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☆ Stocks fall as Powell says inflation fight not over
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Caroline Valetkevitch | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

While noting that inflation remains very far from the Fed's target, Powell said it may make sense to move rates higher, at a more moderate pace. The pan-European STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) lost 0.50% and MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe (.MIWD00000PUS) shed 0.37%. The Fed is "walking a tight rope between trying to tell people they are going to fight inflation as their No. The U.S. dollar index briefly rose following the release of Powell's testimony, but was last down slightly. The dollar index fell 0.458%, with the euro up 0.67% to $1.0989.

Persons: Brendan McDermid, Powell, Jerome Powell, Raphael Bostic, Rick Meckler, Brent, Caroline Valetkevitch, Medha Singh, Lawrence White, Wayne Cole, Jacqueline Wong, Lincoln, Alex Richardson, David Goodman, Richard Chang, Cynthia Osterman Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, REUTERS, U.S, Treasury, Capitol, Atlanta Federal Reserve, Yahoo Finance, Nasdaq, Dow Jones, Cherry Lane Investments, U.S . West Texas, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, New Vernon , New Jersey

☆ Stocks fall, yields up; Powell says inflation fight not over
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Caroline Valetkevitch | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., May 30, 2023. REUTERS/Brendan McDermidSummary U.S. stocks mostly lowerTreasury yields risePowell updates on U.S. rate outlook in testimonyNEW YORK, June 21 (Reuters) - Global stock indexes mostly fell and Treasury yields rose on Wednesday as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the fight to lower inflation still has a "long way" to go. The pan-European STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) lost 0.47% and MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe (.MIWD00000PUS) shed 0.35%. The U.S. dollar index initially rose following the release of Powell's testimony, but was last down slightly. Treasury yields rose on Powell's hawkish tone.

Persons: Brendan McDermid, Powell, Jerome Powell, Rick Meckler, Brent, Medha Singh, Lawrence White, Wayne Cole, Jacqueline Wong, Lincoln, Alex Richardson, David Goodman, Richard Chang Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, REUTERS, Treasury, Financial Services, Cherry Lane Investments, Nasdaq, Dow Jones, U.S, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, New Vernon , New Jersey

☆ Stocks and bonds reflect fears of Powell embracing his inner hawk
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Lawrence White | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Housebuilders (.FTNMX402020) declined 3% at one point as the prospect of more rate increases raised fresh concerns about mortgage costs. The U.S. dollar was firmer ahead of Powell's congressional testimony, with the dollar index up 0.1% at 102.62. Minutes of the central bank's last meeting showed only one of nine board members suggested reconsidering its policy of keeping bond yields low, and even then suggested it was best to wait a while. Rising interest rates and higher bond yields have been a burden for gold, which was pinned at $1,934 an ounce , just above last week's three-month low of $1,924.99. The Brent benchmark edged down 4 cents to $75.86 a barrel while U.S. crude lost 3 cents to $71.16.

Persons: Toby, Powell, Jerome Powell, Tapas Strickland, Jerry del Missier, doggedly, Lawrence White, Wayne Cole, Jacqueline Wong, Lincoln, Alex Richardson, David Goodman Organizations: London Stock Exchange Group, REUTERS, . Federal, NAB, Nasdaq, Copper, BRITAIN Investors ramped, Bank of, U.S, Bank of Japan, Thomson Locations: City, London, Britain, Beijing, Asia, Pacific, Japan, Bank of England

LONDON, June 7 (Reuters) - Barclays (BARC.L) is studying options for its global payments activities as a part of broader review into how it allocates resources, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters. Barclays has already engaged at least one major consultancy firm and may hire others to split assignments, this person said. "Our three businesses continue to perform well and our business mix is robust - growing our global payments business is a priority for us," a Barclays spokesperson said. The payments study comes as Barclays had also drafted Boston Consulting Group (BCG) to conduct a strategy review of the entire banking group, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters. How the bank should allocate resources between more predictable retail business and volatile returns from the investment bank has attracted investor scrutiny.

Persons: Amy, Jo Crowley, Pablo Mayo, Stefania Spezzati, Lawrence White, Alexander Smith Organizations: Barclays, Reuters, Britain's, Barclaycard, Boston Consulting, Bloomberg, BNP, HSBC, Pablo Mayo Cerqueiro, Thomson Locations: London

