Fed’s Bowman says bank failures not indictment of broader regulatory regime

(Reuters) – Federal Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman said on Friday that the recent failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank were not an indictment of the bank regulatory landscape, although she conceded that some changes may be warranted. In prepared remarks, Bowman said if the Fed identifies gaps in its bank supervision and regulation…

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Wells Fargo profit exceeds estimates as rising rates bolster income

By Noor Zainab Hussain, Manya Saini and Saeed Azhar (Reuters) -Wells Fargo & Co’s profit surpassed expectations for the first quarter on Friday as it earned more from higher interest rates, even while executives forecast tighter monetary policy would dampen economic activity. The bank also reported a $643 million increase in the allowance for credit…

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JPMorgan sees Turkey lira diving towards 30 per dollar after elections

By Marc Jones LONDON (Reuters) – Turkey’s lira is likely to drop sharply and could near 30 to the dollar following next month’s elections, bankers at JPMorgan have predicted, if it looks like only modest changes will be made to its unorthodox economic policies. Turkey’s tightly contested presidential and parliamentary elections on May 14 are…

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Russia raises 2023 GDP growth forecast, longer-term outlook worsens

By Darya Korsunskaya and Alexander Marrow MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia’s economy ministry revised higher on Friday its 2023 gross domestic product (GDP) forecast to 1.2% growth from a 0.8% contraction, but lowered its forecast for 2024, mirroring a wider trend that envisages more sluggish longer term prospects. The International Monetary Fund this week also raised its…

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U.S. imposes sanctions on Chinese companies in action over fentanyl

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Washington on Friday imposed sanctions on two entities based in China, accusing them supplying precursor chemicals to drug cartels in Mexico for the production of illicit fentanyl intended for the United States, the U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement. The Treasury said it also designated five people based in China and…

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European banks surge on strong Q1 results from U.S. peers

(Fixes typo in first paragraph) By Joice Alves LONDON (Reuters) – European banks surged on Friday, rising to a one-month high, gaining support from U.S. lenders, which reported better-than-expected results in the first quarter. The STOXX 600 index of European banks gained as much as 3% to reach its highest since mid-March after JPMorgan, Citigroup…

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Africa needs bilateral help to cope with major funding squeeze, IMF says

By Joe Bavier WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Africa is facing a severe financing squeeze that, on the back of a series of unprecedented shocks, is disrupting economic growth and endangering its long-term development, the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) top official for the region said. Sub-Saharan Africa was only beginning to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic’s economic fallout…

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US business inventories rise moderately in February

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. business inventories rose moderately in February, suggesting that inventory investment could subtract from economic growth in the first quarter. Business inventories increased 0.2% after falling 0.2% in January, the Commerce Department said on Friday. Economists polled by Reuters had expected inventories, a key component of gross domestic product, to rise 0.3%….

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