Author: Steven Sahiounie

Despite a year’s worth of interest rate increases, inflation rose again in March, according to economic data released Friday that the Federal Reserve watches closely. The personal consumption expenditures price index excluding food and energy increased 0.3% for the month, in line with the Dow Jones estimate. On an annual basis, so-called core PCE increased 4.6%, slightly higher than the expectation for 4.5% and down 0.1 percentage point from February. Including the volatile food and energy components, headline PCE also rose just 0.1% for the month, equating to a 4.2% annual increase, down sharply from 5.1% in February. That measure…

As luxury stocks make waves overseas, State Street Global Advisors believes investors should consider European ETFs if they want to capture the gains from their outperformance. Matt Bartolini, the firm’s head of SPDR Americas research, finds three reasons why the backdrop is becoming particularly attractive. First and second on his list: valuations and earnings upgrades. “That’s completely different than what we saw for U.S. firms,” he told CNBC’s Bob Pisani on “ETF Edge” this week. His remarks come as LVMH became the first European company to surpass $500 billion in market value earlier this week. Bartolini lists price momentum as a third driver of the investor shift. His SPDR…

U.S. regulators have asked banks for their best and final takeover offers for First Republic by Sunday afternoon, in a move that authorities hope will calm markets and cap a period of uncertainty for regional lenders. JPMorgan Chase and PNC are likely bidders for the ailing lender, which would be seized in receivership and immediately sold to the winning bank, according to people with knowledge of the situation. The Wall Street Journal reported those banks’ interest late Friday. Other companies are likely to step up. Bank of America is among several other institutions that are weighing a bid for First Republic, CNBC has learned according to other…

First Republic Bank is still an independent bank. The question Saturday was how much longer that will continue to be true. Shares of First Republic (FRC) plunged from $122.50 on March 1 to around $3 a share as of Friday on expectations that the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the independent government agency that insures deposits for bank customers, would step in by end of day and take control of the San Francisco-based bank, its deposits and assets. The FDIC had already done so with two other similar sized banks just last month — Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank — when runs on those banks by…

Mohamed Maait, the Egyptian Minister of Finance, held a bilateral meeting with his Qatari counterpart, Ali bin Ahmed Al-Kuwari, on the sidelines of their participation in the joint annual meetings of Arab financial institutions, in Morocco. The Egyptian minister said, “We are keen to enhance financial, tax and customs cooperation with the Qatari side, in a way that contributes to creating a more stimulating environment for trade, production and export between the two countries.” He pointed out, “We are proceeding with structural reforms to empower the local and foreign private sector, and give it a greater opportunity to play its…

The US dollar has too much power as a reserve currency and the world desperately needs an alternative, billionaire investor and CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank, Uday Kotak, said on Friday. Speaking at the Economic Times Awards for Corporate Excellence 2023, the banker described the dollar as “the biggest financial terrorist in the world.” As most global assets are held in dollars in so-called nostro accounts with US banks, they are entirely dependent on decisions made by American bankers and authorities, he explained. “Somebody in the US can say: You cannot withdraw [this money] from tomorrow morning – and you are…

India has become the bloc’s top fuel supplier by re-exporting Russian supplies, according to the outlet The EU is still powering its economy with Russian oil despite sanctions, Bloomberg reported this week. Member states are now said to be buying the sanctioned fuel through India. In December, the EU, G7, and allied countries imposed an embargo and a $60-per-barrel price cap on Russian crude and later introduced similar restrictions for exports of petroleum products. But India has not joined the ban and instead has ramped up purchases of Russian oil that Moscow has been offering at discounts. In 2022-2023, Indian…

The agency says social unrest over pensions could limit the government’s ability to pass new structural changes Rating agency Fitch has downgraded France’s sovereign credit rating, warning that public resistance to a recent pension reform could take a toll on the economy. The agency lowered the rating from “AA” to “AA-,” with a stable outlook. The downgrade means France is considered a more risky venture for investors, which could lead to higher borrowing costs. “Fitch believes that social and political pressures illustrated by the protests against the pension reform will complicate fiscal consolidation,” the agency wrote. It added that the government’s decision…

Western sanctions have led to increased demand for safe-haven assets in the country Russian gold miners boosted output by 26.5% year-on-year in March, according to the latest data from the Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat). Compared to February, gold production jumped by more than 30%. The first quarter figure was 9.1% higher than in the same period of last year. Meanwhile, the production of the key metals silver, platinum, and palladium in Russia rose by 14.1% in March in annual terms, Rosstat data showed. The country’s bullion stockpile has also continued to grow over the past year, according to the…

Authorities are trying to secure the sale of struggling First Republic Bank before a government takeover The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), a principal federal regulator of US banks, has set a deadline of Sunday for bids to buy struggling First Republic Bank, several media outlets reported on Saturday, citing sources. Earlier this week, the FDIC asked a number of institutions, including the country’s largest bank JPMorgan Chase, to submit bids for the failing bank in an effort to secure a buyer before it enters receivership. As receiver, the FDIC would temporarily manage the bank’s affairs until its assets are…