Headlines

European lawmakers are yet to agree on several issues related to new artificial intelligence rules ahead of a crucial meeting on Tuesday, leaving any deal off the table until December, Reuters reported. The draft AI rules have to be agreed by the European Parliament and European Union member states. They have so far been discussed three times in trilogues, which are meetings between parliament and EU states to thrash out the final versions of laws.

Interest-rate cuts by the European Central Bank could come as soon as March and will be more significant than markets currently price in, strategists at NatWest Markets write in a note. They expect 100 basis points of ECB rate cuts in 2024, more than the close to 60 basis points priced in by the market. “Even if a March cut does not materialise, we do think that we could see more priced in relative to current market pricing and perhaps in quicker succession,” they write.

The UK economy lost jobs again in the quarter though August, marking the longest drop in employment since the depths of the coronavirus pandemic and a sign that inflationary pressures may be abating, Bloomberg News reported. Employment fell 82,000 in June to August after a 133,000 drop in the period from May through July, the Office for National Statistics said Tuesday. It was third consecutive three-month period in which employment has fallen compared to the previous three months, the worst stretch since early 2021.

China's top parliament body has approved a 1 trillion yuan ($137 billion) sovereign bond issue and passed a bill to allow local governments to frontload part of their 2024 bond quotas, state media said on Tuesday, in a move to support the economy, Reuters reported. Funds raised from the new sovereign bonds will support the rebuilding of disaster-hit areas in the country and improve urban drainage prevention infrastructure to boost China's ability to withstand natural disasters, state news agency Xinhua said.

Mexico’s annual inflation slowed past all forecasts in early October as the central bank pledges to hold interest rates at a record high in Latin America’s second-largest economy, Bloomberg News reported. Consumer prices rose 4.27% in the first half of the month compared to the same period a year earlier, down from 4.47% in late September, the national statistics institute reported Tuesday. The print was below all analyst forecasts in a Bloomberg survey that had a 4.37% median estimate.

International companies began trickling out of Hong Kong a few years back, uneasy about the financial hub’s tightening ties to mainland China. That first smattering of departures is now turning into a broad retreat involving banks, investment firms and technology companies, the Wall Street Journal reported. The number of U.S. companies operating in the city has fallen for four years in a row, by Hong Kong’s count, hitting 1,258 in June 2022, the fewest since 2004.

Germany's economy ministry is planning 50 billion euros ($53 billion) in tax breaks over the next four years to help industry and businesses cope with high energy prices, according to a new industrial strategy to be presented Tuesday, Reuters reported. Small and medium-sized businesses in particular will benefit from the plan, the ministry said in the 60-page strategy paper seen by Reuters. The move is part of government efforts to support domestic industry in the face of high energy costs and the draw of incentive programmes in countries such as the United States.

Australia’s central bank “will not hesitate” to raise interest rates further if there’s a material upgrade to its inflation outlook, new Governor Michele Bullock said, in her strongest reference yet to the threat of renewed price pressures, Bloomberg News reported. “Our focus remains on bringing inflation back to target within a reasonable timeframe, while keeping employment growing,” Bullock said in a speech Tuesday. The RBA board meets on Nov. 7 to decide policy, with money markets seeing just under a 40% chance of a hike to take the cash rate to 4.35%.

Argentina's central bank is planning to hold fire for now on any major policy adjustments after a shock win for the Peronist government in a general election on Sunday, two bank sources said, a sharp contrast to rapid moves after an August primary, Reuters reported. Economy Minister Sergio Massa outperformed in a first round election on Sunday to take pole position ahead of a run-off vote next month where he will face radical libertarian Javier Milei, who wants to dollarize the economy and shut the central bank.

China will promote a sustained economic recovery, focusing on expanding domestic demand, while fending off financial risks, People's Bank of China Governor Pan Gongsheng said in a report published on Saturday, Reuters reported. The central bank will make its policy more "precise and forceful", while guiding financial institutions to cut real lending rates and reducing financing costs for firms and individuals, Pan said in the report published on the bank's website.