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☆ Yen breaks above 145/dollar level in choppy trading, dollar firm
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A Japanese 10,000 yen and a U.S. 100 dollar banknote juxtaposed against each other in Tokyo, Japan, on Monday, June 20, 2016. The Japanese yen weakened to as low as 145.22 per dollar in early Asian hours, its lowest since Nov. 10, 2022, before quickly reversing course. Japan intervened in currency markets last September when the dollar rose past 145 yen, which prompted the Ministry of Finance to buy the yen and push the pair back to around 140 yen. With the yen loitering around that level again, traders expect Japanese officials to start warning of intervention soon. While sentiment towards China is down, this week's high-frequency China data may only need a small beat to cause a strong upside reaction in China proxies, said Pepperstone's Head of Research Chris Weston.

Persons: warily, Chris Weston Organizations: United, Federal Reserve, Bank of Japan, Ministry of Finance, Saxo Markets, Treasury, Federal, ANZ, Fed Locations: U.S, Tokyo, Japan, United States, China

REUTERS/Heather Somerville/File PhotoAug 3 (Reuters) - Cruise, General Motors' (GM.N) robotaxi unit, said on Thursday it had signed the driverless car industry's first labor union agreements, a significant milestone as unions and robotaxi firms have historically been at odds. The company is partnering with two local San Francisco union chapters that represent electrical workers and janitors, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 6 and Service Employees International Union Local 87. Reuters could not definitively determine if these are the driverless car industry’s first union agreements. Cruise, which offers limited service in San Francisco with a fleet of Chevrolet Bolts fitted with driverless technology, has accumulated over 3 million driverless miles, the company said. Reporting by Anna Tong in San Francisco; Editing by Leslie AdlerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Heather Somerville, ”, John Doherty, Cruise, Anna Tong, Leslie Adler Organizations: General Motors Corp, REUTERS, General Motors, San, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Employees International Union Local, Reuters, United Auto Workers, Detroit Three, GM, Chevrolet Bolts, California’s Public Utilities Commission, Thomson Locations: San Francisco, California, U.S, IBEW

☆ Investors manoeuvre, warily, for long-shot BOJ policy move
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( Kevin Buckland | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

SLOWLY, STEADILYBOJ sources say the central bank is leaning towards keeping its yield control policy unchanged as policymakers wait for data to affirm wages and inflation will keep rising. The benchmark 10-year JGB yield also retreated to 0.445% from as high as 0.485%. "We don't short the JGB market. In part, it's an expensive thing to do - as you know, the Bank of Japan owns 110% of the 10-year JGB market," he said. "Nobody's calling for them to hike aggressively, just bringing some function back to the JGB market, allowing themselves to step away because the data has given them an opportunity to do so.

Persons: Jimmy Lim, Lim, Kazuo Ueda, Nigel Foo, Haruhiko Kuroda, Jim Leaviss, Leaviss, Michael Michaelides, Ales Koutny, James Athey, Athey, Kevin Buckland, Ankur Banerjee, Summer Zhen, Alun John, Divya Chowdhury, Harry Robertson, Vidya Ranganathan, Edmund Klamann Organizations: Bank of Japan, Management, ING, Investors, G Investments, Vanguard, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Singapore, FSI, abrdn

☆ Opinion | A Requiem for Diet Soda
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( Frank Bruni | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

I mean the crunch-woosh of a can of diet soda being opened. It was Tab for a while and then, I think, Diet Rite — I get confused about the chronology. Tab, Diet Rite, Fresca, Diet Coke and their ever-expanding posse transcended mere beverage-dom. If Mom were alive today, would she still be drinking diet soda? Diet soda is at odds with self-esteem as many Americans now extol it, with wellness as they’ve come to practice it and, according to some studies and some critics, with health.

Persons: Mom, —, Coke Locations: Worriedly

In the past few months, the technology has made ads easier to generate and track. It is writing marketing emails with subject lines and delivery times tailored to specific subscribers. Much has been made about the technology’s potential to limit the need for human workers in fields such as law and financial services. The conflicting attitudes suffused a co-working space in downtown San Francisco where more than 200 people gathered last week for an “A.I. Copywriters expressed worry and skepticism about chatbots capable of writing ad campaigns, while start-up founders pitched A.I.

Persons: Heinz, ” A.I, Copywriters Locations: San Francisco

☆ 'It's just a plug': A rival EV CEO isn't sold on Tesla's charging tech
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-03 | by ( Alexa St. John | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

But Peter Rawlinson, the CEO of Tesla rival EV-maker Lucid, isn't convinced the tech is a shoo-in. Rawlinson told Bloomberg in an interview that the hype around the charger is "rather bizarre." While automaker after automaker signs on to use Tesla's well-regarded charging technology, one rival executive isn't completely sold yet. "What we're really comparing is, is it a screw cap or is it a cork on the bottle, not the quality of the wine," Rawlinson told Bloomberg. "Whoever controls this — if it isn't an open, impartial standard, if it's owned by one company — has access to a lot of consumer data," the executive told Bloomberg.

