Headlines

Irish inflation moderated to 8.2 per cent in September from 8.7. per cent in August, the second consecutive monthly decline in the annual rate of consumer price increase, the Central Statistics Office (CSO) said on Thursday, the Irish Times reported. Prices have been rising steadily since April last year, triggering the worst cost of living squeeze in decades with consumer price inflation topping five per cent for 12 months in a row. The headline inflation rate declined 9.1 per cent in August to 8.7 per cent in September, the first drop-off in seven months.

The bankruptcy court has admitted an insolvency plea against real estate developer Rajesh Landmark Projects, a subsidiary of Mumbai-based realtor Rajesh Lifespace, filed by Mumbai-based NBFC IREP Credit Capital, the Economic Times of India reported. The Mumbai bench of NCLT has appointed Bhrugesh Amin as the insolvency professional. IREP Credit Capital has sought to invoke the provisions of IBC for a resolution of an unresolved financial debt of nearly Rs 27 crore.

Argentina's economy minister Sergio Massa said on Thursday that he will meet Paris Club officials on Oct. 27 and 28 in France to wrap up negotiations over $2 billion in debt that the country owes to the creditor group, Reuters reported. Talks will include the repayment schedule and the interest rate for the loan from the creditors which include the governments of the United States, Germany and Italy. The Paris Club last year gave Argentina more time to repay the debt, which allowed Buenos Aires time to negotiate a revamp of its IMF program.

Brazilian presidential candidate Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has proposed a broad consumer debt renegotiation program backed by government guarantees, aimed at relief for lower-income families if he wins an Oct. 30 runoff election, a senior adviser said, Reuters reported. Economist Guilherme Mello, who is advising Lula's Workers Party, told Reuters the government would partially guarantee renegotiations of up to 95 billion reais ($18.2 billion) of non-bank debts such as power, water, retail and phone bills, for consumers earning up to 3,600 reais ($677) per month.

Chile’s central bank raised its interest rate by 50 basis points, saying borrowing costs have reached the highest level of its tightening cycle and that they will remain steady to ensure inflation eases to target, Bloomberg News reported. Policymakers voted unanimously to lift borrowing costs to 11.25% late on Wednesday, as expected by most analysts in a Bloomberg survey. In a statement, board members reaffirmed their commitment “to conduct monetary policy with flexibility” to put inflation on a path to their 3% goal.

Zambian Finance Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane urged other African nations considering using the Group of 20’s Common Framework mechanism to restructure unaffordable debt to act quickly, Bloomberg News reported. Africa’s first pandemic-era sovereign defaulter has been using the template to rework external liabilities totaling $12.8 billion. In recent weeks, Nigeria and Ghana have announced they’re considering revamping their liabilities. Rising interest rates and a surging dollar may push more nations into default as they struggle to pay for imports from fuel to food.

LATAM Airlines detailed a financing plan on Wednesday that the company hopes will finalize its exit from bankruptcy in the first week of November, Reuters reported. The company filed for chapter 11 in 2020 after airline travel plummeted during the pandemic and won court approval that June. The reorganization plan would inject about $8 billion into the airline through a combination of capital increase, issue of convertible bonds and new debt.

The Bank of England said Wednesday that its program of bond purchases to support U.K. pension funds would end Friday as planned, the Wall Street Journal reported. “The governor confirmed this position yesterday and it has been made absolutely clear in contact with the banks at senior levels,” the BOE said. The central bank began buying U.K. government bonds on Sept. 28 after an unpopular package of tax cuts sent jitters through the country’s markets. The volatility sparked margin calls for pension funds that use a strategy known as liability-driven investing, or LDIs.

British government borrowing costs surged again on Wednesday after Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey told pension funds they had three days to fix liquidity problems before the bank ends emergency bond-buying that has provided support, Reuters reported. Twenty and 30-year gilt yields both hit their highest since 2002 at 5.195% and 5.1% respectively, passing above 5% for the first time since the BoE began buying bonds on Sept. 28 to calm turmoil triggered by Prime Minister Liz Truss's tax cut plans.

The number of Scottish companies falling into administration more than quadrupled in the third quarter, new analysis shows, amid fears that worse is to come as surging interest rates and rampant inflation take a toll, Herald Scotland reported. Fourteen companies based in Scotland fell into administration between July and September, up from three during the April to June period, analysis of figures in The Gazette by insolvency and restructuring practice Interpath Advisory shows. Interpath Advisory noted the situation in Scotland “mirrors the UK picture”.