BUSINESS
US economy shows signs of downshifting as rates, inflation bite
Expansion and price gains may be moderating in parts of the country as households and businesses navigate higher rates, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and ongoing disruptions from Covid-19 infections, the central bank said in its Beige Book report Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Fed hawks and doves stay the course on rate hikes to cool prices
Dove Mary Daly of the San Francisco Fed and her more hawkish colleague James Bullard of St. Louis both backed a plan to raise rates by 50 basis points this month and next to counter the hottest inflation in 40 years, while Richmond’s Thomas Barkin said it made “perfect sense” to tighten policy.
BUSINESS
How the world is paying for Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine
Russia is being propelled by a flood of cash that could average $800 million a day this year — and that's just what the commodity superpower is raking in from oil and gas.
BUSINESS
EV sales will triple by 2025 and still need more oomph to reach net zero
The research firm lays out the stakes and calls for action in its seventh annual Long-Term Electric Vehicle Outlook, released Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Singapore Airlines eyes overseas hub, says India a key growth area
The airline is open to opportunities and will evaluate potential synergies, Chief Executive Officer Goh Choon Phong said in an interview with Bloomberg News on Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Janet Yellen says ‘I was wrong’ last year on the path of US inflation
“I was wrong about the path inflation would take,” Yellen said in an interview that aired Tuesday on CNN. “There have been unanticipated and large shocks to the economy that have boosted energy and food prices and supply bottlenecks that have affected our economy badly that at the time I didn’t fully understand.”
BUSINESS
Tech giants accuse India’s enforcement agency of ignorance in Xiaomi spat
India’s anti-money-laundering agency is accusing Xiaomi of moving money out of the country by falsely claiming it was for patent-fee payments.
BUSINESS
These Investors Say Nasdaq’s Bear Market Has Legs
Last week’s swift rebound isn’t convincing the skeptics. The Nasdaq 100 Index gained 7.2%, snapping seven weeks of losses. Still, the tech-heavy benchmark is on pace to close in the red this month.
BUSINESS
Morgan Stanley says US stock rally has limited upside
US stocks have had a volatile month amid fears that the economy might enter a recession as the Federal Reserve tightens its policy to tame soaring prices.
BUSINESS
Sri Lanka inflation jumps close to 40% as shortages persist
Consumer prices in the capital Colombo rose 39.1 percent from a year ago, the Department of Census and Statistics said in a statement Tuesday. That’s faster than the median 35 percent climb forecast by economists in a Bloomberg survey and is the highest level on record.
BUSINESS
Indian e-waste startup Attero to spend $1 billion on battery recycling plants
“There’s a tremendous amount of lithium-ion battery waste available for us to recycle,” Attero Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder Nitin Gupta said in an interview.
BUSINESS
Fund managers commit $16 trillion to meeting net-zero target
The move, which includes Allianz Global Investors, BlackRock Inc. and Royal London Asset Management, represents $16 trillion in funds under management, and marks the latest commitment by the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative, according to a statement on Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Vladimir Putin needs help from China and India on oil Europe doesn’t want
EU leaders agreed to pursue a partial embargo on Russian crude oil shipped on sea, potentially costing Putin up to $10 billion a year in lost export revenue.
BUSINESS
Treasuries slide as inflation fears eat away at May rally
US sovereign yields climbed across the curve as oil rose to a two-month high and European inflation data for May exceeded economists’ forecasts. Hawkish comments from Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller added to the bond selloff.
BUSINESS
Joe Biden says he’s limited on guns after emotional trip to Uvalde, Texas
“I can’t dictate this stuff,” Biden told reporters on Monday. “I can do the things I’ve done and any executive action I can take, I’ll continue to take. But I can’t outlaw a weapon. I can’t change a background check. I can’t do that.”
INDIA
Inflation fight, monsoon may take pressure off RBI: Former Deputy Governor R Gandhi
Interest rate increases by the RBI “should be very moderate” after an expected 50 basis point rise at its next meeting in June, Rama Subramaniam Gandhi, who was a deputy governor from 2014 to 2017, said in a Bloomberg Television interview on Monday.
BUSINESS
India probes ZTE, Vivo as more China firms under scrutiny
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs will scrutinize auditor reports and has received information from unnamed sources that indicates potential violation including fraud, according to the documents.
BUSINESS
Rishi Sunak’s billionaire wife Akshata Murty builds ties to world’s super-rich
Murty, 42, who was born in India and is still an Indian citizen, has a net worth of about $1.3 billion thanks to her stake in Infosys, the software giant founded by her father, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
MARKETS
Oil powers to sixth monthly gain as EU set to curb Russian flows
Global benchmark Brent topped $122 a barrel, hitting a two-month high. The latest round of EU sanctions would forbid buying oil from Russia delivered by sea but includes a temporary exemption for pipelines, European Council President Charles Michel said.
BUSINESS
India’s GDP likely lost speed on covid curbs before war
Data due today is likely to show gross domestic product in the year to March 2022 grew 8.7% from a year ago, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey. That’s slower than the 8.9% expansion projected by the Statistics Ministry three months ago.
BUSINESS
Pay debt or feed people is hungry nations’ impossible choice
For a swath of the markets he’s tracking, global food shortages are presenting governments with a stark choice -- pay their debts or feed their people.
POLITICS
Modi Government’s popularity at highest since start of pandemic
Modi’s government has met or exceed expectations in the second term, according to 67% of 64,000 people polled by LocalCircles. That’s a jump from 51% last year when a brutal second wave of Covid-19 infections overwhelmed hospitals and crematoriums and 62% in 2020 when the pandemic started.
BUSINESS
Majority of Indian airline passengers unhappy at lousy service
Some 79% of the 15,000 airline passengers surveyed by LocalCircles said they believe carriers in India are compromising on passenger comfort and cutting corners as a result of the pandemic, souring the reopening of what was prior to Covid the world’s fastest-growing aviation market.
BUSINESS
Tech-heavy stock markets see $63 billion of outflows in Asia
Overseas funds have sold about a net $63 billion worth of shares in Taiwan, South Korea and India so far this year, according to the latest available data compiled by Bloomberg. The tech sector’s weighting in the Taiex, Kospi and Sensex gauges is higher than that in the broader MSCI Asia Pacific Index.
