Headlines

Britain’s inflation rate slowed last month to its lowest level in about three years, further cementing the case for the Bank of England to cut interest rates later this year, the New York Times reported. Consumer prices rose 2.3 percent in April from a year earlier, down from 3.2 percent in March, the Office for National Statistics said on Wednesday. The rate, which declined slightly less than economists expected, was the lowest since July 2021 and is approaching the Bank of England’s 2 percent target.

Indonesia’s central bank stood pat at its May policy meeting, a widely expected decision as policymakers keep an eye on rupiah stability and inflation against an uncertain backdrop, the Wall Street Journal reported. Bank Indonesia kept its benchmark seven-day reverse repo rate at 6.25%. All seven economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had expected the decision. The central bank also held its overnight deposit facility rate at 5.50% and its lending facility rate at 7.0%.

Call it the $78 million typo. That is how much Citigroup agreed to pay U.K. regulators for a trader’s fat finger when typing in an order to sell shares, an episode that caused a brief “flash crash” in European stocks, the Wall Street Journal reported. In May 2022, the unnamed trader in Citigroup’s global markets unit was working from home in London on a public holiday.

The Bank of Italy warned on Wednesday against fraudulent video messages circulating online, in which artificial intelligence (AI) technology is used to reproduce fake messages from financial authorities and other institutions, Reuters reported. "Such content, known as deepfakes, is also generated using AI to modify real video or audio in order to convey and add credibility to messages that are untrue and shared with the aim of committing fraud," the central bank said.

A Nigerian court has adjourned a tax evasion case against Binance to next month for possible arraignment of the cryptocurrency exchange and two of its executives after a trial stalled on Wednesday, the judge said, Reuters reported. The matter stalled because authorities failed to bring Tigran Gambaryan, a U.S. citizen and Binance head of financial crime compliance, to court. No reason was given for Gambaryan's absence in court. On Friday, an Abuja court ruled that Gambaryan could stand trial in the tax evasion case on behalf of Binance.

New car registrations in the European Union jumped in April, driven by strong performance in major markets and the benefit of two extra selling days, the Wall Street Journal reported. Registrations, which reflect sales, rose about 14% on year, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association said Wednesday. Consumers in Spain, Germany, France and Italy boosted the EU car industry after a slump in March. An early Easter holiday also helped, giving April two extra days of sales compared with a year ago, ACEA said.

Brazil's Superior Court of Justice has denied state-run oil company Petrobras an appeal against the collection of some 987 million reais ($192.68 million) in taxes, the company said late on Tuesday, Reuters reported. The taxes relate to sales of oil derivatives from March 2002 to October 2003, Petrobras said in a securities filing. The firm said it would assess whether a fresh appeal could be lodged against the decision. Read more.

Unigel, the struggling Brazilian fertilizer maker, obtained approval from a majority of creditors including Pacific Investment Management Co. for its out-of-court restructuring plan, Bloomberg News reported. Holders of more than 50% of its debt backed the proposal, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because they’re not authorized to speak about it. The company had until Monday to gather support from more than 50% of creditors and avoid a bankruptcy filing. Unigel didn’t immediately reply to a request for comment.

China Vanke has secured a fresh loan that takes its total borrowings this month to more than US$1 billion, part of the state-backed developer’s ongoing efforts to temper liquidity pressures as it seeks to finish housing projects, the Wall Street Journal reported. Vanke, one of China’s few major developers yet to default in the country’s ongoing property crisis, said in a stock-exchange filing on Monday that it had obtained a loan for 1.2 billion yuan ($165.9 million) from Bank of China to use for development projects in Changzhou, a city in Jiangsu province.

China will control the intertwined risks in the property sector, local government debt and small local financial institutions, Vice Premier He Lifeng said on Tuesday, Reuters reported. China is seeking to restore confidence in its financial system, which is mired in a property crisis and mounting local government debt, as the economy faces a host of challenges. The country will also seek to prevent systemic risks and crack down on illegal financial activities, state broadcaster CCTV quoted He as saying.