Economy
'Difficult discussions' as WTO talks extended for third time
The world's trade ministers entered a last stretch of talks on Friday following overnight negotiations as a major World Trade Organization conference postponed its closing session for a third time. "In order to give more time for negotiations, the formal closing Session of MC13 has now been postponed."
Swiss central bank head steps down in surprise move
The head of Switzerland's central bank, Thomas Jordan, will step down in September after 12 years in charge, the bank said in a surprise statement Friday. "The Bank Council and the Governing Board greatly regret Thomas Jordan’s decision, and express their sincere thanks for his many years of outstanding commitment in the interests of a stability-oriented monetary policy," it said.
French farmers protest near Paris's Arc de Triomphe
French farmers ringed Paris's famed Arc de Triomphe monument with tractors on Friday, saying the protest was aimed "at saving French agriculture", the Rural Coordination union said.
Asian markets mostly up after US gains
Asian markets were largely higher on Friday following Wall Street gains driven by tech rallies and key US inflation data that met investors' expectations. On Wall Street, the tech-linked Nasdaq set a new record, surpassing a 2021 high.
Riding high on AI, Nvidia is no bubble, says Wall Street
The emergence of AI bots like OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Bard has fueled a massive rise in share prices of chip-making juggernaut Nvidia, with its skyrocketing stock now making it the world's fourth biggest company by market capitalization.
Divided G20 blocked by 'impasse' over Ukraine, Gaza
The first G20 finance ministers' meeting of the year ended Thursday without a joint statement due to deep divisions over the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, officials said. - No 'business as usual' - German Finance Minister Christian Lindner had earlier said his country planned to insist any final statement address Russia's two-year-old war in Ukraine.
G20 hears a $250-billion-a-year idea: tax the super-rich
French economist Gabriel Zucman brought a $250-billion-a-year idea to top policy makers from the world's biggest economies Thursday: slap an international wealth tax on the super-rich. - What is argument for minimum tax on super-rich?
Oprah's WeightWatchers exit sends stock tumbling
Oprah Winfrey's announcement that she is leaving the board of WeightWatchers sent the company's shares tumbling Thursday -- the latest sign of trouble for the brand as it struggles to compete with new weight-loss drugs. "Director Oprah Winfrey has decided not to stand for reelection at the company's upcoming annual meeting of shareholders," WeightWatchers said in a statement Thursday.
US Fed official says open to 'summer time' interest rate cut
The speed at which US inflation is easing means it will likely be appropriate for the Federal Reserve to start cutting interest rates over the summer, a senior Fed official said Thursday. Bostic's summer time cut prediction appears to chime with the current views in the financial markets about when the Fed could start reducing rates.
Economy
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