(Reuters) -Citigroup Inc has asked vaccinated employees in all U.S. locations to start returning to the office from the week of March 21, according to an internal memo on Wednesday that was seen by Reuters. Staff will be working from the office for at least two days a week, the memo said. “Although COVID-19 may…
(Reuters) – U.S. companies borrowed 2% more in January to finance their investments in equipment compared to a year earlier, the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA) said on Wednesday, as firms ramp-up production to meet demand. Companies signed up for $8.3 billion in new loans, leases and lines of credit last month, compared with…
By Caroline Valetkevitch NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. stocks were sharply lower on Wednesday afternoon as Ukraine declared a state of emergency and the West unveiled more sanctions against Russia over its move into eastern Ukraine. The U.S. State Department said a Russian invasion of Ukraine remains potentially imminent, adding that Washington has not seen…
BERLIN (Reuters) – Germany’s coalition parties agreed on Wednesday a roughly 13 billion euro package of measures to help households cope with surging energy prices, including scrapping a surcharge levied on electricity bills to support green power. Energy prices in Germany have soared in the last year, and fears of an escalation of the crisis…
LISBON (Reuters) – Rough waters forced authorities on Wednesday to postpone a salvage operation for a ship packed with luxury cars that have been on fire for a week in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, a port official said. With teams unable to board the Felicity Ace, heavy tug boats sprayed water to cool…
By Pamela Barbaglia LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s largest drugstore chain Boots has set a Feb. 24 deadline to receive indicative bids from a series of deep-pocketed investors that could value the 173-year-old firm at up to 8 billion pounds ($10.88 billion), two sources told Reuters. The sale will see U.S. drugstore giant Walgreens, which has…
GENEVA (Reuters) – Trade ministers are now due to convene for the first time in more than four years in June, the World Trade Organization said on Wednesday, announcing the latest dates for a meeting that aims to break deadlocks on issues from fishing subsidies to intellectual property rights for vaccines. In late November, the…
By Sinéad Carew NEW YORK (Reuters) -Investors around the world lost their appetite for risk shortly after the U.S. market open on Wednesday with stocks turning lower and oil prices rallying as Ukraine declared a state of emergency and investors worried about a bigger Russian invasion. Market’s have been volatile since President Vladimir Putin’s dispatch…
BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union agreed to slap sanctions Wednesday on Russia’s defense minister, a top adviser to President Vladimir Putin and hundreds of Russian lawmakers who voted in favor of recognizing the independence of separatist areas in southeast Ukraine. The sanctions, mostly a freeze on the assets of those listed and a ban…
By Tommy Wilkes LONDON (Reuters) – Emerging market borrowing led by China inflated the global debt mountain to a record $303 trillion in 2021, although the global debt-to-GDP ratio improved as developed economies rebounded, the Institute of International Finance said on Wednesday. The $10 trillion rise in the global debt pile was down from the…
