sergio MoraesSAO PAULO, May 18 (Reuters) - A decision by Brazil's environmental regulator to block state-owned oil company Petrobras' Amazon oil project has exposed tensions in President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's coalition between green advocates and those prioritizing economic development. Ibama, late on Wednesday, said it would block a request by state-run oil giant Petrobras (PETR4.SA) to drill at the Amazon mouth near Amapá, in a much-awaited decision that followed a technical recommendation by Ibama experts to reject the project. The decision by Ibama, which is overseen by Lula's environment minister, the globally recognized environmentalist Marina Silva, has riled some within the governing coalition. "We'll fight against this decision," Rodrigues wrote on Twitter, adding that "the people of Amapa want to have the right to be heard".

Buenos Aires wants faster payouts and easier economic targets. "More than a debt, it's a crime," President Fernandez wrote in a tweet on Thursday, citing a new government auditor report that concluded the original deal had lacked the required impact study and not passed through proper legislative channels. Fernandez, who has criticized the original deal before, called for an investigation "with all the weight of the law." Powerful but divisive Vice President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, a previous two-term president, called the original deal "scandalous" and a "scam" of the Argentine people. Macri and the IMF have defended the original deal as necessary to restore Argentina's economic stability.

"Global debt is now $45 trillion higher than its pre-pandemic level and is expected to continue increasing rapidly," said the IIF in its quarterly Global Debt Monitor. The report partly focused on the effects of last year's rapid rise in rates in some bank balance sheets. The IIF voiced its concern that tighter lending practices among smaller banks would hurt some businesses and households harder. "Shadow banks now account for more than 14% of financial markets, with the majority of growth stemming from a rapid expansion of U.S. investment funds and private debt markets." "With the interest rate differential between EMs and mature markets diminishing, EM local currency debt is less appealing for foreign investors," the IIF said.

☆ Brazil boosts bird flu defense to protect world's top chicken industry
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Ana Mano | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Per protocol, local veterinarians in Espirito Santo took samples from the birds on site and sent them to the reference lab in Campinas, Brazil. "The entire industry is mobilized to monitor the situation identified in Espirito Santo," national meat lobby ABPA said in a statement. In other countries, avian flu outbreaks in wild birds have frequently been followed by transmission to commercial flocks. Bird flu outbreaks have contributed to higher prices of poultry and eggs, normally an affordable source of protein. Since early 2022, wild birds have spread the highly infectious virus farther and wider around the world than ever before.

"Global debt is now $45 trillion higher than its pre-pandemic level and is expected to continue increasing rapidly," said the IIF in its quarterly Global Debt Monitor. The report partly focused on the effects of last year's rapid rise in rates in some bank balance sheets. "Shadow banks now account for more than 14% of financial markets, with the majority of growth stemming from a rapid expansion of U.S. investment funds and private debt markets." But for others access to markets has been harder or non-existent on either tighter spreads as rates rose in developed markets or fast-rising borrowing costs. "With the interest rate differential between EMs and mature markets diminishing, EM local currency debt is less appealing for foreign investors," the IIF said.

May 16 (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday said it "strongly supports" Brazil's efforts to improve the country's fiscal position, while also commending the country's "ambitious agenda" to have a sustainable, inclusive, and green economy. "Enhancing Brazil's fiscal framework, broadening the tax base, and tackling spending rigidities would support sustainability and credibility," the leader of an annual mission to the country, Ana Corbacho, said in a statement after the Fund's visit. Brazil's finance ministry in late March unveiled new fiscal rules to balance limits on spending growth under the administration of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who has vowed to boost social programs and public investment. The new rules limit spending growth to 70% of Brazil's revenue growth in the prior 12 months. Corbacho also noted Brazil's efforts to "steer a sustainable, inclusive, and green economy" by cracking down on illegal deforestation, for example, and "leveraging competitive advantage in renewable energies."

☆ Brazil's Petrobras scraps fuel import parity policy, shares rise
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Companies Petroleo Brasileiro SA Petrobras FollowRIO DE JANEIRO, May 16 (Reuters) - Brazil's state-run oil giant, Petrobras (PETR4.SA), has approved a new commercial strategy to set diesel and gasoline prices, it said on Tuesday, ditching its previous import parity policy without revealing a specific fresh pricing formula. "The end of pricing parity is not good, but this was already expected." "The new policy scraps the 'import parity' terminology, but in our view it has not changed materially," Credit Suisse analyst Regis Cardoso said. The import parity policy was adopted in 2016 by former President Michel Temer. People close to Lula celebrated the announcement, with his Mines and Energy minister, Alexandre Silveira, telling reporters the policy would not impose as much volatility as the import parity used to.

The new pricing system scraps a so-called fuel import parity policy that more closely aligned prices at the pump with the oil market and exchange rates. In a research note, JPMorgan (JPM.N) described the reworked pricing policy as "more friendly than investors expected." The policy shift will be tested when oil prices rise, and apply upward pressure on what consumers can expect to pay for motor fuels or LPG. Petrobras' new pricing policy also came under criticism from some as too opaque. The previous pricing policy was adopted seven years ago by conservative former President Michel Temer.

