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☆ Morning Bid: Crowded bonds unnerved
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

This has some wondering if the recent dash for cash and top-rated bonds has become a bit crowded and how much more tightening central banks have to do. As we move into the weeds of the first-quarter U.S. earnings season, it's been a mixed bag so far. That clearly unnerved UK government bonds - where 10 year yields jumped 10bps - but it also jarred sovereign bonds around the world. Elsewhere, further signs of healing were evident in the global bank funding market. Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (8316.T) sold $1 billion of additional tier-1 debt, the first major global bank to sell the risky securities since similar bonds issued by Credit Suisse were wiped out last month.

☆ Banking turmoil questions begin at board level, says Basel's de Cos
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Huw Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

These events marked the first real stress test of banks since the global financial crisis of 2007-09, de Cos told an Institute of International Finance roundtable in Washington. While it was unlikely a single culprit was to blame, he said the "whodunnit" task should start with bank boards. "A bank’s board, senior management and risk management function should be asking themselves questions in a timely fashion and taking credible measures to shore up resilience," de Cos said. De Cos also said supervisors should also ask tough questions and take "decisive action" to ensure safety and soundness of banks. Mark Carney, former governor of the Bank of England and former chair of the Financial Stability Board (FSB), the G20 watchdog that drove through post-global financial crisis reforms of banking rules, has called for a rethink of bank liquidity rules.

☆ Morning Bid: Stocks defy negativity in CPI vigil
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The Federal Reserve's interest rate stance hinges on incoming data such as Wednesday's consumer price report, but fears of recession remain just that. And so investors return to scrutinising the Fed to see if the central bank forces the recession by tightening ever further. With Fed policy meeting minutes due later in the day, the runes of what must have been a tense gathering of officials in the middle of the regional banking shock will be eyed closely. Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari reckoned recession was still a risk but inflation wouldn't get back close to the 2% target until next year. Hong Kong stocks (.HSI) underperformed overnight - with geopolitical tensions high surrounding Taiwan and Chinese military operations around the island.

☆ BoE's Bailey says bank reforms worked but questions about liquidity buffers
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Huw Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"Today I do not believe we face a systemic banking crisis. Bailey, however, echoed calls from his predecessor Mark Carney by saying there might be questions over the size of liquidity buffers required of banks in order to tide them over short-term shocks. This must beg the question of what are appropriate and desired liquidity buffers that create the time needed to take action to solve the problem." Data from the European Central Bank on Wednesday showed a slight weakening in liquidity buffers at banks it regulates, though they are still well above minimum requirements. Banks' holdings of liquidity have more than doubled since the global financial crisis, helping to contain fallout from the recent banking turmoil, de Cos said.

[1/3] Texas National Guard vehicles are pictured along the U.S.-Mexico border in downtown in El Paso, Texas, U.S., January 4, 2023. REUTERS/Paul RatjeWASHINGTON, April 12 (Reuters) - U.S. and Cuban officials discussed migration issues on Wednesday as the Biden administration braces for the end of COVID-era border restrictions that have blocked Cubans in recent months from crossing into the United States from Mexico. After Biden adopted more restrictive border security measures in January, the number of Cubans and other migrants caught at the border plummeted. However, the Biden administration is preparing for a possible rise in illegal crossings with COVID restrictions at the U.S.-Mexico border set to lift on May 11. Reporting by Matt Spetalnick and Ted Hesson in Washington; Editing by Sandra MalerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ How to avoid the next crisis? Banks may have to hold more cash
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

London CNN —Regulators must learn “important lessons” from this year’s banking turmoil, the world’s top financial watchdog has said. Requiring banks to hold more cash to pay out depositors may be one of them. External shocks that have roiled global markets in recent years include the coronavirus pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In other words, banks could be told to hold more assets that can be easily converted into cash to pay back creditors in times of crisis. In the United States, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation said it would guarantee all deposits held within Silicon Valley Bank, including those above $250,000 per person.

