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☆ Dollar-yen could move 'significantly down' this year, says Citi
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailDollar-yen could move 'significantly down' this year, says CitiEbrahim Rahbari of the investment bank says in the short term, however, the "dollar trend and the rates trend in the U.S. will dominate so we'll see a tiny bit of upside followed by more significant downside over the course of the year."

☆ The Taliban requires all mannequins' heads be covered or cut off. Eerie storefront photos offer a glimpse of Afghanistan's new reality.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Marielle Descalsota | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

In Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, mannequins were once a symbol of fashion and culture. But in the past year, shop owners have resorted to displaying them headless or covered in cloth, just to keep their stores open. AP Photo/Ebrahim NorooziIn August 2021, the Taliban announced that shop owners must remove the heads of their mannequins, or do away with them all together. But several shop owners pleaded with the Taliban to let them keep their mannequins intact. Azizi told Insider that the Taliban forced locals to deface banners displaying photos of fashion models before trying to totally ban the use of mannequins.

☆ The Taliban requires that all mannequins' heads be covered or cut off. Interviews with locals and eerie photos of storefronts offer a glimpse of Afghanistan's new reality.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Marielle Descalsota | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

☆ Azerbaijan to evacuate embassy in Iran on Sunday after fatal shooting
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BAKU, Jan 29 (Reuters) - Azerbaijan will evacuate embassy staff and family members from Iran on Sunday, the foreign ministry said, two days after a gunman shot dead a security guard and wounded two other people in an attack Baku branded an "act of terrorism". After the attack, the Azeri foreign ministry said it summoned Iran's ambassador in Baku to demand justice and would evacuate embassy staff from Tehran. Earlier, the ministry said the shooting was the result of Tehran failing to heed its calls for better security. CCTV footage obtained by Reuters showed the attacker forcing his way into the embassy building and shooting at two men before a third embassy employee grapples him away. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi called for "a comprehensive investigation" of the incident and sent his condolences to Azerbaijan and the dead man's family, state media said.

☆ For the 2nd year in a row, Iran is sailing its biggest warship around the world to show off its growing navy
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Constantine Atlamazoglou | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Iranian warships left Iran in September on what one official said was a journey around the world. Visiting far off landsIranian navy Makran near the Strait of Hormuz in May 2021. They have repeatedly seized Iranian arms shipments bound for Yemen and have often had tense encounters with Iranian warships. Iran has also started an indigenous shipbuilding program to grow its navy, which is designed to defend the Persian Gulf. "Yet the focus of Iran will continue to be the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman, and the Indian ocean.

☆ Azerbaijan strongly protests to Iran after fatal embassy shooting
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Nailia Bagirova | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"Necessary security measures have been taken to continue normal activities at the embassy and diplomats of the Republic of Azerbaijan in Tehran," he said. [1/5] A general view of the Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan after an attack on it, in Tehran, Iran, January 27, 2023. It said an "anti-Azerbaijani campaign" in Iran had contributed to the attack, without elaborating, and accused Tehran of long ignoring its appeals to boost embassy security. Iran's Amirabdollahian later told Azeri Foreign Minister Jayran Bairamov in a phone call that he hoped the attack would not damage bilateral ties. Israel has had an embassy in Baku since the early 1990s and has been a significant military backer of Azerbaijan in recent years.

☆ Afghan malnutrition rates at record high, U.N. food agency says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Malnutrition rates in Afghanistan are at record highs — with half the country enduring severe hunger year-round — a spokesman for the U.N.'s World Food Program said. “Half of Afghanistan endures severe hunger throughout the year, regardless of the season, and malnutrition rates are at a record high for Afghanistan,” said Phillipe Kropf, a spokesman for the United Nations food agency in Kabul. The Taliban takeover in August 2021 drove millions into poverty and hunger after foreign aid stopped almost overnight. Ebrahim Noroozi / APAid agencies have been providing food, education and healthcare support to Afghans, including heating, cash for fuel and warm clothes. “Since the Taliban have come, the economic condition is so bad and people don’t have food to eat.

As Africa struggles with economic headwinds caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and, notably, Washington's own monetary policy, Africans are asking for proof the United States will stay the course this time. African countries have become collateral victims of this year's rate hikes by the U.S. Federal Reserve, aimed at curbing inflation at home. African countries are also finding it harder to access capital markets to meet their fiscal needs and refinance maturing debt. The United States, meanwhile, has largely failed to offer viable alternatives to cheap Chinese credit, officials said. One senior U.S. Treasury official said the United States had long been engaged in Africa, funding anti-HIV work and working on other health issues.

