Squawk Box Europe Express

The IMF warns the world economy is heading for its weakest pace of growth in more than 30 years as it cuts its medium-term outlook. The fund’s chief economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas tells CNBC that recent market turmoil has moved the conversation on from growth/inflation onto financial stability versus inflation. Despite the instability seen in the banking sector, the IMF’s Director of Monetary...

Chinese inflation slumps to an 18-month low with factory gate prices falling for a sixth consecutive month. Asian indices are in the green following dovish comments from the BoJ and BoK with investors banking on looser monetary policy, despite suggestions that the Federal Reserve will continue its rate hiking cycle. In the U.S., markets are flat following Good Friday’s robust jobs data. The CPI pr...

Weakening employment data and soft services activity in the U.S. provoke recession concerns for investors. The sentiment pushes the Nasdaq up to 1 per cent lower and has spilled over into today’s Asian session. French President Macron is in Beijing holding talks with new Premier Li Qiang in a bid to bring the Chinese onside regarding the conflict in Ukraine. He is due to meet President Xi later th...

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon says the banking crisis is far from over and that after-shocks will be felt for years as the global economy nears recession. We are live in Basel where UBS holds its first AGM since the takeover of Credit Suisse and the return of Sergio Ermotti as CEO. Meanwhile, the board of Credit Suisse faced hostile shareholders at its final AGM with Chairman Axel Lehmann expressing hi...

The board of Credit Suisse prepares to face shareholders during its first AGM in four years and what will likely be its last as an independent bank. We are live in Zurich for the latest. The Dow soars by more than 300 points to close its first session of the second quarter as investors attempt to shrug off fears that the sudden Opec+ supply cut could once again flare up inflation. In Australia, th...

Oil surges 8 per cent following a surprise Opec+ cut to supply by more than a million bpd in a bid to reportedly stabilise the market. The Nasdaq enjoys its best quarter in almost three years, unfazed by rising interest rates and the recent banking crisis. In Switzerland, prosecutors investigate UBS’s government-backed takeover of Credit Suisse. The new mega-bank is reportedly ready to slash up to...

UBS and Credit Suisse are reportedly facing interest payments of CHF10bn as the cost of last week’s emergency lifeline emerge. We are live on the shores of Lake Como, Italy where Ambrosetti managing partner Valerio De Molli tells CNBC the banking crisis is still far from over. In the U.S., the Biden administration hopes to tighten rules on mid-sized banks while bypassing Congress. Regional bank sh...

The EU claims the At1 bond wipe-out at Credit Suisse was wrong. We hear exclusively from the Single Resolution Board Chairman, Dominque Laboureix, who says the body would respect the hierarchy of those bondholders in any future banking crisis. In the U.S. Congress, lawmakers accuse Fed regulators of being ‘asleep at the wheel;’, following the collapse of SVB and Signature Bank. The S&P 500 clo...

UBS re-appoints its former CEO Sergio Ermotti to take over from Ralph Hamers from the 5th of April. The Federal Reserve’s top regulator, Michael Barr, slams Silicon Valley Bank for its asset management prior to the lender’s collapse. In China e-commerce giant Alibaba spins off its businesses into six units that could potentially opt for separate IPOs. Asian markets are in the green on the new...

The Federal Reserve’s top banking regulator calls the collapse of SVB “a textbook case of mismanagement”, blaming oversight at the start-up lender as Washington officials set up congressional hearings. Shares at First Citizens Bank soar following the deal with the FDIC to sweep up SVB’s deposits and loans. CEO Frank Holding tells CNBC the move will shore up confidence in the deposit system. Double...

First Citizens Bank has agreed to buy collapsed Silicon Valley from the U.S. FDIC, taking on all its deposits and loans. Regulators are mulling disciplinary action against Credit Suisse as the cost of insuring defaults causes Deutsche Bank to plunge. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz says that comparisons between the two banks should not be made. Chinese industrial profits slump by more than 20 per ce...

U.S. equities close in the green following a rollercoaster session and are set to end the week higher after U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen moves to calm contagion fears. The UK, Switzerland and Norway all hike interest rates. BoE Governor Andrew Bailey says that the recent turmoil in the banking sector is not a repeat of 2008. EU leaders meet in in Brussels following the meeting between Chin...

