Author: Steven Sahiounie

Bitcoin climbed on Monday evening, topping the key psychological level of $30,000 as investors awaited key inflation data later in the week that could steer crypto prices. The largest cryptocurrency by market cap rose 7% to $30,193.25 for the first time since June, according to Coin Metrics. Ether advanced more than 3.5% to $1,925.11 for the first time since August as investors awaited the Ethereum network’s latest tech upgrade, scheduled for Wednesday. Now that bitcoin has touched $30,000, a move into the mid- to high-30s will be “likely” if it pushes through with conviction and would “force short speculators to…

Oil prices inched up in Asia’s morning trade as traders continue to digest OPEC’s production cuts last week alongside potential further interest rate hike from the Federal Reserve. Investors are awaiting crucial U.S. inflation data on Wednesday, which would inform the Fed’s next move. Brent crude futures rose 0.21% to $84.36 a barrel, while the U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures gained 0.26% to $79.95 a barrel. Russia also remains a “key country to watch” when it comes understanding the extent of supply disruption in the oil market, Vivek Dhar from Commonwealth Bank of Australia wrote in a daily note. This article was originally published by…

South Korea’s central bank is likely to maintain its benchmark interest rate at its current 3.5% as core inflation seems sticky, Oxford Economics told CNBC. “I believe that the authorities think that the current settings will be able achieve the slowdown in the inflation that they’re aiming for,” said Sung Eun Jung of Oxford Economics. She added that rate cuts “seem premature,” for the central bank, while pointing to weakened domestic demand adding to bringing down inflation.Oxford Economics is expecting the central bank to cut its benchmark interest rate by the first quarter of next year, she said. South Korea’s…

Stocks in the Asia-Pacific mostly rose on Tuesday as the Bank of Korea held interest rates at 3.5%, in line with expectations. South Korea’s central bank held rates for the second consecutive time as the nation grapples with an inflation rate of 4.2%. South Korea’s Kospi rose further after the move and traded 1.42% higher to 2,547.86 and the Kosdaq inched up 1.26% to 898.94. Bitcoin surpassed $30,000 for the first time since June 2022 while ether neared $2,000. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 traded 1.26% higher to 7,309.9. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 rose 1.05% to 27,923.37 and the Topix gained 0.78% to 1,991.85, led by technology and consumer…

Bitcoin’s dominance rate, its share of the crypto market, has risen to the highest in almost two years, while ether’s stagnates. Ethereum’s highly anticipated Shanghai upgrade, also called the Shanghai-Capella hard fork, is set to occur Wednesday, after which users will have access to the $31 billion worth of ether (ETH) staked in the blockchain since December 2020. The upgrade has been widely hailed as long-term bullish for Ethereum’s native token. Still, bitcoin (BTC), not ether, is outperforming the broader crypto market and becoming more dominant as the upgrade approaches. Bitcoin’s dominance rate, which measures the largest cryptocurrency’s share of…

Medicines account for a third of exports to the sanctioned country, customs data shows Between March 2022 and February 2023 Switzerland supplied Russia with goods worth 2.9 billion Swiss francs ($3.2 billion), down from 3.5 billion recorded the previous year, the outlet said, citing figures from the alpine nation’s customs service. While trade in sectors like watches and machinery has come to a halt, exports of medicines to Russia hit record highs, data shows. The outlet found that Bern’s exports were dominated by pharmaceutical products, which surged 40% in the reported period. Export of medicines jumped from 1.4 billion Swiss francs…

Russia slashed its oil output in March by 40% more than previously announced, Bloomberg has reported, citing a source familiar with Energy Ministry data. The decline was the equivalent of around 700,000 barrels per day (bpd), the outlet stated. In February, Russia pledged to voluntarily reduce oil production by 500,000 bpd, starting from March. The move was part of retaliation to sanctions, which also saw sales halted to buyers that comply with a Western-imposed price ceiling of $60 per barrel on Russian oil. However, the actual reduction turned out to be 40% higher, Bloomberg reported, citing ministry data. When announcing…

The World Bank will look for solutions to the mounting challenges facing developing countries, the organization’s president, David Malpass, has vowed ahead of its spring session. “Resolving the impasse in debt restructurings, especially for the world’s poorest countries, is going to be at the center of discussions,” Malpass wrote on Sunday in a blog. The World Bank Group-IMF Spring Meetings are set to be held this week. The World Bank president indicated that he will discuss the issue with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva and the finance ministers of India, Ethiopia, and Jamaica. “I’m looking forward to discussions of the debt crisis itself…

The total net worth of the ultra-wealthy in the Russian capital exceeds $307 billion, the magazine estimates Moscow has been ranked the world’s sixth most attractive city for the super-rich, as the Russian capital is now home to 61 billionaires, up from 53 in 2022, according to the latest ranking published by Forbes. The total net worth of Moscow’s wealthiest residents reportedly amounts to $307.1 billion, up from $215 billion last year, when the city came in third. New York took the top spot with 101 billionaires, with a collective net worth of $616.8 billion. The Big Apple is followed…

Insolvencies in the Netherlands have been rising amid soaring inflation and energy costs, according to a tracking website The number of bankruptcies in the Netherlands has more than doubled in the first quarter of 2023, the NL Times portal reported on Sunday, citing data by Faillissements Dossier. According to the report, cafes, restaurants, retail shops and online retailers have been the most affected businesses. Some 781 companies and institutions reportedly went bankrupt in the country from January to March, compared to 506 a year earlier. The number of bankrupt cafes and restaurants nearly tripled to 54, the data showed. The…