Persons: Tesla, Peter Rawlinson, isn't, Rawlinson, Gabriel Daoud, Cowen, they'll, carmakers, Elon Musk, Lucid's Rawlinson, Musk, NACS, you've, haven't, It's Organizations: Bloomberg, Ford, GM, Volvo, Tesla's

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Persons: Dow Jones, 32a813c0 Locations: russia

Most economists expect another modest 10 bps LPR cut in the second half - on top of a 25 bps cut in banks' requirement ratio (RRR). The PROC last cut the RRR - the amount of cash that banks must hold as reserves -- in March, by 25 bps. Each 5 basis points LPR cut could reduce pre-tax profits of major banks by as much as 1.8%, China Merchants Securities said in a report. "A small rate cut is a useful painkiller for symptoms but cannot alleviate the real problem," said Gary Ng, Asia Pacific senior economist of Natixis. On Friday, China's cabinet discussed policy measures to support the economy.

Persons: COVID, NIM, Wang Yifeng, Wang, Gary Ng, China's, Zhang Ming, Zhang, Morgan Stanley, Kevin Yao, Ziyi Tang, Kripa Jayaram, Sumeet Chatterjee Organizations: People's Bank of China, Reuters, Everbright Securities, China Merchants Securities, Asia Pacific, stoke, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Thomson Locations: China, BEIJING, Beijing, Asia

☆ What Happened When a Brooklyn Neighborhood Policed Itself for Five Days
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( Maria Cramer | Amir Hamja | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

It had been a quiet April afternoon until about a dozen teenagers began running up Pitkin Avenue in Brownsville, yelling and cursing. They were chasing a girl of about 14 and it was clear they wanted a fight. Across Pitkin stood about half a dozen men, civilians in jeans and purple-and-gray sweatshirts. The teenagers slowed as they spotted the men, workers from an organization called Brownsville In Violence Out, who calmly waved them in different directions. They scattered as the girl fled down a side street.

Persons: “, ” Locations: Brownsville, Pitkin, New York

☆ Scientists identify polar cyclone swirling on mysterious Uranus
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-25 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] NASA scientists uses microwave observations to spot the first polar cyclone on Uranus, seen here as a light-colored dot to the right of center in each image of the planet, in this handout image released on May 25, 2023. But new observations from a telescope located in New Mexico are providing a fuller understanding of its atmosphere, including the detection of a polar cyclone whose center measures a quarter of Earth's diameter, swirling near its north pole. Scientists were able to gaze more deeply into the atmosphere of Uranus - a planet classified as an ice giant, like its planetary neighbor Neptune - than ever before. The research confirmed that polar cyclones are present on every body in our solar system with a substantial atmosphere - all the planets but Mercury and even Saturn's moon Titan. "The way they form is different from planet to planet," Akins added.

Companies Us Fuel International Inc FollowMay 18 (Reuters) - Oil prices eased on Thursday as traders warily watched for signs of progress on talks to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, after surging in the previous session on optimism over U.S. fuel demand. The U.S. dollar held near a seven-week peak on Thursday, making oil more expensive for holders of other currencies. President Joe Biden and top U.S. congressional Republican Kevin McCarthy on Wednesday underscored their determination to reach a deal soon to raise the federal government's $31.4 trillion debt ceiling and avoid an economically catastrophic default. Also weighing on prices was the increased possibility of another interest rate hike by the U.S. Federal Reserve. The strength of April U.S. economic data, in addition to optimism about the debt ceiling negotiations and the health of regional banking stocks overnight have strengthened market expectations of a further hike, ANZ Research said in a note on Thursday.

SummarySummary Companies Biden, McCarthy push forward towards deal on US debt ceilingU.S. rate hike prospect weighs on oil pricesMay 18 (Reuters) - Oil prices fell in early Asian trade on Thursday as traders warily watched for signs of progress on talks to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, after surging nearly 3% in the previous session on optimism over U.S. fuel demand. President Joe Biden and top U.S. congressional Republican Kevin McCarthy on Wednesday underscored their determination to reach a deal soon to raise the federal government's $31.4 trillion debt ceiling and avoid an economically catastrophic default. On Thursday, investors were "awaiting further evidence that a deal will happen soon," said Edward Moya, an analyst at OANDA. Also weighing on prices was the increased probability of an interest rate hike by the U.S. Federal Reserve. After a months-long standoff, Biden and McCarthy on Tuesday agreed to negotiate directly.

