Headlines

The number of UK companies going bust jumped 14% in 2023 as firms collapsed under the weight of higher borrowing costs and weaker economic growth, Bloomberg News reported. Retail, construction and hospitality firms helped to drive total company insolvencies up to 25,159 in 2023, according to the government’s Insolvency Service. There was a 2% year-on-year increase in December, which is typically a low month for insolvencies. The figures show growing strains on companies after a lull in the pandemic period, reflecting higher borrowing costs and a stagnating economy.

Star Wars-inspired hoverbike maker A.L.I. Technologies Inc. filed for bankruptcy due to mounting research and development costs and slow adoption of the next-generation vehicles, Bloomberg News reported. The filing comes less than a year after parent Aerwins Technology Inc. debuted on the Nasdaq in one of the worst SPAC mergers of all time, prompting the startup to say it was at risk as a going concern.

Sri Lanka's bankrupt government said Friday that a foreign debt restructure would be finalised by the beginning of April, after signs the economy was emerging from its worst crisis on record, AFP News reported. The island nation defaulted on its $46 billion foreign debt in 2022 after a foreign exchange wipeout left it unable to import food, fuel and other essentials. It secured a $2.9 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout last year which is conditional on a debt deal that satisfies foreign creditors.

Swedish retail bank Resurs Holding AB plunged to a record low after posting a surprise fourth-quarter loss on souring consumer loans in its home market and neighboring Finland, Bloomberg News reported. The lender’s preliminary report, which came about a week ahead of earnings by the major Nordic banks, pointed to an operating loss of 335 million kronor ($32 million) in the final three months of 2023, according to a statement. Analysts had penciled in an operating profit of 175 million kronor.

China’s state-owned banks are tightening curbs on funding to Russian clients after the US authorized secondary sanctions on overseas financial firms that aid Moscow’s war effort in Ukraine, Bloomberg News reported. At least two banks ordered a review of their Russian business in recent weeks, focusing on cross-border deals, said the people, asking not to be identified discussing a private matter.

Cryptocurrency exchange HashKey Group said on Tuesday that it raised nearly $100 million after the completion of a Series A financing round, at a pre-money valuation exceeding $1.2 billion, Reuters reported. HashKey said that the newly raised capital will be used to strengthen its Web3 ecosystem, enhance product diversification of its licensed business in Hong Kong and support the Group's global development. Web3 is a version of the internet that operates the on blockchain technology used by crypto assets.

Sweden’s underlying inflation rate fell less than expected in December, suggesting the country’s central bank has some way to go before it can start monetary easing that would aid an ailing economy, Bloomberg News reported. A measure that strips out energy costs and the effect of interest-rate changes rose 5.3% from a year ago in December, according to a release from Statistics Sweden on Monday. While that marks a marginal retreat from November, prices increased slightly more than projected by economists, who had penciled in a 5.2% rise in a survey by Bloomberg.

Canada's annual inflation rate rose as expected in December, data showed on Tuesday, and underlying prices pressures remained, dashing hopes that the central bank would shift into rate-cut mode early this year, Reuters reported. Annual inflation rose to 3.4% in December from 3.1% in November, matching estimates by economists polled by Reuters. On a monthly basis, consumer prices matched expectations as well and fell 0.3% from November.

China’s economy grew around 5.2% in 2023, surpassing the government’s official growth target for the year without relying on “massive stimulus,” Chinese Premier Li Qiang said in Davos, Bloomberg News reported. “Last year in 2023, the Chinese economy rebounded and moved upward with an estimated growth of around 5.2%, higher than the ‘around 5%’ target set at the beginning of last year,” Li said on Tuesday in his first appearance as China’s No. 2 official at the annual World Economic Forum. “In promoting economic development, we did not resort to massive stimulus,” Li added.

The Italian government is asking for an additional review to clear the planned acquisition of alternative asset manager Prelios SpA by Andrea Pignataro’s ION Group after deciding against using its special powers to block the deal, Bloomberg News reported. The government is set to tell ION it will need to obtain another permission to complete the purchase after setting the final conditions for its financing, according to people familiar with the matter.