☆ EU Parliament calls for more sanctions against Iranian regime
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRUSSELS, Jan 19 (Reuters) - European lawmakers adopted a resolution on Thursday calling for more sanctions against all Iranian individuals and entities responsible for human right violations and also voted for the Revolutionary Guard Corps to be designated as a terrorist entity. "Iranian authorities must end crackdown on their own citizens (...) Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and President Ebrahim Raisi should be added to the sanctions list," the European Parliament said in a statement. Iran warned earlier that the European Union would "shoot itself in the foot" if it designated the Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist entity. On Wednesday, the European Parliament called for the EU to list the Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organisation, blaming it for the repression of domestic protesters and the supply of drones to Russia's military for use in Ukraine. Reporting by Andrew Gray and Benoit Van Overstraeten; Editing by Angus MacSwanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Why Egypt is asking its people to eat chicken feet
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +17 min

Abu Dhabi CNN —Egypt’s economic situation is so dire that the government is asking people to eat chicken feet. In Egypt, chicken feet are seen as the cheapest of meat items, considered by most as animal waste rather than food. After the recommendation to switch to chicken feet, the price of one kilogram of the product reportedly doubled to 20 Egyptian pounds ($0.67). But those firms don’t operate like private companies, enjoying special privileges without disclosing their financial data to the public. Experts have questioned why international creditors had not leveraged their loans to drive Egypt’s military out of the economy.

☆ Iran's 'death committee' president unyielding in defence of clerical rule
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Parisa Hafezi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

Raisi, then deputy prosecutor general for Tehran, was a member of the capital's death committee, according to Amnesty. In 2016, another member of the Tehran "death committee" said, "We are proud to have carried out God's order,” state media reported. "Raisi has been brought up as president for a few reasons, including his brutality, loyalty, and lack of conscience. SANCTIONED BY U.S.Raisi was born in 1960 to a religious family in Iran's northeastern Shi'ite Muslim city of Mashhad. Khamenei, not the president, has the final say on all major policy under Iran's dual political system split between the Shi'ite clerical establishment and the government.

☆ 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.

☆ Analysis: Iran executions quash protests, push dissent underground
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Parisa Hafezi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

They argue the resort to deadly state violence is merely pushing dissent underground, while deepening anger felt by ordinary Iranians about the clerical establishment that has ruled them for four decades. Executive Director at the Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, Hadi Ghaemi said the establishment's main focus was to intimidate the population into submission by any means. People are either in prison or they have gone underground because they are determined to find a way to keep fighting," he said. Defying public fury and international criticism, Iran has handed down dozens of death sentences to intimidate Iranians enraged by the death of Iranian-Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini, 22. Ghaemi said the main officials pushing for the executions today were deeply involved in the 1980s killings of prisoners.

☆ China's reopening will be a main theme in 2023 but won't be a 'strong positive' for the yuan: Citi
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailChina's reopening will be a main theme in 2023 but won't be a 'strong positive' for the yuan: CitiEbrahim Rahbari of the investment bank says it expects there will be "mixed signals" for the currency over time.

☆ Bank of America upgrades little-known bank stock it calls the best 'pure play' on Texas
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( Samantha Subin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Texas-based Cullen/Frost Bankers is one of the best "pure-play" stocks for investors looking to bet on growth in the Lonestar state, according to Bank of America. Analyst Ebrahim Poonawala upgraded the under-the-radar bank stock to buy from neutral, saying in a note to clients Thursday that the recent pullback in the stock creates an attractive opportunity for investors to gain exposure to a company dominating deposit market share in Texas. "We view CFR as ap high-quality bank with a proven history of conservative balance sheet management, high quality franchise, and attractive Texas footprint," he wrote. Poonawala also cited the company's deposit franchise, along with its underwriting standards and below average credit losses as reasons for liking the stock. The bank's $155 price target suggests shares stand to gain 18% from Wednesday's close price.

☆ Joe Biden's biggest successes and failures in his second year in office
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-31 | by ( Nicole Gaudiano | Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +15 min

His second year in office was marked by historic legislative achievements despite Democrats' razor-thin majority in Congress. Here are some of the highs and lows from Biden's second year:Success: UkrainePresident Joe Biden talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy outside the White House. Conservative New York Times columnist Bret Stephens in September called the "staggering gains" by Ukrainian forces "a victory for Joe Biden, too." Universal pre-K was included in a sweeping spending plan passed by House Democrats until their Senate colleagues cut that out too. Failure: InflationPresident Joe Biden arrives for an event focused on inflation and the supply chain at the Port of Los Angeles in June.

☆ Weapons for Russia, anti-government protests and the nuclear deal: What lies ahead for Iran in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

The Biden administration went from encouraging negotiations on reviving the Iranian nuclear deal to levying more sanctions on Tehran and condemning it for providing lethal weapons and training to Russian forces fighting in Ukraine. Iran's Foreign Ministry denies knowing about Iranian weapons transfers to Russia, despite evidence of Iranian-made drones wreaking havoc on Ukrainian cities. Sergei Savostyanov | AFP | Getty Images"2023 is going to be a pivotal year for Iran," Ali Vaez, Iran project director at non-profit Crisis Group, told CNBC. The nuclear deal: too far gone? Ukraine has blamed Iran for providing Russia with drones, which have been used to attack Kyiv.

