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UK banks (.FTNMX301010) dropped to an eight-week low, spooked by a brutal rout in U.S. bank SVB Financial (SIVB.O) following a share sale. The FTSE 100 (.FTSE) slipped 1.9% to a five week low, while the more domestically focused mid-cap index (.FTMC) gave up 2.1% to hit a two-month low. The FTSE 100 is set to the end the week down about 2.8% in what could be its worst week since September, as worries around hawkish central banks sapped risk appetite. Next week, investors will be watching for UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt's spring budget. Reporting by Susan Mathew in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Saumyadeb ChakrabartyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) fell 1.7% on broad-based losses, with HSBC (HSBA.L), Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE), Barclays (BARC.L), Unicredit (CRDI.MI) and Commerzbank (CBKG.DE) down between 2.7% and 7.2%. If it can happen to a U.S. bank, it could potentially happen to a bank in Europe as well." Next week, the focus is likely to be on the European Central Bank which is expected to hike its key lending rate by 50 bps. Daimler Truck (DTGGe.DE) added 3.5% on dividend payment plans after hitting its 2022 targets and forecasting higher earnings and revenue this year. Reporting by Susan Mathew and Medha Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu and Dhanya Ann ThoppilOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ UK stocks slip as investors gauge prospects of U.S. rate hike
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Susan Mathew | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The blue-chip FTSE 100 index (.FTSE) fell 0.6%, and the mid-cap index (.FTMC) lost 0.7%, extending losses for a third straight session. Strengthening the case for hikes, data showed U.S. job openings fell less than expected in January. The FTSE 100 is up more than 6% so far this year, but is off more than 2% from all-time highs hit last month as investors try to assess the impact of rising interest. Among individual stocks, Rio Tinto (RIO.L) dropped 0.6% as the miner traded without dividend eligibility. Reporting by Susan Mathew in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Sonia CheemaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Investors will be looking for Powell's take on the labor market in a speech at the Economic Club of Washington due later in the day, after a sharp rise in jobs growth last week punctured hopes for a tempered Fed. "We expect Chair Powell to emphasize stubbornness in underlying inflation pressures while highlighting the labor market’s strength and capacity to withstand higher rates." U.S. interest-rate futures show that markets are expecting the Fed funds rate to peak just above 5.1% by June, compared with expectations of a peak below 5% prior to Friday's jobs report. "The Fed still has some progress to make, there are signs of positivity in terms of the disinflationary pressures that are in the pipeline, but there is still a labor market problem." Sterling was last 0.4% down against the dollar at $1.1982, after tumbling to a one-month low of $1.1974 in the previous session.

☆ Dollar rally pauses ahead of Powell speech; Aussie lifted by hawkish RBA
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Rae Wee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The dollar index , which measures the greenback against a basket of six rivals, made a brief breach of Monday's one-month highs, and was last trading at 103.52, roughly flat on the day. Sterling was last 0.1% higher against the dollar at $1.20275, after tumbling to a one-month low of $1.2006 in the previous session. In Asia, the Japanese yen attempted to make back Monday's losses, with the dollar-yen pair down 0.6% at $131.78, moving away from Monday's one-month low of 132.90 per dollar. A newspaper report on Monday said Japan's government has sounded out Bank of Japan (BOJ) Deputy Governor Masayoshi Amamiya to succeed incumbent Haruhiko Kuroda as central bank governor. Reporting by Rae Wee and Susan Mathew; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman, Kenneth Maxwell and Arun KoyyurOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ VIEW Nissan, Renault agree to overhaul alliance, putting themselves on equal footing
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"We understand Renault is able to ring fence its own technology within the alliance allowing the firm to collaborate also with other external partners beyond the Renault Nissan alliance. "Overall we welcome this step which will enhance the industrial collaboration within the alliance." JEFFERIES"A re-sized capital structure should help keep the Alliance viable, maintaining synergies and opening up strategic opportunities on both sides. Ultimately it means that a disorderly unwind of the alliance has been avoided which is a positive. "Over the short term, it's possible there may be selling (of Nissan shares) due to a worsening of supply and demand.

