Analysis: Currencies

Pakistan spy agency targets black market dollar trade to curb rupee slide

KARACHI -A deputy chief at Pakistan's spy agency met with currency exchange firms this week amid a sharp slide in the rupee, leading to a crackdown on black market dollar trade, the head of the...

Euro zone business activity growth hits 11-month high in July, PMI shows

LONDON -Euro zone business activity accelerated faster than forecast this month, supported by a solid improvement in the bloc's dominant services industry and with manufacturing showing further signs...

Subdued dollar firms after ECB leaves rates alone; tariffs and Fed in focus

The dollar traded sideways versus the euro on Thursday after the European Central Bank held rates steady, and was confined to a tight range against the yen as prospects for higher Japanese rates...

Britain and India sign free trade pact during Modi visit

LONDON/NEW DELHI -Britain and India signed a free trade agreement on Thursday during a visit by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, sealing a deal to cut tariffs on goods from textiles to whisky and...

Bessent says Fed forecasts 'politically biased'

WASHINGTON -U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday suggested without evidence that the Federal Reserve's widely followed economic forecasts are motivated by politics, as the Trump...

Exclusive-Chinese engines, shipped as 'cooling units', power Russian drones used in Ukraine

Chinese-made engines are being covertly shipped via front companies to a state-owned drone manufacturer in Russia, labelled as industrial refrigeration units to avoid detection in the wake of Western...

Trump administration not in a rush to replace Powell, Treasury chief Bessent says

WASHINGTON -U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday that the Trump administration was not in a rush to nominate a new Federal Reserve Chair to replace Jerome Powell. We...

US Fed independence under threat, say economists, but no one expects a July rate cut- Reuters poll

BENGALURU -The U.S. Federal Reserve's independence is under threat from mounting political interference, according to a clear majority of economists polled by Reuters, although no one expects a July...

India cenbank net bought $1.76 billion in forex market in May, bulletin shows

MUMBAI -The Reserve Bank of India bought a net of $1.76 billion in the foreign exchange market in May, data released on Wednesday as part of the central bank's monthly bulletin showed. ...

Newly sanctioned Indian refiner Nayara skips naphtha export tender award, say sources

NEW DELHI -Russia-backed Indian refiner Nayara Energy, sanctioned by the European Union, did not award a spot naphtha export tender after revising its payment terms, three trade sources said on...

South African rand gains as inflation rises modestly, stocks hit new peak

JOHANNESBURG -The South African rand strengthened on Wednesday as inflation rose only modestly, keeping the central bank on track to continue cutting interest rates, while the local stock market...

Rupee dips but firmer yuan, exporter dollar sales cushion losses

The Indian rupee ended marginally weaker on Wednesday with the strength in the Chinese yuan and exporter activity helping the currency hold above a psychologically important support level. ...

Fed officials, banking experts discuss regulatory rewrite effort at conference

The Federal Reserve continued work on its comprehensive effort to rewrite bank rules with a daylong conference at its headquarters on Tuesday. At the conference in Washington, regulatory...

CapVest eyes majority stake in German drugmaker Stada, Bloomberg News reports

London-based buyout firm CapVest Partners is in talks to acquire a majority stake in German drugmaker Stada Arzneimittel, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday. The deal would value Stada...

De-risking mood adds more demand for US corporate bonds

Investors have begun to de-risk their equity portfolios and buy more investment-grade corporate bonds as U.S. stock indices near new record highs, in turn pushing corporate borrowing costs to their...

Trump says Fed's Powell will be out in 8 months, calls him a 'numbskull'

WASHINGTON -U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is a numbskull who has kept interest rates too high, but he will be out in eight months, President Donald Trump said at a news conference on...

Russia's top carmaker Avtovaz may shorten work week as sales slump

Russia's largest carmaker Avtovaz said on Tuesday it may cut its working week to four days from five in September, a rare move from a major state-owned employer, as high interest rates and...

US Treasury chief: No need for Fed's Powell to step down right now

WASHINGTON -There is no need for U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to immediately step down, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Tuesday, adding that the Fed chief's legacy should be to...

In the Market-How the ghost of 'transitory' inflation is haunting the rate debate

Joseph Lavorgna, counselor to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, believes tariffs are not inflationary and says economists who have been predicting that prices would rise due to President Donald...