Europe aims to get vaccinations back on track after clearing AstraZeneca shot
AMSTERDAM/LONDON (Reuters) – Europe pushed to get its COVID-19 vaccination drive back on track on Friday after EU and British regulators said the benefits of AstraZeneca’s shot outweighed any risks and the World Health Organization gave its backing to it. The end to the suspension of AstraZeneca shots by more than a dozen countries will […]
U.S. Fed to let bank leverage exemption expire this month, will review rule
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Big U.S. banks will have to resume holding an extra layer of loss-absorbing capital against U.S. Treasuries and central bank deposits from next month after the Federal Reserve said on Friday it would not extend a temporary pandemic regulatory break due to expire this month. The Fed said it would, however, launch […]
Nokia sees pick up in margins as turnaround takes shape
HELSINKI (Reuters) – Telecoms equipment maker Nokia is forecasting a pick up in profit margins to 10-13% in 2023, as new CEO Pekka Lundmark charts a course to catch up with rivals in the race to deliver 5G networks. Missteps with strategy during the early phase of the 5G cycle have led the Finnish company […]
Stocks cheer dovish Fed, yen supported before BOJ decision
TOKYO/NEW YORK (Reuters) – Asian shares and U.S. stock futures rose on Thursday after the Federal Reserve committed to maintaining accommodative monetary policy and projected a rapid jump in U.S. economic growth this year as the COVID-19 crisis eases. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.87%, while stocks in China rose 0.74%. […]
Japan to lift Tokyo area state of emergency as planned on Sunday
TOKYO (Reuters) – The Japanese government’s advisory panel on coronavirus measures approved on Thursday a plan to let the state of emergency expire in the Tokyo area as scheduled on March 21, while the capital’s governor warned citizens not to let down their guard.
Proposal to rewrite Thailand’s military-backed constitution fails
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand’s parliament has failed to pass a bill that would have allowed changes to a military-backed constitution enacted after a 2014 coup, stalling a move by lawmakers to address a key demand of mass street protests last year. The bill, which included a plan for an elected committee to rewrite the constitution, […]
UK’s National Grid makes green power play with $11 billion WPD buy
(Reuters) – National Grid will buy England’s largest electricity distribution business WPD from U.S.-based PPL for 7.8 billion pounds ($10.9 billion) as it positions itself for a climate-driven transition from gas to electric power. London-listed National Grid, which took over the English and Welsh power networks in 1990, also said on Thursday it would sell […]
Biden vows Russia’s Putin will ‘pay a price’ for election meddling: ABC News
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Joe Biden said Russian President Vladimir Putin will face consequences for directing efforts to swing the 2020 U.S. presidential election to Donald Trump, and that they would come soon. “He will pay a price,” Biden told ABC News in an interview that aired on Wednesday. Asked what the consequences would come, […]
Dollar wobbles after Fed pushes back against rate hike speculation
TOKYO (Reuters) – The U.S. dollar was on the defensive on Thursday after the Federal Reserve signalled it was in no hurry to raise interest rates through all of 2023 even as it saw a swift recovery in the world’s largest economy. The dollar’s index against six major currencies stood at 91.488. It had hit […]
Britain to expand nuclear warhead stockpile by over 40% as global threats rise
LONDON (Reuters) – Britain will grow its nuclear warhead stockpile by more than 40% to ensure its security in a more risky global environment and as it faces new technological threats, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Tuesday.