☆ Optimism over China, peak bond yields draw flows into stocks -BofA
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 27 (Reuters) - Weekly inflows into stocks in the week to Wednesday were the largest in six weeks, data from BofA Global Research showed, as China's reopening of its borders and expectations that bond yields have peaked fed investor risk appetite. Investors poured $13.9 billion into stocks with $3.4 billion flowing into European shares - the largest to the region's equities in almost one year, the bank said on Friday. Healthcare stocks, a defensive play, and technology stocks, have seen their worst four-week outflows in four years, BofA said. Over the same period, emerging market debt and equity inflows averaged $7.1 billion, their strongest in nearly two years. Gold drew in $500 million, BofA data showed, while investors shed $2.3 billion worth of cash.

☆ Morgan Stanley cuts year-end dollar forecast
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 16 (Reuters) - Morgan Stanley cut its 2023 year-end forecast for the dollar index to 98, and expects the greenback's weakness to be more pronounced against the euro this year as worries about the severity of an economic downturn start to ease. They previously saw the index , which weighs the U.S. currency against a basket of six major rivals, ending 2023 at 104. The dollar index was trading at 102.4 around 1330 GMT on Monday. The Wall Street bank now sees the euro strengthening against the dollar to 1.15 by year-end versus a previous forecast of 1.08. The bank's previous year-end forecast for the yuan was 6.80.

Brazil's real , snapped a three-day winning run, last down 0.4% after falling over 1% earlier in the day. A central bank survey on Monday showed Brazil's inflation and interest rate expectations for the year had risen. While most other Latin American currencies also fell, underperforming broader emerging market peers, Chile's peso rose 0.8% as copper prices hit six-month highs. Data showed Chile posted a trade surplus of $1.85 billion in the month, up from a $417 million surplus in December 2021. Data showed Mexico's headline inflation ended 2022 slightly below analysts' expectations, while core inflation appeared to have lost steam.

REUTERS/Adriano MachadoSAO PAULO/LONDON, Jan 9 (Reuters) - Brazilian equities were higher in choppy trade on Monday, a day after thousands of supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro stormed government buildings in the capital, echoing the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection in Washington. On Friday, both had performed better after Lula said the economy may grow while government finances are kept in check. On Monday hundreds of Brazilian police in riot gear and some on horseback amassed at an encampment of Bolsonaro supporters near Brasilia's army headquarters. "I think the situation will quickly normalize," said Cristian Maggio, head of portfolio strategy at TD Securities in London. "Yet, it is an event worth keeping an eye on, as it may not be fully over just yet."

☆ Brazil markets fall as Bolsonaro supporters storm capital
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Susan Mathew | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The market impact will depend on how the Lula administration and other government institutions react to the protests, said Bertrand Delgado, head of Latam Fx and fixed income with Societe Generale. A central bank survey on Monday showed Brazil's inflation and interest rate expectations for the year had risen. While most other Latin American currencies also fell, underperforming broader emerging market peers, Chile's peso rose 0.8% as copper prices hit six-month highs. Data showed Mexico's headline inflation ended 2022 slightly below analysts' expectations, while core inflation appeared to have lost steam. In Argentina, the economy will grow significantly more than 5% in 2023, Economy Minister Sergio Massa said on Sunday.

It’s a plot twist the romance writers did not see coming. “I saw the auction that was going on to help raise funds for her funeral,” romance writer T.E. “To find out that it was a hoax, two-and-a-half years later, was just a slap in the face to everybody,” fellow romance writer Samantha A. Cole told NBC News. Cole said she met Meachen around 2017 in one of several online romance writer and reader groups that proliferate on Facebook and elsewhere on the web. Some angry romance writers confronted Meachen online and demanded an explanation, screenshots of the exchanges revealed.

☆ Goldman Sachs unveils its top buy-rated stocks for 2023
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-24 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Goldman Sachs analysts have revealed their favorite stocks to buy for 2023. CNBC Pro combed through top Goldman research to find the bank's top picks heading into next year. They include: Amazon, Weyerhaeuser, Boeing, Chipotle, Humana and Bath & Body Works. Shares are up about 40% over the past six months, and they have more room to run in 2023, he said. Chipotle Chipotle is down 19% this year, but analyst Jared Garber said the stock is greatly undervalued heading into 2023.