☆ Oil prices ease on caution over U.S. debt ceiling talks
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Oil prices fell in early Asian trade on Thursday as traders warily watched for signs of progress on talks to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, after surging nearly 3% in the previous session on optimism over U.S. fuel demand. President Joe Biden and top U.S. congressional Republican Kevin McCarthy on Wednesday underscored their determination to reach a deal soon to raise the federal government's $31.4 trillion debt ceiling and avoid an economically catastrophic default. "Crude needs a clear signal that the U.S. economy will avoid economic catastrophe or that China's recovery is picking up steam," he said. Also weighing on prices was the increased probability of an interest rate hike by the U.S. Federal Reserve. The strength of April economic data in the U.S., in addition to improving optimism about the debt ceiling negotiations and the health of regional banking stocks overnight have strengthened market expectations of a further hike, ANZ Research said in a note on Thursday.

☆ World Leaders Warily Watch U.S. Debt-Limit Standoff
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Andrew Duehren | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

As Democrats and Republicans debate raising the debt ceiling, they both agree that a default would be disastrous for the economy. WSJ explains why U.S. debt has become the center of the economy. Photo Illustration: Madeline MarshallNIIGATA, Japan—World leaders, already struggling with inflation and rising interest rates, now face the battle over raising the U.S. debt limit as the latest risk to their economic outlook. The impasse in Washington over raising the roughly $31.4 trillion borrowing limit is looming over a series of meetings of the Group of Seven advanced democracies this month. At a gathering of G-7 finance ministers along the Sea of Japan last week, officials discussed the prospects for a debt-limit deal between President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R., Calif.) alongside other global topics such as sanctions on Russia and ways to counter China.

☆ A photo of women snickering at trans lawmaker Zooey Zephyr in Montana looks a lot like the photos of white people snickering at Black people in the 1950s
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Katie Balevic | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The vote meant Zephyr could no longer enter the House chamber, so she worked from a public bench in the hallway outside. State Rep. Zooey Zephyr sits on a bench just outside the main chamber of the House on April 27 in Helena, Montana. The censure prevents Zephyr from entering the House floor, so she has instead been working from a public bench outside the chamber. Photos from the time show authorities in different cities escorting Black children to school through throngs of glaring white protestors. Similarly, a group of supporters on Tuesday managed to hold Zephyr's seat outside the chamber for her, the lawmaker said.

☆ Podcast: The conflict Russia doesn't want
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Tensions escalate between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, with Moscow watching on warily. And a Republican AI-generated attack ad raises concerns about use of the technology in politics and beyond. Help us improve the Reuters World News podcast by taking this short survey. Visit the Thomson Reuters Privacy Statement for information on our privacy and data protection practices. You may also visit megaphone.fm/adchoices to opt-out of targeted advertisingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Thailand’s Most Polarizing Family Rises Again Ahead of Election
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Sui-Lee Wee | Muktita Suhartono | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For close to two decades, the military and conservative establishment in Thailand has sought to keep former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and his supporters out of power. Mr. Thaksin, a populist politician and a business tycoon, was ousted in a coup in 2006 before he fled the country. Several years later, his sister succeeded him as prime minister and then suffered the same fate. Now, conservatives are watching warily as his political party looks set to dominate next month’s election. The party’s star campaigner: Paetongtarn Shinawatra, Mr. Thaksin’s youngest daughter and a strong contender for prime minister.

☆ Analysis: Rate rises pile pain on SME firms in U.S. and Europe
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Chiara Elisei | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Summary SME vulnerability to rate hikes gone under radarUS, European credit conditions tighteningUK SMEs especially vulnerable -analystsLONDON, March 30 (Reuters) - U.S. and European small and medium-sized (SME) firms may be next to feel the pain of rapid interest rate rises, with analysts and investors warily watching for the impact of tighter credit conditions exacerbated by recent banking turmoil. In the U.S. the average rate that small businesses pay on bank loans rose from around 5% to 7.6% in 2022, and is likely to hit about 9.5% by mid-year, Jefferies analysts estimate. British SMEs, hurt by weak growth, double digit inflation and rising Bank of England rates, are seen as particularly vulnerable. "The Government needs to demonstrate that it is on the side of small businesses who are feeling stressed and under huge margin pressure," McTague added. HARD TIMESMeanwhile the rate of small business loan approval at big U.S. banks meanwhile fell in February for nine straight months and business loan approvals at small banks has also fallen, said online financing platform for small businesses Biz2Credit.

