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☆ EU banks face liquidity checks next year after 2023 crises
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( Huw Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The logo of the European Central Bank (ECB) is pictured outside its headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany, April 26, 2018. The need for credible options was reinforced after the Swiss central bank stepped in with a liquidity backstop for Credit Suisse in March, before it was taken over by rival UBS (UBSG.S). Liquidity refers to readily available cash or short-term debt with a ready buyer to fund a bank's day-to-day operations without having to sell assets. "Strategies and actions suggested by institutions to support liquidity in resolution remained limited and mostly focused on accessing central bank facilities," EBA said in its report. Tapping private markets for liquidity, however, may be difficult for a stressed bank coming out of resolution, and even getting central bank liquidity can be hard without enough collateral, the EBA noted.

Persons: Kai Pfaffenbach, Huw Jones, Alexander Smith Organizations: European Central Bank, REUTERS, Union, Credit Suisse, UBS, European Banking Authority, Silicon Valley Bank, EU, EBA, Thomson Locations: Frankfurt, Germany, Swiss, Switzerland, Silicon, United States

ROCHESTER, New Hampshire, July 31 (Reuters) - U.S. Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis took an aggressive swipe at China, railed against what he described as corporate bailouts, and said he would rein in the Federal Reserve in an economic policy speech on Monday. DeSantis was particularly harsh on China and the technology sector which he accused of enriching the East Asian nation to the detriment of Americans. The U.S. Senate voted in 2000 to grant the status to China as it prepared to join the World Trade Organization. "They said if you granted China special trading status and put them in the World Trade Organization, that China would become more democratic," he said. In written bullet points released alongside the speech, DeSantis' campaign said he would appoint a chair of the Federal Reserve "who will focus on maintaining a stable dollar instead of the political pressures of the day."

Persons: Ron DeSantis, DeSantis, we've, Jerome Powell, Gram Slattery, James Oliphant, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Republican, Federal Reserve, Republican Party, U.S, Senate, World Trade Organization, Federal, Fed, Thomson Locations: ROCHESTER , New Hampshire, China, New Hampshire, U.S, United States, Rochester, Washington

"The culture wars are coming to UK businesses, including the financial sector," said Andre Spicer, dean of City University's Bayes Business School. It also cited "risk factors including... controversial public statements which were felt to conflict with the bank's purpose". However, data from watchdog the Financial Ombudsman Service showed complaints about account closures represented a tiny fraction of a bank's overall customer base. Experts say other banks will now be scrambling to ensure their own policies and committees are behaving appropriately, to avoid further scandals. The CEO of Britain's biggest domestic bank Lloyds said on Wednesday the bank's own policies did not include looking at customers' political or personal beliefs.

Persons: Nigel Farage, Coutts, Andre Spicer, Howard Davies, Alison Rose, Rose, Peter Flavel, Charles Dickens, Queen Elizabeth II, Spicer, Harriet Baldwin, Bill Winters, Samuel Gregg, Banks, Gregg, University's Spicer, Rupert Younger, ", Sinead Cruise, Iain Withers, Lawrence White, Daniel Wallis Organizations: Brexit Party, NatWest, Bayes Business School, Coutts, Treasury, Bank of England, BBC, Standard Chartered, Farage, American Institute for Economic Research, Facebook, Financial, Service, Barclays, Lloyds, Centre, Oxford University's Said Business School, Thomson Locations: America

☆ Key takeaways from China's politburo meeting on the economy
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

July 26 (Reuters) - China pledged to step up stimulus measures as the economy faces what it described as "new" difficulties and a "tortuous" recovery, following a meeting of the powerful politburo of the ruling Communist Party this week. Below are the key takeaways from the official readout of the meeting on the direction China's economic policy will take in the second half of 2023, which left many issues unaddressed. PROPERTYThe politburo removed a key phrase from the readout of its meeting in April, that cited President Xi Jinping as saying "houses are for living, not for speculation," sparking a rally in the shares of battered property firms. While markets are expecting further easing of property market regulations to slow the giant sector's downturn, the politburo flagged a "city-based" approach rather than nationwide changes. HOUSEHOLD CONSUMPTIONThe politburo reiterated it wants to turn it into a key driver of growth.

