Russian Market

2023-04-19 23:30:48 BRICS to outpace G7 global growth in 2023

The BRICS group, comprised of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, will account for 32.1% of global growth this year, compared to the G7's 29.9%, Bloomberg reported, citing IMF data.

Moreover, the BRICS countries will significantly increase their share of the global economy to almost 35% by 2028, while the G7's contribution to the world economy is expected to decrease to 27.8%.

China and India will be the top contributors to global growth over the next five years, with China's share of global GDP expansion set to be double that of the US.

This data highlights the shifting balance of power in the global economy, with the BRICS group increasingly becoming a dominant force in driving global economic growth.

In turn, the G7 nations, including the US, the UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan, will no longer be considered the most advanced global economic bloc.

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2023-04-19 20:30:59 Cyprus to fight against evading anti-Russian sanctions, says president

The Cypriot authorities aim to work closely with the United States regarding sanctions against Russia, said President Nikos Christodoulides, who took office in late February of this year.

Our own political will clearly indicates that we will not tolerate avoiding the sanctions imposed, in particular, by the European Union, he said.

The president further stated that the Cypriot authorities should in no way let anyone besmirch the country's name, adding that the US has been asked for all the necessary information regarding the sanctions against Russia.

Earlier, the largest bank in Cyprus started closing accounts of Russians after the US and the UK updated their sanctions lists against Russia.

In particular, the new sanctions targeted Cypriot individuals and legal entities allegedly assisting Russian businessmen in circumventing sanctions.

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2023-04-19 18:30:13 Biden approval nears lowest point amid economic woes

US President Joe Biden's public approval fell to 39% this month, nearing the lowest level of his presidency, as the US economy shows signs of losing steam, a Reuters/Ipsos poll revealed.

Biden's popularity declined almost steadily since he took office in January 2021, bottoming out at 36% in mid-2022. It has remained near that level since then.

Biden announced last week he was running for re-election in 2024 but has yet to formally launch his campaign.

Donald Trump, who is also running for president in 2024, has spent much of his 2017-2021 presidency with similarly low approval ratings. Previous US presidents only rarely experienced approval levels that low.

Respondents in the poll most often cited the economy as the biggest problem facing the country, with one in five pointing to it. Crime and the environment were picked by about one in 10 respondents as America's top problem.

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2023-04-19 16:31:13 European Commission ready to ban grain imports from Ukraine

The European Commission is poised to impose a ban on grain imports from Ukraine, Polskie Radio 24 reported, citing a source in Brussels.

The possible ban on imports of Ukrainian grain into the EU is reportedly scheduled to be discussed on Wednesday at 10:00 ET at a meeting of the Vice President of the European Commission and the European Commissioner for Agriculture with representatives of Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Romania and Ukraine.

Earlier last week, Poland and Hungary, amid protests by local farmers, said they would halt imports of Ukrainian agricultural products, which enter the EU market duty-free.

Slovakia also joined them on Monday, while Bulgaria is now considering a temporary ban on imports of Ukrainian grain.

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2023-04-19 14:00:06 Coinbase may leave US due to unclear regulation

Crypto exchange Coinbase could leave the US, if regulatory clarity for the sector does not improve, its CEO Brian Armstrong said.

"The US has the potential to be an important market for crypto, but right now we are not seeing that regulatory clarity that we need," Armstrong said.

"I think in a number of years if we don’t see that regulatory clarity emerge in the US we may have to consider investing more elsewhere in the world," the CEO further stated.

"Anything is on the table, including relocating or whatever is necessary."

Coinbase has faced increasing regulatory pressure in the US since the collapse of crypto exchange FTX last November amid allegations of fraud.

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2023-04-19 10:00:40 Credit Suisse serviced Nazis until 2020

Credit Suisse serviced Nazi clients and Nazi-linked accounts until 2020, according to a US Senate committee investigation.

Credit Suisse maintained accounts, the vast majority previously undisclosed, for at least 99 individuals who were either senior Nazi officials in Germany or members of Nazi-affiliated groups in Argentina.

70 Argentine accounts with probable ties to Argentina-based Nazis were opened with Credit Suisse after 1945, with at least 14 remaining open into the 21st century and some even into 2020.

The committee added that Credit Suisse tried to limit the investigation, while the bank said its own two-year investigation found no evidence to support the claims.

Earlier, Credit Suisse blocked 17.6 billion francs worth of Russian assets held in Switzerland.

Credit Suisse was Switzerland's second-largest bank by assets, but last month was forced to sell its business to rival Swiss bank UBS in a bid to halt a banking crisis.

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2023-04-18 22:30:18 US prepares to announce 'unprecedented' restrictions on investment in China

The administration of US President Joe Biden is preparing to announce later in April "unprecedented rules limiting American investments in China," Politico reported, citing its own sources.

The restrictions will be aimed at curbing "Beijing's technological and military rise."

The White House has already begun briefing industry groups like the Chamber of Commerce on the broad outlines of Biden's executive order, which is expected to require companies to notify the government of new investments in Chinese tech firms and prohibit some deals in critical sectors like microchips.

Moreover, the White House is considering a US ban on the popular Chinese-owned app TikTok and hiking trade tariffs on China.

Earlier, China decided to respond to Western sanctions by refusing to export rare earth metals, which are necessary for the production of batteries for electric vehicles.

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2023-04-18 18:00:06 Sweden hikes taxes on crypto mining

Sweden eliminates tax breaks for crypto miners in July, raising taxes on energy.

The northernmost regions of Norway and Sweden were among the last areas where crypto mining was still profitable due to relatively low energy prices, which rose significantly last year in Europe.

Nevertheless, the upcoming tax will increase from $0.0006 to $0.035 per kilowatt hour starting July of this year, according to the financial budget published in November 2022.

The energy crisis and subsequent increase in taxes had the potential to completely disrupt the industry in the country, experts warn.

Earlier in 2017, Sweden enacted a 98% tax cut for data centers, looking to attract businesses. Four years later, the industry has not created the jobs the country was hoping for, and the macroeconomic environment has changed, said the budget report.

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2023-04-18 17:31:02 Belgium unblocks assets of Bank Saint Petersburg

The Belgian Treasury has issued a license to Bank Saint Petersburg (BSPB) to unblock frozen assets in Euroclear worth about $110 million, a representative of the Treasury told a local newspaper.

The permit concerns the bank's own assets, but not securities and funds of its clients.

Nevertheless, this is the first publicly confirmed case of unblocking of sanctioned Russian assets.

BSPB does not plan to make the information public until the unblocking operations are completed, sources in the bank said.

In early February, Bank Saint Petersburg won its case against the Euroclear depository in the Moscow Arbitration Court. This may have influenced the Treasury's decision, experts said.

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2023-04-18 16:00:56 Russia's central bank may allow private firms to use crypto for international settlements

The Bank of Russia may allow private firms to exchange crypto for international settlements within the framework of the experimental legal regime, said Deputy Governor of the Central Bank Alexei Guznov.

Nevertheless, this mechanism will have to be tested initially on companies with state participation.

Regulator's head Elvira Nabiullina further stated the creation of special authorized organizations for the exchange and sale of crypto for international settlements is expected. It is now being discussed how they will work, who will control them and which banks will serve them.

Russia's Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin requested back in late 2022 to develop a mechanism for the use of cryptocurrencies in export settlements.

However, the bill prescribing such a mechanism has not even been submitted to the State Duma yet due to the dispute over liability for the illegal use of crypto.

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