.ASIA/PACIFIC
-The Australian stock market finished higher on Thursday as the pace of declines slowed on Wall Street overnight from its frenetic sell-off in the previous session.
-Asian markets closed mixed on Thursday after Wednesday’ sell-off with Japan’s Nikkei leading losses in the region.
-China commits $50.6B in funding to Africa in 3 years, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced Thursday.
. EUROPE
-European stock markets were mixed Thursday morning, continuing a negative run after closing last week at a record high.
-The Munich-based Ifo Institute for Economic Research Ifo forecasts ‘zero growth’ in Germany this year.
-Construction activity in the United Kingdom decelerated in August standing at 53.6, S&P Global shared in its report.
. AMERICAS
North America
-U.S. stock futures were slightly higher Thursday morning as Wall Street looks to regain momentum after a rocky start to September.
Latin America
-UBS Predicts Brazil’s Economic Trends: Steady Now, Slower Ahead.
-From January to July 2024, Peru’s exports grew by 11.8%, Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism, Úrsula León, reported.
. AFRICA
-Ghana to raise cocoa farmgate price by nearly 45% for the 2024/25 crop season, local media reported. Cocoa prices have been buoyant this year amid disease and adverse weather in Ghana and Ivory Coast, which together supply more than 60% of the world’s cocoa.
-The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) will determine on Thursday, the fate of the Egyptian pound’s interest rate. Market analysts widely anticipate that the CBE will opt to maintain the current rates for the third consecutive time.
-Nigeria’s power generation made history, rising to a three-year high of 5,313mw on Monday.
. MIDDLE EAST
-Saudi-based BNPL app Tabby is working on an IPO, but current focus is on its recent acquisition of Saudi digital wallet Tweek and developing its services in the kingdom.
-S&P expects Gulf Cooperation Council banks to sustain strong performance throughout 2024, absent any unexpected shock. In H1 2024, the institutions have benefited from increasing lending volumes, higher fee income, stable margins, and strong cost efficiency.
-Qatar Central Bank (QCB) has issued Artificial Intelligence (AI) guidelines for financial institutions in the country.