Persons: Xi Jinping, meeting's, Marius Zaharia, Lincoln Organizations: Communist Party, Investors, Beijing bailouts, Thomson Locations: China, Beijing

☆ New EV battery plant fuels labor tensions as UAW strike looms deadline
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-24 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

New York CNN —Stellantis and Samsung SDI announced plans Monday for another EV battery plant joint venture to open in 2027. Four major EV battery plants have opened in recent years and 19 more are planned with Monday’s announcement, according to the UAW. An aerial view of the Stellantis and Samsung Battery Plant construction site in Kokomo, Indiana. Those talks will have to be focused on the wages and benefits for the current UAW members. By comparison, UAW members with top seniority at a Big Three factory get $32.32 an hour, plus an annual bonus and profit sharing.

Persons: New York CNN — Stellantis, Shawn Fain, Stellantis, BEV, Kent Nishimura, ”, it’s, Fain, He’s, “, ” Stellantis Organizations: New, New York CNN, Samsung SDI, United Auto Workers, Stellantis, Jeep, Dodge, Chrysler, General Motors, Ford, UAW, don’t, GM, Fiat Chrysler, PSA Group, Peugeot, Opel, Vauxhall, Samsung Battery, Los Angeles Times, Samsung, Big, LG, SK, CNN, ICE Locations: New York, United States, Europe, Kokomo , Indiana, Warren Ohio, Korean, Kokomo

☆ Regulators Take Another Crack at Shoring Up Money-Market Funds to Prevent Bailouts
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Paul Kiernan | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact Dow Jones Reprints at 1-800-843-0008 or visit www.djreprints.com. https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-overhauls-money-market-fund-rules-in-latest-attempt-to-prevent-bailouts-2f0f2925

Persons: Dow Jones

☆ U.S. Takes Third Shot at Shoring Up Money-Market Funds
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Paul Kiernan | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Persons: Dow Jones

☆ The American banking landscape is on the cusp of a seismic shift. Expect more pain to come
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( Hugh Son | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

But even as the dust settles from a string of government seizures of failed midsized banks, the forces that sparked the regional banking crisis in March are still at play. What is coming will likely be the most significant shift in the American banking landscape since the 2008 financial crisis. JPMorgan shares are up 7.6% this year, while the KBW Regional Banking Index is down more than 20%. Some of those pressures will be visible as regional banks disclose second-quarter results this month. "The fundamental issue with the regional banking system is the underlying business model is under stress," said incoming Lazard CEO Peter Orszag.

Persons: Jamie Dimon, Brian Graham, Banks, KeyCorp, Matt O'Connor, Peter Orszag, SVB, Chris Wolfe, Wolfe, you've, You've, Goldman Sachs, Lazard's Orszag, Orszag, Janet Yellen, Sen, Elizabeth Warren, Klaros, Graham Organizations: First, JPMorgan, Silicon Valley Bank, CNBC, Klaros, Deutsche Bank, Federal Reserve Bank of New, Justice Department Locations: First Republic, Silicon Valley, SVB, KBW, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Republic

☆ Thousands of California hotel workers go on strike amid holiday weekend, demanding better pay and benefits
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-02 | by ( Aaron Mcdade | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Thousands of hotel employees across LA and southern California went on strike Sunday. 96% of the union voted last month to authorize a strike amid disputes over pay and benefits. The union's website states that it represents over 32,000 workers across Southern California and Arizona, and at least 15,000 workers are affected by the current dispute. About 600 of the union's members are not striking as LA's largest hotel, the Westin Bonaventure, agreed to a tentative deal with its union workers last week. The strike is the latest labor dispute to reach this extreme in Los Angeles, which has seen multiple over the last few months, per the Times.

Persons: —, Kurt Petersen, We're, it's, Emely Lopez, Insider's Reed Alexander Organizations: Service, CNN, New York Times, Westin Bonaventure, Intercontinental, KTLA, . Teachers, Hollywood Locations: LA, California, Los Angeles, Orange, Southern California, Arizona

☆ Greek leftist leader Tsipras resigns as Syriza party leader
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

ATHENS, June 29 (Reuters) - Alexis Tsipras, the one-time leftist firebrand who stormed to power on an anti-austerity agenda in Greece in 2015, stepped down from the helm of the Syriza party after 15 years on Thursday, following a heavy election defeat. At the height of Greece's deep economic crisis, Tsipras, known for sporting his no-tie look, rode a wave of anti-establishment anger to become the country's first leftist prime minister. "The time has come to start a new cycle," Tsipras said in a televised address announcing his resignation. Tsipras said he would not be a candidate at elections for a new party leader. Tsipras' decision to step down was "sudden", a party source said, but also "the right one for the party's reform and for his own legacy".