☆ China's Xi speaks with Saudi crown prince, supports Saudi-Iran talks
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIJING, March 28 (Reuters) - China's President Xi Jinping spoke by phone with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, discussing a wide range of subjects including supporting follow-up talks between Saudi Arabia and Iran, state media CCTV reported on Tuesday. Xi recently helped broker a surprise deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia, Middle East rivals, earlier this month to restore diplomatic ties, in a display of China's growing influence in the region which is being warily watched by the United States. Prince Mohammed, who is also the kingdom's prime minister, voiced appreciation for China's initiative to support "efforts to develop good neighbourliness" between Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia and Shi'ite Iran, Saudi state news agency SPA said. The two leaders stressed the importance of strategic ties between Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter, and economic powerhouse China, a main trade partner of Gulf states, it added. Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states have voiced concern about perceived disengagement by main security guarantor the United States from the region and have moved to diversify partners with an eye on national economic and security interests.

☆ First Republic Bank Looms Large for U.S. Regulators After Credit Suisse Sale
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-19 | by ( David Benoit | Andrew Ackerman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

U.S. policy makers warily watched the rushed rescue of Credit Suisse Group AG over the weekend, hoping that its purchase by UBS Group AG would stem a slide in financial stocks triggered by the recent collapse of two regional banks. Late Sunday, the Fed and five major central banks announced a coordinated effort to improve liquidity by moving U.S. dollars among themselves each day, starting Monday, instead of once a week. The central banks then lend those dollars out to financial institutions, in an effort to backstop other countries’ funding needs should strains emerge in global markets.

☆ Dollar slides on likely rate pause in wake of SVB collapse
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Ankur Banerjee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Investor focus will now be on Tuesday's inflation data to gauge how hawkish the Fed is likely to be. "Given what's happened in the U.S. financial system, a 25 basis point hike is more likely than a 50 basis point hike." The market is now pricing a nearly 18% chance of the Fed sticking to its current rate and an 82% chance of a 25 basis point hike. In contrast, the market was pricing a 70% chance of a 50 basis point hike before the SVB collapse. Meanwhile, the Japanese yen strengthened 0.61% versus the U.S. dollar to 134.18 per dollar, having touched a one-month high of 133.58 earlier in the session.

WASHINGTON/SINGAPORE, March 13 (Reuters) - U.S. authorities launched emergency measures on Sunday to shore up confidence in the banking system after the failure of Silicon Valley Bank (SIVB.O) threatened to trigger a broader financial crisis. Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), a mainstay for the startup economy, was a product of the decades-long era of cheap money, with unique risks that made it especially vulnerable. With the Fed poised to continue raising interest rates, investors said the financial system may not be fully out of the woods just yet. Goldman Sachs' analysts said they no longer expect it to raise rates at that meeting, amid the stress in the banking sector. A senior U.S. Treasury official said the actions taken would protect depositors, while providing additional support to the broader banking system, but officials and regulators were continuing to monitor financial system stability.

☆ Dollar sinks as US intervenes on SVB collapse
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Ankur Banerjee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

It had previously expected a 25 basis point hike. The SVB collapse led investors to speculate that the Fed would now hesitate to hike interest rates by a super-sized 50 basis points this month. "Given what's happened in the U.S. financial system, a 25 basis point hike is more likely than a 50 basis point hike." In contrast, the market was pricing a 70% chance of a 50 basis point hike before the SVB collapse. The Australian dollar surged 1.41% to $0.667, and was on track for its biggest one-day percentage jump since Jan. 6.

☆ VIEW US intervenes to shore up SVB deposits, stem financial fallout
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +10 min

March 13 (Reuters) - The U.S. government announced actions to shore up deposits and stem any broader financial fallout from the sudden collapse of tech startup-focused lender Silicon Valley Bank (SIVB.O) (SVB), sending U.S. stock futures higher. "The market turbulence sparked by SVB has upended rising market expectations on the Fed rate path. The fact that SVB and Signature Bank depositors will be made whole is critical in maintaining trust in the financial system and should help stem contagion fears this week. But it also means that 50 basis points (a possible Fed interest rate hike) is off the table." Given what's happened in the U.S. financial system, a 25 basis point hike is more likely than a 50 basis point hike."

☆ Instant view: US intervenes to shore up SVB deposits, limit financial fallout
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +11 min

March 13 (Reuters) - The U.S. government announced actions to shore up deposits and stem any broader financial fallout from the sudden collapse of tech startup-focused lender Silicon Valley Bank (SIVB.O) (SVB), sending U.S. stock futures higher. ALVIN TAN, HEAD OF ASIA FX STRATEGY, RBC CAPITAL MARKETS, SINGAPORE:"Markets remain unsettled from the SVB failure. "The market turbulence sparked by SVB has upended rising market expectations on the Fed rate path. ANTHONY SAGLIMBENE, CHIEF MARKET STRATEGIST, AMERIPRISE FINANCIAL, TROY, MICHIGAN:"It was imperative that regulators stepped in and decisively acted before markets around the world opened for the week. GREG MCBRIDE, CHIEF FINANCIAL ANALYST, BANKRATE:"While the Fed has talked about a lot in the past year, until today it has been in the context of monetary policy.

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