☆ Bank of Spain sees turmoil rising funding costs, requiring liquidity sourcing review
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Jesús Aguado | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Non-performing loans stood at nearly record lows of 3.56% in January, far below the all time-high of 13.6% in December 2013. Deputy Governor Margarita Delgado also said that amid a tighter financing conditions following a period of abundant, cheap liquidity, banks should assess liquidity risks and have diverse, credible and plan-based funding sources to allow them to "adapt flexibly to the changing environment." In its report, the Bank of Spain said it expected Spanish lenders to maintain comfortable excess liquidity positions. As of February, Spanish banks' liquidity coverage ratio stood on average at 175% among the significant lenders, well above the global average of 140%, according to the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision. Olano said that Spanish banks' exposure to Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) stood at between 300 million euros ($325.23 million)and 400 million euros.

☆ Morning Bid: Banks are leaking money
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

There is some relief that First Citizens BancShares Inc (FCNCA.O) is in advanced talks to acquire Silicon Valley Bank (SIVB.O). There was also some talk the Federal Reserve could expand its new lending programme for banks as another step to reassuring depositors. Money is clearly flowing out of smaller banks toward their bigger siblings and to money market funds, which have seen an inflow of more than $300 billion in the past month to a record $5.1 trillion. Capital Economics points out that deposits across all the banks have fallen by $663 billion in the past year as customers search for higher yield. Deutsche Bank's five-year CDS hit 222 bps on Friday, the highest since late 2018, while UBS CDS shot up to 139 bps.

☆ Cuba blasts U.S. for years of disregarding evidence on 'Havana Syndrome'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Dave Sherwood | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

read more"This conclusion ... confirms what we already knew," Vice Foreign Minister Carlos Fernandez de Cossio told Reuters in an interview in Havana late on Thursday. "The unfortunate thing is, the U.S. government leveraged (Havana Syndrome) to derail bilateral relations ... and discredit Cuba." Cuba has for years labeled as "science fiction" the idea that ´Havana Syndrome´ resulted from an attack by a foreign agent, and its top scientists in 2021 found no evidence of such allegations. De Cossio told Reuters there had been no shortage of evidence and that the revelation this week cast fresh doubt on the credibility of other U.S. policies towards Cuba. ´Havana Syndrome,´ referred to by the U.S. government as "anomalous health incidents," first came to light in 2016 after dozens of diplomats at the U.S. Embassy in Havana complained of intense headaches, nausea, memory lapses and dizziness.

☆ Morning Bid: Blue chips cheered up
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/2] The logo of technology company Nvidia is seen at its headquarters in Santa Clara, California February 11, 2015. Its CEO Jensen Huang said use of its chips to power AI had "gone through the roof in the last 60 days." The Federal Reserve at least seems keen on the higher-for-longer message that's shaken world stock and bond markets this week. And as the minutes pre-date red-hot jobs and retail data for January, the message from Fed officials is probably even sterner now. A Reuters poll of equity analysts showed global stock markets are expected to correct in the next three months.

☆ Analysis: ECB faces new communication challenge as inflation falls
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Balazs Koranyi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

But core inflation is proving stubborn and could still rise from last month's 5.2%. "We have to continue to emphasize that we have this medium term perspective," Klaas Knot, the Dutch central bank chief said. It has oscillated between focusing on current inflation, future inflation and core inflation. Wages are the biggest factor in that sector's prices and services inflation is still just above 4%. So wage growth of the magnitude of 5% or more could push services inflation even higher.

☆ ECB 50-basis-point hike in March a done deal, May and June undecided
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Jonathan Cable | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

ECB President Christine Lagarde said at a news conference this month that the euro zone's central bank would add 50 basis points to the deposit rate. Economists took her at her word, with all 57 of them polled in the Feb. 10-15 period expecting a deposit rate hike to 3.00% at the March 16 meeting. The ECB will follow up on March's move with a further 25-basis-point lift next quarter, medians showed, giving a terminal deposit rate of 3.25% and a refinancing rate of 3.75%. In response to an additional question, an overwhelming majority - 26 of 28 - said the risk was the terminal deposit rate ends higher than they expect, rather than lower. Markets are currently pricing in a terminal deposit rate of 3.50%.