Persons: Alexis Tsipras, Syriza, Kyriakos Mitsotakis's, Tsipras, Renee Maltezou, Karolina Tagaris, Angeliki, Toby Chopra, Peter Graff Organizations: firebrand, Democracy, New Democracy, Communist, European Union, International Monetary Fund, Thomson Locations: ATHENS, Greece

☆ Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis wins repeat election, securing clear parliamentary majority
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-25 | by ( Elinda Labropoulou | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Kyriakos Mitsotakis, leader of Greece’s center-right New Democracy party, has won a second four-year term as prime minister. During his election campaign, Mitsotakis vowed to further extend a 35-kilometer fence at the Greek-Turkey border, to block migrants trying to enter Greece. Fueled by May’s initial election results, Greek bonds and stocks have rallied with optimism that a pro-investment government could prevent financial backsliding. Other fringe far-right entries to the race included the nationalist party Greek Solution and the ultra-religious, anti-abortion Niki. “But despite the populist cacophony, Mitsotakis’ strong victory provides the new government a clear mandate to govern.”

Persons: Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Mitsotakis, ”, “, Syriza, “ Mitsotakis, Nick Malkoutzis, ” Mitsotakis, Alexis Tsipras –, –, Tsipras, Wolfgango Piccoli, Vassiliki Georgiadou, Ilias Kasidiaris, Niki Organizations: CNN, Democracy, New Democracy, PASOK, KKE, Panteion University, Spartans, Nazi, Freedom Locations: Greece, Pylos, Turkey, Europe, New, Athens, Golden

☆ Biden is lending billions to Ford to help America win the EV race with China
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( Ryan Hogg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The US is lending Ford $9.2 billion to build battery plants in Tennessee and Kentucky. It's also three times the loan extended to General Motors for battery plants last year. The US government is lending $9.2 billion to Ford for three battery plants in a sign of the Biden administration's desire for America to become a leading EV player. The loan is more than three times the amount handed out last year to General Motors to build three battery factories. The loan is the latest step by the White House to on-shore production of crucial EV components amid rising geopolitical tensions, particularly with China.

Persons: It's, Biden, Obama, EVs, Ford's, Darren Palmer Organizations: Ford, Loan, General Motors, Energy's, SK, The Energy Department, Tesla, EV, White, P, EVs, Ford's EV Locations: Tennessee, Kentucky, America, Korean, China, Chinese

☆ Analysis: Greek bonds snapping at heels of southern Europe's best in class
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( Stefano Rebaudo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The country has received three international bailouts from the euro zone and the IMF worth 280 billion euros ($308 billion) since 2010. "The Greek (bond) market is not so liquid and tends to be more volatile, but we have a lot of good news. The Greek economy is still heavily exposed to volatile sectors like tourism or shipping, but it is less sensitive to manufacturing headwinds. The premium, or spread, of Greek government bond yields over those of Spain recently fell to its lowest since 2008 at around 27 basis points . Across southern Europe, only Portugal and Spain trade at a smaller premium to Germany - the euro zone benchmark - than Greece.

Persons: Athanasios, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Goldman Sachs, Filippo Taddei, Piet Haines Christiansen, Giorgia Meloni, Mario Draghi's, Christoph Rieger, Stefano Rebaudo, Sara Rossi, Amanda Cooper, Hugh Lawson Organizations: Bank of America, Democracy, Analysts, European Recovery Fund, Danske Bank, Italy's, ECB, Italian Treasury, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Greece, Spain, Europe, Portugal, Germany, European, Italy, Italian

☆ Crypto is dead: long live crypto!
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-16 | by ( Felix Martin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

The end of near-zero interest rates, quantitative easing and pandemic-era fiscal stimulus has sent prices crashing back to earth. Rising real interest rates have proved to be kryptonite for crypto, as for so many other speculative assets. The normalisation of interest rates may have done for crypto in its most recent incarnation as a get-rich-quick scheme. The proposition that the circulation of private currencies might be economically beneficial has also been around for a while. Nevertheless, history shows that for privately issued currencies to attain critical mass it has typically required more than just the availability of viable alternatives.