☆ Elon Musk was photographed with the CEO of Qatar's sovereign wealth fund hours before asking followers if he should quit as Twitter boss
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Elon Musk was pictured with the CEO of Qatar's sovereign wealth fund during Sunday's World Cup final. The Qatar Investment Authority invested about $375 million in Musk's takeover of Twitter. Photographs show Musk sat close to Mansoor bin Ebrahim Al-Mahmoud, CEO of the Qatar Investment Authority, and Jared Kushner, son-in-law of former president Donald Trump. The Qatar Investment Authority declined to comment. Dan Mullan/Getty ImagesAccording to Bloomberg, the Qatar Investment Authority manages funds worth around $450 billion.

☆ 2022 didn’t go as expected for bank investors. How to avoid pitfalls in the sector in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Hugh Son | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Banks finally got a long-awaited boost to interest rates this year after a decade of toiling in a low-rate environment. A year ago, big lenders including Bank of America and Wells Fargo were the top picks of the analyst community because they were expected to benefit from higher rates . Loan growth coupled with vast deposit bases would drive gains in interest income as the Federal Reserve hiked rates, the thinking went. In a downturn, banks are exposed to surging loan defaults, reduced loan demand and write-downs on assets. Veteran analyst Mike Mayo of Wells Fargo said that bank stocks could pop 50% in 2023 by proving their resilience in a recession.

☆ Bank of America reveals its 'best-in-class' stocks for 2023
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-17 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Analysts at Bank of America unveiled this week a slew of must-own stocks for 2023. CNBC Pro combed through recent research to find Bank of America's 'best-in-class" stocks heading into next year. "Although 2022 has been a year of modest growth for Lilly, shares have outperformed based largely on tirzepatide's peak potential," he wrote. Eli Lilly "Although 2022 has been a year of modest growth for Lilly, shares have outperformed based largely on tirzepatide's peak potential. Given this backdrop, Lilly remains a top pick, as we see its new product cycle / LT growth as clearly best-in-class."

☆ The US may have lost in the World Cup, but soccer is more popular than ever in America
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Harry Enten | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +36 min

The Atlas Lions made history as the first African team to reach a World Cup semifinal. They made history as the first all-female refereeing crew for a men's World Cup match. It was Morocco's first World Cup win since 1998 — and its third-ever at the tournament. Less spoken about is that they also rate better on television than the men do in the World Cup. We’ll just have to wait and see, though with the US, Canada and Mexico hosting the 2026 World Cup, soccer isn’t going away anytime soon.

☆ 5 key takeaways from Xi’s trip to Saudi Arabia
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

Here are five key takeaways from Xi’s visit to Saudi Arabia. Saudi Press Agency//ReutersDuring Xi’s visit, Saudi Arabia and China released a nearly 4,000-word joint statement outlining their alignment on a swathe of political issues, and promising deeper cooperation on scores of others. China is the world’s biggest buyer of oil, with Saudi Arabia being its top supplier. China is also keen to cooperate with Saudi Arabia on security and defense, an important field once reserved for the kingdom’s American ally. Saudi Arabia was, however, keen to reject notions of polarization, deeming it unhelpful.

☆ Saudi Arabia and China will align on everything from security to oil, but agree not to interfere on domestic issues
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Riyadh and Beijing were keen to stress “the importance of stability in the world oil markets,” noting that Saudi Arabia is a reliable exporter of crude oil to its Chinese partner. China also affirmed its “opposition to any actions that would interfere in the internal affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” without adding more details. On Friday, Xi invited Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud to visit China, according to Saudi state TV. President Xi was given a warm welcome in Saudi Arabia with ceremonies on Thursday. Saudi Arabia “is pursuing a multipolar strategy of strong strategic ties,” added Shihabi.

☆ Iran's Raisi promises to pursue crackdown on protesters; cleric critical of execution
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Molavi Abdolhamid, a Sunni cleric in the Shi'ite-ruled Islamic Republic, criticized the death sentence, according to his website. Human rights groups said Shekari was tortured and forced to confess. In Geneva, U.N. Human Rights High Commissioner Volker Turk called the execution “very troubling and clearly designed to send a chilling effect to the rest of the protesters." Britain announced sanctions on Friday against 30 people worldwide, including officials from Russia, Iran and Myanmar it deems responsible for human rights abuses or corruption. Molavi Abdolhamid made his critical comments from Zahedan, the capital of restive Sistan-Baluchistan province, home to Iran's Baluch minority who have faced discrimination and repression for decades, according to human rights groups.

☆ China’s Xi gets a warm welcome from MBS in Riyadh
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Saudi state TV showed a grand ceremony laid out for the Chinese leader, as bin Salman, the kingdom’s de facto ruler known as MBS, received him at Al-Yamamah Palace. Chinese and Saudi Arabian flags dotted the premises as members of the Saudi Royal Guard lined up with swords and played music. The two leaders smiled warmly and looked on for photographs, a contrast to the atmosphere of US President Joe Biden’s visit to Saudi Arabia earlier in the year. Xi landed in the capital Riyadh on Wednesday, where he was received by Saudi Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz, Governor of Riyadh Region, and Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, Minister of Foreign Affairs. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman fist bumps US President Joe Biden upon his arrival at Al Salman Palace, in Jeddah in July.

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