Analysis: Currencies

Russia launches accounts with withdrawal guarantees for foreign investors

MOSCOW -Russia has launched a new type of investment account that contains withdrawal guarantees, according to a decree signed by President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, as Moscow looks to attract...

Russia's central bank expected to cut key rate in July to 19%

MOSCOW -The Russian central bank will cut its benchmark interest rate by one percentage point to 19% at its board meeting on July 25 as inflation is expected to be within its estimated range in 2025,...

Sterling firms to three-year peak, focus on welfare bill vote

Sterling neared a three-year high on Tuesday, aided by a broad dollar weakness, as uncertainty about the health of the U.S. economy continued to pressure the U.S. currency and forced investors to...

Euro zone factory orders stabilise for first time in 3 years, PMI shows

LONDON -Euro zone manufacturing activity showed further signs of recovery in June as new orders stopped falling for the first time in more than three years, suggesting a tentative stabilisation in...

Russia's factory activity in June contracts at fastest pace since March 2022

Russia's manufacturing sector contracted at its sharpest rate in more than three years in June as output, new orders and employment all slumped, a business survey showed on Tuesday. The...

Dollar pares losses against euro and Swiss franc after better-than-expected US jobs data

NEW YORK -The U.S. dollar gained ground against major currencies including the yen and the Swiss franc on Tuesday after data showed a better-than-expected increase in labor market demand, indicating...

Currencies: Donald, a misunderstood genius?

The easing of bond yields in recent weeks, despite sometimes complex geopolitical news, is helping the US government and weighing on the dollar at the same time. That said, it would be too early to...

French minister calls for extension of EU-US trade talks

PARIS -France's finance minister has called for extending EU-U.S. trade talks beyond the July 9 deadline in order to secure a better agreement. U.S. President Donald Trump has set the...

World economy faces 'pivotal moment', central bank body BIS says

LONDON -Trade tensions and fractious geopolitics risk exposing deep fault lines in the global financial system, central bank umbrella body the Bank for International Settlements, said in its latest...

Dollar question hovers over top central bankers meeting in Sintra

FRANKFURT -A million-dollar question will hang over the world's top central bankers when they meet in Sintra, Portugal, next week: Is the monetary system centred on the U.S. currency beginning to...

French inflation rises to 0.8% in June as service costs accelerate

French consumer prices rose more than expected in June, ending a streak of declining inflation as service costs accelerated and energy price falls moderated, preliminary data from statistics agency...

Dollar gains as Trump reignites trade concerns

NEW YORK -The dollar retraced earlier losses against the euro on Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump said the United States was ending trade talks with Canada and that he would consider bombing...

Britain vows to toughen its trade defences under new strategy

LONDON -Britain said it would toughen up its trade defences to better protect industries amid a turbulent global outlook of trade wars and U.S. tariffs that has shaped its new trade strategy...

Sterling holds firm near January 2022 highs

LONDON -The pound held steady against the dollar on Wednesday, consolidating gains from the past two days, as investors felt confident enough in the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Iran to dip...

Russia says NATO needs to demonise it to justify 5% defence spending target

MOSCOW -The Kremlin said on Tuesday that NATO was on a path of rampant militarisation and bent on portraying Russia as a fiend of hell in order to justify committing to a big increase in member...

Currencies: Renewed interest

The US military attack on Iranian nuclear facilities has allowed the dollar to regain some ground against several G10 currencies. However, it is still struggling against the euro; however, there are...

Italy has frozen Russian oligarchs' assets worth over $2.6 billion

MILAN -Italy has frozen Russian oligarchs' assets valued at around 2.3 billion euros since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, data provided by Italian authorities show, with the most recent seizures...

Putin says war in Ukraine is not killing Russia's economy

ST PETERSBURG, Russia -Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday dismissed claims the war in Ukraine is devastating the Russian economy, citing continued growth, low debt and economic...

Sterling set for weekly loss as Middle East conflict overshadows domestic data

Sterling gained slightly against the dollar on Friday but was set for a loss on the week as uncertainty over the Israel-Iran conflict fuelled demand for traditional safe havens such as the...