Global Economic Crisis

Sri Lanka to opt for domestic debt restructuring post-IMF bailout: Govt

Cash-strapped Sri Lanka is exploring the options for domestic debt restructuring in the post-IMF bailout scenario to further stabilise its shaken economy, an official statement said on Friday. Sri Lanka received USD 330 million this month as the first tranche of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout programme, which will pave the way for the debt-ridden country to achieve better "fiscal discipline" and "improved governance. In a statement issued by the Sri Lankan government after making an investor presentation on Thursday, the Governor of the Central Bank and the Secretary to the Treasury said the Authorities are also exploring options for a domestic debt optimisation (DDO) operation aimed at liquidity relief while preserving financial stability to avoid further eroding of Sri Lanka's repayment capacity. The statement outlined that despite the ambitious fiscal consolidation efforts, Sri Lanka's public debt trajectory is set to remain unsustainable in the absence of ...

Fed official: SVB management itself was responsible for bank's failure

The nation's top financial regulator is asserting that Silicon Valley Bank's own management was largely to blame for the bank's failure earlier this month and says the Federal Reserve will review whether a 2018 law that weakened stricter bank rules also contributed to its collapse. SVB's failure is a textbook case of mismanagement, Michael Barr, the Fed's vice chair for supervision, said in written testimony that will be delivered Tuesday at a hearing of the Senate Banking Committee. Barr pointed to the bank's concentrated business model, in which its customers were overwhelmingly venture capital and high-tech firms in Silicon Valley. He also contends that the bank failed to manage the risk of its bond holdings, which lost value as the Fed raised interest rates. Silicon Valley Bank, based in Santa Clara, California, was seized by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. on March 10 in the second-largest bank failure in US history. Late Sunday, the FDIC said that First Citizens Bank, bas

North Carolina-based First Citizens to acquire troubled Silicon Valley Bank

North Carolina-based First Citizens will buy Silicon Valley Bank, the tech industry-focused financial institution that collapsed earlier this month, rattling the banking industry and sending shockwaves around the world. The deal could reassure investors at a time of shaken confidence in banks, though the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and other regulators had already taken extraordinary steps to head off a wider banking crisis by guaranteeing that depositors in SVB and another failed U.S. bank would be able to access all of their money. Customers of SVB will automatically become customers of First Citizens, which is headquartered in Raleigh. The 17 former branches of SVB will open as First Citizens branches Monday, the FDIC said. European shares opened higher Monday, with German lender Commerzbank AG up 2.4% and BNP Paribas up 1.2%. Investors worry that other banks also may crumble under the pressure of higher interest rates. On Friday, much of the focus was on Deutsche Bank, who

Finance minister asks public banks to take stress tests; what are these?

Bank stress tests were introduced after the 2008 financial crisis, and they revealed the vulnerability of banks to market crashes and economic downturns

No respite for global stocks as banks around the world continue to struggle

The MSCI World share index traded 0.4% lower, while still heading for a 1.5% weekly gain. Europe's STOXX 600 index was down 1 per cent

Analysts cut Asian companies' earnings; global slowdown, China to blame

Some analysts expect China's recovery may not be enough to offset headwinds from weak global demand and supply constraints for export-reliant economies in the region

Heavily indebted Chinese developer Evergrande proposes debt restructuring

A Chinese real estate developer whose struggle to manage more than USD 300 billion in debt rattled global financial markets announced a long-awaited plan on Thursday to restructure what it owes to foreign bondholders. The Evergrande Group, the global real estate industry's most heavily indebted company, ran short of cash after Beijing tightened controls on corporate debt the ruling Communist Party worries is dangerously high. Some other Chinese developers collapsed, leaving half-finished apartment blocks standing empty. Evergrande's struggle prompted fears about possible shockwaves for the global financial system. The Chinese central bank tried to reassure investors, saying its problems could be controlled and were unlikely to spill over. A deputy central bank governor, Pan Gongsheng, said this month the real estate industry finally was recovering following a wave of defaults. Pan said financing conditions for healthy developers had improved significantly. Evergrande's plan would .

Credit Suisse takeover; Moody's downgrades outlook for UBS to negative

Rating agency Moody's has cut the outlook on UBS Group's debt to negative following its takeover of Credit Suisse,

SVB fall: Nazara Tech says Rs 60 cr successfully shifted to other accounts

Nazara Technologies on Wednesday said that out of Rs 64 crore held by its two step down subsidiaries in Silicon Valley Bank, Rs 60 crore has been successfully transferred to bank accounts outside of SVB. The balance Rs 4 crore remains in SVB accounts for unrestricted operational use, the company said in a regulatory filing. Nazara informed that both the companies -- Kiddopia Inc and Mediawrkz Inc -- have been given unrestricted access to the entire amount of USD 7.75 million (Rs 64 crore) that was held at SVB. "From this amount, a sum of USD 7.25 million (Rs 60 crore) has been transferred to bank accounts outside of SVB and the balance amount of USD 0.5 million (Rs 4 crore) remains in SVB accounts for unrestricted operational use," the company said.