☆ Euro zone inflation could fall faster than thought, ECB's De Cos says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MADRID, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Euro zone inflation could fall faster than earlier thought given a host of positive developments in recent months but past price hikes and a tight labour market could still exert upward pressure on underlying prices in the near term, European Central Bank policymaker Pablo Hernandez de Cos said on Wednesday. "Recent data on euro area inflation and some of its key determinants are somewhat encouraging, but the overall situation still requires caution", De Cos said in a speech posted on the webpage of the Bank of Spain. He also mentioned the possible effects of the Chinese reopening, the resilience of the euro area economy and the transmission of ECB monetary policy decisions. "All these will have to be assessed as part of the full projections exercise under way in the run-up to our March meeting," De Cos said. Reporting by Jesús Aguado; Editing by Balazs KoranyiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Cuba says U.S. greenlights MLB players for World Baseball Classic
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

HAVANA, Dec 24 (Reuters) - Cuba said on Saturday the United States had granted permission for some of its top ballplayers to participate in the World Baseball Classic on the national team. The team will be the first since Fidel Castro's 1959 Revolution to include Cuban players from both countries. Vice Foreign Minister Carlos Fernandez de Cossio told Reuters earlier this month the United States was blocking some of Cuba's top players from participating in the Classic. Cuba has asked several players who in recent years had defected from the Caribbean island - long famed for its baseball talent - to represent their home country in the event. As a result, Cuba's baseball talent has fled the country in unprecedented numbers in the past decade, emptying dugouts and denting national pride.

☆ Morning Bid: Bonds lap up crude, costs and Canada
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The big consensus bet of 2023 is already in full swing - bonds are bid. With year-on-year oil price gains evaporating to zero, that is dragging inflation expectations down in lockstep. The exception was in Hong Kong, which the Hang Seng benchmark (.HSI) has now recouped all this year's underperformance versus world indices and the S&P500. The Hang Seng added another 3% on Thursday as the Hong Kong government loosened its COVID-19 curbs further. The isolation period for patients and contacts will be cut to five days from seven days and requirements for arrivals to Hong Kong to undergo daily tests will similarly be reduced to five days.

HAVANA/WASHINGTON, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Cuba´s Vice Foreign Minister Carlos Fernandez de Cossio on Thursday accused long-time rival the United States of doublespeak after the Biden administration proposed to scrap a plan to install a new undersea telecommunications cable to Cuba. Cuba has long accused the U.S. of doublespeak, saying a Cold War-era embargo imposed by the United States on Cuba has failed to upend Cuba´s government, and instead, has only caused suffering among the Cuban people. The U.S. government in recent years has been scrutinizing undersea cable connections especially involving China. The existing ARCOS-1 submarine cable system connects the United States with 14 countries in the Caribbean, Central America and South America and sought to expand to a landing station in Cojimar, Cuba. The system's operator argues it would "increase the means through which Cubans on the island can communicate with the United States and the rest of the world."

Nov 28 (Reuters) - Euro zone government bond yields were higher on Monday after rare protests in China over the country's strict zero-COVID policies clouded the outlook for global growth and inflation. "The market is more concerned about the impact on inflation than the impact on growth," he added. Germany's 10-year government bond yield was up 4 basis points (bps) at 2.008%, after rising 12 bps on Friday. The gap between the 2-year and 10-year government bond yields rose to -20 bps. Italy's 10-year yield rose 8 bps to 3.94% pushing the closely watched spread between Italian and German 10-year yields wider by 5 bps to 191 bps.

☆ Collapse of FTX should serve as reminder of risks of crypto assets, ECB's De Cos says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

MADRID, Nov 16 (Reuters) - The collapse of crypto exchange platform FTX should serve as a reminder for clients of the risks crypto assets entail, European Central Bank policymaker Pablo Hernandez de Cos said on Wednesday. "We hope that the events we have recently experienced will make citizens aware of the risks associated with these cyrpto assets," De Cos said when asked about FTX's collapse. The exchange, which had been among the world's largest, filed for bankruptcy protection on Friday in one of the highest-profile crypto blowups after panicked traders withdrew $6 billion from the platform in just 72 hours and rival exchange Binance abandoned a rescue deal. Reporting by Jesús Aguado and Emma Pinedo; editing by David LatonaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ ECB not pre-committed to raise rates by 75 bps again, De Cos says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

