Headlines

Argentines’ improved access to credit was a notable shift in a nation where it has long been scarce, even if the amount available still lags far behind the rest of Latin America. But a new problem has emerged in the wake of a sharp rise in interest rates, slowing economic growth and rising unemployment at the end of last year: a growing number of borrowers are struggling to repay debts, Bloomberg News reported.

Ukraine’s Asvio Bank has signed an agreement to take over the assets and liabilities of the insolvent Motor-Bank, the Kyiv Post reported. The deal, signed on April 3, follows a competitive auction organized by Ukraine’s Deposit Guarantee Fund to find a stable home for the failed lender’s clients. The deal is one of several banking acquisitions in Ukraine in 2026 and represents another effort by the State Deposit Guarantee Fund to turn a failed bank into a market asset.

Japan's financial regulator has been ‌conducting checks on private credit exposure at major financial institutions, a source told Reuters on Thursday, as concerns mount over strains in the $2 trillion global private credit industry. The ​Financial Services Agency (FSA) is examining lending and investment ties to ​private credit, the source familiar with the matter said, declining ⁠to be identified as the matter is private. The move was ​first reported by Kyodo News.

Huntington, Thorneloe University and the University of Sudbury were part of the founding federation of Laurentian in the early 1960s. For decades they offered classes taken by Laurentian students. But that ended abruptly after Laurentian became the first university in the country to declare insolvency, which also ended the main source of revenue for the formerly federated universities, CBC.ca.

Thai authorities seized assets worth 8.3 billion baht ($260 million) belonging to people behind an alleged money-laundering network linked to transnational cyber scam operations in Cambodia, Bloomberg News reported. The latest seizure by the Anti-Money Laundering Office included cash, cars, bank deposits and other securities, bringing the total value of assets confiscated in the widening probe to more than 20 billion baht, officials said at a briefing in Bangkok on Thursday.

Chinese banks likely extended significantly more new loans in March than in February, according to a Reuters poll on Thursday, driven by improved credit demand ​and a seasonal rebound. Banks in China are expected to have issued around ​3.4 trillion yuan ($497.61 billion) in net new yuan loans last month, up ⁠sharply from the 900 billion yuan in February, based on the average estimate of 17 economists ​polled by Reuters.

German industrial production declined unexpectedly in February, with the energy-price shock from the conflict in the Middle East expected to hamper output further, the Wall Street Journal reported. Production fell 0.3% on month in February, after an upwardly revised flat reading for January, Germany’s statistics agency Destatis said Thursday. A consensus of economists polled last week by The Wall Street Journal instead expected a 0.5% increase in February.

The Bank of Thailand will keep its interest rate at the current level “for as long as possible” to support the economy, even though inflation is set to accelerate due to the Middle East conflict, according to Governor Vitai Ratanakorn, Bloomberg News reported. “Inflation will definitely accelerate with oil price hikes and supply disruptions,” Vitai told reporters in Bangkok Thursday.

U.S. President Donald Trump's two-week ceasefire with Iran is unlikely to bring quick relief ‌to the global aviation industry, executives said on Wednesday, even as airline shares surged on hopes the deal could ease the worst crisis airlines have faced in years, Reuters reported. Industry officials warned that jet fuel supplies will remain tight and costly for months, even if Iran reopens the Strait of Hormuz, after damage to refining capacity across the Middle East.

The downgrade of Colombia’s rating to BB- by Standard & Poor’s (S&P) marks a further deterioration in the country’s risk perception, particularly driven by its high fiscal deficit, ColumbiaOne.com reported. The decision reflects doubts about the strength of its public finances and raises the cost of financing its debt in international markets, although it stabilizes its outlook going forward. The announcement comes amid tensions between the government of Gustavo Petro and credit rating agencies, which he has openly criticized.