Despite SVB-triggered turmoil, European central banks hint rate hike

The European Central Bank is still leaning towards a half-percentage-point rate hike on Thursday, despite turmoil in the banking sector, given high inflation

As cost of capital rises, VC funding for new-age firms drops to $26 bn

The global economic downturn has made investors reconsider their commitments towards the deployment of capital into new-age firms

Farm sector to grow 3.7% in Oct-Dec on kharif output: 2nd advance estimates

At current prices, the growth in the third quarter of this financial year is projected at 8.6 per cent, which is almost at the same level in the corresponding quarter of FY22

Slowing GDP growth in India mirrors the trend in top global economies

These are the top five economies in the world, excluding India. India's growth rate has also been slowing after a stellar second quarter, showed data released on Tuesday

Amid weakening demand, Thailand's industrial output falls in January

Thailand's industrial output dropped for the fourth consecutive month in January due to the global economic slowdown, data showed on Tuesday.

Brent oil falls on fears of global economic slowdown, rate hike fears

Oil on Monday rose by more than 1% on optimism over Chinese demand, which analysts expect to rebound this year after COVID-19 curbs that had limited use were scrapped

Major reduction in global poverty rates due to scientific progress: INSA

Indian National Science Academy (INSA) president and the country's chair for the G20 Science-20 Inception Meeting Dr Ashutosh Sharma pointed out that scientific progress has helped in drastically reducing poverty levels across the world over the last few decades. He was speaking after inaugurating the two-day S20 meeting here on Monday at a private convention centre with participation of delegates of G20 countries with representatives of their science academies. The deliberations are part of a series of meetings being held across the country on various themes as part of India's year-long G20 presidency. "India is proud to host this gathering of nations from across the globe that value science and technology as essential elements for global development," Dr Sharma told the gathering. "We must recognise that science has played an integral role in not only our economic growth but also in positive social transformation including providing access to quality healthcare and education ..

German economy shrank 0.2% in Q4 compared to Q3, worse than expected

Germany's economy shrank by 0.2 per cent in the fourth quarter compared with the previous three-month period, official figures showed Monday. The performance by Europe's biggest economy was worse than expected. Gross domestic product shrank for the first time since the first quarter of 2021 largely because of a decline in consumer spending, which had supported the economy in the first nine months of 2022, the Federal Statistical Office said. The drop followed GDP growth of 0.5 per cent in the third quarter and 0.1 per cent in the second quarter. The statistics office said in mid-January, before it had full December economic data, that the economy appeared to have stagnated in the fourth quarter. Monday's announcement prompted it to revise last year's full-year growth figure down to 1.8 per cent from the 1.9 per cent it initially reported. Germany's annual inflation rate rolled back from a peak of 10.4 per cent in October to 8.6 per cent in December, but galloping prices remain a ma

Long queues at filling stations in Pakistan amid acute petrol shortage

Long queues of automobiles and motorcycles were witnessed at filling stations in capital city of Islamabad and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province due to reduced supplies by oil marketing companies

FAO: Rising prices, population, food insecurity add to ranks of hungry

Growing numbers of people in Asia lack enough to eat as food insecurity rises with higher prices and worsening poverty, according to a report released Tuesday by the Food and Agricultural Organisation and other United Nations agencies. Nearly a half-billion people, more than eight in 10 of them in South Asia, were undernourished in 2021 and more than 1 billion faced moderate to severe food insecurity, the report said. For the world, the prevalence of food insecurity rose to more than 29 per cent in 2021 from 21 per cent in 2014. The COVID-19 pandemic was a huge setback, causing mass job losses and disruptions, and the war in Ukraine has pushed up prices for food, energy and fertiliser, putting an adequate diet out of the reach of many millions, it said. The report is the fifth annual stocktaking on food insecurity and hunger by UN agencies including the FAO, UNICEF, World Health Organisation and World Food Programme. Over those years, progress toward alleviating hunger and ...

Oil prices climb on hopes for Federal Reserve slowing interest rate hikes

Oil prices rose on Friday on optimism that the U.S. Federal Reserve will ends its tightening cycle, buoying the economy and boosting fuel demand