Persons: cryptocurrencies, Gary Gensler, noncompliance, Balaji Srinivasan, marc ”, Paul Krugman, Friedrich Hayek’s, Money ”, James Steuart, ”, Crypto, Long, Peter Thal Larsen, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, Coinbase, SEC, State, Brixton, counterparties, Central Bank of, Thomson Locations: Ithaca, Scottish, United States, Central Bank of Argentina

☆ Subsidies from Big Tech should be last option for EU telcos - Meta Platforms
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

June 15 (Reuters) - Meta Platforms (META.O) said on Thursday subsidies from Big Tech should be the last option for European Union telecoms operators trying to get U.S. companies to foot some of their network cost. The European Commission launched a consultation early this year on whether tech giants should bear some of the costs of Europe's telecoms network. A majority of European Union countries have also rejected the push to levy a network fee on Big Tech, sources told Reuters earlier this month. The European Commission did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. It added any subsidies be awarded by a tender to ensure availability to all network operators, not just the large players.

Persons: Meta, Akash Sriram, Krishna Chandra Organizations: Big Tech, European Union, Deutsche Telekom, Telefonica, European Commission, Meta, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Orange, Bengaluru

☆ Greece’s reform labours are only half complete
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Hugo Dixon | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Greece’s large current account deficit and domestic corruption undermine its attraction as an investment destination. The issue, rather, is whether Greece will be able to attract investment in the quantities needed for it to fulfil its potential. What’s more, investment is still only 14% of national income, even though this measure expanded during Mitsotakis’ first term as prime minister. Well-designed tax and benefit reforms could even reduce the country’s unemployment rate, which is currently 12%, thereby increasing its productive potential. All this would provide a buffer if Greece or the world economy is hit by further shocks in coming years.

Persons: Hercules, Mitsotakis, Bruegel, Peter Thal Larsen, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, Union, International Monetary Fund, Bank of, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Twitter, Thomson Locations: ATHENS, Greece, Mitsotakis ’, Bank of Greece, Mitsotakis

☆ President Dimon would be square peg in Oval hole
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( John Foley | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

NEW YORK, June 2 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The idea of Jamie Dimon running for U.S. president makes sense in one way: After helming JPMorgan (JPM.N), the biggest bank in the Western world, there aren’t many bigger jobs. There are big reasons, however, why Dimon would be a square peg in an Oval Office. If part of former U.S. President Donald Trump’s appeal rested on empty claims of business savvy, Dimon is the real deal. Trump’s financial failings and Epstein connections didn’t stick, but Dimon probably won’t want to test voters again. Follow @johnsfoley on TwitterCONTEXT NEWSBillionaire fund manager Bill Ackman tweeted on May 31 that JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon should run for president in the 2024 elections.

Persons: Jamie Dimon, Bill Ackman, Donald Trump’s, Aubrey Immelman, There’s, Jobs, Jeffrey Epstein, Epstein, Dimon, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Ron DeSantis, Jeffrey Goldfarb, Sharon Lam Organizations: YORK, Reuters, U.S, JPMorgan, ” Banking, Congress, Bloomberg, Trump, Florida, Republican, Thomson

☆ Biden Has a Kennedy Problem
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( James Freeman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

James Freeman is assistant editor of The Wall Street Journal's editorial page and author of the weekday Best of the Web column. He is the co-author of "Borrowed Time: Two Centuries of Booms, Busts and Bailouts at Citi," recognized as a New York Times Editors' Choice and a Financial Times Business Book of the Month. He is a contributor to the Fox News Channel and a host of "Deep Dive" on Fox Nation. Before joining the Journal in September 2007, James served as investor advocate at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, where he encouraged the transformation of financial reporting technology to benefit individual investors. Follow James on Twitter @FreemanWSJ

Persons: James Freeman, Bailouts, James Organizations: Citi, New York Times, Financial, Fox News Channel, Fox Nation, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, Yale, Twitter

