ASIA/PACIFIC
– Miners and utilities dragged the Australian stock market into the red on Wednesday.
-Asian stocks ended mixed following the release of the inflation figure in China which increased by 0.2% year-on-year in June.
-China will probe EU trade, investment barriers, China’s Ministry of Commerce announced.
. EUROPE
-European Central Bank (ECB) Governing Council member and Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel told Tagesspiegel newspaper on Wednesday that expectations for the inflation to reach its 2% target are set for late 2025 “at the latest.”
– European stocks opened cautiously higher Wednesday following dovish comments from U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell Tuesday.
-The Eurasian Development Bank’s (EDB’s) Macroeconomic Outlook for 2024 forecasts robust GDP growth across most of its six member states, with the strongest performance expected in Tajikistan and Armenia.
. AMERICASÂ
North America
– U.S. stock markets were mostly higher premarket on Wednesday after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell expressed concern that holding interest rates too high for too long could jeopardize economic growth.
Latin America
-Gabriel GalÃpolo, Brazil’s Central Bank’s director of monetary policy, reassured investors that any decision on foreign exchange intervention would need full board support.
-Panama Canal to Invest $1.6 Billion in Reservoir Construction Amid Water Crisis, the Rio Times reported.
. AFRICA
-The top 10 Nigerian stockbroking firms earned N19.209 billion from commissions in H1 2024, amid increased volume and value of trade, Nairametrics reported.
-Egypt’s agricultural exports soared $600mln to around $2.69 billion in H1 2024, on an annual basis, according to data released by the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation.
-Moody’s has fully acquired Global Credit Rating Company Limited (GCR), a leading domestic credit rating agency with operations spanning Africa.
. MIDDLE EAST
-Saudi Arabia tops the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) venture capital (VC) funding with SAR 1.5 billion ($412mln) in H1 2024, accounting for 54% of the region’s total VC investments, according to data firm Magnitt.
-Qatari companies earnings momentum is set to continue in Q2, QNB Financial Services (QNBFS) said in its latest report. Overall earnings, however, should decline 4.3 percent QoQ.
-Saudi state oil giant Aramco started selling three-part bonds maturing in 10, 30 and 40 years, fixed-income news service IFR reported on Wednesday.