The U.S. Federal Reserve raises interest rates by 25bps and hints that the hiking cycle may be close to ending. A cautious Jerome Powell says that recent banking sector turmoil could trigger a credit crunch. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen back-tracks on deposit backstops causing equities to plunge and banks to sell off. We also preview upcoming central bank moves at the Bank of England as th...

U.S. markets receive a boost as bank stocks rally with Californian lender First Republic and others leading gains following a promise of protective measures from U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. Investors now await today’s Fed rate decision as well as more assurances a potential wider banking crisis will be contained with markets pricing in a 25bps hike. S&P urge investors to reassess the...

Global banks enjoy a relief rally after UBS’s $30bn takeover of beleaguered Swiss rival Credit Suisse. We are live in Zurich for the latest. However, First Republic Bank sees shares plunge once more as news emerges that JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon is reportedly leading efforts to stabilise the Californian lender. Credit Suisse bondholders consider legal action against the Swiss state after the gover...

UBS agrees to buy Credit Suisse for CHF 3.2bn in a historic deal that Swiss authorities say was desperately needed to prevent the collapse of the country’s second largest lender. Additional Tier 1 bondholders will be wiped out and UBS will take on more than $5bn of losses. Some of the largest central banks have announced fresh liquidity measures to stem any further fallout. Asian equities are in t...

U.S. banks band together, propping up First Republic with a $30 billion rescue deal. Meanwhile, UBS and Credit Suisse reportedly oppose a government-orchestrated tie-up, as the Swiss lender insists its capital position hasn't changed. Wall Street rallies, with banking stocks posting their best day of the year - putting the S&P500 on track for its best weekly performance since January. Investor...

Credit Suisse takes a 50 billion franc lifeline from the Swiss National Bank as it looks to restore confidence in the lender, after shares plummet 24 percent. The Chairman of the Saudi National Bank tells CNBC there have been no talks about providing additional financial assistance to Credit Suisse, as he tries to firm up confidence in the embattled lender. European banks brace themselves after a...

Contagion fears ease, sending global equity markets higher while U.S. core CPI tops estimates, putting more pressure on the Fed in the wake of the SVB collapse. China reports a rebound in consumer spending while real estate investment continues to lag as Beijing's post-covid year gets off to a mixed start. Meta continues its "year of efficiency" announcing another 10,000 layoffs, cancelling thousa...

Japanese banks lead losses in Asian trade - as global financial stocks lose almost half a trillion dollars in market value in the wake of Silicon Valley Bank's collapse. U.S. banks post their worst day in three years as ratings agency Moody's places First Republic Bank and five other lenders on downgrade watch. Turmoil in the banking sector sparks a furious rally in U.S. government bonds with the...

U.S. regulators have promised to fully shield Silicon Valley Bank deposits in a bid to shore up the banking sector and calm contagion concerns after a second lender, Signature Bank, is shut down. U.S. futures spike on the news and Goldman Sachs predicts that the Federal Reserve will refrain from raising interest rates next week as a result. In the UK, potential bidders for SVB’s British arm are ci...

Wall Street’s top banks suffer a $50bn market cap wipeout following Silicon Valley Bank’s $2bn loss while shedding assets to cover deposit outflows. The rout has triggered contagion fears among those holding bond portfolios and has dragged U.S. indices firmly lower. The Dow is now on track to post its worst week in almost half a year. Asian equities are also down as a result. President Joe Biden u...

U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell reiterates his message that the central bank will speed up the pace of rate hikes should it deem it necessary. The jobs market data remains stubborn but Powell insists that March’s rate decision is not yet a foregone conclusion. In China, inflation has slowed to its slowest pace since last February on weaker consumer activity while factory deflation cont...

U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell warns of a return to a 50bps interest rate hike this month as the jobs market and inflation show little signs of cooling. U.S. indices plunge on Powell’s Senate warning with the Dow lower year-to-date while the 2- and 10-year yield inversion reaches its steepest rate in four decades. The White House has endorsed a bill proposed by a bipartisan group of s...

President Xi Jinping accuses the U.S. of hampering China’s development while Foreign Minister Qin Gang says the two nations could be on course for confrontation. January and February import and export data out of Beijing comes in weak as China’s exit from zero-Covid restrictions is hobbled by supply chain bottlenecks and slowdown concerns. BofA CEO Brian Moynihan and JP Morgan boss Jamie Dimon are...