☆ Newcastle drop points in top-four race, Southampton down
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

LEEDS, England, May 13 (Reuters) - Newcastle United suffered more jitters in their quest to finish in the Premier League's top four as they drew 2-2 at relegation-threatened Leeds United but Southampton's agony is over after being relegated on Saturday. Leeds defender Rasmus Kristensen's second-half equaliser denied Newcastle the victory that would have all but assured them a place in next season's Champions League. Southampton have 24 points from 36 games, 19th-placed Leicester City have 30 from 35 with Leeds on 31 points from 36 games and Everton on 32 from 35. Newcastle striker Alexander Isak was then hacked down by Maximillian Wober and Callum Wilson converted from the penalty spot. Newcastle were awarded a second penalty midway through the second half when Firpo handled and Wilson proved deadly once again.

☆ Philippine court acquits top critic of ex-president Duterte's 'war on drugs'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Adrian Portugal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

De Lima has spent the past six years in detention, five of which as senator, and has one more case pending. "Glorious day, glorious day, beginning of my vindication," she added. Duterte has accepted the court judgement, Salvador Panelo, his legal counsel during his administration, said in a statement on Saturday. "Freeing her now is critical so she can return to her family, leaving the injustice of years behind bars in pre-trial detention caused by Duterte's vengeful cruelty," he said. "The charges against Leila de Lima are bogus and the result of the peaceful exercise of her right to freedom of expression.

☆ Rio de Janeiro to host G20 summit in 2024
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

RIO DE JANEIRO, May 9 (Reuters) - The world' largest economies grouped in the G20 will hold their annual heads of state or government summit next year in Rio de Janeiro, state Governor Claudio Castro said. Brazil will take over the rotating presidency of the G20 from India on Dec. 1. It will be the largest event in Rio since the city hosted the Olympic Games in 2016 and the World Cup soccer final in 2014. The G20 represents around 85% of the global GDP, over 75% of global trade and about two-thirds of the world's population. The G20 was started two decades ago to include important emerging economies in discussions that had been confined to the Group of Seven industrialized economies.

Walmart de Mexico (Walmex) (WALMEX.MX) in April said it had bought Trafalgar, a payment app, to compete in a market dominated by Grupo Salinas' Baz, Oxxo's (FEMSAUBD.MX) Spin and MercadoPago of MercadoLibre (MELI.O). Executives at the Walmart unit expect the deal to "unlock Cashi's potential," starting with transfers, withdrawals and remittances while keeping open the option of loans and other financial services in the future. "We want to be the best financial services application in Mexico, and that requires constant investment," Marcelino Herrera, Walmex senior vice president of financial services, told Reuters. Walmart plans over $15 billion in capital expenditures for automation and alternate revenue streams in 2023, including its ad business, third-party marketplace, and deliveries. SYNERGIESWalmart has not defined fintech as a top investment priority but has poured money into it over the past year.

☆ Dollar rises slightly, sterling hovers near one-year high
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Rae Wee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The offshore yuan last traded 0.1% lower at 6.9287 per U.S. dollar. The benchmark 10-year yield was last at 3.4995%, after rising more than five basis points in the previous session. There's still a tightening in credit conditions that is coming ... but overall, at this stage, the survey is not depicting a credit crunch ahead. The Aussie was last 0.05% lower at $0.67775, after having risen to a roughly three-week top of $0.6804 on Monday. The kiwi fell 0.2% to $0.6332, having similarly scaled a one-month high of $0.63585 the day earlier.

☆ Dollar edges up, sterling hovers near one-year high
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Rae Wee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The euro was last 0.16% lower at $1.0987, while the Japanese yen slipped 0.1% to 135.24 per dollar. There's still a tightening in credit conditions that is coming ... but overall, at this stage, the survey is not depicting a credit crunch ahead. "The dollar didn't really get much of a kick on that," said Catril, referring to the survey. The kiwi slipped 0.11% to $0.6338, having similarly scaled a one-month high of $0.63585 the day earlier. Elsewhere, the British pound fell 0.06% to $1.26105, but was not far from the previous session's one-year peak of $1.2668, ahead of Thursday's central bank policy meeting.

LONDON, May 9 (Reuters) - Ecuador sealed the world's largest "debt-for-nature" swap on record on Tuesday, selling a new "blue bond" that will funnel at least $12 million a year into conservation of the Galapagos Islands, one of the world's most precious ecosystems. Tuesday's $656 million "Galapagos Bond," as it has been dubbed, will run until 2041 and gave investors that bought it a 5.645% "coupon" or interest rate, its bankers said. Ecuador sovereign bonds currently yield from 17% to 26%, but the new bond has an $85 million 'credit guarantee' from the Inter-American Development Bank and $656 million of political risk insurance from the U.S. International Development Finance Corp (DFC), effectively making it less risky. The driver has been the remote Galapagos Islands, some 600 miles (970 km) off Ecuador's mainland coast, that inspired Charles Darwin's Theory of Evolution. Scott Nathan, the chief executive of DFC, said people needed to "stay tuned" for similar deals in other countries and the Galapagos deal had been a long time coming.

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