Headlines

World Bank President David Malpass said that the Group of 20 gathering of finance ministers from the world’s largest economies this week is likely to extend debt-service suspension initiative for poorer nations until the end of the year, Reuters reported. The extension of the reprieve in debt-service payments by many of the world’s poorer nations will probably be the final, Malpass told reporters on a call Monday. The G-20’s Debt Service Suspension Initiative, which took effect last May, delivered $5 billion in relief for more than 40 countries in 2020, according to the World Bank.

A ruling on a request to freeze the assets of Lim Oon Kuin and his two children following the collapse of Lim’s oil trading firm Hin Leong Trading Pte Ltd will be made at a later date, following a whole day’s hearing at the Singapore High Court, Reuters reported. Court-appointed liquidators of Hin Leong had asked the court to freeze the family’s assets worldwide, from multi-million-dollar homes to country club memberships, shares and funds to recover money owed to nearly two dozen banks and other creditors globally.

Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund, the world’s largest pension pot, considers the impact of its investments on markets and isn’t distorting the country’s stocks, said Hirohide Yamaguchi, the newly appointed chairman of the fund’s board of governors, Bloomberg News reported. Yamaguchi, a former deputy governor of the Bank of Japan, said also that it was important to look at the fund’s long-term returns, rather than focusing on the short-term. He spoke in Tokyo at his first press conference since taking the role last week.

Struggling tour operator Air Transat is in talks with the federal government on aid but may not reach a deal by an April debt deadline, a source close to the situation said, putting pressure on Quebec to ride to the rescue of another troubled aerospace brand in the province, Reuters reported. Air Canada dropped its merger plans with Transat on Friday, saying European regulators had signaled it was unlikely to pass antitrust concerns. Canada’s largest carrier first bid for Transat in 2019 and discounted its offer last year as the pandemic decimated the travel and tourism sector.

Increasing the price of metro tickets in June, suspending the 18% wage hike for four months, and cutting the weekend and holiday bonuses are among the main actions pondered by the Transport Ministry to improve the balance of Bucharest subway operator Metrorex by RON 100 million (EUR 20 mln), Romania-Insider.com reported. This way, the company could avoid cash flow problems in 2021, although remaining in the loss area. According to a draft consulted by Economedia.ro, Metrorex estimates losses of RON 230 mln (EUR 46 mln) in 2021, RON 63 mln (EUR 12 mln) more than last year's RON 167 mln losses.

A record jump in coronavirus cases in India is leading the nation’s bond traders to pare bets that the central bank will shift to a tighter policy stance as early as this year, Bloomberg News reported. Shorter-maturity rupee debt rallied, with yields on the 5.22% 2025 bond and the 5.15% 2025 debt sliding 12 basis points to 5.47% and 5.59%, respectively. The rally was also aided by a government borrowing plan for the new fiscal first half, with issuances tilted toward longer-end bonds.

Cruise operator Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd said on Monday it would require mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations for all guests and crew when it restarts trips from U.S. ports in July, Reuters reported. The company’s announcement follows the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) latest guidance last week to the cruise ship industry, including the need for COVID-19 vaccinations. The cruise operator has taken a hit for over a year due to the pandemic, resulting in heavy annual losses and plunging revenue, forcing it to take new steps to ensure customers can set sail again.

Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. has taken steps to protect its operations from disruptions after a contractual dispute with Oracle Corp.’s South African unit put its technical support services at risk, Bloomberg News reported. The state power utility confirmed on Monday that it’s involved in the disagreement in which Oracle initially claimed Eskom underpaid it by about 7.3 billion rand ($500 million).

Offshore drilling rig contractor Seadrill has asked creditors to write off more than 85% of its debts in exchange for a 99% stake in the reorganized company, a court filing showed, Reuters reported. The Oslo-listed firm controlled by Norwegian-born billionaire John Fredriksen in February filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S., the second time it has done so in four years.

France’s economy will rebound less than previously expected this year due to the latest four-week nationwide lockdown aimed at halting a surge in coronavirus cases, Bloomberg News reported. French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire cut the country’s 2021 GDP growth forecast to 5% from 6%, following an 8.1% contraction last year. A Bloomberg survey in March showed economists were expecting the economy to expand 5.7%.