☆ Switzerland's Social Democrats propose shrinking UBS
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( John Revill | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The left-leaning party will propose to cap the bank's assets at half of Switzerland's gross domestic product, effectively forcing the new UBS to slash its assets to a quarter of their current level. Social Democrats are the second-biggest party in the lower house, but with only 39 of the 200 seats will need support of other parties. The Swiss People's Party, which has 53 lower house seats, joined the Social Democrats in rejecting the government's aid package for the merger last month and has also called for no more taxpayer-funded bailouts for banks. An alternative, also considered by the Social Democrats, would be imposing higher capital requirements if the bank's assets rose above 50% of Swiss GDP. "The aim is for UBS to become smaller," Marti told the newspaper.

☆ How risky bank debt makes customers safer
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-25 | by ( Liam Proud | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

LONDON, May 25 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Bank watchdogs are mulling changes to deposit insurance schemes after a string of lenders failed. That’s a problem for depositors, since long-term debt acts as a buffer for customers too. Forcing the issuance of more long-term bank debt could make them cheaper too. The trickier part is figuring out who ultimately bears the cost of loss-absorbing debt. Relying more on loss-absorbing debt could make such giant ad-hoc bills less likely in the future.

A new electoral system means New Democracy fell just shy of an absolute majority, paving the way for coalition talks this week though a second vote in June is more likely. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis emerged stronger despite a wiretapping scandal, the COVID pandemic, a cost of living crisis and a deadly rail crash in February which triggered public outrage. "I think what Syriza missed was the willingness of the electorate to move away from the crisis politics era. That is what Mitsotakis understood whereas Syriza didn't," said Wolfango Piccoli, co-president of political risk advisory at Teneo. Another leftist party, MeRA25, led by Varoufakis, used a similarly cryptic slogan "Alliance for the Rupture".

☆ Why are you suddenly being asked to tip more? It could be because workers are getting more expensive.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Jacob Zinkula | Andy Kiersz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

More and more businesses are asking customers to tip. It's driven in part by the spread of digital payment technologies that include prompts to tip workers. Workers are getting more expensive, and tips help cover the costBusinesses relying on tips to help pay their workers is far from a new phenomenon — particularly in the restaurant industry. One potential reason service businesses are warming up to tipping is that they're under particular pressure to keep labor costs in check. In recent years, many service businesses have struggled to attract workers and been forced to raise pay considerably as a result.

While paying bonuses at bailed-out energy groups raises questions around the use of taxpayers' money, it also highlights the need for the companies to remain competitive. One of the sources said 200 of Sefe's traders in London had received hundreds of millions of dollars in bonuses, adding mid-level traders had received $5 million-$7 million each. Two of the other people said that generous subsidies had been paid at both Sefe and Uniper. Uniper confirmed that bonuses were paid to trading staff for 2022 but below the level of the previous year. The Finance Ministry, which is responsible for the government's ownership of Uniper, also referred questions on operating issues including staff remuneration to the company.

Ahead of an election on May 21, a cost-of-living crisis that is eroding earnings is foremost in voters' minds. For Klaoudatou it means voting for anyone but the incumbent conservative New Democracy or the opposition leftist Syriza. Reuters GraphicsThree international bailouts saved Greece from toppling out of the euro zone during a decade-long debt crisis that peaked in 2015. "Εven during the crisis - and this is the joke - I didn't think so much before spending a single extra euro," Klaoudatou told Reuters. Reuters GraphicsPAYCHECK BARELY GETS TO PAYCHECKOne in two Greek households could barely get by on their monthly income last year.

☆ Stop Equating the Latest Bank Failures to the 2008 Crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-14 | by ( Josh Zumbrun | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The FDIC seized First Republic Bank in early May and struck a deal to sell the bulk of its operations to JPMorgan Chase. WSJ’s Ben Eisen explains what led to the bank’s failure and what it means for customers, investors and the industry. Illustration: Preston JesseeThe failures this year of First Republic Bank , Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank have been labeled the second-, third- and fourth-largest bank failures in U.S. history. By one measure, the three banks held more assets than all 25 banks that failed in 2008 during the global financial crisis. Wait a second: this wave of failures is as bad as the 2008 crisis?

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