Author: Steven Sahiounie

Customs data showed that China’s exports increased in March for the first time in six months as the second-largest economy in the world resumed its rebound after the onerous coronavirus restrictions were lifted late last year. Total exports increased 14.8% year over year, a significant increase over last March when tight virus lockdowns hindered regular economic activity, as per data. According to Bloomberg News, the first increase since September defied analysts’ predictions, many of whom expected a further decline. “The positive surprise may be partly due to a low base effect as the Covid outbreaks in March last year forced many factories to shut down,”…

When Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan took office 20 years ago, Turkey’s economy was barely just recovering from the 2001 economic crisis, but quickly spiraled upwards into growth by tackling poverty and reaching upper-middle-income status, per the World Bank. The country’s GDP per capita jumped from $3,600 when he took office to approximately $12,600 ten years later, but it took a turn for the worst when it started plunging downwards, especially following the Covid-19 pandemic, US sanctions, the global economic collapse, and the devastating February 6 earthquakes. Erdogan began slashing interest rates to keep investment cheaper and growth more possible,…

China has set another precedent in the natural gas sector after Chinese energy giant Sinopec became the first Asian company to partner with Doha’s QatarEnergy (QE) on the expansion of North Field East (NFE) – the world’s largest liquified natural gas (LNG) project. China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) submitted a request to acquire a share in the Qatari LNG project in November 2022, just after the firm signed a 27-year gas purchase agreement with QE – the longest LNG contract recorded in the Industry. So far, Western energy companies have the biggest share in the project, making Sinopec’s share…

Bitcoin (BTC), the largest cryptocurrency, reversed its modest losses from the previous day and regained traction above the $30,000 level once more. Meanwhile, Ethereum (ETH), the second-largest cryptocurrency, broke through the $1,900 barrier and outperformed Bitcoin. In addition, other cryptocurrencies, such as Dogecoin (DOGE), Litecoin (LTC), and Solana (SOL), exhibited strong performance as well. Nonetheless, the driving force behind the ongoing bullish rally can be attributed to positive inflation data and the Ethereum Shanghai upgrade, both of which are contributing to the sustained growth of the crypto market. The global cryptocurrency market has been demonstrating exceptional performance. At the time of writing, the…

U.S. Treasury yields were flat Thursday as investors digested Wednesday’s lower-than-expected consumer price index reading for March and awaited wholesale inflation figures. At 5:41 a.m. ET, the yield on the 10-year Treasury was little changed at 3.426%. The 2-year Treasury was last trading at 3.975%. Yields and prices move in opposite directions and one basis point equals 0.01%. Investors considered what could be on the horizon for the U.S. economy and Federal Reserve policy as the consumer price index published Wednesday indicated that inflationary pressures could be easing. Prices climbed by 0.1% on a monthly basis in March and 5% year over year, just below the…

The price of ether climbed on Thursday, after investors put uncertainty surrounding the long-awaited Shanghai upgrade behind them. Ether rose more than 4.5% to $1,989.02, according to Coin Metrics, while bitcoin gained more than 1%. After a two-year lock up period, Ethereum staking withdrawals were enabled by the Shanghai upgrade around 6:30 p.m. ET on April 12. Investors were optimistic but cautious in the weeks leading up to Shanghai, also known as “Shapella.” While many agree the upgrade is good for Ethereum in the long-term – because it allows more liquidity to ether investors and stakers which could also be a catalyst for a change in…

The Japanese yen could strengthen to 120 per dollar by the end of the year on the back of a change in the central bank policy. “We have quite high conviction in our view — we’re looking at 125 [per dollar] by the end of June, and we’re actually looking at 120 by the end of this year,” said Craig Chan, Nomura’s head of global FX strategy. The forecast is supported by Nomura’s view that the Fed has reached “the peak” in terms of hiking rates, as well as how Japanese financial holding company expects the Bank of Japan could to tweak…

The Group of Seven advanced economies is not expected to update its price cap on Russian oil in the coming weeks amid contrasting views on whether the policy is truly denting the Kremlin’s revenues. The G-7, alongside the European Union and Australia, decided late last year to impose a cap of $60 a barrel on Russian oil in an effort to ratchet up the pressure on Moscow. As part of the agreement, they said they would review this cap in mid-March. However, despite calls to do so from several countries in Europe, the threshold was not revised last month even…

The Egyptian Official Gazette published President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi’s decision to approve the amendment of a financing agreement with the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation. The amendment included the credit ceiling of the agreement to be 6 billion US dollars, instead of 3 billion, which was the agreement signed in Sharm El-Sheikh on June 3, 2022. The agreement aims to find the necessary ways and means to ensure close cooperation and coordination of efforts between the government and the corporation, and to implement the strategic partnership between the two parties in the field of trade finance. Under the agreement, the…

An informed source revealed to “Novosti” agency that the Russian government estimates the growth of the Russian economy in 2023 at about 1%, and in 2024 at 2%. The source said, “The government has estimates of about 1% this year, and 2% next year. These are current estimates, and they are not official expectations yet, but there are such expectations in the current estimates.” The current expectations of the Russian Ministry of Economic Development indicate a decline in the economy by 0.8% this year, but last March, the Minister of Economic Development, Maxim Reshetnikov, stated that the ministry expects the…