Author: Steven Sahiounie

Thailand’s tourism and real-estate sectors are reportedly picking up quickly thanks to a growing number of visitors Thailand’s economy has been rapidly recovering thanks to an increasing number of Russian tourists, the Bangkok Post reported on Tuesday. The newspaper noted that Russians are investing in real estate and local businesses. There was a sharp inflow of Russians into the kingdom following the end of Covid-related restrictions and the imposition of travel limitations arising from Ukraine-related sanctions imposed by Western nations. This has reportedly stimulated a recovery for Thai small and medium-sized businesses, breathing new life into the local property market.…

The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank has left investors wondering if their money is safe, Newsweek reports Several pension funds in the US and at least two overseas have lost millions of dollars due to investments in Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) stock, Newsweek reported on Tuesday. The collapse of the lender has sent global banking shares plummeting. Institutions such as the California Public Employees Retirement Fund (CalPERS), the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (Cal STRS), Korea’s National Pension Service (NPS) and Sweden’s Alecta pension fund had reportedly invested in the tech and start-up-focused bank. CalPERS, which manages the largest public…

What you need to know today The bottom line How important are banks? Important enough that the CPI — the single most scrutinized and anticipated economic data over the past year — seemed like nothing more than background noise yesterday. Of course, the muted reaction to the CPI might be because the numbers were exactly in line with estimates. And after the chaotic few days following Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse, unsurprising is what markets needed. Stripping out food and energy prices, which tend to fluctuate wildly, core CPI increased 5.5% on a 12-month basis. That is to say, prices are…

The price of platinum is forecast to surge this year thanks to factors including power cuts in South Africa, the war in Ukraine and the increased production of hybrid cars. Investment bank UBS readjusted its price forecast for platinum in 2023, estimating that the precious metal will cost $1,150 per ounce for June, up from a previous estimate of $1,100, and will reach $1,200 per ounce in December. The precious metal was priced at $1,004.90 per ounce at the time of writing. “Following a strong rally at the start of the year, rising US interest rates sparking growth concerns and a stronger US dollar have weighed…

Silicon Valley Bank was the backbone of many startups and venture capital funds around the world. The effects of its collapse, the biggest banking failure since the 2008 financial crisis, is likely to be felt across the technology landscape globally over the coming years. “With SVB in essence the Godfather of the Silicon Valley banking ecosystem for the past few decades in the tech world, we believe the negative ripple impact of this historical collapse will have a myriad of implications for the tech world going forward,” Dan Ives, analyst at Wedbush Securities, said in a note on Tuesday. SVB’s collapse…

Japan’s central bank could delay any changes to its monetary policy in light of the turmoil that the Silicon Valley Bank crisis has triggered in financial markets, a former board member told CNBC. And any changes to its ultra-dovish stance could be delayed by as much as a year, said Nomura Research Institute economist Takahide Kiuchi, who served on the Bank of Japan’s policy board from 2012 to 2017. Kiuchi previously expected that incoming governor Kazuo Ueda would accelerate the BOJ’s normalization of monetary policy — including widening its current yield curve control policy to maintain the yield on Japanese government…

US stocks closed higher on Tuesday, recovering some of their losses after the collapse of three banks tested markets on Monday. While most bank stocks rallied Tuesday, the smoke hasn’t cleared just yet: Moody’s Investors Service slashed its outlook for the US banking sector and placed six US banks on review for potential credit rating downgrades. Traders cheered the lack of surprises in the February Consumer Price Index inflation reading and looked ahead to Wednesday’s Producer Price Index, which economists say could show a slowing in wholesale prices. Ahead of the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting next week, investors are keeping a close watch for…

The Securities and Exchange Commission and the Justice Department are both in the early stages of their investigations into the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, according to sources familiar with the matter. Both federal agencies are looking into the bank’s failure and the actions by senior executives in the lead-up to the decision by federal regulators to shutter the lender last week, one of the sources said. No one has been accused of any wrongdoing and the person familiar with the matter noted that investigations into a significant event like the failure of Silicon Valley Bank are common in the immediate…

Newly appointed Silicon Valley Bridge Bank CEO Tim Mayopoulos asked customers to return some their funds into the bank. “If you, your portfolio companies, or your firm moved funds within the past week, please consider moving some of them back as part of a secure deposit diversification strategy. We are also open for business for any new customers. We are actively opening new accounts of all sizes and making new loans,” he wrote. Mayopoulous replaced former CEO Greg Becker on Monday following the bank’s collapse that triggered widespread concerns about how the tumult could spread to other regional banks. Customers rushed…

Russian President Vladimir Putin dismisses claims that suggest that an autonomous pro-Ukraine organization was responsible for the Nord Stream blasts as “complete nonsense”. Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that last year’s blasts on the Nord Stream gas pipelines had been carried out on a “state level”, dismissing claims which suggest that an autonomous pro-Ukraine organization was responsible for the blast as “complete nonsense”. This comes shortly after the New York Times reported last week that intelligence examined by US authorities revealed that the pipelines were attacked last September by a pro-Ukraine group, most likely comprised of Ukrainians or Russians. The Nord Stream…