☆ Britain braces for winter of strike action as nurses walk out
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Sarah Young | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Unions are seeking double-digit pay rises to keep pace with inflation that hit 11.1% in October, the highest in 41 years. Union estimates forecast more than 1 million working days will be lost in December, making it the worst month for disruption since July 1989. Walk-outs in rail by RMT members, which started in June, are the union's biggest action for over 30 years, while for nurses, it is the first ever national strike action in the Royal College of Nursing's (RCN) 106-year-old history. MORE PROMINENT UNIONSThe walk-outs end decades of relatively stable industrial relations in Britain, compared to European neighbours such as France and Spain. "I think the world that we're in is one where we get more prominent union activity," Pickering said.

☆ Crypto winter end in sight as Ethereum looks to shake the chills- analysts
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

J.P.MORGAN:"We believe that the Ethereum Merge and really the Ethereum Surge could be a big factor in terms of increasing the use-cases for blockchain into new areas, including financial services," analysts said in an early December note. The Ethereum Merge was a major software upgrade to the Ethereum blockchain that went live in September and reduced its energy usage by 99.95%, according to developers. "We continue to see the Ethereum Surge as a catalyst for development in the cryptocurrency markets, which appears at least 6-12 months away." "From the China crackdown to the several price crashes in earlier 2022, crypto mining has shown an approximately 1-to-1 price-power relationship. Norwood expects the crypto market to pick up in about six months.

☆ Wells Fargo sees global growth slowing to 1.7% next year
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Dec 8 (Reuters) - Wells Fargo is expecting the global economy to grow at a slower pace in 2023, joining other big American banks that have tempered their estimates this year and rekindled fears of a potential recession in the United States. The bank expects the global economy to grow at 1.7% in 2023, weaker than a 2.4% rise estimated for the current year, it said in a client note on Thursday. Wells Fargo sees the U.S. economy slipping into a "modest" recession beginning in mid-2023 and expects it to end the year with annual growth of 0.2%, much slower than a 2% rise estimated for 2022. Wells Fargo also expects annual U.S. headline inflation moderating to 3.8% in 2023 from 7.7% currently. Reporting by Susan Mathew in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'SilvaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ European shares kick off month on firm footing on Powell speech
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Susan Mathew | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The pan-European STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) climbed 0.6%, after gaining 6.8% in November to log its best month since July. Energy stocks (.SXEP) slumped, capping gains for the broader index, as oil prices dipped amid uncertainty ahead of Sunday's OPEC+ meeting. China's stringent measures have contributed to slowing global growth, while aggressive policy tightening and an energy crisis in Europe have also fuelled worries over a recession. "European markets are indeed incorporating the speech from Powell that was well-received by markets already elsewhere. These developments fuel optimism that followed after data showed a smaller-than-expected rise in euro zone inflation on Wednesday, which raised the prospect of a less-aggressive monetary policy tightening by the European Central Bank.

☆ European shares rise with the focus on data, Fed's Powell
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Broad-based gains saw the pan-European STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) rise 0.3% by 0825 GMT, on track to break a three-day losing streak. The index is up around 6.4% for November, putting it on course for its second straight month in the black. Luxury stocks were among the biggest boosts to the STOXX 600 on the day, followed by tech (.SXPP) and energy stocks (.SXEP). The company said its iron ore shipments in 2023 would be in the same range as this year's forecast, although costs would rise. Investors will also be eyeing euro zone inflation data which is expected to have cooled year-on-year in November.

