Headlines

China's central bank said on Thursday it would keep liquidity reasonably ample and keep its policy "precise and forceful" to support the country's economic recovery, amid rising headwinds, Reuters reported. Data for July has highlighted the intensifying pressure on the economy on a number of fronts, including a property downturn and deflationary pressure, prompting Beijing to introduce direct stimulus to revitalise growth.

Buy the state, sell the capitalist - that's how global investors are trying to play China's latest anti-graft crackdowns as they see private enterprise increasingly sidelined in Beijing's quest for "common prosperity," Reuters reported. China's recent sweep of the medical sector came as a shock to many investors who had thought the end of Beijing's three-year regulatory purge of the property and tech sectors meant there would be no more industry-wide crackdowns as policymakers prioritised economic recovery.

RoyaleLife told a judge Wednesday that it is seeking to appoint administrators to one of its key subsidiaries, as the UK bungalow owner grapples with around £1.5 billion ($1.9 billion) of debt, Bloomberg News reported. A lawyer acting for Time GB Group Limited told London’s high court that it will apply for an administration order and has approached insolvency practitioners from FRP Advisory. Time GB Group is facing a winding-up petition that was filed by a company called Yarwell Mill Country Park Limited in May, according to public filings.

The Philippine central bank left its benchmark interest rate unchanged for a third straight meeting as the economy slowed while signaling that policy settings will remain tight amid inflation risks, Bloomberg News reported. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas maintained its overnight reverse repurchase rate at 6.25% on Thursday during Eli Remolona’s first policy decision as governor. The move was predicted by 22 of 24 economists in a Bloomberg survey, with two expecting a rate hike.

When global inflation surged in 2021, many of Latin America’s central bankers were the first to raise interest rates, moving months before the Federal Reserve began tightening. Recalling how hyperinflation topped 3,000% in some countries in the 1980s, central-bank economists from Brasília to Lima to Mexico City knew all too well the damage that soaring prices could cause. Now, Latin America is again at the forefront of the cycle, cutting rates as inflation comes back down, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The U.S. Commerce Department on Thursday said it will set preliminary anti-dumping duties on tin-plated steel from Canada, Germany and China, in a move to shield domestic steelmakers that will prompt warnings of higher prices for cans made from the steel and the foods, paint and other products they contain, Reuters reported. The department said it will propose preliminary anti-dumping duties of 122.5% on tin mill steel imported from China, 7.02% on imports from Germany and 5.29% on imports from Canada. A formal Federal Register notice is expected later on Thursday.

Norway’s central bank raised borrowing costs to the highest level since the 2008 financial crisis and signaled it still plans another quarter-point hike in the current tightening cycle, Bloomberg News reported. Norges Bank lifted its key deposit rate on Thursday by 25 basis points to 4%, the 12th increase since September 2021, as forecast by all analysts in a Bloomberg survey. It said the rate “will most likely be raised further in September,” with Governor Ida Wolden Bache keeping the door open for further hikes, depending on incoming data.

Kenya is in talks with the World Bank and European Union to ramp up its “Hustler Fund” project that is already providing cheap credit to more than 20 million of the country’s poor, Bloomberg News reported. A top government official said the World Bank was discussing backing that could amount to as much as 20 billion shillings ($139 million), including via an existing program to support small enterprises. Combined with investments from the Treasury, this could leverage lending of 200 billion shillings over the next five years.

Investment in Canada's financial technology sector was reduced to less than half in the first six months of 2023 from last year, according to a report from accounting firm KPMG on Thursday, Reuters reported. Startup valuations across the technology spectrum have been hit as high-interest rates and worries over a looming economic slowdown sour investor appetite, leading to a shift towards safer investments with greater focus on profitability and away from cash-burning firms.

GQG Partners for the second consecutive day bought shares of JSW Energy in the open market on Wednesday, the Economic Times of India reported. GQG Partners Emerging Market Fund bought 10,284,024 shares or 0.6% stake in the power producer at Rs 341.70 apiece for Rs 351 crore. On Monday, GQG Partners acquired more than 1.2 crore shares of JSW Energy at Rs 345 apiece, aggregating Rs 411 crore. Meanwhile, promoter group entity JSW Investments Ltd sold 1.3% stake in JSW Energy Ltd through the open market on Wednesday for Rs 718 crore.