Topic: Currencies

Singapore inflation hit a slightly higher-than-expected 5.4 percent in April, increasing the chance that it may exceed a government forecast for the year and putting pressure on the central bank to keep a tighter monetary policy.

When Lehman Brothers declared bankruptcy in September 2008, investors rushed to buy gold. When the eurozone crisis erupted in 2010, they bought more.' But this year the buying has fizzled out, reports the Financial Times.

I sympathize with the Germans. This is not because I agree with their prevailing view of how the crisis occurred or what to do about it. I sympathize because the German elite were the ones who understood what creating the euro implied. They realized that a currency union could not work without a political union. The FT reports.

The euro slumped to its weakest level against the dollar in nearly two years on Wednesday on doubts a meeting of European leaders would calm fears of a disorderly Greek exit from the euro zone.

Germany dismissed a French-led call for euro zone nations to issue common bonds, a day before a European Union leaders' summit which investors are looking to for new measures to counter the bloc's debt crisis.

Greece should not be lulled into believing an exit from the euro would lead to the sort of short shock and sharp rebound that Argentina and Asian nations experienced when they devalued their currencies more than a decade ago.

Banks are braced for a fresh attack on their profit margins, if Moody’s presses ahead shortly with plans to downgrade short-term funding ratings sectorwide. The FT reports.

The euro fell on Tuesday as skepticism grew that an informal meeting of European leaders would yield much progress in tackling the debt crisis, with worries about Greek politics and Spanish banking problems expected to keep the currency weak.

The majority of the world’s art that is not on display, either in museums or private residences, is stored in a small number of tax-free ports across the globe, mainly in Switzerland.

The world has "hopefully" gotten through the worst in terms of what some analysts have called "currency wars," according to Chad P. Bown, senior economist at the World Bank's Development Research Group, Trade and International Integration.

The Institute of Directors has endorsed a radical proposal that recommends replacing part of the UK tax system with a single income tax rate of 30 percent and reducing the government’s share of the national economy to one-third, the Financial Times reports.

Vince Cable, business secretary, has vowed to resist “bonkers” proposals to allow bosses to fire underperforming staff at will, as coalition tensions flared over a Number 10-inspired report on cutting jobs red tape. The FT reports.

The euro edged higher against the U.S. dollar on Monday as traders paused after driving the common currency to a four-month low and awaited a meeting of euro zone leaders this week.

If or when policymakers finally decide Greece should leave the euro, the exit could happen so quickly that "new drachma" currency notes might not be printed in time.

How much interest would you want back if you lent to huge amounts of money to someone on an unsecured basis, and if that person had unaudited accounts and a history of playing dirty when the chips are down?