☆ Shares steady on June hike hiatus hopes
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Lawrence White | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Japan's Nikkei (.N225) had earlier surged 2.1% to stand above 32,000 for the first time since July 1990. "With Saudi Arabia protecting oil prices from sliding too low ... we think oil markets are now more prone to a shortfall later this year," said Vivek Dhar, a mining and energy commodities strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia. The greenback also rose 0.1% on the Japanese yen to 140.26 while the euro eased 0.1% to $0.1069. Markets see a sizeable chance - about 40% - that the RBA could surprise with a quarter-point hike on Tuesday, after a minimum wage hike that economists feared could further stoke inflationary pressures. Additional reporting by Stella Qiu, Editing by Sam Holmes, Kim Coghill, Ed Osmond and Chizu NomiyamaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Issei Kato, Brent, Vivek Dhar, Fitch, Stella Qiu, Sam Holmes, Kim Coghill, Ed Osmond, Chizu Organizations: Nikkei, REUTERS, LONDON, Federal Reserve, Saudi, Japan's Nikkei, Nasdaq, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Treasury, AAA, U.S, Bank of Canada, Reuters, BOC, Thomson Locations: Tokyo, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Asia, Pacific, China, U.S, United States, Australia, Canada

☆ Credit ratings agencies like Moody's decide the US credit rating. Here's what you need to know
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( Samantha Delouya | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Credit rating agencies are once again in the spotlight amid the ongoing high-stakes debt ceiling negotiations in Washington. What is the purpose of credit rating agencies? Put simply, credit rating agencies provide their opinions and issue a score evaluating the likelihood that a borrower will repay its debt. Rating agencies first rose to prominence over a century ago, but today, the three major agencies dominate the market. Bonsall has studied the effectiveness of credit rating agencies and their possible conflicts of interest.

☆ Rothschild & Co targets private assets market with new unit
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, May 22 (Reuters) - Rothschild & Co (ROTH.PA) said on Monday it had created a new private markets group within its wealth and asset management division, amid a broader push by finance firms to offer more private assets to wealthy individuals. The Paris-listed investment bank, which is being taken private by its owners, said the new team would be led by Jessica Sellam. Sellam previously led the bank's private markets and business development teams for France, Belgium and Monaco, the company said. The new team will look for investment opportunities in private equity, private debt, infrastructure and real estate, the company added. Sweden-based private equity house EQT (EQTAB.ST) also said this month it had launched a new strategy for private wealth clients to broaden its investor base.

The likelihood the Fed cuts rates later this year also increased. "The Fed does not aim get rate policy right just in time, they aim to get it right over time." Consumer prices decelerated to 4.9% year-on-year, the 10th straight month of slowdown as prices react to the Fed's rate-tightening cycle. The two-year Treasury yield, which typically moves in step with rate expectations, slid from 4.05% before the CPI news and dropped to 3.904%. Gold prices slipped as the CPI data was viewed as mixed and triggered profit-taking by some investors.

Equity markets initially rose as the CPI data suggested the Fed's most aggressive rate hikes in four decades were yielding results. MSCI's gauge of stocks across the world (.MIWD00000PUS) edged down 0.06%, while stocks on Wall Street wavered after an early rally. CHINA CRACKDOWNForeign exchange markets had been treading water while markets weighed policymakers' rhetoric against traders' conviction that U.S. interest rates should fall. Emerging markets currencies rallied on Wednesday following the U.S. data, with MSCI's index (.MIEM00000CUS) up 0.15%. U.S. crude recently fell 2.06% to $72.19 per barrel and Brent was at $76.00, down 1.86% on the day.

☆ Stocks tiptoe higher as US inflation data offers hope
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Lawrence White | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

MSCI's gauge of global equity performance (.MIWD00000PUS) rose 0.03% after the Labor Department's Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 4.9% year-over-year in April, against expectations of 5%. "Bigger picture, I think the market is hyper fixated on the ‘pause’ but a pause is still restrictive overall," he said. The dollar index hit a session low of 101.36 after the headline April inflation data, while benchmark 10-year German bond yields edged down 4 basis points. Emerging markets currencies rallied on Wednesday following the U.S. data, with MSCI's index (.MIEM00000CUS) up 0.26%. Spot gold turned positive after the CPI data, last trading up 0.3%.

☆ Bank of America opens Luxembourg branch in Europe funds push
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, May 10 (Reuters) - Bank of America (BAC.N) has hired former BNP Paribas banker Benoit Nevouet to be the manager of a newly created Luxembourg branch as the U.S. lender seeks to grow its business in Europe, a senior executive at Bank of America told Reuters. The opening of a branch in the small but wealthy country will mean Bank of America can help clients such as investment funds with local bank accounts and other services, said Matthew Davies, head of the U.S. lender's global transaction services unit for Europe, Middle East and Africa. Bank of America is first focused on bringing across existing clients which it served from a partner bank in Luxembourg to its new branch, Davies told Reuters. The U.S. bank is also hiring a dedicated money laundering reporting officer, as well as an initial handful of other support staff in functions such as compliance, risk and legal, to support the Luxembourg branch, Davies said. Bank of America's transaction services business accounts for some 10% of the lender's overall revenues, helping large multinational corporations with routine but vital products such as making payments and managing their cash.

