Headlines

A combination of sticky high interest rates and lacklustre global growth could push a number of emerging economies that are facing soaring refinancing needs into debt difficulties next year, Reuters reported. Many weaker economies navigated the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine with financing aid from multilateral and bilateral lenders. But repayments on emerging markets' high-yield international bonds will total $30 billion in 2024, a steep increase compared to the $8.4 billion left for the remainder of this year.

Some smaller Chinese lenders cut interest rates for time deposits over the weekend, following a similar move by their larger rivals last year, after several lending rate reductions by policy makers started to squeeze their margins, Bloomberg News reported. Rural lenders in provinces including Henan and Hubei lowered deposit rates by as much as 45 basis points on some tenors, according to their announcements. After the adjustment, these lenders will pay an annual 1.9% for one-year deposits, down from the previous 2.25%.

The Bank of Canada is expected to take in stride surprising recent economic strength and leave interest rates unchanged at its meeting on Wednesday, pinning its hopes on activity cooling as higher borrowing costs sink in, analysts said, Reuters reported. Last month, the Bank of Canada became the first major global central bank to pause its rate-hiking campaign, after lifting its benchmark rate to a 15-year high of 4.50%. It said no further tightening would be needed if the economy slows, or even moves into a slight recession, as it expects.

Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank PJSC is said to be in talks with funds to sell 13.5 billion dirhams ($3.7 billion) worth of soured loans, as the emirate’s second-largest lender steps up efforts to clean up its books, Bloomberg News reported. The bank is exploring the sale of a retail portfolio that includes car loans, private and credit-card debt, most of which are held by expatriate workers, people familiar with the matter said. Emirati nationals still owe ADCB — as the bank is known — far more money on average, they added, asking not to be identified because the information is private.

Growth in sales of China's passenger vehicles was flat in March from a year earlier, industry data showed on Monday, as more price cuts by auto brands and the rollout of incentives by local governments helped to support demand, Reuters reported. Car sales in March were 1.61 million units, the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) said. In the first three months, sales had fallen 13.4% to 4.33 million units, it added.

Mexican automotive production and exports rose in March from the same month a year earlier, data from the national statistics agency (INEGI) showed on Monday, Reuters reported. Production increased by 13.12% to 346,124 vehicles, while auto exports rose 3.88% to 272,687 vehicles, the data showed. Read more.

The World Bank will push to resolve the mounting debt problems of poor countries and along with the International Monetary Fund will present concrete proposals to address some of the biggest restructuring roadblocks at this week’s Spring Meetings, Bloomberg News reported. The ideas will be introduced at the Global Sovereign Debt Roundtable, a meeting led by the Bretton Woods institutions and Group of 20 chair India in Washington, D.C., President David Malpass said in a blog post on Sunday.

The bankruptcy filing by Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit Holdings Inc. has dealt a blow to Japan's hopes of building a domestic space industry, with plans for a Kyushu-based spaceport designed to attract tourism on hold for lack of funding, Reuters reported. Oita prefecture, home to Japan's largest number of hot springs, partnered with Virgin Orbit in 2020 to create its first Asian spaceport at Oita Airport using a Boeing 747 for horizontal rocket launches.

Clovis Oncology has agreed to sell its approved cancer drug Rubraca to a privately held Austrian company as part of an auction associated with its ongoing bankruptcy proceedings, BioPharmaDive reported. Pharma& Schwiez submitted the highest bid at the auction, according to a regulatory filing, and will pay $70 million upfront for rights to Rubraca, which is approved in the U.S. for prostate and ovarian cancers. The company could pay another $65 million if certain regulatory and sales milestones are later met. The sale is subject to approval by the U.S.