MADRID, Nov 11 (Reuters) - The European Central Bank has not pre-committed to make another 75 basis-point increase at its next policy meeting, policymaker Pablo Hernandez de Cos said on Friday. "The fact that we have raised rates by 75 basis points ... does not mean that this will be the future pattern, it will depend on the data," De Cos said. The ECB has been raising its rates at record speed but it is still buying bonds to replenish its 5-trillion-euro ($5.07 trillion) stimulus portfolio, which has a dampening impact on long-term bond yields. Reporting by Jesús Aguado and Emma Pinedo; editing by Andrei KhalpiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Gold ticks higher on dollar pullback; hawkish Powell caps upside
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Gold prices edged higher on Thursday, helped by a slight dip in the dollar, although U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's hawkish remarks limited further gains in zero-yielding bullion. Spot gold rose 0.2% to $1,638.32 per ounce, as of 0118 GMT, after falling 0.8% on Wednesday. Although gold is considered a hedge against inflation, higher interest rates increase the opportunity cost of holding the non-yielding asset. The European Central Bank "will need additional interest rate increases" to fight off inflation, policymaker Pablo Hernandez de Cos said on Wednesday. Spot silver rose 0.3% to $19.33, platinum rose 0.6% to $935.98 and palladium edged 0.3% higher to $1,860.08.

☆ ECB's opinion on Spanish banking tax will be issued "very shortly", De Cos says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

MADRID, Nov 3 (Reuters) - The European Central Bank will issue its non-binding opinion on Spanish banking tax proposal "very shortly," policymaker Pablo Hernandez de Cos said on Thursday. Two sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters last month that the ECB was set to warn of the adverse impact on Spanish banks' solvency of a proposed tax on the sector and of a higher cost of credit in the upcoming non-binding opinion. Reporting by Emma Pinedo Editing by Jesus AguadoOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ ECB will need more rate hikes to fight off inflation, De Cos Says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MADRID, Nov 2 (Reuters) - The European Central Bank "will need additional interest rate increases" to fight off inflation even considering the growing likelihood of a euro zone recession, policymaker Pablo Hernandez de Cos said on Wednesday. "But to what level and how fast will depend on the inflation outlook, which, in turn, depends on the growth outlook and therefore includes the higher probability of recession that we are now estimating," De Cos, who also heads the Bank of Spain, said in a statement. While the bank last week dropped the reference in its policy statement to likely rate hikes at "several" more meetings, ECB President Christine Lagarde appeared to revert back to this terminology after raising the deposit rate on Oct. 27 by 75 basis points to 1.5%, its highest level since 2009. Inflation in the euro zone accelerated to 10.7% in October and is expected to stay above the ECB's 2% target through 2024. Reporting by Jesús Aguado; editing by Andrei KhalipOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Cuba hosts first U.S. business conference in years, seeks investment
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Marc Frank | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/3] Cuba's Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Carlos Fernandez de Cossio listens to Phil Peters, founder of FocusCuba, during a conference in Havana, Cuba, October 26, 2022. "Almost everything we do is with the new booming private sector," said Cuban-American Hugo , whose Miami-based Fuego Enterprises Inc (FUGI.PK) operates an online food market that processes 4,000 orders in Cuba per day. "It is important American businesses see this for themselves," said Cancio, who was attending the conference. The Biden administration has loosened some restrictions on Cuba around remittances, tourism and migration. It has also expressed interest in supporting Cuba's private sector.

☆ BOJ, BoJo, Beijing and bond bounce
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

A surge in Japan's ailing yen from 32-year lows later on Friday, amid reports of out-of-hours Bank of Japan intervention in New York, saw a peak-to-trough drop in dollar/yen of almost 4%. There were wild swings again on Monday amid suspicion of further BoJ sales, even though officials refused to confirm the action. A weekend of political twists from Beijing to London only added to edgy market on Monday. China leadership China's Xi Jinping secured a precedent-breaking third leadership term on Sunday and introduced a top governing body stacked with loyalists. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index (.HSI) has now underperformed MSCI's broadest global stock index by almost 50% over two years.

☆ Tesla and Truss, 5% and 150
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

A Tesla model 3 car is seen in their showroom in Singapore October 22, 2021. read more The latest European tech sector earnings on Thursday were downbeat, too. Bank of England Deputy Governor Ben Broadbent said the BoE would respond to changes in Truss's tax and spending policies. read moreKey developments that should provide more direction to U.S. markets later on Thursday:* European Union summit in Brussels* U.S. Oct Philadelphia business index. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

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