Headlines

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Wednesday it had reached a staff-level agreement on an updated macroeconomic framework with Argentine authorities, allowing the country access to about $4.03 billion, Reuters reported.

The Russian government added 551.4 billion roubles ($9.5 billion) to its emergency reserve fund on Thursday as the Kremlin steps up its stimulus package in a bid to protect the economy from the impact of Western sanctions and its actions in Ukraine, Reuters reported. "The funds will be used in part to implement measures aimed at ensuring the stability of economic development in the conditions of external constraints," the government said in a statement announcing the cash injection.

Ethical investors aren’t learning the lessons from a forced divestment of Russian assets as they continue to buy the government debt of autocratic nations, according to data provider Verisk Maplecroft, Bloomberg News reported. Fifteen countries commonly included in sovereign debt funds have a worse environmental, social and governance (ESG) score than Russia, according to the firm’s ratings. Two of these, Turkey and Egypt, are more heavily weighted in typical portfolios than Russia was. That poses a risk investors could get caught out again.

Labour strife and staffing shortages have European airports clamouring to find more workers, minimize cancelled flights and reduce headaches for travellers during the busy summer season, Reuters reported. Workers at France's Charles De Gaulle airport are set to strike on Thursday for more pay, with a quarter of flights cancelled. In Italy, crews from budget carriers Ryanair, easyJet and Volotea walked off the job on Wednesday. Ryanair cabin crew could strike in Europe this summer, after talks ended with two Spanish unions, according to a statement by unions SITCPLA and USO.

Thousands of South Korean truckers went on strike for a third day on Thursday to protest the sharp surge in fuel costs, disrupting production, slowing activity at ports and posing new risks to a strained global supply chain, Reuters reported. Presenting new President Yoon Suk-yeol with one of his first big economic challenges, about 7,200 members or roughly 30% of the Cargo Truckers Solidarity union were on strike, the country's transport ministry said. A union official said the number of participating members was much higher and they were also joined by non-union truckers.

In Cameroon, thousands of truckers spend weeks stranded at highways and border crossings due to lack of diesel. In Kenya, drivers are lining up overnight to fill their tanks. In Nigeria, airlines have threatened to ground all domestic flights as they scramble for expensive jet fuel, the Wall Street Journal reported. Across Africa, surging fuel prices are straining businesses from bakeries to airlines and adding pressure on consumers already burdened by spiraling food costs and the economic disruptions caused by the continuing Covid-19 pandemic.

Credito Real SAB, Mexico’s largest payroll lender, which fell into default earlier this year, is preparing a potential bankruptcy filing in the US as soon as this week, Bloomberg News reported. The non-bank lender is looking to line up financing from existing creditors to help fund the bankruptcy process. The company has been working with creditors on a restructuring plan that would allow it to continue operating, after it failed to repay holders of a maturing Swiss franc bond. Authorities said they don’t see a contagion risk on Credito Real’s default to the country’s financial system.

We.trade, one of the earliest blochcain coalitions for trade finance is entering insolvency after its banking shareholders pulled the plug, Finextra.com reported. The company was formed in 2017 as a consortium that eventually included a dozen major banks such as Deutsche Bank, HSBC, Santander, Societe Generale and UBS. Yesterday the Irish Independent reported that the company is winding down its operations and has has proposed appointing PwC as a liquidator.

The bankruptcy court has ordered personal insolvency proceedings against Sanjay Chhabria, promoter of property company Radius Group, the Economic Times of India reported. This is the first high-profile case to be admitted for personal insolvency since higher courts stayed earlier petitions, while a tribunal verdict is also pending in another case. The Mumbai bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) passed the order on a petition filed by Beacon Trusteeship. Two Radius Group companies are already into NCLT.

A steady stream of Koreans in the prime of their working life have sought personal bankruptcy protection over the past few years, Chosun.com reported. Most younger people used to opt for personal rehabilitation, which involves debt restructuring, but now a growing number have no choice but to plumb for total bankruptcy as the coronavirus pandemic drags on. According to the Seoul Bankruptcy Court, 5.7 percent of applicants were in their 30s and 16.7 percent were in their 40s as of the end of last year.