The 2008 financial crisis in the US kicked off a debt supercycle, which spread to Europe in 2010 and has recently engulfed many of the world’s low-income and lower-middle-income countries. Could the debt woes of Country Garden, the behemoth Chinese real estate developer now facing billions of dollars in losses, augur the cycle’s next turn? The answer remains unclear. While the Chinese authorities have a remarkable track record when it comes to containing economic crises, the challenges posed by a significant growth slowdown, combined with high debt levels – especially…
Tag: Interest Rates
China Central Bank Cuts Key Interest Rate on Bank Lending
China’s central bank on Monday cut the main benchmark interest rate that the country’s commercial banks use in issuing one-year bank loans, the latest in a series of steps by the government to address falling apartment prices, weak consumer spending and broad debt troubles. But the reduction, the second time in two months that the government has pushed down commercial banks’ lending rates, was smaller than expected. The modest cut was the latest sign that the government’s usual tools for addressing an economic slowdown may have lost some of their…
Interest Rate Jitters Sink the Giants of Tech
Market whiplash In the span of a month, the bottom has dropped out of the bull-market rally as investors have come to grips with the prospect of “higher for longer” interest rates worldwide. The sell-off in global stocks and bonds picked up steam on Thursday. And weary market watchers will be looking for more hints on the Fed’s view at next week’s Jackson Hole summit of central bankers and policymakers. Technology stocks have been hit particularly hard. The high-flying FANG+ Index — which comprises the largest tech stocks by market…
Australia news live: Philip Lowe reportedly to be replaced as RBA governor; Wong meets top Chinese diplomat
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Australia news live: Penny Wong ‘deeply disappointed’ by Hong Kong arrest warrants; borrowers await rates decision
<gu-island name="KeyEventsCarousel" deferuntil="visible" props="{"keyEvents":[{"id":"64a2c5cc8f08d64edbf1ab42","elements":[{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":" The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, says the Australian government is “deeply disappointed” by moves from Hong Kong authorities to issue arrest warrants for democracy advocates in exile, including two in Australia. ","elementId":"7005b465-0ea3-446e-850b-f300c416c65e"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":" Hong Kong police yesterday said they had issued arrest warrants for eight overseas activists, accusing them of contravening the city’s national security law and offering a reward of HK$1m ($A191,726) per person, as my colleague Amy Hawkins reported here. ","elementId":"c2ba6a1e-cdd1-4fda-8c6c-e347af61fa33"},{"_type":"model.dotcomrendering.pageElements.TextBlockElement","html":" This list includes Australian citizen Kevin Yam, a former Hong Kong lawyer and…
Australia news live: Paul Keating’s blast at cabinet over Aukus revealed; Nazi symbols ban
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World Bank Projects Weak Global Growth Amid Rising Interest Rates
The World Bank said on Tuesday that the global economy remained in a “precarious state” and warned of sluggish growth this year and next as rising interest rates slow consumer spending and business investment, and threaten the stability of the financial system. The bank’s tepid forecasts in its latest Global Economic Prospects report highlight the predicament that global policymakers face as they try to corral stubborn inflation by raising interest rates while grappling with the aftermath of the pandemic and continuing supply chain disruptions stemming from the war in Ukraine.…
Australia politics live: ballooning rental prices to fuel inflation, Treasury says
From 31m ago Inflation in rental prices expected to increase: Treasury You may have noticed he mentioned rental increases there. It is not great news for that already tight market, according to Treasury: Rising housing costs remain a source of cost-of-living pressures for many households. Inflation in newly advertised rental prices has been rising sharply for around a year, reaching 10 per cent nationally in January. The national vacancy rate has reached a near-record low of around 1%. Despite the slowdown in population growth during the pandemic, underlying demand for…
Australia news live: Penny Wong heads to China; South Australia braces for largest flood in 50 years
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In Global Slowdown, China Holds Sway Over Countries’ Fates
BEIJING — When Suriname couldn’t make its debt payments, a Chinese state bank seized the money from one of the South American country’s accounts. As Pakistan has struggled to cope with a devastating flood that has inundated a third of the country, its loan repayments to China have been rising fast. When Kenyans and Angolans went to the polls in presidential elections in August, the countries’ Chinese loans, and how to repay them, were a hot-button political issue. Across much of the developing world, China finds itself in an uncomfortable…