WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed an executive order on government oversight of cryptocurrency that urges the Federal Reserve to explore whether the central bank should jump in and create its own digital currency. The Biden administration views the explosive popularity of cryptocurrency as an opportunity to examine the risks and benefits…
LONDON (AP) — The number of new coronavirus cases and deaths globally have continued to fall in the past week, the World Health Organization said Wednesday, with only the Western Pacific reporting an increase in COVID-19. In its latest report on the pandemic issued on Wednesday, the U.N. health agency said new COVID-19 infections dropped…
STRASBOURG (Reuters) – European Union governments are preparing a new round of travel bans and asset freezes on some 100 Russians over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and a decision could come later on Wednesday, the EU’s top diplomat said. “Member states are working on a package of sanctions, around 100 people responsible at different levels…
ZAHONY, Hungary (AP) — After bombs started falling in her hometown of Kharkiv, Annamaria Maslovska left her friends, her toys, and her life in Ukraine and set off on a days-long journey with her mother toward safety in the West. After finally crossing the Hungarian border by train along with hundreds of other Ukrainian refugees,…
By Leika Kihara and Byron Kaye (Reuters) – An oil-driven inflation shock triggered by the war in Ukraine is forcing Asia’s policymakers to rethink their assumptions for 2022, with the risks of weak growth coupled with surging prices adding unwanted complexity to monetary setting plans. Having largely lagged their Western counterparts in scrapping harsh pandemic…
BERLIN (AP) — Austria’s government said Wednesday it is suspending the country’s coronavirus vaccination mandate for most adults, arguing that there’s no need to implement it at present only a week before its enforcement was due to begin. The mandate for people age 18 and over became law in early February, 2½ months after the…
PARIS (Reuters) -The International Energy Agency (IEA) could release more oil from stocks to ease surging fuel prices and will draw up an action plan to swiftly reduce oil usage, the head of the agency said on Wednesday. Oil prices rocketed higher after Russia, the world’s second-largest crude exporter, invaded Ukraine and the West toughened…
By Alex Lawler LONDON (Reuters) -Oil rose towards $130 a barrel on Wednesday, supported by concern of a potential supply shock as the United States banned Russian oil imports and amid signs that some buyers are already steering clear. The United States on Tuesday imposed a ban on Russian oil imports, Britain said it would…
BERLIN (Reuters) -German sportswear group Adidas expects a halt to its Russian operations due to the war in Ukraine to put up to 250 million euros ($273.1 million) of sales at risk this year, it said on Wednesday, but forecast a bounce in its China business. The company said on Monday it had suspended operations…
By Gaurav Dogra (Reuters) – Japanese investors in February sold the most overseas debt in a month in nearly two years on concerns over monetary tightening by the world’s major central banks and an escalation in Russia-Ukraine conflict. According to Japan’s Ministry of Finance data, domestic investors sold a net 3.2 trillion Japanese yen ($27.64…