☆ HSBC poised to see off Asia spinoff threat at crunch shareholder vote
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Lawrence White | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BIRMINGHAM, England, May 5 (Reuters) - HSBC (HSBA.L) is expected on Friday to defeat a proposal by Hong Kong-based investors, backed by its biggest Asian investor Ping An, which calls for the lender to consider spinning off its Asia business. HSBC has asked investors to vote against the proposals, saying they would destroy shareholder value, and so far no other big institutional investors have signalled they are in favour. Lui said he was only able to disclose he had met with Ping An and that they were supportive. HSBC tripled its profit in the first quarter as rising interest rates boosted its income, paying its first quarterly dividend since 2019. Reporting By Lawrence White, Additional reporting by Iain Withers, Editing by Keith WeirOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ HSBC defeats Asia spin-off proposal at investor meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, May 5 (Reuters) - Europe's biggest bank HSBC (HSBA.L) defeated a resolution from Hong Kong-based shareholders and backed by major investor Ping An to potentially spin-off its lucrative Asia business, the bank's chairman Mark Tucker said on Friday. Tucker told investors at the end of the annual investor meeting held in Birmingham in England that shareholders had backed the board in all resolutions. The special resolutions submitted by individual investor Ken Lui recommending the bank boost dividends and review its strategy were both defeated, Tucker said. A HSBC spokesperson said that apart from Ping An, none of the bank's top 50 shareholders voted against the board and a "strong majority" of retail shareholders also backed the lender. "The overwhelming majority of shareholders, excluding Ping An, have voted to draw a line under the debate on the structure of the bank," the spokesperson added.

☆ HSBC faces down protests on strategy, climate at annual meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Lawrence White | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BIRMINGHAM, England, May 5 (Reuters) - HSBC (HSBA.L) faced down opposition to its strategy and climate policy at a fractious annual investor meeting in Birmingham in England on Friday, including a shareholder proposal to spin-off its lucrative Asia business backed by major investor Ping An. Shareholder Lui questioned HSBC's board directly at the meeting on Friday, prompting the bank's chairman Mark Tucker to say criticism of the bank's performance showed "a fundamental misunderstanding of HSBC's business." HSBC's Tucker told the meeting that any break-up of the bank would undermine its global strategy and dent its revenue, repeating the bank's argument that it would be risky and costly. "So it would not be in shareholders' interests to split the bank," Tucker said. Like Barclays' investor meeting earlier this week, HSBC's event was repeatedly interrupted by climate campaigners singing songs, while one protester stood up at the front of the hall with a banner reading 'No more dirty coal'.

Lenders wasted little time in charging more for loans when interest rates rapidly rose from an almost 15-year slumber around zero last year, but most have dragged their feet on boosting deposit rates paid to millions of their customers. Money market funds are proving popular among savers seeking bigger returns on their cash as high levels of inflation persist. Data from Refinitiv Lipper showed more than 34 billion euros ($37.6 billion) of net flows into European money market funds in March, the best-selling asset type that month. Fidelity International also reported an 8% year-on-year uplift in flows into money market funds on its investment platform between Jan. 1 and April 26. Some lawmakers have criticised banks for the mismatch between what they charge borrowers and the interest rates offered to savers.

LONDON, May 3 (Reuters) - Interest rate rises helped British bank Lloyds (LLOY.L) beat first quarter profit forecasts on Wednesday, but early signs of stress among some borrowers pointed to tougher times ahead. Lloyds reported pretax profit of 2.3 billion pounds ($2.9 billion) for the first three months of 2023, above the 1.95 billion pounds average of analyst forecasts compiled by the bank and up from 1.5 billion pounds the prior year. While earnings have exceeded expectations across the sector, Lloyds has echoed rivals in keeping full-year performance forecasts flat instead of upgrading them further as some analysts had anticipated. Lloyds is the last of Britain's 'Big Four' banks to post its quarterly results, after HSBC, NatWest and Barclays also reported profit jumps. But in common with others, Lloyds also reported deposit outflows of 2.2 billion pounds over the quarter as customers dipped into savings and moved money into alternative products.

