Market for middlemen is reportedly flourishing amid US threat of sanctions against Chinese banks Up to half of transactions between Russia and China are facilitated by means of intermediaries to avoid exposure by Chinese lenders to the risk of secondary sanctions, Reuters reported on Friday, citing trade consultants and bankers, as well as importers and exporters. In December, US President Joe Biden signed an executive order that takes additional steps against facilitating transactions with Russia. At the time, the US Treasury was calling on foreign banks to boost compliance with anti-Russia s ..read more

Banning Russian liquefied natural gas will benefit US producers but hit the bloc’s industrial sector, Dmitry Peskov says Russian producers will seek ways to overcome potential sanctions against Moscow’s exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG), Kremlin spokesman Dimitry Peskov told journalists on Saturday. On Thursday, Western media cited unnamed diplomatic sources as saying the EU’s 14th package of Ukraine-related sanctions would propose curbs on Russian LNG – which so far hasn’t been targeted by any bans. The new measures are expected to include a prohibition on trans-shipments in the bloc, an ..read more

The grim warning comes as growth falls short of estimates The latest macroeconomic data released by the US Department of Commerce indicates that the country’s economy could be moving towards stagflation, Business Insider has reported. The gloomy signs hint at tough challenges ahead, the outlet added.    Thursday’s report revealed that American GDP increased at an annualized rate of only 1.6% in the first quarter of the current year, well behind projections of 2.5%. The slower than expected growth followed a 3.4% gain recorded in October-December 2023 and 4.9% in the previous quarter ..read more

Many of the city’s residents are against new admission charge for visitors, introduced to reduce overcrowding Hundreds of Venetians took to the streets of their sinking city on Thursday in protest against an entrance fee that the local authorities have started charging visitors, to protect the UNESCO world heritage site from the effects of over-tourism. The new fee of about $5.50 (€5) is being sought from visitors entering the famous Italian city between 8:30am and 4pm local time and came into force on Thursday as part of a pilot program. Outside of those hours, access is free. Day-trippers fa ..read more

The country’s share of global GDP will drop below 2%, the fund has projected Slow economic growth will push France out of the list of the world’s ten largest economies within five years, according to an updated global outlook from the International Monetary Fund. The Washington-based institution expects France’s contribution to global economic growth in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms to drop to 1.98% in 2029, compared to 2.2% recorded by IMF analysts last year. The fund’s latest projections indicate that France’s budget deficit will remain above 4% until 2029, with public debt expected to ..read more

American lawmakers approved a bill allowing the confiscation of Russian funds on Wednesday The “weaponization” of the US dollar through the seizure of frozen Russian assets could prompt a global shift away from the greenback, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday, citing a former International Monetary Fund (IMF) official.   US President Joe Biden signed a bill this week allowing the administration to seize Russian state assets held in America.   Washington has long insisted on the confiscation of the funds to aid Ukraine in its war effort against Moscow. Meanwhile, G7 finance chiefs and E ..read more

The anarcho-capitalist president had wanted to scrap the national coin for US dollars Argentinian President Javier Milei’s “shock therapy” has managed to bolster the country’s currency in a key foreign-exchange market to levels unmatched across the globe, according to Bloomberg. The “parallel peso” trading on the blue-chip swap exchange has risen 25% against the US dollar over the past three months, more than any of the 148 other currencies tracked. The outlet called this a “shocking statistic” given that the peso reached the rate of almost 300% annual inflation when Milei took power last Dece ..read more

A court ruling supported the lawsuit filed by state bank VTB, which seeks to recover funds blocked under Western sanctions A St. Petersburg court ordered the freezing of funds owned by US banking giant JPMorgan Chase in Russia on Wednesday. The ruling was made in favor of the country’s second-largest lender VTB, which filed a lawsuit seeking to recover $439.5 million that is blocked abroad under US-led sanctions. VTB sued JPMorgan and its subsidiaries in the Arbitration Court of St. Petersburg and Leningrad Region on April 17, court filings showed on Monday. The order targeted funds in JPMorga ..read more

Russia could downgrade relations with the US if its assets are seized, the deputy foreign minister has warned Moscow could downgrade diplomatic relations with Washington if the US confiscates frozen Russian assets, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov warned on Thursday. The US and its allies have frozen around $300 billion in Russian central bank assets as part of Ukraine-related sanctions, most of which are being held in the EU. Washington has long advocated for confiscating the funds, so that the money would then be handed over to Kiev for its war effort against Russia. The latest push ca ..read more

Billionaire financier has bought $400 million of debt owed by radio platform Audacy, which was going through a bankruptcy process A US Congressman is accusing billionaire George Soros of trying to fast-track his acquisition of American radio giant Audacy through the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), according to Fox News. Soros has bought a major stake in what is the US’ second-largest radio company and could gain “effective control” of more than 220 radio stations across the country, according to previous media reports. Republican congressman Chip Roy from Texas wrote in a letter seen ..read more