☆ S&P Global lowers 2023 growth forecast for emerging markets
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Clyde Russell | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 29 (Reuters) - S&P Global Ratings lowered its 2023 growth forecast for emerging economies on Tuesday, citing persistent pressures from the Russia-Ukraine conflict, a lingering COVID-19 pandemic and tight monetary policy conditions. The ratings agency now projects real gross domestic product growth of 3.8% next year, down from its previous forecast of a 4.1% expansion. "The downward revision to growth comes from all EMs (emerging markets) excluding China and Saudi Arabia, with most economies poised to expand below their longer-run trend rates," it said, adding that forecasts for 2024 and 2025 remain broadly unchanged, averaging at 4.3%. "But the deceleration in inflation--coupled with a worsening growth outlook--could bring policy easing onto the agenda in several EMs, especially in Latin America, by the middle of next year," S&P said. Reporting by Susan Mathew in Bengaluru; Editing by Dhanya Ann ThoppilOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Factbox: Big banks see global economy slowing more in 2023, with likely U.S. recession
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The U.S. Federal Reserve has increased interest rates by 375 basis points this year since rolling out its first hike in March. This has sparked worries about a recession, even as the central bank is expected to temper its pace of hikes. Barclays sees the rate between 4.25% and 4.50% by the end of next year, while Deutsche Bank sees it at 4.625% after a rate cut. UBS expects U.S. inflation to be "close enough" to the Fed's 2% target by the end of 2023 for the central bank to consider rate cuts. BofA sees the rate between 2.75% and 3.00% by the end of 2024.

☆ Factbox: World banks see global economy slowing more in 2023, with likely U.S. recession
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 21 (Reuters) - The world's largest investment banks expect global economic growth to slow further in 2023 following a year roiled by a war and soaring inflation that triggered one of the fastest monetary policy tightening cycles in recent times. The U.S. Federal Reserve has increased interest rates by 375 basis points this year since rolling out its first hike in March. This has sparked worries about a recession, even as the central bank is expected to temper its pace of hikes. Barclays sees the rate between 4.25% and 4.5% by the end of next year, following a rate cut. UBS expects U.S. inflation to be "close enough" to the Fed's 2% target by the end of 2023 for the central bank to consider rate cuts.

☆ Florida no longer looks like a swing state after DeSantis, Rubio lead big Republican wins
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( Kevin Breuninger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Once considered the nation's biggest swing state, Florida is looking more and more like a Republican stronghold. The state's Republican governor, Ron DeSantis, and Sen. Marco Rubio both glided to victory against their respective Democratic opponents. The number of active registered Republican voters, meanwhile, rose to 5,259,406 in the same period — a gain of more than 150,000. In this month's midterms, older Florida voters came out in droves, while young voters stayed home, NBC's exit polls show. And the GOP extended its gains in the Florida state Legislature, clinching supermajorities in both chambers.

☆ FDA says lab-grown meat is safe for human consumption
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Emma Newburger | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The Food and Drug Administration for the first time cleared a lab-grown meat product developed by a California start-up as safe for human consumption, marking a key milestone for cell-cultivated meats to eventually become available in U.S. supermarkets and restaurants. The FDA cleared Upside Foods, formerly known as Memphis Meats, to use animal cell culture technology to take living cells from chickens and grow the cells in a controlled environment to produce cultured animal cell food. The agency said it evaluated Upside Food's production and cultured cell material and has "no further questions" about the safety of its cultivated chicken filet. The company will be able to bring its products to market once it's been inspected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. "The world is experiencing a food revolution and the U.S. FDA is committed to supporting innovation in the food supply," FDA Commissioner Robert Califf and Susan Mayne, director of the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, said in a statement.

WASHINGTON, Nov 16 (Reuters) - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the first time cleared a meat product grown from animal cells for human consumption, the agency announced on Wednesday. "We are thrilled at FDA's announcement," said David Kay, UPSIDE's director of communications, in an email. USDA and FDA together regulate cell-cultured meat under a 2019 agreement between the two agencies. USDA will oversee the processing and labeling of cell-cultured meat products. Demand for alternatives to farmed meat has grown alongside awareness of the high greenhouse gas emissions of raising livestock.

☆ Factbox: How Wall St and billionaires have donated to U.S. elections
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( John Mccrank | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Prior to the U.S. Supreme Court's 2010 Citizens United ruling, which struck down limits on political contributions by corporations or unions, political contributions of billionaires made up around 3% of overall political contributions, she said. Griffin said in a statement: "I hope that my political engagement will help to protect the American Dream. * Crypto-billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried of FTX was the sixth-largest donor, at $39.8 million with the vast majority going to help Democrats. * Elliott Management founder Paul Singer spent $19.7 million to support Republicans, making him the 15th-largest donor. * Renaissance Technologies founder Jim Simons, together with Marilyn Simons, were the 20th-largest donors, spending nearly $16 million to help Democrats.

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