Markets & Industries
India aims to triple underground coal production by 2028 - 11/27/2023
India plans to quadruple the amount of coal produced in mines in the next five years, to reach 100 million tons annually, writes the Financial Times citing the spokesperson for India's Ministry of Coal Industry Amrit Lal Meena. Currently, 95% of coal in India is obtained from open pits. The government is working to build incentives to draw in international investment and encourage local equipment...
ECB warns of early signs of stress in Eurozone banks - 11/23/2023
The European Central Bank stated in a financial stability report that growing loan defaults and late payments are causing "early signs of stress" on the balance sheets of Eurozone banks. The regulator anticipates that banks' profits will decline as a result of falling lending volumes and increased funding costs, so it has urged banks to make larger provisions to cover rising loan losses. "A...
Foreign investors withdrew 75% of funds invested in January-July from Chinese stock market - 11/22/2023
Despite Beijing's attempts to rebuild trust in the world's second-largest economy, foreign investors withdrew more than 75% of their capital from China's stock market between January and July, selling shares valued at more than $25 billion, according to the Financial Times. In January, foreign investors snapped up Chinese stocks at an unprecedented rate, anticipating an economic rebound following...
FT reports likely extension of OPEC+ restrictions on oil production - 11/21/2023
According to the Financial Times, which cited four sources close to the kingdom's government, Saudi Arabia, the top oil producer among OPEC+ nations, is thinking about extending the voluntary ban on oil production until at least spring 2024. The voluntary production cap of one million barrels per day remains in place until the end of the year. It was put into place during the summer. The FT notes...
Foreign direct investments in China fall by 9.4% in January-October - 11/20/2023
According to the Ministry of Commerce of China, foreign direct investment (FDI) in the economy of the country's mainland declined 9.4% year over year to 987.01 billion yuan ($136.4 billion) in January through October. Inflows of foreign capital into the services sector decreased by 15.9% to 672.1 billion yuan. In the meantime, foreign direct investment (FDI) increased 1.9% to over 283.4 billion...
Eurozone GDP contraction estimate for Q3 confirmed at 0.1% - 11/15/2023
The European Union's statistical office reports that the third quarter saw a 0.1% contraction in the Eurozone's GDP over the preceding three months. Thus, the preliminary evaluation was validated. Trading Economics surveyed experts, and they did not anticipate a revision. Out of three estimates, this is the second one for GDP. The final data will be released on December 7. In comparison to...
OPEC raises outside oil production growth estimate - 11/14/2023
OPEC revises growth projection for non-OPEC oil output to 1.8 million barrels per day. According to the organization's November report, OPEC increased its forecast for the growth of oil production outside of its borders in 2023 by 100,000 barrels per day, and now anticipates an increase in production of 1.8 million barrels per day compared to 2022 - an average of 67.6 million barrels per day....
Iraq authorities explain growing oil exports by lower domestic consumption - 11/13/2023
Iraq maintains its support and commitment to the OPEC+ agreement, with the increase in oil exports connected with a drop in domestic consumption, according to the Iraqi Oil Ministry. Iraq raised oil shipments to foreign markets by 3% at the end of October, to 3.53 million bpd. During the previous three months, the country's oil exports averaged 3.4 million barrels per day. According to the...
Moody's downgrades United States credit rating outlook - 11/13/2023
Moody's Investors Service has lowered the United States' rating outlook from stable to negative. "Moody's Investors Service (Moody's) has changed the outlook on the ratings of the U.S. government to negative from stable and affirmed the long-term issuer and senior unsecured ratings at 'Aaa'," the company said in a press release. According to reports, the key reason for changing the forecast for...
Bank of Japan: Curtailing ultra-soft policy will be a problem - 11/10/2023
Winding down ultra-easy monetary policy will be a "serious challenge" for the Bank of Japan, according to Central Bank Governor Kazuo Ueda in an interview to the Financial Times. He said it was too early to define a timeframe for normalizing monetary policy despite progress on inflation targets. "When it comes to normalizing short-term interest rates, we must consider what is happening to...
