OAO MegaFon (MFON), billionaire Alisher Usmanov’s wireless operator, said it has been shifting cash holdings into Hong Kong dollars, a move people say metals producer OAO GMKNorilsk Nickel (GMKN) is also undertaking, as the U.S. and Europe ratchet up sanctions against Russia. MegaFon decided to keep about 40 percent of its cash in Hong Kong dollars given the global […]
Yellen Leads Fed Damned Every Way by Emerging Market Angst
Janet Yellen is discovering that when it comes to providing monetary stimulus, theFederal Reserve is damned byemerging markets when it does and damned when it doesn’t. Sixteen months after she used a Tokyo gathering of global policy makers to defend her institution against criticism it was purchasing too many assets, Fed Chair Yellen attends this week’s Group of […]
Emerging-Market Shakeout Putting Reserves Into Focus: Currencies
Foreign-exchange reserves are emerging as the latest battleground between traders and developing nations trying to stem the worst rout in their currencies since 2008. Nations with the smallest reserves to fend off currency speculators will continue to see their exchange rates under pressure, options prices show. Of the 31 major currencies tracked by Bloomberg, traders […]
Kazakhstan Devalues Amid Outflows From Emerging Markets
Kazakhstan’s central bank devalued the tenge by the most since 2009 as reduced bond buying by the U.S. Federal Reserve sparks capital outflows from emerging markets and the currency of its main trading partner weakens. continue reading at bloomberg.com
World Bank Sees Record Demand for Political Risk Insurance
Investors’ demand for insurance against political risk is on track to match last year’s record as instability persists in the Middle East and disputes in Latin America erode confidence, the World Bank said. Investment insurance for developing economies by a group of the main public, private and multilateral providers reached $45 billion by mid-2013, according to the bank’s Multilateral Investment Guarantee […]
Iran Agrees to Deal With Powers to Curb Nuclear Work
Iran’s accord with world powers to limit its nuclear program in exchange for as much as $7 billion in relief from sanctions left Presidents Barack Obama and Hassan Rouhani the task of selling the deal to critics. By agreeing to curtail its nuclear activities, Iran won an easing of certain sanctions on oil, auto parts, gold and precious metals […]
IMF Sees Business-Loan Losses of EU250 Billion in EU Banks
“Banks in Spain, Italy and Portugal face about 250 billion euros ($338 billion) in potential losses on their business loans over the next two years, the International Monetary Fund said. About one-fifth of combined corporate loans is at risk of default in the three economies, which are forecast to contract this year, according to the […]