Category Archives: Global economy

Kristalina Georgieva wins backing to run for second term as IMF chief

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Bulgaria’s ‘eternal optimist’ in favour with European finance ministers after first five-year stint encompassing Covid and Ukraine

The head of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva, will run for a second five-year term after being nominated by a string of European countries to lead the global lender.

The Bulgarian economist and champion of policies to tackle the climate crisis will be given the support of her home country, which said she had accepted the nomination for another term starting in September.

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Clare Lombardelli named deputy governor of Bank of England

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Ex-Treasury official and adviser to David Cameron will replace Ben Broadbent, making MPC majority female for first time

The Bank of England’s interest-rate-setting committee is set to become majority female for the first time, after the appointment of a former key adviser to David Cameron and George Osborne as one of its deputy governors.

Clare Lombardelli, the chief economist at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), will sit on the nine-member monetary policy committee (MPC) when she joins as the Bank’s next deputy governor for monetary policy.

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More than half of UK retailers affected by Houthi disruption, survey shows

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Costs are escalating amid delays, according to British Chambers of Commerce research that shows UK exporters have also been hit

More than half of UK retailers and exporters have been affected by the disruption to Red Sea trade from Houthi rebel attacks on cargo ships, research by a leading business lobby group suggests.

The price of shipping a container from Asia to Europe has gone up by as much as 300% for some businesses, while logistical delays have added up to three to four weeks to delivery times, according to the survey by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC).

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China needs to do more on ‘silent crisis’ of debt, says World Bank official

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Beijing must be more ready to support countries facing distress, says deputy chief economist

China holds the key to speeding up debt relief and ending the “silent crisis” that is holding back attempts to tackle poverty in the world’s poorest countries, a senior World Bank official has said.

Ayhan Kose, the Bank’s deputy chief economist, said Beijing needed to be more active in negotiations to provide financial support for those countries already in, or close to, debt distress.

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Dover Port health body fears gangs of meat smugglers looking to bypass new post-Brexit checks

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Authority weighs up legal action against government over new checks on imported meat taking place 22 miles inland

The Port of Dover could become a target for criminals smuggling illegal and diseased meat into the country under new post-Brexit plans that will involve lorries from the continent being checked 22 miles inland, the port’s health authority has warned.

The Dover Port Health Authority (DPHA) is now considering legal action against the government over its decision to end physical checks of imported meat at a post within the port. Instead, lorries will be directed to a new checking facility half an hour’s drive up the M20 at Sevington, Ashford.

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China has seen a fourth month of falling prices, but will it act to curb deflation?

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Plunge in consumer prices has fuelled calls for a stimulus package – yet Beijing may stick to the new normal of lower growth

• China consumer prices plunge at fastest rate for 15 years

China’s economy has gone from bad to worse – and it is only February.

Figures released on Thursday showed consumer prices fell by 0.8% in January compared with a year earlier, outstripping economists’ expectations and marking the biggest contraction in 15 years.

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China consumer prices plunge at fastest rate for 15 years as deflation fears deepen

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Plummeting food prices feed steep annual drop amid renewed calls to stimulate economy and offset weakening demand

China’s consumer prices fell at their fastest pace in 15 years in January, as the world’s second-largest economy sank deeper into deflation amid weakening demand.

Data released on Thursday showed that China’s consumer price index tumbled last month, falling by 0.8% compared with a year earlier. It marks the fourth consecutive month of declines, as well as the sharpest drop since September 2009, when the global economy was still grappling with aftershocks from the 2008 banking crisis.

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Lloyds and Santander accused of providing accounts for Iranian front companies

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Both banks deny helping Tehran-controlled oil firm PCC to move money in breach of sanctions

Two of the UK’s largest lenders, Santander UK and Lloyds Banking Group, allegedly held bank accounts for front companies that helped Iranian entities evade US sanctions, according to reports.

The news has rattled investors, who sold off shares in the two banks on Monday morning, amid fears that the lenders could face penalties if they are found to have in any way assisted Iran’s state-controlled Petrochemical Commercial Company (PCC).

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UK ditches post-Brexit Canada trade talks; Vodafone and Three UK merger under investigation – as it happened

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Live, rolling coverage of business, economics and financial markets as Canada says UK was unwilling to give access to agricultural products

Shares in US chipmaker Intel have slumped in pre-market trading after it revealed a weaker forecast of earnings.

Chipmakers have been flying in recent years as shortages followed by the huge hype over artificial intelligence – which is hungry for processing power – prompted investors to pile into the sector.

Although Intel beat estimates, investors’ disappointment in Intel’s datacentre GPU story’s growth can be primarily attributed to the slower-than-expected product delivery and ramp-up.

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New Brexit checks ‘pose existential threat’ to UK fruit and flower growers

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Exclusive: NFU warns blanket import checks from April could fuel long delays and damage future crops

The UK’s fruit and flower growers face an “existential threat” from new post-Brexit border checks that could damage business and affect next year’s crops, the country’s biggest farming body has said.

