Author: Steven Sahiounie

The banking crisis has heightened risk of an economic downturn, the Wall Street bank claims The recent turmoil in the financial industry caused by the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) has made a US recession more likely, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon has warned, noting that lenders are now tightening credit. “We are seeing people reduce lending a little bit, cut back a little bit and pull back a little bit,” Dimon said in an interview with CNN on Thursday. The tumult within the industry won’t necessarily invoke a recession, he said, but “it is recessionary.” Dimon’s comments follow his statement…

Consumer prices in Belgium have accelerated past 20% in annual terms, a report says Belgian consumer prices have continued to soar, jumping 20.6% in March from a year ago, according to a study by the country’s non-profit consumer organization Test Achats. The spike was mainly attributed to a surge in energy prices. “Our analysis is based on a basket of more than 3,000 basic products sold in supermarkets, for the stores of Albert Heijn, Carrefour, Colruyt, Cora, Delhaize, Aldi and Lidl. It shows that a two-person household spends an average of €521 [$570] per month at the supermarket, i.e. €89 more than…

Nationwide strikes have disrupted fuel supplies to petrol stations, the outlet reports Strikes at French oil refineries have triggered fuel shortages at petrol stations across the country amid continued protests against the government’s plan to raise the retirement age, Le Figaro reported on Friday. In recent days, industrial action by refinery workers has intensified, leading to supply disruptions as members of French unions stopped refineries and depots from delivering fuel, the outlet said. According to the latest data compiled by the news outlet, the Val-de-Marne department in Ile-de-France is the worst affected with nearly half (49.4%) of local petrol stations…

Cheaper imports are undercutting domestic agriculture prices, causing financial distress Thousands of Bulgarian and Romanian farmers blocked border crossings into Ukraine on Friday in protest against cheap Ukrainian grain that has been flooding their markets, Bulgarian National Radio reported on Friday. Brussels permitted duty-free agricultural imports from the war-torn nation last year to help Kiev reach its markets in Africa and the Middle East. However, much of the grain has been stuck in Eastern Europe. The National Association of Grain Producers started a four-hour protest in the Bulgarian towns of Ruse and Kardam. The rally has been coordinated with agricultural organizations…

The Russian currency has been weakening as the country’s imports keep growing, while export revenues are reportedly in decline The Russian ruble suffered its biggest intraday fall of the year on Friday, having shed more than 2% to the lowest levels versus the US dollar and the euro since April 2022. However, the currency recovered all of its losses later in the day. By 11:00 GMT, the ruble had tumbled to 83.50 against the dollar and 91.32 against the euro. By 15:00 GMT, however, the ruble had fully recovered and was actually gaining for the day at 81 to the…

Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator Today is “Sad Friday” in Jerusalem, known to Western Christians as “Good Friday” when they believe Jesus was hung on a cross in Jerusalem. To the Eastern Orthodox Christians of the Middle East, it is “Palm Sunday”, and they celebrate the arrival of Jesus in Jerusalem. To the Muslims of the world, this is the third Friday of Ramadan, and this morning worshippers attempting to pray at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem were prevented entry to the area and severely beaten by Israeli Police batons. Street vendors and shopkeepers were also attacked by…

The Russian Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that Lavrov and Cavusoglu would touch upon the security of Russians in Turkey on the eve of the tourist season Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov arrived in Ankara on Thursday evening at the invitation of his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu. Lavrov is expected to discuss at length a number of energy issues, Ukraine, the grain deal, Nagorno-Karabakh as well as the dialogue between Ankara and Damascus. The Russian Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that Lavrov and Cavusoglu would touch upon the security of Russians in Turkey on the eve of the tourist season.…

Amid the NATO bid, Sweden’s justice ministry says it had agreed to the extradition of Omer Altun, a 29-year-old Turkish citizen sentenced last year by a Turkish court to 15 years in prison. Sweden announced on Thursday that it would extradite one Turkish national sought by Ankara, going with one of Ankara’s key demands for Stockholm’s NATO membership accession. Sweden’s justice ministry said it had agreed to the extradition of Omer Altun, a 29-year-old Turkish citizen sentenced last year by a Turkish court to 15 years in prison for “what in Sweden would be the equivalent of fraud.” In further…

The Union of Russia and Belarus is a leader among integrated associations in terms of how much it has accomplished in such a short time span Russian and Belarussian authorities will prepare the Union State Security Concept. The document will outline the two states’ basic cooperation goals, including listing external challenges, Russian President Vladimir Putin said during the Union State Supreme State Council meeting in the Kremlin. During the meeting, Russia and Belarus approved a number of significant decisions aimed at further deepening integration processes. In particular, Moscow and Minsk must “substantially focus on strategic planning” and pay attention to…

The greenback may fall by another 15% against rival currencies by mid-2024, an investment services company says The US dollar could weaken by as much as 15% against major world currencies over the next 18 months, as inflation continues to cool, allowing the Federal Reserve to loosen its monetary policy, according to Eurizon SLJ Capital. A research note released on Tuesday by the firm’s chief executive, Stephen Jen, said the US Federal Reserve is likely close to – or already beyond – peak hawkishness, meaning that rate cuts are on the horizon. The Fed’s nine previous hikes, in addition to…