HSBC posted a pretax profit of $12.9 billion for the quarter ended March, versus $4.2 billion a year earlier. HSBC said the planned $10 billion sale, originally slated to be completed by the end of this year, will now only likely go through in the first quarter of 2024. HSBC reported deposits fell 0.6% to $1.6 trillion, excluding those it acquired by bailing out the UK arm of failed U.S. lender Silicon Valley Bank and the reclassification of French retail deposits. Despite the surging profit, HSBC did not raise its key performance target of a return on tangible equity of at least 12% from this year onwards, which analysts were anticipating. Reporting by Selena Li ing Kong Kong and Lawrence White in London; Editing by Muralikumar AnantharamanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

HSBC CEO Noel Quinn said the results showed its strengths in a rising rate environment, and played down the risks of further contagion for the banking sector. HSBC posted a pretax profit of $12.9 billion for the quarter ended March, versus $4.2 billion a year earlier. The profit was much higher than the $8.64 billion average estimate of 17 analysts compiled by the bank. Despite the surging profit, HSBC did not raise its key performance target of reaching a return on tangible equity of at least 12% from this year onwards, while analysts were estimating the key metric would be lifted. Reporting by Selena Li ing Kong Kong and Lawrence White in London; Editing by Muralikumar AnantharamanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

HONG KONG, May 2 (Reuters) - HSBC Holdings (HSBA.L) reported on Tuesday a better than expected tripling of quarterly profit, as rising interest rates worldwide boosted the lender's income and helped it pay a first quarterly dividend since 2019. Europe's largest bank posted a pretax profit of $12.9 billion for the first quarter ended March, versus $4.2 billion a year earlier. The results were better than the $8.64 billion average estimate of 17 analysts compiled by HSBC. It announced a dividend of $0.10 per share, its first quarterly dividend since 2019, following calls of shareholders to increase the dividend payout. Reporting by Selena Li ing Kong Kong and Lawrence White in London; Editing by Muralikumar AnantharamanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

NatWest said the reduction in its deposits, however, mainly reflected the axing of its underperforming Irish arm Ulster and higher customer tax bills. Deposits across its consumer, business and private bank nonetheless fell 11.1 billion pounds. NatWest, meanwhile, reported pretax profit that leapt 49% to 1.8 billion pounds ($2.24 billion), above an average of analyst forecasts of 1.6 billion pounds. Rising interest rates boosted NatWest's income by 29% to 3.9 billion pounds, but analysts said this narrowly missed expectations and they had hoped for an upgraded outlook. ($1 = 0.8028 pounds)Reporting by Iain Withers, Editing by Sinead Cruise and Lawrence WhiteOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

LONDON, April 27 (Reuters) - Barclays reported better than expected first-quarter profit on Thursday after a strong performance from its credit card business offset pressure on other business lines. The British bank's pretax profit of 2.6 billion pounds ($3.25 billion) beat analyst forecasts for a repeat of the previous year's 2.2 billion pounds. Income at the lender's consumer, cards and payments division rose 47% to 1.3 billion pounds thanks to rising credit card balances driven partly by its acquisition of a portfolio from retailer Gap last year. While higher credit card spending boosted Barclays' finances, there were signs this could have a sting in the tail. Fixed income, currencies and commodities (FICC) was a bright spot, with income rising 9% to 1.8 billion pounds.

☆ Allegations against former Barclays CEO Staley 'very serious' - CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Lawrence White | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, April 27 (Reuters) - Allegations made against British bank Barclays' former CEO Jes Staley regarding his ties with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein are "very serious", the lender's current CEO C.S. Venkat said the allegations were being adjudicated in New York, which he said was the "right and proper place". Both seek money damages and neither lawsuit names Staley as a defendant. In U.S. filings this week, Staley accused JPMorgan of using him as a "public relations shield" and said the allegations lacked legal or factual basis. A former investor in the bank last week said the lender should have made more checks over the matter.

HONG KONG, April 26 (Reuters) - Standard Chartered PLC (StanChart) (STAN.L) on Wednesday said first-quarter profit jumped 21%, beating expectations, as rising interest rates buoyed income from its cash management and retail banking businesses. The earnings update showed how rising central bank rates have boosted revenue, as StanChart charged borrowers more interest while not passing all of the increase to depositors. StanChart, which earns most of its revenue in Asia, said January-March statutory pretax profit reached $1.81 billion. That compared with $1.49 billion a year earlier and the $1.43 billion average of 14 analyst estimates compiled by the bank. The bank said it saw signs of stabilisation in China's troubled commercial real estate market, with no increase in credit impairment from the previous quarter.

HONG KONG, April 26 (Reuters) - Standard Chartered PLC (StanChart) (STAN.L) on Wednesday said first-quarter pretax profit jumped 21%, beating analyst estimates, as rising interest rates buoyed cash management income and retail product sales of the emerging markets-focused lender. StanChart, which earns most of its revenue in Asia, said statutory pretax profit for January-March reached $1.81 billion. That compared with $1.49 billion a year earlier and the $1.43 billion average of 14 analyst estimates compiled by the bank. It was the bank's largest single-quarter profit since the start of 2014, as rising interest rates boosted lending income while its financial markets trading division saw frenzied trading from customers amid volatile markets. The earnings update from StanChart showed how rising central bank rates have boosted revenue, as it charged borrowers more interest while not passing through all of the increase to depositors.

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