Policy & Government
BBH: EM Preview for the Week Ahead
EM went along for the ride last week as risk sentiment got a huge boost from the Fed’s QE and the passage of the US Senate-led stimulus bill. This week, improved China PMI readings for March may help the risk rally extend for a bit. Yet the economic toll will still be large as more and more countries go into lockdown. When the scope of the downturn becomes better known, we believe risk sentiment…
30 Mar 2020
China Unlikely to See Swift Recovery Despite Industrial Activity Resuming
Tentative signs of an impending recovery as factories reopen should not overshadow the reality that COVID-19’s impact on the Chinese economy will far exceed that of SARS or the global financial crisis, IIF warns.
27 Mar 2020
RBI Swings into Action with Slew of New Measures to Ease Pressure on India’s Credit Market
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday unveiled a series of new measures aimed at relieving some of the pressure on India’s credit markets – which have been rattled by a series of defaults and near-misses in recent weeks.
27 Mar 2020
COVID-19 Could Restart US-China Trade Tensions – Control Risks
With the US likely to fall into a recession combined with widespread social disruption caused by the lockdown, Trump’s re-election this November appears uncertain. Far from soothing tensions between the US and China, the pandemic has heightened them.
27 Mar 2020
Russian Banks Come Under Pressure as Kremlin Tweaks Taxes to Support Pandemic-Hit Economy
The Russian government introduced sweeping changes to the tax regime in order to support businesses and SMEs, while seeking to secure additional revenue streams elsewhere. But while the country’s ample FX reserves should see it fare better than many EM peers, its banking sector – subject to a massive and prolonged consolidation over the past five years – is also feeling the squeeze.
27 Mar 2020
Somalia Lands IMF Funding Deal in Huge Boost to Reform Effort
The IMF has agreed to lend Somalia SDR292.4mn (approx. USD395.5mn) as part of a three-year Extended Credit Facility (ECF) and the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) in a significant boost to the war-torn country’s reform efforts.
26 Mar 2020
World Bank Approves USD500mn Loan to Ethiopia
The World Bank has approved a USD500mn loan to Ethiopia, in order to support the government’s ‘Homegrown Reform Agenda’, underpinned by the Second Ethiopia Growth and Competitiveness Development Policy Operation (DPO).
26 Mar 2020
Kenyan Bond Yields Spike Due to Pandemic, Locust Disruption – Cytonn Investments
As the COVID-19 pandemic wracks emerging and developed economies alike, market have gone into overdrive with shares and bonds both suffering heavy sell-offs as investors flee to the safety of US dollars. Kenya’s local currency treasury bonds (TBs) and outstanding Eurobonds have been no exception to this trend.
26 Mar 2020
Ashmore: Assessing the EM Policy Reaction-Function in the Context of a COVID-19 Induced Recession
Ashmore's Deputy Head of Research Gustavo Medeiros assesses the policy reactions in emerging and developed world to the COVID19 pandemic and its impact on the global economy, concluding that EMs - lead by a gradual recovery in China and intra-EM trade - will regain strength and resilience as the crisis subsides.
25 Mar 2020
City of Tshwane Defaults on Bond – Nedbank
On 24th March, the City of Teshwane Metropolitan Municipality, a local government municipality covering Pretoria and the surrounding areas, defaulted on a ZAR5.5bn local currency medium-term note. According to Jones Gondo, Senior Credit Analyst, and Nthulleng Mphahlele, Analyst at Nedbank, it is a technical default caused by government issues.
25 Mar 2020