The National Farmers’ Union (NFU) warned that changes to import rules in April, which will impose checks at the border for nearly all young plants coming into the country, could cause long delays and result in plants being damaged or destroyed.

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Geopolitical tensions and AI dominate start of World Economic Forum

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Ukraine, Middle East and Taiwan overshadow annual meeting at Davos, with artificial intelligence also high on agenda

Growing concern that heightened geopolitical tension could damage an already shaky global economy has dominated the start of the annual gathering of the world’s business and political elite in Davos, Switzerland.

Three potential flash points – Ukraine, the Middle East and Taiwan – threatened to overshadow the meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) aimed at rebuilding trust after the series of setbacks suffered in the past four years, including war, the Covid-19 pandemic and the cost of living crisis.

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Oil prices hit $80 a barrel as fears grow over Red Sea disruption to trade

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Experts warn of economic impact of sustained shipping attacks and Middle East tensions

Oil prices have hit $80 (£62.83) as fears grew about the economic impact of disruption to international trade through the Red Sea and escalating tensions in the Middle East.

Raising concerns about a possible inflation shock for the world economy, Brent crude prices jumped by about 4% to a high of $80.75 a barrel on Friday, while US West Texas Intermediate crude also increased after US and UK airstrikes against Houthi rebel sites in Yemen.

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Why is Germany’s economy struggling – and can the government fix it?

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As railway staff, lorry drivers, farmers and others threaten to strike, we examine the challenges the country faces

Railway staff, lorry drivers and farmers are among those threatening strike action across Germany from Monday in nationwide protests over grievances ranging from pay and conditions to cuts in agricultural subsidies and higher road tolls.

Long Europe’s powerhouse, Germany is struggling with a potent mix of short-term and deeper structural problems that – along with a divided and seemingly ineffectual government – have prompted economists to talk of the “sick man of Europe”.

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Global economy faces period of prolonged weakness, UN warns

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Secretary general urges countries to increase investment to avoid falling behind on climate action and sustainable development

The world faces a protracted period of weak economic growth that will undermine progress on sustainable development, the UN has warned, as it urged countries to raise investment to tackle the climate emergency.

Its annual assessment of the state of the global economy presents a sombre outlook for growth as countries grapple with the impact of higher borrowing costs, geopolitical tensions and heightened risk of climate disasters.

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UK and Switzerland agree to deepen ties between City and Swiss banking system

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Treasury says post-Brexit tie-up to be signed on Thursday will ease cross-border market access for financial services

The UK and Switzerland will agree to forge closer links on Thursday in a post-Brexit accord that aims to deepen ties between the City and the Swiss banking system.

In a move that brings Europe’s largest financial centres closer together, the mutual recognition agreement will be signed on Thursday by the chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, during a visit to Berne.

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EU set to suspend Brexit tariffs on EVs for three years in major boost for car industry

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Commission moves to delay 10% sales charge after intense lobbying by EU and UK carmakers

The European Commission looks set to propose a three-year delay to a 10% tariff on sales of electric vehicles between the EU and the UK, in a major boost for car industries across Europe.

Duties were due to kick in on 1 January 2024 but all the major carmakers in the UK and Europe including BMW, Volkswagen and Stellantis have been lobbying for a temporary reprieve.

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EU expected to issue veiled warning to China over supply of cut-cost goods

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European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen to meet Chinese president Xi Jinping at summit on Thursday

The EU is to tell China that its €400bn (£343bn) trade deficit is not sustainable long term amid fears that it will flood the bloc with subsidised electric cars, solar panels and medical devices, threatening European manufacturing and jobs.

Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission chief, and Charles Michel, the European Council president, will meet Xi Jinping at a summit on Thursday, the second of its kind this year.

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Moody’s cuts China credit outlook to negative as economy slows

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Rating agency says Beijing may need to bail out local governments as property sector collapses

China’s ability to repay its government borrowing has been downgraded by the credit rating agency Moody’s, which said the ripple effects from a crisis in the property sector would undermine efforts to revive its flagging economy.

Moody’s warned that Beijing would need to bail out local and regional governments and state-owned enterprises that were struggling with rising debts, hampering efforts to boost investment and growth.

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Central banks ‘risk tipping UK and other developed countries into recession’

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Stance on inflation poses threat to ‘soft landing’ forecast for global economy, says OECD

Continued tough action by central banks to tackle stubborn inflation risks tipping Britain and other developed countries into recession next year, the west’s leading economic thinktank has warned.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) said the chances of policymakers getting it wrong were “pretty high” and posed a threat to its central “soft landing” forecast for the global economy.

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EU agrees to ban exports of waste plastic to poor countries

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Rules, still subject to formal approval, stop exports to non-OECD countries and limit them elsewhere

The EU has struck a deal to stop ships of waste plastic landing in ports of poor countries.

European lawmakers and member states agreed on Friday to ban exports of plastic rubbish to countries outside the OECD group of mostly rich countries from the middle of 2026. The deal comes as diplomats meet in Nairobi, Kenya, to hammer out a global treaty on plastic pollution.

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